Ji Ziyan
“However different we may be, there is far more that unites us than divides us. We share a common future, and are here to find common ground so that we may help bring new dignity and respect to women and girls all over the world. By doing this, we bring new strength and stability to families as well.” This was what Hillary Clinton conveyed at the United Nations Fourth World Conference of Women in 1995, which was what "Mona Lisa Smile" and “And the Spring comes” impressed us as well.
The story of "Mona Lisa Smile" took place in the famous Wesleyan women's college. It was about Miss Watson, who was an Art History teacher and a group of pretentious noble girls played a wonderful game about the feelings, life and future destiny.
Besides teaching the knowledge of books, what else could teachers offer students? At that time, the model women did not require innovative independent thinking, considering that what they should work for are a perfect wife and a qualified mother. Nevertheless, Watson was so unique that she allowed this group of female students, who were already at the top of the grade but lacked independent thinking, to learn to observe feeling and draw their own "Sunflower". What was the most important was to root self-esteem, confidence and independence in them.
What would you choose between family and career? The girls in the movie were limited by the time, while Katherine rejected her boyfriend's proposal and went to the countryside to teach alone in order to find the real self. Meanwhile, she also hoped to lead her students to be themselves. This has the overtones of postmodern feminism.
As for the shooting, "Mona Lisa Smile" was good at using the plot to hint and contrast, reducing the difficulty of the audience to understand the film. For instance, Joan and Betty chose the different ways. Joan gave up the chance to study further because of her boyfriend and traditional pressure while Betty chose to divorce, chose her own life and career.
The feminist, anti-war, educational systems contained in the film more or less correspond to the incomplete aspects of social reality. The Mona Lisa is not only the symbol of Katherine's gentle image, but also the cage that girls want to break through.
Similarly, “And the Spring comes” was full of women's rights and independence. The film told the story of Wang Cailing, a music teacher in a small town who was not attractive but had a beautiful voice. She pursued her dream of performing at the Central Opera House but finally was in vain.
During the film, most of the women chose fame, wealth and comfort or even entered the patriarchal society to become the bondage of secular families. While Wang Cailing courageously pursued love. The love that she gave for Huang Si was knocked into dust by him in a palm. She mimicked the heroine of the Tuscan opera, donned her costume and jumped the castle. When the dream of Wang Cailing was broken by lies and buried by love, she chose herself with a strong female self-consciousness to resist the invasion of male society, showing a kind of independent and brave spirit.
Women's quest for freedom and equality will never cease. However, back in the primitive society, the structural differences between the male and female bodies meant that women would bear more pressure and responsibility for the families left behind. A woman can't live blindly, and she can't do everything for her husband. Wang's neighbor in the movie is the best example. She ended up being abandoned by her husband. Not only the teacher Zhang, but also Gao Beibei were attached to men, becoming the spokesmen of the male society, and Wang Cailing was her own rouser.
The film used a lot of contrast, and set off the unique Wang Cailing, unwilling to be ordinary. In that era, there are few women like her. I admire Wang very much considering that she had a firm dream and worked hard for it. But everyone comes back to life. Life is neutral. It won't leave you with nothing and it won't give you everything.
Humans can be humans because they have their own thoughts. Instead of strict standards, everyone should have their own ideas and be able to find reasons to support their ideas, so that they will not be afraid to be different from others and be proud of their own uniqueness.
Only when women master their independence can they gain the hope of life.
Fight for Women's Independence
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1501618883
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Re: Fight for Women's Independence
Hi, Ji Ziyan
Your movie essay revolved around the theme of woman's independence. The whole structure of the movie review is very clear and the use of grammar is also very skilled. It's great to have a persuasive saying at the beginning. I suggest adding the release date, actors and director when you introduce both two movies. Then you analyse the shooting style of Mona Lisa Smile deeply and introduced the main characters and feminism to us. But in my opinion, Katherine preached that love and career can coexist rather than choosing one. Likewise, your analysis of And the Spring Comes is very thorough. There is one thing I understand differently from you: Wang wants to get a better life by relying on a quality man instead of an ordinary man actually, which you can see by her visit to the dating agency. Therefore, I think the feminism in And the Spring Comes has not been awakened.
That’s all my opinions. It’s a pleasure to communicate with you~
By Wang Wenjing
Your movie essay revolved around the theme of woman's independence. The whole structure of the movie review is very clear and the use of grammar is also very skilled. It's great to have a persuasive saying at the beginning. I suggest adding the release date, actors and director when you introduce both two movies. Then you analyse the shooting style of Mona Lisa Smile deeply and introduced the main characters and feminism to us. But in my opinion, Katherine preached that love and career can coexist rather than choosing one. Likewise, your analysis of And the Spring Comes is very thorough. There is one thing I understand differently from you: Wang wants to get a better life by relying on a quality man instead of an ordinary man actually, which you can see by her visit to the dating agency. Therefore, I think the feminism in And the Spring Comes has not been awakened.
That’s all my opinions. It’s a pleasure to communicate with you~
By Wang Wenjing
Re: Fight for Women's Independence
Hello -
We had similar ideas in our essays. We both focused on the main characters finding their own independent path in life, despite the societal expectations placed on them as women. Both chose to pursue their career instead of a family, like they were "supposed" to. I think you gave some really solid points on female independence. You compare the two films as well. Your essay is well written.
- Chris
We had similar ideas in our essays. We both focused on the main characters finding their own independent path in life, despite the societal expectations placed on them as women. Both chose to pursue their career instead of a family, like they were "supposed" to. I think you gave some really solid points on female independence. You compare the two films as well. Your essay is well written.
- Chris
Re: Fight for Women's Independence
I thought your essay was very interesting, and discussed some of the themes regarding female empowerment in both films. I thought you did a great job of summarizing the main messages of Mona Lisa Smile, of women adapting to a male dominated society.
However, I found your interpretation of And the Spring Comes to be surprising, as it completely differed from my own. You discuss how you see Wang as having this quiet strength in resisting gender roles and society's expectations. I saw it as completely differently, as Wang was constantly looking to find a husband, and obsessive regarding her physical appearance. To me, it seemed like Wang was too concerned with fitting into society, that she ended up being miserable and humiliated. Her attempts to attain her goals left her worse off tan before, and I thought that the end of the movie symbolized her giving up and moving on with her dreams.
I am interesting in hearing more of your thoughts on Wang and your thoughts on the overall theme of the movie.
Kevin Yu
However, I found your interpretation of And the Spring Comes to be surprising, as it completely differed from my own. You discuss how you see Wang as having this quiet strength in resisting gender roles and society's expectations. I saw it as completely differently, as Wang was constantly looking to find a husband, and obsessive regarding her physical appearance. To me, it seemed like Wang was too concerned with fitting into society, that she ended up being miserable and humiliated. Her attempts to attain her goals left her worse off tan before, and I thought that the end of the movie symbolized her giving up and moving on with her dreams.
I am interesting in hearing more of your thoughts on Wang and your thoughts on the overall theme of the movie.
Kevin Yu
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1216306811
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Re: Fight for Women's Independence
Hi，Wang Wenjing
After reading your reviews, I think your suggestion of adding the release date, actors and director when you introduce both two movies is very useful. If I have the opportunity to write a movie review next time, I think it will be more complete if add these.
I agree with you that Katherine preached that love and career can coexist rather than choosing one. Because in our movie reviews, we also mentioned whether we are married or choose to pursue a career, the most important thing is to obey your own heart and have the choice to make right. And in And the Spring Comes, maybe the description of feminism is not very detailed, but from the point of Wang struggling in a small city but determined to become the chief soprano of the Central Opera House, I think it is already amazing. Women who had dreams in their days have been very rare.
Thanks for your suggestions ～ They help us a lot!
Ji Ziyan&Liyan
After reading your reviews, I think your suggestion of adding the release date, actors and director when you introduce both two movies is very useful. If I have the opportunity to write a movie review next time, I think it will be more complete if add these.
I agree with you that Katherine preached that love and career can coexist rather than choosing one. Because in our movie reviews, we also mentioned whether we are married or choose to pursue a career, the most important thing is to obey your own heart and have the choice to make right. And in And the Spring Comes, maybe the description of feminism is not very detailed, but from the point of Wang struggling in a small city but determined to become the chief soprano of the Central Opera House, I think it is already amazing. Women who had dreams in their days have been very rare.
Thanks for your suggestions ～ They help us a lot!
Ji Ziyan&Liyan
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1216306811
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2020 2:04 pm
Re: Fight for Women's Independence
Hi, Chris
What you think of our film is exactly what we thought after reading your film reviews. We both put our focus on female independence and the pursuit of dreams. The biggest feeling after watching these two films is that whether we choose to marry someone or pursue a career, the most important thing is to follow our hearts. I think this is also one of the parts that these two movies want to convey to us. But we all seem to have forgotten to join this aspect of Chinese and Western culture. As far as China is concerned, Chinese women of that era did not have much power. The vast majority of women were bound by their families and there was not much freedom. So women like Wang are especially precious. I think the Western countries at that time may be similar. Equality was basically impossible in those days.
Ji Ziyan&Liyan
What you think of our film is exactly what we thought after reading your film reviews. We both put our focus on female independence and the pursuit of dreams. The biggest feeling after watching these two films is that whether we choose to marry someone or pursue a career, the most important thing is to follow our hearts. I think this is also one of the parts that these two movies want to convey to us. But we all seem to have forgotten to join this aspect of Chinese and Western culture. As far as China is concerned, Chinese women of that era did not have much power. The vast majority of women were bound by their families and there was not much freedom. So women like Wang are especially precious. I think the Western countries at that time may be similar. Equality was basically impossible in those days.
Ji Ziyan&Liyan
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1216306811
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2020 2:04 pm
Re: Fight for Women's Independence
Hi, Kevin
Thank you very much for your reply and your unique views on Wang in And the Spring Comes.
I think Wang is a very independent woman who has been pursuing her dream. In the movie, in order to be able to sing in the opera of Beijing, she spends much money. I also think she does take her appearance seriously, but she is not too concerned about integrating into the society, otherwise Wang would have accepted Hu's request to get married. I think she probably felt that her appearance was getting in the way of her dreams, that if she was pretty, she wouldn't be buried in the country.
The overall theme of the film is actually quite complex, including the conflict between ideals and reality, feminism and so on, with a tragic color. In my opinion, the movie tells us that women should be independent. Although Wang has gone through some ups and downs, the end of the movie is to tame and gives people a sense of hope.
By: Li Yan, Ji Ziyan
Thank you very much for your reply and your unique views on Wang in And the Spring Comes.
I think Wang is a very independent woman who has been pursuing her dream. In the movie, in order to be able to sing in the opera of Beijing, she spends much money. I also think she does take her appearance seriously, but she is not too concerned about integrating into the society, otherwise Wang would have accepted Hu's request to get married. I think she probably felt that her appearance was getting in the way of her dreams, that if she was pretty, she wouldn't be buried in the country.
The overall theme of the film is actually quite complex, including the conflict between ideals and reality, feminism and so on, with a tragic color. In my opinion, the movie tells us that women should be independent. Although Wang has gone through some ups and downs, the end of the movie is to tame and gives people a sense of hope.
By: Li Yan, Ji Ziyan
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1216306811
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2020 2:04 pm
Re: Fight for Women's Independence
Fight For Women's Independence
Li Yan&Ji Ziyan
“However different we may be, there is far more that unites us than divides us. We share a common future, and are here to find common ground so that we may help bring new dignity and respect to women and girls all over the world. By doing this, we bring new strength and stability to families as well.” This was what Hillary Clinton conveyed at the United Nations Fourth World Conference of Women in 1995, which was what "Mona Lisa Smile" and “And the Spring comes” impressed us as well.
“Mona Lisa Smile” is a plot movie produced by the American Revolutionary Film Studio in 2003. The film shows us the society of America in 1953. Times are changing. Although the status of women in the United States in the 1950s was gradually valued, feudalism in the upper class was still very serious.
And the Spring Comes is directed by Gu Changwei which takes place between 1988 and 1998, a decade of rapid economic development when eastern and western ideas converge.
The story of "Mona Lisa Smile" took place in the famous Wesleyan women's college. It was about Miss Watson, who was an Art History teacher and a group of pretentious noble girls played a wonderful game about the feelings, life and future destiny.
Besides teaching the knowledge of books, what else could teachers offer students? At that time, the model women did not require innovative independent thinking, considering that what they should work for are a perfect wife and a qualified mother. Nevertheless, Watson was so unique that she allowed this group of female students, who were already at the top of the grade but lacked independent thinking, to learn to observe feeling and draw their own "Sunflower". What was the most important was to root self-esteem, confidence and independence in them.
What would you choose between family and career? The girls in the movie were limited by the time, while Katherine rejected her boyfriend's proposal and went to the countryside to teach alone in order to find the real self. Meanwhile, she also hoped to lead her students to be themselves. This has the overtones of postmodern feminism.
As for the shooting, "Mona Lisa Smile" was good at using the plot to hint and contrast, reducing the difficulty of the audience to understand the film. For instance, Joan and Betty chose the different ways. Joan gave up the chance to study further because of her boyfriend and traditional pressure while Betty chose to divorce, chose her own life and career.
The feminist, anti-war, educational systems contained in the film more or less correspond to the incomplete aspects of social reality. The Mona Lisa is not only the symbol of Katherine's gentle image, but also the cage that girls want to break through.
Similarly, “And the Spring comes” was full of women's rights and independence. The film told the story of Wang Cailing, a music teacher in a small town who was not attractive but had a beautiful voice. She pursued her dream of performing at the Central Opera House but finally was in vain.
During the film, most of the women chose fame, wealth and comfort or even entered the patriarchal society to become the bondage of secular families. While Wang Cailing courageously pursued love. The love that she gave for Huang Si was knocked into dust by him in a palm. She mimicked the heroine of the Tuscan opera, donned her costume and jumped the castle. When the dream of Wang Cailing was broken by lies and buried by love, she chose herself with a strong female self-consciousness to resist the invasion of male society, showing a kind of independent and brave spirit.
Women's quest for freedom and equality will never cease. However, back in the primitive society, the structural differences between the male and female bodies meant that women would bear more pressure and responsibility for the families left behind. A woman can't live blindly, and she can't do everything for her husband. Wang's neighbor in the movie is the best example. She ended up being abandoned by her husband. Not only the teacher Zhang, but also Gao Beibei were attached to men, becoming the spokesmen of the male society, and Wang Cailing was her own rouser.
The film used a lot of contrast, and set off the unique Wang Cailing, unwilling to be ordinary. In that era, there are few women like her. I admire Wang very much considering that she had a firm dream and worked hard for it. But everyone comes back to life. Life is neutral. It won't leave you with nothing and it won't give you everything.
Humans can be humans because they have their own thoughts. Instead of strict standards, everyone should have their own ideas and be able to find reasons to support their ideas, so that they will not be afraid to be different from others and be proud of their own uniqueness.
Only when women master their independence can they gain the hope of life.
Li Yan&Ji Ziyan
“However different we may be, there is far more that unites us than divides us. We share a common future, and are here to find common ground so that we may help bring new dignity and respect to women and girls all over the world. By doing this, we bring new strength and stability to families as well.” This was what Hillary Clinton conveyed at the United Nations Fourth World Conference of Women in 1995, which was what "Mona Lisa Smile" and “And the Spring comes” impressed us as well.
“Mona Lisa Smile” is a plot movie produced by the American Revolutionary Film Studio in 2003. The film shows us the society of America in 1953. Times are changing. Although the status of women in the United States in the 1950s was gradually valued, feudalism in the upper class was still very serious.
And the Spring Comes is directed by Gu Changwei which takes place between 1988 and 1998, a decade of rapid economic development when eastern and western ideas converge.
The story of "Mona Lisa Smile" took place in the famous Wesleyan women's college. It was about Miss Watson, who was an Art History teacher and a group of pretentious noble girls played a wonderful game about the feelings, life and future destiny.
Besides teaching the knowledge of books, what else could teachers offer students? At that time, the model women did not require innovative independent thinking, considering that what they should work for are a perfect wife and a qualified mother. Nevertheless, Watson was so unique that she allowed this group of female students, who were already at the top of the grade but lacked independent thinking, to learn to observe feeling and draw their own "Sunflower". What was the most important was to root self-esteem, confidence and independence in them.
What would you choose between family and career? The girls in the movie were limited by the time, while Katherine rejected her boyfriend's proposal and went to the countryside to teach alone in order to find the real self. Meanwhile, she also hoped to lead her students to be themselves. This has the overtones of postmodern feminism.
As for the shooting, "Mona Lisa Smile" was good at using the plot to hint and contrast, reducing the difficulty of the audience to understand the film. For instance, Joan and Betty chose the different ways. Joan gave up the chance to study further because of her boyfriend and traditional pressure while Betty chose to divorce, chose her own life and career.
The feminist, anti-war, educational systems contained in the film more or less correspond to the incomplete aspects of social reality. The Mona Lisa is not only the symbol of Katherine's gentle image, but also the cage that girls want to break through.
Similarly, “And the Spring comes” was full of women's rights and independence. The film told the story of Wang Cailing, a music teacher in a small town who was not attractive but had a beautiful voice. She pursued her dream of performing at the Central Opera House but finally was in vain.
During the film, most of the women chose fame, wealth and comfort or even entered the patriarchal society to become the bondage of secular families. While Wang Cailing courageously pursued love. The love that she gave for Huang Si was knocked into dust by him in a palm. She mimicked the heroine of the Tuscan opera, donned her costume and jumped the castle. When the dream of Wang Cailing was broken by lies and buried by love, she chose herself with a strong female self-consciousness to resist the invasion of male society, showing a kind of independent and brave spirit.
Women's quest for freedom and equality will never cease. However, back in the primitive society, the structural differences between the male and female bodies meant that women would bear more pressure and responsibility for the families left behind. A woman can't live blindly, and she can't do everything for her husband. Wang's neighbor in the movie is the best example. She ended up being abandoned by her husband. Not only the teacher Zhang, but also Gao Beibei were attached to men, becoming the spokesmen of the male society, and Wang Cailing was her own rouser.
The film used a lot of contrast, and set off the unique Wang Cailing, unwilling to be ordinary. In that era, there are few women like her. I admire Wang very much considering that she had a firm dream and worked hard for it. But everyone comes back to life. Life is neutral. It won't leave you with nothing and it won't give you everything.
Humans can be humans because they have their own thoughts. Instead of strict standards, everyone should have their own ideas and be able to find reasons to support their ideas, so that they will not be afraid to be different from others and be proud of their own uniqueness.
Only when women master their independence can they gain the hope of life.
-
1216306811
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2020 2:04 pm
Re: Fight for Women's Independence
I think this transoceanic event is a very new experience. Thank you very much for our schools and teachers as for providing us with this opportunity, which let us have the opportunity to have a communication with friends who are far away in the United States. Films we watch this time are also very suitable, a Chinese film and an American film, which are closely related to our culture. When appreciating the opinions of others, it is not difficult to find that our film critics have something in common and also have completely different opinions. As the saying goes, There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people's eyes. Both of the two films are rare masterpieces, and they were of great significance to China and the United States at that time. They expressed a lot, so we may see different aspects of these two movies. Through this interaction, I have a deeper understanding of the two films, and found many points that I did not notice in the process of watching by myself. I think the collision of thoughts is a very interesting process. Due to the development of science and technology, we are able to express opinions with each other on this website, and through continuous questioning, we have increased our oral ability and thought depth. This trans-oceanic interaction has benefited me a lot, and I hope we will have more chances.
By Ji Ziyan
I think this transoceanic experience is very meaningful to me. This transoceanic interaction allowed us to review each other's films with American students. I found this experience quite interesting, because it was the first time for me to have this kind of writing communication across time and space. I think this way is good, it can improve our writing and logical thinking ability, help us better speak out our own views. You can find your own shortcomings when evaluating other people's movie reviews. This activity is also a collision of ideas, everyone has their own unique views on the film, and we deepen our in-depth understanding of the film through communication. In the communication, the American group what we correspond to discussed the points in our film review, their views were different from ours. They asked me about my views on Wang in And the Spring Comes and the theme. Before that, I only focused on the words, sentences and grammars of their movie reviews, but now I would ask them what they want to express and their inner thought. I am very grateful to have such an experience for me to grow up, and I hope there will be such activities in the future for us to further exercise.
By Li Yan
By Ji Ziyan
I think this transoceanic experience is very meaningful to me. This transoceanic interaction allowed us to review each other's films with American students. I found this experience quite interesting, because it was the first time for me to have this kind of writing communication across time and space. I think this way is good, it can improve our writing and logical thinking ability, help us better speak out our own views. You can find your own shortcomings when evaluating other people's movie reviews. This activity is also a collision of ideas, everyone has their own unique views on the film, and we deepen our in-depth understanding of the film through communication. In the communication, the American group what we correspond to discussed the points in our film review, their views were different from ours. They asked me about my views on Wang in And the Spring Comes and the theme. Before that, I only focused on the words, sentences and grammars of their movie reviews, but now I would ask them what they want to express and their inner thought. I am very grateful to have such an experience for me to grow up, and I hope there will be such activities in the future for us to further exercise.
By Li Yan