Feminism in Gone With the Wind

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Recommended: Women during and after World War 1

In times of war, we find that all though out the history of America, there is some sense of a change. This holds true to time when the Civil War that was being fought in 1861, when the South was against the North. During this particular war in America, we take notice of changing roles in feminism with the cult of true womanhood. This cult is described to be a mold for the "perfect" woman. This is broken down into piety, domesticity, purity, and submission. Piety is devotion and reverence to parents and family. Domesticity is the quality of home life. Purity is the act of being pure and without blemish. Submission is total surrender of power to one another. In the visual text, Gone With the Wind, we are introduced to a dark haired, green-eyed Georgia belle named Scarlett O'Hara. She is questioned on being a feminist character in this picture. All these characteristic Scarlett may possess but does not use to prove her character as feminist. We can prove that she is not a feminist character by using the historical context, her character traits and her relationship with Rhett Butler.

Starting with the historical context, we find that Scarlett O'Hara is not a feminist. All though out this artifact, Gone With the Wind, the Civil War is present with a focus on the South. In this film, we meet Scarlett O'Hara who is lovesick for Ashley Wilkes, who is engaged to his cousin, Melanie Hamilton. At a barbeque at Twelve Oaks, the Wilkes plantation, Scarlett has to face reality that Ashley will never be her own. Very jealous with Ashley's engagement, Scarlett accepts a wedding proposal from Charles Hamilton, in order to have revenge on Ashley. Scarlett is letting her spite get the best for her when she makes judgment calls. She feels at th...

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...Rhett and Scarlett were together, they represented the New South. They both taught for themselves and did not need a set of rules to follow for society.

In conclusion, we find that Scarlett O'Hara does not fit the mold of the cult of true womanhood. We find this to be true using visual artifact of Gone With the Wind. Scarlett lacks the qualities of the cult of true womanhood. This cult is described to be a mold for the "perfect" woman. Piety is devotion and reverence to parents and family. Domesticity is the quality of home life. Purity is the act of being pure and without blemish. Submission is total surrender of power to one another. We have answered our question on Scarlett being a feminist character in this picture. We proved that she is not a feminist character by using the historical context, her character traits and her relationship with Rhett Butler.

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