The 5 lessons that Dolly Parton left us Between beauty, irony and feminism

Dolly Parton, an American country music icon, actress and entrepreneur, singer-songwriter and ante-litteram influencer, passed away at 80. With her, not only a piece of the history of music and society goes away, but also a column of pop culture. With her looks, her irony, but also her philanthropy, Dolly Parton has been a symbol for many women, not to mention her firm and continuous support for the most marginalized groups in society, since the Seventies. For this reason, we want to remember her for what she left us, and for everything we can still learn from her.

The lessons we can learn from Dolly Parton

1. Private life is private and it is possible to keep it private for a long time

Have you ever heard of Dolly Parton's husband and children? Can you list their names? Are you well aware of their faces? If the answer is no, know that it is part of a very specific will. The singer, in fact, while telling a lot about herself and not shying away from questions and insinuations, never wanted the family to be subjected to the same level of scrutiny to which she was subjected. A very different way of understanding fame from what we are used to now and, perhaps, a form of antidote to parasociality.

2. You don't have to be jealous of younger stars, quite the contrary

Sometimes, we fall into easy stereotypes. It is said that the more mature stars, especially if they are women, compete with the younger ones, try to tear them down, accuse them of plagiarism. Dolly Parton has always been against the trend. Suffice it to recall her closeness to Miley Cyrus (she has also appeared in Hannah Montana on several occasions) or, more recently, her collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter for Please Please Please. Even when Beyoncé reinterpreted her Jolene, her statement was full of admiration and openness to the novelty, despite criticism. A lesson in feminism even before in female solidarity.

3. Helping and accepting others is the only thing a good person can do

We know her for her songs (did you know that she wrote Jolene and I Will Always Love You - sung by Whitney Huston - in a single day?) but Dolly Parton was so much more. He loved to re-invest what he had earned in his community, in Nashville and Tennessee, and beyond. For example, he founded a program for the literacy of the youngest with which he gave books to children from birth onwards, to nourish their dreams. It was called Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, and it was available in 5 countries. In general, she never backed down even when it came to civil rights. She has always sided in favor of the LGBTQ community, with an eye for the trans community, who are particularly mistreated. His motto? “I just want everyone to be treated well, for everyone to respect people's identities.”

4. We must never hide who we are, even in makeup and clothing

The image of Dolly Parton was an integral part of her character, one of the reasons why we remember it (and will remember it) so well, so it's easy to recall it. Do you know? Huge blonde hair, pink lipstick, very long nails, black pencil on the eyes, blue eye shadow, sequin jumpsuits and a big smile. For her, looking respectable or decent wasn't that important. During one of her many interviews, she stated that she was inspired by the city's' tramp 'to create her look. In his eyes, the class was in the way he treated people, not in the look, which he liked to define as' trash ', but with a positive meaning.

5. The only way to face the future is with hope

With her, there is also a fun and amusing way, ironic and self-deprecating, but always with the right gravitas, of looking at the world not with detachment, but with great participation and, above all, hope. In one of his last statements before his death, he let the world know: “Even though I'm still recovering, I'm still working! I still have a lot of things I want to do, so I'll keep working as long as possible to see every single project come to life.”