Supporting a Monster

Throughout history, science has been represented in different ways to reflect our shifting culture. In the 1950’s there was the communist scare, the fear of radiation sickness and of nuclear warfare. In the 60’s and 70’s there where experimentations with psychedelic drugs that parodied the exploration of transcendental states. And in the 1980’s and 1990’s, the world witnessed the birth of the computer, a hallmark of the science fiction realm come to reality. What else changed? In his 1993 film adaptation of Michael Crichton’s novel, Jurassic Park, Steven Spielberg portrays Doctor Ellie Sattler as a strong, independent woman in a field of men. She is the only woman character we see actively studying the dinosaurs in the park and yet, through most of the film, she is seen by the sides of her male counterparts, offering advice and comfort throughout the power outage crisis. Similarly, in the 1954 film by director Gordon Douglas, Them, portrays its only woman scientist also in a supporting role, surrounded by men who are constantly undervaluing her worth and second guessing her authority. So how does it come to be that in these science fiction ‘monster’ movies, that gender roles play such an important part? In the following essay I will explore how the monstrous mutations depicted in these science fiction films both represent the paradigm shift of scientific thought and address the gender representations in this field.
As Dr. Patricia ‘Pat’ Medford in Them actress Joan Weldon is a regular Rosie Rivet. She is out in the field with the men, conducts analysis along with her father, and is the only scientist bodily able to traverse the dangerous ant tunnels with the other male soldiers. However, as she enters the scene (legs first) we get the sense by the reactions of the men in her company that she is one that will be both underrated and overtly desired. Agent Graham even has trouble addressing her as doctor and Dr. Medford politely has him address her as Pat, the singular, genderless adaptation of her full name. Her authority is constantly undermined and usually the men surrounding her ask her father for permission to let her join in as in the initial chase scene after the soldiers bomb the ant hill in the desert.
At her most feminine, Dr. Medford screams and shields herself from the gigantic ant as it bears down her. This is the only instance we see her need the support of the men. As Cornea points out, in this classic 1950’s model of a family, “At its most basic, the Freudian model of gender acquisition was based upon the bourgeois family and required the presence of both the father and mother…” (page 146) She goes on to describe Them as a model for later science fiction monster films that describe a leading/supporting female paradox.
The ants however are the result of nuclear testing in 1945, tests drawn out, and conducted by men. Without getting heavily into the predominately masculine fear of becoming disengendered by nuclear sickness, Cyndy Hendershot writes in her essay entitled, “The Invaded Body: Paranoia and Radiation Anxiety…” about the famous case of Paul Schreber a man who took it upon himself to write out his paranoiac experiences. Schreber writes about a fear of improvised men taking over the world and forcing him to become the only woman in order to repopulate the earth. This reflects the fear represented in film such as Them that show men in an uncomfortable state with women superiors. As the ants represent the disastrous affectations of male dominated technology, Dr.Patricial Medford stands as a beacon of stalwart intellectualism coming from a previously unacknowledged source.
This is not quite, but close to the scenario presented in Jurassic Park as Dr. Ellie Sattler is once again cast in a supporting role. However, this film takes place in the 90’s, well after the suffrage and equal rights movements of the previous era. Dr. Sattler is well aware that she is in a male dominated field and plays up the role by standing back and letting the competition take its course. Look for instance at the competition between Dr. Grant and Dr. Malcolm for Ellie’s attention. Dr. Sattler is already with Dr. Grant, but Dr. Malcolm holds not reserve about shamelessly flirting with Ellie, who says nothing, right in front of Dr. Grant. I think Ellie’s freedom to indulge in this casual flirtation without fear of retribution is a testament to this era’s independent women. She is also first to point out the nature of the poisonous nature of the prehistoric plants. Still she is nurturing and compassionate and takes care of the men around her. In one scene she is comforting the disgruntled Mr. Hammond as Dr. Grant is still at large with his grandchildren. Mr. Hammond is still defending the majesty of the scientific miracle he has created but Dr. Sattler sees it differently:
“I was overwhelmed by the power of this place; but I made a mistake, too. I didn't have enough respect for that power and it's out now. The only thing that matters now are the people we love: Alan and Lex and Tim. John, they're out there where people are dying.”
This is not the first time she applies a wise feminine rational to a troubling situation. As Dr. Malcolm and Dr. Grant puzzle over the morality of creating something like Jurassic Park when dinosaurs have been intentionally wiped out by the natural progression of things, Dr Malcolm applies: “God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man destroys God. Man creates dinosaurs…” to which Dr. Sattler rebuts, “Dinosaurs eat man. Woman inherits the earth...” Here, women is wiser, and therefore removed from the brunt of the conflict.
In Jurassic Park, as well as Them the monsters are products of a male and his unrepressed technological desires. The ants are the result of male organized nuclear tests, and the dinosaurs are the product of genetic cloning, a science not specific to men as at this time in history, men no longer dominated the field of science. However, in the lab depicted in Jurassic Park the head technician is a man. As hell breaks loose and mankind is made to pay for his oven indulgence by suffering the wrath of his creations, it is women that come to man’s aide. As history continues this trend is lessened by society’s change in attitude toward women, but nevertheless women still maintain supporting roles in both films.
Sources:
Them, Gordon Douglas, James Whitmore, Edmund Gwenn, Joan Weldon, James Arness 1954 DVD Warner Bros. 1954
Jurassic Park, Steven Spielberg, Same Neil, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, Richard Arrenborough, 1993, Universal Pictures, 1993
Cornea, Christine Science Fiction Cinema New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 2007 pages 51 & 149-151
Hendershot, Cyndy. “The Invaded Body: Paranoia and Radiation Anxiety in Invaders from Mars, It Came
from Outer Space, and Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” Extrapolation: A Journal of Science Fiction and
Fantasy. 39.1 (Spring 1998) 26-39. (CR 37-43)