American myth of women’s beauty as reflected in shallow hal a film by farrelly brothers

Oleh :
Uswatun Kasana - C0399064 - Fak. Sastra dan Seni Rupa

ABSTRAK This research discusses two research questions. First, how the myth of women’s beauty governs somebody’s behavior as reflected in Shallow Hal. Second, how Shallow Hal presents American stereotypes of women’s beauty. The objectives of the research are to explore how the myth of women’s beauty governs somebody’s behavior as reflected in Shallow Hal and to explore how Shallow Hal presents American stereotypes of women’s beauty. This thesis is a library or referential study. The study is conducted by means of qualitative method. The primary data source is Shallow Hal. It is a 20th Century Fox Release which was directed by Bobby Farrelly & Peter Farrelly. Other sources supporting the study are the secondary data source. The data collection was done through library research. It is a film study which applies historical approach, cultural approach, feminist approach and semiotic film theory. The researcher uses historical approach to see the causal relationship between the facts in the past with the phenomenon of American myth of women’s beauty and trace the history which has caused it. Cultural approach is to reveal how the myth of women’s beauty is represented in Shallow Hal. It is also used to reveal how the myth is believed and works within American society. Feminist approach is used in this thesis to analyze how the myth of women’s beauty is culturally and politically constructed toward women. Semiotic film study is used in this thesis to analyze the signs and symbols in the film to find the myth or ideological meaning behind them. To explore how the myth of women’s beauty governs somebody’s behavior in Shallow Hal, the researcher analyzed the characters of Hal Larson, Rosemary, Mauricio and Tony Robbins. To explore how Shallow Hal presents American stereotypes of women’s beauty, the researcher analyzed how specific groups of women in Shallow Hal are stereotyped around the characteristics of their body’s size and shape, facial features, skin, and behavior. Based on the analysis of the characters, the researcher found that the myth of women’s beauty governs somebody’s behavior in gender role relationships. It also governs one’s perceptions about themselves and about other people. For the second problem statement, the researcher found that Shallow Hal presents some stereotypes about particular women. They are “Fat women are ugly”, “Old women are ugly”, and “Pretty Women are Ugly inside”. Those stereotypes represent American ideological codes; such as patriarchy, race, and capitalism. They reflect and reinforce the sexual, racial, and economic politics in America.