Mad Men: The 10 Saddest Things About Joan, Ranked

At first glance, AMC’s Mad Men is a compelling series about the exciting lives of advertising men from New York City. Once we learn more about the show’s endlessly complex characters, we realize that none of them are as happy as they should be, considering how well they’re doing in their lives. Joan Holloway is one of the few main female characters on the show and she represents a transition between a traditional housewife of the 1950s and the emancipated feminist of the 1970s.

The curvy and sassy redhead went from being a head of secretaries to an independent and wealthy executive. Meanwhile, she powered through an unsuccessful marriage, raised a child without the father present, and held her head high despite all the chauvinistic comments she had to endure. It’s been a bumpy ride for Miss Holloway, but she got what she wanted in the end.

10 She Was Overly Sexualized

Joan is radiating sex appeal. Throughout the series, she’d been compared to Cleopatra, Marilyn Monroe, and “a work of art”. She knew that her figure was her asset. During the Belle Jolie brainstorming session, she deliberately bent over in front of the one-way mirror so the men behind the glass get a good view of her.

Joan had to endure some pretty weird back-handed compliments because of the way she looked, for example, she was once told that she should be in the bra business. But the worst comment was probably this one: “What do you do around here besides walking around like you’re trying to get raped?”

9 She’s Mean To Women

When fans first met Joan in season 1, she was the Head Secretary. She was an admired boss, but she was very condescending to her underlings. She was only kind to those who could serve her in some way, which typically meant successful men. On the other hand, she didn’t really seem to have any respect for women; not for her mother, other secretaries, or women who married well.

Instead of helping empower other women, Joan only looked out for her own interests. That is certainly one of those things about Joan that would never fly today.

8 She Was Torn Between Two Worlds

Even though she was financially independent and loved her job, Joan still believed that a woman should eventually get married and settle down. She told Peggy in the pilot: “If you make the right moves, you’ll be out in the country and you won’t be going to work at all”.

It’s as if she was torn between becoming another Betty Draper or fully embracing her Peggy within. She encouraged other secretaries on their quests to find bachelors, but she lived a completely different life herself. Joan’s life was pretty difficult, but at least she stayed true to herself.

7 She Was Often Disrespected At Work

Men rarely gave credit to Joan’s work. Greg thought that all she does is walk around the office so men can look at her. In “The Summer Man”, a bunch of guys from the office drew a very offensive drawing of Joan, dismissing it as “just a joke”. They would never make fun of Roger, Don, or Bert like that.

Joan didn’t rush off to tell on them; that would only make it seem like she is helpless. Instead, she painted a picture for them: a year from now, they’d be off in Vietnam, lost and scared in the jungle while being shot at. Peggy then proceeded to fire one of the culprits, but Joan wasn’t too happy about that either.

6 She Didn’t Contribute To Changing The System

The 1960s were a time of radical changes. Unlike Peggy, Joan didn’t fully belong to the exciting decade. She was good at navigating the world that was owned and ruled by men. Using her sexuality and femininity, she turned the patriarchy in her favor.

She was a woman with a lot of power, but in the end of the day, she perpetuated unjust hetero-normative values rather than rebel against them like Peggy did.  When Peggy fired Joey for that drawing, she was actively trying to change things. But in Joan’s eyes, she proved to everybody that Joan is just “a meaningless secretary”, while Peggy is a “humorless b*tch”. There’s a fine line between being assertive and being shameless, Joan!

5 Greg Raped Her

Joan started dating Greg in season 2 and it quickly turned out that he is a very conservative and insecure man who expected Joan to be submissive and to satisfy all his needs. He couldn’t stand that Joan was a very independent and strong-willed woman. In order to assert himself as “the man”, he raped Joan on the floor of Don Draper’s office in “The Mountain King”.

Instead of breaking off her engagement right there and then, Joan proceeded to marry the guy, which brings us to the next, an even sadder point.

4 Her Marriage To Greg

Even though these two clearly have nothing in common, Joan wanted to keep up the appearances of being in a dream relationship from the beginning. She bragged about the engagement in the office, showing off her engagement ring and thus perpetuating this myth that a woman’s ultimate goal in life is to get married.

Joan was a supportive wife to Greg, but he was very selfish in return. He didn’t invest anything in their relationship at all. When she got pregnant, she told Greg that the child was his, even though it was Roger’s. Finally, the tragic couple divorced in season 5.

3 She Raised Roger’s Son All By Herself

Even though she wanted things to be that way, it’s still pretty sad that Joan had to raise Kevin all by herself. None of the men in her life stood up to be decent fathers to the boy, but Roger did at least tell Joan that he included Kevin in the will. Roger’s lack of involvement in Kevin’s life didn’t really make sense, but Joan didn’t seem to mind.

The silver lining is that Joan’s mother helped her raise her son, so she wasn’t completely alone. At the end of the series, fans see her run her own business while being a great mom.

2 Don Betrayed Her

Joan and Don weren’t very close, but they did have a very friendly relationship. In “Christmas Waltz”, they truly enjoyed each other’s company at the bar, so it came as a real shock in season 7 when Don turned his back on her. Joan slept with a powerful Jaguar representative for the company, only so Don could throw the account away and boost his ego. But back in the day, Joan seemed to be one of those women that Don truly loved, either as a lover or as a friend.

At about the same time, Don told the truth about his childhood: that he was raised in a whorehouse. It’s as if he wanted to remind Joan over and over again that she sold her body for material gains.

1 She Slept With Herb Rennet

In “The Other Woman”, Herb first expressed his wish to spend a night with Joan and the firm would in return get Jaguar. The partners offered Joan a hefty sum to do the deed, but she expressed her demand that she be made a non-silent partner instead.

It’s tragic that after all was said and done, Joan only made partner because of her body and not because of all the hard work she put in. It’s a feeling she and other partners didn’t manage to fully shake off.

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