Feminism and Ideology: The "Terms" of Women's Stereotypes: Feminist Review September 1987

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Feminism and Ideology: The “Terms” of Women's Stereotypes
Article in Feminist Review · September 1987

DOI: 10.1057/fr.1986.4 · Source: OAI
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Feminism and Ideology: The "Terms" of Women's Stereotypes
Author(s): Ellen Seiter
Source: Feminist Review, No. 22 (Spring, 1986), pp. 58-81
Published by: Palgrave Macmillan Journals
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FEMINISMAND IDEOLOGY:
The Temxs of Women's Stereotypes
Ellen Seiter
Terms of Endearmentl belongs to a cycle of quality family melodramas

produced in the US since 1979 which have been well received by
critics, lauded within the industry and popular at the box office. In
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), Ordinary People (1980) and On Golden
Pond (1981), the narratives focused on the importance of the father's
role (played by Dustin Hoffman, Donald Sutherland and Henry Fonda,
respectively), and on- men as sources of emotional support in the
nuclear family, thus displacing women as wives and mothers from
their conventional place at the centre of the family melodrama. Each of
these films has been criticized for embodying conservative, anti-
feminist values, by punishing women who work outside the home
(Seiter,1983). Like these films, Terms of Endearment (1983) portrays a
white, upper-middleclass family and features prrstigious actors - Jack
Nicholson, Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger. But in this film
women re-take centre stage as the narrative focuses on the
relationship between mother and daughter. There is also an infusion of
other generic elements, most notably the woman's film, the situation
comedy and the made-for-TV-movie (Kellner, 1985). Like its
predecessors, Terms of Endearment has been harshly criticized by
left-liberal critics, who have seen the film as a 'right-to-life soap opera'
(Biskind,1984; Sarris,1983).
Terms of Endearment successfully tapped into a cultural interest
in mother-daughter relationships which flourished in the media. The
film's advertising, which has featured various shots of MacLaine and
Winger posed in affectionate exchange with one another, snapshot
style, has emphasized this aspect of the narrative. Women's advice
columns, magazines and programmes on daytime television began to
capitalize on this interest in mothers and daughters in the late
seventies. Nancy Friday's bestseller My Mother,My Self was published
in 1977. The ABC daytime serial GeneralHospital climbed to the top of
the Nielsen ratings after producerGloria Monty decided to concentrate
on the relationship between the teenage character Laura Weber and
her mother Lesley. The Phil Donahue Show broadcast several
FeministReview No 22, February1986
58 FeministReview
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60 FeministReview
discussionsabout mothers and daughters.Recently, a mother and

daughterteam,WynonnaandNaomiJudd,has recordeda topcountry
andwesternsingle (entitled'Mama,He'sCrazy').
The media attention to mother-daughterrelationshipsgrows
directly out of the women'smovementwith its concentrationon
consciousness-raising groups,the examinationof personalhistoryand
the way that genderroles are learned.There has been a large and
original amountof feminist researchon mothersand daughters.In
1977, Adrienne Rich published Of Woman Born, an analysis of
motherhood'as institutionand experience'.Nancy Chodorow(1978)
has written a compelling,if controversial,re-readingof Freud to
accountforthe strengthof the mother-daughter bond- a relationship
which is, according to Chodorow, never entirely resolved.Similarly,
French theoristsJulia Kristevaand Luce Irigaray have discussedthe
psychoanalytic model, its relationship to the mother-daughter
relationshipandthe problematicof the mother'sdesire(Hirsch,1981).
While the sizeable bodyof psychoanalyticallyinformedresearchon
mothersanddaughtersandon the modelof spectatorshipdominantin
filmtheoryandits relationto femalespectatorsis outsidemy interests
here,it representsan importantattemptby feministsto respondto the
influentialpsychoanalyticmodel(Kaplan,1983b).The significanceof
feminist researchon mothersand daughtershas been explainedby
MarianneHirschthis way:
There can be no systematic and theoretical study of women in
patriarchalculture, there can be no theory of women'soppression,that
does not take into accountwoman'srole as a mother of daughters and as
a daughter of mothers,that does not study female identity in relation to
previous and subsequent generations of women, and that does not study
that relationship in the wider context in which it takes place:the
emotional, political, economic,and symbolicstructures of family and
society. Any full study of mother-daughterrelationships in whatever
field, is by definition both feminist and interdisciplinary.(1981:202)
This articlebringstogethercontemporary feministresearchfrom

the socialscienceswith the ideologicalanalysisof film and television.
Stereotypesare one area in whichtheoriesaboutideologyandcultural
representationcan be most helpfully informedby feminist theory.
Terms of Endearmentprovidesa goodexampleforsuchan analysisfor
two reasons. First of all, as a family melodrama, it already
problematizesrelationshipswithin the nuclearfamily, generational
conflictand the separationof the public and the domesticspheres.
Second,the film providesrelativelyrealisticand complexversionsof
stereotypesaboutwomen,andwas thereforewidelyapprehended as an
especiallymoving,powerfulandtrue-to-lifestory.
Terms of Endearment embodiesmany elementsof the rhetoricof
the anti-abortionNew Right which has been prominentin the US
media of the 1980s. This article offersan ideologicalanalysis of the
StereotypesinFilm 61
film while avoiding the tendency to read the text as 'nothing but
ideology',and in doing so failing to accountfor its 'use value' as a
cultural productfor a large audience of women. Terry Lovell has
arguedthat the theoryof ideologyadvancedby LouisAlthusser,which
has been extremelyinfluentialon film theoryand textual analysis, is
faulty in its identificationof cultural productionas ideology.Lovell
suggests that there must be a 'strategicwithdrawal'of the conceptof
ideologyfrom certain areas - cultural productionamong them - in
orderforthe termto retainits usefulness:
If ideologycanbe specifiedmorenaxTowly, less inclusively,thenthe
degreeof closeness/distance betweenideologyandgiveninstancesof
culturalproduction canbe gauged.Wearenotentitledto assumethat
culturalproduction perse is alsoandat the sametimethe production of
ideology,evenwherethat culturalproduction takesthe formofcapitalsst
commodityproduction. (1983:48)
Althusser's 'appropriationof the categories of experience and

practical activity for ideology' is mistaken, according to Lovell,
because these are essential features of the capacityto formulatea
critique of ideology,to produceknowledgeoutside of the prevailing
ideologicalorder(1983:49).Lovell'scritiqueof Althusseris particular-
ly importantfor feminist analysis, since any theoryof ideologymust
accountforthe existenceof the women'smovement,feministactivism
and women'swidespreadrecognitionof and protestagainst sexism in
the media.
In this articleI will be using Lovell'sdefinitionof ideologyas:
. . . the production
anddisseminationoferroneousbeliefswhose
inadequaciesaresociallymotivated.Thisdefinitionrecognisestwoother
categories:erroneousbeliefswhicharenotso motivated,andvalid
beliefswhichare,butplacesthembothoutsidethe categoryof ideology.
(1983:51-2)
This definitionhas particularusefulnessforfeministcriticism,since it

allows questionsaboutthe appealof culturalproductswhich are not
specificallyfeminist- howthese areusedin everydaylife, whatkindof
pleasurethey provide- without reducingthe audienceto a mass of
duped spectators suffering from false consciousness. Terms of
Endearment offers many reactionary ideas about motherhood,
sexuality and the nuclearfamily, where, to use Lovell'sterms, 'key
areas of experienceand practicalactivity are suppressed,denied or
distorted' (1983:51). But the film must also be seen as having
successfullyinserteditself into a largersocialand culturalinterestin
mother-daughter relationships- an interesttriggered,in part, by the
feministmovement.Termsof Endearmentvalidatedcertainaspectsof
women's social reality which cannot be reduced to ideology:the
intensity of the mother-daughterbond,the arduousnessof childcare
62 FeministReview
and housework,the sexual desire of middle-agedwomen.Feminist

analysismust accountforthe kindsof pleasurefilms suchas Termsof
Endearmentofferwomenas an audience,both in their recognitionof
sharedexperienceandin their expressionof wish-fulfilment.Wemust
understandhow Termsof Endearmentrings true, as well as how it
falsifiesourlives.
Melodramatic satisfactions
Melodramas providethe audiencewithsituationswhichareanalogousto
thosecommonlyexperiencedin familyandpersonallife . . . In
melodramaourinterestis notin the gradualexpositionanddevelopment
ofa character's
personalityanddecisionmaking,butratherin the direct
portrayalofthe socialpsychological
situationitselfin its artistically
disguised,butrelatively'raw'form.(Kleinhans,1978:43)
Termsof Endearmentfollowsmorethan thirtyyears in the lives of its

heroines,AuroraGreenwayand her daughter,Emma.This extended
time spanforthe narrativelendsthe film an episodicqualitytypicalof
the familymelodrama,whichtendsto chronicle- in rapidsuccession-
the joys and sorrowsof family life and to producein the spectatora
kind of emotionalroller-coastereffect (Elsaesser,1973). Beforethe
titles' sequencehas ended,Emma'sfatherhas diedand she has grown
from infancyto adolescence.The film's centralproblems- Aurora's
unconventional,narcissisticpersonalityand a reversalof traditional
mother-daughterroles betweenAuroraand Emma- are played out
acrossa series of events whichspanthe next fourteenyears:Emma's
marriageto Flap Horton(a man Auroradisapprovesof), the birth of
her three children,Emma'smaritalproblems,Aurora'saffairwith a
middle-agedplayboy,terminal illness and the reconstitutionof the
family.
Evaluationsof the film's'realism'basedon this episodicstructure
filledthe criticalreviewsat the time of TermsofEndearment's release.
The film was condemnedfor'sloppypacing,episodicsitcomstructures,
charactersintroducedand then droppedlike hot potatoes',then was
chargedwith being'unbelievable'on the one hand(Beale,1984)while
being hailed as dealingwith 'the absolutestuff of real life fromnew
and sometimesdazzlingangles' on the other (Benson, 1983). Such
critical disagreementhas typified discussion of melodrama's(and
especially soap opera's)realism, and has often failed to take into
accountthe conventionalnatureofall popularnarrativeforms.
Thewidespreadtendencyto see TermsofEndearmentas somehow
'true-to-life'presentsa particularlyinterestingquestionfor feminist
analysis. While the narrative is highly conventional, bearing
resemblancesto such nineteenth-centurymelodramasas Mrs Henry
Wood'sEast Lynne,each narrativeepisoderepresentsa landmarkin
personal life as it is experienced by many women: marriage,
inFilm
Stereotypes 63
pregnancy,childbirth,separationfrom the other, marital problems

(f1nancialand emotional),the returnto the maternalhome,the ordeal
of illness. The f1lmconf1nesitself to white, middle-class,heterosexual
norms- orrather,idealizednorms,sincemostwomenworkoutsidethe
home,unlike EmmaandAurora.Yet the f1lmfocuseson the emotional
significanceof events whichoccurin most women'slives. Each of the
narrativesituationshas specialrelevanceto the way womenstruggle
with demandsplacedon them as adults in a society basedon gender
inequality.Manyof the film's scenes addressthose areas of greatest
conflict,tensionandcontradictionin termsof the socialorganizationof
womenin the family:economicdependenceof womenon men,women's
sole responsibilityforchildcareandforhousework,andthe isolationof
womenin the domesticsphere(whilemen pursuewage-earningin the
publicsphere).As the film progresses,its tenor changesfromthat of
situationcomedyto that of melodrama,andthe hardshipsexperienced
by Emmaaccumulate,promotingan increasingemotionalism.Part of
the recurringappealof melodramais madepossiblebecausethe social
organizationof the familymeansthat someexperiencesare sharedby
womenacrossclass lines, such as the struggle for independence,the
desire to move away fromhome,conflictsover moneyand where the
family will live, frictionbetween spouses and in-laws, and between
motheranddaughter.Manyscenariosfoundin familymelodramasare
emotionallychargedbecausethey correspondto situationsof conflict
in the socialorder,in the family,in relationsbetweenmen andwomen
and in relationsamongwomen.Identif1cation is madepossiblebecause
they are social and shared, rather than merely emotional and
individual.2
Mostofthe scenesin TermsofEndearmenttake placein the home.
The restrictionto domesticspace contributesto the film's sense of
familiarity,despitethe affluenceof its setting (muchof the film takes
place in a wealthy sectionof Houston).Emma,who bearsnone of the
liberatedtrappingsof the heroinesof women'sf1lmsof the 1970s such
as TheTurningPoint(1977)orAn UnmarriedWoman(1978),remains
at homethroughoutmost of the film, exceptforduringher briefaflair
with a middle-agedbanker, Sam Burns, whom she meets at the
grocerystore.We see Emmainvolvedin the routinesof childcareand
domestic work in scene after scene: folding laundry, making the
children'sschoollunches,caring for a sick baby,putting the kids to
bed, seeing them off to school, visiting the paediatrician,making
dinner.Morethan any other kind of work,houseworkand childcare
are invisible,becausethey are performedby workerswho are isolated
in the home and because the work must be repeatedso often. It is
invisible in a cultural sense, since it is rarely representedanywhere
other than in television commercials(whichpurportto do away with
houseworkthrough the use of commoditygoods).The visibility of
women'severydayworkin Termsof Endearmentmay have given the
f1lma morerealistic look to its womenviewersthan its conventional
narrativewouldmakeit lookto male critics.Houseworkand childcare
64 FeministReview
are also two of the greatestproducersof stressin women'slives, as the

workof feministsociologistsAnn Oakley(1974)and HeidiHartmann
(1981) has shown. Terms of Endearmentnot only representsthe
routines of domestic work, but it also valorizes them through
associationwith the selfless,heroicandlovingEmma.
The film'speak dramaticconflictparallelsa serioussocialone:it
is the logicalresultof genderinequalityin the family.3Afterdevoting
herselfto the serviceof others,caringfor the home and the children
unassistedfor years, Emmadiscoversthat her husbandhas betrayed
her by movingthe entire familyto Nebraskaagainst Emma'swishes
(in orderto continuehis affairwith anotherwoman).All of Emma's
sacrificesappear,at this momentin the film, to be futile- even her
childrenare difficultandungrateful.Ratherthan offerany criticismof
the nuclearfamily,the film allowsEmmato leave it all behind,to quit
herjob,as it were.She discoversthat she is terminallyill andreceives,
on her deathbed,the full expressionof appreciationandloveforall she
has done. Throughher death, Emma is granteda status she never
enjoyedin life:the housewifeandmotheras martyr.
In its portrayalof primarylife changesand rites of passage for
women, in its depictionof everydaywork in the home, and in its
attentionto the problemsof a life devotedto servingothers,Termsof
Endearmentaddressessomevery real and poignantcontradictionsin
women'slives. The film's ending,howevermaudlinand masochistic,
must also be seen as offeringa kindof wish-fulfilment:
the grantingof
a particularlyvalorizedstatus to the heroinewhile allowingher to
relinquishher rolein the family.
The good mother

. . . stereotypes have what I refer to as a 'flexible range'. Essentially the
same stereotypecan be presented very starkly and blatantly or
relatively complexlyand 'realistically' . . . Aesthetic disputes about
whether or not a certain characterin a film is a 'stereotype'may concern
a relatively complexand 'realistic'version of a stereotype. This
flexibility is undoubtedlyimportantin maintaining credibility and
communicability.(Perkins, 1979:146)
The characterEmma Hortonin Termsof Endearmentincorporates

several stereotypesaboutwomen,both positive- goodmother,earth
mother,countrygirl - andnegative- dowdywife,motherwho'doesn't
keep herself up', nagging wife. The success of the characterization
derives,impart,fromthe actorDebraWinger'scareer-longassociation
with such roles,in Ellmssuch as UrbanCowboy(1980)andAn Officer
AndA Gentleman(1982),whereshe playsa down-to-earth countrygirl
who knows how to stand by her man. In Terms of Endearment,
Winger'srole is expandedto encompassmotherhood.The attributes
whichsignal the character'sstatus as a goodmotheralso increaseher
susceptibilityto exploitation.From the film's first scenes, Emma

exhibits the capacity to be emotionally accessible at all times to
everyone aroundher: mother, husband,best friend, children. Only
aftershe has contractedcancercan she be caredforby othersandvoice
her own demands. (Even on her deathbed she concerns herself
primarilywith whatwill happento her children.)
The main term of the stereotypeof the goodmotheris sacrifice.
The historicalmomentwhen this becamethe central feature of the
ideologyof motherhoodcan be tracedto the seventeenthcentury,as
Elizabeth Badinter has demonstrated.Reviewing the writing on
motherhoodin Europe,Badinterobserves:
As the maternal role gained in responsibilities, they repeatedly insisted,
in proportionatelylouder voices, that devotion was an integral part of
'feminine nature, and the surest source of her happiness'. If a woman did
not considerthis her calling, morality was called in to help, requiring her
self-sacrifice.This calamity must have been more commonthan anyone
wanted to admit, since by the end of the nineteenth century and the
beginning of the twentieth, motherhoodwas discussed only in terms of
suffering and sacrifice, omitting through either oversight or deliberate
neglect the promise of happiness that should 'naturally' have been the
result. (1981:232)
The stereotypeof the goodmotherinsists that the capacityforsacrifice

is innateto all women.
One of the ways in whichthe film establishesEmmaHortonas a
goodmotheris throughher associationwith 'naturalness'in speech,in
dress, in interpersonalstyle, in sexuality and, finally, in a direct
connexionto emotionallife. Emma Hortonspeaks with a southern-
rural accent. She neglects the artificial codesof fashion,dressing at
homein functional,men'sclothesin many scenes (flannelshirts, long
johns, heavy woollen socks).4She exhibits a lack of artifice in her
interpersonalrelationshipsby repeatedlytelling otherswhat is on her
mind and confrontingthem in searchof the truth. Her naturalnessis
further confirmedby her sexual desires, which are spontaneous,
frequent, easily satisfied, linked to procreation and therefore
'naturally'heterosexual.Termsof Endearment emphasizesEmma's
directconnexionto emotionallife and the happinessshe derivesfrom
simple pleasures:watching her son play in the yard, buying her
husband a present, receiving a hug from her mother. Emma's
happinessresultsfromher being'soeasy to please',as Flaptells her in
the hospital.
Even Emma'sextra-maritalafEairseemsto be an act of emotional
generosity,provingthat her capacityfor love is not limitedto family.
Sam Burnsis so lonelyandpatheticallyin love with Emma,as well as
being sexually deprived(since his own wife will no longermake love
with him), that Emmacouldscarcelyrefusehim, good-heartedas she
is. The scenes of love-makingbetween Emma and Sam Burns were
66 FeministReview
reportedlyedited out of the film, somethingwhich desexualizesthe

afEair,presentsit as a kindofcharitableact on Emma'spart.
Emma Horton's characterizationin Terms of Endearment
exemplifiesa 'relativelycomplex'versionof stereotyping- the kindof
stereotypewhich is widely recognizedas 'realistic'.T. E. Perkins's
essay, 'Re-ThinkingStereotypes'(1979), is extremely useful when
analysingstereotypesof womenand the extent to whichthey may be
thought of as ideological, that is, both erroneous and socially
motivated.5Perkins remindsus that the term stereotypeis usually
used to mean that a representationis simply false, but that this
negates the potentialpowerof stereotypesin socializationand as a
means of controllingrelationships.The notion that stereotypesare
erroneousis like arguing'thatthe social(that is, commonlyaccepted)
definitionsof you have no effecton you, in whichcase it wouldbe very
difficultto see how ideologyor socialisationworks at all' (Perkins,
1979:140).The strength of a stereotype,and its usefulness in the
processof socialization,are basedon three factors:'its simplicity;its
immediaterecognisability(whichmakes its communicativerole very
important);and its implicitreferenceto an assumedconsensusabout
some attribute or complexsocial relationships'(1979:141).Perkins
offers a useful outline of the systematicway in which stereotypes
distortsocialrelationships,while insistingthat their strengthlies in a
'combinationof validity and distortion'(1979:154).Cultural repre-
sentations (which usually employ stereotypes)may be much better
analysedusingPerkins'sdistinctionsbetweenwhatis true andfalse in
stereotypes,andher modelof howstereotypesfalsifysocialreality:
. . . stereotypes present interpretations of groupswhich conceal the 'real'
cause of the group'soppressedposition. Secondly,stereotypes are
selective descriptionsof particularly significant or problematicareas and
to that extent they are exaggerations. (1979:155)
Whatis ideological,then, aboutthe stereotypeof the goodmother

is the attributionof a particularset of characteristics- a capacityfor
nurturance,attentivenessto the psychologicaland emotionalstates of
others,willingnessto sacrificeone'sowndesiresforthe needsof others
- to woman'snature.Accordingto the stereotype,mostwomenareborn
with the talent for mothering: it is not learned. In Terms of
Endearment,Emmabeginsto exhibitnurturingbehaviouras a child,
while her mother, Aurora,behaves in a selfish, childish fashion.
Stereotypesof good mothers obscurethe fact that the capacityfor
motheringis learnedby girls in the nuclearfamily as a result of the
sexual division of labour.The social organizationof the family, in
which women take primaryresponsibilityfor childcareand for the
family's psychologicaland emotionalneeds, will tend to reproduce
girls whoarebetterat motheringthanboys.
Thestereotypeof the goodmotheris a distortionbecauseit defines
the practiceof motheringin terms of characteristicswhich are not
Stereotypesin Film 67
essential to the care of childrenbut which are essential to a social

orderin which womenserve men, care for their material needs (the
reproductiveworkof shopping,cooking,cleaning,etc.) as well as their
emotionalones, and in which womenare heterosexual,monogamous
and sexually availableto the men they care for. Manyfeaturesof the
good mother stereotype(such as chastity, self-sacrifice,cleanliness,
obedience)are in fact characteristicsof the good wife in traditional
marriage,wherethe wife has very little social power.The stereotype
confirmsthe belief that women must motherbecausethey have the
innate capacityto do so. Whatis absentfromthe stereotype- what it
distorts- is the factthat childcarehas a very low status in oursociety.
As M. Rivka Polatnickhas persuasivelyargued,one of the reasons
that men do not rear childrenin our societyis becauseso little social
power is attachedto it: 'Women'sresponsibilityfor children in the
context of the nuclear family is an important buttress for a
male-dominatedsociety. It helps keep womenout of the runningfor
economicand political power' (1983:20).In Terms of Endearment,
Emma'szeal forthe role of mother(she tells Flapon their honeymoon,
'I hope I get pregnant tonight') obscuresthe fact that she has no
discernibleoptions:no money of her own, no skills or education,no
experienceof working.WhenFlapdecidesto moveto Nebraska,Emma
says that she does not knowwhy she stays with him exceptthat 'he's
cute'. Such an explanationobscureswhat little choiceshe has in the
situation,shortof movingbackhomewith her mother.
The film insists that work in the home is the only natural and
morallycorrectrole forwomenby bringingEmmainto contactwith a
group grossly stereotyped as 'career women'. (The film used a
stereotypeherethat was so blatantthat even favourablereviewsof the
film took note of it.) After the doctorinforms Emma that she has
cancer,she visits her best friend,Patsy,whois nowliving in New York
City. Patsy introducesEmmato three of her city friends,womenwho
are visibly shockedwhen Emmatells them, 'I never really worked'.
Emma'splain clothes and lack of make-upcontrastsharplywith the
women'shigh-fashionlookand affectedspeech.Realizingthat she has
been patronizedby the womenbecauseshe is a traditionalwife and
mother,Emmavents the full furyof her moralrectitude:
Whydothosewomenhaveto act like that?In less thantwohourstwoof
themtoldme that theyhadhadabortions.Threeof themtoldme they
weredivorced.Oneof themhasn'ttalkedto hermotherin fouryenars and
that onehas herlittle Nataliein a boardingschoolbecauseshe has to
travelforherjob?!!I meanhell, Patsy!Oh,the onewiththe yeast
disease,she has vaginalherpes.If that'sfit conversationforlunch,
what'sso godawfulterribleaboutmy little tumors?
Careerwomen(the only womenin the film besidesAurora'sservant

whoworkoutsidethe home)are identifiedas heartless,unstable,even
diseased - but the commonfeature on EmmaXslist of their moral
68 FeministReview
-.Xt
deficienciesis their lack of commitmentto a husband,to the nuclear

family. The laudatorystereotypeof the 'goodmother'relies on the
pejorativestereotypeof the 'careerwoman'in delimiting women's
roles.
Emma'smotheringdiffersradicallyfromthe behaviourand the
attitudes of her own mother. Emma is shocked when her mother
suggests she have an abortionratherthan face a third pregnancyin
the midst of maritaland financialproblems.WhenEmma'sdaughter
Melanieis bornshe is the envy of all the womenshe knows,includillg
her mother. Emma does not learn how to mother, it comes to her
instinctively. It is a natural process, like pregnancy itself (not
somethingshe acquiresfromexperiencewith her own mother).Thus
mothering,a socially learned function,is equated in the stereotype
with pregnancy,a biologicalone.Womenwhodo not motheraccording
to the norms set by the stereotypeof the good mother are deemed
unnatural.One of the most perniciousthings aboutthe goodmother
stereotypeis how it has affectedreal motherswho may suffer from
tremendousguilt, or who may have their childrentaken away from
them by the state if they do not meet the standard.The idolatryof the
naturalmotherhas had,by andlarge,a damagingeffecton women,as
Eva FederKittayexplains:
. . . the gifts of maternal nature are for men: periodsof romanticism have
not been periods in which women have made advances toward autonomy.
In idealizing the maternal aspects of women, men reduce the full scope of
woman'shuman capabilities to her reproductivefunctions;by
sentimentalizing an ideal mother, men can vent their envious anger on
the actual woman who fails to meet the measure ofthe idea. (1983:106)
In the relationshipsbetween the laudatorystereotypeof the good

motherandpejorativestereotypesof careerwomenthe roleof ideology
can mostclearlybe seen.
Thetermsof women'sstereotypes
A stereotype will probablydevelop about a groupbecause it has, or is
presenting, a problem(forexample, changing status, difficult but central
relationship, and so on). Consequentlymost stereotypes do concern
oppressedgroups (because a dominant group'sposition is relatively
stable and unproblematic).(Perkins, 1979:147)
Perkinssuggeststhat the positiveor negativeevaluationinvolvedin a

stereotypewill be determinedby the interestsof the dominantgroups
in society.Black stereotypesupholdwhite supremacy;stereotypesof
the pooror the workingclass presentthese groupsas inherentlyless
intelligent than the upperclasses,therebyjustifyingthe social order.
Stereotypes of women evaluate characteristics based on their
desirabilityvis-a-vis men. I have arguedthat the stereotypeof the
goodmotherhas muchmoreto dowith women'srelationshipto men in
marriage,and to roles in the nuclearfamily,than it doesto the strict
requirementsof childcare.If we imaginethe characterEmmaHorton
as a single mother on welfare, we may see how rapidly her status
changes and how similar characteristicsare evaluatednegatively in
the stereotype 'welfare mother'. The class-bound nature of the
stereotypebecomesclear. Devotionto childrenon a full-time basis
couldbe taken as lazinessandthe avoidanceof workingforpay;lackof
70 Feminist
Review
skills and educationcouldbe taken as stupidity;her 'country'accent

couldconnotebeinga 'hick',a hillbilly;her lack of interestin fashion
could suggest slovenliness; her sexual drive could be seen as
promiscuous.In stereotypes,the same characteristicsare evaluated
differently depending on the status of the group involved. Most
stereotypesdefinewomenin termsof their relationshipsto men.They
are ideological in that, in general, what is good for men (for
maintaininga systemof genderinequality)is presentedas laudatory,
and what is inconvenient,or conflict-producing,is presented as
objectionable.
In Terms of EndearmentAurora Greenway,Emma's mother,
presentsa problematicfigure becauseshe is unmarried.Throughout
the film, Auroracreatesdisruptions.The film'snarrativecan be seen
as the processof recuperatingAurorainto a 'normal'relationshipwith
a man within a family. The story redeemsAuroraas a mother at
preciselythe same time that it redeemsher as a woman,by finally
replacingher withinthe familyas onewhocaresforchildren.Thef1lm
accomplishesits sympathetic evaluation of the character Emma
througha negativecomparisonto AuroraGreenway.The tendencyto
dichotomizefemalefiguresin this way has a long culturalhistory(for
example,Christiantheologywith its comparisonof the VirginMaryto
MaryMagdalene,andto all mortalwomen),andhas been analysedby
manyfeministwriterssinceSimonede Beauvoir.Womenin film have
been representedaccordingto a series of oppositionsembeddedin the
narrative:virgin/whore,goodgirl/badgirl, goodmother/badmother.
Despitethe seemingdiversityof the charactersEmmaand Aurorain
TermsofEndearment,the representationsrunparallel,andin striking
contrast,throughoutthe film: (see right).
Whiie this list comprisesthose aspects of the characterization
specificto Termsof Endearment,many of these terms can be seen at
work in other cultural representationswhich dichotomizefemale
figures.Lookingat the list we may noticethat many of the opposing
terms are frequentlyused, in a value-laden way, to characterize
women, but are rarely used to characterizemen. We do not, for
instance, tend to pay attention to men's marital status, fertility,
temperament,observanceof fashionor sexual partnersto nearly the
sameextentthat we dowomen's.Thecomparisonof Emma'sdowdiness
to Aurora'snarcissismexemplifseswhatRolandBartheshas described
as 'neither-norism',where a normativemeaning is workedout by
opposingtwo alternatives and revealing both to be unsatisfactory
(1983:143).Standardsof physical appearancefor women present a
particularly contradictorycultural demand, tantamount to the
classic-doublebind.
On the other hand, attributeswhich contributeto a pejorative
characterizationof Aurora Greenwayare often given a laudatory
connotationin representationsof men.Forinstance,we expectmen as
breadwinnersto concernthemselveswith materialgoods.Rebellious-
ness is frequentlyassociatedwith maleheroes.Beingeducatedor from
Stereotypes
inFilm 71
Emma Aurora
PROCREATIVE MENOPAUSAL
MARRIED SINGLE
DOWN-TO-EARTH PRETENTIOUS
Use of slangandprofanity, Educatedspeech,Bostonblue-blood
country-ruralaccent,livingin background, overconcern with
Midwest etiquette,puttingon airs,prudish
DOWDY NARCISSISTIC
Unconcernwithfashion,no Worryoverappearance,
make-up,unstyledhair,wearing overdressed,fussingwithher
men'sclothesandsocks, clothes,choiceofextremely
unglamorous feminineoutfits:flounces,voile,low
necklines,elaboratelystyledhair
(whichcauseshumiliationwhenshe
losesherhairpiece)
OBEDIENT REBELLIOUS
Doesnotdisplayanger,doesnot Angry,hystericaloutbursts,insults
questionhusband,followshimto men,openlycontemptuous of men,
IowaandNebraska manipulative,abrasive,
. . .
wlsecracKlng
SEXUALLY RECEPTIVE SEXUALLY INHIBITED

Sex forprocreation(naturally Sexuallyunavailableto men,
heterosexual),spontaneous(desire avoidingmen'stouch,angry
for'quickies'),
sexuallyavailable responseto beingfondledby
(asksFlap,'Howcanyou . . . make Breedlove,musthavelightsoffto
me wetjust like that?'),sex as makelove,celibateformanyyears
wholesomefun(makingloveto and,by implication,frigid
musicalshowtunes),orgasmic
PRIMACYOF EMOTIONAL PRIMACYOF MATERIAL
LIFE GOODS
Marryingforlovenotmoneyor Concernwith appearances(her
status,opencommunication, daughter's,herhome)ratherthan
unflaggingnurturanceofothers, comfort,concernwithpossessions
sentimental (Renoirpainting)ratherthanpeople
(hergrandchildren),
'hatesto part
withmoney',objectsto Emma's
marriagebecauseofFlap'slackof
wealthandstatus
SELF-SACRIFICIAL SELFISH
Puttingthe needsofothersfirst Puttingherownneedsfirst
HAPPY CROSS
Close-upsofEmmasmiling, Close-upsofAurorafrowning,
relaxed:onphone,in bed,watching grimacing,angry:onphone,in
herchildren,scenesofEmma conversationswithothers,at dinner
laughing party
72 Feminist
Review
an upper-classbackgroundis oftenpositivelyassociatedwith men,but

with women it takes on the meaning of pretentiousness,being
superior,being uppity.It also means somethingvery differentfor a
man to frown,to appearangryor to raise his voicethan it does for a
woman.Whena mandoesnot smile,we donot tendto evaluatethis as
being cross, but rather as being serious.Many of Emma's'positive'
characteristics- obedience,emotionalvulnerability,selflessness- are
present in stereotypesabout men but receive, however,a negative
evaluation:the wimp,the sissy, the hen-peckedhusband,the guy who
lets himself be pushed around.Perkins describesthe relationship
betweenmaleandfemalestereotypesthis way:
Stereotypesofpariahgroupsmaybe unambiguously pejorative,butthe
pejorativenessoffemalestereotypesis concealedsincetheymustresolve
the specificcontradictions
ofwomen'sposition.Hencethe stereotype
presentsfemalecharacteristics as desirable,forwomen,andmasculine
characteristicsas undesirable.(1979:158)
Perkinscites the trait 'intelligence'as an exampleof howsomethingis

shownto be undesirableby excludingintelligent womenfrombeing
mothers (as with the career woman) or from sexuality (the
bluestocking).
In Termsof Endearmentthese characteristicsare embeddedin a
narrativewhichproblematizesAurora'smothering.The film belongs,
in many respects, to the genre of the maternal melodrama.6One
examplefromHollywood'sclassic period,Stella Dallas, has received
considerable attention from feminist critics, and bears some
resemblanceto Termsof Endearment.E. Ann Kaplanhas arguedthat
Stella Dallas
. . . violatesthe patriarchalmythofthe self-abnegating
mother,whois
supposedto be completelydevotedandnurturingbutnotto satisfyany
ofherneedsthroughthe relationshipwithherchild.Sheis somehow
supposedto keepherselfapartwhilegivingeverythingto the child;she
is certainlynotsupposedto preferthe childto the husband,sincethis
kindofbondingthreatenspatriarchy.(1983a:84)
Like Stella Dallas, AuroraGreenwayis condemnedfor wanting too

much from Emma, as opposedto the neglectful mother who is
condemnedfor abandoningthe child, as in Kramer vs. Kramer.
Mothersprovidea goodexampleof a groupoccupyinga 'diffilcultbut
central position' about whom stereotypes will arise. Individual
mothersare supposedto take sole responsibilityfora child'sphysical,
emotional,psychologicaland social developmentand to do so with
little support from other individuals or, to a large extent, from
institutions.In culturalrepresentations,mothersalternatelyseem to
mothertoomuch(becoming'overbearing') or not enough.Themother's
role in societyis so full of strains and contradictionsthat individuals
Stereotypes
inFilm 73
find it impossible to meet the demands adequately. Stereotypes

increasethe real mother'sfeelings of guilt and anxiety by presenting
mothers as being selfish, either for mothering too much, or for
motheringtoo little. In the stereotype,this is judgedas the failureof
individual women rather than a sign of the strain inherent in
motheringas a socialposition.
In the film'sfirst five sequences,TermsofEndearmentdramatizes
the common complaints of the daughter against the mother,
identifying,as it leaps forwardin time, the kinds of conflictdescribed
in Nancy Friday'sbestsellerMy Mother,My Self. The first pre-titles
sequenceestablishes Aurora'smotheringas neurotic.The screen is
black except for a child'snight light visible in the lower right-hand
cornerof the screen.In voiceoverwe hear a man anda womanarguing
(Auroraandher husbandRudyard- his onlypresencein the film).The
man'svoice- the voiceof reason- argues:'Honey,it's not goodforyou
to be checkingon the babyevery five minutesimaginingone terrible
thing after another.'Auroraenters the room,flicks on the overhead
light, comesup to the criband tries to climbinto it. In close-upwe see
her lean overthe babyand pinchher armuntil she beginsto cry. 'Oh,
good,that'sbetter,'Aurorasays, walkingbrisklyout of the room.The
positionsare drawn:the motheris selfishandimmature,even sadistic,
the daughteris the victimreceivingunwelcomeattention- nagging-
insteadof love. In the next scene,whichtakes place after the father's
funeral,AurorapretendsmaternalconcernforEmmawhen she wants
to be taken care of herself (the film'smother-daughterrole reversal).
Emmamust try to take care of her motherat the same time as she
suffersher mother'sincessantfussing:'Whatare we goingto do about
this hair?'Aurorarepeatedlyasks. In the sceneof adolescence,Aurora
adjustsEmma'sbra straps for her, nags her about cominghome on
time, ignores Emma's best friend. In the film's fourth sequence,
Aurora'styranny and thoughtlessnessare confirmed.She informs
Emmaon the night beforeher weddingto Flapthat she will not attend
the ceremony,predictingthat the marriagewill 'ruinyourdestinyand
make wretched your days' (an observationwhich turns out to be
correct).
The terms of pejorativestereotypesof mothershave to do with
specificactivitieswhich are expectedof all mothers.The problemhas
to do with the frequencyof such attentionsto the child:the neglectful
motherdoesthem too rarelyor not at all, the overbearingmotherdoes
them too much.Mothers'positionsas authorityfiguresare especially
problematic.Theyare expectedto teachthe childwhat s/he must know
in orderto functionin society,yet childrendo not find a great deal of
confirmationof women'sknowledge,wisdomor status in the societyas
a whole. The mother-daughterrelationshipis particularlytroubled
because part of the mother'ssocializationof the child consists of
teachingher daughtera systemof genderinequalityin a societywhich
purportsto be egalitarian.The mother'sattention to the daughter's
appearance and her restriction of the daughter's activities, for
74 FeministReview
example,may be sourcesof considerableresentment.The tendency

towardsmother-blaming-evidentin manydifferentculturalforms,as
diverseas the film TermsofEndearmentandthe bestsellerMyMother,
My Self (Friday,1977)- fails to recognizethe way that mothersare
requiredto fulf1la socializingfunction.JudithArcanaexplains:
Any society preparesits children to performthe tasks expected of adults
- the forms our mothers teach us are those of contemporarywomen's
roles - they are not, as we so often assume, the specificideas, designs and
purposesof our mothers.The job of mothers is to preparetheir children to
maintain society as it is,sothey perpetuate their own situation.
(1979:53-4)
In Terms of Endearment,Aurora'sbehaviour towards Emma is

presentedas a result of her personality(aggressive,self1sh)rather
than her socialrole.
The mother-in-lawstereotypelogically extends the overbearing
mother stereotype. Its popularity attests to the extent to which
mothers-in-laware perceivedas conflict-producing in our society;its
crudityattests to the degradedstatus of mothers-in-lawas a group.
Theymay, in fact,be one of the few 'pariahgroups'in whichmembers
can be white, middle class and heterosexual.The problemof the
mother-in-lawis inherentin the positionof all mothersin a society
where they are expected to relinquish their rights over children
literally overnight.The situationtakes its most aggravatedformin
the relationshipbetweena motherand her son-in-law(jokeson this
subjectare the stock-in-tradeof stand-upcomedians).The stereotype
devaluesthe counselmothersofferto marrieddaughters,holdingit up
as an objectof ridicule.Thismasksthe factthat the mother'sinfluence
frequentlythreatensthe husband'sauthorityoverhis wife. Anything
whichthe mother-in-lawdoesor says is interference,accordingto the
stereotype,and an invasionof the husband'srightto privacy;it has no
status as the sharingof knowledgeandexperience- hence,'oldwives'
tale'.The absenceof a correspondingly strongfather-in-lawstereotype
is very signif1cant:men rarely have primary responsibility for
parenting in the first place, and they typically maintain some
authorityand control(ofteneconomic,throughinheritance)overtheir
childrenaftermarriage,thereforetheirpositionis less tension-ridden.
By the time AuroraGreenwaybecomesa mother-in-lawin Terms
ofEndearmentshe has beenso thoroughlydiscreditedas a motherthat
her status is doublydegraded.Her repeated'interfering'- telephone
calls whichinterruptEmmaandFlapat momentsof greatestintimacy
- is not even based on sincere, selfless concern for Emma.
Mother-in-lawjokes, then, provide the f1lm's primary source of
comedy.The humoroustreatmentof generationalconflictis centralto
the genre and to situationcomedyin particular;it providesTermsof
Endearmentwith relief from an otherwise typically melodramatic
story. Aurora'sawkwardadjustmentto middle age is targeted for
Stereotypes
inFilm 75
comic treatment as well; her hysterical outbursts are played as

slapstick.WhenEmmaannouncesthat she is pregnantwith her first
child (at a dinnerpartyat her mother'shouse),Auroratrembleswith
rage, yelling, 'Why should I be happy about being a grandmother!'
Emma'shusband laughingly retorts, 'Does this mean you won't be
knitting the baby any booties?',to which everyone at the table
explodes with laughter. Aurora is correct in surmising that the
'grandmotherknittingbabybooties'is not a socialstatus to be envied,
but her inappropriateresponse to Emma's announcementsimply
confirmsher selfishness - her sin against 'natural'mothering.The
conflictbetweenmotherandson-in-lawcontinuesthroughoutTermsof
Endearment,culminatingin the disputeover custodyof the children
after Emma's death. In an extremely ambiguousending, Flap is
punishedforhis sexual infidelityby losinghis children;Aurora'wins'
by gainingthe chanceto devoteherself- onceagain- to mothering.
Social effects and sexual causes

Whena woman'sgota husbandandyou'vegot none,whyshouldshe take
advicefromyou,evenif youhavereadBalzacandShakespeareandall
themotherhigh-falutin'Greeks!(MeredithWillson,TheMusicMan)
T. E. Perkinssuggeststhat the primaryway stereotypesfunctionis by
invertingcauseandeffect.Stereotypesaboutblacks,forexample,refer
to differencesin educationallevels between blacks and whites. The
complex and deeply entrenched factors which keep blacks from
succeedingin a white-dominatededucationalsystem- an effect of
their subordinatepositionin a racist societyis representedin the
stereotypeas a single, racialcharacteristic:blacksare less intelligent
than whites. Black stereotypes attempt to explain and to justify
obvious inequalities in a society whose ofElcialideology is racial
equality. Perkins uses the example of the 'irrational, illogical,
inconsistent (female logic) stereotype' to explain this ideological
process.The housewife'sjob demandsthat a womandevelopa variety
of skills but that she be ableto changeskills very rapidlyandthat she
shift attentionfromone task to the next frequently.The most obvious
exampleof this is the case of housekeepingperformedsimultaneously
with childcare,where the housewifemust be constantlyattentive to
the child'sneedswhile she cooks,cleans,doesthe laundryandso on:
Whatthe stereotypedoesis to identifythis featureofthe woman'sjob
situation,placea negativeevaluationon it, andthenestablishit as an
innatefemalecharacteristic, thus invertingits statusso that it becomes
a causeratherthanan effect.It is thesefeaturesof stereotypeswhich
explainwhystereotypesappearto be false- indeed,arefalse.Thepoint
is to identifytheirvalidity,becausethe strengthof stereotypeslies in
this combinationofvalidityanddistortion.(Perkins,1979:154)
76 FeministReview
The flightiness that is associatedwith women in the female logic

stereotypeis, in fact, a desirablecharacteristicfor those who must
performthe job of housewife. In the stereotype it is negatively
evaluated,ascribedto natureandusedtojustifywomen'sunsuitability
to otherkindsoflabour.
Thisinversionof causeandeffectoperatesin the stereotypesfound
in Termsof Endearmentas well. In the characterization of Emmaas a
goodmotherwe see how the fact that womenmother- an effectof a
long processof socializationin the familyand outsideof it - is turned
into a cause:womenmother'naturally'thereforethey, and only they,
must mother. The same distortionlies behind both the pejorative
stereotype(which presents the bad mother as unnatural)and the
positive stereotype(whichpraisesthe goodmotherfor fulfilling her
naturaldestiny).
Women'ssexuality is usually representedin stereotypesas the
cause of a characteristicor set of characteristicswhich may be
positively or negatively evaluated. Thus, Emma's procreative
heterosexualityis seen as the sourceof her happiness,the reasonshe is
'soeasy to please'.Women'sessence,theirverybeing,is usuallytied to
sexuality, somethingwhich obscuresthe social consequencesfor a
womanof choosingnot to identifywith a man.In Termsof Endearment
Aurora'saberrantbehaviouris explainedin the narrativeas the result
of her sexuality:she is frigid.Her hystericaloutburstsare causedby
her lack of sexual fulfilment, are not the result of her rage and
frustrationat being patronizedand confrontedby men, or of being
powerlessin a society which devaluesmenopausalwomen.Aurora's
attemptsto gain controlare presentedas a kind of lunaticimpotence.
In every scene which might convey her independenceas a single
mother,the filmproblematizesher lack of a sexualrelationshipwith a
man. Finally,her affairwith GarrettBreedlove(whotreatsall women
as sexualobjects)'cures'herof herover-mothering, her selfishness,her
hystericalbehaviour.Throughsexualexperienceshe gainsmaturity.
In the first half of the film Auroraobsessivelystrivesforcontrol-
over Emmaand everyonearoundher;it is not until she relinquishes
controlin her relationshipwith Breedlovethat she becomesa Real
Woman,a sympatheticcharacter.The overbearingAurora(whohas
expressednothingbut contemptfor men until this point in the film)
finallyrevealshervulnerability.'I'ma mothto flame,'she tells Emma,
crying,'I never thoughtI wouldstart to need him.'Sexual fulfilment
for Aurora means that she finally assumes the position of
(monogamous) dependencyon a man.The notionthat this is the only
morallycorrectand psychologicallyhealthy positionfor a womanin
society is what motivates the presentation of sexuality in all
stereotypesaboutwomen.AdrienneRich describesthis as 'the lie of
compulsoryfemaleheterosexuality':
Thelie is manylayered.InWesterntradition,onelayer- the romantic-
assertsthat womenareinevitably,evenif rashlyandtragically,drawn
to men; that even when that attraction is suicidal (e.g. Tristanund

Isolde,Kate Chopin'sTheAwakening)it is still an organic imperative. In
the tradition of the social sciences it asserts that primary love between
the sexes is 'normal',that women needmen as social and economic
protectors,for adult sexuality, and for psychologicalcompletion;that the
heterosexually constituted family is the basic social unit; that women
who do not attach their primary intensity to men must be, in functional
terms, condemnedto an even more devastating outsiderhoodthan their
outsiderhoodas women. (1980:657)
Thepowerfulpresenceof this ideologyin filmandtelevisionnarratives

- whichhave obsessivelydealt with heterosexualromancethroughout
theirhistory- is obvious.
In the novelon whichTermsofEndearmentis based(a segmentof
which originally ran in Playboy magazine), the character Aurora
Greenwaybecomessexually involvedwith a neighbourbecause she
can no longeraffordto maintainher house.Frigidityplays no part in
the characterization.Thefilm'sdirectorJamesL. Brooksexplainedthe
significanceof Aurora,as a 'womanabout 50', and her affair with
Breedlove,this way:'I wantedto say somethingoptimisticaboutthat
groupof womenin this country.I really did. And the way to do that
was with a romance you could believe' (Brooks, 1984:22). The
optimisticsolutionofferedby Termsof Endearmentis the sexualiza-
tion of the middle-aged Aurora. Certainly this can contribute
significantlyto the film'sappealto women.As TerryLovell(1981:52)
has suggested about soap opera, the sexualization of middle-aged
womencan functionas a refusal of the ageist depreciationof women
who do not resemblethe imagesof beautywhichpermeatethe media.
Enthusiasmin the mediaforthoseaspectsof women'sliberationwhich
concentrateon sexual fulfilmentin isolation from the demandsfor
social and economicequality,however,does not necessarilyserve the
interestsof women.The sexual codeto whichAurorasubscribesat the
beginning of Terms of Endearmentis part of a defensive strategy
which was articulatedby many feministsin the nineteenth century,
who 'arguedthat sexualityneededto be controlledby womenin order
to bring men underthe same standardof sexual moralityas women,
thus eliminating the double standard'(Ferguson,1983:169).Under
'liberated'standards,womenmay be labelledrepressedor frigidwhen
they do not complywith the sexual desires of men. (This is precisely
what happenswith Aurora'sfirst suitorin the film, EdwardJohnson.)
Sexual liberationper se doesnot necessarilyentail a gain in powerfor
some women, just as Aurora Greenway'safEairdoes not entail a
liberation.The explanatorypowergiven to frigidityin the narrativeis
what makesit so pernicious.Aurorais a badmotherbecauseshe is not
in a sexual relationshipwith a man. After her affairwith Breedlove,
she stops calling on the phone,she stops nagging Emma,she learns
howto loveher daughterin an acceptableway.
The explanatorypower given to sexuality in stereotypesabout
78 FeministReview
womenwho are black,Asian and Latinois muchmoreinsidious.By

typing most women who are not white as promiscuous,or more
'natural',and thereforecompelledby sexual desire, the stereotypes
present them as lacking in self-control,thereforejustifying their
oppressedpositionand their abuse by (oftenwhite) men. Feminists
have long recognizedthe crucialrole that men's controlof women's
sexuality plays in the oppressionof women. The definitive part
sexualityplaysin stereotypesaboutwomenis to be expected:
Theinversionof effectintocauseis the primarymeansof conceptually
resolvingthe contradictioninvolved,forexample,in the socialisationof
oppressedgroups.However,it canbecomea causeonlybecauseit makes
ideologicalsense.Thecontentof stereotypesis notarbitrary(norare
theyinterchangeable). Stereotypesareselectivedescriptions- they
selectthosefeatureswhichhaveparticularideologicalsignificance.
(Perkins,1979:156)
Conclusion
Audiencerating:
Primarilyforwomenofall ages;butnominationsandawardsbroaden
the film'srangeto includeall whomightotherwiserefuseto accompany
sweetheartsandwives.
Businessprediction: Verygoodin selectedmid-to up-marketpopular
cinemas.(ScreenInternationcgl,10 March1984)
Every indication is that Terms of Endearmentproved to be an

enormously pleasurable experience for its mostly white and
middle-classaudience.Mencouldreadthe filmas a domesticcomedy,a
screwballbattle-of-the-sexes. Womencouldenjoythe humourand the
satisfactionof seeing a film deal with some of the most emotionally
chargedand conflict-riddenaspects of everydaylife. The narrative
focuson a mother-daughter relationshipis itself a significantbreak
with the notionthat women are alwaysmoreinterestedin men than
they are in eachother.But the film also revealsthe way that ideology
toucheson the mostpersonalaspectsof our lives:how we think about
our children,our mothers,ourselves,our sexuality,our very thought
processes. While this seems more conspicuousin some cultural
representations(advertising,forinstance)than in others,it remainsa
powerful force through stereotyping even in relatively complex,
'realistic'representationslike Termsof Endearment.As feminists,we
needto understandthe powerof suchrepresentationsandthe pleasure
of recognition they offer women, as well as the distortions,
exaggerationsandreversalsinvolved.Wemusttry to understandwhat
motivateslaudatoryand pejorativestereotypes;we must think hard
abouttheir effecton the way we see otherwomenand the way we see
ourselves.
Stereotypes
inFilm 79
Notes
EllenSeiterteachesfWllm
andtelevisionat the Universityof Oregon,USA.
I am indebtedto ChristineGledhill,whosevaluablearticle'Developmentsin
FeministFilm Criticism'greatlyinfluencedmy thinkingand broughtto my
attentionthe workofTessaPerkins.
Termsof Endearment(1983).Produced,directedandscreenplayby James
L. Brooks, with Debra Winger, Shirley MacLaine,Jack Nicholson.
ParamountPictures.
2 For a discussionof how womenfromdifferentclass backgroundsshare
similar mother-daughterconflicts,see Arcana(1979), Rich (1980) and
Robinson(1976). Melodramassuch as Terms of Endearmentare so
overwhelminglywhite, that it wouldbe ridiculousto speculateon any
appealto blackwomen.But in its predominantTV form,the soapopera,
melodramacapturesa substantialblackaudience.
3 The politicaland psychologicalimpactof the separationbetweenpublic
andprivateis discussedby Chodorow (1978)andZaretsky(1976).
4 Cross-dressingtakes on radically different connotationswhen the
characteris notcodedas heterosexual,oris male,see Dyer(1980).
5 Thispaperhas beenstronglyinfluencedby ChristineGledhill'sinvaluable
overviewof feministfilm criticism(1984),to whichI am indebtedforthe
referenceto T. E. Perkins'swork.
6 See Kaplan(1983a)and Williams(1984)fora discussionof the maternal
melodrama.
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Feminism and Ideology: The “Terms” of Women's Stereotypes

Article in Feminist Review · September 1987

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Terms of Endearmentl belongs to a cycle of quality family melodramas

FeministReview No 22, February1986

discussionsabout mothers and daughters.Recently, a mother and

This articlebringstogethercontemporary feministresearchfrom

Althusser's 'appropriationof the categories of experience and

This definitionhas particularusefulnessforfeministcriticism,since it

and housework,the sexual desire of middle-agedwomen.Feminist

Termsof Endearmentfollowsmorethan thirtyyears in the lives of its

pregnancy,childbirth,separationfrom the other, marital problems

are also two of the greatestproducersof stressin women'slives, as the

The good mother

The characterEmma Hortonin Termsof Endearmentincorporates

susceptibilityto exploitation.From the film's first scenes, Emma

The stereotypeof the goodmotherinsists that the capacityforsacrifice

reportedlyedited out of the film, somethingwhich desexualizesthe

Whatis ideological,then, aboutthe stereotypeof the goodmother

essential to the care of childrenbut which are essential to a social

Careerwomen(the only womenin the film besidesAurora'sservant

deficienciesis their lack of commitmentto a husband,to the nuclear

In the relationshipsbetween the laudatorystereotypeof the good

Perkinssuggeststhat the positiveor negativeevaluationinvolvedin a

skills and educationcouldbe taken as stupidity;her 'country'accent

SEXUALLY RECEPTIVE SEXUALLY INHIBITED

an upper-classbackgroundis oftenpositivelyassociatedwith men,but

Perkinscites the trait 'intelligence'as an exampleof howsomethingis

Like Stella Dallas, AuroraGreenwayis condemnedfor wanting too

find it impossible to meet the demands adequately. Stereotypes

example,may be sourcesof considerableresentment.The tendency

In Terms of Endearment,Aurora'sbehaviour towards Emma is

comic treatment as well; her hysterical outbursts are played as

Social effects and sexual causes

The flightiness that is associatedwith women in the female logic

to men; that even when that attraction is suicidal (e.g. Tristanund

Thepowerfulpresenceof this ideologyin filmandtelevisionnarratives

womenwho are black,Asian and Latinois muchmoreinsidious.By

Every indication is that Terms of Endearmentproved to be an

ELSAESSER, Thomas (1973)'Talesof Soundand Fury:Observationson the

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