Instructor Spotlight: Veronica Habashy

Mad Men is set in the early 1960s and portrays a very male-dominated world of advertising in New York. What inspired you to teach this course?

When I was applying to Tufts and I learned about the ExCollege, I knew that I wanted to teach a class before graduating. I have been interested in teaching for a long time, having been inspired by a few very passionate teachers across my education. What has always made a class shine for me is the specificity of the topic and the enthusiasm of the instructor. When I was studying abroad in England last Spring, I started rewatching the show since it was streaming on Netflix UK. I found the portrayal of the burgeoning American identity as we know it to be so engaging in a time where I was a) experiencing a completely different culture, and b) I felt that American culture was experiencing a dramatic shift amidst all the changes last January. I couldn’t stop talking about the show with my friends (who did not always want to listen) and I realized I should find some people who would!

What drew you to Mad Men initially?

My English teacher from my freshman year of high school told me to watch it. I actually couldn’t get through it the first time because it made me nervous. I think it reminded me of The Twilight Zone. When I finally circled back to it though I was drawn in by so much: the writing, the costuming, the music! It’s nostalgic for something that certainly existed, but it also reminds you of its own fragility as a vision.

What lessons can we glean from Mad Men that are applicable to our lives now?

This is a big question, and it’s one I am trying to approach in my class. I think what I learn from it most of all is that the identity America constructed after World War II from capitalism, advertising, mistreatment, and exploitation is really rooted in delusion. It has helped me reckon with the question of American pride today, where I feel like more people than ever are questioning their own relationship with the nation, and we all seem to be grieving something each time affairs grow bleaker and out of our control. But I suppose I am learning through these nuanced and interesting characterizations that it was never a stable foundation to begin with, which can either be liberating or grim.

Do you have a favorite episode?

There are seven seasons and I don’t think a single one of them falls flat. We just went on a field trip to the Harvard Film Archive to see 2001: A Space Odyssey which is referenced over an episode of Season 7 titled “The Monolith,” and it’s pretty great. So I’ll say that one.

Veronica Habashy is a senior majoring in International Literary and Visual Studies and English Literature.