Cinematic representations of women in France and Germany, 1918-1933

This thesis is an examination of the cinematic representations of women in the inter-war period in France and Germany. By investigating five films produced during the period from 1918 to 1933, this work analyses the portrayal of women in two societies facing great upheaval. I examine the representations of women in the films through analysis of the presentation of gender, female sexuality and pronatalism, patriarchy and the dichotomised portrayal of women through the Neue Frau and la femme au foyer and class. Furthermore, I examine the similarities and differences in female portrayal which can be found between the two countries. The five films to be examined are La souriante Madame Beudet (1922), La fille de l’eau (1924), Fanny (1932), Die Büchse der Pandora (1929) and Der blaue Engel (1930)