A Look at Come In Spinner
A 1988 interview with Florence James, co-author with Dymphna Cusack of Come in Spinner (1951) offers some insight into the original aims of the book. We found that our concerns about women and social justice were parallel and we said: 'Why don't we tell the truth through fiction? Nobody wants to read straight-out essays on the subject..... we wanted to get at the truth ..... we tried to weave together social expectations and what women were really like'. This is the key to understanding the central concerns behind Spinner, set in war-time Sydney during 1944: James and Cusack were intent on writing something which illuminated the truthful position of women in society during that time. They did not produce an essay, but their purpose was similar: not just to entertain, but also to inform, to offer a different and challenging perspective. A review in the Daily Telegraph described their efforts as a 'remarkably vivid and real picture of Sydney in war-time'.The question then is whether director Robert Marchand's interpretation of Spinner has remained true to this original objective. While the original text contains a greater amount of detail on the peripheral characters, Marchand chooses to focus
Marchand also looks at the male role of 'provider' - Alfalfa tries to win Guinea over with gifts of stocking and cigarettes, effectively asserting his economic stability. In an instant Marchand has set up a situation where even Guinea, who seems to have something of the bold and emancipated women about her, is dependent on this figure of manly protectorship, if only for a moment. Calvin tells Monnie she is 'as pretty as a picture', and she accepts this as a compliment - yet he is really comparing her to a beautiful, but inanimate, object. all other things aside, I'm just waiting for the man I love,' Monnie looks on as if enchanted by this promise of a handsome prince. She is boxed in by the steel of the black car's frame - or is it by the threat of dominance from this man whose rank gives his authority a sense of legitimacy? The music that accompanies them as they drive away is haunting, drawn-out: not at all of the upbeat tempo that we normally hear accompanying her. We see her kiss Nigel feverishly, as if she is trying to ensure he never leaves her; she tells him she 'loves him so dreadfully', and her eyes seem to be searching his for some confirmation of his own love for her. Marchand constantly presents us with visual reminders of the gender stereotypes which existed in Sydney Society during the war, focussing on the more dominant nature of the man's role, and the greater passivity of the social acceptable role for women. who would? Would you?' Would any of the women at the Coconut Grove, dancing in the arms of attractive yanks or other men in uniform, roam from what society presented to them as their chance at happiness - a man, a romance, a home?It seems that Marchand, and indeed Cusack and James, are infact questioning the nature of the new independence gained by women during war-time: are any of the women we see truly empowered? Is it not a paradox of sorts that the greater freedom offered to women by a relaxation of strict moral codes still does not venture far beyond the realm of a relationship with a man? Perhaps the best example of this contradiction is Claire: we see that she seems to be benefiting from one such aspect of freedom, in having an affair with the married Nigel. Similarly the Coconut Grove appears to encapsulate the new opportunities offered to young women by the war - we see young couples dancing in the dimly lit nightclub the seductive jazz, apparently capitalising on their liberation from pre-war moral constraints. Marchand's interpretation reflects particularly on the patriarchal values and defined gender roles which premised during this time, and the way in which women both challenged and accepted them. In this way Marchand reinforces Cusack and James" marriage that the choices that women had were in many cases limited due to the roles that different members of society were expected to assume. Similarly, Marchand leads us to reflect on the more passive nature of the role designated to women, though he does aim to highlight the way in which they aimed to break free from these pre-war constraints. For example, the idea of a man in the role of 'protector' is explored: Guinea slips while getting into Alfalfa's car, and Colonel Maddocks -the very image of masculinity with his moustache and embellished uniform - catches her. Yet it seems that a little of her independence and empowerment is somehow suppressed when she first meets the Colonel - and as we see the shot of her peering out the car window amidst the flowers of her white dress, she seems oddly like a trapped bride' as if the car door that he has closed on her has temporarily quelled some of the vibrance and assertiveness we admire her for. The objectification of women by men is also evident.
Common topics in this essay:
Similarly Marchand,
Coconut Grove,
Cusack James,
Monnie Shirley,
Guinea Claire,
Cusack Spinner,
God's Police,
Monnie Marchand,
Colonel Maddocks,
D'Arcy Twyning,
cusack james,
coconut grove,
interpretation spinner,
marchand's interpretation,
war-time sydney,
sydney society,
women marchand,
evident calvin,
position women,
original objective,
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Acceptance Essays
