The first amendment fully entitles Miley to do whatever she wants with her tongue and a foam finger. It also says that it’s totally fine for Lady Gaga to wear a thong and a seashell bra while she parades around on national television. And yeah, Amanda Bynes can technically tweet all the things she would do to Drake if they were left alone. But few people would say that this behavior should be adopted by every tween, teen and college woman in America. The recent theatrical and controversial behavior has caused many to discount celebrities as role models. But by abandoning hope on famous females, young women would miss out on the opportunity to learn from talented, intelligent and respected women in society. This is referring, of course, to the lovely women of comedy.
Women in comedy have consistently acted as intelligent, upstanding women in society, but their numbers and relevance have grown significantly in the past few years. Mindy Kaling has recently risen to fame, starting out on The Office and going on to write and star in The Mindy Project. Maya Rudolph and Kristin Wiig displayed their comedic aptitude in Bridesmaids, which eventually went on to win the Critics’ Choice award for Best Comedy. Classics such as Ellen DeGeneres and Chelsea Handler, who have historically received both public and critical acclaim, have been joined by similarly celebrated newcomers such as Kate McKinnon and Rebel Wilson.
Grace Devlin, a sophomore in the Weinberg School of Arts and Sciences, says that Tina Fey and Amy Poehler’s relationship is particularly inspirational.
“They’re both so funny, but they’re even funnier together,” said Devlin. “Women are notorious for pulling each other down but Amy and Tina build each other up. They compliment each other and work together so well.”
Women of comedy demonstrate that it’s entirely possible to have it all without being perfect. These women don’t necessarily fit the worshipped Hollywood stereotype. They’re not all model-thin, they don’t demand cosmetic surgery and they do not capitalize on their sexuality. Conversely, they represent a wide range of body types, ethnicities and acting styles, as well as sexual orientation and political outlooks. Several of them work as social and political activists and many of them do philanthropic work. Moreover, they don’t capitalize on their gender or sexuality to get ahead. Instead, they use intelligence and wit as tools to success.
It’s true that the behavior of celebrities has taken a turn for the wild and crazy over the past decade. And it’s also true that not all celebrities should act as role models for today’s young women. But to say that we have lost role models in all female celebrities is entirely false. The comedic women of this generation are living proof that by maintaining consistent and unwavering commitment to one’s passion and skills, it is entirely possible to achieve greatness. And we can all learn a little from that.