Emily’s contentious relationship with her daughter Lorelai is a major storyline inGilmore Girls, but that’s not the harshest truth about the Gilmore family matriarch. ThroughoutGilmore Girls' seven seasonsand the sequel miniseries,Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, Kelly Bishop gave such a nuanced performance as Emily Gilmore that it’s criminal she never won (or was even nominated for) a major award. In lesser hands, Emily would have a one-note villain in the Amy Sherman-Palladino series.
But Bishop is full of acerbic charm as the character, andEmily’s hilarious insults inGilmore Girlsare often some of the show’s best lines. But as witty as Emily may be, her frostiness and judgment toward Lorelai are the reason that the two barely spoke for years. In fact, it’s only because Lorelai needs money for Rory to attend the prestigious Chilton Preparatory School that she comes back into Emily’s life at all. Indeed, Emily has said and done some pretty awful things to Lorelai, though they still pale in comparison to her biggest flaw.
Emily Is Villainized For Her Antagonistic Relationship With Lorelai
She Made Mistakes, But Ultimately Wanted Her Daughter To Be Happy
Since Lorelai is the protagonist ofGilmore Girls, we often see things through her point of view, which often casts Emily in a villainous light. It’s true thatas the parents, both Emily and her husband Richard must shoulder much of the blame for their rift with Lorelai, but they don’t deserve all of it. Based on Emily’s criteria for giving Lorelai the loan, which includes the famousGilmore GirlsFriday night dinners, she clearly wants to be in her daughter’s and granddaughter’s lives, and continually makes an effort to do so throughout the series.
Lorelai isn’t entirely blameless in this conflict, either. Sure, when she was a teenage mom who left home because she didn’t feel emotionally safe, Emily and Richard could have done more to show their support. But at the start ofGilmore Girlsseason 1, Lorelai is a 32-year-old woman who has essentially been keeping Rory from her grandparents for years, which is unfair.
It frustrates her that Lorelai has access to these same privileges but refuses to take them.
It’s true that Emily should have been kinder to Lorelai during her many insistences — both as a teenager and as a grown woman — that she doesn’t want to live the same upper-crust life as Emily. But beneath her judgments, Emily really just wants Lorelai to be happy.Being married and wealthy is a dream life to Emily, and it’s impossible for her to imagine anyone finding real joy in anything else. It frustrates her that Lorelai has access to these same privileges but refuses to take them. It doesn’t excuse Emily’s actions, but I can understand where she’s coming from.
Emily’s Horrible Treatment & Frequent Firing Of Her Maids Is Her Worst Trait
Taking Away Someone’s Livelihood Isn’t Exactly A Barrel Of Laughs
Emily wanting to share her wealth and privilege with her family doesn’t make her a villain, but the way she treats her hired staff certainly does. One of the biggest things aboutEmily that has aged poorly inGilmore Girlsis the running gag of her firing her maids for the most minor of infractions.The Gilmore matriarch has a new maid in almost every episode, with the same one rarely appearing twice. None of them are ever heard from again either, and they all merely serve as the butt of an unfunny joke.
Emily leads a charmed life of leisure, whereas those of her maids' financial status are living paycheck to paycheck — which is gone the second they don’t fold Emily’s linens properly.
This humor may have been hilarious to some in the 2000s, butin these trying and uncertain economic times, it’s more cruel than giggleworthy. Emily leads a charmed life of leisure, whereas those of her maids' financial status are living paycheck to paycheck — which is gone the second they don’t fold Emily’s linens properly. What’s worse is that everyone around Emily treats her ripping away a person’s only source of income like it’s a humorous little quirk.
I’m particularly surprised at Lorelai, who makes merry sport in looking down on her mother for upper-class ways, for not calling Emily out on this horrible behavior. After all, Lorelai herself was a maid for years after she moved out of Emily and Richard’s home. You’d think that she’d have some sympathy for the way this revolving door of maids are treated.
Gilmore Girls: A Year In The Life Tries To Fix Emily’s Biggest Flaw But Is Still Problematic
Berta The Maid Was A Reviled Stereotype
InGilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, things have taken a sad turn for Emily, as Richard has passed away (actorEdward Herrmann had died before theGilmore Girlsrevival). In her grief, Emily is too tired to fire her maid Berta, despite her problems with her. However, as time goes on,Emily softens and becomes more generous toward Berta, even employing her husband as a handyman.
Berta is played byGilmore Girlsactress Rose Abdoo, who also portrays Gypsy, Stars Hollow’s resident auto mechanic, in the show.
At the end ofA Year in the Life, when Emily decides to move to Nantucket, she takes Berta and her family with her. It’s sad that it took Emily losing something as precious as her husband to learn how to treat her employees properly, but better late than never. Unfortunately, it couldn’t just be simple enough forA Year in the Lifeto dispense with a cheap running gag.
Instead of making Berta a fully formed character, theGilmore Girlsrevival instead made her a racist Latina stereotype. It actually becomes a new running joke that none of the other characters can understand her when she’s speaking her native language (despite Rory having some passing knowledge of Spanish). Beyond that, Berta also cooks dishes that Emily deems unrecognizable and brings her entire family to work. Look, I’m happy that Emily decided to start treating her maids like people — I just wishGilmore Girlswould do the same.
