Jemima J

I won't say that I hated Jane Green's book but I will admit that I kept flipping to the back to see how many pages I had left to read! I found it very predictable and indicative of why "chick lit" hasn't gained the literary respect that I am sure some of it deserves. When researching the genre, Sex and the City was written about frequently as the television equivalent to "chick lit". Although I only watched it once, I could see the similarities in Jemima J.
The book seemed to thrive on stereotypes. Pretty women are shallow and self-centered, exhibited clearly by Jemima's roommates, Sophie and Lisa. Add stupidity to the list of attributes and they are complete. They profess undying love for men who are gorgeous but whom they have just met. They are intent on finding husbands based solely on looks and income, with love never actually entering into their exploits. They are attractive women but have no redeeming qualities.
Even Geraldine, Jemima's best friend, is a gold digger and not quite competent enough to perform her duties at the paper without J's help. Green does allow us to learn that despite being beautiful, she is eventually a good friend to Jemima but, by the time we start to trust her, the dye had been cast. She is kind but flawed and the problems stem from her better than average appearance.
The men, for the most part are also treated as one dimensional characters. They are all "blokes" who seek out women only because of their beauty, without ever looking any deeper than what's they see. Richard sees Jemima walking down the street and "thinks he is in love." The guys in the bar propose to Sophie and Lisa because they are sexy. Although there is a certain element of tongue and cheek in this approach, it does seem to be a prevalent theme throughout the novel. Brad invites a women whom he has never met to visit him and then, after two weeks wants her to be a permanent part of his life, while Jemima has never really allowed him to see who she really is. We find out later that he is the worst kind of loser and completely immersed in the superficial world by which he is surrounded. Even Ben, who in my opinion was the only likable character, doesn't really notice JJ until she is thin and then discovers, even before realizing it is his friend, that she is the perfect woman for him.
Jemima as well as Jenny are overweight, therefore we suffer through their misery, that according to Green, only overweight women can experience. Although Jemima herself had been patronized by her petty roommates while she was overweight, she immediately treats Jenny the same way. She judged Jenny, only because of her appearance and assumed that she struggled with the same problems that she herself had faced before becoming slim, without knowing anything about Jenny or what her life was like. She insisted that she knew where she was because she had been there while ignoring the fact that, despite her weight, they may not share any commonalities.
Everyone in this novel judged people by strictly how they look. Whether beautiful or overweight, people are who they are. How you look may make things easier or more difficult in certain circumstances but, for me, it is difficult to swallow that people are defined by their appearance. I find that attitude repulsive. It creates prejudice and misconceptions about "types" of people rather than judging everyone on their character, merits and achievements. I have struggled to overcome stereotypes about how I look, where I come from and my socioeconomic background. I am tall and thin and I model. I must be stupid, self-centered and anorexic. I am from the south which contributes to my lack of intelligence etc…. and found that once people come to know who you are, they will judge you based on that knowledge and the way you look has very little to do with it. Women who are thin can have insecurities, women who are not can be confident and self assured. Men who are gorgeous care about who the woman is rather than just how she looks! To promote, even in fiction, that the world is populated by people who fit into stereotypes so neatly is harmful to everyone.