Mad Men Meme

[sunclouds33]

I did this meme for Mad Men for 12_12_12. I had too many characters in my answer to be contained in a less than four comments. I'm just writing a separate entry- which I generally like doing on these memes anyway. Feel free to ask more fandoms. So far I've done the Buffyverse, Harry Potter, The Good Wife, and Mad Men

Comments

[frelling_tralk]

Dollhouse? :)

[wildcard_47]

"She's so invested in her various performances that her true motivations are very difficult to tangle, especially since she's the not the central POV character..."

I think this is why I find Joan so fascinating. She has strong dreams and ambitions, but 95% of the time, she keeps those instincts under wraps as she tries to figure out what other people want her to want and how much true feeling she can admit to without being mocked. It's intuitive and cunning and tragic.

[sunclouds33]

I think Joan is fascinating too. I do think a lot of her choices get tied up with her past and its failed marriage, multiple abortions. Joan is out to regain "respectability" in a decade where the definition of "respectability" changes and when she ironically, gets these opportunities for future respectability by not being respectable (the Jaguar deal as a classic example but also her affair with Roger or the temptations of marrying known rapist Greg and then, known homosexual Bob Benson in a fake marriage

[wildcard_47]

Yeah, agreed: I think Joan's not so much tied to her past as....punishing herself for her choices? Even when those choices work out? It's kind of a sunk cost effect -- she realizes it's a bad deal, but instead of pulling out at the last minute and looking flighty, naive, or both, she pushes the throttle down and owns that bad choice 1000%. Like you said, she snipes at Herb Rennet for being a dick, but simultaneously doesn't resent the power that comes with being a full partner. And yes, it's a learned finesse -- not perfect, but definitely broad stroke in some cases. And she's always ready to yo-yo back to something else if one title or approach isn't successful. I think that's why she's so adaptable and able to turn her failures into successes.

[sunclouds33]

Yes, it's part of why Joan is complicated. Because I agree that Joan really commits herself to the consequences of her choices, but I also agree (and proposed) that she's adaptable and occupies a lot of different and varying roles. Even though it's painful and really not necessary, Joan commits to holding her nose and marrying Dr. Rapist, being a shopgirl instead of asking for her old job back at SC even as Roger calls to chat a lot, refusing Roger's child support money, wanting Herb/Jaguar to remain clients and thus, constant reminders of her humiliations, sticking with Cutler even though she was isolated in that position and Cutler didn't give a shit about her anti-Harry Crane as partner vote. I don't know that she's punishing herself in these actions- but she trying to fulfill A Code that a respectable woman accepts the consequences of her actions and never flip-flops on a stated position, even when there's an exit point or even when there's little value or goodness in what she's doing other than commitment and bearing the