Hey MIT 3208, Gossip Girl here, and BOY do I have the juice you’ve been waiting for all week - one of my many sources - MITstudent174 sent in - SPOTTED: Serena Mendizabal trash talking Gossip Gi…. Wait me? Who does this girl think she is? Post-feminist discourse, what is this shit Serena is talking about?
OKAY, do not get me wrong, I totally was a victim of the Gossip Girl obsession in early high school - longing for my name to not be the only thing I share with Serena VanDerWoodsen. And to be honest, it continued into my first year of university where I dreamt of being as organized, uppity, and put together as yours truly, Ms. Blair Waldorf. How did these girls do it? Where can I sign up? All I ever wanted as a young girl was to be beautiful and successful. Was it because that is all television wanted me to think I needed in life? It was a dream world and it still is. I was a pretty big fan of the show, but I think that may help me be able to critically look at Gossip Girl and think “What the fuck?”
I am all here for living your truth - own your wealth, strut that look, do what you want!!! It really does not matter to me, but when it comes to television, I feel like it may be a different story. These females, Serena and Blair, are outrageously beautiful and are consumed by the riches that revolve around their high class lifestyle. They seem to have it all with the looks, money, men (have you seen Nate Archibald?), EVERYTHING! Well except for the constant unrealistic drama that comes in, but oh do not worry, it will be resolved most likely by the next episode. Living in the Upper East Side with the endless limos and mimosas - did these young women beat the game of life already?
Probably going to have to take a hard no on that one because it is truthfully all made up fiction that showcases the lavish life of what white privilege can buy you. Networks have conditioned society to believe that we want our programming to be about the highs and lows of the rich and beautiful. They put a couple cat-fighting female bets friend leads, that is a pass on the Bechdel test? Right? It runs a lap, but it does not finish the race. We have gotten so far, but not far enough.
People like to think feminism is dead. We have Serena and Blair thriving, what more work is there really to be done? Television continues to create delusions in people’s heads believing that what we view on TV is the real world. It is not. Sadly. Or in this case happily because I think society is starting to get over rooting for the wealthy and elite. We want more Fiona Gallagher’s in this joint. These programs may be fulfilling your wildest fantasies, but when looking at women’s television critically, we have to remember that this is just a fantasy. Gossip Girl really is only on TV due to the work feminism has done and now it just seems like it doesn’t even need the help anymore as it has driven away from the direction feminism is taking now.
The time is now. Gossip Girl is women’s television, but for what women? The show needed to go further. Feminism is a process, we aren’t giving up until WE SEE what we want on television. We want women from all walks of life on our screens. If you’re looking for brain junk food, Gossip Girl is right for you. If you’re trying to find television for women that’s title doesn’t already front women against each other, then well we may have to do some browsing on Netflix.
XOXO Serena Mendizabal
Not Gossip Girl
She sucks
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