Ugly Betty is such a great show because, at first glance, it looks like a show that just promotes a lot of stereotypes of men and women that we see in television shows all the time, but as you keep watching you see the characters do things that break the stereotypes you had put them into. I think this element of the show is great because it is like how you think about people in real life. When you first meet people it is impossible not to stereotype them, but as you get to know them, your view of them changes from a stereotype into a well rounded person.
There are many many characters in Ugly Betty that you can see transform as the show goes on. The main character Betty grows from an awkward, “ugly,” and “unfashionable” girl into a confident young woman. Her boss, Daniel, is a player/womanizer, who sleeps with all his secretaries, but as he gets to know Betty better, he completely changes by the end of the show. The character Amanda, a ditzy, sex-object archetype, secretary, changes before your eyes as you see her character grow more complex. The stereotypical flamboyant gay guy stereotype is also shown with Marc, a very flamboyant man working in fashion. Later on though, he helps Betty’s sister’s son come to terms with himself being gay, as well as coming out to his family. The son is Latino too, and he breaks a lot of stereotypes as well, being a gay person of color. There are many stereotypes shown in Ugly Betty that, one by one, are all broken by the characters, showing you a whole and complex person, just like the real world.
I love the way that Ugly Betty makes every character so dynamic and complex so that even if some aspects of their lives enforce stereotypes or seem typical, they break them in other ways so they are more relatable and real. I agree that it is a feminist show.
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