Entertainment or Oppression: Male and Female Representation in Films About Domestic AbuseEntertainment or Oppression: Male and Female Representation in Films About Domestic Abuse

Author:

• Tula Marie Batanchiev (Boston College)

Abstract:

Domestic abuse affects at least one million women in America each year, according to a 1995 study conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice (as cited in Byers, Shue & Marshall, 2004, p. 43). For this reason, it is necessary to uncover the gender stereotypes in films depicting domestic abuse that often are swept under the rug. Using a hegemonic and fantasy criticism, these stereotypes were uncovered. In the analyzed artifacts - Enough and Sleeping with the Enemy - it was determined that both films, although said to give power to women, ultimately depict the female as weaker and faulty and the male as dominant.