Class in Gender - Essay Example

Within this brief analysis, the author will consider the representation and perspective upon the class in gender that are represented within the two following foreign films: “The Secret of the Grain” and “All About My Mother”.  Whereas the overall representation of human struggle and the importance of family necessarily represent a very large degree of the plot for both of these films, the overall attributes and descriptions of class and gender that are represented within both of these films help to set these films apart from many of the others that have been produced within the past several years.

Firstly, the film “The Secret Life of Grain”, represents what many filmmakers might see as an overly chauvinistic view of the world. However, it must also be understood that the culture that exists within the Maghreb is inherently patriarchal and the family associations and expectations that are represented within the film in question are not meant to cause any level of disrespect for anti-feminism. As such, the filmmaker reveals a world in which strict gender norms determine what actions men and women will undertake (Scott 1). For instance, as it becomes clear that the couscous has been lost, it is the expectation that the men of the family must engage in a frantic and desperate rush to locate it. However, when their efforts fail, the gender expectation that is represented within the film is that it is ultimately the job of the women to solve the situation, re-cook the couscous, and utilize male sexual energy as a distraction from what is taking place behind the scenes.  Furthermore, the representation of a class is one in which the viewer comes to the realization that the moneyed aristocracy/bureaucracy is the only mechanism through which the average societal stakeholder can hope to get ahead. As a direct result of this realization and portrayal, the protagonists of the film find it necessary to ingratiate themselves with these individuals as a means of pursuing this dream.

Interestingly, the second film that will be discussed within this comparison and contrast, “All About My Mother”, represents a differential between those individuals that live within the provinces and those that live within Madrid. Furthermore, whereas it has been assumed that individuals who live in the big city are necessarily more liberal and open-minded than those who lived within the provinces, a unique understanding of class and acceptance is provided within this film; whereby the individuals who live in Madrid are more close-minded than those who live within the provincial settings in which the film largely takes place (Russell 1). This key differential between lifestyles represents a class society in which those who live in the major cities are insulated and shielded from realities of life that their relatives and friends necessarily integrate with on a daily basis. Whereas there is not the same degree of gender distinction in this film, as compared to the film which was analyzed previously, it is without question that the matriarchal level of protection and family decision-making is effectively denoted in almost each and every interaction that takes place (Sillitoe 2).