High Noon and The Ballad of Little Jo transition us into a Western where the women play a more dominant role within the film. With our other films, women have always been in the background but in these two films, women are moved to the foreground and speak their mind.
The female characters in both movies possessed more masculine characteristics. There is a specific scene in The Ballad of Little Jo where is it very obvious to the viewer that the director made a point to show us that Jo was doing all the jobs and chores men typically did and Tinman was doing all of the domestic and feminine tasks. In High Noon, Mrs. Ramirez conducts herself with Harvey in such a way that she dominates him. She has her own store and her independence is shown when she sells her business before she leaves town and when she does not have a destination, emulating the alpha male cowboy. Even Amy makes it very known that she is not going to be controlled by Kane but giving him the ultimatum of the town or her.
Tompkins says that “when push comes to shove, as it always does, they crumble” (Tompkins, 61). This is true for Amy in High Noon. Her Quaker background and moral code was established early on in the movie. She was against guns and violence. She did stand her ground for the most of the movie but we slowly see her fade and give into Kane. A sign of weakness was when she boarded the train then at the last second ran off to go be with Kane. She completely crumbles when she decides to help Kane fight Miller and his gang. She kills one of them and then immediately realizes what she has done, gasps, and flings herself against the wall. She succumbed to Kane’s power and crumbled.
Tompkins says that “language is false or at best ineffectual; only actions are real.” (Tompkins, 51). Jo portrays a man throughout the movie and without her acting like a man she would never have been able to stay in character until she died. She observed the men around her and imitated them. She made sure to keep the pitch of her voice low. She participated in manual labor, something women of that time wouldn’t think of doing. However, even though she tried her hardest to portray a male, many times during the film, people said that they always wondered about her. Jo had something funny about her yet only one person could figure out that she was a female. The women in these movies always appear to start off so strong and tough. They are respected by the people around them and by the men in their lives. Nonetheless, by the end of the movie they are seen as weak creatures that will do anything to feel loved by a man.
High Noon and The Ballad of Little Jo transition us into a Western where the women play a more dominant role within the film. With our other films, women have always been in the background but in these two films, women are moved to the foreground and speak their mind. In 1952 when High Noon was made, women in society are starting to break away from the home and standing up for their rights. However, because this film was made before the Women’s movement really started, we see women fall back to their stereotypical selves in the Westerns. In 1993, women were vey completely differently than in 1952 which is reflected by Jo in The Ballad of Little Jo. Her character represents the way women are looked at today.
ReplyDeleteThe female characters in both movies possessed more masculine characteristics. There is a specific scene in The Ballad of Little Jo where is it very obvious to the viewer that the director made a point to show us that Jo was doing all the jobs and chores men typically did and Tinman was doing all of the domestic and feminine tasks. Jo is outside building a new structure and handling the horses while Tinman is inside cooking. In High Noon, Mrs. Ramirez conducts herself with Harvey in such a way that she dominates him. She has her own store and her independence is shown when she sells her business before she leaves town and when she does not have a destination, emulating the alpha male cowboy. Even Amy makes it very known that she is not going to be controlled by Kane but giving him the ultimatum of the town or her. She follows through on her words by boarding the train and saying by the Kane.
Tompkins says that “when push comes to shove, as it always does, they crumble” (Tompkins, 61). This is true for Amy in High Noon. Her Quaker background and moral code is established early on in the movie. She is against guns and violence. She did stand her ground for the most of the movie but we slowly see her fade and give into Kane. A sign of weakness is when she boarded the train then at the last second runs off to go be with Kane. She completely crumbles when she decides to help Kane fight Miller and his gang. She kills one of them and then immediately realizes what she has done, gasps, and flings herself against the wall. She succumbed to Kane’s power and crumbled.
Tompkins says that “language is false or at best ineffectual; only actions are real.” (Tompkins, 51). Jo portrays a man throughout the movie and without her acting like a man she would never have been able to stay in character until she died. She observes the men around her and imitates them. She makes sure to keep the pitch of her voice low. She participates in manual labor, something women of that time wouldn’t think of doing. However, even though she tries her hardest to portray a male, many times during the film, people said that they always wondered about her. Jo had something funny about her yet only one person could figure out that she was a female. The women in these movies always appear to start off so strong and tough. They are respected by the people around them and by the men in their lives. Nonetheless, by the end of the movie they are seen as weak creatures that will do anything to feel loved by a man, keeping with the natural template of the Westerns.