Abstract: Enlightened, Hummingbirds, and Women Helping Themselves

Not a lot has been said about Enlightened. In this paper I intend to discuss the implications of the short-lived HBO series, and whether it works as an effective counterpoint to recent post-feminist television such as Girls and Sex and the City. I aim, if possible, to explore audience reaction to the show, which despite substantial critical acclaim, was subject to much lower viewership than other more obvious post-feminist prestige programming. Is this a reflection of the content or quality of the show? Neither? Both? And what, if anything, does this say about our desire as consumers of post-feminist media?

Furthermore, I plan to examine Enlightened protagonist Amy Jellicoe’s place in carving out new space in the representation of women on television. Emily Nussbaum of The New Yorker has written extensively on the “hummingbird” archetype. Nussbaum uses the “neutral” term to refer to spunky, defiant, idealistic women in leading roles who, by refusing to succumb to societal norms, at times come off as annoying to those around them. This is a trait Nussbaum finds refreshing, and in which Enlightened’s Amy she sees an exemplar. I will trace Amy’s growth, from her mental breakdown at the show’s outset to her role as corporate whistle-blower as the series evolves, with the intention of assessing whether the “hummingbird” marks progress in the representation of women or if it is merely retrograde.

Lastly, I hope to delve into the show’s relation to self-help culture. Enlightened takes its name from the Eastern-inspired philosophy that Amy adopts after her blow-up. While her new-found perspective is instrumental in her growth, in spots the series seems to parody such naive positive thinking as a means of affecting change in the world. In a larger context, I want to explore how this culture of recovery is gendered, and whether Enlightened celebrates this lifestyle or offers a useful critique of its shortcomings as a means of empowerment.

Given its relative newness there is very little (or no) scholarly work on Enlightened of which I’m aware. As a result I’ve looked to various articles of television criticism focusing on the series and the larger phenomena of evolving representations of women on television. The aforementioned work of Nussbaum has been among the most helpful. For perspective on self-help culture, Wendy Simonds “Women and Self-Help Culture: Reading Between the Lines” and Elayne Rapping’s “Culture of Recovery” which trace the rise of the movement from a feminist perspective have been very useful. I am also reading relevant scholarly work as I find it. I hope to combine this research with close analysis of the series itself to begin to answer the many questions Enlightened poses.