Feminism is becoming more and more apparent and important in the lives of humans every single day. Both women and men are fighting to achieve gender equality in everything. Posters and pictures each certainly have deeper meaning beyond what is physically visible right away. Looking deeper into each of the character placements, weather, genders, background, and events in a given image, one can get a clue as to what is truly going on and what point the author is actually trying to get across.
By promoting an idea that some people are scared of, this poster provides evidence that there is a development of gender roles in society, as a more equal sharing of roles is taking shape. In the movie poster for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, there is definitely meaning beyond the initial view. To appeal to the audience during this age and time, the poster is promoting an issue that many people feel strongly about. Many people will definitely take notice. Through the use of different colors and images, the artist is able to promote the idea that feminism is advancing in this world.
This shows that women are gaining an equal role to men in society, showing the development of the human population. First of all, this poster gives off very eerie and spooky vibes, almost to the point where one actually thinks of death while looking at it. On the lower half of this poster, there is a great abundance of fog and clouds, connoting mystery. Fog gives off the idea of mystery because it is very difficult to see through fog, leaving it a mystery as to what lies ahead beyond it. The pirates in their boats do know what they are getting into. Another part of this image that appears to be mysterious is the ocean beneath the boats.
The ocean in itself is a symbol of spook and mystery due to the fact that most of what lies beneath them has not been discovered yet. This mystery and spook previously noted is a metaphor for society’s reaction to feminism. Feminism is a relatively new concept where it is believed that males and females should be equal in society. While there are some people who completely love this idea and are avid supporters of feminism, along with people who completely turn their back on the idea claiming we already have gender equality, most people do not know much about it and can be seen as in the fog or clouds.
The dark clouds on the right side of the lower portion of the image combined with the large sunny spot in the middle of the same portion of the poster represent the two possible outcomes of feminism. Represented by the sunny spot, one of the possible outcomes is bright and happy, meaning that feminism is able to be achieved, leaving most people generally content or happy not having any issues. The other possible outcome is the darkness to the right, representing uproar and conflict throughout the world’s population for this issue. This poster could be interpreted as women being less than men socially.
After all, there is only one woman portrayed in the top half of the image, and in the bottom of the image, the only woman being shown are traditional female characters, as mermaids. While it is understandable that someone might say the women have an inferior role to men in this poster, there is plenty of evidence to refute that statement. For example, in the upper half of the image, the sole woman with a main role in this movie, is not displayed and larger or smaller than any other character on the poster, besides of course the main character.
This shows that she is exactly equal to her male counterparts. Not only is she the same size as everyone else behind the main character, but her character is also played by an extremely well known woman, further proving her importance. By this I mean that the average person probably would not know the names of the men on the right and left sides of this image, but they would likely know the name of the actress who plays the female character, Penelope Cruz. This is an important advancement in today’s society, as feminism is taking on a more significant role in everyday life.
The female in the upper half of the poster is clearly one of the most important characters in the movie. This is made obvious by the fact that her clothing, hair, and skin are all clean and neat. This is as opposed to the two men on the outsides, who appear as dirty old mean, likely in a lower role in the society. The fact that she is at the same level, or even above the older men as it appears, is proof that feminism has made advancements in this world. She has overcome social barriers to achieve full gender equality.
Yes the point could be made that she still appears inferior to the character played by Johnny Depp, she is still obviously an important character, and definitely appearing with more power than previous Pirates of the Caribbean movies. In posters from earlier movies in this series, the main female actress was often played by either an actress that was not very well known, or simply putting her image in the outside of the group and a little bit smaller than the rest of the other characters. This poster though, shows what feminism has done in society.
Another observation made from looking at this poster is that the main character, played by Johnny Depp, and displayed importantly at the center of the upper half of the image, is likely facing death sometime in the near future. This can be depicted by the fact that he is wearing a red bandana around his head, along with the pirate in the center of the logo for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. In addition, the devious looking man to the right of Johnny Depp, is holding a skull in his hand, which is also wearing the same red bandana that the main character is.
Not only is the bandana in the logo very similar, but it also has very similar tassels hanging from it, further proving that it is likely a portrayal of the main character. The image of a skull connotes death. When this image is linked to a certain character, as is the case here with Johnny Depp’s character, it suggests the death of this certain character. Not only is it that the skull is connoting death, but the idea of death is also suggested by the swords going through the skull’s head in the title and symbol for the movie.
Therefore, for some reason or another, the main character in this movie is likely to die or face a possible death scenario. In this case, Johnny Depp likely represents a feminist activist, wanting to fight everyone else for what he believes is truly his. Even though it is possible that others will defeat him and his opinion, he still believes in himself despite the odds. This is exactly like the fight for gender equality, because it is a new idea and it is not fully accepted by everybody.
A lot of people are required to stick up for themselves and their own believes despite the chance of being overpowered by the greater majority. The apparent distance between our current society and the ideal feminism is quite visible in the poster as well. As seen in the lower half of the image, there are three mermaids on a rock in the middle of the ocean. They are each gazing off into the distance, longing for this ideal to them called feminism. Many women in today’s society desperately want feminism; they want to be equal to their male counter parts, which obviously makes sense.
The particular mermaids sitting on the rock seem to represent the individuals in society that want something done about the lack of gender equality, but are not actively doing anything. It was said that, “Feminist activity has always assumed a wide range of forms. ” These forms include being silent about it, publishing works about it, and even political activism (Steenbergen 1). Because of this, the mermaids on the rocks and the individuals in the boats could all be feminists, fighting it in their own way. The boat, moving further and further away from them represents the activists in feminism.
The boat is moving toward what appears to be a crowd of other burning boats, representing everyone arguing about the advantages and disadvantages of feminism. Right now in the world, it is a huge issue. There is much conflict going on for something that should not be a huge issue. Both men and women who are supporting feminism can be represented by that boat and often have to choose whether they even want to bother entering the mess of individuals concerned with it. Society has come to a point where feminism is accepted, but definitely not widely.
Many feminists are longing for feminism, but are not wanting to advocate for their own rights. Because it is primarily women who are the advocates for feminism, most of them being younger rather than older, the older men simply might not get it. The eyes of both of the men on the outsides of the image portray two different things, both that they are disapproving of the actions of the two main characters of the movie. The man in the top right hand corner of the image is looking down upon both of the characters played by Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz.
He appears both weary and distrusting of them, as he is watching them closely. However both of the main characters have determined looks on their faces, not even phased by those against feminism. The man on the left has a slightly different look on his face. He just appears confused. He likely represents one of the members of society that does not understand feminism and the goals that it is trying to achieve. He is probably in agreement with Donna LaFramboise in that “feminism has become extremist, self-obsessed, arrogant, and intolerant” (Steenbergen). This is why most people that feminism is not a good thing.
Though despite clearly going against the likes of those men, Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz are determined to get what they want and know is right, feminism. This skewed view that feminism is all about the individual, rather than the entire female gender has caused a misperception globally. If this changes, and everyone realizes the true definition, meaning, and purpose of feminism, who knows where people could take it? While this poster does not display exact gender equality, there are definitely signs of feminism and an attempt to get more toward gender equality.
The gender of the characters, the weather, the looks on each of the man’s faces, and also the colors in the background are each evidence that the movie poster from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, displays how feminism is changing the ideals of our society. These factors do not concretely determine that feminism must be apparent in this poster, but the ideas are certainly very applicable to the distinct features of it. It is because of these different features that the idea of feminism can be extracted from this work.
The major component, the sole female character is the most important part. Without her in this, there would be nothing to equate to men. Because she is of the same stature as two of the men in this poster, the idea that society is leaning more towards feminism as time goes on remains present. What is the primary idea that Disney wants us to take from this movie poster? It is that we as a nation are becoming much more aware of gender roles. Rather than abiding by them, one way or another, we are fighting for feminism and gender equality. Should everything be equal for all genders though?
Are some things meant for certain members to enjoy and not the other? The world might be a better place if people just accepted that some activities and items are meant for one gender to enjoy and not another. Then again, as many feminists want now, the world could also be a better place if everyone was just able to enjoy the same things without being questioned. While people do have their personal preferences, nobody knows for sure which of these viewpoints is the right one, though it can be determined if one action is take or the other.
