On The Waterfront Gender Analysis

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Gender inequality has been around for decades but “the problem lay buried, unspoken, for many years in the minds of American Women (The Feminine Mystique). Although one cannot deny the problem exists, the question which gender is to blame remains unanswered. In the film On the Waterfront, Pop Doyle forces Edie to go home when she went to the waterfront around all the longshoremen. Edie is discriminated against because she is a woman and it was not socially acceptable for women to be on the waterfront. Based on this scene, it seems like men have a larger impact on gender inequality than women do, suggesting the blame is more on men. However to contradict that statement, men in the 1950s were not exposed to any other social standards regarding …show more content…

Although men are definitely crucial to fixing the problem, “the young [women] are prominent in most revolutions” (Evans 165-166). It is very important for women to stand up for equality through their actions not just their words. That means pushing back on the expectations some men put on them and proving they are just as independent and capable as men. It is equally important for men to be advocates for gender equality because change will not happen if we do not keep our minds open. Women can protect as many times as they wish but if men do not acknowledge their actions, equality is impossible to achieve. It is difficult to understand why people discriminate based on gender because we’re all the same, we’re all human, gender does not define who you are or what you are capable of doing. Once every man comes to that realization, we will all be equal and there will be no gender roles or standards. In Emma Watson’s HeForShe campaign speech at the United Nations, she explains the importance of involving men in the movement because “gender equality is [their] issue too” (Watson). She believes if men do not have to be aggressive in order to be accepted, women will not feel compelled to be submissive in compliance. Many problems related to gender inequality impacting women specifically are caused by the social standards placed on men so involving men in the movement is unquestionably important, as Watson emphasizes in her entire

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