Mulvey's visual pleasure and narrative cinema

Laura Mulvey is a feminist film theorist best known for this paper on visual pleasure and narrative cinema which has an emphasis on psychoanalysis. Frankly I don't believe a word of it, but that's psychoanalysis for you. So according to Mulvey a patriarchal society has structured the form of film. In narrative cinema, the women portrayed represent a castration threat with their lack of a penis. Furthermore, it is because they cannot escape this position of causing men to have a fear of this castration that they develop a desire to have a penis- 'penis envy' Freud calls it. Mulvey goes on to say that the erotic aspect of cinema is found through scopophilia, which is when the audience experiences the pleasure of looking, rather than being the object looked at. This is where people begin to be treated as objects as has a tendency to lead to perversion as some may gain sexual gratification from watching a person and treating them as an object.

The separation of the film and the audience plays for the audience a voyeuristic fantasy and the position of the audience watching the film allows exhibitionism where the film being watched is 'repressed' by the viewing audience. Mulvey argues that cinema is essentially a primordial wish for pleasurable looking and that film shows a love affair/ despair relationship between image and self-image (in other words, what we are versus what we see in the mirror). There is an identification with the on-screen image, though there is also the experience whereby the erotic identity of the image becomes separated from the image itself. 

Mulvey mentions that women in film basically have an exhibitionist role and that men have an active role while women remain passive. The 'show-girl' imagery signifies male desire, which is found in many films where the hero/heroine develop a romantic relationship; Mulvey points out that in certain 'buddy movies' there is a case for homosexual eroticism between the lead male roles so no such distraction interferes with the story. Nevertheless, women are seen as the erotic object for both the characters and the audience as the (male) audience are able to link themselves with the power of the male protagonist since his power is similar to the active power of the erotic look. As a result, the audience are able to indirectly possess the heroine, as the hero does when they develop a romantic relationship. There is a view that, as the female figure represents the castration complex the male unconscious wants to escape this fear through sadism, by investigating the woman (if you know what I mean) or by developing a fetish by giving the female star cult status. There is an example of this in the films of the German actress Marlene Dietrich, where the erotic imagery occurs whilst the love interest is off-screen.

Examples of scopophilic eroticism can be seen in some of Hitchcock's films, where the erotic drives of the male characters put them in compromised situations. The power of the male characters is evoked by the guilt of the woman because of the castration complex and the legal right- men are (mostly) seen to be on the right side of the war (eg. a policeman in Vertigo) whilst the women are on the wrong side.

Overall, women are passive raw material for the active gaze of men. As a representation they signify castration which can be circumvented by voyeurism or developing this scopophilic view. As cinema has the effects of the camera and distance between the audience and what it sees, the erotic look towards a scene can be varied or exposed, which makes it different from the more direct viewing of theatre, strip-tease and shows. Cinema meets the neurotic needs of the male ego, though the verisimilitude presented by the camera deny the erotic look of the audience the intrinsic power. Additionally the camera's ability to be able to conceal the castration fear and display a direct erotic image freezes the look of the spectator and prevents him from distancing himself from the image he sees.

Bluebeard in exactly 314 words

Bluebeard is a French aristocrat who, though he was immensely wealthy and charming, was feared because of his blue beard. He had been married a few times before to young, beautiful women who had all died suddenly, so the local girls became afraid of his ‘bad luck’ and would not marry him, despite his charms. Eventually, he asked a neighbour if he could marry one of her two daughters, but both were reluctant to go near him. However, he managed to persuade the youngest sister to visit him at the castle where he laid out a tremendous feast which helped persuade her to marry him. Shortly after her arrival at the castle he told her he must leave the country for a few weeks, but gave her the keys to every room in the house- including one to a small room beneath the castle which he made her swear that she will not enter. She is overcome with curiosity to find out what is in this room, and (despite her sister’s warnings) opens the door. She finds the bodies of Bluebeard’s wives hanging on hooks and drops the key onto the blood-soaked floor, staining it with blood that will not wash off. She tells her sister and they decide to flee, but Bluebeard returns and sees the blood on the key which proves his wife had disobeyed him. He immediately resolves that he must kill her but before beheading her he allows her fifteen minutes to say her prayers, which allowed time for her two brothers to arrive. Just before Bluebeard reaches the sisters with his axe, the brothers enter the castle and kill him. His wife, as his only heir, inherits his vast wealth which she uses to pay a dowry for her sister, her brothers’ captains’ commissions and to marry a good man who makes her forget her terrible encounter with Bluebeard.

Acceptance of gender roles/ views of men and women in 2nd wave feminism

Conventional gender roles basically assign women to the home and men to work. Consequently, there are many fewer women in top-level jobs (there are only 15 female CEO's in the FTSE 100) as they are presumed to want to take maternity leave and are generally less aggressive than men so would find it harder to survive in the harsh business world. OK, I'll be honest, Google hasn't helped with the images- this is what came up when I Googled 'acceptance of gender roles':

                                                    

 What I found from my little bit of research is that actually gender roles are getting more hazy and less well-defined. While it is true that there is still a huge difference in some areas- particularly in the workplace where the pay gap between men and women is a rather large 19.9%- we are starting to become more accustomed to finding men and women in non-traditional gender roles, such as the increasing number of 'stay-at-home dads' and women being involved in professions previously dominated by men, such as the law and medicine.

Second wave feminism wanted women to be treated on an equal basis with men- it had the slogan 'feminism is the radical notion that women are people'. Therefore, it wanted women to have the same opportunities as men regarding work and lifestyle choices (they were particularly vocal on the issue of abortion).



                     

  

Significant writers of fairy tales

The modern definition of a fairy tale is that it is simple and anonymous and written by a single identifiable author- though how would that mean it's anonymous? Anyway, many of the common fairy tales we see today are written by (well, attributed to) just a few authors. For example:

• The 18th century German Grimm Brothers (Jacob and Wilhelm) appear to be responsible for a number of famous fairy tales, including Hansel and Gretel, Rapunzel, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. 

• Hans Christian Anderson was a 19th century Danish poet who wrote such tales as The Little Mermaid, Thumbelina and The Ugly Duckling.

• There was also a Russian folklorist who didn't specifically write fairy tales, but collected over 600 Russian folktales such as the Fox and the Geese and the Swan-Geese.

Though a number of fairy tales can be pinned down to be written by one author, many remain anonymous (like the Arabian Nights collection) because they have grown out of an oral tradition. Even when tales are attributed to specific authors this does not guarantee sole authorship as what they write down is often just one version of a story which may have been around for generations. 

How does the novel 'Dracula' represent issues of femininity?

Within ‘Dracula’ femininity appears to have clear boundaries. On the one hand women are innocent and virtuous before they have been lured towards evil by Dracula, whilst after they take on characteristics of ‘whores’ in that they are presented as manipulative Sirens; in particular Dracula’s Brides who have “voluptuous lips” which promote a “wicked, burning desire” from Harker. Though the males within the novel can have positive characteristics regardless of whether they are ‘good’ or ‘evil’- for example both Dracula and Van Helsing are intelligent- the women change completely, as though women can only follow the path of either being a ‘Madonna’ or ‘whore’.

Mina is presented as the ultimate symbol of feminine virtue in ‘Dracula’. Her devotion to her husband is at a parallel with the polygamous situation of Dracula’s Brides and Lucy’s three suitors. Her refusal to accept the ideals of the ‘New Woman’, mockingly saying how they would want to “do the proposing herself”, shows she remains conservative in terms of her distaste for the change in view of femininity and so keeps to the traditional values of a woman. Consequently, she must preserve her innocence to keep her reputation of being virtuous, so she resorts to daubing her feet with mud “so that as we went home no one, in case we should meet anyone, should notice my bare feet”. It is clear that she regards her reputation as her greatest asset since it would be the only thing of value she can own as for her the only duty she has is to serve her husband and he would also be judged partly through her reputation. Overall, Mina is shown to be the antithesis of the ‘New Woman’, and to some extent this could also be shown to be an opposition to Dracula’s Brides. They make the first move whilst seducing Harker, just as Mina is suggesting would happen with the new feminist movement, and their exclamation to the Count that “you yourself never loved; you never love!” may also share a similarity to the ‘New Woman’ movement as they do not immediately submit to Dracula’s commands. Mina’s innocence and her almost sacrificial virtue mean she can retaliate against Dracula’s control, so she is able to use their connection for her own advantage, almost showing that her purity shows she can combat evil even when it is supposed to be in control of her.

On the other hand, Dracula’s Brides appear to represent what women could become if they succumb to the lure of temptation. Once they have been brought under the control of Dracula they themselves become the tempters and use their attractions to lure men into the realm of evil. These are shown to be powerful in this respect as even the objective Van Helsing was “lapsing into sleep, the open-eyed sleep of one who yields to a sweet fascination” when opening their tombs. Their use of primeval attractions to gain the attention of men draws parallels with the Sirens, whose use of base attractions would culminate in the deaths of men. Essentially, Dracula’s Brides can be said to be a warning to women that this how they would end up if they were to take part in behaviour contradictory to what would ordinarily be expected of women. In particular, the inference of Dracula’s polygamist relations would suggest that this is more specifically a warning against sexual deviancy, as Dracula’s Brides have descended into what is presented as little more than prostitution. However, though these women have entirely fallen from virtue, they are still at the mercy of Dracula who exclaims to them “How dare you cast eyes on him when I had forbidden it?” which suggests that despite their ability to corrupt men they must still remain under some form of masculine control.     

Women in ‘Dracula’ are all presented as needing protection in one form or another- even Dracula’s Brides rely on Dracula for nourishment and a home. Mina, and to some extent Lucy, are the ‘Madonnas’ of the novel and so are presented as being naïve and innocent meaning they are particularly susceptible to Dracula’s temptations. A woman’s virtue is valued highly, to such a degree that four men are willing to risk their lives to remove her ties to Dracula, with Quincey Morris saying “it was worth this to die!” upon noticing the burn from the communion wafer on Mina’s forehead had disappeared. This displays the male desire to protect women from the dangers of the world and to prevent them falling from grace at the hands of Dracula, who can be seen almost as an antichrist figure, representing the dangers that men could bring- possibly the lure of sexual desire. The protective feelings of the four men fighting to save Mina may not have been triggered by such desires, but rather more paternalistic emotions as her innocence may be equated to that of a child; one who needs to protected from such evils as are represented by Dracula. Though on the one hand Dracula can be said to primarily represent the dangers of deviant sexual behaviour, he could also be a symbol of the fear that it was believed could itself harm women; indeed the appearance of the wolf’s head in Lucy’s bedroom had killed her mother through shock. Therefore, the novel is suggesting that women require the help of men if they are to successfully repel the dangers they face, and that without their help they could easily face corruption or even death.

Femininity within the novel is also seen as being liable to corruption. Dracula only attempts to suck the blood of women; even with Harker he says to the Brides “when I am done with him, you shall kiss him at your will”, suggesting that he is not concerned with corrupting men. This may be a belief that women are easier to manipulate and seduce for Dracula, who could use the sexual tension between them. There was a similar case with Lucy when she was feeding from children on Hampstead Heath- that the children would be more susceptible to a woman who could be comparable to a maternal figure. Although Dracula achieves his corruption through sexual means, such as Lucy’s metaphorical rape at the church in Whitby, there is also a corruption of religion involved, which would further reduce the integrity of the women, as they are now not only unsuitable in the eyes of man for marriage, but now they are “unclean” in the eyes of God. That it is women who are tempted by Dracula draws parallels with Eve being first to taste the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, which further shows that Dracula shares similarities with the Devil as he is prepared to corrupt women who were previously virtuous. Therefore, the corruption of women in the novel underlines Dracula’s position as an ‘antichrist’ to religion as well as their innocence as they are presented as easy prey for Dracula.

In conclusion, femininity within ‘Dracula’ is very clearly defined within the boundaries of religion. Those who have not been corrupted by Dracula are seen as virtually faultless in terms of the conventional view of a virtuous woman, for example Mina is entirely willing to serve her husband and takes care of Lucy whilst she is ill much as a mother would look after a child. On the other hand, Dracula’s temptation and corruption of Lucy shows how her femininity had been degraded after succumbing to his attacks, until eventually she is reducing to sucking the blood of children, whom she would ordinarily be expected to protect. This emphasises the power Dracula can hold over women, as he can override their maternal instincts. Consequently, ‘Dracula’ shows the ‘ideal’ woman who would herself be protective and virtuous, in other words one who would be the pure ‘Madonna’ type image, but also shows the antithesis of this, a woman who has been corrupted by the lure of Dracula’s physical presence which has resulted in a loss of innocence as well as a fall from God. Therefore, issues of femininity within ‘Dracula’ are largely black and white as women on the side of ‘good’ are seen to be caring, maternal figures while those who have turned over to the side of ‘evil’ have become temptresses whose have purely sexual desires and seek to seduce men through these base emotions.            

                                                                                                                          

Chapter 10/11

So I've just had to remind myself of what these chapters are about; Lucy has deteriorated in her illness (well, become more vampire-like but the characters don't know that) and Van Helsing has arrived and has quickly identified the problem. Then there's that weird bit about the wolf escaping and finally ends with Lucy's diary in which she describes a wolf's head smashing through her window and the consequent death of her mother.
I suppose the most significant part of these chapters is the arrival of Van Helsing. He comes to (try to) counteract the evil work done by Dracula, so is sort of a Christ-like figure. This interpretation is helped by his use of analogies (like Jesus' parables) and possibly his name; Abraham being the father of Christianity (as well as for Judaism and Islam). His knowledge is vastly superior to the others as he is aware of what is happening to Lucy well before the others, despite not being present at the start of the condition. That he's from Amsterdam may mean that a foreign invader has to be defeated by another foreigner, like fire fighting fire. Though there are many differences between Van Helsing and Dracula, there can also be said to be some similarities. Firstly, they are both clearly very intelligent and this means they are also evenly matched in this respect so to get around the Count's abilities Van Helsing has to keep an open mind in order to be a step ahead. Also, they are both determined; Dracula because he has to drink blood in order to survive and Van Helsing because of the danger Dracula poses to humanity.

Another thing that interested me (if that's really the right word) is the rather bizarre article about the wolf escaping. Obviously, this links in with Dracula's ability to command creatures of the night, as seen when Harker first arrives in Transylvania. Maybe this is supposed to parallel the command that Dracula has over Lucy (and later Mina) and that he can transform a reasonably tame wolf (in that it is not completely wild) into a vicious animal that can terrorise London's population.

Women in Dracula

The women in 'Dracula' (well tbh there's not that any of them) perhaps can be sorted into the whole Madonna/whore thing. There's Mina who's on the shy and retiring side and who can't wait to hear news of her dear Jonathan blah blah blah... yeah I know it kinda sickens me too. Anyway, I suppose her purity and virtue are supposed to be a contrast to Dracula's brides mentioned earlier in the novel, who it seems are trying to seduce Harker-perhaps tempting him to break his vow of chastity before marriage? It's not particularly surprising that the 'whore' label is established for these women who suck blood and are on the evil side; women in this situation are traditionally displayed as 'sirens', luring men to the dark side where they can have their way with them. As to Lucy, well, I'm not entirely sure of how we should view her. I mean, she is preyed upon by Dracula, who it seems only feasts on the pure and innocent, but then she's had three suitors at the same time, which to me is a little on the 'whore' side possibly?

I think the way women are portrayed in the novel is definitely influenced by the way Stoker viewed them. Clearly he disliked the rise of the feminist or 'New Woman' movement as the virtuous and oh so sweet Mina is very critical of them, sarcastically remarking how these women believe they should have an equal role to men in marriage and would even do the proposing themselves. The idea that women are either pure and virtuous or evil temptresses within a Gothic novel does not surprise me, as here Dracula must feed on the pure and, as seen in the case of Lucy, transforms them into this evil persona. On the other hand, men are of of little use to Dracula in this respect as they do not seduce women and bring them to the dark side but can still be used by him as menial servants, as seen with Renfield.