We don’t know exactly what Pete did or did not do with Gudrun the au pair. I suspect he raped her,* but maybe not. Maybe he coerced a frightened girl who didn’t want to wake the children. Maybe she said no and he respected that and left, but not before frightening her enough so that when the Lawrences finally got home, she cried for hours. Whatever it was, there was meanness and a touch of violence, and it was bad enough that he was remorseful, and tipped his hand to Trudy, probably without entirely intending to.
As an aside, when we watched the S2 finale with Matt, and Pete made his very beautiful declaration to Peggy, Matt leaned in and whispered, ‘Isn’t Pete your favorite character now?’ And I thought, no, because I always thought he was capable of this. Whatever “this,” is”I didn’t think, ‘Pete’s a potential rapist,’ I thought more like, ‘Pete’s a spoiled brat and a moment of sweetness doesn’t change that.’
What do we know about this side of Pete? I think it starts in Season 1 with the mighty hunter fantasy (Red in the Face); he is dangerous and strong, and “a woman” is utterly subservient to him. As a fantasy, it turned Peggy on like gangbusters, but it creeped me out, and I think I’m not the only one.
Next is the Maidenform model who didn’t get the job. She was impressed by his business card. That seemed the important part to Pete; not that impressing her got him laid, but that impressing her turned him on. He got a woman to be all “oh my hero, look at your big strong job title” with him. That’s the shit he likes.
He was all set to be the big hero again with Gudrun. He was bored with Trudy out of town, and he saw an opportunity to be the hero, spend some extra time, and inflate his own ego. All turned on by the picture of himself as a heroic hunter, bagging the elusive Bonwits dress, while grateful Gertrude cooked him meat and watched him wipe his knife on his leg.
And when it didn’t work out that way, it was intolerable. Pete Campbell, who says “why can’t I have what I want all at once?” and means it, and thinks it’s a reasonable complaint, who believes his entitlement is bigger and better than any stupid woman’s stupid feelings, is not going to let an inferior’s worthless little right to her own bodily autonomy get in the way of fulfilling his fantasy.
These women: Peggy as she used to be, the model, and Gudrun, are all socially “inferior” to Pete”across a class divide, and what Pete got out of the”not relationships, not affairs, flings? nothing sounds right”out of the fucking, I guess, is not the sexual satisfaction so much as the ego gratification. Pete proves himself in “conquest,” which he can’t get from Trudy, and he couldn’t get from Peggy once she was accomplished and successful; no longer so inferior. Sure, he gave a pretty love speech at the end of last season, just as he reached his hand across the table to Trudy, but this other side of him has never gone away.
Mighty hunter. And women are the prey whose blood he wipes upon his leg.
*In New York State, the current definition of rape is as follows:
Rape is defined as engaging in sexual intercourse by forcible compulsion or by engaging in oral sexual conduct or anal intercourse with a person who is incapable of consent.
“Incapable of consent” refers to a person who is mentally defective, mentally incapacitated (by a narcotic or intoxicating substance taken or administered without consent), physically helpless, or under 17 years of age.
“Forcible compulsion” means to compel by the use of physical force or a threat (expressed or implied) that places a person in fear of immediate death or physical injury
to himself or herself or to another person.“Physically helpless” means that a person is unconscious or otherwise physically unable to communicate an unwillingness to act.
82 Responses to “Pete Campbell: Mighty hunter”
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Re #35- **Is Gudrun, a German college girl, more enlightened than Joan, a New York sophisticate? Interesting that Joan showed up in this episode and did what Pete wanted.**
I’d have to say probably yes, as evidenced by Joan’s “you’re not much” statement to Peggy that someone referenced above. I find Joan complex in some ways, but she comes off as such an enemy of what will become feminism a few years down the line. Not only does she accept the spoken and unspoken patriarchal rules of SC and the world in general, but she enforces them on other women.
To be honest, her relationship to Peggy in the pilot reminded of a madam turning out a new girl. And then there’s the marrying Greg post-rape, not fighting for the TV job, etc. Joan is sophisticated as far as working the system to her advantage, but she’s not yet enlightened enough to see the big picture where the system itself is unfair.
Thanks to anyone who said nice things about my posts.
Pete is a incompetent manipulative rat-bastard little boy, but maybe we can like Pete for his potential, which may be higher than any of the other major characters.
As a human being I don’t know how much hope there is of Pete making any massive improvement. I don’t think it is just a matter of being a bastard, I think Pete does have some real emotional/social problems. So much of Pete’s behavior is not on purpose. He is intending to be a nice guy and it always goes horribly wrong with Pete not being able to grasp why. As someone said up-thread I think Pete would benefit from therapy, but (of course) in the MM world therapy is something for housewives, not men.
On a personal basis Pete can’t get anything right. Ironically the one thing Pete is right about is Advertising. And nobody believes Pete’s advertising ideas are right, because he is such a twit. That is the one thing that does make me burn with injustice for Pete. The one area where does ‘deserve’ some credit, he gets no acknowledgement.
#48 Oh, good, that sounds better. As for myself, I was triumphant that Peggy shot Pete down. I felt a little sorry for Pete, but dude doesn’t deserve our Peggy and I was so glad she saw it that way, too. The reason I love Kartheiser’s portrayal of Pete so much is that I only feel his pain enough to have a bit of sympathy, but not so much that I forget his faults.
Jackie, I respectfully disagree.
Joan knows more about “the system” being “unfair” than most people on the show. While Peggy in her dumpy days gets noticed for a random comment about lipstick, Joan’s brilliant handling of script readings is completely dismissed.
Joan’s value to most men is in her appearance– if she’s not proto-feminist enough for you, it’s because she’s too much of a realist.
Joan’s value to most men is in her appearance– if she’s not proto-feminist enough for you, it’s because she’s too much of a realist.
Oh, but Joan can never be a feminist–she’s beautiful!
Of course I’m being sarcastic. Joan is bright & we don’t even know much about her background. She gave lip service to playing her expected role but was in no hurry to move to the ‘burbs; surely, she’d had opportunities if all she wanted was a rich hubby. She had no idea she wanted the new opportunity at SC until it was taken from her; now she knows.
I still hope that she can improve her situation. What was Peggy trying to say to her when toes flew?
Also–when was it determined that Gudrun was a college girl? Many au pairs were just young girls trying to earn a bit of money with minimal qualifications–& improve their English. As live-in help, they were far cheaper than nannies. Also, they tended (& tend) to be white….
Donny Brook (#38) mentioned a couple of famous men who have "taken advantage of" young women, and that got me thinking.
In 2003, the woman Roman Polanski was convicted of raping as a young teenager spoke to an L.A. Times reporter. She said:
"If [Polanski] could resolve his problems, I'd be happy. I hope that would mean I'd never have to talk about this again. Sometimes I feel like we both got a life sentence.
My attitude surprises many people. That's because they didn't go through it all; they don't know everything that I know … The media made that year a living hell, and I've been trying to put it behind me ever since.
Today, I am very happy with my life. I have three sons and a husband. I live in a beautiful place and I enjoy my work. What more could I ask for? No one needs to worry about me.
The one thing that bothers me is that what happened to me in 1977 continues to happen to girls every day, yet people are interested in me because Mr. Polanski is a celebrity. That just never seems right to me. It makes me feel guilty that this attention is directed at me, when there are certainly others out there who could really use it."
Read the story:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/wire/la-o…
I was making an assumption that Gundrun was a college girl because of the building where Pete and Trudy live and their standing in New York society. I don’t think someone at their address would risk taking just anyone into their home. At the very least, they would be vetted through an agency.
“I don’t think it is just a matter of being a bastard, I think Pete does have some real emotional/social problems.”
Pete is a bastard, a prick, a creep, a twit. (Other than that, he is a good guy.)
Pete’s social problems were displayed in the ep, too. He can’t carry on a conversation, or fit in, with his male colleagues at work. He can’t connect with Joan on any level.
I don’t get those who are holding out hope he and Peggy get together.
At this point, she barely tolerates him.
Pete is pathetic.
I agree alot with comments from #10 & #12
I really like digesting everyone’s perspective when it comes to Pete. He does have this little boy thing about him that makes you overlook what he just did or said because you can tell he is wounded somehow. We know he did not have loving parents both were cold and distant to him. He has developed a kind of sense of humor about that. One thing I like about him is that he does make his thoughts and feelings known. He is very upfront about it all.
I do not in anyway approve of how he treated the young women, or the way he seduced Peggy. Not making excuses for Pete, but in that era, and also today, there are men who think that being forceful is what women want. That “no” really means “maybe” and “maybe” means yes.
Trudy and he are a good match. They both have an air of sophistication. He is looking for a mommy and she wants a child and she has one in Pete. I am sure if she did have a child Pete would be jealous of it. I am not saying that I think this is the way a relationship should be I just think it works for them, for now anyway.
deep topic
SallyB (waves hello to SallyS) *thanks for the suggestion RetroGirl
I posted my comments about Pete's actions on the open thread and I felt from the moment the camera faded that what Pete did was rape.
While I appreciate that there are so many viewpoints and the folks on this blog are (imho) far and above the general posting populous in their interpretations (big Kudos to the Lipp sisters) — what he did and the nature of his character shown so far suggests that he is perfectly capable of doing it again.
Yes, he 'sorta fessed up' to Trudy- though my response is that his guilt came from the neighbor dressing him down and the possibility that she'd find out — so he'd better reign in the damage. Basically, his remorse is that he got caught.
I find it sad that Trudy is enabling him. "Yes, I will make sure I'm always there so you don't stray" kind of agreement.
One wonders how willing she'd be to stand-by-her-man if the she knew the actual terms were: "I need you to monitor me, because when you're gone I get drunk and rape other women."
"Oh yeah, and I got one pregnant and she gave the baby up for adoption, just so you know."
….now how about some fruit salad?
I'm beginning to wish it was Pete who was nearest the John Deere during Lois'-wild-ride. I'm pretty disgusted with him.
(thanks to everyone for all the insights)
Pete's liquor fired lust strikes again. Pete's a snob. He likes to force himself on woman that he probably sees as "lower class".
What happened between Pete and Gudrun? Rape? Consensual sex? We don't know what she told the creepy neighbor, Mr. Lawrence.
Did she mention the dress at all? Gudrun may have begrudgingly had sex with Pete and now she had to get back at him.
Perhaps Gudrun told Lawrence that Pete was drunk and made a pass at her; just enough to warrant a response by Larwrence, but not enough to warrant the cops , as a rape charge would have.
She doesn't mention the dress, doesn't mention the sex, yet Campbell gets the piss scared out of him and won't be bothering her anymore.
Lawrence really didn't seem upset despite the fact that his household tranquility has been disrupted. Stay out of the building he says.
If Gudrun had said "Pete Campbell raped me in your apartment," his reaction would have been different. At least you would hope it would be.
His crying was weird. Pete needs to stay away from booze. For someone that tattled on Freddy, Pete has his own troubling handling booze.
Somehow, I don't see Pete saying , "I want to smoke marijuana. " He might loosen up enough so people will like him.
Poor Trudy. Gal can't get some from her husband. If Trudy and Kitty ever get to talking…
a_mob_hit, I cannot believe you are using this as an opportunity to try and find a way to blame Gudrun for making up tales. WTF? Nothing in the story, nothing in the acting, and nothing in the subtext indicates that. Why are you interested in blaming the victim?
@SFCaramia – good point re: Roger and Pete, it's interesting how similar their backgrounds are (and on a lighter note, IMO they consistently get the best lines!). Pete though isn't going to be the next Roger because a) he lacks charm and b) he's not stuck in the past (as evidenced by the Admiral fiasco). While we haven't seen Roger in a scene precisely analogous to Pete's scene with the au pair, he is certainly crude and definitely sleazy. I think we tend to let him and Don (and even someone like Ken who pulled up Allison's skirt to show off her underwear) off the hook because they come off as more "likeable."
@Deborah – I agree, we've seen some glimmers of what Trudy and Pete have together. We know they eat together every night (contrast this with Don who until recently spent many nights in NYC or came back late to a cold meal), they go to the movies, they're great dancing partners, etc. While there haven't been that many scenes where Pete hasn't been annoyed/frustrated/manipulative with Trudy, there have been a few cute moments here and there (I actually liked the scene last year in the S2 opening episode where he gets her to eat a chocolate from the box). While I still feel like Trudy could leave the marriage if she wanted to with her reputation intact and the complete support of her family, at the same time, she doesn't seem to want to. I don't think she's a doormat – she's held her own in arguments with Pete…at least this couple speaks to each other and sorta acknowledges the existence of problems. It's interesting because Matt Weiner has compared Trudy to Betty, but I don't think they're that similar actually, beyond superficially. And it seems like Weiner has chosen to suggest the possibility of a positive marital arc for Trudy/Pete and not for Betty/Don, which is interesting because a season ago, I might not have thought that.
@FortheLoveofPete – I agree, I think Pete and Peggy will find each other again but not necessarily in some romantic kinda way. Personally, I really like their scenes together and I wish there were more of them. There are so many things bubbling under the surface and the actors have real chemistry. As you pointed out, they're similar in several key ways (and I know some Peggy fans won't want to hear this!) – socially awkward, outsiders at work with few friends, selectively oblivious with a glaring inability to read a room (Pete walking into Don's office after his dad died to ask about American Airlines and Peggy walking into Don's office to try and get the Hilton account are almost identical scenes when you think about it), hard-working with forward thinking instincts re: their jobs. A digression from the original topic, so I'll stop now, but I just wanted to say that it's not for romantic reasons that I want to see them together.
#42 "There were the reactions to the Roger’s blackface, Don may have thought it was stupid, and Pete thought it was morally wrong."
This probably belongs in another thread, but I'm still unclear on the reasons for Don and Pete's negative reactions. Was the recoil due to the unabashed racism of Roger's blackface? Or because it was "vulgar"? Very different emotional reactions, these, although they could look the same to the viewer. I really am not sure which was responsible for the reactions we saw.
(My own take is to turn #42's interpretation right around and say that Don was repelled by the racism, with Pete simply thinking that the blackface performance was tacky as hell. But that may be unfair to Pete – and overly generous to Don!)
Hey SallyS,
"but I just wanted to say that it’s not for romantic reasons that I want to see them together."
I Love the way these two actors play off each other. (Peggy & Pete)
Their scenes together are taut and I actually tend to lean towards the TV screen waiting for the moment that one of them pops-off.
Pete with his "are you dense?" "do you live in a cave?" and Peggy's "quit coming in my office and infecting me ~~~"
brilliant stuff.
So, like you, I thoroughly enjoy seeing the two together – but I would be sorely disappointed if Peggy hits the sheets/couch with Petey again.
Honestly, if the writer's head that way, it would taint the whole show for me. Peggy is smart and has profound potential – presently, Pete is the manifestation of "something wicked this way comes".
Team-Peggy-Captain SallyB sez: Step-it up Pegs! and lock your office door.
[...] From Basket of Kisses: We don’t know exactly what Pete did or did not do with Gudrun the au pair. I suspect he raped her, but maybe not. Maybe he coerced a frightened girl who didn’t want to wake the children. Maybe she said no and he respected that and left, but not before frightening her enough so that when the Lawrences finally got home, she cried for hours. Whatever it was, there was meanness and a touch of violence, and it was bad enough that he was remorseful, and tipped his hand to Trudy, probably without entirely intending to. [...]
I'm late on this, but I'm sorry but:
"Maybe he coerced a frightened girl who didn’t want to wake the children. Maybe she said no and he respected that and left, but not before frightening her enough so that when the Lawrences finally got home, she cried for hours. Whatever it was, there was meanness and a touch of violence, and it was bad enough that he was remorseful, and tipped his hand to Trudy, probably without entirely intending to."
I have a huge problem with this.
Coercing a frightened girl is rape. She said no. She clearly shook her head no. And the power dynamics that were at play between Pete and this young au pair were enough to frighten her into submission. And that is NOT consent. And if she cried enough to go through three boxes of tissues, she was clearly traumatized by what happened.
Rape.
He didn't feel guilty about what he did to the au pair. That is not why he apologized to Trudy. He felt guilty about his infidelity, but not about rape. Because he doesn't think that coercing and raping someone into sex is wrong. He doesn't see what he did as rape, and so he can't feel guilty about that part of it.
And to all those complaining that there are too many rapists? One in three women will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime. One in three women will have rape at least attempted, if not completed, on them. And rape is underreported. The acutal numbers are probably much higher. Two rapists on a show isn't overkill. I think that MW is making light of a very serious issue that is far too often ignored and that not enough people talk about. And by not talking about it, we are excusing it. We're shamed into silence. But it happens often. It happens every day. And over 60% of women that are raped are raped by someone they know. This is NOT unrealistic. It's reality. It may be ugly, but the truth often is.
Britni, I am sorry you have a problem with it. I am a Rape Crisis Counselor. I take rape, sexual assault, and sexual violence very seriously. I included the NY State definition of rape so that we could set aside issues of defining rape, which I think make people argue without making people aware. By the legal definition of the state in which Gudrun was sexually assaulted, the assault falls short of the definition of rape unless she was underage or unless she felt an implied or explicit threat of physical harm. It is more likely that what happens fits the legal definition of a lesser sex crime. I have no problem calling it rape in a vernacular (rather than legal) context, and you cut out the preceding sentence, "I suspect he raped her," which is the kind of editing that make me seem like an apologist.
But again, I included the legal definition so we could leave it at that. Sexual assault is not okay just because sometimes it isn't legally rape.
And I agree that the "two rapists is too much" thing is stupid.
The thing we know for sure about rape is that it is a product of a culture in which men are raised to believe they are entitled to women's bodies. It is culturally endemic and therefore seeing different faces of it is a fair and sane (albeit incredibly rare) way of examining the culture.
Ok so my daughter and I had a nice long discussion after this one.
My daugher is 17 and is very sharp, she talked to me about Petes intentions even as he took the dress. She told me that she already knew what he was doing however, this only started the conversation.
We started to talk about the 1960s and the roles and perceived roles of the american woman. I brought my mother and wife into the discussion and it was wonderful. My wife even brought up "I Love Lucy and Bewitched" as other examples. We discussed that we are indeed viewing MM with 21 century eyes but, as my mother said… " the story is as old as the bible, Men long to possess objects, land, and women!"
I could see in my daughters eyes when she realized how different it was, and how far we (society) have come in a short 40+ years and ….. how far we have yet to go.
My daughter felt sorry for Pete she told us. Not because of what he had done, but because he could not feel Love!
We are all looking forward to Sunday!
@#68 – I'll go off on this small tangent with you. I didn't think Don was repelled by the racism because he had already made it clear that he didn't really want to be at that party (it was Betty who was in her element) and he clearly thought Roger was just being an idiot, so the blackface routine was just an excuse for him to head to the bar. But then again, I don't really see Don as being progressive. It's interesting though that because of overall like/dislike for a character, we view their actions in different lights – Don talked to a black waiter in the very first episode and so many people want to say, he's not a racist! But it's hard to view Pete's conversation with Hollis in the same light even though ultimately, Pete suggests something that actually will revolutionize advertising. I personally just don't see Don suggesting integrated ads anytime soon.
@71 – That's very interesting and reminds me of conversations I've had with my mom! You're so right that a lot of this is the times we grew/grow up in…I'm in my early 20s and like your daughter, I thought Pete's intentions were obvious, certainly the 2nd time he came down and was wasted. Personally, I still say that his original effort to get the dress replaced was authentic. It seems like Weiner felt this way too – that Pete is all gentlemanly and does a nice thing…but when he comes back with the dress his innate sense of entitlement kicks in and obviously is driven even more by the drinks (and seriously, I think he needs to stay away from booze – he's a bad drinker!). You can see the wheels turning as soon as the au pair gives him a kiss on the cheek and shuts the door. Still, I wonder if he would have come back down had he NOT gotten drunk? Not that that condones anything he did, but the whole situation reminds me a bit of college…and it also makes me wonder if some of the au pair's tears are because Pete isn't coming back.
In regard to Don's reaction to blackface, you might like this: http://www.lippsisters.com/2008/10/04/dons-relati…
@ 66
I'm not blaming her . I'm asking what did she tell her employer? Did she tell him that she was raped? The writers left us completely in the dark.
Based on Lawrence's admonishment of Pete, I suspect that Gudrun did not tell him that she had been raped.
She in fact may have been, again, an ambiguous scene leaves the details out.
It was not presented in a clear example like Joan and her then boyfriend in Don's office.
What about Mrs Lawrence ? Does she know what happened ? She knows the girl was raped and doesn't say anything?
Disbelief or crappy writing ? Are we to believe Gudrun told Mrs. Lawrence she'd been raped? Her response was to have hubby scold Pete?
Unless of course, Mrs. Lawrence is in on it. Boys will be boys. That's sarcasm there dear.
People do and say strange things when it comes to sex.
Heck, let's leave the fake world of TV-land make believe at look at Bill Clinton's sexcapades..
Supposedly he bit a woman on the lip during sex.
Bill told her to "put some ice on it "
Hillary Clinton , ( The "smartest woman in the world" ) or so we are told , told the fawning press that there was a " vast right wing conspiracy " behind stories like that.
Trouble was, there was a history of Bill's philandering. Do you know that word?
The press vilified the women that said that they too, had been groped and or raped by Clinton. Enablers ! Sycophants!
"I did not have sex with that woman " , uh, dang Bill, you did.
Yet, the press was quick to say, " It's his private life" .
I'll leave Bill alone and take up Mark Sanford. As far as we know , he didn't rape anyone, yet he concocted a wild story of hiking the Appalachian Trail.
WTF indeed.
Shock, shame, and fear, factored in to whatever Gudrun told the Lawrences.
I still think she didn't tell the Lawrences that Pete raped her.
Unless the Lawrences are like the Clintons, if that's the case , run Gudrun, run!
Deborah,
Thank you for your comment. I've worked on rape/sexual assault hotlines and currently work as a therapist at a domestic violence center, so I appreciate the angle at which you come to this. The line "I suspect he raped her" didn't change the tone of the paragraph, at least to me, which is why I excluded it. I did feel like parts of this post were making apologies for or excusing Pete's actions, and it angers me that this is even debatable (not so much in your post). The good thing is that it gets people talking about it.
The scene with the au pair reminded me a bit of when Pete showed up at Peggy's door after his bachelor party in season 1. He was a drunk, attached man showing up late at night to prey on a young, naive, and vulnerable girl. I always got a squicky feeling from that scene, and while this one I wholeheartedly feel was rape, I can see now that Pete was always capable of, and leaning towards, actions like this. What if Peggy had not consented that night? After seeing the scene with the au pair, I suspect that Pete wouldn't have taken no for an answer and would not just have turned around and left quietly.
Britni, in the S1 scene, I think Peggy had significant physical, if not social or emotional, power. A front door is a bigger barrier than a room door, and Peggy could have gotten it between them. He was in the hall, she hadn't let him in. If she didn't want him around, Marjorie was more than willing to help get rid of him, whereas Gudrun was silenced in large part by the presence of sleeping children. I never felt Peggy was in danger while watching that scene, although I was horrified. BUT that is the same episode in which Pete was willing to disregard consent with the woman in the strip club. She did a good job of stopping him while still maintaining the social face expected of a woman, but it was SO tricky. Anyway, it was clear from that scene in the strip club that Pete didn't care a whole hell of a lot about "yes" as a prerequisite.
Personally, I still say that his original effort to get the dress replaced was authentic. It seems like Weiner felt this way too – that Pete is all gentlemanly and does a nice thing…but when he comes back with the dress his innate sense of entitlement kicks in and obviously is driven even more by the drinks (and seriously, I think he needs to stay away from booze – he’s a bad drinker!).
I agree with this, Sally. I think booze was a factor. Pete can be very quaint flirting with girls when he is sober. Even if Pete's quaint dorky attempts at flirting also go wrong, they seem pretty harmless. It's easy enough for girls to roll their eyes and ignore him. When Pete is drunk he goes too far, like when he got grabby with the girl at the strip club. The girl had to tell Pete "Stop that" more than once before Pete got the message and backed off. If she had said nothing, like Gudrun said nothing, I don't think Pete would have stopped.
It is telling that Pete refused a drink when Trudy offered him one at dinner. We've seen Pete's scorn for drunks in the Freddie Rumsen episode – "Those people have no self control". I think Pete became something he hated. I'll be interested to see if he refrains from drinking in future episodes.
But drinking aside, I think Pete's lack of empathy is a huge problem for him. To be fair to him, Pete doesn't lack empathy on purpose. There are so many scenes where Pete wants to have empathy; like in the scene with Hollis – he is trying to make an honest human connection but it goes wrong. This is such an important part of understanding Pete Campbell for me. This is why Pete DID become my favourite character in 'Meditations on an Emergency' – it isn't the pretty love speech. It is how Weiner defines Pete in that episode as someone who is desperate to make a human connection. That's why Pete fell in love with Peggy because he believed he had achieved that connection with her.
But the problem with Pete's lack of empathy is that his failure to connect leads to frustration and eventually to Pete doing bad things – like Pete blackmailing Don. At the start of S1 Pete wanted nothing more than to please Don and be Don's best friend, but Don's rejections turned Pete's love into resentment until he lashed out with another act of coersive entitlement; the blackmail. It's the non-sexual version of the Pete/Gudrun story, aside from the fact that Don fought back and has totally dominated Pete since that day.
But I will give Pete credit for knowing his own problem. He has said it from the start – "I'm not good with people". Pete isn't living in denial but he still needs help; psychatric or otherwise.
To a_mob_hit: Thanks for your latest message. It let's me know exactly how much weight to give your opinions.
Yeah…. I'm gonna stop reading this blog now.
…yeah…..
Word, falafel. Very nicely put – and agreed that lack of empathy is a major problem for Pete. He's sharp when it comes to demographics, stats, etc. but when it comes to getting people, he's just not there. Classic example of a person in a socially high class with no social skills. And I get where you're coming from re: the S2 finale – it was one of my favorite scenes in this series (and IMO the best scene in that episode) because of how high Pete goes (he really thinks he's achieved a full human connection with someone) and how much he's crushed.
Everyone who thought Pete raped someone in this episode is batshit. It was clearly consensual. How stupid do you think that girl is? "Oh, it's late and he is drunk and obviously hot for me, but I'll just let him in and model the dress, and then he will leave?" You think you are being feminist when you look for new things on which to hang the word "rape," but you are only making the female characters into victim parodies when you warp your view of the series' events to make them oblivious and powerless.