A Fire Female

Rating: 8/10 (17 October 2017)

The famous movie of historical Asian history, Mulan, directed by Tony Bancroft, is a movie of a woman named Mulan taking the place of her father in war. Being a woman automatically disqualifies her as a soldier, and throughout the movie it is obvious that women are not looked at the same way that men are. Mulan's plot demotes women but its protagonist rejects this assumption to conclude that women can do whatever a man is able. In the beginning of the movie, Mulan, the main character, is continuously put down because of her female being. The movie begins with Mulan practicing to impress a match maker that will match her with her future husband. When her professional stylist is getting her ready for the big event; the stylist implies that Mulan is a sexual object. Throughout their song the stylist says, "Boys will go to war for you if you're pretty, obedient, and have a tiny waist. You should demonstrate dignity, be poised and be silent." The stylist is implying that the only way a woman should be appealing is by obtaining these qualities. Personally, being a woman myself, this portrait of woman-expectancy that reveals the sexism that is present in this movie, makes me question what young boys take away from this particular section of this movie. To add on, when Mulan steps up to go into war for her father, she is still looked down on for doing the impossible. Her ancestors say, "Mulan's father, forever shall be shamed because a woman is taking her place in war." Mulan is willingly taking the place of her injured father. This act is noble if a man were to do it; however, this movie suggests that it is shameful for a woman to perform the same honorable act. When Mulan is preparing to face the other soldiers, her male horse laughs in her face for trying to act as male. Animals are treated as less than humans and the way that the horse demotes Mulan portrays women as being even less than an animal; proving the sexism further. In the song that plays when the men are getting ready for war, Li Shang, the captain of the troops, says "Did they send me daughters, when I asked for sons?" Li Shang is downgrading women without realizing that Mulan is in his presence. A great amount of sexism goes on throughout the plot of this movie coming in the form of humans and even animals. Even though Mulan faces an enormous amount of unbelievable sexism, she proves that she can do whatever a man is able to do. When going through training, she comes in last and lags behind the other soldiers. However, as time goes on, she trains hard enough to become first in the races and training practices. Also, when in battle, Mulan is first in line with all the men behind her. She selflessly goes head first into the opposing army's soldiers in order to swiftly beat them in battle. Mulan uses logical alternatives to excel farther than the men in her troops and on the opposing army. Though, scientifically, Mulan is not physically matched to the male soldiers, she substitutes her smart antics to fly high. Mulan's plot degrades women, however the main character changes this thought, helping women to realize that they can match anything that a man is capable of. I think that this movie begins with a large amount of demotion towards women but there is a satisfying ending to this assumption. Mulan proves that women are capable of more than being a trophy wife, and this is proved every day in the twenty first century. Women are CEOs and military lieutenants, which manifests their ultimate capability. Women are powerful and can do anything that they put their mind to. And if every woman realized this, sexism would not exist.