A new sitcom--Cougar Town--with Courtney Cox. I'm not sure what to make of this. Is it new, or have their been shows like this in the past? It reminds me of a CNN clip I saw while waiting for my plane. It was a story about Miss Cougar USA and something called a Cougar Cruise.
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I think it is interesting how stories about so called "cougars" have started popping up all over the news lately. I remember the first time I heard the term coined was in reference to the mother in the film "Wedding Crashers" who pursues Owen Wilson's character. I think it's worth noting that even though cougars are gaining national prominence in the media, their stories are always presented with a humorous and mocking tone. When a female character in a show like "Sex and the City" dates an older man, no one bats an eye, but in shows like this, the scenario must be presented in a humorous way for it to be acceptable to the mainstream. I also thought it was worth noting that the show continually emphasized the character's role as a mother, and depicted her relationship with the younger man as motherly and nurturing (as shown in the scene where she brings him crackers). I would speculate that a large part of our discomfort with women dating younger men stems from the female's role as the mother and nurturer, and thus causes us to view such relationships as unnatural and even creepy. I can't help but think back to Oedipus, as his (albeit unknowing) relationship with his mother is the ultimate punishment from the gods for denying the natural course of fate.
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