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Sexual Imbalance in Society as Depicted by Zhang Yimou

Introduction

            Zhang Yimou is considered a legend in the Chinese film production industry. As a producer, he is considered one of the renowned Fifth Generation producers in China, since he was able to study film and produced quality Chinese films that were watched within and beyond China (Tikkanen, 2014). One of the greatest strengths of Zhang Yimou, as noted through his films, is his ability to use colors to emphasis specific themes in his productions at a time when only few producers understood how the colors could be used (Wei & Ke, 2009). Nonetheless, the ability to capture specific societal issues like male domination and female subjectivism cannot be ignored. In his films like Ju Dou (1990), Raise the Red Lantern (1991) and Hero (2003), the entire storylines illustrate strong gender imbalances that even seem to appeal to the male audience as the active gender. Laura Mulvey (1975) asserted that “in a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female”. This paper supports this assertion by noting that although Zhang Yimou has always aimed at capturing the different aspects of society as they are, these depictions through his films also appeal mainly to the male while confirming women as the passive or subjects in the society.

Laura Mulvey Assertions about Sexual Imbalance in Filming

            Mulvey (1975) spent most of her works in the analysis of ideologies developed through different films (Thornham, 2015). According to one of her renowned works titled Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema (1974), it is clear that Mulvey (1975) uses the Freudian psychoanalytic theory to explain how different films can be able to create and support sexual imbalances in society (Draper, 2010, Thornham, 2015). For instance, Mulvey (1975) feels that by continuously using women in limited roles like sexual gratification whenever the male protagonists desire, the female role in the film is only reduced to that of an “object”, to appeal to the dominant male. Such depictions have existed in the before and persist even in the 21^st century. It is however unfortunate that although these depictions were limited to the film storylines, they even increased viewership of the films by the men. According to Mulvey (1975), male viewership was specifically high since the films also promoted male spectatorship. By objectifying the women as merely objects “to be looked at”, the male only associate with the protagonist counterparts in the films and thus consider themselves as “the bearers of the look” leading to the “controlling male gaze” as they felt more powerful as audience (Thornham, 2015). Based on these explanations, the male gender has continued to view itself as the most dominant, controlling and powerful and thus their pleasure in viewing is more active while that of the female has remained passive.

Male Dominance in Yimou’s Ju Dou (1990)

            Zhang Yimou produced the film Ju Dou in 1990 and tells the story of an impotent yet violent man called Yang Jinshan, who marries a younger wife called Ju Dou in an attempt to get a male child. Ju Dou becomes the third wife of Jinshan and although she ends up falling in love with Jinshan’s nephew (Tianqing); she, and other women in the film remain illustrative figures of male dominance appealing to the male viewers or spectators. It is arguable that Zhan Yimou may have had no intention of promoting male dominance in the society, but it is notable that even his choice of Ju Dou as a protagonist may have influenced male viewership for the film. Based on the storyline, Jinshan is impotent and does not consider himself as the problem. He instead believes that that her wives are the ones with the problem and therefore beats each of her wives at the different levels of their relationships. This gets worse when he becomes violent to the extent that he kills his wives just because they fail to meet his expectations and desires. To this point, the male gender is made superior and creates a perception to the viewer that this gender has goals, expectations and desires that have to be fulfilled, as they prefer. It seems to depict the idea that women are helpless and have to accept and meet the wishes of the men irrespective of these men’s weaknesses. To the man, the woman is an object and as a female viewer, the perception of submission is created. To this point, the film will remain appealing to the male audience since it enhances their ego.

            The female audience would find solace in the ability of Ju Dou to do the unexpected by choosing to fall in love with Tianqing regardless of the risk. This decision can be considered as bold and promoting feminism as it emphasizes that the woman can still make her choice and defend it towards a better future. However, Ju Dou was already living with Jinshan despite knowing that she was the third wife and may still suffer the same fate as the earlier wives. Perhaps after knowing the risk she was always under right from the start, she would have made a decision to refuse getting married to Jinshan regardless of the consequences. This would be a bolder decision that would illustrate that women are not objects but real companions that have a right to make decisions by themselves. These illustrations clearly denote two forms of spectatorship as described by Mulvey (1975): voyeuristic and fetishistic spectatorship. Voyeuristic spectatorship is where the viewer, who represents the male viewer in this case, objectifies the female due to the perception that the male ego is more superior (Thornham, 2015). Jinshan and Tianqing are the male characters in the film and create a perception that the male sex is more superior and can get whatever they desire regardless of what the female sex wants. To the male spectator these characters support the male egos. Fetishistic spectatorship involves transforming the character, in most cases the female, into a fetish so that it is more appealing and less dangerous (Thornham, 2015). In this case, Tianqing offers Dou more solace, companionship and love and this makes her attracted to Tianqing that they fall in love and thus Tianqing can influence him to be whatever he prefers. To the male viewer, this makes the woman an object that can be manipulated to impress the “bearer of the look”, the man. 

Women as Objects in Raise the Red Lantern (1991)

            Raise the Red Lantern is a 1991 film by Yimou that has earned numerous rewards globally for the effective use of color to promote different themes. Nonetheless, there are distinctive views regarding the roles of the male and female genders in the film that illustrate the disparity between sexes and sexual behaviors in society leading to male preference for the film as spectators. In this film, the protagonist, Songlian accepts a proposal to be married off to the wealthy Chen family since her step mother cannot fend for her and her siblings. Although this seems like a better proposal to ensure a better life for Songlian, she becomes the fourth wife in the Chen family and suffers the same fate as the earlier wives: she ages and the husband seeks another younger wife. Although she did all she could to remain more valuable, she was unable to keep up and even suffered psychotic conditions, and was left to suffer alone. This film can best be described as masculine in nature as the male character is typically portrayed as the most dominant sex. The master in this film is not clearly seen in most of the scenes but has a set of traditions that clearly allow him to exercise dominance in the family. To begin with, the master was allowed to marry as many wives as he preferred and even engaged them in sexual relations as he preferred. In order to win his attention, the women had to struggle to impress him either by dressing better than the rest or doing favors for him. To the wives, the master’s attention and favors from the maids came at a price while he did not have to struggle to have them for sexual relations or companionship.

            Women in this film were mainly objects that were to be used as the master preferred. Notably, when the new concubines arrived, they would be dressed as supported by several maids to maintain an appealing look. The environment within their rooms would effectively be transformed to create the appeal and even satisfy the master’s needs for affections. The color choice for the lanterns was red and since the master had no objections to this, it is arguable that he preferred this color: after all, he was in charge of the women and everything else within the house.  To the spectator, voyeuristic and fetishistic ideals are still displayed in this film. To the male spectator, the master is indeed more superior and thus appealing to the male as he exudes dominance over all her subjects (the wives and the maids). The film is in fact more appealing to the male as women are made objects that can be made into fetish. In this case, the male spectator becomes more active as their ego is highly raised and made to feel more superior. The film even goes ahead to create a perception that without the male partner, the wife or woman may not survive. This is notable when Songlian develops a mental problem at the end of the film due to the inability to impress the master and his decision to find another concubine. To the female spectator, this is an illustration that they have an obligation to dress and look impressive for their “master”, their men. When the time comes for them to find better partners, these women also have an obligation to accept this reality. This makes the film more appealing to the male seeking to protect their egos.

The Supporting Role of Women in Hero

            The role of women, according to the ancient Chinese society has been to be submissive and supportive of the men in their lives. This is evident especially as Zhang Yimou tries to capture these roles in his award winning films listed in the paper. Another film by the producer that clearly illustrates the male spectator as active and female spectator as passive. Hero produced in 2003. Although the film uses both male and female protagonists, it is clear that love for the woman is a clear distraction for the male and even comes with costly consequences. Notably, Moon and Snow are the only main female protagonists who are used as bait by Nameless and Sword towards advancing their own individual desires. In essence, the roles of the two women in the film, although partly depicted as heroic, depends on the ability of their men to effectively choose and protect their interests. In this regard, the film appeals to the men and even makes them the active spectators as their roles are made more superior while the women are only made to seem like supporting roles or baits for the main protagonists: Nameless and Sword.

Conclusion

            Laura Mulvey (1975) asserted that “in a world ordered by sexual imbalance, pleasure in looking has been split between active/male and passive/female”. This is clearly evident in the three classical films by Zhang Yimou: Hero (2003), Ju Dou (1990) and Raise the Red Lantern (1991). In each of these films, the protagonists support the argument that the male gender is more superior and women are mainly objects to support the men and their agenda in life. This is therefore appealing to the male spectators as it raises their ego, while making women passive as they are meant to view themselves as objects.