Week Four: The Secret History of Wonder Woman

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My first introduction to the Wonder Woman franchise was the 2017 movie. I really did not have an interest in seeing the movie, not being a big super hero fan, until members of my family saw it and highly suggested it. I saw it and I loved it! It did not feel like a classic superhero movie. I came out of the movie really fired up and ready to take on some bad guys. Having such a love for this movie I never thought I would tell myself “I don’t think I can ever watch Wonder Woman again,” until after I read The Secret History of Wonder Woman.

 I will say outright that I do not agree with most of Marston’s moral decisions, both professionally and within his household. To me his life was actually really sad. Marston’s life is very complex, as evidence by the fact we just read a whole book about it. I don’t want to seem like I am over simplifying an issue - I feel like I can write a whole book about my thoughts - but due the nature of a short blog post, but I will focus on Marston’s relationships.

Marston and his wife Holloway had a very open and almost primal nature to their relationship. The body wants what the body wants and that is just your nature seemed to be the attitude. With this outlook, it is no surprise that their private circle began to grow. Olive is talked about a lot in the Secret History of Wonder Woman. She seemed to be the one major source of inspiration for the Wonder Woman character. The book mentions her bracelets and, also, how her familial tie to the feminist movement is translated to the Wonder Woman stories. Olive was Marston’s mistress. What happened privately with the three of them - Olive, Marston and Holloway - we never know for sure. Many people speculate the Marston had many mistresses. Whether all the accusations are true or not, Marston and Holloway did not have the classic relationship.

This perspective on human nature and relationships is really sad to me. What about commitment and love? We are not just animals. Just because we feel an urge does not mean it is right and we should do it. Just because you can have relationships with multiple people at a time, does not mean that it is the best way to live. Too many people base their moral campus on their feelings. If it feels right, then it is right.

The mirroring of Marston’s and his companions lives to Wonder Woman was too much for me. A figure that once stood as an inspiring figure to me is now just a representation of a man’s whose lifestyle I do not agree with.

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