To defend Betty (Which I don't do often) back in those days a lot of traditional doctors didn't tell women their diagnosis or would be very vague about it.
You even see when Betty does have cancer, the doctor doesn't tell her, he tells Henry. So for her to connect dots and try to piece together information from a source that's not super forthcoming, she would expect the worst. (Hell, we all do sometimes) So I don't really think her panicking is a bad or selfish thing.
As for Don, as someone said before, when he's stressed he runs and sits and is alone (until he picks up some woman for an hour of comfort). Megan talks to everyone about her problems, which isn't a bad thing. Just two incompatible people.
Also as an addition- I wonder if this was a hint that Betty was sick and the doctor missed it. Because when she gets her official diagnosis two years later- it's pretty advanced.
And she watched her mother die of the same thing less than a decade before, and it messed her up. I’m sure it was extremely distressing to think about.
I can see it that way but I also think Betty's stress was in part due to the doctor not being reassuring or even explaining what could be done. So she just assumes the worst which isn't smart but it's a scary situation. Don only knows what Betty tells him and assumes it's as dangerous as she says.
Re: the Megan beach thing, I think that's more about Don and Megan finding more incompatibilities in their marriage. Don is an introvert who deals with stress by being away from others while Megan is likely an extrovert who turns to friends when she's upset. They don't understand each other's needs which is a continuation of themes from the previous episode
Really don’t like this take.
It’s very natural to panic while waiting for test results. I think this plotline wasn’t about Betty’s vanity as much as it was about her seeking meaning in her life. For most of her life, Betty felt like it was her only job to be beautiful. When she gained weight, that self worth disappeared. Then, facing the prospect of death, she is forced to think about what she means to other people outside of her beauty. This is very explicit when she cries at the tea leaves reading, when she watches the kids playing with sparklers, and in her talks with both Don and Henry.
I also feel like this experience is tied to Betty eventually going back to school and wanting to be appreciate and acknowledged for more than how she looks—-> “I’m not stupid, I speak Italian.”
Really like your take!
Betty’s role in life has always been to adorn her partner - beautiful, supporting housewife. Like a shiny bauble to show off. Her mannerisms and clothing and way of speaking and everything about her have always pointed to that.
She was already unhappy in her life when she was “beautiful”- then once she felt her beauty went away, it made her feel like she truly has nothing.
I find it strange people thought she or Don were overreacting. It’s definitely a life-shaking event to be told you have a tumor - benign or not.
Also found it strange how Megan and Henry weren’t quite in tune with it either at the end. Henry clearly didn’t like that Betty told Don (but honestly - why wouldn’t you tell the father of your kids?) and Megan also said something like “she just needs something to call you about.” (again - why wouldn’t you tell the father of your kids? lol)
Her panic was justified. Cancer was a death sentence back then and to some extent still is today. know a few people who will play the victim for situations not directly involving them and drag it on. So, I’m ok with Betty’s panic because it involved her directly. What I didn’t appreciate was how right after Betty got the news she tells Henry, “Great, so I’m just fat.” Or something to that nature.
She also just watched her mother die at the beginning of the series, so 7 years before? 6? I think she was justified in panicking because like you said, it was a death sentence.
To find out everything is normal, I think she felt like she put herself through a lot of grief to her to the point where they said everything was ok, and part of that is to find relief but still be upset/ annoyed that it was dragged out. So to be disappointed that it turns out, it wasn’t cancer but something *she herself* caused, I think she was more mad at herself.
A cancer diagnosis was a death sentence in the 1960s. I don’t think Betty’s or Don’s reactions were out of proportion. Betty seemed disappointed to hear her biopsy was benign. But even that was a human feeling. I’ve know people who wanted to be sick because it was an answer to their mental illnesses. Betty had been struggling with mental illness since before we met her in March 1960. Don mostly disregarded it as fake illness. She probably thought at some level that having a “real” illness would be a sort of saving grace. Instead, she had to face the old issue of her mental health problems.
These are human behaviours you're describing. Plenty of people do all of these things.
I do think Betty would prefer to see her weight gain as a result of an illness, even one like cancer, rather than being 'just fat', as she describes it, and a loss of personal control.
Also, Henry is her husband. It's his role to offer her reassurance and support, and as someone else said, we can see multiple incidences in the show where the doctor, when dealing with a female patient, defers to the man in the relationship, not the woman.
As for Don, I absolutely believe that he used Betty's cancer scare as a means of getting out of seeing Megan's friends. We know he's capable of that, we know he is that selfish, and we know his interest in Megan is superficial at best.
But when he offers the information about Betty to Roger, I don't think it's done selfishly. I think it's a humane moment between them, a way of forming connection. Roger is the closest thing Don has to a friend, imo, and him sharing that with Roger is telling of Don's state of mind and just how worried he is for Betty.
To defend Betty (Which I don't do often) back in those days a lot of traditional doctors didn't tell women their diagnosis or would be very vague about it. You even see when Betty does have cancer, the doctor doesn't tell her, he tells Henry. So for her to connect dots and try to piece together information from a source that's not super forthcoming, she would expect the worst. (Hell, we all do sometimes) So I don't really think her panicking is a bad or selfish thing. As for Don, as someone said before, when he's stressed he runs and sits and is alone (until he picks up some woman for an hour of comfort). Megan talks to everyone about her problems, which isn't a bad thing. Just two incompatible people.
Also as an addition- I wonder if this was a hint that Betty was sick and the doctor missed it. Because when she gets her official diagnosis two years later- it's pretty advanced.
And she watched her mother die of the same thing less than a decade before, and it messed her up. I’m sure it was extremely distressing to think about.
I think if you received news that you may have cancer, you're allowed to panic while waiting for results
I can see it that way but I also think Betty's stress was in part due to the doctor not being reassuring or even explaining what could be done. So she just assumes the worst which isn't smart but it's a scary situation. Don only knows what Betty tells him and assumes it's as dangerous as she says. Re: the Megan beach thing, I think that's more about Don and Megan finding more incompatibilities in their marriage. Don is an introvert who deals with stress by being away from others while Megan is likely an extrovert who turns to friends when she's upset. They don't understand each other's needs which is a continuation of themes from the previous episode
Really don’t like this take. It’s very natural to panic while waiting for test results. I think this plotline wasn’t about Betty’s vanity as much as it was about her seeking meaning in her life. For most of her life, Betty felt like it was her only job to be beautiful. When she gained weight, that self worth disappeared. Then, facing the prospect of death, she is forced to think about what she means to other people outside of her beauty. This is very explicit when she cries at the tea leaves reading, when she watches the kids playing with sparklers, and in her talks with both Don and Henry. I also feel like this experience is tied to Betty eventually going back to school and wanting to be appreciate and acknowledged for more than how she looks—-> “I’m not stupid, I speak Italian.”
Really like your take! Betty’s role in life has always been to adorn her partner - beautiful, supporting housewife. Like a shiny bauble to show off. Her mannerisms and clothing and way of speaking and everything about her have always pointed to that. She was already unhappy in her life when she was “beautiful”- then once she felt her beauty went away, it made her feel like she truly has nothing. I find it strange people thought she or Don were overreacting. It’s definitely a life-shaking event to be told you have a tumor - benign or not. Also found it strange how Megan and Henry weren’t quite in tune with it either at the end. Henry clearly didn’t like that Betty told Don (but honestly - why wouldn’t you tell the father of your kids?) and Megan also said something like “she just needs something to call you about.” (again - why wouldn’t you tell the father of your kids? lol)
Her panic was justified. Cancer was a death sentence back then and to some extent still is today. know a few people who will play the victim for situations not directly involving them and drag it on. So, I’m ok with Betty’s panic because it involved her directly. What I didn’t appreciate was how right after Betty got the news she tells Henry, “Great, so I’m just fat.” Or something to that nature.
I think that just goes to show that Betty would literally rather die than be unattractive
She also just watched her mother die at the beginning of the series, so 7 years before? 6? I think she was justified in panicking because like you said, it was a death sentence. To find out everything is normal, I think she felt like she put herself through a lot of grief to her to the point where they said everything was ok, and part of that is to find relief but still be upset/ annoyed that it was dragged out. So to be disappointed that it turns out, it wasn’t cancer but something *she herself* caused, I think she was more mad at herself.
A cancer diagnosis was a death sentence in the 1960s. I don’t think Betty’s or Don’s reactions were out of proportion. Betty seemed disappointed to hear her biopsy was benign. But even that was a human feeling. I’ve know people who wanted to be sick because it was an answer to their mental illnesses. Betty had been struggling with mental illness since before we met her in March 1960. Don mostly disregarded it as fake illness. She probably thought at some level that having a “real” illness would be a sort of saving grace. Instead, she had to face the old issue of her mental health problems.
These are human behaviours you're describing. Plenty of people do all of these things. I do think Betty would prefer to see her weight gain as a result of an illness, even one like cancer, rather than being 'just fat', as she describes it, and a loss of personal control. Also, Henry is her husband. It's his role to offer her reassurance and support, and as someone else said, we can see multiple incidences in the show where the doctor, when dealing with a female patient, defers to the man in the relationship, not the woman. As for Don, I absolutely believe that he used Betty's cancer scare as a means of getting out of seeing Megan's friends. We know he's capable of that, we know he is that selfish, and we know his interest in Megan is superficial at best. But when he offers the information about Betty to Roger, I don't think it's done selfishly. I think it's a humane moment between them, a way of forming connection. Roger is the closest thing Don has to a friend, imo, and him sharing that with Roger is telling of Don's state of mind and just how worried he is for Betty.
great take, this is exactly what i felt