Gilmore Girl(ism)

Having read the article on Gilmore Girls by Francesca Gamber before watching the screening, I could not help but pick up on the feminist model that is played out on Gilmore Girls. Having said that, however, I don’t think that the model was overtly feminist where it is clear what the writer is trying to do. I honestly think that if I had watched it prior to this class, I probably would not have even picked up on the feminism. To me it just seemed like a your typical “girly show” that is catered to women more than men; a “chick flick” for TV, if you will.

Gamber positions Lorelei and Rory against the second wave feminist models and suggests that they do not fit the stereotype of the harsh feminist that comes from second wave feminism. Instead, she argues that Lorelei and Rory are examples of third wave feminism. Second wave feminism was characterized by a strong, career driven woman who does not have time for a romantic life. Gamber argues that “Lorelei and Rory clearly owe much to second wave feminism  […]. Yet Gilmore Girls does not simply engage in facile celebration of the strong woman. Much of the tension in the series comes from Lorelei’s and Rory’s efforts to balance their work and their romantic and familial relationships” (128). Watching the show reinforced Gamber’s points for me.  Yes, Lorelei was the boss and she seemed to be a workaholic, but she also always found time to talk with her daughter and made time for men in her life, which seemed to make her very happy. The third wave feminism model presented by Gilmore Girls provides a good example to girls, in my opinion, because it suggests that its not “one or the other”; you can be successful while maintaining a relationship with your family.

One thing I would feel remiss if I didn’t comment on was the dynamic of the single mother household. Most teen television shows have a familial structure of a mother, a father and children. I think that is why this change was so noticeable to me because it is not common for that dynamic to be played out on television. I really think that the single mother family model makes this show work. If the traditional family model was used in the show and there was a father, the dynamic would change dramatically. Family meals wouldn’t be the same, the relationship between Rory and Lorelei would be different, among many other things that make this show resonate.

Gilmore Girls presents many feminist aspects and models, which Gamber argues, serves the purpose of “presenting a vital feminism whose only requirement of young women in order to remain vital is not that they parrot a single feminist model but rather they make a feminism of their own” (129). Its their very own "Gilmore Girlism."