Masculinity In Carrie

Brian DePalma adapted Stephen King’s novel Carrie to inspire his horror film Carrie. Carrie is about Carrie White (Sissy Spacek) who is a shy and timid teenager. She is the daughter of Margaret White (Piper Laurie) who is a religious fanatic. Carrie, born with secret telekinetic powers, uses her power to exact revenge on her high school bullies who humiliated her when she had her period at the age of seventeen; Carrie’s menstruation represent her being late in becoming a women. The supernatural film is comprised of affective male characters to support the dramatic female character. The male characters have miniature roles; however, the male characters create tremendous effect upon the female’s actions. Carrie presents male characters, such

as the popular athletes (Tommy Ross) as the tool to enhance the strong characterization for female characters, Carrie and the popular girls (Sue Snell). Female characters need the work of the male characters to become powerful in both positive and negative ways.
Carrie introduces the handsome and popular athlete, Tommy, (William Katt) as the tool to intensify Carrie and Sue’s characterization. Half of the time when Sue and Tommy were together in the film, they discussed that Tommy would ask Carrie to the prom. Sue makes eye contact with Tommy while he tries to put his arms around her to calm her down; he believes she was over thinking. Sue feels guilty and Tommy, her boyfriend, tries to make her feel useful and thoughtful. Sue realizes how she disrespected other women when she threw pads and tampons at Carrie in the shower. The film illustrates Sue’s empathy towards Carrie when she quickly stops Tommy in the school hallway, and convinces him to ask Carrie to prom as planned. Sue knew it would be the best night of Carrie’s life. Tommy became the elite character when he agreed to take Carrie to the prom, and he supports Sue’s growth in character from bully to heroine. Tommy’s moral character creates a firm and positive effect upon Sue. In the film, all Tommy’s actions are driven by Sue; Tommy is Sue’s tool or “pawn” (Bellmore). A woman need a strong male status to support her actions, but to do so, she must have control.
Billy Nolan (John Travolta) and Chris are consider the antagonists in Carrie.

Billy is Chris’s boyfriend who is older than most teenagers in the film. Billy is the antithesis of Tommy and Chris is the antithesis of Sue. Chris becomes very jealous and angry when she got expelled from school, which affect her from going to the prom. Billy gives her a plan to humiliate the prom queen by pouring animal’s blood on her. Before the prom begin, Chris forced Billy to do her dirty work: drives her to kill the pig and rigs the bucket. They approaches prom as an abominable couple because they are about to destroyed the prom. Male characters can provide malevolent influence for female

characters.
Carrie takes revenge on her high school classmates at the prom with her telekinetic represent the women’s limit and their strength.

Tommy and Carrie were announced the prom king and queen. A girl brought a bouquet to Carrie and quickly exit the stage. It was Carrie’s moment to shine; she smiles and see her classmates applauds her. All of a sudden, pig’s blood spills directly on Carrie from above the stage. Everyone in the building starts to laugh at Carrie. Tommy was half covered with blood and he yelled “what the hell?” to show how he tries to protect Carrie from humiliation as he promised Sue (Carrie). Carrie could not hold her ground and watch other humiliate her. Then, the empty bucket hit Tommy in the head and caused his death. Carrie saw Chris and her boyfriend, Billy Nolan, ran out the building; Carrie becomes angry. She becomes powerful as she releases her anger to the bullies. She locks down the building, throws people into the electrocuted water with her telekinesis, and sets the building on fire. The film clearly stated the important and unimportant male roles when Tommy tries to protect Carrie at the prom, but dies in a short, tragic incident, which leaves the female character to protect herself from the bullies. Carrie became a new person at the prom, and the devastation she wreaks is a result of feminine power. Male and female characters such as, Carrie’s classmates, can cause the female characters, Carrie, to trigger their self-evil. The film illustrates how

women lose control when others judge, mock, and harm them.
Carrie’s audiences understands how the film is full of thrills and unexpected scenes, such as Carrie showers in the school’s bathroom and Carrie kills her classmates with her power. The film is not as thrilling as an emotionally disturbed telekinetic scorned. The film illustrates how people feel about bullies and how they react towards bullies. The film includes male characters to enhance the strength of female characterization in both positive and negative effects. Sue uses her women nobility to convince Tommy, her pawn, to ask Carrie to the prom because she felt empathy for Carrie. Carrie uses her telekinetic to revenge the bullies because her pawn, Tommy, died shortly after the blood spilled on them. Carrie illustrates how women can be as powerful and important as men when they stand alone. The stereotype about how every family should have a man as the “head of the house” is true but it is unnecessary; because there are single mothers who can take care of their own family. Women is powerful, but it needs to be the right time for it to trigger.