Introduction
During the late 1940’s and 50’s, media was on the forefront in a post war effort to reconstruct the family structure after World War II. Most shows on television are dominated by nuclear families whereby women who are home makers do not challenge their prescribed gender roles. It is evident that sexuality was not illustrated in these shows (Barry, 256). On the contrary, there are film images of the famous Doris Day whose acting career was popular between 1948 and 1973 during which she challenged the image of the woman at home by being single, independent and successful but upheld proper images regarding sexuality and sexual behavior (Brooke, 120). Other film images and icons of the period include the also very famous Marilyn Monroe, beauty pageants and the Barbie commercial. This discussion is an exploration of the female sexuality in the 1950’s by exploring what messages were inherent in the identified femininity representations in terms of beauty and sexuality, how they were able to remain popular during the conservative times in the popular culture and how did they uphold some of the messages that dominated the time. Finally, the paper would also provide insights on what the feminine representations and inherent messages portrayed about race and class.
Discussion
Beauty pageants
“Miss America” is the country’s oldest beauty pageant started in 1921and evolved into one of the most fashionable events. The contest was about sexual politics and commercialism, small towns and big business. However, behind the scenes the human story reveals that the contest became a battlefield and barometer for transforming the position of women in the society. Changing the ideal of Miss America in the 40’s and 50’s whereby the candidates only wanted to be good wives and mothers, involved searching for a woman who represented American femininity by following given rules set by organizers. Candidates in the 40’s and 50’s portrayed charm as an obligation and were taught to hide assertiveness behind a playful smile. Layers of respectability were added over the years and the winner had the responsibility of opening shopping malls, give a speech at rotary luncheons, entertain soldiers overseas and appear on behalf of charities and other civic good works during her reign. The Miss America beauty pageant contract of 1948 is notable considering the qualities that the winner possessed at this point in time when all women only wanted was to be good wives and mothers. Miss Beatrice, illustrated that a woman could have a mind above that of mere beauty as she demonstrated her musical talent, wanted to pursue an education in music, would not consider marriage until she clicked 25 years of age and finally would quit smoking and drinking and continue to dislike men to drunk too much. The inherent message during the beauty contest is that the competition is beyond mere beauty. Women too have talents and there are opportunities to nurture them (Nadel, 117-122). In order to effectively compete, a lady had to be a Miss implying that she dedicated adequate time to her career and marriage would follow after.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn, Monroe’s biography continues to stand out presently as a woman who despite a difficult childhood became the globe’s biggest and most enduring sex symbols. She was first discovered by a photographer, began her career as a model and later ventured into acting. She divorced her first husband in order to concentrate on her acting career that became popular during the 1950’s. Her performance of the song “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” is very captivating considering the costumes and the desire of several men to an attractive woman (Nadel, 119). Monroe was a beautiful woman indeed, and when she dyed hair blonde, the inherent message was that women went to extremes to look even more beautiful. Her movies and performance of the mentioned song illustrated a woman who went for what she desired and was not intimidated by the male gender.
Barbie
The first Barbie commercial represented the American dream of success, fame and richness through her glamorous attires and professional images. The iconic image played a great role in shaping the dreams and lives of many American girls. The message was delivered through lyrics and many young girls wanted to grow up to be beautiful and fashionable just like “Barbie.” The inherent message of the commercial was that beautiful women have specifics of the breast, waist and hips and was always on heels and fashionable clothes. She had different professional careers and was confident and assertive. The young girl grew up knowing what she wanted in life and worked towards achieving the same (Nadel, 117).
The popular culture in the 1950’s depicted the ideal woman as desirable for her asexuality and marital potential or her immature yet blatant sexuality. The feminine representations during the 1950’s conservative times remained popular by maintaining aspects that were considered as the norm by the society (Halliwell, 42). Barbie doll is conventionally attractive and was a realistic depiction of what a woman’s body should look like in that day and age. Miss America remained popular by pulling a balancing act of providing women with real opportunity while objectifying them; trading on female sexuality while advocating for feminine modesty; encouraging female professionalism while promoting traditional roles. Marilyn Monroe on the other hand became popular as a sex symbol and remained so in her acting roles as it was how the masses perceived her. In the 1950’s, men placed limitations upon women and even though Monroe considered her roles to be less rewarding, any shift from what was already established could have had a detrimental effect to the financial and societal aspects.
The feminine representations uphold the messages that dominate the 1950’s period by illustrating identified themes in a complex manner. Even Doris Day does not portray sexual independence but remains as modest as the married women of the period. Barbie’s image is fed to the youth of the perfection of the body desired in the society while Monroe finds it difficult to detach from the confines of an image she successfully built but would desire become more serious in the long run. It seems that every embodiment of a woman is imposed upon then, made known to them or given to them in one way or another. Any diversion from what is established is not desired and this permanence seems impossible to overcome (Hutter and Gillian, 40). On the aspect of race and class, the feminine representations only considered the white who were superior in the society. Only the middle and upper class could participate in a beauty pageant and could afford a Barbie doll. The revolutionary period of 1950’s did not capture diversity. Illustrations of minority families or families in certain social classes were not included in the visual framework of advertising and entertainment. Scholars dispute that this may possibly be credited to the fact that these options were not culturally acceptable.
Conclusion
It is clear that the ever transforming female roles and norms in the society in the 1950’s were extremely unfair. Sexuality was a concept that was looked down upon following the existing powerful cultural norms. It is important to acknowledge the feminine representations that stood against the repressions and lived their lives as they desired. They demonstrated revolutionary female sexuality even though the messages fed to the masses were arguably problematic in nature. Presently, even though the female gender talks of being liberated, certain aspects that existed in the 1950’s still exist (Dika, 137).
Work cited
Barry, Kathleen. Female Sexual Slavery. New York: New York University Press, 1984. Print.
Brooke, Stephen. Sexual Politics: Sexuality, Family Planning, and the British Left from the 1880s to the Present Day. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print.
Dika, Vera. Recycled Culture in Contemporary Art and Film: The Uses of Nostalgia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Internet resource.
Halliwell, Martin. American Culture in the 1950s. Edinburgh: Edinburgh Univ. Press, 2007. Print.
Hutter, Bridget, and Gillian Williams. Controlling Women: The Normal and the Deviant. London u.a: Croom Helm, 1984. Print.
Nadel, Alan. Containment Culture: American Narratives, Postmodernism, and the Atomic Age. Durham, N.C: Duke Univ. Press, 1995. Print.
