Cat people (1942) and the portrayal of women
repression, queerness and the cultural other
As I’m doing my research paper in college about women in horror I thought this was the perfect chance to be able to write some stuff here. So for the next couple of days you can expect to see some more posts in about the horror genre and films that I adore. So I thought i would start with the earliest film I have chosen to study
How women were treated in America during this period of time?
This film is made during the second world war (1939 - 1945) and with it being released in 1942 and more then likely filmed in 1941 it gives us an easy inside look as to how women were treated during this period. During this time the “we can do it” movement was at a high with more men being sent off to battles and women being forced to work more and more while caring for their family. During this time women experienced sexual harassment and violence in work, public and in their own home. Some people thought that it was inappropriate for women to work outside the home while others praised women’s patriotism. So there were very mix feelings about women during this time
The cultural other
The cultural other in this film is Irena with her being a Serbian immigrant. Its not common for the protagonist to be the other however in the context of this film it makes sense that she is. The fact that she is an immigrant, speaks with an accent and is not meant to be with Oliver are all things that make her a cultural other.
the representation of women in this film
This film is supposed to represent to women’s repressed desires with Irena turning into a cat when she feels these emotions. Some notable times that she turns into the “monster” or panther is when shes with her husband at certain times and when they get intimate in anyway. Since the beginning of this film we see this constant tension between sexual desires and the fear of transformation. When she visits a psychiatric, Dr Judd, she reveals her fear of sexual intimacy. This isn’t due to superstition but a kind of psychological anxiety which reflected the gender tension at the time. Irena’s fear of becoming a panther when intimate mirrors the societal issue of wanting to control women’s sexuality. However Irena doesn’t so much have a fear of turning into a panther but more so the consequences when turning into one, this is to show how female sexuality is seen as dangerous and destructive. While this version of cat people is more about the repression and fear of women’s sexuality the 1984 follows the same themes but expands on them and creates new ones.
This films relationship to queer women
While there is no actual queer romance in this film there is a lot of hints that may or may not be on purpose however the originality of these points this film has been named a classic in the community. The main reason why is the fact that Irena is not happy with Oliver no matter how desperate she want to. We can see this by looking at the subtext of the film. She admits she wants to be Mrs Reed but cant due to the “evil” inside of her. This evil is the homosexual tendencies that stop her from kissing and getting intimate with Oliver if she does those things she will turn into a beast as I stated previously. During a scene in the film where a the couple and friends are at a Serbian restaurant, two men spot a woman, although the beauty of this woman causes some discomfort as someone states she looks like a cat. The woman is fixated on Irena and she ends up walking up to her and calls her “my sister”. This shows that there is some kind of history between the two. Putting the film into context this particular scene would be relatable for queer women during this time where they weren’t allowed to admit there love to each other.