The Representation of Women in Relation to The Cabin in the Woods (Goddard, 2012)

1. What were Jeremy Tunstall's 4 character roles for women and do they apply to The Cabin in the Woods?

Jeremy Tunstall created 4 character roles that women in media tend to follow. The media represented women for their:
Domestic
Consumer
Sexual
and Marital Activities.

In the film Cabin in the Woods the character of Jules is depicted as a sex object, which is the 'sexual' representation of women. 

2. How is Dana typical of Clover's 'Final Girl' theory? Please mention: the ending; Dana's appearance and her actions during the film. 

Dana is a typical example of Final Girl due to her appearance and actions. In the film, Dana is a brunette/ginger. Which is important as blondes in horror films don't tend to fend so well compared to the brunette/gingers. She is also more interested in other things aside sex and drugs like other characters in the film and is into studying shown by the scene at the start of the film. She also isn't afraid to fight back and on numerous occasions she reacts against the zombies. This is a key part to the Final Girl theory. The theory is also shown in the ending of the film. Dana and Marty discovered that Dana had to be the final character left alive to complete the ritual to the gods, therefore the film becomes somewhat self-aware of the horror genre and maybe even a parody of itself.    

3. Jules undergoes mental and physical transformations during the film, what are they and how do they cause her to become a horror archetype?

One physical transformation that occurs to her is right at the start of the film is that she dyes her hair blonde. This puts her into the archetype of the dumb blonde. She is then affected mentally by hormones released by the scientists which causes her to want to have sex in the middle of the forest which is how she would die by having her neck sliced by zombies. 

4. Is Mulvey's Male Gaze theory exemplified in the film and if so, how? Think about framing, camera angles and POV shots.

During Cabin in the Woods, Mulvey's male gaze is exemplified in a few scenes throughout the film. One scene where it is particularly prevalent is where Jules is dancing against the fireplace and the camera is positioned on the floor creating a very low angle. This low angle puts emphasis on Jules and creates a scene in which would be more appealing to the male viewer. This shot could also be interpreted as a POV shot of the guys sitting on the sofa, again emphasising the male gaze theory. 

5. In the film we, as an audience, are made to be voyeurs; when does this happen and why is it important in regards to representation of character?

During the scene where Holden removes the ugly photo from the wall to see the 1 way mirror and at that point we become a voyeur of Dana. At this point we understand we Holden is actually a gentleman and offers to swap rooms with Dana before she exposes herself infront of him and the mirror which gives us a clear understanding of his character. 

6. (Briefly) summarise the way women are represented in The Cabin in the Woods. Are they objectified and there to provide satisfaction for heterosexual males and/or do they fulfill another role/purpose?

The female characters in The Cabin in the Woods are split into 2 with the roles of Dana and Jules being very different. Jules is the dumb blonde who has an interest in sex and boys. She does has the purpose of furling satisfaction to the male audience as shown by the fire place dancing scene and her eventually going into the woods to have sex. 

On the other hand Dana is the opposite is this, she has the darker hair colour which is key to female characters in horror films. She also shows no real interest in sex and boys. However she does have a little thing for Holden although her books and studying come above that in my opinion. So in this film, Dana is obviously playing the role of the Final Girl and shows that in her actions. For example, she isn't afraid to fight back and the whole film is based on this theory and confirms that this is her role within the film.