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Hawksian woman

January 07, 2023

In film theory, the "Hawksian woman" is a character archetype of the tough-talking woman, popularized in film by director Howard Hawks through his use of actresses such as Katharine Hepburn,[1] Ann Dvorak, Ava Gardner, Hedy Lamarr, Rosalind Russell,[2] Barbara Stanwyck,[3] and Angie Dickinson.[4] The best known Hawksian woman is probably Lauren Bacall, who iconically played the type opposite Humphrey Bogart in To Have and Have Not and The Big Sleep.[5][6] The archetype was first identified by film critic Naomi Wise in 1971.[7][8]

Lauren Bacall with Humphrey Bogart in To Have and Have Not (1944), where Bacall portrays a wanderer named after Howard Hawks's wife Slim Keith

Characteristics

The Hawksian woman is up-front in speaking her mind and keeping up with her male counterparts in witty banter, as well as taking action to get what she wants personally as well as sexually. She can be seen as the fast-talker, frank, and can beat a man in verbal sparring.[9]

Despite his preference for this kind of woman, Hawks never considered himself a feminist, and simply stated that he thought these women were lively and interesting both in films and in life. Hawks' marriage to actress Slim Keith shows this interest in life and directing in her book Slim: Memories of a Rich and Imperfect Life.[10] It is believed that Lauren Bacall was the perfect woman for Hawks. In Keith's book it states "Howard had been working on this formula woman for years in his films. Rather, it was that, until he met me, the woman of his dreams was only in his head. And until Howard got to Betty Bacall, there hadn’t been an actress to make that dream come alive on screen."[10] Hawks' first film, A Girl in Every Port, exhibited the start of the female lead's formula, in which Louise Brooks was directed as the very first Hawksian woman.[11] A later example of a Hawksian woman would be Barbara Stanwyck's character in Ball of Fire, in which she plays Sugarpuss O'Shea, alongside Gary Cooper.[3] Hawksian women would work under Hawks' direction with exclusive contracts, using an actress like Lauren Bacall just twice a year to make the public want them more.[12]

The Hawksian woman plays across general female role expectations for the setting, defining herself and her choices and leading action. This albeit on masculine terms as denoted by being known, like the male protagonists, by nickname rather than forename. This makes the Hawksian woman especially different from other female archetypes of the time, in that she is considered "one of the gang" rather than an object of sexual desire.[13] She can hold her own in a wit-driven argument, have the same profession as her male counterpart, and keep her cool under stress.[10] The equality given to the Hawksian woman by the director, however, does not detract from her feminine qualities, such as seductiveness and softness.[3] The strength of the Hawksian woman often brings out the more masculine qualities of an otherwise quiet and timid male lead.[8] Typically Hawksian women came from either the aristocracy and learned to appreciate their working man's ideals, or were hard-working professionals themselves who fought for the good of the common man.[9] Hawks discussed his preference for this kind of woman in some detail with Joseph McBride, taking up a full chapter of Hawks on Hawks (1982).

 
Angie Dickinson as "Feathers", opposite John Wayne ("Chance") in Hawks' Rio Bravo (1959).

Hawksian women would be tailored in well-cut, sporty styles that were attractive yet down-to-earth.[10] Physically Hawksian women are not all classic beauties, but rather are carried more by their spunk and charisma than their physical features.[14]

Decline

According to some film critics, the Hawksian woman slowly faded from Hollywood in the 1950s, as a new archetype for female leads came to the screen.[14] World War II had ended, and the role of women in society had changed.[14] Germaine Greer describes this archetype as the "Female Eunuch", powerless women often portrayed by actresses like Marilyn Monroe and Catherine Deneuve.[14]

Influence

John Carpenter, an avowed Hawks fan, includes Hawksian women in most of his movies, from Assault on Precinct 13 through Ghosts of Mars. Examples of Hawksian women in Carpenter's films include the characters played by Karen Allen in Starman and Adrienne Barbeau in The Fog and Escape from New York (the latter was also his real-life wife at the time).

In a May 2000 profile of actress Cameron Diaz in The New York Times, journalist Dave Kehr remarked that Diaz "would have fit marvelously well into the tradition of the Hawksian woman, with her sense of fun, camaraderie and forthright sexuality."[15]

See also

References

  1. ^ King, Susan (August 13, 2003). "Not just pretty faces". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 3, 2009.
  2. ^ Macnab, Geoffrey (January 15, 1997). "Just like a man". The Independent. Independent News & Media. Archived from the original on 2022-05-09. Retrieved September 2, 2009. And the so-called "Hawksian woman", self-reliant, insolent, capable of running with the boys (Rosalind Russell in His Girl Friday or Bacall in The Big Sleep), was not so very different from a character like Brett in Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises.
  3. ^ a b c Ryzik, Vera. "Sedductress Pick: Sugarpuss O'Shead." St-andrews.academia.edu. Accessed September 12, 2013. [1]
  4. ^ King, Susan (March 12, 2009). "Howard Hawks' later films at LACMA". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 2, 2009.
  5. ^ O'Connor, John E.; Rollins, Peter C. (2005). Hollywood's West: the American frontier in film, television, and history. University Press of Kentucky. p. 116. ISBN 0-8131-2354-2.
  6. ^ Greer, Germaine (December 30, 2006). "Siren song". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved October 3, 2009.
  7. ^ Wise, Naomi (1971). "The Hawksian Woman". Take One. 3 (3). Reprinted in Hillier, Jim; Wollen, Peter, eds. (1996). Howard Hawks, American Artist. London: British Film Institute. ISBN 0-85170-592-8. OCLC 471592430.
  8. ^ a b Schwartz, David. "Bringing Up Hawks – Andrew Sarris and Molly Haskell on the Discovery of an Auteur." Movingimagesource.us, September 25, 2008. [2].
  9. ^ a b "Fast-Talking Dames by Maria Dibattista." JSTOR 1559084.
  10. ^ a b c d Keith, Slim. "Megan McGurk, Classic Film Fashion #182: The Hawksian Woman,..." Megan McGurk. Accessed September 13, 2013. http://msmeganmcgurk.tumblr.com/post/25179751600/classic-film-fashion-182-the-hawksian-woman.
  11. ^ Hagopian, Kevin. "Film Notes – A Girl in Every Port." Albany.edu. Accessed September 12, 2013. [3].
  12. ^ "The Miami News – Google News Archive Search." Accessed September 13, 2013. [4].
  13. ^ Boxwell, David (May 2002). . Senses of Cinema. Archived from the original on July 4, 2009. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
  14. ^ a b c d Greer, Germaine. "Siren Song." The Guardian, December 29, 2006. [5].
  15. ^ Kehr, Dave (April 30, 2000). "SUMMER FILMS: STAR POWER; Cameron Diaz, Good Sport". The New York Times. Retrieved September 2, 2009.

January 07, 2023
hawksian, woman, film, theory, character, archetype, tough, talking, woman, popularized, film, director, howard, hawks, through, actresses, such, katharine, hepburn, dvorak, gardner, hedy, lamarr, rosalind, russell, barbara, stanwyck, angie, dickinson, best, k. In film theory the Hawksian woman is a character archetype of the tough talking woman popularized in film by director Howard Hawks through his use of actresses such as Katharine Hepburn 1 Ann Dvorak Ava Gardner Hedy Lamarr Rosalind Russell 2 Barbara Stanwyck 3 and Angie Dickinson 4 The best known Hawksian woman is probably Lauren Bacall who iconically played the type opposite Humphrey Bogart in To Have and Have Not and The Big Sleep 5 6 The archetype was first identified by film critic Naomi Wise in 1971 7 8 Lauren Bacall with Humphrey Bogart in To Have and Have Not 1944 where Bacall portrays a wanderer named after Howard Hawks s wife Slim Keith Contents 1 Characteristics 2 Decline 3 Influence 4 See also 5 ReferencesCharacteristics EditThe Hawksian woman is up front in speaking her mind and keeping up with her male counterparts in witty banter as well as taking action to get what she wants personally as well as sexually She can be seen as the fast talker frank and can beat a man in verbal sparring 9 Despite his preference for this kind of woman Hawks never considered himself a feminist and simply stated that he thought these women were lively and interesting both in films and in life Hawks marriage to actress Slim Keith shows this interest in life and directing in her book Slim Memories of a Rich and Imperfect Life 10 It is believed that Lauren Bacall was the perfect woman for Hawks In Keith s book it states Howard had been working on this formula woman for years in his films Rather it was that until he met me the woman of his dreams was only in his head And until Howard got to Betty Bacall there hadn t been an actress to make that dream come alive on screen 10 Hawks first film A Girl in Every Port exhibited the start of the female lead s formula in which Louise Brooks was directed as the very first Hawksian woman 11 A later example of a Hawksian woman would be Barbara Stanwyck s character in Ball of Fire in which she plays Sugarpuss O Shea alongside Gary Cooper 3 Hawksian women would work under Hawks direction with exclusive contracts using an actress like Lauren Bacall just twice a year to make the public want them more 12 The Hawksian woman plays across general female role expectations for the setting defining herself and her choices and leading action This albeit on masculine terms as denoted by being known like the male protagonists by nickname rather than forename This makes the Hawksian woman especially different from other female archetypes of the time in that she is considered one of the gang rather than an object of sexual desire 13 She can hold her own in a wit driven argument have the same profession as her male counterpart and keep her cool under stress 10 The equality given to the Hawksian woman by the director however does not detract from her feminine qualities such as seductiveness and softness 3 The strength of the Hawksian woman often brings out the more masculine qualities of an otherwise quiet and timid male lead 8 Typically Hawksian women came from either the aristocracy and learned to appreciate their working man s ideals or were hard working professionals themselves who fought for the good of the common man 9 Hawks discussed his preference for this kind of woman in some detail with Joseph McBride taking up a full chapter of Hawks on Hawks 1982 Angie Dickinson as Feathers opposite John Wayne Chance in Hawks Rio Bravo 1959 Hawksian women would be tailored in well cut sporty styles that were attractive yet down to earth 10 Physically Hawksian women are not all classic beauties but rather are carried more by their spunk and charisma than their physical features 14 Decline EditAccording to some film critics the Hawksian woman slowly faded from Hollywood in the 1950s as a new archetype for female leads came to the screen 14 World War II had ended and the role of women in society had changed 14 Germaine Greer describes this archetype as the Female Eunuch powerless women often portrayed by actresses like Marilyn Monroe and Catherine Deneuve 14 Influence EditJohn Carpenter an avowed Hawks fan includes Hawksian women in most of his movies from Assault on Precinct 13 through Ghosts of Mars Examples of Hawksian women in Carpenter s films include the characters played by Karen Allen in Starman and Adrienne Barbeau in The Fog and Escape from New York the latter was also his real life wife at the time In a May 2000 profile of actress Cameron Diaz in The New York Times journalist Dave Kehr remarked that Diaz would have fit marvelously well into the tradition of the Hawksian woman with her sense of fun camaraderie and forthright sexuality 15 See also EditScrewball comedy film Flapper Femme fatale TsundereReferences Edit King Susan August 13 2003 Not just pretty faces Los Angeles Times Retrieved October 3 2009 Macnab Geoffrey January 15 1997 Just like a man The Independent Independent News amp Media Archived from the original on 2022 05 09 Retrieved September 2 2009 And the so called Hawksian woman self reliant insolent capable of running with the boys Rosalind Russell in His Girl Friday or Bacall in The Big Sleep was not so very different from a character like Brett in Hemingway s The Sun Also Rises a b c Ryzik Vera Sedductress Pick Sugarpuss O Shead St andrews academia edu Accessed September 12 2013 1 King Susan March 12 2009 Howard Hawks later films at LACMA Los Angeles Times Retrieved September 2 2009 O Connor John E Rollins Peter C 2005 Hollywood s West the American frontier in film television and history University Press of Kentucky p 116 ISBN 0 8131 2354 2 Greer Germaine December 30 2006 Siren song The Guardian Guardian Media Group Retrieved October 3 2009 Wise Naomi 1971 The Hawksian Woman Take One 3 3 Reprinted in Hillier Jim Wollen Peter eds 1996 Howard Hawks American Artist London British Film Institute ISBN 0 85170 592 8 OCLC 471592430 a b Schwartz David Bringing Up Hawks Andrew Sarris and Molly Haskell on the Discovery of an Auteur Movingimagesource us September 25 2008 2 a b Fast Talking Dames by Maria Dibattista JSTOR 1559084 a b c d Keith Slim Megan McGurk Classic Film Fashion 182 The Hawksian Woman Megan McGurk Accessed September 13 2013 http msmeganmcgurk tumblr com post 25179751600 classic film fashion 182 the hawksian woman Hagopian Kevin Film Notes A Girl in Every Port Albany edu Accessed September 12 2013 3 The Miami News Google News Archive Search Accessed September 13 2013 4 Boxwell David May 2002 Howard Hawks Senses of Cinema Archived from the original on July 4 2009 Retrieved September 16 2009 a b c d Greer Germaine Siren Song The Guardian December 29 2006 5 Kehr Dave April 30 2000 SUMMER FILMS STAR POWER Cameron Diaz Good Sport The New York Times Retrieved September 2 2009 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Hawksian woman amp oldid 1131281481, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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