Femme Fatale
TheThe
Femme
Fatale
Representations
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Representations
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Paul Rudd BSSC 2001/2003
A Representation of Power
The Femme Fatale is an enduring
representation of a powerful woman as seen
by Western society. This representation is so
pervasive that it is now a commonly occurring
stereotype that can be found in many different
media, literary and art texts. She is always a
powerful woman, able to manipulate the
people around her to get her own way. She is
generally dominating and authoritative. She is
never submissive.
She is often depicted
dressed in animal skins –
particularly those of
predators, such as tigers
and leopards. This is
The Femme
Fatale
because
she is portrayed
as a predator herself – a
cat that often toys with her
prey. She will stop at
Representations
nothing to get her own
way
Of – even murder. In this
way, the femme fatale
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represents society’s
traditional fear of powerful
women…
Consider the following clues.
She is wearing animal skins, and
particularly the furs of predatory
cats (leopards).
The She
Femme
Fatale
is assertive
and confident in
her posture and facial
expression.
She is wearing fishnet stockings
Representations
– lingerie is a common part of
Of
her costuming.
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She is looking directly at the
camera.
Do you think this
image is of a femme
fatale? Why/why not?
The Femme Fatale
Representations
Of
Eve
Most people would probably
say ‘No’. Consider the
following visual clues.
The
She is sitting on
the floor.
She has an expression of
Femme
Fatale
confusion
or worry that is
more submissive than
assertive.
She is wearing clothing made
Representations
from a soft, pastel material.
Of
Her pose is reminiscent of a
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young girl: defensive and
insecure.
The Undoing Of The Man…
The femme fatale is often portrayed as the cause
of a man’s downfall, as well as her own. She is
often shown seducing a man and using her
The
‘feminine guile’
to Femme
hold him inFatale
bondage to her.
But this was historically seen as being unnatural.
Throughout history, people believed that women
were meant to be subordinate to men. If a woman
was too powerful,Representations
then she inevitably caused
trouble. By seeking to dominate,
she defied her
Of
own nature and inevitably was destroyed.
Evehimself to be
Similarly, if a man allowed
dominated by her, he was bound to end up in
strife; usually with the law…
With a haughty pose and a defiant
air, this model recreates the
stereotyped femme fatale of the
fifties – a period of history when this
stereotype
was particularly
The
Femme
Fatale common.
Often a femme fatale is dressed in
flame- red, or red and black clothes.
Bright red lipstick and nails are also
Representations
common
visual clues. She is also
often represented
as a spider – the
Of
so-called black
widow.
Her
web
is
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one of deceit and intrigue…
A femme fatale
often makes an
appearance in
advertising –
particularly for
The Femme products
Fatale that are
specifically
designed to make a
woman more
Representations
appealing or
Of desirable! Some
perfume and
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rely heavily upon
this representation.
Supporting Her Man…
Most literature and media texts have, historically,
portrayed a male as the central character of their
narrative. This male-centric view has dominated
literature andThe
art for
millennia.Fatale
Female characters
Femme
were (and often still are) defined as being either
good (in that they served the interests of the
hero) or bad (in that they thwarted the interests
of the hero). The maternal
figure, the supportive
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heroine, the tragic maiden who needs to be
Of
rescued are all historically portrayed as good
women. The temptress,Eve
the shrew and the witch
have nearly always been viewed as being bad.
These are stereotypes.
Has there been a more
famous exponent of
the femme fatale
representation? How
The Femme
Fatale
many
other famous
actors (or characters)
can you think of that
have played the part
Representations
of the femme fatale?
OfMake a list and
compare it with your
Eve
group or class!
Again we can see the
femme fatale being
used in advertising –
this time to sell beer.
name of the
The FemmeThe
Fatale
product, ‘Tiger’ is
reason enough to trot
out this enduring
stereotype. The
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caption in the box at
Of the bottom says it
Eve all… ‘Discover the
Tiger’.
The Femme Fatale
Representations
Of
Eve
She is
always the
centre of
attention;
Here is a
classic
example of
the femme
fatale –
again,
found in a
piece of
advertising.
Eve As The First Femme
Fatale…
Critics often argue that the representation of
the femmeThe
fataleFemme
derives from
the Biblical
Fatale
narrative of Adam and Eve. Eve tempted Adam
to ‘eat the apple’ which led to them being
expelled from the Garden of Eden. Do you
think this argument
is valid? If so, what do you
Representations
think this reveals about society’s attitudes
towards women whenOf
the Bible was written?
Have many things changed
Eve in our own
society?
Lately there has been a
strong movement to attack
the social forces that
perceive powerful women
as being ‘bad’. Here, Jerry
Hall is depicted as a femme
fatale, with the tiger skin
coat and all. And yet, she
confronts the stereotype by
being pictured
breastfeeding her son. Is
this still an image of a
femme fatale? What do you
think?
Homework Exercise: Find an image of a
femme fatale in either a magazine or in a
newspaper. Paste it into your workbook and
The
Femme
Fatale
write a 100
– 150
word report
on why you
think that this image is of a femme fatale.
Make sure you write down the name of the
publication from
which you cut out the
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picture, the date it was printed, and the page
Of
number.
Due next class.
Eve