A couple of weeks ago, I announced (by way of my Facebook status) that if I could choose any one fictional character to be, I would choose Scarlett O'Hara. I also posed the question "Who would you be?" Elizabeth Bennett and Jo from Little Women were the two most popular answers I got back, but I must say I also felt like I was being scolded and judged for my own choice as people felt obliged to point out to me that Scarlet "walked all over people." Now, I had stated in my status that I knew she was not the perfect role model, but I felt like people weren't looking at her and the same point of view that I was. I guess now I feel the need to justify myself, so that's exactly what I am going to do.
First of all, I have, through the years, fallen in love with the idea of "Southern life," so that was one of the more appealing things for me when looking at Scarlett's life. I also loved her growth as a person through-out the story. She may not have been the best wife or mother, but these things were forced upon her.
Her strength as a woman, especially against the views and beliefs of her time, really excited the feminist in me! People would tell her, "You can't buy a sawmill!" and she would respond "Watch me!" After she had bought it they told her "You certainly can't run it yourself!" and she proved them wrong again. They had all but given up on controlling her when she proved them wrong a third time by buying yet another sawmill to add to the first. After looking at this and the other ways Scarlett stood up against society and it's standards in gender roles, I'm pretty sure Scarlett O'Hara invented "girl power." Perhaps she was the original Spice Girl! Ha!
As much as I was angry with her for not giving in to Rhett and loving him back, I was angry with him in the end as well. Yes, she could have been a better mother, and there really should have been no excuse, but motherhood was never what she wanted and she never had a choice in the matter. Literally! She couldn't even say no to her husband. She tried to postpone it all as best she could, and when it happened, she dealt with it in the way that best suited her.
There are other characters I could have chosen, Heidi for instance, but Scarlett's hit home for me. Scarlett certainly had character flaws, but that made her human. She made mistakes, but that made her human too. Her life was hard at times, but that made it real. Who wants a "perfect" life? It would be so boring! She fought the norms of the time, especially those created by gender roles. To me, that makes her remarkable and sets an example I believe every young girl should have a chance to follow!
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