Joan Holloway: Sex Goddess Of The Office

This cliquish patriarchal jungle can also be seen in the world of writing and countless others; it is the status quo. For these macho men, their loyalty is to this fraternity. It’s a "bros before hoes” code. These patriarchal values are well illustrated in a 1925 letter to Scott Fitzgerald from Ernest Hemingway.

Honesty is only reserved for their peers. Like in Mad Men, these peer writers are part of their old boys' club; they talk proudly about their conquests and cheating.

Even if they, for some reason, come to feel shame for their behavior toward women, their sexual desires override their conscience, and they’re still forgiven by society. The alpha male often struggles with sex addiction, substance abuse, and other hedonistic escapes. These patterns keep them in a guilt-free state. They receive sympathy and support when their suffering is seen in these arenas. In the end, they are victims of their own crimes.

Like the infamous Gordon Gekko in the 1987 movie Wall Street, who said, “We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it.”

This alpha male character is also well represented in Mad Men. The show is saturated with alpha male leads Ronald Sterling, Pete Campbell, and most recognizably, the dapper Don Draper. His pursuit of power, money and women is usually aggressive, dishonest, and even devious.

In season three, Don Draper advises men, “If you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation.” A formidable master of spin, he never lets the truth get in the way of an engaging story. With his sleight of hand and double entendres, he hits the nail on the head every time. He makes cheating – in business and personal affairs – seem admirable. In short, the Mad Men’s kingdom is built around selfishness, without regard for anything other than their whims.

Using his status and money as he sees fit, he entices women into bed with no intention of commitment. Always withholding his heart, he remains free of attachment. 

They fail to see that alpha men view them as disposable, and when these women require too much maintenance, he flushes them like toilet paper. The world is his oyster.

Regardless of their marital status, these men enter sexual relationships, often with their employees, assuming that females are sexually available for their male bosses. With his focus on feeding his sexual needs, it is not surprising that sexual harassment and bullying charges against these men are common in the workplace. Sexual harassment is a form of gendered intimidation and bullying aimed at women. In these contexts, gluttonous and carnal appetites have gone unpunished for centuries, and although there has progress in beating back abusers, the cost to victims for speaking remains high.

She’s branded as a seductress and only a sex object, her intelligence overlooked. Joan marries for money and prestige, trying to validate herself, even though her husband was abusive to her. She even gives up her independence for a false promise of love.

However, by the end of her run, Joan grows up. In the series finale, "Person to Person", Joan starts her own film production company. She attempts to recruit Peggy, another independent and intelligent female colleague as a partner, but Peggy chooses to stay at a man-owned agency. Joan can’t rely on female solidarity or the men who once prized her. She has to make in on her own.

In terms of love, Joan and Richard Sterling – her longtime alpha male lover – continue dating and become somewhat serious about one another. But he is opposed to her re-entering the business world. When Joan announces she is starting her own company, he ends their relationship. And what does she do? Let him go. She chooses her own stability, independence, and happiness over a partner who wants to withhold it from her.

Joan is last seen watching her mother and son go off to the park. She then resumes her work at the new venture, which operates out of her apartment under the name Holloway and Harris – a combination of her maiden and married name. Is there a better way for her to express her self-acceptance and self-value? 

Joan learns how to sort out her life and starts on her journey of acquiring financial independence. She knows she can partner with her inner child, herself. She breaks the cycle of bad patterns and develops the confidence to walk away from a man who won’t commit to her in the pursuit of her happiness. She leaves the series deeply evolved – and on the path all goddesses of sex should step on. 

My prescription for Joan Holloway is keep going - get to a place of self-actualization. It’s time to finally realizes her potential and gain the self-fulfillment she has been seeking.

There is a lot of talk of the seductress in romance but hardly of her at work. However, a great example of a goddess of sex in the workplace is Joan Holloway, the secretary turned partner at the 1960s advertising firm on the hit show Mad Men. This show depicts the advertising executives of Madison Avenue, where facade trumps reality. Nobody is ever quite who they seem. Their closets hide their proverbial skeletons, ensuring zero exposure to their secret lives of infidelity, crime, and trauma.

In Mad Men, the curvaceous and witty Joan Holloway has mastered the art of seduction. On the show, she’s even compared to Marilyn Monroe.

Joan uses her body, magnetic personality, and charm to become a junior partner and account executive at the advertising firm. But in the end, she is sexually harassed and pushed out of the company, with no male allies. Women’s beauty may move them up the ladder, but not to the top.