All of the previous Western films we have viewed so far have portrayed the role of women insignificant and inferior to those of the male characters. The alpha male cowboy represented in these previous Western films were shown to be masculine by being the silent type, while the women were shown to be weak because they use words instead of actions. In Jane Tompkin's book, The West Of Everything, she explains that "only actions count; words are immaterial, only objects are real" (49). She goes on further saying "The western itself is the language of men, what they do vicariously, instead of speaking" (65). Words represent the feminine which represents the inferiority of women against men. Actions rather than speech is mroe effective and powerful, and so the alpha male cowboy always appears to be dominant while carrying his gun. However, Western films like High Noon, by fred Zinnemann, and The Ballad of Little Jo, by Maggie Greenwald, shows the transition of the status and attitude of women from being inferior to being rather equal to those of men.
Maggie Greenwald's 1993 film, The Ballad of Little Jo, the role of women surprisingly shifts and changes to the role of the alpha male cowboys. Within the movie, the protagonist is shown to be a woman by the name of Josephine Monaghan, an exile of her hometown changning her lifestyle into that of the lifestyle of the alpha male cowboy. Her presence represents that women can also fight off the harsh conditions of the West just like any ordinary male cowboy. Jane Tompkins mentions in her book that "the message, in the case of Tess Millay, as in the case of women in Westerns generally, is that there's nothing to them. They may seem strong and resilient, fiery and resourceful at first, but when push comes to shove, as it always does, they crumble" (61). The Ballad of Little Jo goes against Tompkin's idea by representing Josephine Monaghan differently. The protagonist pretends to be a man and she learns to live on her own and stand up to men who get in her way, eventually killing some as well. Furthermore, she shows off her masculinity by being the silent type in order to keep her privacy since she is a woman among men. Josephine's actions show that women are also capable of dealing with hardships with their confidence which earns her respect from other male cowboys.
Fred Zinnemann's 1952 film, High Noon, seems to focus on the shift in the role/status of women. This film was no different than the previous Western films we have watched, with the male character, Will, remaining silent and never explaining to his wife why he has to go back into town. He is shownto provide no explanation to those who join him in fighting and also shows no motivation to those he needs help from. Just like the alpha male cowboy, he just asks who wants to join him. And just like any alpha male, he immediately points his gun and fires to the criminals who show up in town, using his weapon of violence as a form of language expressing his hatred towards them. Amy, the wife, starts off as any other woman portrayed in Western films, shown to be an individual who can do nothing to help or change her man's actions. Instead of blaming herself, Amy recognizes that Kane is incapable of expressing his feelings, which differs from Tompkin's ideology that "women feel ashamed of their need to talk, blaming themselves and making excuses for the silence of men." It is shown later in the film that the status of women reverses when Amy bravely saves Will from getting killed in the shootout when Amy fires at one of the outlaws. This confidence and tough, heroic manner of Amy, a female, represents the alpha male cowboy.
All of the previous Western films we have viewed so far portrayed the role of women insignificant and inferior to those of the male characters. The alpha male cowboy represented in these previous Western films are shown to be masculine by being the silent type, while the women are shown to be weak because they use words instead of actions. In Jane Tompkins’s book, The West of Everything, she explains that "only actions count; words are immaterial, only objects are real" (49). She goes on further saying "The western itself is the language of men, what they do vicariously, instead of speaking" (65). Words represent the feminine which represents the inferiority of women against men. Actions rather than speech are more effective and powerful, and so the alpha male cowboy always appears to be dominant while carrying his gun. However, Western films like High Noon, by Fred Zinnemann, and The Ballad of Little Jo, by Maggie Greenwald, shows the transition of the status and attitude of women from being inferior to being rather equal to those of men.
ReplyDeleteMaggie Greenwald's 1993 film, The Ballad of Little Jo, the role of women surprisingly shifts and changes to the role of the alpha male cowboys. Within the movie, the protagonist is shown to be a woman by the name of Josephine Monaghan, an exile of her hometown changing her lifestyle into that of the lifestyle of the alpha male cowboy. Her presence represents that women can also fight off the harsh conditions of the West just like any ordinary male cowboy. Jane Tompkins mentions in her book that "the message, in the case of Tess Millay, as in the case of women in Westerns generally, is that there's nothing to them. They may seem strong and resilient, fiery and resourceful at first, but when push comes to shove, as it always does, they crumble" (61). The Ballad of Little Jo goes against Tompkins’s idea by representing Josephine Monaghan differently. The protagonist pretends to be a man and she learns to live on her own and stand up to men who get in her way, eventually killing some as well. Furthermore, she shows off her masculinity by being the silent type in order to keep her privacy since she is a woman among men. Josephine's actions show that women are also capable of dealing with hardships with their confidence which earns her respect from other male cowboys.
Fred Zinnemann's 1952 film, High Noon, seems to focus on the shift in the role/status of women. This film was no different than the previous Western films we have watched, with the male character, Will, remaining silent and never explaining to his wife why he has to go back into town. He is shown to provide no explanation to those who join him in fighting and also shows no motivation to those he needs help from. Just like the alpha male cowboy, he just asks who wants to join him. And just like any alpha male, he immediately points his gun and fires to the criminals who show up in town, using his weapon of violence as a form of language expressing his hatred towards them. Amy, the wife, starts off as any other woman portrayed in Western films, shown to be an individual who can do nothing to help or change her man's actions. Instead of blaming herself, Amy recognizes that Kane is incapable of expressing his feelings, which differs from Tompkins’s ideology that "women feel ashamed of their need to talk, blaming themselves and making excuses for the silence of men." It is shown later in the film that the status of women reverses when Amy bravely saves Will from getting killed in the shootout when Amy fires at one of the outlaws. This confidence and tough, heroic manner of Amy, a female, represents the alpha male cowboy.