Sexual Warfare in the Silent Cinema: Comedies and Melodramas of Woman Suffragism

A demonstration of citizenship: the response of Canadian suffragists to the emergence of film

“…By "couch[ing] their suffrage statements within traditional melodramatic frameworks, [suffragists] were able to get their messages across without alienating the more conservative members of their audience" (p. 175). Norden concludes that although Sloan (1981) suggests, similar to Norden, that any cinematic publicity is good, noting "Whether the newsreels' image of suffragists was derogatory or sympathetic, suffrage became an immediate issue when it was projected on movie screens. The films might ridicule the suffrage movement, but its power could not be denied or ignored" (p. 417).…”

“…When suffragists began producing pictures, the representation of women advocating for suffrage, not surprisingly, began to change. The suffrage characters in these films tended to be attractive and sympathetic, and romance was often a central feature of the plot (Sloan, 1981).…”

“…As the story of Jane Addams demonstrates, American suffragists were initially very critical of film but just a few years later, they embraced the medium and produced suffrage films. Sloan (1981) documents how American suffragists used film as part of their publicity and recruiting strategy. Prior to the use of film, suffrage groups were innovative when it came to promoting their political cause.…”

“…During the peak of suffrage film productionbetween 1908 and 1914 -theatres in the United States increased from between 8,000 and 10,000 to 14,000 (Sloan, 1981). The narrative structure of film was evolving during this period.…”

“…American film scholars Kay Sloan (1981;1988), Shelley Stamp (1998;2000) and Amy Shore (2010; forthcoming 2013) have shed light on the link between early film and the suffrage movement in the United States, as American suffragists used film as a means to promote their cause. Suffrage groups in the United States screened movies they produced (often in conjunction with a studio) as part of their recruitment and publicity strategy (Shore, 2010).…”