Essay 6.1

Lakia Lewis 12/3/09
Eng 101 Dr. Smith

3. Penis Envy
Many people would like to know if Hollywood portrays women as suffering from “penis envy”. There are many opinions from people who say that they do portray women as suffering from “penis envy” and other may say they don’t. I believe that Hollywood do not portray women as a suffering from “penis envy.” By seeing The Matrix (1999) and The Truman Show (1998), they show that their female characters do not suffer from “penis envy.” They actually have their own power. In The Matrix, they portrayed Carrie-Anne Moss’ character, Trinity as a power who can hold up her own. In the beginning of the movie she is able to defend herself the agents without any male assistant. In The Truman Show, Natascha McElhone’s characters, Laruen/Sylvia, held her own when she decides to tell Truman, that he’s in a television show, and she knew by telling him that she would get throw out of the show. Also in some other movies, Hollywood does not portray women as suffering from “penis envy.” Some of them are actually have more authority than their counterpart. In the next several paragraphs I will further explain why Hollywood doesn’t portray women as suffering from “penis envy”.

What I was saying before, in The Matrix, they portrayed Carrie-Anne Moss’ character, Trinity as a power who can hold up her own. Freeland argues, “With his delicate eyelids, Keanu/Neo looks as a “pretty” as a girl when we first see him sleeping. He has very fair skin (another character in the film even comments on his whiteness), with no body hair. He moves gracefully, like a dancer. Jude/Ted has sculpted cheekbones and enviable eyelashes; his Cupid’s-bow lips make him seem pouty. Each hero is paired with a strong woman (or what seems like a strong woman) who occasionally takes the lead in directing his movements” (207). This quote from The Matrix and Philosophy proves that Hollywood do not portray women as suffering from “penis envy”. They portray them as strong women, who can defend themselves and their counterpart. Freeland also argues, “Later, before the heroine, Trinity, and the others in the radical resisting the Matrix take Neo to meet their leader Morpheus, they remove the bug, in another scene of violent penetration. They apply a gun-like “scope” to Neo’s navel to suck out the bug. He screams as they extract it” (207). This quote also proves that the male characters are actually lower than the female characters.

In The Truman Show, you see McElhone’s characters do not suffer from “penis envy”. They have power but not like the power Trinity had in The Matrix. Lauren/Sylvia knew that Truman’s life was nothing but a show and she tries to tell him this, her “father” casted her as crazy and she was thrown off the show. Later we find her at home on the Truman Hotline, talking to the director of Truman’s life. In her apartment you see posters of Truman, saying it not right to make Truman’s life into a television show. McElhone’s characters were the only ones who really try to help free himself from his illusion. This shows that McElhone’s character is not suffering from “penis envy.” She had more balls than any of the men and women in the movie.

There are two other movies where the female characters do not suffer from “penis envy”. Those movies are Wanted (2008) and G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra (2009). In Wanted, Angelina Jolie‘s character, Fox, is a strong woman, who in the movie rescues Wesley from being kill. They also show her as a woman who knows how to handle a gun. Also in the movie Jolie’s character beats up Wesley and asks what he’s doing here. Even in that scene, they show that Jolie’s character has more power than some of those male characters. In G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra, Sienna Miller’s character Ana/Baroness was not suffering from “penis envy” She was actually a strong woman, who killed and kicked some of the male characters behinds. She was able to defend herself, even if what caused her to be fearless as actually so type of virus. The same with Rachel Nichols’ character, Scarlett, she was good with guns and bow and arrow. She also good at defending herself and others.

In conclusion, Hollywood does not portray women as suffering from “penis envy”. They actually gave them more power. They have these female characters independent of the opposite sex. That says something about movies today. Women are coming up in Hollywood.