Both the films Johnny Guitar and Two Mules for Sister Sara present strong depictions of the “other” characters – women. Johnny Guitar, filmed during the 1950s, reflects the ongoing circumstances that the Red Scare caused in America with regards to the threat of communism. Similarly, Two Mules for Sister Sara highlights the rising impact of the Women’s Rights Movement of the 1960s and the Immigration Act of 1965, both of which revealed women and immigrants as steadily pressuring a society that did not want to adjust its values. Due to the major roles that these “other” characters played in both films, much of the attention is drawn away from the alpha male cowboy, and his power and authority is jeopardized as well.
In Johnny Guitar, Vienna not only plays a strong female who possesses as much power, if not more, as an alpha male cowboy, but she represents the power that the threat of communism had over Americans during the 1950s. Vienna’s depiction in Johnny Guitar is unlike that of any female’s in past Western films; she is portrayed as a fiercely strong gunwoman and has a significant amount of control over the alpha male cowboys in the film. Just like the typical alpha male cowboy, Vienna sets out on a goal to build and run her own saloon. However, unlike the usual male, Vienna becomes public enemies with Emma, her female rival and the ring-leader of the town’s men. Just as Joseph McCarthy set out on a hunt to find and punish all communists, Emma is determined to label Vienna a “tramp” and have her hanged, regardless of any legitimate evidence. All of the town’s men mindlessly follow Emma in her plot against Vienna, not realizing until the end of the movie that they really have no motive for running Vienna’s life, as Emma does. The destruction of Vienna’s achievements implies that while Vienna may be able to act like an alpha male cowboy, she will never have the same success as one. Instead, she falls to the fate that most typical Westerns have of women – falling in love with the alpha male cowboy, and fulfilling his desires. This fate is reflected in American society during the 1950s when women desired to have the same abilities as men, but inevitably could only succeed if permitted by the world of men. Overall, Johnny Guitar illustrates the beginning of women’s struggle to succeed in male dominated American society and the impact that the fear of communism had on the actions of people during the 1950s.
In Two Mules for Sister Sara, Sister Sara is as much a central character as Hogan is, which reflects how women in the 1960s were beginning to assert their equality to men. This female assertion of power in Western films is unprecedented in the earlier films, such as The Searchers and Red River, in which women had little to no effect on the plot of the film. This female character development signifies that the status of women in American culture has shifted from its position in the early twentieth century to its position in the 1960s. What’s more, is that Two Mules for Sister Sara suggests that women are even more capable than society has ever credited them to be; the entirety of the film, Sara plays Hogan for a fool, using him in order to accomplish her agenda by masquerading as an innocent nun, while in reality, she is a prostitute. These circumstances suggest women have been underplaying their capabilities because it furthers them in American society; by not outwardly displaying it, they cannot be put down. However, these conditions started to change in the 1960s when women were tired of not having the same social rights as men, as reflected in the film when Sara removes her habit. The conclusion of the film, however, suggests that women are doomed to be subjected by men, as shown when Hogan succeeds in getting Sara to abandon her whorehouse and follow him on his quest for San Francisco. Ultimately, Two Mules for Sister Sara illustrates the rising power of women in society, but the prevailing dominance of men.
Johnny Guitar and Two Mules for Sister Sara revise the concept of the “other” – women – by taking the main focus off of the traditional alpha male cowboy and centering it on the role of the female characters. Vienna in Johnny Guitar nearly fills the position of alpha male cowboy, thereby equalizing herself with the other male cowboys and revising the previous notion of women in Western films. Her ultimate demise from ever actually becoming an alpha male cowboy can be seen in the events of the Red Scare in America. Similarly, Sara in Two Mules for Sister Sara plays two extremes of women, a nun and a prostitute, and her manipulation of the alpha male cowboy, Hogan, is an example of the power that women gained in the Women’s Rights Movement. Both women defy the role of the “other” and create their own relationships to the alpha male cowboy.
ReplyDeleteIn Johnny Guitar, Vienna not only plays a strong female who possesses as much power, if not more, as an alpha male cowboy, but she represents the power that the threat of communism had over Americans during the 1950s. Vienna’s depiction in Johnny Guitar is unlike that of any female’s in past Western films; she is portrayed as a fiercely strong gunwoman and has a significant amount of control over the alpha male cowboys in the film. Just like the typical alpha male cowboy, Vienna sets out on a goal to build and run her own saloon. However, unlike the usual male, Vienna becomes public enemies with Emma, her female rival and the ring-leader of the town’s men. Just as Joseph McCarthy set out on a hunt to find and punish all communists, Emma is determined to label Vienna a “tramp” and have her hanged, regardless of any legitimate evidence. All of the town’s men mindlessly follow Emma in her plot against Vienna, not realizing until the end of the movie that they really have no motive for running Vienna’s life, as Emma does. The destruction of Vienna’s achievements implies that while Vienna may be able to act like an alpha male cowboy, she will never have the same success as one. Instead, she falls to the fate that most typical Westerns have of women – falling in love with the alpha male cowboy, and fulfilling his desires. This fate is reflected in American society during the 1950s when women desired to have the same abilities as men, but inevitably could only succeed if permitted by the world of men. Overall, Johnny Guitar illustrates the beginning of women’s struggle to succeed in male dominated American society and the impact that the fear of communism had on the actions of people during the 1950s.
In Two Mules for Sister Sara, Sister Sara is as much a central character as Hogan is, which reflects how women in the 1960s were beginning to assert their equality to men. This female assertion of power in Western films is unprecedented in the earlier films, such as The Searchers and Red River, in which women had little to no effect on the plot of the film. This female character development signifies that the status of women in American culture has shifted from its position in the early twentieth century to its position in the 1960s. What’s more, is that Two Mules for Sister Sara suggests that women are even more capable than society has ever credited them to be; the entirety of the film, Sara plays Hogan for a fool, using him in order to accomplish her agenda by masquerading as an innocent nun, while in reality, she is a prostitute. These circumstances suggest women have been underplaying their capabilities because it furthers them in American society; by not outwardly displaying it, they cannot be put down. However, these conditions started to change in the 1960s when women were tired of not having the same social rights as men, as reflected in the film when Sara removes her habit. The conclusion of the film, however, suggests that women are doomed to be subjected by men, as shown when Hogan succeeds in getting Sara to abandon her whorehouse and follow him on his quest for San Francisco. Ultimately, Two Mules for Sister Sara illustrates the rising power of women in society, but the prevailing dominance of men.
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