For my research paper, I plan to provide a Marxist feminist critique/analysis of the first Indiana Jones movie Raiders of the Lost Ark. My central argument is that in many ways, Raiders represents Steven Spielberg and George Lucas’ responses to the Feminist movement of the 60s and the 70s. In this paper, I will argue that the representation of women in Raiders through Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) suggests that the US feminist movement is obsessively paranoid and the social standings of American women is not as bad as it is described by feminist critics. In other words, I will argue that the representation of women in Raiders aimed to undermine the Feminist movement of the 60s/70s.  To support my argument, I will use secondary sources such as Isabel Santaularia’s 2001 article ‘He comes back badder and bigger than ever!’ : Adapting the masculine and negotiating the feminine in treasure-hunting adventure narratives. Here is a link to Santaularia’s article: ddd.uab.cat/pub/lal/11337397n8p1.pdf.  For this part, I also plan to use resources such as Yvonne Tasker’s essay Working Girls: Gender and sexuality in popular cinema and Lisa Hopkins’ article Returning to the Mummy. Here are links to both articles:
Tasker’s: http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=NF2EymFKZ8gC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=Yvonne+Tasker&ots=5Lm19Uce0J&sig=FzYR6S725fcY1fM7to2IX3xrvlg#PPA5,M1
Hopkins’:
http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/pmc/v012/12.2hopkins.html (scroll down to part 13)

So far, I provided the feminist aspect of my evaluation of Raiders. This evaluation is closely related with Marxist and Negotiation theories.

The Marxist element in the feminist critique I plan to offer is that women, as an oppressed group, are confirmed of their social roles as housewives in Raiders. This is the reason why Spielberg and Lucas decided that Marion, an independent women who once used to run a bar in Nepal, leave her ‘independent woman’ role and give in to Indiana Jones later in the movie. Another Marxist element is the standardization that takes place in the movie. As we know, Raiders is a blockbuster designed to reach the widest audience possible. In order to do this, I argue that Spielberg and Lucas had to simplify the plot, the narration and other similar elements in the movie. To support my argument, I will use secondary resources such as Warren Buckland’s essay A close encounter with Raiders of the Lost Ark: narrative aspects of the New Hollywood blockbuster. This essay can be found in Steeve Neale and Murray Smith’s book Contemporary Hollywood Cinema: a book which is available in our library. I will also provide primary sources such as Pauline Kael’s article Whipped published in the New Yorker in 1981.  Here is a link to Kael’s article: http://www.newyorker.com/archive/1981/06/15/1981_06_15_132_TNY_CARDS_000119462?currentPage=all

The ‘negotiation theory’ aspect of the feminist critique I plan to provide is the research component of my paper. In other words, I am suggesting that the makers of Raiders encoded some of their views on women’s role in society into their movie, and I would like to research how successful they were in influencing people’s perceptions and opinions. The basic research question I have in mind is this: Were viewers aware of the anti-feminist themes encoded in Raiders?

For my research, I am planning to interview people who saw the Raiders in the time of its release and gather data on their interpretations of the movie. I am aware that I will have to find subtle ways of obtaining data on this issue.

Feedback on my research plan, or any aspect of the proposal, will be greatly appreciated.