The Un-Likability of a Serious, Intelligent, Determined, and Ambitious Woman
I asked readers to suggest to me what Hillary's problem was. I consider it indisputable that there is a problem. Hillary punches below her weight. There really is an enthusiasm gap. At Hillary rallies people are interested; at Sanders rallies people are enthusiastic.
A college classmate, Marjorie David, a TV producer and writer in LA, says it turns out to be pretty simple:
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| Pants Suit. Standing up. Strong stance. |
"Uppity women! I think it's sexism. Not liking Clinton as a candidate for some actual reason -- say, her hawkishness -- isn't the case here. If you are educated and get your news from normal(ish) sources, and if you work with educated women who are willing to stand up for themselves in a directly challenging way to men, then her manner means a lot less. She's threatening to these men because she is powerful. She doesn't flirt or waste time trying to please. To be honest, everyone likes a pleasant, conciliatory approach under most circumstances. But less educated white men have lost power, prestige, money and self esteem over the last several years. This is a bridge too far for them."
A male Oregon writer in his 80's, whose widely sold thriller genre books included multiple examples of strong, independent, fearless, and sometimes murderous women, said it this way:
"Hillary has by now a long history of committing overt, unapologetic assertiveness among males. Wouldn't surprise me if Liz eventually got fitted with the same mantle. The more arrogant & incompetent a man, the more he'll need to disrespect such uppity women."
A male elected official in Oregon sent me an observation he had received on this topic. It emphasized Hillary as demeaning to insecure men. And she isn't sexy.
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| On display after Monica |
What is going to prevent Hillary from being elected is that no one can conceive of her being sexy. Now, Barrack Obama, even though he is a black man, I’m sure many respectable white women could (and did) imagine putting on the Barry White, sipping a little Chablis, and imagining the horizontal mambo with tall, athletic Barry O. I mean, he’s a fair skinned black, Ivy League educated, a smooth talker with big hands. A little bit of the ‘bad boy’ that chicks find attractive in a dangerous way – he was in the choom gang, after all:
Hillary, on the other hand, leads to male emasculation in a very literal, visceral way. Your picture of the scolding nun captures it. Not only are white males obsolete in terms of their place in the world, their ability to earn a living, now they have to live with 4-8 years of a know it all policy scold telling them what’s what."
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| Studious Hillary |
My own impressions from seeing Hillary Clinton events live in Oregon and New Hampshire this cycle was that Hillary presented as a serious type-A ambitious workaholic. Her fundraising speech in Portland was a list of policy proposals. Her Listening Tour meetings on opioid addiction and college affordability were examples of her dutifulness and conscientiousness. Hillary: I am serious and I will work hard. (Meanwhile, across town, Trump was holding a rally and communicating: Trump: I am strong and I will lead America back to greatness.)
A professional woman in America faces a headwind. Hillary is serious, but not engaging. Competent, but not thrilling.
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| The Fox News way of making women likable |
I am picturing a car on the auto dealer's lot. The car gets good mileage, is safe, has good cargo space, and it meets the specifications. But it doesn't sell well because for some reason it lacks what the car salesman knows but has a hard time putting his finger on. The men don't seem to get a feeling of thrill and empowerment when the see it or sit in the driver's seat. The car lacks sex appeal. Detroit understands what Washington, DC does not.
Fox News has a formula for dealing with women with enough authority to read the news and voice opinions. Cast attractive young women in tight sleeveless dresses, facing the camera with legs crossed demurely, but exposed. But this isn't an available path for Hillary, who is nice looking but presents as competent, not flirtatious, and serious rather than sexy.
4 comments:
Thrilling is undoubtedly in the eye of the beholder, and that is a quality that evolves and is context-specific. She is dynamic and in motion in a way I did not view her during the primary. I am now finding Hillary Rodham Clinton to be more exciting and thrilling with each new speech. She is sparkling with confidence, effervescent in her expertise, more and more alluring in leadership. She is strong, beautiful and a person I want to follow. Hillary Clinton is woman for our era, indeed, a woman of the ages.
Alluring? Sparkling? Effervescent? Thrilling? Exciting? When did that happen? The new me? Wish she was, but not so much yet. Go, baby, go.
Positively intriguing! I think many women face this sort of conundrum in their professional lives but certainly not to the extent that Hillary Clinton is! I think she is up for the win!!!!
what doesn't surprise me but always disappoints me is that we need a leader who is likable instead of competent. I'm thinking about effective women leaders where sexiness or likability don't seem to have been an issue. People like Golda Mier, Margaret Thatcher and Angela Merkel. Then of course Benazir Bhutto and Indira Gandhi who were so effective - they were assassinated.
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