Erin Brockovich is a feel good movie based on the true life pursuit of justice for the people of Hinkley, California who were being slowly poisoned by contamination to their water supply caused by Pacific Gas and Electric. The movie focuses mainly on the journey of Erin Brockovich a young, single mother of three who is at a low point in her life. At first, she is rarely respected until she discovers the injustices the people of Hinkley are suffering while searching through a box of old case files and embarks on a life changing journey to right the wrongs done to them. This movie provides a great representation of the Feminist Criticism which analyzes “the relationships between genders and examines the patterns of thought, behavior, values, enfranchisement and power in relations between …show more content…
When we first meet Erin, she is trying to convince a doctor to let her work at his practice, so she can get the money to support her three children. When she doesn’t get the job due her lack of experience, she continues to search the help wanted ads in the newspapers and call every location with a possible job opportunity available. Finally, after many rejections she calls the law firm that represented her during her car accident settlement looking for a job opportunity. Erin goes down to the law firm and “talks her way--she really badgers and bullies her way--into a job with Masry”, her lawyer after he continuously dodged her calls (Kirp). Nothing in life was ever handed to Erin therefore over the years she learned to fight for what she wanted no matter how often people dismiss her. Many women after so many rejections would have given up their fight to find a job, but Erin refused to take no for an answer because she is a strong, independent woman who must support her three young
...perceived. Therefore, she uses her writing to give women a voice and to speak out against the unfairness they endure. As a result, Cisneros’ story “Woman Hollering Creek” demonstrates a distinction between the life women dream of and the life they often have in reality.
Society continually places restrictive standards on the female gender not only fifty years ago, but in today’s society as well. While many women have overcome many unfair prejudices and oppressions in the last fifty or so years, late nineteenth and early twentieth century women were forced to deal with a less understanding culture. In its various formulations, patriarchy posits men's traits and/or intentions as the cause of women's oppression. This way of thinking diverts attention from theorizing the social relations that place women in a disadvantageous position in every sphere of life and channels it towards men as the cause of women's oppression (Gimenez). Different people had many ways of voicing their opinions concerning gender inequalities amound women, including expressing their voices and opinions through their literature. By writing stories such as Daisy Miller and The Yellow Wallpaper, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Henry James let readers understand and develop their own ideas on such a serious topic that took a major toll in American History. In this essay, I am going to compare Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” to James’ “Daisy Miller” as portraits of American women in peril and also the men that had a great influence.
Sandra Cisneros short story “Woman Hollering Creek”, has many allegories about culture, morality, and gender roles.
Shaw, Susan M., and Janet Lee. Women's Voices, Feminist Visions: Classic and Contemporary Readings. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print.
The article, “Why We Still Need Feminism”, written by Casey Cavanaugh (2014), describes how women are treated and why feminism is looked at in such a negative light. She focuses on how the feminism movement doesn’t only concentrate on women and what concerns them, she also talks about how the movement can positively impact all humans. Cavanaugh explains how the treatment of women can go on for generations and how many women are simply dealing with the ill-treatment (Cavanaugh, 2014). The writer gives a few examples of how women are treated and the different ways that it can be changed for the better.
In the literary, Woman Hollering Creek by Sandra Cisneros we are able to analyze the short story through a feminist perspective, due to the feminist critical critical theory. A literary criticism has at least three primary purposes in developing critical thinking skills, enabling us to understand, analyze, and judgement works of literature, of any type of literature. It resolves any questions or problem within a literary work that we do not understand from merely reading the literature. Look into multiple alternative outcomes to the literature and decide which the better outcome in the end is. Form our own judgements, our thoughts about what we feel from the literature. By analyzing in depth Sandra Cisneros as an author, we can see her as
Throughout the texts we have read in English thus far have been feminist issues. Such issues range from how the author published the book to direct, open statements concerning feminist matters. The different ways to present feminist issues is even directly spoken of in one of the essays we read and discussed. The less obvious of these feminist critiques is found buried within the texts, however, and must be read carefully to understand their full meaning- or to even see them.
By dissecting the film, the director, Jennie Livingston's methodology and the audience's perceived response I believe we can easily ignore a different and more positive way of understanding the film despite the many flaws easy for feminist minds to criticize. This is in no way saying that these critiques are not valid, or that it is not beneficial to look at works of any form through the many and various feminist lenses.
Among the many subjects covered in this book are the three classes of oppression: gender, race and class in addition to the ways in which they intersect. As well as the importance of the movement being all-inclusive, advocating the idea that feminism is in fact for everybody. The author also touches upon education, parenting and violence. She begins her book with her key argument, stating that feminist theory and the movement are mainly led by high class white women who disregarded the circumstances of underprivileged non-white women.
...en endured throughout the Realist literary period. This oppression has evolved into strong female business figures. Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” shows the perceived inequality and inferiority of women throughout this era. This lies in contrast with strong, powerful female officials, such as Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. Chopin’s The Awakening illustrates a literary attempt at women’s activism. Women’s activism is still present today, and is seen in the recent happenings at the Plymouth High School baseball and softball fields. Women have evolved past their positions as domestic keepers that were subordinate to men to active, equal members of society. Feminist literature has aided this evolution over the year. Women have overcome oppression through activism and garnered more rights since the termination of the Realist literary era.
The films message to viewers about gender and power is that women are meant to take care of the home and play the supportive role, while men go out to their jobs and provide. Men are strong and burly and women are naïve and domesticated. Women need men and men always come to the rescue to save women and give them a happy ending. Power is portrayed in the film both visually and through the film’s script and dialogue. The common idea that women are inferior to men is placed subtly in this movie throughout the plot and how these charac...
The socialist movement criticized the exploitation of workers under capitalism. The feminist movement, lead by middle-class women, criticized the exploitation of women. Each movement on its own ignored the fundamental objective of the other. Yet, out of these two movements emerged socialist feminists like Agnes Smedley, who were determined to bring each movement together and give birth to a new vision that would shed light on the dual oppression of the working-class women. Agnes Smedley, in Daughter of Earth, shows this dual oppression by exposing the characteristics of capitalism and those of the male-dominated society.
Humanity has always been overlooked by certain societal standards. Before technology, these norms travelled through proxies like religion, politics, wealth, and certain scientific beliefs. In modern day America, these ideals are now also filtered through mediums such as media, movies, tv shows, fashion, etc. As time goes, we become more aware of the inequalities these ideals create and come up with theories such as feminism and Marxism to analyze them. Socially, Marxism addresses the relationship between one 's economic class and how it affects them in civilization. Meanwhile, feminist theory aims to address the oppression and issues dealt with under a patriarchal lifestyle. In this story we can see how both of these theories affect the central
In just a few decades The Women’s Liberation Movement has changed typical gender roles that once were never challenged or questioned. As women, those of us who identified as feminist have rebelled against the status quo and redefined what it means to be a strong and powerful woman. But at...
This essay is an attempt to survey the temporal and spacial evolution of the literary movement of feminism in the United States. The feminist movement has always has the main concern of establishing and defending equal human rights. It has passed through three main time periods that are called “waves”, each with differ order priorities. I will try to view the main claims and issues each wave has dealt with as well as study some of the most renowned female writers/activists whose works have been central in reshaping the American attitudes...