Summary Of The Film 'Witness' By Peter Weir

Witness is the famous American movie directed by Peter Weir in 1985 which the story starts with the witness of a brutal murder happened in the bathroom of New York City station by a little Amish boy named Samuel Lapp. Through the investigation of the incident with the policeman, John Book, Samuel and his mother, Rachel, the viewers encounter the plain life led by blackclad Amish people. People there had a lifestyle which the “American” experienced a few decades ago, for example, riding horses instead of cars, and building houses by themselves which might have surprised some of the audiences. Although some critics argue numerous scenes were deliberately exaggerated in the movie to glorify the lifestyle of Amish and to demean that of American …show more content…
A lot of modern American females actively participate in the outside workforce. However, there was a time when they possessed similar roles as Amish women. Housing work was considered as women’s job, and men dominated the outside world. Wives devoted themselves to domestic chores and to raise their children. Gender separation was so clear that while husbands earn money and serve as a breadwinner, wives fulfills the role as the husbands’ helping hand. Even if women worked in a company, they were less likely to be promoted. They generally experienced hardships that in spite of their strenuous effort, their accomplishment was neither admitted nor admired. In the worst cases, non of the male workers gave careful attentions to the opinions of female employees. The ladies certainly felt their right to pursue happiness was deprived by the sexual prejudice, and they should be treated as equally as men. With the movement to promote gender equality by courageous women such as Lady Bird, the society started to reconsider its typical view toward female as being inferior to male. As a result, the stereotype of women devoting themselves to the motherhood has dramatically been changed over the years. Even though only one third of the workers were female in 1969, women today make up almost half of the workforce (Chu and Posner). This is such an amazing achievement which was unimaginable a few decades ago. …show more content…
As seen from the movie, “Witness” directed by Peter Weir, Amish community is completely separated by sex, and there is a clear distinction of tasks they are responsible for, for instance, women cleaning up the house and rearing their children. On the contrary, American women nowadays are enthusiastically involved in the workforce; their field of work is not limited just inside of the house. Notwithstanding countless differences between American and Amish women, similarities can also be found that women in both cultures are deeply appreciated and are treated generally. Even though people living in the modernized world tend to take Amish women’s way of life as oppressing and repressing, within their context and belief, they are fulfilled and are given high esteem for their splendid works. It is important to consider about the others by putting oneself into their shoes. Only with the superficial knowledge, it is almost impossible to grasp the core thoughts. Thus, in spite of the preferable view toward American women who have more freedom to work as powerfully as men at the outside world, no one is capable of deciding which society offers better roles. As long as the person herself is pleased with the situation she is in, there is nothing more others can interrupt. The movie, Witness, taught the spectators essential lessons that there is no correct answer to the role women should