Meghan Markle makes it so hard to like her

Meghan Markle is the most polarising member of the royal family in decades and there’s a clear reason why she’s so widely disliked.

OPINION

I’ve always been desperate to love Meghan Markle. She was an outspoken feminist entering into the royal family. Yes, the Queen was top dog, but the institution is still largely patriarchal.

Women in the royal family must abide by codes of conduct that are now outdated, like specific dress colours, wearing stockings and having instructions on how to do their nails.

I saw her as the future of royalty. Meghan had life experience and didn’t grow up with money and wealth. She could have been a new, louder, and clearer voice.

But loving Meghan is like loving a charming boyfriend who constantly keeps cheating on you; it is not easy and sometimes supporting her makes you look like a fool.

Meghan Markle has been a polarising member of the royal family since she married Prince Harry. Picture: Chris Jackson/Getty Images.

To her credit Meghan has been by her husband’s side since the Queen died. She’s been spotted mingling with the public and playing the role of a supportive wife.

Yet, her actions which I’d argue are impossible to criticise are being criticised. Your husband’s grandma dies and you turn up to support the family? No matter what has happened, how is that the wrong thing?

But Meghan’s behaviour is so highly scrutinised it feels like she can’t do anything right. There’s even a viral TikTok making the rounds where it appears like she’s being snippy with a royal aid.

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She’s made plenty of missteps; most recently, during her interview with The Cut, her efforts to come across as likeable and relatable came across as cringe and out of touch.

She compared her and Harry to two conjoined trees in her yard and swore her son Archie called those trees “Mama and Papa” when he walked past them. It was one hell of a self-indulgent anecdote.

She also claimed a member of The Lion King cast told her people in South Africa took to the streets to celebrate when she married Prince Harry, in a similar fashion to how they celebrated Nelson Mandela’s freedom. She told The Cut, “He said, ‘I just need you to know: When you married into this family, we rejoiced in the streets the same we did when Mandela was freed from prison.’”

Yes, she compared marrying a white Prince to Mandela’s incredible legacy. Who’s going to tell her that marrying into the royal family isn’t comparable to a human rights leader being freed? I vote Camilla.

So, yes, she sometimes makes herself hard to like. It’s like she’s so desperately trying to be loved that she becomes bloody annoying. But in fairness to her, that also makes a ton of sense. When she married Harry, her whole identity became about her husband, and she’s now trying to negotiate a new one.

But, despite how annoying she can be, I still think the rage and anger we seem to reserve for Meghan is beyond gross. Sure, she’s out of touch and a bit up herself. But why is Harry not being hit with the same stick? The man became the Chief Impact Officer for a start-up. What’s more w*nky than that?

Prince Harry has had his own fair share of missteps but why isn’t he so hated? Picture: Chris Jackson/WPA Pool/Getty Images.

Meghan is reminder that we are so much harder on women than we are on men, or in this case, we are so much harder on Meghan than on her husband, Harry.

She’s copped much criticism for denouncing the royal family, moving to LA, and signing a podcast deal with Spotify. She’s seen as money hungry, fame-hungry, and up herself. Meanwhile, Harry, who has denounced the royal family, moved to LA, and signed a deal with Spotify, is still widely beloved.

See? Same actions and a completely different reaction.

None of his actions are exactly screaming boy next door. Yet he seems to have been given endless public support and adoration. Maybe she complained about her in-laws, but Harry went on Oprah and complained about his own flesh and blood, and she’s still the b**ch?

I’m not claiming Meghan is that likeable; let’s face it, she is no Princess Diana. However, I do think we need to ask ourselves why it’s so easy to hate Meghan, but so easy to keep loving Harry? Probably because we love villainising women.

Mary Madigan is freelance writer.