Gender and War in Early American Films - Essay Example

Gender and War in early American films Gender and war have an interrelated relationship. During times of war, the lives of both men and women are impacted differently. In many societies, women are viewed as outsiders of the war the war scene is dominated by men. The effects of war, however, are greatly felt by the women. War impacts women and they suffer greatly from its impacts. Women caught in between war lines face a number of devastating effects such as sexual violence. The unwritten war scripts dictates that part of victory from conquest is dominating the foe’s women by raping them and engaging in other forms of sexual violence. In addition, during war, women may be deployed for political reasons. During times of war, men fight, take the Frontlines in battlefields and are responsible for making various important decisions during times of war. Women, on the other hand stay at home looking after the family and give their men such support during war times. Early American films showed this relationship of war and gender. In such films, however, the relationship between war and gender slightly differed from the norm. In such early American films of years between 1898 and 1927, the representation of war was not male dominated. Women were, however, the fundamental figures in such wars and represented an American identity and heroism. Early American films depicted war as not being male dominated, but rather gender dominated by women representing their American identity and depicting their heroism in war. During times of war in early American movies, women were depicted not as victims of war, but rather as key players in the war. These heroic women played vital roles during the war at both the battlefront and the home front. For instance, during times of war, men fought in the battle zones. The concentration of men was devoted to fighting the enemy. Such men fighting had little or no time in their hands to perform other activities such as cooking food or washing of their clothes. The women’s role during such time was therefore providing their men with vital support. For example, women cooked food and delivered the food at camps and in battle zones where the men fought. In addition, they provided their men with water and ensured that their clothes were clean. Even though food and water may seem as something small, at times of war these two form vital components. The soldiers fighting need these for biological support. During times of war, food is destroyed in plantations, stores and the necessary infrastructure such as piped water may be affected. In addition, based on the volatile nature of war, soldiers are always travelling around different zones and may encounter a shortage of food and water. This vital role played by women in times of war is what the early American films depicted, showing such women as heroic figures (Langman 12-19). In addition to the supporting role, women were involved actively in the battle lines. An example was the role of women providing relief services to the soldiers. These women acted as nurses and took care of the wounded soldiers. They treated those wounded in battle and watched over them until they healed and were fit to return to the battlefield. This affirms the women’s gender role of being nurturing and caring for others (Greenwald 31-33). Thousands of women during these ancient wars, served to provide support services in the war. Such services should not be taken for granted as in most instances, the victory or defeat of a nation in war depended on them. During the American civil war, there was a number of women who went ahead to disguise themselves as men. These women dressed as men and entered the battle zones to fight. Such are the heroic deeds of women in war that American films recognize as being both brave and showing high levels of patriotism (Mahar 21-24). In addition to this disguised approach by women in the military forces, some women were tactfully chosen to join the military forces by special units. In some instances, a female was in charge of commanding an entire unit or troop of soldiers. These women were good at forming strategies that really helped their countries in the times of war. Such acts by women prove that war was not dominated by males, but was rather a gender based affair. In these wars, as the early American films depict, the efforts of both men and women were vital in ensuring the victory of the country in war (Mahar 48-51). In these early times, as an academic study by showed, women joined the military to escape from the traditional negative aspects of femininity (Silva 3-8). The role support role played by women during times of early wars was vital in helping their armies during the war times. These early times were characterized by low levels of technological advancement. Due to this challenge in technological infrastructure, communication between various troops in different locations proved to be a challenge at times. The women stepped up to solve this problem. Women being transported around various troops and locations became carriers of information (Greenwald 78-81). These women would be sent with both written and verbal information as they travelled across various locations. Information flow is key in times of war. Intelligence rather than actual battle is what has made many battles won by armies applying the use of intelligence. Critical information on the enemy position, arsenal and attack patterns are analyzed and used to fight the enemy. Such information is, however irrelevant if not shared across all, troops and units spread in different locations. The women who participated in wars during such times are thus regarded as heroes since the fundamental role that they played in ensuring the flow of information was very important. The use of women to obtain information on the enemy camp has been an old trick that has been used extensively in the war. The early American films bring out this role of women in war strongly. During times of war, the women engaged in acts of espionage in the enemy territories. These women spies were very tactful in their acts and would acquire information from the enemy that would be fundamental in aiding their own armies in the war. Such women, for example, would disguise themselves as women from the enemy camps. They then would enter the territories of the enemy and get access to first-hand information and experience (Langman 17-21). This information then would be relayed to their troops in various ways. The women maintained their cover. However, those women who got busted faced dire consequences such as death at times. The risk that these women took in times of war is what calls for their recognition as key players in the war and helpers of the men. This is why the early American films on war seldom represent the domination of men in war, but rather depicts war as a gender affair, where man and women work in support of each other. An additional tactic used by women in accessing information through espionage is befriending top military officials and exploiting them for weaknesses. Like the biblical story of Samson and Delilah, women can get access to information from the enemy. Women use such tactics through luring men and earning their trust. The women can have a relationship with the men, at times sexual. This bond creates trust which the women use to acquire and eventually betray by selling the secrets of the enemy. Manipulation of women in war was for instance portrayed in a 1926 film known as “What Price Glory” (Langman 36-49). In the film produced by Fox Film, the rivalry of two veteran US Marines over a woman’s love cause war. The rivalry over the affections of this lass coupled by the reality of war accorded both men a mutual cause for war. In this instance, the lady is a bystander and watches the battle from an outside view without participating. This laid back participation however has a lot of impact in the war indirectly. Women have used such tactics in war for a long time. In the other instance, the women act as double agents selling information to the highest bidder, and at times sabotaging both sides. In time of war, a vacuum in many industries was created (Greenwald 81-82). This was as a result of majority of the men who held positions in this fighting for their country. Due to this, women stepped up in times of war to take up majority of the jobs. The previous scene was characterized by economic dependence of the women on their husbands. The women in these times participated in wartime activities such as working in plantations, providing industrial labor and enrolling in the military to participate in the war (Greenwald 88-94). This time provided a majority of the women a chance to take up a trade, learn and perfect in the art of the trade. This period in consideration formed part of the late nineteenth century and overlapped with the 20th century. This was a period characterized by massive industrial growth. The war provided the women opportunity of a lifetime to take up previously male dominated jobs. These war time jobs ensured much financial independence of a majority of women who lived in these war times (Greenwald 102-104). War and involvement of women in war, was the greatest factor in establishing gender relations between men and women. War and women participation in it is actually what led to women taking up of various job opportunities later (Frank 61-88). War opened up the military, industry and farms to acceptance of women skill later on, something which was previously unacceptable. Participation of women in war was very helpful to those women who took up roles in the war and these benefits trickled down to other women much later. Conclusion In history, wars have been inevitable. Many countries and communities have fought over time. These wars have been characterized by male dominance. The men in the society engaged in war, while women were left to look after homes. With time however, as depicted in early American films, women started participating in wars in increasing numbers. This participation of women in war was influenced by a number of factors. The participation of women in war was however not direct in all instances. Under few circumstances, however, the women engaged in battle lines and actually battled in wars. Some women disguised themselves as men while other armies recruited and even gave women leadership roles. With time, and development of the society, women were used in war as spies. Espionage brought a majority of the wars to a new level. In such wars, information was more valuable than the size of the army. Women were used as spies in times of war. This however, brought out themes of sexualism and objectification of women in sexual lines. Depiction of women as spies who slept with men for information and trust in movies showed how much value society accorded to women. Women participation and involvement in war resulted to shifting gender roles for both men and women. The previously marginalized women now could take up new roles that were previously held and dominated by men. With this participation and new experience of war, women started earning incomes and some were even independent. Early participation of these women in war opened doors for future opportunities to women in various fields and professions. The early American movies showed the fundamental roles performed by women in various aspects of war. These films did not concentrate on male dominance in war, but rather recognized the efforts of women in war. The American heroism and identity of women in war created by these movies depicts the perspective of gender in war and not previously believed domain of male dominance. References Langman, Larry. American Film Cycles: The Silent Era. Westport, CT: Greenwood Pr, 1998. Print. Mahar, Karen W. Women Filmmakers in Early Hollywood. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008. Print. Greenwald, Maurine W. Women, War, and Work: The Impact of World War I on Women Workers in the United States. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1990. Print. Frank, Lisa T. An Encyclopedia of American Women at War: From the Home Front to the Battlefields. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO, 2013. Print. Silva, Jennifer M. A New Generation of Women: How Female ROTC negotiates the tension between Masculine Military Culture and Traditional Femininity. Oxford University Press, 2008. Retrieved from: http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/20430897?uid=2&uid=4&sid=21103290859281 Read More