American depictions of masculinity underwent great changes during and after World War Two. Preston Sturges’s film, The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, tells the story of Trudy Kockenlocker, played by Betty Hutton, who unwittingly gets married and pregnant during a farewell party for the soldiers. She then seeks the advice of Eddie Bracken, as Norval Jones, who has secretly been pining for Trudy ever since they were kids. Through a series of oddball scenes in the 1944 film, Preston Sturges is able to create a film that is so funny and timely, that it succeeds despite its unorthodox depiction of a woman who has not one, but six, children out of wedlock. Contrary to other World War Two depictions of masculinity, as seen in films like The Best …show more content…
In The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, Norval attempts to do this, despite not having a uniform, by asking Trudy out to a movie the night of the soldier’s farewell party. His attempt is pathetic, but his eagerness makes him an easy target to manipulate by Trudy so she can go to the soldier’s ball, even without her father’s permission. Contrary to the other military men that make their advances on Trudy early on in the film, Norval is overly awkward and gawky by comparison. His fidgety and feeble attempt at American masculinity is perceived by the audience as Sturges’s slapstick humor. The paradoxical representations of masculinity are where the heart of Sturges’s satire rests. What makes Norval’s attempt at being an “American man” comedy, and not an insult to American masculinity? In the 2015 USA Today review, “The Miracle of ‘The Miracle’” Wes Gehring argues that “Sturges makes nondescript Norval more tolerable to the audience [because] the movie’s only other pivotal male, Demarest’s put-upon papa, is another satirical variation on the American male” (70). Constable Kockenlocker, played by William Demarest, is the strict American father figure with his shotgun locked, loaded, and ready to fight anyone who hurts his little girls. Locke notes in his dissertation that, “The family was understood as the most fundamental component of American society, and by becoming functional and proficient fathers, men were proving their status as heterosexual, healthy men but were also actively contributing to the fight for the economic and ideological American Way” (36). Constable, despite being a widow and a single parent, has his children that serve as symbols of his heterosexuality. When Demarest’s character insists that Norval propose to Trudy he is playing the long-established role of protector and head of household. His
As the Great Depression and the World War came to a dramatic close during the mid 1940s, the American society prepared for a redefinition of its core ideologies and values. During this time, the idea of a quintessential “American family” was once again reinforced after two decades of social strife. Under such historical context, the 1941 novel Mildred Pierce by James M. Cain and its 1945 film adaptation by Michael Curtiz both carries a strong idea that when one, especially a female, tries to disobey their traditional family roles and social etiquettes, undesirable consequences would inevitably follow. However, the film adaptation, utilizing a slightly different narrative configuration and plot organization, further intensifies and emphasizes
The key to understanding the film’s portrayal of gender-role strain is to understand that Tyler and the narrator are the same person. The narrator, as was discussed earlier, represents the post-industrial American man, whereas Tyler represents the industrial American man in that he manufactures his own goods (e.g., soap), and he lives what is considered by American culture a deviant lifestyle, as is exemplified in his living within an abandoned home which provides only the bare minimum in regards to protection. Understanding that Tyler and the narrator are the same person allows for the audience member to understand the strain and tension associated with two conflicting ideologies. Diken and Lausten state, “The normalized and law-abiding subject [the narrator] is haunted by a spectral double [Tyler], by a subject that materializes the will to transgress the law in perverse enjoyment” (350). This is exemplified as Tyler remarks, “You were looking for a way to change your life.
In 1996, the Wachowskis wrote and directed the noir crime thriller, Bound. In this film, the directors turned some of the archetypes of film noir on its head. Most notably, the role of women in film. Film theorist, Laura Mulvey, claims that the main role of women in film is to function as a source of pleasure, to be objectified, to be passive and at the command of male fantasy. This relationship of looking and being looked at causes each gender to have a particular presence within film; the male is active and the female is passive (Mulvey, 1975). However, in Bound, the character Violet, who is obviously objectified by the gaze of the male characters, does not hold a passive role within the film itself. Violet is a force that acts upon the narrative, manipulating events and scenes to her favor, along with actively controlling male gaze and using it to her advantage. Film theorist, Tania Modleski argues that there are passive and active roles within films that have connotations with “femininity” and “masculinity”, but these roles do not have to apply to the gender or outward appearance of characters that they align with. Modleski focuses more on the actions, not the outward appearances, of the film
all others, has socially forced men into a narrow box that promotes manhood as strong,
Web. 30 Apr. 2014. Sharot, Stephen. "The 'New Woman', Star Personas, And Cross-Class Romance Films in 1920s America.
Works Cited Cowie, Elizabeth. A. A. Representing the Woman: Cinema and Psychoanalysis. Minneapolis, MN -. University of Minnesota Press, 1997.
Concannon, Phil. "Review - Mary and Max." Phil on Film. N.p., 19 Oct. 2009. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
Gilmour, Heather. “Journal of Film and Video.” Different, except in a Different way: Marriage, Divorce, and Gender in the Hollywood Comedy of Remarriage. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1998. 26 – 39. Print.
Millar, Jeff. "The Rise and Fall of Everyman: `American Beauty' Proves Potent Family Portrayal." Houston Chronicle 24 Sept. 1999, Star ed.: 1. Academic Universe. LEXISNEXIS. Madden Lib., Fresno, CA. 13 Apr. 2000 <http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe/>.
One of my favorite movies growing up was “The Sandlot.” It’s a coming of age story of a group of neighborhood boys, who love to play baseball. The movie is set in the early 1960s, and spans the length of one summer. The Sandlot boys spent the summer playing baseball, getting into trouble and learning the true meaning of friendship. Of course, in the movies, whenever there is a rag-tag group, there is always the elite group. One afternoon, the elite baseball players in their nice white, Los Angeles Angels’ jerseys, challenge the rag-tag team to a baseball game. One of the most memorable scenes was when Hamilton “Ham” Porter tells the other boys on the team that, “You play ball like a girl.” This was considered
“The Other Wes Moore” By Wes Moore, reveals how two men can develop differently in the same social environment, and yet and have different intrapersonal views. The two men grew up in the same impoverished city, yet both have different experiences and views of what it means to be a man. The other Wes Moore, living his whole life in a poverty-stricken society, believes that being a man means to be powerful and unforgiving. The author, Wes Moore, living in two different worlds, views himself as a man when he becomes an exceptional leader and responsible for others lives. These concepts both tie into the constructs of masculinity in the United States where men are supposed to be protectors of society. The two Wes’ notions of manhood derive from
Early feminist studies of gender often depicted the expression of masculinity as solely meant to subordinate women. Upon further research and understanding of gender and its role in society, gender theorists have realized that masculinity is not only a patriarchal regulation against women, but that it also has negative effects against men. Masculinity has different characteristics in different cultures, but masculinity in general presents a hierarchy of traits, with femininity as the lowest, least desirable trait. In American culture, masculinity is defined within multiple structures, such as race, class, and sexuality, where a man’s masculinity can be lessened by his traits as well as these identities. Often, normative expressions of masculinity
While “The Yellow Wallpaper” mainly touches on the treatment of women in Gilman's time and only majorly addresses how negative the reception was for them while the men of her world were well-respected individuals, “A Streetcar Named Desire” makes a commentary on the gender roles of masculinity and femininity as a whole, including the two different portrayals of masculinity and how femininity was still generally looked down upon by American society in the late 1940s, unfortunately noting that not much had changed in the time between the stories passed.
Throughout history, time has created and shaped the ideal type of men, while society chooses what it means to be a real man..The ideal real men needed to be strong, provider of his family, decision maker, economically, educationally, physically, and politically dominant (Myers). The difference between the masculinity of the 20th century and the 21st has changed significantly. The ideal men status in 1900’s was rich, educated, powerful, and successful. In today’s perspectives, men needs to be strong, tall, handsome, capable, and unemotional. The contrast of these two centuries are mostly about men’s social status and appearances. Before, it was all about what a man is capable of doing and how powerful he could be compared to today’s ideal,
According to common conceptions of machismo, the ideology of masculinity is set upon the stereotypical ideals, which, America has towards the idea of manhood. In the short story, “Brokeback Mountain”, Proulx uses masculinity as the singular focal point within the text. This melancholy tale of two young cowboys, that emerges into a sexual and emotional connection that truly can’t exist. We often see cowboys as virile men saddling a horse or lone men gathering sheep in a valley, but they’re never been depicted as anything other than that. As we’re introduced to Ennis and Jack, they’re nowhere short of the of the common cowboy stereotype. Proulx makes that apparent when she states, “Ennis, high-arched nose and narrow face, was scruffy and a little cave-chested, balanced a small torso on long, caliper legs, possessed a muscular and supple body made for the horse and for fighting” (3). Indicating that young Ennis and Jack are just like any other cowboys. But when young Jack and Ennis meet on Brokeback Mountain, their sexuality doesn’t eliminate their masculinity. It rather confuses it and compromises their sexuality. No matter the acts that these two men may choose to consume their selves to act upon, their masculinity is evident throughout the text. Initially, instead of removing their masculinity, their sexual identity complicates their manhood. “I’m not no queer”, stated Ennis, which makes it evident that these men are aware of their masculinity (7). Aware of the complexity of their relationship Ennis says, “if you can't fix it you've got to stand it”, meaning that he knew the relationship between him and Jack was corrupt but he didn’t know how to stop it. The complicated situation between Ennis and Jack threatened societal norms by...