Martha Stewart came into the American Conscious as a quality of nurturing tweeked with a sense of 'luxury' lacking the all too famous concept of thrift.
She allowed women the freedom to be nuturing while pampering themselves with praise by conquering the attitubute of the Hostess with the Mostest. Handy, adept and always with 'the creative answer' to every holiday fare. How American. How Female. The superwoman of all superwomen. Mini-Marthas at every turn shopping for Martha this and Martha that to be sure their homes were fashionably correct.
It is a long held value that a woman should be the master of her universe and to the tune of an empire of domestic fluff, Martha Stewart landed on Wall Street.
My opinion is benign, every woman needs to find her nitch. If Martha's values of home and hearth enriches the soul and enables a pride at a time in a woman's life that is dictated by children and family then there is a place for Martha regardless the issues that beset that icon.
I am not a domestic diva and seek interests where bookworns live and polar bears call home. But, that is not the world of Martha and for that reason I reserve any opinion regarding the advances of women's rights via Martha.
I will say this, there was no abandonment of her or her empire by the majority of American Women. That's a good thing. Women feel cloistered to some extent if not by their biology but by 'their place' in the greater scheme of things. To find value of Martha Stewart through her tribuations is like being a good neighbor. Martha is everyone's best friend and good neighbor. There is not a darn thing wrong with that. Women forgive far easier than men and to that end families grow and stay together. It is safe to say Martha Stewart has a family that spans a nation and more likely the globe. If being loyal to Martha is being loyal to yourself than everyone has won a very valuable fight for women.
I have only one other thought about this mess. I think she was victimized. By herself. By those that sought to see her differently. By those that would find priviledge in the power of money. Her case is still on appeal. She bravely stated if I have to serve a sentence I would like to get it over with and get on with my life. The danger in this is that her appeal may very well find her exonerated of all wrong doing. Exonerated of 'a lie.' What then will Martha Stewart be to the women of her family?
A martyr?
A dangerous place for a society to put women. Placing women in a position of self-rigtheousness? Standing by their friend 'knowing' this was nothing more than prejudice of women?
Wow.
Perhaps that is where women have always been because if there is one aspect of women, true globally, is that they are resourceful creatures enjoying life while 'finding a way' in worlds created to serve men.
Perhaps that IS Martha Stewart. Perhaps that is the characteristic that draws her family closer. It is the character strength of resourcefulness that is the common experience of any woman.
