Masaryk University Unruly Women: Gender Reflection
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MASARYK UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE UNRULY WOMEN: GENDER REFLECTION IN SHAKESPEAREAN FILM Bachelor Thesis BRNO 2012 Supervisor: Author: Ing. Mgr. Věra Eliášová, Ph.D. Kateřina Platzerová Prohlášení: “Prohlašuji, že jsem závěrečnou bakalářskou práci vypracovala samostatně, s využitím pouze citovaných literárních pramenů, dalších informací a zdrojů v souladu s Disciplinárním řádem pro student Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy university a se zákonem č. 121/2000 Sb., o právu autorském, o právech souvisejících s právem autorským a o změně některých zákonů (autorský zákon), ve znění pozdějších předpisů.” Declaration: I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the sources listed in the bibliography. ………………………. Brno 18.4. 2012 Kateřina Platzerová 1 Acknowledgment First of all I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor Ing. Mgr. Věra Eliášová Ph.D. for her support and time. I am grateful for her helpful suggestions and valuable comments. I would also like to thank my family and friends who supported me through the years of my studies. 2 Table of Contents Introduction .................................................................................................................. 5 1. Gender, Film and Shakespeare .................................................................................. 7 1.1. Silent Era .................................................................................................... 9 1.1.1. Before the First World War ......................................................... 9 1.1.2. The First World War .................................................................. 12 1.1.3. After the First World War .......................................................... 14 1.2. Sound Film ............................................................................................... 16 2. Shakespeare Adaptations in the Sound Film .......................................................... 18 2.1. Sam Taylor – The Taming of the Shrew (1929) ........................................ 18 2.2. Production Code (1930 – 1967) ................................................................ 21 2.3. George Cukor – Romeo and Juliet (1936) ................................................. 21 2.4. After the Second World War ..................................................................... 23 2.5. Renato Castellani - Romeo and Juliet (1954) ............................................ 24 2.6. Franco Zeffirelli – Romeo and Juliet ; The Taming of the Shrew (1967 ; 1968) ......................................................................................................... 25 2.7. Baz Luhrmann - Romeo + Juliet (1996) .................................................... 27 2.8. Loyd Kaufman - Tromeo and Juliet (1996) ............................................... 28 3. From Maturing to the Taming and Power .............................................................. 31 3.1. Maturing .................................................................................................... 31 3.1.1. The Meeting Scene ..................................................................... 35 3.1.1.1. Katherine ...................................................................... 35 3.1.1.2. Juliet ............................................................................ 36 3.1.2. Display of Sexuality in the Maturing Process ............................ 38 3.1.3. The Marriage Consummation Scene .......................................... 39 3.1.3.1.Katherine ....................................................................... 39 3.1.3.2. Juliet ............................................................................ 40 3..1.4.The Final Scene ......................................................................... 41 3.1.4.1. Katherine ...................................................................... 41 3.1.4.2. Juliet ............................................................................ 43 3.2. Taming and Power .................................................................................... 43 3.2.1.The Marriage Consummation Scene ............................................ 46 3.2.1.1. Katherine ...................................................................... 46 3.2.1.2. Juliet ............................................................................ 48 3 3.2.2. The Final Scene ......................................................................... 49 3.2.2.1.Katherine ....................................................................... 49 3.2.2.4.2. Juliet ......................................................................... 50 4. Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 53 Works Cited ................................................................................................................................ 55 4 Introduction Mass media are used to influence a large number of people. At the same time, its production mirrors both public and personal opinions and views in general; “film acts largely as social mirror” (Humm 13). People use media to influence others. But at the same time, it is impossible for them to stay untouched by power of other media that they are not likely to influence. “A chicken-or-egg argument continues about whether the media merely reflect what is happening in society or actually create the issues and trends that then become reflected in society” (Ivy & Backlund 116). In any case, the changes and the development of our society remain imprinted in mass media production. This thesis concentrates on gender phenomena reflected in the movie production. To specify it more, it deals with a representation of Shakespeare‟s plays in motion pictures throughout the 20th century. As the social view on masculinity and femininity changed, the representations of main characters in Shakespeare‟s plays Romeo and Juliet, and The Taming of the Shrew had to be adapted accordingly in order to reach the audience. The reflection of feminist and gender thinking should be found in reconstitution of the text and conception of the films. Shakespeare films that contain as many features of the play as possible are considered to be conservative, whereas so called off sets sometimes do not even follow the story line. To adapt Shakespeare to the rules of mainstream cinema and at the same time, create movie that is considered to be “good” Shakespeare is a big challenge. As we may learn through the thesis, not many producers are able to deal with it successfully. Specific movies were chosen on the basis of their either European or American origin and a fame of their directors. Another criterion for the choice of the further examined movies is the year of their release. We can observe the changes in the society and in the film industry itself on the “timeline”. Laura Mulvey in her article Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema contends, “Cinema has changed over the last few decades. It is no longer the monolithic system based on large capital investment exemplified at its best by Hollywood in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s” (Mulvey). With economic and political conditions changed, the rise of the alternative cinema provides us with some really interesting Shakespearean interpretations. The directors more or less successfully guess what public might want to see and try to add some positively surprising element to their interpretations. One of the most fascinating examples of the Shakespearian adaptation is, without any doubt, Tromeo and Juliet (1996). The movie shows fascination by gender roles and presents 5 Juliet as a bisexual girl surrounded by images of blood and violence. “By examining condensations, ruptures and excess stereotypes in the filmic text, critics aim to reveal a hidden sub-text which may structure a film‟s „identity‟” (Humm15). Among other things, the thesis aims to show the process leading to this kind of Juliet‟s interpretation. The chapters of the thesis could be divided into two main categories. One category deals with the film theory and gender development of the society. The other category analyses the female characters of Juliet (Romeo and Juliet) and Katherine1 (The Taming of the Shrew) and psychological processes in their characters. The first part of the thesis aspires to explain the potential that can be found in gender translation of Shakespeare and film. It includes a short introduction to the film history and feminist movement. It contains a description of the silent film development in historical context. The chapter also shows a slow improvement of women situation in the context of Romeo and Juliet and The Taming of the Shrew adaptations. Second part pays attention to specific movies further developed in the practical part of the thesis and describes some the main events influencing the Sound Film development. Third, and the practical chapter of the present study, is aimed at learning about maturity process of the main female characters in closer examined Shakespeare adaptations. Through the maturity comes the understanding of the power grasp concept in the relationship. It starts up the taming process as a power contest between the main characters with the goal to either gain or maintain their power. The last chapter contains the conclusion the result of maturing combined with the use of female power in the relationship. 1 Although there are different versions of spelling Katherine‟s name, for