After the recent finale of The Bachelor, ABC’s The Bachelorette host Chris Harrison revealed that in the next season of The Bachelorette, fan favorites Britt Nilsson and Kaitlyn Bristowe will compete for the lionized role. In the premiere episode, the 25 male contestants will choose one woman to be the official Bachelorette, while the other will be sent home. Ironically, this news came the day after National Women’s Day, a celebration spearheaded by the United Nations to promote female empowerment.
This change in dynamics has not sat well with those viewers of The Bachelorette who praised the show for its feminist undercurrent. Despite its arguably artificial depiction of romance, The Bachelorette commendably reversed stereotypical gender power dynamics by enabling one woman to call the shots in 25 relationships.
Now, however, The Bachelorette returns power to the men. By pitting two women against each other in a competition to become the rightful Bachelorette, the network encourages viewers to once again take pleasure in watching men choose the more fitting wife. The selected Bachelorette immediately surrenders control of the dating game because she may only begin her reign after the men of the house grant it to her.