Randolf C.

Cabugawan
A16 - GED109

1. Who is the main character in the film? Describe him/her. Make sure that you will
include the following details:
● The main character was transgender Lili Elbe, born as a male named
Einar Wegener; I assume her to be in her mid-thirties in the movie
since it was never specified how old she was. She was a renowned
landscape artist and was struggling with infertility in the early stages of
the film.

2. What happened to the main character? What do you think is the main reason?
What are the triggering factors that led to his changes?
● Lili, the main character of the story, finally decided to emerge as the
story progressed. The emergence began when Gerda, Einar
Wegener’s wife, asked Einar to put on a dress that Gerda will paint
Ulla in later in the day, which then allowed Lili to realize her true self
from within Einar.

3. Do you think that the main character has a psychological issue? How did you say
so?
● Initially, I believed that Einar had something called multiple identity
disorder, but that was not the case. In the movie, it felt like Lili was
trapped in the guise of “Einar.” Wherein Einar was just a disguise so
that Lili could survive in society, be seen as normal, and be accepted
in society.

4. Using some theories discussed in the class, explain what happened to the main
character.
● Lili truly realized that she is a woman, and due to the chemical
imbalance within her body, her body began rejecting the male body
she was in. She was an individual with underdeveloped female
organs. Therefore she was considered to be a Hermaphrodite.

5. Are you in favor of gender reassignment? Why or why not?

● I am in favor of Lili’s decision to undergo a gender reassignment
operation. Biologically speaking, the body was rejecting Lili, creating a
chemical imbalance within her body, hurting her in the process. As a
way to fully express who she was as a woman.

6. What are your learning insights after watching the film? Give at least three.
● I initially knew that homosexuality was frowned upon during the 1920s,
but I did not think that it was frowned upon to the point of assaulting
people who were homosexuals. Thankfully in today’s generation, there
is less of that. Although unfortunately it still exists, at least there is less
of it. Additionally, something like Lili’s condition was way ahead of its
time; it was very subtle and challenging to identify save for some
professionals like Professor Warnekross. Although the operation
ended in Lili’s death due to possible complications, it was still a
breakthrough for the gender reassignment operation. Lastly, being a
homosexual is not only primarily occur psychologically, it is not a
sickness like how people treated it in the film. It is biological in the
sense, that they know who they are within. They know their true
selves.