Hillary Clinton Writes the First Draft of Her History

Hillary Clinton has spent 40 years trying to be liked. In her new memoir, What Happened, she describes the myriad ways she has tried to modulate herself to fit our expectations of her, which is a tidy but long list of all the usual impossible standards women face. She changed her name, her clothing and her demeanor in response to criticism and rejection. She spent what adds up to a month of time on the 2016 campaign trail having her hair and makeup done; if she showed up without having those things done, she got slammed. She even hired a linguistics expert so she could learn to rev up a crowd by shouting while not sounding too high-pitched. (That, she concludes in the book, turned out to be impossible.) Some people might view these studied alterations as signs of inauthenticity. But judging from What Happened, the most candid of her three memoirs, it seems to be the price she paid to be “likable” to a country that was not, in the end, ready for Hillary. Unfortunately, likability is too often a woman’s most valuable currency, trumping competence and worthiness. A hint of unlikability can undermine a woman’s success like nothing else. Studies show that the higher you aim, the harder it is to be seen as likable if you’re a woman. And what’s higher than the presidency? Sure, this woman is admired and even loved by millions. But the forces on the other side of that equation proved stronger and louder. For many, just the sight of her sparks a ki...
Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Books hillary clinton what happened Source Type: news