Women And Feminism In The Film Thelma And Louise

Earlier in the film, Thelma persuades Louise to stop at a roadhouse to have drinks. A man named Harlan approaches Thelma and Louise while they are at a table and attempts to pick them up by calling them "dolls". He objectifies them and Louise immediately notices. She tries to ignore him while Thelma accepts his gestures. Thelma and Harlan dance on the dance floor for most of the evening. Later on, in the parking lot, Harlan comes on to Thelma aggressively and attempts to rape her. Louise catches him and immediately pulls a gun out of her purse and shoots him after he yells obscenities at them. This is a turning point for Thelma. After looking at the event in retrospect, she comes to terms with herself and realizes that she has been portrayed as a sex object.

Renowned feminist film theorist, Laura Mulvey, explores how classic Hollywood cinema is shown through a masculine perspective that fetishisizes women as objects of desire. This perspective is also known as the “male gaze”, which creates a voyeuristic and scopophilic layer to the viewing of film. According to Mulvey, “in their traditional exhibitionist role women are simultaneously looked at and displayed, with their appearance coded for strong visual and erotic impact so that they can be said to connote to-be-looked-at-ness.” One of the staples of classic Hollywood cinema is women consistently being put or made into a visually erotic role for both the male characters on screen, and the audience. This staple is of course found in the

First, Emily Grierson and Louise Mallard both shared a common shackle, the society in which they lived. Both Emily and Louise were women, and they both lived in times where society defined them by their male counterparts. The expectations of women in those days were cooking, cleaning, dining, other household chores. Women were also expected to be married in

This quote establishes the novel's unusual perspective on gender difference. It's the story of a woman's struggle with power. During this time, African American women were looked upon as the mules of the world, because the men were considered the "Gods." Society believed that since they were the men of their households, whatever they said was the way it went. The novel set the tone for different novels during the Harlem Renaissance. It was the first major novel published by an African American woman, so it was often classified as a feminist novel. Feminism is often associated with the idea that men and women are

Another conflict in this story is the role of the wife versus the role of the husband. For instance, Louise struggled with her feelings about her marriage for years. Louise thinks "what could love, the unsolved mystery, count for in face of this possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being." She admits that she did love Brently, but often she did not. On the other hand, the story suggests that Brently was completely content in the marriage and assumed that Louise was too. This conflict is reflected in Louise's internal struggle. When she realizes that Brently is alive, she must die. This is the only way she can win the freedom she was struggling for within herself. She dies because he is alive, he is ultimately responsible for her death.

In Thelma and Louise, the gender roles are not what you’d normally expect. This can be seen in how Louise is

The injustice in society between gender is shown through the relationship between the narrator and John, her husband. In the story, John never once called her by her name, sometimes “a blessed little goose” or some other animal name, like an adult looking down at a minority. This is a discrimination towards women and clearly represents how unfairly women were treated during those times. They were looked down upon, treated as below human, equalling animals. John expects nothing more

The notion that women belong to men, is a statement indicative of a female’s vulnerability. At many times within the novel, the idea that women are weak and feeble creatures is portrayed,

Women in the book are silent observers, made to feel powerless. The book begins with families during the dust bowl and how “the women and children knew deep in themselves that no misfortune was too great to bear if their men were whole” (Steinbeck 7). Being “whole” meant that the men felt safe and were at peace. This quote means that if the women saw that their husbands were peaceful and pleased then everything was going to be fine. Gender is used here by the women not knowing what to feel until they see how the men feel. This theme continues with the Joad family throughout the book.

Double Indemnity, in its attempt to lend its female character more strength and control, no longer situating her as the secure center of the family, but rather its destroyer, ironically seems to highlight a played-out submissive, weak, abused or lonely and alienated image of Phyllis. The varieties of passive,subordinate or pacified women are classic throughout the history of film. Janet Todd states, “Film teaches us how to see and understand from the point of view of the dominant, male-orientated ideology” (132). Cinema has found an audience for the portrayal of the “weaker sex” (Todd 120). This is an example of cinema’s skewed portrayal of “womanhood”

When these themes are combined, Louise experiences freedom and joy, if only for a moment. Calixta continues her life feeling happy and satisfied. Calixta decides to make her home a better one, but without any guilt. Louise and Calixta, like all women of this time period, were judged by themselves, their husbands and their neighbors. They felt boxed in and their own identities were never given the chance to mature. Women were judged on their purity, character and their domestic abilities. Women were denied their status as emotional and affectionate human beings, and they were denied their intellectual

The “killer women” genre or “female buddy films” destabilize the masculine/feminine dichotomy. Through the examples of Khouri's well known film, Thelma and Louise there is recognizable symbolism that apply to the genre's threat towards dichotomy. The incident of killing Harlan Puckett after his attempt of raping Thelma follows the two protagonists and places them into an appalling situation. Along the way, the characters have compelling development regarding their masculine and feminine roles.

The beginning of the story sets the theme for the whole story. We are told about the heart condition that inflicts Louise. This is significant throughout the story. The heart condition is a symbolic way of describing her thoughts of oppression she felt about her marriage. She was trapped and isolated by the marriage. She felt the need to hide these feelings. Women of her era were supposed to be home and under their husbands command. The story has her going through this journey privately. That is significant in the fact that now in her husband’s passing, she will be alone. She will need to work through things by herself. She will be able to go through the whole process on her own, without being judged and persuaded to feel differently.

In both films Thelma & Louise and Wild women make their own choices, grow, and are not made by a man’s view. The courageous women in both films are driven towards something more than just a man. They are reconnecting with themselves as individual women and doing what is best for them. Cheryl, Louise, and Thelma found their best

Although they adamantly strive to be independent and liberated individuals, women “are not liberated at all” because “[they] talk about it too much” (Hansberry 64). Women themselves divulge their own weakness because they formulate a false notion of autonomy. Their error is that they prefer a feeling of liberation rather than liberation itself. Despite being subject to men’s mistreatment and life’s suffering, a woman will sacrifice and do “anything for her family” (Hansberry 75). Men have at many times verbally abused women and suppressed their opinions, but that does not impede women from sacrificing everything for the people they love. Women are portrayed positively because they display strength and perseverance. In contrast, Willy Loman considers his wife a burden when he expresses the idea that “the woman has suffered” (Miller 99). Women are now portrayed negatively because they are described as weak and fragile. This portrayal is unjustified because Willy Loman has had more lamentations while Linda Loman has defended his social standing. Although providing a portrayal for women is largely a subjective evaluation, one cannot deny a woman’s character and sacrifices.