Why 'Miracle On 34th Street' Is A Feminist Classic

Why 'Miracle On 34th Street' Was A First For Women
John Payne stands in back of Maureen O'Hara as she holds a coffee pot in a scene from the film 'Miracle On 34th Street', 1947. (Photo by 20th Century-Fox/Getty Images)
John Payne stands in back of Maureen O'Hara as she holds a coffee pot in a scene from the film 'Miracle On 34th Street', 1947. (Photo by 20th Century-Fox/Getty Images)

As a young girl, I watched reruns of “I Love Lucy” with my mom every day after school. I remember an episode where Ricky spanked Lucy, and I laughed. My mom freaked out, and I learned that a man was never to hit a woman. Ever. And that a woman could do more than be the mischievous housewife Lucy was.

Thinking back on the other women I saw on TV at the time (Mrs. Cunningham; Janet and Cindy; Jeannie; Mrs. Ingles; and Laura of Luke and Laura), few were particularly strong role models. I had to rely on my own life, which was luckily filled with the independent women absent from media. As I got older, I saw “Annie Hall” and never quite understood why she was such an inspiration to women of her time, until a professor recently broke it down for me: Until Annie Hall, women didn’t have their own pursuits (on the big screen and TV), they didn’t dress like men, and they certainly weren’t single in the city.

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot