The Hattie McDaniel work Free Essay Example

In the past decade, few cable television shows have enjoyed as much commercial and critical success as “The Walking Dead”. Based on the comic book series of the same name by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard, “The Walking Dead” consistently draws high Nielsen ratings (generating on average between 7-8 million viewers per episode); its season two finale was “the most-watched basic cable drama telecast in history”[1]. The series also has enjoyed critical success [2, 3], receiving a Writers Guild Of America and a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Television Series Drama [4,5].

But the series is not without its critics.

In particular, “The Walking Dead” has drawn considerable criticism for its negative treatment and portrayal of women. These critics contend that even though “The Walking Dead” includes a variety of female characters (which is not common for a science fiction/drama series), the series tends to portray these women characters in negative, stereotypical ways. Some of its harshest critics argue that the series’ treatment of women has significantly set back the female empowerment movement; others go further and conclude that the “The Walking Dead” is blatantly misogynistic, “robbing women of (their) individuality, humanity and dignity.

”[6] In this paper, I will examine how the writers of “The Walking Dead” have elected to portray its four female lead characters — Lori, Andrea, Maggie, and Carol. I will discuss specific scenes involving these four female characters. I will show that the critics of “The Walking Dead” are correct. The writers (so far, at least) have elected to depict these four female characters in historically negative fashion.

Apparently, the writers of “The Walking Dead” seem to believe women are: (1) hysterical by nature; (2) emotionally immature; and (3) burden with a complete inability to cope with grief.

The Stereotypical Hysterical, Irrational Female Gary Nunn, in his article “The Feminisation of Madness is Crazy” he explores the origin of the close relationship between females and hysteria and asserts that “(t)hese etymologies have cemented a polarisation of the female and male mental states: men being historically associated with rationality, straightforwardness and logic; women with unpredictable emotions, outbursts and madness. ”[4] The writers of “The Walking Dead” seem to embody this idea, and believe that women are irrational and hysterical.

No character better demonstrates this view than Lori Grimes, the wife of the series’ main character and protagonist, Rick Grimes, and the mother to the main child in the series, Carl Grimes. Indeed, the series begins with a negative depiction of Lori. Rick Grimes and his partner, Shane Walsh, are discussing the differences between men and women. Rick quickly explains that Lori is impossible to get along with: Rick: Everything I say makes her impatient, like she doesn’t want to hear it anymore. It’s like she’s pissed at me all the time and I don’t know why. The last thing she said this morning was, ‘I wonder if you even care about us anymore’.

She said that in front of our kid! Imagine going to school with that in your head. The difference between men and women is that I would never say something that cruel to her, especially in front of Carl. This depiction of Lori provides the first glimpse of how the writers view women. Lori is the stereotypical nagging wife. She doesn’t appreciate the sacrifices made by her caring, hard-working, noble husband. Even worse, she is willing to emotionally torture her son to punish her husband, which makes her both irrational and hysterical (perhaps even borderline crazy).

To illustrate this stereotypical negative perception of women, the writers of “The Walking Dead” continually contrast the women’s weaknesses against a man’s strengths. Going back to the hysterical Lori, the writers reinforce her weakness by comparing her behavior to Rick’s calm, strong behavior. For example, at the conclusion of the first episode of Season 2, Carl (Lori and Rick’s son) is accidentally shot by a hunter. Fortunately, he makes it into the care of an inexperienced, yet well-meaning veterinarian, Hershel Greene. Upon hearing the news of her son’s critical injury, Lori panics (as any parent would).

However, the writers don’t stop there. They send Lori into a hysterical rage. She tells Rick that it would be better for Carl to die from his injuries than survive in a world dominated by zombies. These writers then show Rick rejecting Lori’s comment and then questioning whether Lori is sane. In many ways, Rick’s reaction to Lori’s comment is reminiscent of Rick and Lori’s marital struggles before the zombie apocalypse — Lori is the irrational and hysterical parent who is quick to harm her children, whereas Rick is the stable, strong parent who truly knows what is best for his son.

The writers also make sure to show the viewers that Lori’s irrationality isn’t confined to her family interactions. Indeed, Lori is a very unpleasant character in general. She doesn’t hesitate to irrationally lash out at other characters (often other females) on a consistent basis. When Lori becomes pregnant, she worries that Shane may be the father. The writers have Lori consult with Rick, revealing her fears that Shane is mentally unstable. She even suggests that Rick should kill Shane.

When Rick kills Shane (out of self-defense and not following Lori’s suggested murderous plot), Lori begins hysterically screaming at Rick for killing Shane — even though Rick did so out of self-defense and just a few hours after Lori suggested that he kill Shane. The writers clearly want the viewers to see Lori as irrational, hysterical, and perhaps insane. Overall, Lori’s characterization in “The Walking Dead” is downright offensive. Indeed, the writers seem determined to portray Lori as essentially a man’s worst nightmare: she is irrational, hysterical, and selfish, with a willingness to destroy all those close to her, including her child.

Lori is, without question, the stereotypical hysterical and irrational female. The Stereotypical Immature, Selfish Woman Another important theme for the writers of “The Walking Dead” is that women are helplessly immature and selfish, especially in their interactions with other women. This is best illustrated by examining how the writers opted to depict Andrea and Maggie. The writers first introduce the viewers to Andrea in Season 1. Andrea is a former civil rights lawyer who, along with her younger sister, Amy, is one of the initial survivors. Amy is roughly 12 years younger than Andrea.

Although they are sisters, Andrea tends to treat Amy in almost a maternal way. Initially, the writers give Andrea significant strength. She pulls a gun on Rick after he compromises the safety of the group, she helps the group escape a heard of zombies in Atlanta, she is the first one to question the distribution of labor within the camp, and she is the only woman who stands up to Ed, Carol’s abusive husband: Andrea: I’m really beginning to question the division of labor around here. Can someone explain to me how the women ended up doing all the Hattie McDaniel work?

After this promising start, the writers begin encumbering Andrea with more negative stereotypes. It doesn’t take long for the writers of “The Walking Dead” to turn Andrea into the stereotypical irrational, selfish female, especially during emotional conflict. For example, the first major conflict for Andrea occurs towards the end of Season 1 when a rogue group of zombies attacks the group’s home base, killing Amy. Faced with the loss of her sister, the writers portray Andrea as listless and unresponsive. They then have her behave belligerently and rudely.