Iron Jawed Angels

Iron Jawed Angels is a film which portrays the women's suffrage movement during the 1920's. The film is a documentary and a drama which uses live action and music to deliver the sympathetic and distressful mood the film creates. An example of the distressful mood is when the suffragists refuse to eat when they go to prison. This shows how passionate and distressed the suffragists are to get the 19th amendment passed, which would give women the right to vote. The films message, which is the hardships and adversity women had to withstand to get the 19th amendment passed, is effectively portrayed because the struggle the suffragists faced is accurately and beautifully depicted. As a tool of communication, the strengths of the film Iron Jawed Angels are its accurate portrayal of the 1920s women's suffrage movement and excellent depiction of the main suffragists, Alice Paul and Lucy Burns. There are no real weaknesses in the communication of the 1920s women's suffrage movement in the film Iron Jawed Angels except for the music used, which is too modern to possibly be from the 1920s era. Since the film Iron Jawed Angels shows the grief and struggle women suffragists endured, I believe the film maker wanted the audience to respond with sympathy and a greater understanding of the 1920s women's suffragist movement. The film Iron Jawed Angels appeals to the emotions of the viewer because throughout the movie dark lighting and music create an atmosphere which is undeniably emotional. The emotional appeal of the film makes me feel pity towards the suffragists because America hated them and persecuted them. The film Iron Jawed Angels tells the viewer about the women's suffrage movement in the 1920s. It also tells the viewer that the United States, mostly men, was strongly opposed to women's suffrage. The disturbing violence geared towards the women suffragists also shows the discontent of American men towards the movement. Unfortunately the women suffragists were thrown in prison for blocking traffic (an excuse because they were protesting outside of the White House) and were forced to work. The hatred and animosity which suffragists faced during the 1920s is also an accurate depiction of United States life during this time period. Some questions which were left unanswered by the film Iron Jawed Angels are who started the women's suffrage movement and where the movement started. The information which can be gained from Iron Jawed Angels which could not be conveyed by a written source would be the brutality and harshness suffragist women faced during the 1920s. A written source could also not convey the passion and enthusiasm the women suffragists had. The central message of the film Iron Jawed Angels is that if one keeps on trying, eventually they will make some progress. The persistence of the women suffragists shows that even if all odds are against someone, they can still make a difference. I would recommend Iron Jawed Angels as a study tool because it accurate portrays the women's suffrage movement in the 1920s. It also shows the suffering and persecution the women fought through to gain suffrage. If it weren't for the 1920s suffrage movement, women might have never gained the right to vote.