How To Tell ‘Em Off- Southern Belle Style
what i’m listening to
I’ve always said that we Southern Belles have a special way of telling someone where they can go.
There’s been a lot of talk lately of the phrase “Bless Your Heart” and other variants such as “bless her little heart”, but I think we owe a lot to one of the original ladies of telling them like it is: Julia Sugarbaker.
Julia didn’t just say cute catch phrases like bless your heart, she straight up got in their faces and said exactly what all was on her mind.
One of my father’s favorite clips from the show Designing Women is the speech called “The Night The Lights Went Out in Georgia”, and I really think watching this tv show had an effect on me as a child. I remember my parents saying “that’s Molly!” – oh, if only they knew how true this would be.
After overhearing a Miss Georgia speak ill of her sister, the sister that she many times clashes with throughout the show, Julia dishes out her own history lesson to Miss Georgia. The speech from this particular clip goes:
Yes, and I gather from your comments there are a couple of other things you don’t know, Marjorie. For example, you probably didn’t know that Suzanne was the only contestant in Georgia pageant history to sweep every category except congeniality, and that is not something the women in my family aspire to anyway. Or that when she walked down the runway in her swimsuit, five contestants quit on the spot. Or that when she emerged from the isolation booth to answer the question, “What would you do to prevent war?” she spoke so eloquently of patriotism, battlefields and diamond tiaras, grown men wept. And you probably didn’t know, Marjorie, that Suzanne was not just any Miss Georgia, she was the Miss Georgia. She didn’t twirl just a baton, that baton was on fire. And when she threw that baton into the air, it flew higher, further, faster than any baton has ever flown before, hitting a transformer and showering the darkened arena with sparks! And when it finally did come down, Marjorie, my sister caught that baton, and 12,000 people jumped to their feet for sixteen and one-half minutes of uninterrupted thunderous ovation, as flames illuminated her tear-stained face! And that, Marjorie – just so you will know – and your children will someday know – is the night the lights went out in Georgia!
There are many Julia moments that I truly love, but what I really like about her is she doesn’t just use cute little phrase and leave it at that. She also incorporates facts in to her arguments and doesn’t back down. A better example of this is here below:
Sadly, the issues in this above video are still present. Perhaps we need more Julia Sugarbaker types in this world, and maybe if it’s us Southern Belles- some progress will be made.
It seems sometimes that social media has made the need for a quick quip all too easy when discussing and debating issues. I particularly think about this given the arguments for an against museum funding in my hometown. I think so much gossip and so few facts are placed out there because people want to reduce this issue to a quick status update or tweet. Don’t get me wrong- I love social media, it’s a large part of my business. But we can’t take serious issues and reduce them to a quick debate. We need to talk to one another, and perhaps some real progress can be made.
In the meantime, let’s stop reducing ourselves to cute catch phrases and put some substance in the way we stand up for our beliefs. Whatever they may be. And if nothing else, it’s a hell of a lot more impressive when you can tell someone off with a speech like Julia’s. So, take note, the next time you have a point to make- do it with facts and eloquence.
Love to all y’all,
Molly
