Page 175 Mad Men

1. The author's main insight about the show Mad Men is that it is a wish fulfillment fantasy modeled after the American dream. This is seen on page 170 "The American dream ... less attainable than ever," page 174 "Everyone and everything is gorgeous to the point of luminosity," and page 174, "The ambition and conflicted desires of these characters in their pursuit of happiness is what makes Mad Men such a singular and resonant reflection of a particularly American puzzle." The main point is made initially in the first passage, that is that the American dream is less attainable than ever. Later on in page 174 Mad Men is noted on being "gorgeous to the point of luminosity", a steep contrast to our dreary reality. Finally the last quote links the two together directly, stating that Mad Men's idealistic form of the American dream is particularly resonant for American's.

2. Havrilesky's casual show of intense knowledge on matter pertaining to Mad Men, such as deeply describing a characters emotion and motivations for actions, and her mentions of having watched the seasons establish her authority to write about the show.

3."This is the automobile a man of your means should drive. This is the liquor a happy homemaker like yourself should server to your husband's business guests." This passage reveals subconscious messages that all of her readers have likely been entrenched in for their entire lives, this allows for readers to connect deeply to her writings. "Slowly we come to view our own lives as inconsequential, grubby, even intolerable." This passage brings out the deep rooted disappointment the readers have in their own lives. The author also describes the various characters in a very humane, easy to relate to way so that their own emotions rise and fall as their stories are told.

4. I was not very familiar with it before but I know feel I understand at least the basic premise of the show, although I do not feel compelled to watch it. I believe I understand it because the author gave a very in-depth view into the personal lives of the character, their interactions, and also gave a apt description of the setting the show is in.