"I need to marry a Jackie, not a Marilyn": How Stereotypes Harm

Graphics by Justine Arriola

“𝑰 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒚 𝒂 𝑱𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒊𝒆, 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒂 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒍𝒚𝒏”

This is a line from the feminist chick flick “Legally Blonde” starring Reese Witherspoon as Elle Woods who goes to Harvard Law School in hopes of getting back her ex-boyfriend Warner.

The scene involves Elle anticipating a proposal, but Warner broke up with her instead. He stated that he would run for senator and needed to marry a “Jackie”, not a “Marilyn”. Later in the movie, it was shown that Warner is engaged to a woman named Vivian. Vivian appeared to be the “Jackie” he wanted and Elle was the “Marilyn” he was referring to.

The names mentioned were a reference to two famous women; former U.S. first lady Jackie Kennedy and actress Marilyn Monroe. Why were they referenced in the film? How does the media portray them? Where did this all start?

𝑯𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑯𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 Its origins seem to root in a scandalous controversy sparked on May 19, 1962, ten days before former US president John Kennedy’s birthday. Marilyn sang Happy Birthday to Kennedy at a fundraiser event.

Rumors started circulating that Marilyn Monroe had an affair with John Kennedy. The speculations range from them sleeping together to Kennedy being the one behind Marilyn’s sudden passing. The affair and the murder were neither confirmed nor denied, hence why the public has mixed views on this topic.

Those events lead to people comparing the alleged mistress, Marilyn Monroe, and the legal wife, Jackie Kennedy.

𝑨𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒕𝒚𝒑𝒆 𝑨𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒚𝒔𝒊𝒔 Let’s look back into history way back to the 1950s. Marilyn Monroe is one of the greatest icons in Hollywood. Her good looks and seductive charm has earned her the title, “Sex Symbol”. Her name was then associated with negative views such as materialism and lasciviousness. Jackie Kennedy is a staple name when it comes to first ladies. She was clever, elegant, and impactful. She also received hate and criticism like she was an “unattractive” lavish stuck-up privileged woman who married for wealth.

Because of the alleged affair, their worth as women were questioned by the public. Marilyn was seen as a cheap unclassy blonde bimbo home-wrecker, while Jackie was seen as a brunette wife who lets her husband cheat on her because she has no self-worth. This is quite an unfair judgment considering their lives aren’t transparent and the affair is only assumed.

Both of them can go beyond their archetype. People forget that they’re also humans who have multiple sides to their characters. Most people overlook that Monroe was a talented actress who later started her own company and called out sexual harassment in Hollywood. Jackie Kennedy herself was a fashion trendsetter, and a career woman and even renovated the White House.

Some parts of Marilyn’s life were infamously tragic, as she suffered an abusive childhood and harassment in her career. She also went through multiple miscarriages.

Jackie also had her fair share of struggles. She had PTSD and became an alcoholic after her husband’s assassination. Like Marilyn, she also went through miscarriages.

𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 This created a dichotomy between women. Trends categorizing women into two types have resurfaced on social media (e.g. the “Bruh Girl vs. Hiii Girl” trend). There is nothing wrong with having a role model or identifying under a category. However, we must remember that not everything is black and white. Just like how colors can come in different shades, one woman can have a range of abilities and perceptions instead of being confined to a certain stereotype. To the women reading this, however, you want to portray yourself or whoever you choose to be, always remember to be kind and respectful, and that nothing will make you less of a woman.

𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬: Petrovitsová S. (2022). Jackie versus Marilyn. https://www.thebusinesssoiree.com/.../jackie-versus-marilyn Shirali K. (2020). Jackie or Marilyn? The Anatomy of a “Mad Men” Ad Campaign. https://keyashirali6.medium.com/jackie-or-marilyn-the... McAfee T. (2018). Jackie Kennedy's Despair After JFK's Assassination and How She Turned to Alcohol and Pills. https://people.com/.../jfk-assassination-jackie-kennedy.../ ints%20in%20her%20life. The Business Standard. (2021). Marilyn Monroe: An actress more than just a sex symbol. https://www.tbsnews.net/.../marilyn-monroe-actress-more... Ngomsi V. (2018). 8 ways Jackie Kennedy influenced history. https://www.insider.com/jackie-kennedy-influenced-history...