Male Fantasy In The Big Sleep And High Noon

The American male fantasy is one that is often portrayed by the heroes in the books and films we watch. They tend to be strong, moral and exciting characters that men look up to. Therefore, these texts carry a lot of weight in terms of the reflection of society and the male perspective on life. Using the novel The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler and the film High Noon directed by Fred Zinnemann, this paper will argue that there are certainly element within the texts that both support and counter the claim that the pervasive American male fantasy is life without women.give the audience contrasting portrayals of female characters and give us a look into how the male characters and heroes view and react to these women. Carmen and Vivian Sternwood represent archetypal women who are portrayed as weak and subordinate to the male characters. Philip Marlowe is a morally string detective who takes great pride in his work and is loyal to his boss, General Sternwood. Chandler and Zinnemann have contrasting female characters in their respective texts who use their femininity in different ways to accomplish different objectives. The texts also …show more content…
As Rzepka examines her in relation to Marlowe’s virtuous characteristics he states that, “…she cannot abandon the ideals of fealty, chastity, and justice that define her chivalric identity—that is her identity not as a woman or a man, but as something more than a mere instrument of others’ needs and desires.”(715) Rzepka’s point portrays Mona as a “knight” like Marlowe rather than a sexual object or subject. This comparison of Marlowe and Mona in relation to the other female characters shows Mona as exemplifying characteristics that allow her to be seen as equal to Marlowe. He respects Mona. This stands in contras Carmen and Vivian, whom he respects very