Here vs. There: A placeholder for Far Away Places

[superplin]

Crazy week, so unable to get to any analysis of Mad Men, alas.

All I have time to say here, at the moment, is this: the keyword is boundaries. To identify what something is, we also have to know what it is not; if there's a there there, it means it's someplace other than here, which is... where, exactly

Comments

[amelia_eve]

I'll just toss out something that Tom & Lorenzo solidified for me: both the younger wives referenced I Dream of Jeannie, Jane through her out fit with the exposed midriff, harem pants, and jeweled hair-do, and Megan when she sarcastically tells Don, "Yes, Master." IDoJ debuted in 1965, and one of the main premises of the show was trying to hide the relationship of the two main characters from his colleagues. Roger literally hid Jane from their coworkers by taking her out of the workplace, but that seems to be what she wanted at the time. Now Don is flippant about Megan's actual work commitments, but she isn't putting up with it. And I just plain adored Peggy trying on Don's life for a day.

[superplin]

Oh, I love Tom & Lorenzo's posts about Mad Men, especially the Mad Style ones. They are so astute at highlighting the visual cues that come from clothes, lighting, and interiors. The I Dream of Jeannie connection is such a great point. Jane's outfit was wacktastically awesome.

But I must say I'm disagreeing with a lot of their interpretations of events this season, which actually makes it all even more interesting to me.

Peggy is so very fascinating as a character. She's like a walking microcosm of the era, and all the changes and confusion it brought.

[amelia_eve]

Obviously, I relate to Peggy as an ambitious woman with a career, but in particular she reminds me of my godmother. My godmother was in journalism, rather than advertising, but she was also negotiating between a good Catholic daughter and moving forward in her career. And I really remember her in those department-store outfits with the 3/4 length sleeves and the vests and bows. I think there wasn't much in the way of real separates for women then beyond a basic skirt and blouse. I never saw my godmother in a shirtwaist, though. She was enough older than Peggy that she'd been more in with the Beats, and recently sent me a bunch of chapbooks she'd acquired at City Lights Books in the late 1950s.

[revdorothyl]

Here's hoping you have a very happy birthday tomorrow, and many joyous returns of the day! :)