Friday Favorite: The Best Rejection Letter Ever
August 01, 2008 By: almostgotit Category: Uncategorized, affirmations, art, feminism, friendship, humor, rejection letters, rejections
This letter belongs to Kevin Burg , whose grandmother received it in 1938. (click here to see it even better) Kevin notes that despite Disney’s declaration that women aren’t to do any creative work, his grandmother eventually became an animator during WWII when women had to step up “For the War Effort.”
To be fair, it probably wasn’t entirely sexist, in 1938, to deny women any but the most menial, low-paying jobs. During the Great Depression, many Americans felt that only men were entitled to jobs, the logic being that men had families to support. That logic was a little thin, of course, as many women also were supporting families, some of which included their unemployed husbands.
Don’t you love the stationery? So perfect to send to all the “girls” looking for jobs. I wonder what kind of stationery the real adults received? (and we could do all kinds of things with the witch lurking in the corner, too — hey look, it’s HR Wench’s dopellganger!)
(DRUM ROLL PLEASE) And now for the REAL hall of fame!
Many thanks to all the others who have celebrated rejection with me this week, both here and on your own blogs: (please let me know if I’ve left you out… I’m still chasing down the “pings!)
Mikael, Mikael the Mime) (who has magical bodily functions)
James, James Viscosi’s Scribblings (yes, there’s plenty enough rejection to go around)
Deb, A Little Tea or Something (for understanding what I mean)
Peggy, Career Encouragement Blog (who is going to be the best PhD ever)
Alison, Ask a Manager (one of the blogosphere’s best writers)
Truevyne, The TrueVyne (braver than most people know)
Cassandra, Ophelia Blooming (collage-maker extraordinaire)
Karen, Working Girl (there’s NO place like home!)
Rachel at The Drawing Lady (PLEASE: What’s a Jerwood?)
Ann, Thomas Trails and Tales (hurray for you! Only 99 more rejections to join our super-duper hall of fame!)
Linda, The Girl with the Curl (who just GOT a job, but can still remember what it is like…)
Michelle, Philadelphia Stories and Michelle Wittle’s Web log (Inspiring, she is)
Dave, Dare to Dream (The only licensed advice-giver in the bunch)
Bill, not poetry blog (for this collage of rejection letters!)
Jackson, Blue Mosaic Me (who actually LIKED his most recent rejection letter.)
As well as for my blogless-but-wonderful fellow rejectees Kathy, David, Tom R., Felicia, Keith, Pam S., Mini-Betsy, Marisa and Laura E
August 1st, 2008 at 1:32 am
What a ridiculous letter! I love it!!
(BTW, I am Alison, not Karen, but if you’re going to say nice things about me like that, you can call me by the name of your choosing.)
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Ack! Forgive me. Too much cut-and-paste-and-linking. Names are so important! I’ve fixed it now.
August 1st, 2008 at 10:34 am
Well, what can you expect from an organization that lets half a dozen dirty old men blatantly ogle their comely young female small-animal care specialist?
August 1st, 2008 at 11:43 am
Being informed that I Rock in sparkly red letters has made my day. Right back at you, Almostgotit!
August 1st, 2008 at 6:54 pm
Yes, interesting stationary. I never knew those dwarves had such big noses…
August 2nd, 2008 at 10:00 am
I was sure I had read the line “Women do not do creative work” incorrectly, but hey, what’s the world without a little chauvinism?
August 2nd, 2008 at 10:35 pm
As far as I’m concerned, any stationery with the 7 dwarfs on it stops being a rejection letter and starts being a self-parody.
August 4th, 2008 at 11:19 am
We still have progress to be made but if you need a clue as to how far we have come all you have to do is read that letter!
August 4th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
Your comments are all so wonderful and funny I can hardly find another rejoinder. Thanks for weighing in!
August 5th, 2008 at 8:19 am
LOVED sharing the Disney letter with my 12-year old state soccer champ daughter (sorry – just had to get that in there again!). She calmly tossed it aside and said, “That’s just a joke, right?”
August 5th, 2008 at 9:33 am
*high five*
Oh, and I guess Snow White is supposed to ease the pain of someone telling you, because you’re a woman, you can’t draw. But you can surely sing to the woodland creatures! Tisk tisk.