Do You Know The Bechdel Test? - Lily's Contest - Mary Poppins
Thanks to @lilyraabe, I was reminded again of it and many other awesome movies from my childhood. She has set up a contest in which we must create a post talking about a movie we love that passes the Bechdel Test.
What is the Bechdel Test? It's simple really... To quote from Lily's post:
The Bechdel Test examines whether women in films are portrayed as three-dimensional human beings with a range of lived experience and interests that do not revolve around men. The primary criteria for a film to pass the test are:
(1) it has to have at least two women in it
(2) who talk to each other
(3) about something besides a man.
Now, I knew about the Bechdel test but in my research for doing this post, I came across some criticism of it (read about it here on wikipedia) and also discovered an alternative test called the "Mako Mori" test, which seemed to me superior.
The Mako Mori test is passed if the movie has:
a) at least one female character
b) who gets her own narrative arc
c) that is not about supporting a man’s story.
I'm very happy to report that Mary Poppins passes both tests with flying colours ;)
Why do I love this movie so much? Well, besides it being a nostalgic connection to the happier days of my childhood, there's something magical about it that makes it enjoyable to watch even now, more than half a century later. And that for both children and adults alike.
As for the tests... It is obvious why it passes the Mako Mori test. But what about the Bechdel?
Well, it has many female characters, such as Jane, Mrs. Banks, Katie Nanna, the Cook, Ellen, and of course Mary Poppins herself. Jane and Mary talk to each other many times. Katie Nanna and Mrs. Banks discuss talk briefly about the children, with Katie demanding Mrs. Banks work out her wages. And before this, Cook, Mrs. Banks and Ellen sing together about women's rights (while poor Katie Nanna is trying to get a word in edgewise).
Mrs. Banks, in fact, is a Sister Suffragette, actively fighting for the right of women to vote.
I lol'ed at this line : "Though we adore men individually, we agree that as a group they're rather stupid..."
One thing, though, that I always found strange is how Mrs. Banks is so very submissive to George, her husband, despite being an active Suffragette. And another odd thing I only discovered now: Mrs. Banks and Mary Poppins don't speak a word to each other throughout the entire film ... o.O
Anyway... All in all, it's a magical movie, and a perfect entry for this contest =) Thank you, Lily, for coming up with this interesting idea... I'm looking forward to seeing the other entries!
To end off, I'd like to share this link. It's a list of movies that all pass the Mako Mori test, with many of them passing the Bechdel as well.
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I did not even think of Mary Poppins before--and now that you’ve brought it up I LOVE this movie for this contest. I watched this movie almost weekly growing up, it was a staple. Reading your points above, I realize how much I looked up to the women in this film (and it made me very passionate about women’s rights, haha). It’s amazing to see films that pass this test that are a) older! and b) for young people. It’s really important for young women to see great representation early on. So much appreciation for this post! <3
This comment really made me smile, hehe. Yeah, it's really interesting to see, on that Mako Mori movies list I posted, how many of them are really, really old classics. Mary Poppins had a good effect on my male psyche too, no doubt.
I'm really happy I made you happy ;)
This is wild
This is a great piece of trivia. Link it to Friday Groovy school and I can resteem it later.
Done! At least I think so... I commented on your Friday piece, with the link in the comment. =) Hope you're having a good weekend ;)
Great. This one was resteemed.
Thank you, sir! =) And thanks for the little bit of Steem too! I powered it up immediately, lol.
Ah... Interesting. I learned something new. Thanks!
Marry Poppins is a great classic, but nothing can top the sound of music for me. I love the story, the songs, and the few true facts that are based on real life people.
My pleasure =) ... I love The Sound of Music too, very much!
Also, I read your most recent post about the 16 personalities. I've known about the test for years... I always oscillate between INFP and INTP ;) ...
Okay, don't be upset when I say this but I have never seen Mary Poppins. I have heard so much about the movie, I really have no idea why I've never seen it! I did enjoy reading your post and I haven't checked out @lilyraabe post about the Bechdel test yet but I will now because I'm a big fan of her too 😊
Oh, you really should! I wonder if it's on Netflix? ... You won't regret it =) .. It, and The Sound of Music, which I always associate with Mary Poppins because of the actress... And "The Gnomobile" because of the two little kid actors ;) (Also, the laughing man in Mary Poppins in the elder Gnome in the Gnomobile! hehehe).
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