Comments on: Freedom

By: Christiana

Christiana — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 23:19:44 +0000

I see how Don is free of the secret he was hiding from Betty, but my first reaction during the confession Betty extracted from him was that he was now beholden to *her* (in addition to Anna) as the keeper of that secret. As she points out (undoubtedly for a different reason), taking Draper’s identity is illegal. If she is bound to him by her desire to maintain her standard of living (home, livelihood, children), he is now beholden to her to … keep him out of prison, as it were. Betty would probably never report him out of concern for herself and her family, but this is a woman who would shoot the neighbor’s birds, manipulate her girlfriend into adultery and toy with an 8-year-old boy’s affection, so who knows?!

By: Zouli Pious

Zouli Pious — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:10:08 +0000

I watch this show with this thought in the back of my mind all the time.. “its the 60s”. Stuff happened then that was considered normal and just the way things were. The fact that adultery was more accepted as something that just happened is a truism. Adultery still happens but because of the changes in the laws and civil (human) rights we’re more able to out the offending betrayer. Less tolerance for it and such.

I feel Don cheats because he’s an amoral man. He wasn’t raised with a solid moral compass, by examples of love and commitment and honor. I remember a scene at the birthday party when Don catches one of the couples in the dining room being tender with each other. I got a feeling from him in that scene that the image he was processing was something he didn’t really understand but possibly longed for.

I think he’s trying to be a moral man, he’s just having to do it by himself and a man alone in any time has a hard time asking for help or even acknowledging that wow I have a problem.

I know a lot of the discussion regarding Don is bound in some way to freedoms and truth. I just feel the truth is he wasn’t raised in the best of circumstances so he’s a product of that.

Hope this made some sense.

By: michelle

michelle — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 19:40:59 +0000

He is "beholden"to her, and I think she would/ will maintain her silence- until the Suzanne secret is outed. His having sex with Suzanne is awful, but for Betty, I think, it pales in comparison to how she will feel that her family will be fodder for gossip in the whole town. Esp if the kids are talking in school.

Then all bets are off- and he's either looking at jail, or signing over all his assets to her.

By: Deborah Lipp

Deborah Lipp — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:38:50 +0000

The AMC site shows only the first page of the contract, which doesn’t include the non-compete.

By: Madnesse

Madnesse — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:50:41 +0000

Yeah, Don got locked into the contract because Bert Cooper already knows Don's secret (and because Pete found out before him). When people find out about Don, it doesn't necessarily lead to freedom. Now that Betty knows the truth, it's already led to Don cutting off his relationship with Suzanne – his freedom is being further curtailed. Is there more in store?

By: Karl

Karl — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:13:55 +0000

Don is free-er. He's not free. That's what "Seven Twenty-Three" was about. He's locked into a contract. He's (supposedly) committed to his family. And it's much harder to go hobo now that Betty knows his secrets.

By: michelle

michelle — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:13:52 +0000

"But when he visited Anna in the flashbackâ€“to get his â€œdivorceâ€â€“he was in love. At least, Anna thought so."

I think you are right- he did seem very in love- (but he did dwell on her beauty and education).

It just seemed like she never really "did it" for him, whereas she seemed to want more of him- all of him, and his elusiveness was a continued source of her frustration and anger.

I hope that you are correct and MW will resolve things so that he really loves her, and it has been his fear of rejection and self- loathing that drove him to stray… but when I see MW interviewed, he seems to have a pretty negative view of their marriage- that it is empty and based on falsehood.

By: not_Bridget

not_Bridget — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:57:44 +0000

She was an ornament for his alter ego- but I donâ€™t think she was ever a real live person. He never aknowledged her as that- just as an object to complete his facade.

But when he visited Anna in the flashback–to get his "divorce"–he was in love. At least, Anna thought so.

By: michelle

michelle — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:56:48 +0000

One thing I think is interesting is to remember what Betty has always been good at- playing cards. She was always pictured with all the cards at the end of the game.

I see her eventually blackmailing him for custody, a house- not in Ossining- and every penny he's worth.

By: Elle

Elle — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:49:23 +0000

I think Betty is not as snobby as people may think -but she is a narcisist. Don isn't poor anymore. They have a beautiful home, cars, money, clothes, jewelry. The past doesn't affect her directly, so I doubt she cares too much about it.