Friday Night Lights, Season 5
Entry 54:
Hanna, yes to all your questions about what Tami meant by "It's my turn." During the conversation dinner, as Tami called it when Julie asked whether this was meant to be a celebration, Tami squirmed while Eric held forth about the art of listening and compromise. He said that to succeed in marriage, you need to do both well. This was his definition of emotional maturity in a partnership. Meanwhile, he has not been compromising or really listening, at least not if listening means hashing out a serious difference of opinion and clash of goals. Tami was willing to cave and say no to Braemore. But in the moment, something rose up in her to tell her that would be wrong—a betrayal of what she wants for her daughter, and that recognition gave her license to frame it also as a betrayal of herself. It was a fierce feminist cry from the gut. Which is one more piece of evidence in support of your great point that FNL is not really a red-state show. And it in turn explains why Tami and Eric (plus Gracie Bell) will do just fine in Philadelphia.
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Emily Bazelon is a Slate senior editor and writes about law, family, and kids. Her forthcoming book, Sticks and Stones: Defeating the Culture of Bullying and Rediscovering the Power of Empathy and Character. Find her at emilybazelon@gmail.com or on Facebook or Twitter.