Gender Stereotypes In Deliverance

Ironically, one of the most horrific scenes in the movie Deliverance shows one of the main characters getting raped by an Appalachian. Videos from past decades involving African Americans also depict African Americans as rapist. Is it just a coincidence that the two cultures were depicted so vile in films? Not at all but the interesting thing is that with an already misperceived culture, when individuals think of Appalachians they also fail to realize the diversity of the culture. They consider Appalachians as all the words used previously but also as a white Anglo- Saxon community. That has been entirely false since the 1860’s. African American’s accounted for more than 10 percent of their population during that time period and they have continued

As stated in the article, Seeing Appalachia through the eyes of Appalachians by Layne Amerikaner, “They are either “quiet caretakers” who craft, cook, and garden, or “voluptuous, vacuous,” barefoot-and-pregnant women. Girls from the region are faced with representations that paint them as trash.” The stereotype derives from an out aged society. It sounds very similar to that of a housewife before the Women Suffrage Movement. It doesn’t give an explanation of the female’s life. Does a poor, uneducated individual equate to trash? No. A poor uneducated individual equates to someone who needs help.
Some Appalachian women would love it if they had the opportunity to go to school and not have to worry about clothing or food supplies. Unfortunately they aren’t all given that opportunity. Whether it’s female or male Appalachians, the poor condition of their environment is just being used against them. They can’t do anything about it but try to survive and better themselves. Why isn’t there a representation of an Appalachian women who is successful and who graduated from school to go back and share her success with the community in a film? That would be a great movie and a new image for the Appalachian