I was completely alone as I walked down the escalator into the installation, there was no music playing and the lights were dim as I approached the beginning of a series of photos. I was welcomed by a large quote painted directly onto the white walls of the museum by movie star Katharine Hepburn. It read: “Isn’t it wonderful to have has such a great career, when you had no right to have a career at all?”
The eye opening exhibition that recently ran at the Museum of Modern Art, “Making Faces: Images of Exploitation and Empowerment in Cinema”, provided museum goers with evidence that the hot topic of feminism has been a battle faced in the world of film for a long time. By looking at the exhibit through the lens of a young woman entering …show more content…
However, behind the silver screen it is evident that the life of a Hollywood actor is not all it’s cut out to be, particularly for the women. “The paradox of 1930s cinema is, although women often did dominate, at the end of the films they were caught up in the arms of men” (Human 405). It was common for “their characters [to be] subservient to their leading men before the credits rolled” (Human 405). It seemed as though at this age of cinema, the women could not win because, despite excellent acting skills, they could not escape the screenwriters making their characters submissive to their male counterparts. The lack of control over the writing of their character’s script and dominance of male actors worked against female actresses due to the expectation of society during this time period. This would have been a very challenging environment for women in film to succeed in and although luckily, there are some actresses who helped pave the way for feminism in film. Despite this unescapable inequality, Katharine Hepburn stood out because she often portrayed stronger female characters. Some examples of these roles have included famous Hepburn was particularly known because “in an era when women were expected to be subservient, sweet and arm candy, [she] was not. She was the woman so often seen in her roles: independent, imperious and feminist.” (Sanghani 1) Her roles on screen inspired women …show more content…
Although woman have taken strides towards becoming more and more equal to men, there is certainly no lack of need for feminism today. However, the exhibition “Making Faces” lets us take a look at the positive side of things showing just how far we have come. In the world we are living in it is becoming increasingly prevalent that, although America has come very far as a feminist society, there is certainly a lot more to be done. Many Hollywood actresses have followed in Katharine Hepburn’s footsteps as spokeswoman for the feminist movement. Emma Watson, for example is a well known actress but also started the women’s rights campaign “HeForShe” supported by the United Nations. An organization that states “people everywhere from all walks of life are working together to achieve gender equality” (HeForShe.org). This is an example of how actresses were once known solely for their work in cinema but have become so much more. Actresses are now icons that girls and women look up to. “Women film-makers have increasingly conquered Hollywood” (Smelnik 501) and will continue to become more and more important in the feminist movement. Katharine Hepburn and other actresses in early cinema were vital to the impact feminism has on society today. She acted as a role model and an example for many women and as a result we have been able to see positive
The eye opening exhibition that recently ran at the Museum of Modern Art, “Making Faces: Images of Exploitation and Empowerment in Cinema”, provided museum goers with evidence that the hot topic of feminism has been a battle faced in the world of film for a long time. By looking at the exhibit through the lens of a young woman entering …show more content…
However, behind the silver screen it is evident that the life of a Hollywood actor is not all it’s cut out to be, particularly for the women. “The paradox of 1930s cinema is, although women often did dominate, at the end of the films they were caught up in the arms of men” (Human 405). It was common for “their characters [to be] subservient to their leading men before the credits rolled” (Human 405). It seemed as though at this age of cinema, the women could not win because, despite excellent acting skills, they could not escape the screenwriters making their characters submissive to their male counterparts. The lack of control over the writing of their character’s script and dominance of male actors worked against female actresses due to the expectation of society during this time period. This would have been a very challenging environment for women in film to succeed in and although luckily, there are some actresses who helped pave the way for feminism in film. Despite this unescapable inequality, Katharine Hepburn stood out because she often portrayed stronger female characters. Some examples of these roles have included famous Hepburn was particularly known because “in an era when women were expected to be subservient, sweet and arm candy, [she] was not. She was the woman so often seen in her roles: independent, imperious and feminist.” (Sanghani 1) Her roles on screen inspired women …show more content…
Although woman have taken strides towards becoming more and more equal to men, there is certainly no lack of need for feminism today. However, the exhibition “Making Faces” lets us take a look at the positive side of things showing just how far we have come. In the world we are living in it is becoming increasingly prevalent that, although America has come very far as a feminist society, there is certainly a lot more to be done. Many Hollywood actresses have followed in Katharine Hepburn’s footsteps as spokeswoman for the feminist movement. Emma Watson, for example is a well known actress but also started the women’s rights campaign “HeForShe” supported by the United Nations. An organization that states “people everywhere from all walks of life are working together to achieve gender equality” (HeForShe.org). This is an example of how actresses were once known solely for their work in cinema but have become so much more. Actresses are now icons that girls and women look up to. “Women film-makers have increasingly conquered Hollywood” (Smelnik 501) and will continue to become more and more important in the feminist movement. Katharine Hepburn and other actresses in early cinema were vital to the impact feminism has on society today. She acted as a role model and an example for many women and as a result we have been able to see positive