Again, my inspiration came from the brilliant mind of
Shonda Rhimes, via Grey’s Anatomy. This
blog is called FemPop and I get my inspiration from popular culture. I make no
apologies for that. On season 13, episode 13, the women at Grey-Sloane Memorial
Hospital are doing their jobs, kicking ass, and taking names, you know, saving
lives; but their husbands seem to be having a hard time dealing. Dr. Miranda
Bailey, Chief of Surgery, is making very unpopular decisions that are directly
in opposition to her predecessor, Dr. Richard Webber. She has brought in a female, teaching
consultant which has ruffled everyone’s feathers. The attending doctors actually decide to
systematically ostracize her, men and women, using relational aggression. Then,
the attendings unanimously refuse to show up to a meeting Dr. Miranda Bailey calls
to put a stop to this behavior. Would
this have ever happened to the previous Chief of Surgery? Probably not, because
he is a man. While the argument could be made that the political implications
surrounding her decisions are the real motivations behind such defiant
behavior, this is a recurring theme in the episode and I believe it reflects
the state of affairs in the real world. Dr. Bailey is married to a resident,
someone who is far below her in rank and power at the hospital. Sure, there are
some conflicts of interest; but he is her partner first and they have an
agreement, “separation of church and state”, meaning work does not get brought
home. In this episode, he won’t even
engage with her on the topic. This smart
woman, who is the boss, and has exercised her power, is alone, even at home.
Dr. Richard Webber is married to Dr. Catherine Avery, who pretty much owns the
hospital. This is another example of an
imbalance of power that goes against traditional gender norms. They too fight about what is going on at the
hospital. Her motives, decisions, and way she exerts her power is questioned by
her husband. Interestingly, Dr. Avery is the one who encouraged Dr. Bailey to own
her power and do what she felt was best for the hospital, even if it made her
unpopular. The next decision Dr. Bailey makes shakes the very foundation of the
show, she suspends Dr. Meredith Grey for insubordination. This creates an even
stronger divide among the main players and now two women are pitted against
each other. A not so likely choice for her replacement creates problems in another
heterosexual relationship. Dr. April Kepner is promoted to Interim Chief of
General Surgery. Dr. Kepner is your typical “nice girl”, she smiles, follows
the rules, and never imagined she’d have a baby after she got divorced. She is
now accused of being “opportunistic” and power hungry. Now, I understand that everyone loves Dr.
Meredith Grey and she is portrayed as a superior surgeon; but Dr. April Kepner
is doing her job and doing what is best for the hospital; this position needs
to be filled. Also, despite her
traditional gender traits, she is getting to experience power and recognition
for her own abilities. All of that is
undermined and she too can’t share this new role, with its struggles and
triumphs with her baby’s father, Dr. Jackson Avery (Dr. Catherine Avery’s son)
who questions whether she got the position because of her merit. The story
comes full circle as Dr. Catherine Avery takes Dr. April Kepner, her once
daughter-in-law, under her wing and bolsters her as a smart woman, who is
secure in herself should. The episode ends with a preview for the next week
showing Dr. Bailey asking Dr. Grey to deal with this like “smart women”. This
is really the point. The divide within
the hospital crosses genders and while it is first Team Bailey vs. Team Webber,
it then becomes Team Bailey vs. Team Grey. To me, this episode portrays how
women, even at the top of their respected professions can be catty and
sometimes act on their first instinct to tear the other woman down. The episode
also shows how others can instigate and promote this type of behavior. This 42
minute episode reminds us that a smart woman can be seen as dangerous to the
status quo. The episode made me angry
and frustrated. The imaginary world of
Shondaland is progressive and feminist and maybe that’s why this story was told
there. These interpersonal conflicts
among smart women of color are usually ignored. Other story lines center on a
woman’s love interest or a white man’s struggle. This would all be background noise on another
medical drama. Thank you Shonda for
using your show as a platform to tell stories usually ignored. I was reminded
while watching this week’s show that there are still people in our society, in
2017, who will stop at nothing to pull down a smart woman off her pedestal. A
smart woman is one who persists, who continues her work while losing popularity,
rises above name calling (i.e. nasty woman) and risks isolation and yet is
someone to be admired.
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