Film and Theatre Studies (Essay Sample)

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Raise the Red Lantern is a film that was released in 1991. It focuses on polygamous life in China in the early 1920s. The story follows a young learned woman Songlian, who is forced into marriage with an old rich man so as to save her family from bankruptcy. This story is especially relevant as the age we are in reeks of promiscuity and hedonism with educational pursuits having taken a backseat. It is interesting to see Songlian’s anger when her dreams of travelling the world with her education are threatened. This is a contrast to present day attitudes where girls willingly leave school to go live comfortable and pampered lifestyles as mistresses and concubines. Everyone, including Songlian’s mother believes that she should be elated to be the fourth wife to the great and wealthy Master. Songli arrives at her master’s house where she receives royal treatment. She is later to learn that this treatment is not guaranteed. All the wives are supposed to compete for Master Chen’s affections. The wife who wins has a foot massage, Master Chen’s attention for a night and her red lanterns are lit. The competition starts all over again the following morning.
The main themes in the film are power and deception. Master Chen symbolizes power. This is made possible through masterful shots that show him in shadows or behind veils. His face is never shown throughout the film. The wives court him throughout the film. Even Songlian, who is educated and even at a point says the people in Chen’s court are treated like dogs and rats, is also drawn into the rat race. Alliances are formed, trickery and deception employed just so that one can get that one night of power. Chen’s second wife Zhanyun pretends to be Songlian’s friend while she is the real enemy that Songlian should avoid. Zhanyun is the ultimate power player as she tries to leverage her childless state with any and all arsenal she can acquire. She is childless and hence the wife with the least sway in the compound. She is however in cohorts with servants so that she is privy to all that goes on in the compound. She knows better than most that information is power. This is how she is able to expose Songlian’s fake pregnancy and the third wife’s infidelity. It is interesting to note that the third wife is hanged for her infidelity while Master Chen goes and gets himself a fifth mistress. Clearly, what is good for the gander is poison for the goose. The fickleness and the short shelf life of power are explored by the metaphor that the wife who wins Chen’s favour only does so for a night. The politics of class and social positions are also explored. Songlian’s maid is punished for having ambitions of moving from servitude to being a mistress.
The set designs are really beautiful and colourful. This is in direct contrast with the ugliness and bleakness of the compound as the wives engage in guile and subterfuge as they try to g...