How has the representation of women changed in science ficti
The Science fiction genre has interested film-makers since the earliest days of the cinema, though not often to the benefit of the film or of science fiction. Most such films have been adaptations of science-fiction literature and comic strips. But in a genre which has always been dominated by the male hero narrative, what role have women had to play? This work will discuss how the representation of women have changed, and perhaps more importantly stayed the same, in science fiction films. Firstly looking at a brief history of science fiction film, and what sorts of role women had in the films. The effects with be shown of the rise in feminist film theory in the 1970’s which led to a shift in the female representation in films. Examples from other genres, such as westerns and horror, will help us to argue how the science fiction genre has helped to progress the now more equal role women play in cinema. The earliest film to treat fantasy, if not science fiction proper, was Le voyage dans la lune(A Trip to the Moon), created by the French film-maker and magician Georges Méliès in 1902. However Science-fiction cinema was, until the 1970s, increasingly focused on unnatural creatures, such as King Kong and Godzilla, giving rise
Horror provides another way of viewing the male-female dynamic in a cinematic setting. The term ‘Scream Queen’ is used to describe an actress who is frequently cast as the glamorous heroine of horror movies, fro her accustomed reaction to peril. The first was Fay Wray in King Kong, a character renowned for her high pitched call of fear. Other notable examples since Fay Wray have been Barbara Steele, who mainly performed in Italian horror movies and Linnea Quigley, who’s most famous performance was in the Return of The Living Dead (1985). Through out the work it has been shown that Women have developed their role from the traditional to competent, intelligent action figures. Examples such as Ripley in the Aliens film and Trinity in the Matrix have shown how women physically can stand up to male characters. But still there remains a limit to their independence and femininity, Trinity in the Matrix falls in love with Neo and Ripley who is emotionally tied to a small child character in the second film. But the character becomes far more empowered in the final film as she becomes less emotional and more masculine. The rise in Feminism has been shown to have helped women gain more dominant and powerful roles in main stream film, as the characters were forced to become more developed due to the pressure on Hollywood from the movement and its constant analysis of its movies. It was also useful for science fiction to have been a platform for new stronger female characters as it allowed women more action roles due to the films not being set in our reality, making it more palatable for the writers and filmmakers as it makes it more acceptable. But the underlining question is, would women have got such powerful and iconic roles if they had been set in our reality or our time? This question proves that there is still a lot for feminism movement to work on before men and women will truly be equal in the science fiction genre, let alone any other.
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Approximate Word count = 2213
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)
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