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Once Were Warriors And Tess Of The DUrbervilles Essay

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How do the Authors of Once Were Warriors and Tess of the D’Urbervilles Explore the Subjugation of Women in Patriarchal Societies?
The film Once Were Warriors, directed by Lee Tamahori, and the novel, Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy differ in terms of context, however each explores the subjugation of women in a patriarchal society. Tamahori and Hardy both explore the idea that patriarchy traps women in oppressive situations employing the settings of their texts and the characters they devised. Each author concludes that gender subjugation forces women to respond in drastic ways through the characterisation of their protagonists as well as through symbolism. It is Tamahori’s cinematography, and Hardy’s narrative perspective and …show more content…

Jake for example, is portrayed as an arrogant, violent man, often depicted yelling and resorting to his fists when things do not go his way, Tamahori using cinematography to emphasise his violent nature. When Jake beats Beth for the first time on screen Tamahori frequently employs an upward camera angle to emphasise Jake’s power. The upwards torso shots in particular allow the audience to view Jake’s body language and facial expression. From these shots, evidence of Jake’s violence are captured in his tightened muscles and strained face. Tamahori contrast of power in downward camera angles for Beth highlighting her brutalization. The downward angles allow the audience to witness Beth’s fearful facial expressions and the contortions of a damaged body. In this contrast Tamahori is able to further emphasise situations of domestic abuse. Jake’s violent portrayal as an abusive man is symbolic of Maori men enforcing patriarchy in post-colonial New Zealand communities. Although Hardy’s antagonist Alec D’Urberville is not physically violent, he is portrayed as an emotionally manipulative privileged male who uses these characteristics to entrap Tess. Alec’s courtship of Tess is oppressive in the sense that he believes he is entitled to her, that because he had sex with her once he has the right to call himself her ‘master.’ Hardy hints at her rape in his narrative

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