Suffragist Movement: fact and fiction

Prior to viewing ‘Iron Jawed Angels’ and ‘Mary Poppins’, I must admit I had preconceived expectations about what I would learn about the suffragist movement by watching these movies. Both film adequately portray women taking a stance in the society in the activist role, although in my opinion, the women in ‘Iron Jawed Angels’ were more political and forth coming with their acts of dissatisfaction.

The way in which the women in these movies pursue goals is very different when compared to one another. The role of ‘activist’ is lost when in one movie the women are being arrested and force fed while in jail and in the other movie the ‘activist’ of the film seems to only be active when outside of the household. I of course am speaking of Mrs. Banks. She seems all too concerned about women, their right to vote and about her rally, but when it comes to her children and husband she is in the dark. Leaving it to others to control her children then listening to her husband scold her over her choice of nannies.

In the film ‘Mary Poppins’, Mary possesses a rough attitude. She speaks her mind, tells Mr. Banks her guidelines and even twists Mr. Banks words around on him so he must spend the day with his children, something he has never done before. Although Mary seems awfully forward and ahead of the suffragist movement, she still plays into the traditional, stereotypical role. All the women, including Mary, wear long skirts, hats, stockings, gloves and surprisingly, a lot of makeup. The film portrays the men as gentlemen.

In the film ‘Iron Jawed Angels’, activism is present in almost every scene. There are protests, arrests, hunger strikes, newspapers, and so on. The women, like the women in ‘Mary Poppins,’ are dressed very conservative, covering every inch of their body. A heart wrenching display of activism comes when the Senators wife is told she will have her children taken and she will obey her husband in response to her donating money to the suffragist cause. The men in this film are portrayed in a less than favorable light. Screaming, taunting, and throwing things at women for having the nerve to stand up for their rights. “Often we underestimate the sacrifices and struggles that women endure for their freedom” (Seely, 40). Megan Seely, along with those portrayed in ‘Iron Jawed Angels’ have successfully opened my eyes to what women had to live through to obtain MY right to vote.

These two films depict situations other than a stereotypical sexist one. We must look at the issue of lookism. There are many scenes in ‘Mary Poppins’ when lookism comes into play. Classism is also an important factor. The Banks family is well off, they live in a big house with maids, nannies and cooks therefore they look down upon those who spend their money frivolously and do not act as they do.

Seely, Megan. Fight Like a Girl: How to be a Fearless Feminist. New York and London: New York University Press, 2007.

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