Alicia Florrick
The Good Wife provides a wealth of powerful female characters – including Diane Lockhart, ably performed by Christine Baranski. But it is Alicia Florrick – the ‘good wife’ of the title – that makes this list. First appearing in 2009 as the humiliated spouse of State’s Attorney Peter Florrick (Chris Noth), Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies) rejects the notion of retreating to lick her wounds, and instead returns to work after 15 years as a stay-at-home mother. A qualified lawyer in her own right, she wins a job at the law firm of her college friend, Will Gardner (Josh Charles), and proceeds to find her professional feet again, while dealing with the public fall-out of her husband’s infidelities.
As a character, Alicia Florrick is a study in balance. Between her role as a mother, her role as supportive wife, and her role as a lawyer, she is constantly tending to each set of dependents that require her time. Periodically, she stops to take stock and decides to tend to her own needs, at which point huge plot progression occurs. She embarks on an affair with Will. She takes advantage of pressure from fellow associates to secure her own partnership. She chooses to re-establish her marriage. She leaves her employer to start her own firm. She decides to run for office.
The choices made by Alicia Florrick are what make her a powerful character on television. Her determination to navigate her personal humiliation by asserting herself and taking charge of her own life after a prolonged period of passivity create a portrayal of a woman very much blazing her own trail.
