Blog #3 – Gender &/or Family

Blog #3 – Gender &/or Family

Stanley Kubrick’s horror film released in 1980, The Shining, is a film that clearly shows gender roles and family relations. The main characters are members of nuclear family who are Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson), Wendy Torrance (Shelley Duvall) and Danny Torrance (Danny Lloyd). Jack Torrance is a father of the family and his job is a writer. He is also a recovering alcoholic who establishes dominance over the other family members. His character represents patriarchy which is a system in which men have all or most of the power and importance in a society or a group. His character is seen when he strikes with an ax to break the bathroom door and inserts his head in the opening and growls “Here’s Johnny!” Even though it is an extreme example, the audiences can notice male dominance over the family when Wendy and Danny try to escape from Jack.

As Robin Wood wrote in “American Nightmare,” in a male-dominated culture, power, money, law, and social institutions are controlled by past, present, and future patriarchs as Jack has the most power in the family. Then, the dominant images of women are entirely male created and male controlled. In the film, Wendy lives a life for dedication and sacrifice for her family, especially for her husband, Jack Torrance. She makes breakfast for Jack when he is sleeping in the morning and she tries to cheer him up while he is typing. However, Jack is cold towards him and he tells her not to hinder his work.

Also, as Wood wrote that children were the most oppressed section of the population, Danny is the most oppressed character. He has supernatural ability which is also called as “shining” ability that he can see things from the past and the future. However, he cannot tell other people about his ability except Dick Halloran (Scatman Crothers) who has same abilities. So, he suffers in silence and he is tormented by the supernatural ability. He has a stronger emotional band with his mother, Wendy, than with his father, Jack and his fear of father is seen when he is listening to his father’s words in the Room 237. His eyes are full of fear while listening and he also trembles with fear when Jack tries to kill him and his mother with an axe.

Even though Wendy and Danny escape from the hotel and Jack suffers from frostbite, the events occurred at the Overlook Hotel within the family tell much about gender roles and family relations. By watching The Shining, I found out the male dominance over women and patriarchy among the family from Jack Torrance’s character.

Works Cited

Wood, Robin and. “The American Nightmare: Horror in the 1970s.”

Horror: The Film Reader.

Ed. Mark Jancovich. Routledge, 2001. 25-32.