Gender Barriers in Brokeback Mountain

10/2/08
Judith Butler and film Brokeback Mountain

After reading Butler's article and how children are indoctrinated into their gender roles, one scene in Brokeback Mountain really seemed to jump out at me. In this scene, Jack is hosting Thanksgiving at his home with his in-laws as his guests. When dinner is served, Jack is preparing to carve the turkey until L.D. steps in to usurp Jack's role as head of the household. At the same time Bobby is watching football on the television while Lureen tells him to turn off the game and eat his dinner. After Jack turns off the television, L.D. walks over to the television and turns the game back on for Bobby to watch. L.D. tells Lureen that this will make him grow up to be a man as if that by somehow watching sports will make him more masculine than a child who has no interest in sports. According to Butler, Bobby would learn from this that watching football would make him a man, rather than being courteous to his mother as Jack exhibits by turning off the television. After L.D. says this Jack is somewhat angered by the fact that L.D. indirectly suggested that he was not a man, and he gets up once again to turn off the televsion. At this point Jack turning off the television is not merely a matter of teaching Bobby to be gracious to his mother, but rather to prove to L.D. that he is in fact a man despite his secret homosexuality. Jack's masculinity is proven to L.D. when L.D. gets up to turn the television back on and Jack yells, "sit down you old son of a bitch," and then takes his place carving the turkey. Jack does not feel that his son should be taught by someone as ignorant as his grandpa and must want Bobby to grow up in his own way. I am not saying that Jack wants his son to become homosexual, but rather that he wants Bobby to become his own person and not have to hide who he is like Jack does.