High Noon and The Ballad of Little Jo both present revisionist ideas regarding the role of women in western films. Unlike the classic westerns in which the appearance of women is scarce, these two films’ plots revolve around the role of the female characters. In her novel West of Everything, Tompkins states, “that the Western turned against organized religion and the whole woman’s culture of the nineteenth century” (Tompkins 66). This does not necessarily pertain to High Noon, in which the first scene of displays a woman, wearing a cross around her neck, blessing herself. Another character, Helen Ramirez, the town’s saloon owner, seems to represent the new ideas pertaining to women. Not only does she introduce females as businesswomen but also the idea that they are supposed to stand by their man and support him even if it means fighting with weapons. Amy, the Marshall’s wife and a converted Quaker, does not believe in violence and is taken aback when Helen says, “If Kane was my man, I'd never leave him like this. I'd get a gun. I'd fight.” True female courage is exposed at the end of the film. Out of everyone in the entire town, men included, Amy is the only one to stand by her husband’s side when Miller comes to town. She shoots Pierce as he is searching for Kane. Just by holding the gun, Amy is defying the belief that the gun solely represents masculinity. She also attacks Miller, giving her husband the opportunity to shoot him. Without the assistance of Amy, Kane would have been killed. Tompkins describes that since women are the physically weaker sex, they “must use words as their chief weapon” (64). This no longer holds true after Amy took her first shot.
In The Ballad of Little Jo, as Jo takes off her dress and corset and puts on her trousers and shirt, even though the clerk told her “It’s against the law to dress improper to your sex”, the audience, similar to the people of Ruby City, could almost mistaken her for an alpha male. She is hard working, skilled in sheep herding and shooting and is the one person able to remove the gun from Percy’s hand as he begins to go mental. Although her physical being is rather masculine, she is still possesses the emotions of a female. She pours her heart and soul into letters she writes to her sister about her child. She cries and becomes extremely upset when the family she has been taking care of is murdered and when she thinks about the pervious events of her life. The men in the film portray the old thought that females are mere objects. First through the prostitute and later on in the film when Tinman asks Jo what man would ever want to be with her with the large scar on her face and the fact she cannot even make a pie. Women were expected in this time period to cater to their husband’s every need while looking pretty. Josephine revolutionizes the role of the female as she transforms into Jo.
According to Tompkins, women are categorized as a weak element of the western; however in these two films that does not appear to be the case. Instead I think the character of the alpha male has weakened with the growing role of the woman, who “have become their own moral centers” (Matheson 904). Who would have ever thought the woman would save the day in the West?
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High Noon and The Ballad of Little Jo both present revisionist ideas regarding the role of women in Western films. Unlike the classic Westerns in which the appearance of women is scarce, these two films’ plots revolve around the role of the female protagonists. In her novel West of Everything, Tompkins states, “that the Western turned against organized religion and the whole woman’s culture of the nineteenth century” (Tompkins 66). This does not necessarily pertain to High Noon, in which the first scene of displays a woman wearing a cross around her neck blessing herself. However, the revolutionary ideas about women are illustrated through the character of Helen Ramirez, the town’s saloon owner. Not only does she introduce females as businesswomen but also the idea that they are supposed to stand by their man and support him even if it means fighting with weapons. Amy, the Marshall’s wife and a converted Quaker, does not believe in violence and is taken aback when Helen says, “If Kane was my man, I'd never leave him like this. I'd get a gun. I'd fight.” True female courage is exposed at the end of the film. Out of everyone in the entire town, men included, Amy is the only one to remain by her husband’s side when Miller comes to town. She shoots Pierce as he is searching for Kane. Just by holding the gun, Amy is defying the belief that the gun solely represents masculinity. She also attacks Miller, giving her husband the opportunity to shoot him. Without the assistance of Amy, Kane would have been killed. Tompkins describes that since women are the physically weaker sex, they “must use words as their chief weapon” (64). This no longer holds true after Amy took her first shot.
ReplyDeleteThe development of the female into a strong individual is also viewed in The Ballad of Little Jo. As Jo exhchanges her dress and corset for trousers and shirt, the audience, similar to the people of Ruby City, could almost mistaken her for an alpha male. She is hard working, skilled in sheep herding and shooting and is the one person able to remove the gun from Percy’s hand as he begins to go mental. Although her physical being is rather masculine, she is still possesses the emotions of a female. She pours her heart and soul into letters she writes to her sister about her child. She cries and becomes extremely upset when the family she has been taking care of is murdered and when she thinks about the pervious events of her life. The men in the film portray the old thought that females are mere objects, first through the role of the prostitute and later on in the film when Tinman asks Jo what man would ever want to be with her with a scarred face and poor pie baking abilities. Women were expected in this time period to cater to their husband’s every need while looking pretty. Josephine revolutionizes the role of the female as she transforms into Jo.
According to Jane Tompkins, women are categorized as a weak element of the western. In her book West of Everything, Tompkins states “when push comes to shove…they crumble” (61). However, in these two films with strong females as their protagonists that does not appear to be the case. Instead I think the character of the alpha male has weakened with the growing role of women who “have become their own moral centers” (Matheson 904). Who would have ever thought the woman would save the day in the West?