Modern Construction Of British Female Monarch Images In Films

British films on female monarchs are gaining significance in recent years.As women are engaging in the process of modernization and development,artistic productions on female monarchs are helping to form identification and prospects for female roles.The films on female monarchs in the past few decades could be analyzed through modern perspectives searching for contemporary meanings.In this thesis,six popular films will be discussed to reveal how the film language and storytelling reflect the social reality of British women in modern Britain.The modem representation of the monarchs gives those women a human nature,which is in contrast to earlier depictions focusing only on their public duties.The more mature techniques and insights into the psychological development of the queens give us more sentimental feelings towards them,which helps the monarchs to get closer to peopleThis thesis analyzes the modern construction of British female monarchs through the perspective of feminist film theory.Three basic approaches are key to the analysis:The images of women approach,cine-feminism,and cultural studies.Modern films are trying to break the male-centered film depiction by giving women more active roles,by introducing the female gaze as in contrast to being gazed at,and by applying more cultural elements to film presentations.Using feminist film theory to interpret Mrs.Brown,Elizabeth,The Queen,The Young Victoria,Elizabeth:The Golden Age,and The Favourite,the thesis argues that these modern films on female monarchs reflect female realities in modern Britain:ever since WWII,women’s reputation is lifted and more women are employed in the workplace.As they are gaining control over their lives and experiencing better gender equality,they still face a turbulent phase of finding an appropriate work-life balance.Under such circumstances,some social phenomena,like women’s own fertility and gender role issues persist,while some new ones,like a reverse to traditional lifestyles,begin to emerge.All these issues faced by ordinary women are as well projected in the films,through the troubling queens.The thesis forms unique and laudable female images that correspond to women in today’s British society.It helps to explain why this particular image has been long-lasting in terms of creative film production,and female audiences could find identification through films’implicit or explicit narration.It also finds means to empower them by finding equivalent role models or portraying such imperfect images to show social realities.