Think cinematically about both films and their female characters. Using cinematic evidence, write two paragraphs about how females are portrayed in each film. You will look at the films through a feminist lens. Additionally, write one paragraph on how the main female character's strength is portrayed cinematically.
For anyone interested, there is a good film guide to Persepolis here.
Due: Friday, June 8.
In both "Spirited Away" and "Persepolis," the female characters are presented as being empowered and independent.
ReplyDeleteIn "Spirited Away," Chihiro's most obvious transformation is in her personality. At the beginning of the film, she is timid, sullen and somewhat selfish. But by the end of the film, she becomes very courageous and selfless, as she is willing to sacrifice herself so she can save the lives of her parents, as well as her friend Haku. As well, she becomes much more able to stand up for herself as the film progresses. When she first talks to Yubaba while trying to get a job from her, she can only talk in short outbursts and she gets scared and nervous quickly. But at the end of the film, when she is confronted with Yubaba's final test of deciding which of the pigs is her parents, she is able to stand her ground with confidence, and even refers to Yubaba informally as "Granny." Additionally, the character of Yubaba is also very important to understanding the portrayal of women in the film. She is seen as seen as very authoritative, and every character in the film is essentially at her will. She is easily the most powerful and strong character in the film.
In "Persepolis," Marjane is portrayed as being very independent. She does not let any problems that she has with men she dates, or with policemen, stop her from accomplishing her goals. As well, the other female characters are similarly portrayed as powerful and independent in the film. Marjane's grandmother and mother are both seen as very free-thinking women who gain respect from others.
In "Persepolis," the strength of the female characters is often shown through the use of symbolic imagery. The veil that women must wear is used often -- it is used as a symbol of oppression that Marjane, as well as her mother and grandmother often defy. As well, low angles are used in both films to depict strength.
Well, there are differences and similarities. They are similar in the sense that both female characters are in a somewhat fantastical setting. In Spirited Away the main character, Chihiro, is in a literal fantasy world with spirits and strange creatures. While in Persepolis the main character, Marjane, was in the real world, it was an autobiography, but the world was very abstract and seemed fantastical at times (it looked like a cartoon!, because it was). The mise-en-scene was something unreal and different, yet these females faced it head on and came out victorious. Chihiro had to persevere in a strange world In order to save her parents. Marjane struggled through multiple civil wars and had difficulty growing up and finding her identity. Chihiro was small on screen in multiple shots, like when she was on the edge of the bathhouse trying to find someone to give her job. Also, her uniform was pink, a color most associated with a female. She seemed timid and weak at first. She was in a strange new world and was all by herself. Then there is Haku, Yubaba’s right hand man, who helped Chihiro on her journey. Their relationship could be misinterpreted as an implied meaning how females need males in order to do big things, but this is not the case. Chihiro helped Haku just as much as he helped her, because she set him free from Yubaba’s curse. When she got rid of the curse on Haku, it looked like a small black worm. She stomped on it and killed it. This represents how Haku’s problems are not so big now that he has Chihiro. Through this there is a message about equality between females and males, because one could not succeed without the other.
ReplyDeleteMarjane did not need a man and did all she did without one. In fact, men just made things worse for her. She had to endure a hard and difficult life, going through several civil wars and always being told how to live and dress. This female character represents the rebellious movement against the stereotypical view of women, particularly against the abuses caused to them by religion. She raised her hand in a university class; she was in the background, while the teacher was in the foreground initially. She spoke her disapproval of being told to wear longer scarves and being totally covered just so the men don’t get too aroused. She became bigger on screen as she spoke this. Also, when she decided to get her life together, she sang a male’s song originally used in Rocky which focused on a male. This shows how she does not care about what is for a male and what is for a female. She’s a female and she’s singing “eye of the tiger”. The black and white revealed the gloom and sorrow of the situation, also the abstract drawing gives it a very strange and universal look. This is what Marjane had to endure through. Unlike Chihiro, this lasted the majority of her life, while Chihiro’s was much shorter.
ReplyDeleteThe strength of Marjane was revealed in her rebellious views and her singing of “eye of the tiger”. She was an independent woman and she did not let men ruin her life. She did at one point, and the drawing became much more ‘gloom and doom’. The “eye of the tiger” represented her turning her point where she decided to turn her life around and stop feeling sorry for herself and make something of it. It is normal to see a male in a movie turn his life around in a montage with a song, like Rocky in Rocky. So, why can’t she do it to? GIRL POWER! Obviously. He character seemed livelier after the montage. Also, the montage is something that adds power to a character. The strength of Chihiro is shown through her persistence. She is small on screen several times, like when she is asking Yubaba for a job, but she consistently asks although she is terrified and scared. She did this several times in the film, asking persistently and being denied, but still asking until she gets what she needs. Also, her strength is shown through her journey to Grandma’s house. She is a little girl who is in a strange world and she is going to a strange woman’s house who tried to kill Haku in order to save him, and then save her parents. When she is going to the house, it is extremely dark and this represents her fear, but how she pushes through it. She is very afraid, but she pushes through it every time.
Spirited Away and Persepolis are two animated films that show girls' coming of age in strange circumstances. Chihiro, the protagonist of Spirited Away, finds herself in a fantasy world run by a tyrannical queen after her parents take a detour on a trip. Marjane, the protagonist of Persepolis, comes into age and explores the world after being born in Iran during the Revolution. Against such exotic backgrounds, the characters are portrayed as mature and strong, with fitful bursts of girlishness.
ReplyDeleteBoth characters try to hide the trouble they encounter in their locales through exaggerated displays of strength. Marjane, leaving Iran and running wild through France, talks back to nuns and pretends to enjoy hardcore punk in order to seem mature and independent. She is characterized as immature in her attempts to do so - the nihilistic politics her friends champion go right over her head, and she is depicted as ultimately being confused and scared. Chihiro portrays herself as confident and comfortable in her new world, demanding a job from Kamajii and calmly following instructions given to her. However, it is when she is alone or with Haku that we see her emotions get the best of her. During these scenes, Chihiro cries and wonders aloud if she will ever be reunited with her parents. Both characters inhabit scary worlds, and we see their weakness and immaturity through their self conscious attempts to appear mature.
Both films also portray their characters as strong, despite their immaturity. Chihiro consistently proves herself to be strong, battling demons and curses without her parents. She is shown as very small in most of the shots, surrounded by an expansive exotic locale that appears overwhelming in scope to the viewer. Chihiro overcomes it, however, and proves her worth. Marjane consistently proves herself to be an individual and feminist of the highest order. Despite an undercurrent of confusion, Marjane ultimately is a confident, strong character - she survives the Iranian Revolution, travels to France and finds a variety of homes, and divorces her husband at a time and place when it was taboo. Marjane is depicted as being strong through her mere physical presence in the shot - she is depicted as big in every frame, and maintains a "confident" look that distinguishes her.
Both Chihiro and Marjane are weak and vulnerable characters because they are young, particularly towards the beginning of each film; however, as the films progress the girls develop qualities of strength and independence. When Chihiro first arrives in the spirit world she is afraid without her parents and lost without the guidance of Haku. However, the more time she spends away from the human world the more capable she is of taking care of herself-the film ends with Chihiro's mission to save Haku, who before had been her protector. Similarly, the older Marjane the grows, the more defiant and independent she becomes, breaking away from conventions enforced by figures such as the nuns.
ReplyDeleteIn one of the final scenes of Spirited Away, Chihiro travels on a train filled with shadow spirits. The conductor's face is not shown as he takes their tickets in a low-angle shot. As the train glides through the night, neon signs appear through the windows and shots of the outside reveal a wide ocean. All of this illustrates the impressions felt through the loneliness of a helpless child. The conductor looks tall and faceless and literally describes how big and intimidating adults are to children. The setting itself, a train, is a place where strangers gather, all coming from and going to some unknown place for some unknown purpose, not caring about or speaking to each other and so all of the figures are shadowy and silent. The neon lights recall the scene in 400 Blows when Antoine is carried off in the police vehicle. It's a profound sense of loneliness that only be truly expressed in impressions, the loneliness of a child felt in the absence of parents. As Chihiro gazes out the window, her face is stern and determined, but her reflection looks frightened, conveying her dichotic emotions. Though Chihiro continually demonstrates her precocious strength, she is still a child, somewhat helpless without the presence of her parents.
Marjane buys a tape illegally, approaching a man who whispers “Iron Maiden”. She is shown in a high angle shot and he in a low angle throughout their exchange, reminding us of the age disparity between the characters. She is not intimidated by him however, and gets him to lower the price, demonstrating the strength of her character. However, two nuns who are exaggeratedly tall and menacing immediately swoop over; even the music dealers run away from them. Marjane’s rebellious clothing is condemned by the nuns and they force the burqa down over her head, a symbol of female oppression. It’s suggested that the nuns are the enforcers of oppression because they wear the burqas themselves.