Representation of women in horror films

Representation Of Women In Horror Films 

Paris Hilton, a classic example of a promiscuous
female who is killed in a horror film, House Of Wax  

Stereotypically, female characters are seen as the weaker sex in horror films, playing the role as the damsel in distress, usually being rescued by a more masculine  dominant male character or they are killed off during the film. Females in horror films are often very attractive and between the ages of 18-30. Also, those who are killed are often females who enjoy partying and live a fun loving lifestyle, females however who are more reserved and intelligent tend to survive, and become "The final girl" in the film. There is a feeling that the girls who are killed in horror films are being punished for the lifestyle they have chosen and their hypersexual tendencies are frowned upon by the killers in the films. This was suggested by the theorist Laura Mulvey. The ideology of female horror characters has changed greatly as the horror genre has progressed, from the view that females were greatly sexually objectified in order to increase the male audience, playing no meaningful part in the film being essentially powerless. To the ideology of today when females are seen as equal characters in horror films and often take on male roles. 

An example of a promiscuous female character being killed in a horror film would be Sarah Geller in Scream 2, when she is thrown off a balcony. As she is a very attractive female, this particular example follows Laura Mulvey's theory of the sexual female being killed off in horror films due to their sexual lifestyle. Here is a link to the part of Scream 2 when Sarah Geller is killed, the footage shows how she is very naive and quite isolated, this is a typical technique horror producers use when building suspense before a character is killed in a horror film.  http://youtu.be/3uFjIAIkrqQ

Laura Mulvey also developed the Male Gaze theory, which is based around the ideology that the entire story throughout the film is being viewed through the eyes of a hetrosexual male. You will notice that in many horror films, mainly those made from 1970-1990, that females are very much used to promote a film and to increase  male viewings. The way the females are shown, for example with long shots, flattering the females and making them look attractive would make males want to watch the films, essentially making the horror producers more money.

On the other hand however, there is also the "Final girl theory", this was developed by the theorist Carol Clover in 1996, which suggested the opposite of the Male Gaze theory where a female figure was actually quite masculine and took on the stereotypical male role in films. An example of this would be Amanda Young (Mandy) from Saw 2, where she appears to be another victim in the film, however towards the end it is revealed that she is actually very powerful and is working for Jigsaw. She survives in the film and influences the story line hugely. She has great intelligence and helps the young man to survive the trap which the Jigsaw has set up for the characters in the film As you can see, this is a complete opposite of the Male Gaze theory where the attractive female is killed early in the film. 

The Final Girl theory is very important as it is linked with many other female characters in horror films, such as Sally Hardesty in the film Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Where a similar situation arises and the attractive female character survives and actually escapes the antagonist in the film, by jumping out of windows, hitching lifts and running for her life, showing she is a very strong female character, complying with the typical Final Girl theory. 

The Final Girl theory supports the ideology that females should be very conservative, white, middle-class, not indulging in the likes of drink and drugs and generally the perfect female character. It says that if you are all of those things, you will not be punished as you have not sinned, therefore you will survive in the film, becoming the Final Girl. The final girl is an empowered character in the horror films. In comparison to female characters who featured in horror films before the 80's, where they were literally powerless and objects to draw in a male audience, only to be killed later in the film, this was the ideology of female characters in horror films during this time period..

Interestingly, the Final Girl theory is important as it links with the development women's rights where before, women were seen as a very unimportant in society and they we're seen as submissive characters, who we're to stay at home. However after the women's rights acts which were introduced in 1976 were introduced, they were seen as very equal members of society. This reflects the Final Girl theory where women are seen as equal, if not more powerful than  men. Carol Clover developed her theory in 1996, when it was becoming clear that the female characters in horror films were actually were becoming more influential in films, in comparison to those made when Laura Mulvey devised her Male Gaze theory. This shows the development of the female character in horror films and the way they are now much more important have have more influence over other characters and the final story line.  The development of the Final Girl theory is a direct reflection of the increase of women's rights which is very important when studying females in horror films. 

Another example of a horror film which shows complete female dominance is Alien (1979). Sigourney Weaver plays a female character Ellen Ripley. After receiving a warning message from the ships computer, the crew land on an unknown planet, and discover a new species. The Aliens, and the crew do not know the danger they have got themselves into. As voted as one of the most heroic female characters in horror films of all time, Ellen Ripley is a classic example of an opposing stereotypical gender role in film, becoming an icon for female characters. After every other member of the ships crew is killed by the alien on board, Ripley is the only surviving character, the final girl. After trying to kill the Alien by blowing up the ship after it had already killed every other member of the crew, she survives and discovers the alien on the shuttle. She later expels the Alien into space before setting the co-ordinates for the return to earth.  Clearly, by the way Ripley takes control of the situation, disposes of the antagonist in the film she is a very strong female character, taking on a definite male gender role, complying entirely with Carol Clover's Final Girl theory. 

Overall, the way in which the way women are represented in horror films has changed rapidly and massively since women were shown as helpless and very submissive. Although there are still films made in which females are the less influential characters, its is now far more common that they are actually quite powerful and have a larger part to play than just to attract a male audience by the way they are attractive and seductive. Female roles in horror films have parallelled the development of women's roles in society, and it now seems as though film producers are being much more respectful of women in films. Normally there will always be one female character who has a large impact on the story line of the, which is a complete opposite of films made when females were entirely submissive. Although females will naturally be used to draw in a male audience, raising viewing figures and therefore revenue, they do now play a role in the film too. Which I personally think is an improvement in the attitudes of film producers. 


Kieran Browne