Women in the Cinema

Paper Summary:

This paper outlines the history of women in the cinema since the early days of film production in 1896. It examines the different stereotypes women have been depicted as over the years such as "damsels in distress," weak-minded, timid city girls and impoverished "white trash," while men played an overwhelming majority of lead roles, usually as heroic figures who rescue these "damsels" from a plethora of dangerous situations. It analyzes three different films made in three different decades, "His Girl Friday," "Semi-Tough" and "Flirting With Disaster" and looks at how the roles of women in the cinema are are ever changing and constantly presenting new dimensions which need to be explored, especially in the ways women develop cinematic relationships and how they interact with one another.

From the Paper:

"However, recent feminist views have maintained that the women in these film noirs are outside the standard acceptance of femininity. By using their sexuality to overwhelm their male counterparts, these women gained power and used it to "get what they want," usually in the form of revenge, money or sexual satisfaction. These traits of the strong, powerful woman also influenced the audience through what is referred to as a gender blind construct or that which blinds the dominant cultural definitions of pleasure and desire so as to show that women are also sexual predators."

More papers on Women in the Cinema:

• Analytical Essay # 137201 : "Heroic Women in the Media"
• Essay # 24509 : "Image Of Women In The Media"
• Essay # 52434 : "Women in "The Tramp" and "One Week"

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