>1. My first, and more conservative, interpretation is that
>the episode brought together the different women and their
>different lives to show how each has her own, very specific
>struggles. When they confront each other in the office at the
>end, they're sort of confronting themselves in a twisted
>mirror. But they're all in the same boat--or elevator, as it
>turns out--stopping up the same leaks of sexism and misogyny
>in the attempt to sail. It's a futile attempt, though--the
>elevator is, after all, going down, and their boat down with
>it.

i was fine with it until the end that ending metphor isn't working for me

although the first part is interesting and has me revisiting the scene of Sally falling


>2. My second, and riskier, interpretation is that the closing
>scenes show that despite the show's intentional scapegoating
>of Betty as the worst woman/wife/mother possible, in
>comparison to the other women who stand opposite of her in the
>lobby, Betty may in fact be read as the most transgressive
>woman on the show. The episode shows that Peggy, Fay, and Joan
>are still mired in the thick of sexism, and none of them are
>really prepared for it. Peggy is always a step behind--to save
>face, she brings race up, which Don easily bats away; Fay is
>at a moment's notice transformed into the babysitter, and is
>upset with Don not because he shouldn't expect her to possess
>maternal instincts, but because she fears she doesn't have
>them; and Joan, well, I'm still holding out for her. She
>understands more about men than do the others, but mostly
>seeks to find her place among them.
>
>Betty, on the other hand, is so transgressive that she
>repulses us. Don is as bad a father as she is a mother--and
>Betty reminds him of it. She told him to put up with Sally for
>the next day, until she was ready to get her. She may not
>handle situations with the most grace, but she isn't a step
>behind (like Peggy), doesn't relish the maternal (like Fay),
>and doesn't simply accept how things are (like Joan). Her
>tantrum at the restaurant in last week's episode was exemplary
>of this: yes, she perhaps could have been more tactful about
>it. But Henry wasn't really going to listen to her one way or
>the other, and she lets him know it. Even if she isn't in the
>office like these careerist women are, she seems more willing
>to put her foot down on what she wants to do.
>
>Given this reading, it makes sense that in the closing scenes,
>Betty leaves the office first, Peggy's lesbian friend second,
>and Peggy, Fay, and Joan last. Betty, despite her seemingly
>traditional position and seemingly disreputable qualities, is
>ahead of the pack.


again still not working with the ending for me

esp regarding peggy being a step behind
regarding racism agreed
regarding sexism absolutely not
and her handling of her suitor and understanding and addressing the real life transgressions of what he was doing showed that she definitely understands what is happening and has her finger on the pulse of her situation personally and professionally
it just seems she missed out on the other revolution going on while she was fighting her own
but i'd say we are all myopic in that way


~~~~
When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~~~~
You cannot hate people for their own good.