Mildred Pierce is a film noir despite being a "Woman's picture". This classic tale takes you through the life of a woman of desperately wanted to give her kids everything she never had, at the expense of herself. While doing so, it takes you on a mystery rollercoaster while we all try and conclude who is responsible for the Monte murder. This story was filmed in the 1940’s and opens with the murder of Monte whose words introduce us to the movie and its title character "Mildred." The story is told via flashback, with Mildred narrating and being brought down by the conspiracies of a femme fatale; in this case Mildred's daughter, Veda.
During the flashback we see him arrive after Bert's left and expects Mildred to sleep with him because she's newly single: "You know, you keep on refusing me, and one of these days I'm going to start thinking you're stubborn." She's been single for less than a day, let her grieve! It doesn't help that both men refuse to take Mildred seriously, as whenever they enter a room the camera focuses on Mildred's legs, implying they see only those; Mildred knows all this and covers up. It is very interesting to see how women were portrayed in the cinema communities of the 1940’s. This is before what I would call the feminization of America movement, where women are now seen as a powerhouse of all things, but back then it was drastically different. As a movie lover I am curious to understand how as a young adult growing up in the early 40’s, if watching
Judas at the Jockey Club written by William H. Beezley provides an accurate description of a struggling and developing Mexico while during the rule of president Porfirio Diaz up until 1910. Being divided into three sections such as Sport & Recreation (elite class), Rocks & Rawhide in Rural Society (lower class) and the title itself Judas at the Jockey Club. Beezley covers the changing class of Mexico through the view of sports and leisure activities. I believe Porfirio Diaz allowed the social tensions to occur causing Mexicans to separate from unity even though destruction and chaos reigned much of Mexico before him. During the presidency of Porfirio Diaz its often remembered as a period of oppression and social degradation of freedoms in Mexico. Diaz has also been associated with the general decline of quality of life of an average Mexican and the decline of social welfare institutions. Diaz was a liberal whose sole goal was to modernize Mexico and put a stop to any ethnic uncivilized actions. Mexico during that time was in a crossroads of two very different cultures: the industrial and the traditional.
Two handymen used machines to help Mildred. Montag did not know the men that took away her blood and violated her mind. He was upset because the men working on his wife were not medical doctors and seemed unphased by his wife’s condition.
Mildred Pierce is one of the greatest novels written by James M. Cain. After the success of the novel, the Hollywood film came out, produced by Jerry Wald. The novel and the movie are very different from each other. “James M. Cain sent several letters of complaint to producer Jerry Wald, objecting to the changes Wald wanted to make, especially the dramatic idea of making Veda a washout musically and putting her in a tawdry nightclub” (Bennett Notes). The three main differences in the film were, the murder of Monte, Veda not having a successful career, and the time period only covering 1941 to 1945.
Mildred as his wife represents the static character generalization through her euphoric lifestyle mirrored by television walls and her selfish tendencies. She is unwilling to change and so she is trapped within the societal struggle of “true living” and just existing. When questioned about their young neighbor Clarisse, she even absentmindedly states that she forgot to tell Montag four days ago that she was dead. If this wasn't cold enough she then shrugs off the death of the teen casually, showing further deterioration between herself and reality (Bradbury 44-45).
“"I’m hungry" "Last night" he began. "Didn’t sleep well. Feel terrible" she said. "God I’m hungry I can’t figure it" "Last night" he said again. She watched his lips casually. "What about last night" "Don’t you remember"”. Mildred doesn’t really listens to Montag He always tries to tell her something but she seems careless about it. He feels like he’s not getting the attention he wants from her. ““When did we meet? Where?”… “It doesn’t matter.” She was up, in the bathroom now, and he heard the water running, and the swallowing sound she made. “No, I guess not,” he said. This demonstrates that all this years of marriage meant nothing to Mildred. By her not remembering how they meet tells that Mildred doesn’t really care about their marriage.
Mildred’s friends, Mrs. Bowles and Mrs. Phelps, don’t talk that much because they don’t want to know the truth about others. In order for Mrs. Bowles to become happy, Mildred suggests to go back to watching television. " 'Come on, let's be cheery, you turn the 'family' on, now. Go ahead. Let's laugh and be happy, now, stop crying, we'll have a party!' "(Bradbury 97). When someone is sad or depressed or want to numb their emotions, their immediate reaction is to watch TV or turn their family on. They run away from their feelings and hide them. People in their society are addicted to the technology. Instead of talking to each other or talking to Montag, Millie and her friends would like to be left alone and have the parlor turned on."The three women fidgeted and looked nervously at the empty mud-coloured walls"(Bradbury 91). Mildred’s friends would rather do anything else than talk to Montag. Technology is also manipulating Mildred in many sections of the book, and she is acting like the characters on television. Millie is influenced by the white clowns and wants to hit innocent animals for fun."' It's fun out in the country. You hit rabbits, sometimes you hit dogs. Go take the beetle' "(Bradbury 61). Mildred said that it is fun to hit animals, like how the white clowns chopping their limbs off. She is a violent person because she see’s that
Mildred conforms to society’s obsession with technology when she relies heavily on her Seashells and T.V. screens, isolating herself from Montag and other potential relationships, and is ignorant on social matters that negatively affect her world. As Montag prepares to leave for work, Mildred sits in the T.V. parlor as she reads a new script from “a play that comes on the wall-to-wall circuit” and participates in the interactive play herself as the homemaker. “When it comes time for the missing lines,
73). However, when Guy asks her if her 'family ' loves her with "all their heart and soul," (pg. 77) she is at a loss for words. Much like what happens when Clarisse asks Guy whether or not he is happy, this question forces Mildred to think strictly about what is real. It reminds her that deep down, she knows that her 'family ' consists of fictional characters who cannot harbor real emotions and thus, cannot requite her love for them. This is part of the awareness that she refuses to acknowledge, and she is stunned when Guy 's question catches her in her disguise. Unfortunately, she does not accept that she has a problem and proceeds to change the subject in response to his question. Towards the end of the book, when Mildred leaves the house as the firemen arrive to burn it, it can be inferred that technology does not have the effect on her that she desires, and that it cannot save her from her reality. One can recall that earlier in the story, an old woman chooses to stay in her house and burn along with her books, causing Guy to realize that books can help people to find in their lives a meaning that does not exist in his or Mildred 's. Mildred does not stay to burn with the parlor that she makes such a big deal out of throughout the course of the book. In this way, she inadvertently proves that the parlor and the other forms of technology she attaches herself to, do not provide her life with any
To this day, gender inequality still exists across the world. While it squeezes itself into our society, four mainly focus on the true aspects on what it is like to experience such inequality. For example, women in the work force, the family life, the state, and sexes can lead to all forms of discrimination. Did the screenwriters correctly portray what women back then suffered from? Director, Penny Marshall’s, A League of Their Own, demonstrates a taste of what women during the 1940’s we’re told on how to act and live. The movie portrays unfairness between the character’s looks based on gender, and differences within their family. Marshall also shows when and why this discrimination was occurring. Such as including scenes that displayed the time period and the importance of continuing on America’s favorite activities after men left for war.
The 1950’s had a male dominant tone. Although wives were seen as the people who “ran the house” the husbands were going to work early in the morning and not coming home until night. A perfect example of what marriage supposedly looked like was the popular TV show “I Love Lucy” starting in 1951. Within months the show had millions of viewers becoming a
You want to find out who had more power and more authority in the late 1940s? Well, the only way we can figure out an answer to the question is either by asking someone that lived in the 1940s or by reading a book, novel or play. The play “A streetcar named desire” by Tennessee Williams is the perfect example since it was written in the late 1940s and it contains the themes of gender issues, and masculinity vs. femininity. Both of these themes will not only provide us with examples regards to social attitudes, but it will also state to us who had the power and how they gained the power. In a streetcar named desire, the main characters include Blanche Dubois (older sister of Stella), Stanley Kowalski (Stella’s husband), Stella Kowalski (Blanche’s younger sister and Stanley’s husband), and Harold Mitchell (One of Stanley’s friends and poker buddies) tend to show us or demonstrate to us some specific examples of gender issues, and masculinity vs. femininity. Throughout the whole play, the male characters tend to express and explain who
I would like to be considered for the legal assistant position at your law firm. As a recent graduate from the University of San Francisco (USF), with a BA in Politics, I am looking for an opportunity to work with a firm like yours that is equally well known for professionalism and excellence. I am ready to transition from academia to the professional world since I am focused on gaining career experience specific to my interests and expertise and this position will allow me this.
Throughout motion picture history, women have experienced more transition in their roles, as a result of changing societal norms, than any other class. At first, both society and the movie industry preached that women should be dependent on men and remain in the home, in order to guarantee stability in the community and the family. As time passed and attitudes changed, women were beginning to be depicted as strong willed, independent minded characters, who were eager to break away from convention. The genre of the crime film represents such a change in the roles handed to women. Two films that can be contrasted, in order to support this view, are: The Public Enemy by William Wellman (1931) and Bonnie
After a close analysis of Genesis in the Hebrew bible’s story of Adam and Eve, some people may ask, did the punishment fit the crime or was the Lord God being harsh and brutal with his punishments? This can be argued by many people because Adam, Eve and the serpent committed a sin. Adam and Eve without knowledge of what a sin is committed the act thinking everything would be okay, but what they didn 't know was that the Lord God was offended by their disobedience and so he punished them the way he saw fit. The serpent also was included in the punishment because of his wrongful doings. It was a harsh punishment because they were two innocent individuals and were mislead by the serpent. They didn 't know what sin really was until they committed the crime and were punished for it. The Lord God is the supreme being in the story where he has absolute power and expects obedience from his creatures or subjects. The Lord God created the universe, the earth, the land, the seas, plants, and all living creatures. The Lord God also created Adam and Eve and placed them in Eden, which was a beautiful land with beautiful creatures, fresh water and many edible fruit trees. The Lord God had only one rule, he instructed them not eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge. Sadly, Adam and Eve couldn 't obey the only rule in Eden and were punished. However, Adams and Eves disobedience came with a harsh punishment for each.
Gender roles, the public image of being a particular gender that a person presents to others (gender roles, n.d.), have seen many changes through the years, especially in families. The changes can be seen in many aspects, including television shows, from the traditional family in the I Love Lucy sitcom of the 1950s to the plethora of shows about women and men who balance working and family life of the 2000s. A traditional family can be defined as “… the ‘natural reproductive unit’ of mom, pop, and the children all living under one roof… (Ball, 2002).” The 1940s, a period dominated by this type of family, were primarily a time of single-income families where the father was the ‘breadwinner’ and the mother the ‘homemaker (Hayghe, H.V., 1990).’