Wake-up, make breakfast, wake the children, make sure everyone eats enough before work/school, kiss each out the door either off to school or to work, load the dishwasher, start a load of clothes, fold a load of clothes, put clothes away, vacuum, sweep the kitchen floor, walk the dog, run some errands, arrive home before the kids, unload the dishwasher and start dinner, etc. The daily routine of a 1950’s house wife can be grueling. There’s so much to do cram in to one day, however, the routine become monotonous. In fact, it becomes extremely cookie cutter after a while and the only thing one can think to ask is—why? And who—as in, who makes these rules for the house wife? Why must a woman clean and cook all day if they stay home while their …show more content…
Burton’s Edward Scissorhands, the narrative open up with a black screen and snow falling with nondiegetic words popping up with actors and recognition to those who worked hard on the film itself. While we don’t know what the snow represents at first, it gives some inclination of white time of year it may be, even if it is California where the narrative takes place. Soft music plays, giving a gentle start to the introduction. However, some of the diegetic figures that pop up here and there give hints of what the viewer is about to see. As the movie begins to start, the first scene opens up to an older Kim (Winona Ryder) looking out the window of her granddaughter’s bedroom window at a mansion on a hill. There is snow falling outside, giving the impression of Christmas. Kim’s granddaughter insists on her telling where the snow comes from. And then the story …show more content…
The scissors themselves make a metal-to-metal sound, emphasizing that his hands are not human at all. While most would be appalled by the idea of someone with scissor hands, the town has taken Edward in (at first) as a part of them. They decide to use him to their advantage (gardening, grooming for animals and ladies). Peg even gets a new haircut. Things seem to be going well for the protagonist, until Kim’s boyfriend (Jim) decides to use Edward to a different advantage—stealing from Jim’s house. According Aristotle’s (three acts), this is the turning point for Edward where he will have to overcome obstacles. From The Pocket Essential: Tim Burton, Odell states, “There are good people as well as bad, misguided people and people easily led and while there is internal resolution, there is no denouement for society’s intrinsic problems.” (Odell p. 65) Poor Edward Scissorhands is misguided into breaking into Jim’s house to steal some things from a room Jim is not allowed to go in, because his father keeps everything under lock and key. When the alarm (diegetic sound) sounds and Edward is locked inside the room, the first act ends. Edward is carted off the jail and Peg and Bill must come and get him out. As always, the mother (Peg) blames herself for insisting that Edward tried to “steal” because she had said something about Jim’s family being extremely rich earlier in the
Though the idea becoming a wife and mother was the most common occupation for women in the 1950’s and by no means was it simple. Women experienced immense pressure to act and be a certain way. The conformity of the 1950’s frowned upon things that weren’t apart of the established way of doing things. In the movie The Man in the Gray Flannel S...
Not a single individual is able to watch a Burton film without noticing the lighting effects and how it significantly contributes to the tone and mood of the entire film. In the movie Edward Scissorhands, one might be overwhelmed with the burst of extravagant colors in the scenery. Indeed this cinematic technique, high key, wholly influences the viewers perception and impression of the town. One can conclude that even though flamboyancy pervades the town, iniquity lurks in all directions and hypocrisy governs the minds of its inhabitants. Irony is harnessed in this film. How can an effulgent town harbor wickedness and Edward with a chilling and gothic complexion radiate innocence and righteousness? Burton uses these opposing conceptions brought about by the contrast of lighting to convey the message that materialism has been ingrained in the mentality of society (at least in the neighborhood in which Burton lived in the past), thus yearning for th...
The film Edward Scissorhands shows how society rejects people who are different. This film directed by Tim Burton is about a boy named Edward who lives in an empty mansion. The film shows a community that is quick to judge but slow to distinguish the qualities of Edward. The people in the community are selfish and expect to receive from Edward without giving but regardless of this there are still some who love and care for him. By viewing this film the audience recognises how important it is to give someone a chance to prove themselves before judging them.
In the beginning of television series with childless couples, the wife was the one that stayed at home, cleaned, cooked, and did the laundry. The husband was the one that made the money by going to work. Television series always portrayed women as the weaker characters. “Women in the early 1950s family were weak, secondary characters, and as such were usually dominated by their husbands and their own conceptions of marriage” (Hastings, 1974). Certain episodes of these shows always tried to prove that women should stay at home. When I Love Lucy came out with a woman as the main star, they still had her stay at home, cooking and cleaning, but still made her seem useless. “Women characters frequently were shown as less mature and less capable human-beings and their husbands often took a quasi-parental role by...
In the article, “American Marriage in Transition”, Andrew Cherlin, a specialist in the sociology of families and public policy, writes about the changing division of labor in the latter part of the 20th century when he mentions “The distinct roles of homemaker and breadwinner were fading as more married women entered the paid labor force. Looking into the future, I thought that perhaps and equitable division of household labor might become institutionalized” (46). Cherlin puts it perfectly when he describes previous roles of a married couple and being the homemaker and the breadwinner. While women took care of their homes and made sure everything ran smoothly, men went out to earn money in order to put food on the table. These were the ways of the early 1900s. Cherlin goes on to mention how these roles were beginning to fade over time as more women left their homes to pursue jobs. As this trend has been present for nearly 100 years, Cherlin believes that it will continue on until the workforce is split as close to 50/50 as it can get. Cherlin goes on the speak about how designated roles are no longer relevant as when he states “Men do somewhat more housework than they used to do, but there is wide variation, and each couple must work out their own arrangement without clear guidelines” (46). In the early 20th century, men were expected to work and women were expected to take care of the home. These expectations were the basic guidelines that society had set for married couple. As Cherlin observes, these guidelines have slowly began to fade as men and women are no longer thought to have designated roles. Families have become more diverse in the sense that they can arrange their family roles without societal expectations and pressures getting in the way. This giant shift that took place throughout the
The women of the 1950s struggled to fit into the mold that the American culture wanted them to be in. Women were meant to be the caretakers of the family and were expected to do whatever it would take to make sure that everything was perfect for their husbands. In a magazine article from Housekeeping Monthly that came out in 1955, there are a list of things that a woman must strive to do in order to be the ideal wife. This includes things such
“The Pastoralization of Housework” by Jeanne Boydston is a publication that demonstrates women’s roles during the antebellum period. Women during this period began to embrace housework and believed their responsibilities were to maintain the home, and produce contented and healthy families. As things progressed, housework no longer held monetary value, and as a result, womanhood slowly shifted from worker to nurturer. The roles that women once held in the household were slowly diminishing as the economy became more industrialized. Despite the discomfort of men, when women realized they could find decent employment, still maintain their household and have extra income, women began exploring their option.
Tim Burton, the director of the film Edward Scissorhands uses a mixture of different genres, themes and ideas to not only give an important message to the viewers but to also make a social statement on small town America and general stereotypes as well. Edward is the main character of Tim Burton’s film Edward Scissorhands. He is an immortal being who was created by a lonely old inventor. The pair lived up on a gigantic hill, in a gothic medieval castle which was only accessible through a long sloping stretch of road. The old castle stood tall, overlooking the tiny cookie cutter town below which was soon to become Edwards new home. Apart from Edward dressing in dark, gothic clothing, which in some ways represents the castle in which he lives
Edward, the android-like being portrayed in Tim Burton’s film Edward Scissorhands, is essentially killed off from society because he falls victim to the malicious lies spread by the community and by the hatred that is cultivated by those lies. Although he never physically dies, Edward’s rejection from society leads to a life-long seclusion away from the outside world. The events that lead Edward into this isolation are brought on by a few misunderstood acts that he commits and the negative reception of those acts by an impressionable community. He is caught committing a break-in (a felony that is not completely his fault yet nobody gives him the benefit of the doubt) and is, from then on, seen as a dangerous criminal. He is also deemed a sexual predator because a townswoman claims that he sexually assaulted her. Also, his attraction to and love for Kim (the Bogg family’s daughter) provokes her jealous and violent boyfriend into harming Edward and trying to turn Kim against him. Edward is never given the chance to explain himself of the accused acts and so he finds himself the target of the town’s hatred; a hatred that is based upon and fueled by jealousy, lies, and rumors. The eventual shunning of Edward by the community is not surprising or shocking because Edward never really fits in with society to begin with. However, what is shocking are the justifications of hatred that are used by the community. Their emotions and attitudes are influenced by the lies and jealousies of a few people and by believing in the religious motivations and accusations of the erratic Christian woman who lives in the neighborhood. By being non-human, Edward is immediately suspected of being guilty of all he is accused of. Hi...
In this film, Burton sufficiently juxtaposes the opening scene with the suburban and colourful houses with the bland monotony of the dark castle. The colours Burton utilises are to show the juxtaposition between the two different worlds. As very bright pastel colours are used in the suburban town compared to the dark, melancholy colours used to depict Edward’s home and world. Burton conveys to the audience the conformity radiating throughout the film, as it is evident when Peg Boggs brings Edward back with her and starts to change him by giving him new clothes to wear. Peg Boggs tries to cover up Edward’s scars, while she is “blending the secret”, Burton creates a distinctively visual image to the responders as they are positioned to feel optimistic for Edward’s potential conformity with a perception of blending into society that can make individual’s lives easier and happier. One of the important symbols that Burton illustrate are Edward’s scissor hands. This shows the audience the distinctively visual flaw on a gentle man, as Burton connotes the difference and change of his persona. Edward finally has someone who cares for him, and he is not alone anymore. Although, he is looked down upon by the peculiar individuals of the neighbourhood, he did not need to change himself to become someone
Edward Scissorhands was directed by Tim Burton and is a film about a teenager with scissors as hands, he
Edward scissor hands is portrayed as a dark colourless monster who is judged. Edward scissor hands is judged as soon as he is seen. When Edward is seen by Peg here first reaction is fear she tells him to stop moving and stay where he is. She try’s to leave but he stops her. This is showing how Peg judged him and thought he would harm her but he was just a boy how needed help. Edward scissor hands dark, gothic cloths is frightful compared to the towns perfect, bright
The inventor (Vincent Price) invented a boy with scissors as hands. The boy was named Edward (Johnny deep). The investor dies before he can finish his creation Edward and he is left with scissor for hands. A woman named Peg (Dianne Wiest) found Edward and she brings him home. Edward meets her daughter Kim (winon rider) is kind to Edward and he beings to get feelings. Edward scissorhands is a must see film for people over the of 7.
reality. Edward Scissorhands is a film about a man with scissors for hands who was taken into the suburbs of his town after many years spent in isolation. The film relays a message of the good and bad of the individual and the conformity. In the film, Edward is the individual while the towns’ people represent society and the conformity. Edward is first rejected by society and tries to fit in, but then realises that he cannot please anyone no matter how hard he tries. He then rejects society and what they have caused him to become. ‘You blend and blend and blend, blending is the secret,’ this line has a double meaning of blending in making up as well as blending to fit in. The makeup itself has a second meaning, a mask used to cover up Edward and hide him from society. Burton exaggerates how perfect the town’s people are in order to place emphasis on their imperfections. Edward may look monstrous but the town’s people represent it. The concept of appearance vs. reality not only applies to the characters but also the castle and suburbia. The suburb of the town is depicted as perfect, picturesque, but this contrasts with the people of the town. Although they seem to be perfect, the town’s
More and more women work outside and inside the home. The double demands shouldered by these women pose a threat to their physical health. Whether you are an overworked housewife or an exhausted working mother the chances are that you are always one step behind your schedule. No matter how hard women worked, they never ended up with clean homes. Housewives in these miserable circumstances often became hysterical cleaners. They wore their lives away in an endless round of scouring, scrubbing, and polishing. The increased strain in working women comes from the reality that they carry most of the child-rearing and household responsibilities. According to social trends (1996), women always or usually do the washing in 79 percent of cases and decide the menu 59 percent of the time. Picking up the children at school or doing grocery shopping are just a few of the many typical household-tasks a woman takes on every day.