MEdia: How Charlene Frazier Shaped Me

Lessons I learned from watching Charlene Frazier on Designing Women

Source: Wikipedia

As I mentioned last month, I have an affinity for all of the four primary characters in Designing Women. Last month I talked about Suzanne, this month I want to talk about Charlene Frazier. Of all of the women, Charlene is probably the one I want to identify with the least, but who I still have a lot in common with. 

First off, I want to be clear that I adore Jean Smart. She is spectacular and if you haven’t watched Hacks, what are you even doing with your life? Jean Smart is a treasure and I want her in every movie and television show possible. I say that I want to identify with Charlene the least because of all of them, she seems the most naive and the least “liberated.” Her upbringing was strict, so she was sheltered from a lot, which likely amplifies some natural people-pleasing tendencies. She was also the most gullible of them. She was as likely to believe something from the National Enquirer as she was to believe something from National Geographic. Her softness and openness was in contrast to the other three who all had much harder edges.

Source: Designing Women Online

But as an adult, I see more of myself in Charlene, sometimes even more than the other women. Or at the very least, I see the value of being like Charlene.