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Jealousy and polygamy
For my fellow Big Love fans out there (or for those of you who just don’t get it or who dislike it or are even repulsed by it without even giving it a chance), here’s an interesting analysis of a key theme by William Saletan at Slate.
He’s right, more or less, yet I wonder if he quite grasps the show’s intentional irony.
The show is immensely entertaining, but beneath the thin, soap-operaish, occasionally melodramatic veneer it also says a great deal about human nature, about what is truly universal even in the particular, even in the eccentric, the bizarre, the socially and morally peripheral.
And that’s why it’s such a great show. If you haven’t yet seen it, you really must.
3 Responses to “Jealousy and polygamy”
I have seen the show and have found it to be decent. Mostly it is your typical prime time soap with some substantil twists and above average acting.
I think the show is giving the public a look at how people operate at a base level. Very savvy writing that exposes humans fears, desires, jealousy, and greed all at the same times. Yes the subject of polygamy is distasteful to most, but is very useful to get at the root of human nature. You couldn’t get all of this unless you had 3-4 families being portrayed on screen, thus causing the viewer to loose perspective at times, or disinterest with certain families problems.
I give a big thumbs up for this show.
My wives and I are big fans of this show! No matter whether people enjoy the show or are disturbed by it, more and more people we meet are talking about polygamy.
We experience the same deep love between spouses, fear of discovery, deciding which days Martin has with each wife, juggling finances, sharing a dwelling (by the floor, instead of by the house) and the angry, curious, and “go for it” reactions we get from others. And yes, we spend time on thin ice, too.