Introduction
The problem of attitude of society to women is urgent for many people as in most cases social opinion is directed at humiliating them. Such point of view was not formed by chance. Media has been influencing social considerations for many years. However, the latest tendency has changed. It is possible to see strong and fearless women who are able to cope with the problems without men’s assistance.
Summary of the Film
Winter’s Bone (2010) is a film which tells a story of a 17-year-old girl who has to bear the responsibility not only for her life, but also for the lives of her catatonic mother, 12-year-old brother an 6-year-old sister. She has to make complicated and selfless decisions, but she feels that there is no another way out.
She has to find her father not to be turned out of the house. She has to come through dangerous social terrain where her father, an owner of illegal methamphetamine lab, could be. However, in spite all disasters and dangerous beating, she manages to keep a house and stay with her family, promising her sister and brother never leave them alone.
Comparison and Contrast of the Film and the Article
Having watched the film Winter’s Bone and having read Linda Nochlin’s article Women, Art and Power, I can say that the film represents a woman in another light, absolutely different from what we got used to see in world history. Reading the article, I noticed that most of the pictures show a woman as a passive, obedient creature, while men have dominance over them.
Nochlin writes that even when a woman is presented on the picture, she is aimed at attracting male gaze, that makes her subordinate to him (15). The movie is different in the way that the main character, Ree Dolly, tries to ruin the prejudices by means of making male business. Still, the idea of male domination is also present in the film.
Each time Ree asks about her father, she faces male power. The article and the film under discussion are similar in the idea that showing the similar unfair attitude to females, the narrators (Ree and Nochlin) believe that women are stronger and more powerful in reality, that the society wants to make those dependant.
Film Analysis
There are many situations in the film where men show their dominance over women. However, the film finale shows that Ree managed to reach a set goal. She wanted to remain in the house, to stay with her brother and sister, and find her father.
She did it. No matter how many difficulties and dangerous situations she had to come through, she did it. She managed to show that a woman, desiring to protect her property and her family can de powerful.
All the cases of male domination in paintings and photos, the situations when Ree had to do the things under men pressure just show that men feel their dominance, but the fact that Ree remained with her family shows that women are much stronger than they are supposed to be.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it should be stated that the place of women in the world history is considered as subordinate. Men used to be physically stronger and it helped them to dominate over women. Still, Winter’s Bone is a proof that women are not that weak as they are believed to be. Having set a goal to protect a family, women are ready to do all possible form them to reach their aims.
Works Cited
Nochlin, Linda. “Women, art, and power.” Women, art, and power: and other essays. Ed. Linda Nochlin. Boulder: Westview Press, 1989. Print.
Winter’s Bone. Dir. Debra Granik. Perf. Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes, and Lauren Sweetser. Roadside Attraction, 2010. Film.