Race And Masculinity In Rambo III

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Recommended: Race and cinema

Jennifer Mekhail
Mon/Wed 2-3:15
03/09/2014

Race and Masculinity in Rambo III

A significant time throughout the history of United States was during the first wave of feminism, which began in the early1900s and ended with the third wave during the 90s. The feminist movement was created to better the lives for all women in this country. The movement was meant to create empowerment for women, higher opportunities to receive an education, and the ability to have a career that offers the same positions for both male and female. Ultimately women were fighting for their rights, freedom, equal opportunity, and full control over their lives. Also losing the Vietnam War during the 50s, 60s, and 70s was also a very difficult time for men in America. Both issues may have caused men in America to feel insecure or “less of a man.” During Reagan’s presidency he was trying to break that persona. His philosophy was set up into two categories the “soft body” and the “hard body.” He described the soft body as an “errant body containing sexually transmitted disease, immorality, illegal chemicals, laziness, and endangered fetuses. In this system of thought marked by race and gender, the soft body invariably belonged to a female and / or a person of color, whereas the hard body was like Reagans own, male and white” (Jeffords Pg.24, 25) “ The normative body that enveloped strength, labor, determination, loyalty, and courage- the “hard body” the body that was to represent Reagans philosophy, politics, and economics” (Jeffords Pg.25) A great way to establish his philosophy is to create films that represent it and movies during the 80s were all about this. When we think back to the movie Rambo it was pretty much dedicated to President Reagan. The movie h...

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...ese scenes is to simultaneously offer and deny the promise of Reagan prosperity to the viewers of Rambo films. Rambo’s painful self-surgery insists that the national body can both heal itself and remain strong and combat ready despite its wounds, offering a reassuring form of “national pleasure” as audience members can identify with the hard national body that survives and defeats its enemies (Jeffords Pg. 51) It’s very interesting how politics and the film industry are one in one with each other. How cleaver of the film industry to use movies to persuade or even manipulate the public to agree or think like them. Reagan’s philosophy in my opinion was more of a fantasy then reality. Regardless, with or without a hard body we have to keep in mind that moves are make belief they are not real and if we want to inspire change then every individual needs to take a stand.

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