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The Blue Angel Gender Roles

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During the Weimar Republic, many considerable changes transpired. One of the more note-worthy changes being the destabilizing of gender roles that were previously deeply engrained in Germany prior to this period. The film The Blue Angel features iconic personality Lola Lola, cabaret performer and marked seductress. She exemplifies the transition that occurred, in regard to what it means to be a woman. Ultimately, the film The Blue Angel remains a significant marker in German film history as it challenges gender roles with the portrayal of the character Lola Lola as “The New Woman” through her choice of dress and overt display of sexuality, gumption as a wage earner, and her uninhibited ability to express herself.
An important attribute of “The New Woman” is a shift from ultra-feminine to androgynous. Lola Lola wears ornate stage costumes that blur the line between masculine and feminine style. She wears frilly underwear, tight corsets, and sports high-hemlines, all the while wearing a top hat and crossing her legs like a man (Williams, 2010). Lola Lola’s over the top costumes feature high …show more content…

However, particularly evident is the presence of cultural tensions surrounding sexuality (Williams, 2010) and gender roles. An important feature of the emerged identity is her opportunity to earn a living. The tension surrounding female employment, a theme often disregarded in many of the films interpretations (Kosta, 2009), can be seen when Professor Rath rejects a job offer back home, and the bar manager encourages him to reconsider in order to support his wife. The economic expansion created a realm of possibility for women to exit their domestic sphere and try their hand at being a wage earner (Williams, 2010). Lola Lola chooses to do so in a way that was nonstandard for women prior to this new identity emerging by performing in a

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