Presented in a complex world, where the discrepancy between a righteous hero and an evil villain is often misconstrued, Alan Moore’s Watchmen does a brilliant job at portraying his sordid depiction of twentieth century life. Unlike most other comics Watchmen was based on realistic sexual activities and feelings, political situations, and a superheroes realistic effect on the world they live in. The book begins eight years after the Keene Act was passed, which was a law that outlawed all masked vigilantes and the only active superheroes are Dr. Manhattan, and the Comedian, who still work for the US Government and Rorschach who fights crime using his own tactics. Through flashbacks the Comedian is shown as a person who did not fully grasp the
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Unable to circumvent living in a primarily patriarchal society, where men are dependent on almost everything, the empowerment of these two character’s can only be understood through their sexuality. Laurie is sexualized by her mother as more of a fetish standard in their community rather than a crime fighter, as her costume is designed to be form-fitting. Women can be crime fighters even if their femininity doesn’t remain beyond question; Laurie and Sally shouldn’t submit and accept the restrictions that were placed on them by society, as their tight-fitting uniforms only certify the power that patriarchal institutions have on their lives. With no regards to the sexualization of females in the comic, the theatrical version of Watchmen does a better job portraying the equal and empowered nature of females today, as the directors changed Laurie’s garments from a short black skirt with yellow gauze in the novel, to a somewhat hybrid of sexual and powerful with dominatrix-type outfit which featured high-thigh boots and latex. Ironically, it is Laurie’s mother, Sally that created the suit for her. It is believed that both Sally and Laurie are using sex as a means to achieve greater pastures but this is a gross simplification of their purpose. Laurie, understandably is very dismissive of her …show more content…
Throughout the novel, the role of the female characters is a very complex topic to analyze. Another key aspect is the relationship between Sally Jupiter and the men she is involved with. One of the main flaws found in Watchmen is how Sally Jupiter could be in love with her rapist. This is shown in chapter 12 when the artists depict Sally kissing the photo of Blake. Even though she is in love with Blake she never does forgive him, nor forget what he did to her. He assaulted, and then sodomized her, shown from her screams of pain and the representation of bestiality from the ape head on page 6 of Chapter 2. The traditional and stereotypical female roles that were being fulfilled in the panels showed a male who was dominant and oppressive, and the submissive weak female, even though she did attempt to protect herself initially. It is barbaric to believe that The Comedian raped Sally due to the fact that she was wearing suggestive clothes; females should be free to wear anything that they please without the threat of males gawking at the sight of an exposed thigh. The Silk Spectre should feel free to wear anything that she pleases, rebuking the traditional belief that women should be covered up to preserve their femininity. The truth was suppressed from Laurie and Hollis mason, as they are unaware
Unable to circumvent living in a primarily patriarchal society, where men are dependent on almost everything, the empowerment of these two character’s can only be understood through their sexuality. Laurie is sexualized by her mother as more of a fetish standard in their community rather than a crime fighter, as her costume is designed to be form-fitting. Women can be crime fighters even if their femininity doesn’t remain beyond question; Laurie and Sally shouldn’t submit and accept the restrictions that were placed on them by society, as their tight-fitting uniforms only certify the power that patriarchal institutions have on their lives. With no regards to the sexualization of females in the comic, the theatrical version of Watchmen does a better job portraying the equal and empowered nature of females today, as the directors changed Laurie’s garments from a short black skirt with yellow gauze in the novel, to a somewhat hybrid of sexual and powerful with dominatrix-type outfit which featured high-thigh boots and latex. Ironically, it is Laurie’s mother, Sally that created the suit for her. It is believed that both Sally and Laurie are using sex as a means to achieve greater pastures but this is a gross simplification of their purpose. Laurie, understandably is very dismissive of her …show more content…
Throughout the novel, the role of the female characters is a very complex topic to analyze. Another key aspect is the relationship between Sally Jupiter and the men she is involved with. One of the main flaws found in Watchmen is how Sally Jupiter could be in love with her rapist. This is shown in chapter 12 when the artists depict Sally kissing the photo of Blake. Even though she is in love with Blake she never does forgive him, nor forget what he did to her. He assaulted, and then sodomized her, shown from her screams of pain and the representation of bestiality from the ape head on page 6 of Chapter 2. The traditional and stereotypical female roles that were being fulfilled in the panels showed a male who was dominant and oppressive, and the submissive weak female, even though she did attempt to protect herself initially. It is barbaric to believe that The Comedian raped Sally due to the fact that she was wearing suggestive clothes; females should be free to wear anything that they please without the threat of males gawking at the sight of an exposed thigh. The Silk Spectre should feel free to wear anything that she pleases, rebuking the traditional belief that women should be covered up to preserve their femininity. The truth was suppressed from Laurie and Hollis mason, as they are unaware