From Cankles To Memes: Hillary Clinton

How did Hillary Clinton rise from the ashes of being a “Harpy” and “Shrew” to being approachable and witty and America’s most admired woman according to a Gallup poll in December 2011?

Perhaps it is because Hillary Clinton has publicly stepped out of her former-president husband’s shadow as Secretary of State. Maybe it is because she has proven herself a stronger woman politician than other women in politics. Or perhaps it is because, as Jezebel argues, America itself has changed its attitude toward women in the public eye.

One thing is certain about Hillary Clinton: she has successfully maintained a consistent reaction to criticism insofar as she has maintained consistency as a woman in politics. She was the first student commencement speaker at Wellesley College, twice-listed as one of the top 100 most influential lawyers in America, a longtime advocate for healthcare as well as children’s, women’s, and family issues, in 2008 won more primaries than any other woman candidate, and has set records for most-traveled secretary for time in office. In spite of the ebb and flow of caricatures that portray her as an emasculator and a gender-bending annoyance, Clinton has remained a strong presence in advocacy projects, business, and politics.

So what has changed?

The rebranding of the caricature. The ball-buster is now a funny and approachable ball-buster thanks to Texts From Hillary’s repopularization of the old cartoon on the funnier side of the same coin. In many ways, Hillary Clinton’s current moment as a witty politician and woman is in stark contrast to her previous public incarnations as a ball-busting, cold-hearted witch. But in many other ways, these characteristics are not conflicting because they present an image of a woman who has redefined femininity and women’s political presence. The other side of the woman-in-power coin is now a funnier and more clever glimpse at the same thing. This new image is less about politics and approval ratings and more about portraying the same power as simply a sunnier side of women today who are simultaneously smart, challenging, satirical, and feminine.