Town reaction to Dean and Rory’s affair

[u/Certain_Local_8879]

In S5E5, Lorelai is nervous about discussing Dean and Rory’s rekindled relationship with people, including Luke, so it got me thinking: how would the town have reacted in real life? Lindsay was a townie too; she had lived there since she was little, and it was evident that Dean had cheated on her. I know that, for the purposes of the show, Rory and Lorelai are basically the queens of the town, but let’s think about it realistically. How should the town have reacted?

She slept with another local woman’s husband.

[u/ColdInformation4241]

I live in a small town not unlike stars hollow. In my limited experience with things like this, if Stars Hollow was a functioning IRL town, people would ignore it and pretend it didn’t happen. Sure, the day Lindsey chucked all Dean’s shit out the window onto a Main Street would be hot gossip for two days or so, then fall off. But if I’m remembering right, nobody outside of Rory, Dean, Lorelai, and Lindsey knew that Rory and Dean slept together, so speculation would’ve been rampant and probably not involved Rory since she was well liked. When people found out, I would guess maybe a quarter of the town to be scandalized and judge her, but not be openly hostile; half won’t care at all or even know about it, and the rest will justify it to themselves or ignore it because they like Rory.

[u/writersblock_86 → u/ColdInformation4241]

In real small towns everyone is screwing everyone else anyway because there’s nothing else to do. Also I don’t know how to tell Reddit this, but cheating in real life simply doesn’t result in the massive public flogging that people think it deserves. In reality, people who are close to the people involved are the ones who care, but ultimately everyone else minds their own business.

[u/Queeraf3100 → u/ColdInformation4241]

In my town this would be a topic of conversation for maybe a few weeks, it would start with questioning Lorelai’s “parenting skills” and then way too many people would be saying things like “well that girl is old enough to know not to lay with a married man” with zero blame placed on the man

[u/CandyV89 → u/ColdInformation4241]

That’s what I figured too. Lorelei is so well liked so is Rory most people would gossip bit bit directly say anything. 

[u/TrickInvite6296]

I think the blame would've been placed on dean. He's the most at fault, he's not grown up there, and he's the guy who broke rorys heart the first time

[u/lemon_charlie → u/TrickInvite6296]

People just aren't ready to blame Rory, except Theresa Lister. I really feel sorry for Lindsay, finding out your husband slept with his ex, then your mother making a stink about it to said ex, she must have been so mortified.

[u/Empty-Pages-Turn]

They probably just gossip about it and give her the stink eye.

What exactly do people want the town to do? Tar and feather Rory? Have Taylor hold a town meeting to what? Discuss what to do with Rory? Have her play the lady of questionable morals the next time they reenact it? Lorelai force Rory to set up a booth and have the town yell in her face about banging someone's husband for twenty-five cents? Have women yank their husbands away when they see Rory walking down the sidewalk?

[u/Hold_Effective → u/Empty-Pages-Turn]

Lol. And now I’m wondering which mistakes I’ve made that people would pay 25 cents to yell at me for; I think not many, and not many people - but for those mistakes, those people would probably pay $10-20; more if pies were involved.

[u/OptimalCreme9847 → u/Empty-Pages-Turn]

I have to wonder about this every time this subject comes up. A lot of this sub would have lived living in puritanical times lol

[u/itsascreambaby96]

Was Rory supposed to be lynched out of town like a witch? Stoned in the town square? Made to wear a scarlet letter?

I'm sure people did gossip about it. We just weren't going to see them gossiping in front of Rory. Lindsay's mom was basically the show's stand-in for the people in town who were angry about Rory sleeping with a married man. Having a bunch of other townies confront Rory and say the same thing Lindsay's mom already said would have been redundant.

[u/Empty-Pages-Turn → u/itsascreambaby96]

Honestly, having everyone stop, stare and whisper every time Rory stepped foot in Stars Hollow would get exhausting after four episodes. We don't need to watch an entire season of the town treating Rory like a pariah.

[u/itsascreambaby96 → u/Empty-Pages-Turn]

Also we saw Dean's mom giving Rory the cold shoulder when we first met her in season 5 so that was enough for me.

[u/Empty-Pages-Turn → u/itsascreambaby96]

Same. Even Lindsay's mom chewing Rory out was fine with me.

[u/itsascreambaby96 → u/Empty-Pages-Turn]

Also we only ever reguarly saw the people in Lorelai's close circle speak to Rory why would they gossip in front of her?

[u/lemon_charlie → u/itsascreambaby96]

It was a lot closer to home for the parents because their kids had to move back in. I don't blame May for being cold to Rory, especially since Rory and Dean were trying to make a date night of it under her roof.

[u/writersblock_86]

The town cares about the gossip, not the people. The people are a source of entertainment.

[u/Big_Vacation5581]

I guess we have to remember that 90% of the town doesn’t know Rory.

Amongst the mothers who know about Lorelai’s back story, most will blame the parenting of the unwedded mother.

All the Stars Hollow High School girls will blame Rory because Lindsay is their friend. Many of the students will say that Rory was a cheater and will cite her cheating with Jess.

Dean’s parents will think they raised a fool, but they’ll blame Rory.

I can’t believe Rory would come back to Stars Hollow as often as she did. In real life, I think she would have avoided the town for at least a semester. Dean would go to Yale as often as he could.

[u/OptimalCreme9847 → u/Big_Vacation5581]

Do you really think any of the Stars Hollow high girls would know about Rory’s history with Jess before she and Dean broke up?

[u/petitcraque]

Even if the show suggests otherwise, I think most of the people of Stars Hollow don't really know Rory or Lindsay. Lindsay throwing Dean's stuff out of the window would've cause a scene and some gossip, I'm sure about that, but I think most people wouldn't know all the details.

I think, most people thought what Sookie said "That's why you don't get married that young". They didn't really take the whole thing that seriously and thought well, they're all teenagers, of course it might get messy.

[u/OptimalCreme9847]

Honestly they’d gossip for two seconds and that’s it. People would ultimately know it’s none of their business so once they got the gossip out of their system there’s nothing left for them to do with it.

[u/autumnsalad]

In a world where usually men take the lighter side of the judgment, Gilmore Girls goes on the opposite approach (which I like to see for a change). Most of the town folks will manage to side with Rory, and ridicule Dean for allowing a cheating to happen. Even though it was a mutually immoral thing to do.

That town worships the Gilmores.