December 12th, 2019

From Flappers to Housewives: Portrayals of Women’s Sexuality in the Twentieth Century 

“Don’t dress like that, you’ll look like a slut,” says the well-meaning sister, mother, or friend. For a woman to be called a slut or any of its equivalent terms is, to this day, still widely considered to be an indignity. The shame surrounding promiscuity or perceived promiscuity has its roots master narrative that women should conform to “proper” femininity by being submissive partners and abstaining from extramarital sex or showing any inclination towards it. This moral policing of female sexuality has prevailed for much of our recorded history, perhaps beginning with the cautionary Biblical tales of Eve and Jezebel’s sinful desires. Women’s roles in the domestic and intimate spheres are inextricable from their roles in the workforce and society at large. In the United States, this narrative shifted during periods of time in which American women enjoyed more vocational opportunities. The 1920s through the 1950s provide ample material to examine these shifts in the narrative regarding female agency through the lens of sexuality. Through analysis of media portrayals of women in terms of images as well as narrative arcs, it is shown that while there was increased acceptance of female sexuality in the 1920s, the narrative once more emphasized that a woman’s rightful role in society was that of the mother or passive wife when political conditions demanded a return to traditional values in the 1950s. 

The agency women possessed in the 1920s and its impact can best be seen in the films produced during that era. Advances in technology allowed for a new age in Hollywood, particularly the advent of the “talkie,” or films with sound. Furthermore, films produced at this time were notably risqué, prompting the enforcement of the Hays Code in 1934. It was a list of general principles that prohibited a picture from “lowering the moral standards of those who see it,” so as not to wrongly influence people, particularly women. This included a ban on sexual innuendo, nudity, and a host of other behaviors deemed inappropriate or offensive by religious groups (Abrams).

 One such film that is said to have prompted the reformation of the Hays Code was 1933’s I’m No Angel, starring Mae West. The character she plays, Tira, is a fearless, wisecracking and sexually confident dancer. This is exemplified in the shot on the left. She wears sheer clothing and physically looms over her male companion, looking down upon him (Fig. 1). This reads as an almost subversion of how female-male relations are usually presented, with these components suggestive of Tira’s agency and allure. Her moxie is portrayed as something admirable rather than just unladylike; never once are there any moral repercussions for her sexual confidence—she even ends up with the male lead (I’m No Angel).

While the movie is a comedy, hinting to the audience that Tira’s behavior should not be put into practice, Cary Grant’s character and the others are shown to be charmed by her confidence and defiance of the master narrative that women should not be provocative and sexually assertive (I’m No Angel). Similarly, in 1930’s “Anna Christie,” the main character is a reformed prostitute. While the film acknowledges the shame associated with her past, Anna does not need to “pay” for her past sins despite feeling guilty. The movie ends happily as well, with Anna marrying her love interest, who is aware of and accepts her past (Anna Christie). The endings of these films—despite involving marriage—along with the sympathetic treatment given to their female characters demonstrate how premarital and extramarital affairs were no longer viewed as morally reprehensible. While there was still a degree of conformity to the master narrative that women should marry, this speaks to a new sense of independence. 

 World War I and the economic prosperity following it brought about many social changes, ultimately allowing the women of the 1920s to defy gender expectations, especially with regard to sexual expression. The Lost Generation—those who fought in or were personally impacted by the war—experienced a loss of traditional values due to the atrocities they witnessed. This, coupled with an economic boom and transatlantic cultural exchange, resulted in the transgressive and excessive era known as the Roaring Twenties. Moreover, the period during World War I temporarily allowed women to enter male-dominated industries (Freedman 11).  

Additionally, young women began and took part in a sexual liberation of their generation, giving rise to the flappers. Flappers were known for their short haircuts, short skirts, and their acceptance and participation in casual sex (Freedman 14). This furthers the idea that the narrative changed; as women enjoyed greater independence and interacted with men outside the context of marriage or family, they became more assertive in both intimate and workplace settings.  

Josephine Baker was, like Mae West, another symbol of the changing times because of how she embraced her sexuality. She was an American performer that gained fame in Paris but earned American recognition as well. The following image of her in the banana skirt in 1927’s Un Vent de folie became an icon for the Jazz Age and 1920s at large. In the following image, she looks directly at the camera with a smile on her face. Her posture is confident—hip tilted, shoulders thrown back—as she dons the revealing girdle and skirt (Fig. 2).  

Women continued to enjoy a degree of independence throughout the 1930s and 1940s. However, the 1950s ushered in yet another set of social changes as men returned home from war and the Cold War commenced. The 1950s was an era of more rigid gender roles. Women were displaced from the jobs they worked during the 1940s. Additionally, the conflict between the United States and the communist, atheist Soviet Union prompted the government to reinforce traditional and religious values, which contributed to the changing depiction of women. Like World War I, the post-war era was prosperous, leading to the rise of consumerism and mass marketing. The norms of consumer culture and domesticity were disseminated via new forms of entertainment (Sibley 1). As such, women’s roles and this return to the master narrative can best be examined through their appearances in advertising and television as well as the cinema.

The television and magazines became fixtures in middle-class American households during the 1950s. Both promoted the values of domesticity, portraying the primary roles of women as wives and mothers. One example is the Hardee’s advertisement pictured on the left. Not only do the words proclaim—in bold, no less—that women “don’t leave the kitchen,” but it depicts a housewife being confined to her kitchen. The composition serves to separate her from the outside world, which her husband and toddler can take part in. She stares outside, leaning against the counter in an almost longing way, not to mention that the windowpanes are evocative of prison bars. (Fig. 3). 

The media produced in the 1950s also lacked the suggestiveness of the 1920s, instead opting for a more wholesome image in line with the values and structure of the nuclear family. This can be observed in Doris Day and the virginal image she embodied during her Hollywood heyday. She even had an association with World War II and patriotism, perhaps explaining her popularity during the Cold War era. Her song, “Sentimental Journey,” became the anthem of wartime America. Furthermore, Day presented an enticing picture of sexual purity (Sibley 5). In 1950’s Tea For Two, there is a scene in which she is posed in a setting that seems anachronistically Victorian, eliminating any suggestion of prurience. Day manages to make the title song, which is about two lovers on a romantic getaway, seem like an innocently suggestive, but not overly sexual, vacation (Tea for Two)

Another example of this shift would be Lucille Ball, who, in the successful TV show I Love Lucy, is inevitably met with disaster whenever she pursues job opportunities or interests that took her outside of the household. In the 1952 episode Job Switching, Lucy and Ethel swap roles with their husbands. However, Lucy is shown to be incapable of working in a candy factory. The men are similarly shown to be incapable of doing house chores (“Job Switching”). Lucy expressed a desire to achieve more, but was time and time again proved to be unsuitable for these careers.  

This can be juxtaposed against the 1933 film Female, in which Ruth Chatterton plays a female CEO whose abilities are never impugned, even as she eventually cedes her position to her husband (Female). While Lucille Ball was a highly successful actress and producer, her playing the comedic role of a hapless housewife on TV substantiated the cultural narrative that women are defined by traditional notions of femininity. As stated when discussing the 1920s, societal attitudes towards women’s sexuality and women’s sense of agency are closely linked. By reducing women to their role in the institution of marriage—satisfying a husband and childrearing—American society in the 1950s prohibited women from taking part in activities beyond this purview, including but not limited to the sexual mores of the 1920s, which allowed for a degree of sexual exploration and self-discovery. 

Visual representations of women had and continue to have implications, as would the representation of any other group. According to T. Benjamin Singer, photographs have a “profoundly ethical dimension” because they inform the viewer on how they should relate to the subject through visual components and cues. This has “significant social, political, and material consequences,” especially for non-normative or marginalized communities (Singer 602). 

For instance, in the following image, Doris Day is slightly turned forward, with her back facing the camera. Her eyes are shyly focused at something or someone and there is a slight quirk to her lips. Unlike the photo of Josephine Baker, her posture suggests docility as opposed to Baker’s unbridled confidence and sensuality (Fig. 2). Her hair is done up in a girlish style, and she is wearing clothing that is fairly conservative, fully covering her shoulders and arms (Fig. 4). The photo adheres to what Singer defines as beautiful; it “can be apprehended in its entirety” through its conventional two-thirds framing and composition, and contrast between Day’s pale skin and dark clothing (Singer 607). The balance creates a harmony, making this image appealing to viewers and thus encouraging the acceptance of Day as an ideal for the prim and proper 1950s woman.

To conclude, these films and images are not only informed by their cultural context, but they informed their viewers on what is acceptable behavior—sexual or otherwise. Why is this important? The narrative that women should be sexually passive and only engage in intimacy within marriage is analogous to the narrative that women are unequal to men and thus should be held to a different standard. It then follows that during periods of time that afforded women greater independence, i.e., the freedom to pursue different careers, women more freely expressed their sexuality as a form of empowerment. 

However, it must be noted that women’s role in society outside of media representations, especially with regards to sexuality, was not a static or one-dimensional one. Despite its characterization as an era of sexual repression, the 1950s’ emphasis on chastity “catalyzed the explicit sexual revolts of the following generation” (Littauer 174). Nonetheless, the predominant narrative espoused by entertainment companies at this time demonstrated society’s response to a perceived threat: female agency. The censorship and promotion of modest, marital roles were measures adopted to ensure women did not defy the master narrative, especially at a time in which the United States needed to present a strong, united front in the face of an ideological war. Entertainment media was and is multibillion-dollar marketing for culture as it should exist, as designed by the state, companies, religious institutions and political thinktanks. Thus, they play a considerable role in crafting the narratives we believe in and live by, which we can observe through the regression in the narrative about women’s sexuality between these eras.

Works Cited 

Abrams, Brett L. “Latitude in mass-produced culture’s capital: new women and other players in Hollywood, 1920-1941.” Frontiers: A Journal of Women’s Studies, vol. 25, no. 2, 2004, p. 65+. Gale OneFile: Contemporary Women’s Issues, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A123708959/CWI?u=cuny_ccny&sid=CWI&xid=ecf09e02. Accessed 12 Dec. 2019. 

Brown, Clarence, director. Anna Christie. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Distributing Corp., 1930. 

Butler, David, director. Tea for Two. Warner Bros., 1950. 

Curtiz, Michael, director. Female. Warner Bros., 1933. 

Fig. 1. Still from Ruggles, I’m No Angel (12:23). 

Fig. 2. “Josephine Baker’s Iconic Banana Skirt.” 90 Years Later, the Radical Power of Josephine Baker’s Banana Skirt, Vogue Magazine, 3 June 2016, https://www.vogue.com/article/josephine-baker-90th-anniversary-banana-skirt. 

Fig. 3. “Hardee’s Advertisement from the 1950s.” Artist Gives Vintage Ads A Feminist Makeover By Swapping Gender Roles, The Huffington Post, 18 Jan. 2018, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/artist-gives-vintage-ads-a-feminist-makeover-by-swapping-gender-roles_n_5a60f7c9e4b01767e3d1a484. 

Fig. 4. Still from Butler, Tea for Two (5:03). 

Freedman, Estelle B. “The New Woman: Changing Views of Women in the 1920s.” The Journal of American History, vol. 61, no. 2, 1974, p. 372., doi:10.2307/1903954. 

“Job Searching.” I Love Lucy, created by Jess Oppenheimer, season 2, episode 1, Desilu Productions and CBS Films, 1952. 

Littauer, Amanda H. Bad Girls: Young Women, Sex, and Rebellion before the Sixties. University of North Carolina Press, 2015. 

Ruggles, Wesley, director. I’m No Angel. Paramount Pictures, 1933. 

Sibley, Michelle, “The Duality in Messages About Female Sexuality: 1950-1960” (2011). Volume 19 – 2011. Paper 37.http://preserve.lehigh.edu/cas-lehighreview-vol-19/37 

Singer, T. Benjamin, “From the Medical Gaze to Sublime Mutations: The Ethics of (Re)Viewing Non-normative Body Images.” The Transgender Studies Reader, edited by Susan Stryker and Stephen Whittle, Routledge, 2013, pp. 601–620.