Today we will be discussing representation within the media we consume and how the creators of this media chose to represent people of different genders, races, sexualities and much more.
To talk about these ideas, I will be using my favorite movie of all time, The Sound of Music, to perpetuate discussion.
If we move through the film chronologically, towards the very beginning there is a pretty instantaneous representation of Catholicism, more specifically that of nuns. Let's take the Reverend Mother for example. Her image is a very classic image of a virtuous, older nun. In her composition, she wears a very traditional habit and wears and ornate cross around her neck. She says classic lines of a nun like "it is the will of God" or "God will show you the way". Even her song, Climb Every Mountain, perpetuates all of her holiness and belief in a better future through god. Just listen to this part of the song:
The context for this song is that our protagonist, Maria, has just given up on being the nanny of seven children because she has been developing romantic feeling for their father as a postulant. Here, the Reverend Mother is tying to encourage Maria to face her challenges and trust that she will be able to get over them. But, wait... Why would the Reverend Mother encourage Maria to face her challenges and go to be with the children's father, Captain Von Trapp? Well, this is where the Reverend Mother sort of deviates from her stereotype. Rather than encouraging or making Maria keep her loyalties to God as a nun, she steps out of her role as the Reverend Mother and simply speaks to Maria as a person rather than a postulant.
If we look at how the abbey or simply the nuns as a religious group are represented, they are excoticised. There is a rather long sequence at the beginning of the films where there are many shots just going through the abbey, showing the nuns singing in chapel and praying (I really tried to find a clip but I couldn't so you're just going to have to trust me). True, this may be a representation of what does go on in an abbey, but the purpose of it within the film is to show the regimented lifestyle of living in an abbey to contrast how Maria lives. This contrasting element does sensationalize the lives of nuns, making it apear vastly different than that of other people.
Later on in the film, there is the introduction of the Nazi's into the plot (which a lot of people don't about and it makes me sad). The Nazi's are represented in their typical fashion, but I would like to delve into the specific character of Rolfe.
When we are introduced to Rolfe, he seems like a kind boy who is the classic boy in love with a girl who he shouldn't be. He even gets a really sweet song with Liesel, Sixteen Going on Seventeen.
Okay, maybe the song isn't that sweet, but the point gets across. Even in this song, there is sort of his devious nature coming out saying how he will need to guide Leisel because she is so much more naïve and young than he.
As the film progresses, we see more and more of Rolfe's true loyalties, that being to the Nazi party. The way he is represented through his construction, he is seen wearing more Nazi iconography, such a the swastika. His switch up, though not completely unexpected, was sort of out of left field to Leisel. Take a look at this scene:
This depicts the Nazi group in a more historical manner. The role of the Nazi's in this movie is not really to make a statement about any of the other characters, but to rather provide an accurate representation of how they were impacting their neighboring countries, like Austria at the start of WWII.
As is generally know, the Nazi's are one of, if not the most, notorious group of fascists out there, and are a pretty clear cut instance of othering. They are fundamentally the antagonists in this film. At every turn they are working against the Von Trapp family, portraying them (accurately) as the complete opposite of the normal agenda.
I must say, The Sound of Music is my favorite movie of all time. Yes, I know it is extremely long, but I would watch any length of movie for Julie Andrews.
And now for the movie quote of the week...
"Do you think God stays in heaven because he too lives in fear of what he has created?" - Dr. Romero, Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams
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