Last weekend I was at home on a Sunday night I was in the mood for a real movie, what I mean by that is one that I could stick my teeth in. A story that would create great thought and intrigue and allow input in my assessments of life. Sometimes when you look, you get exactly what you are looking for, I came across The Duchess.
The actors I recognized right away were Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes, so I immediately knew the movie would be well acted. The paragraph describing the movie on Verizon Demand stated: A chronicle of the life of 18th century aristocrat Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire, who was reviled for her extravagant political and personal life.
Though the description implied that the story would be tragic, I proceeded to watch through the eyes of a person who has watched a million plus Hollywood movies where they were able to spin even biographies with tragic endings so that the life lived satisfied the end.
This was the wrong perception to have for this movie, because as the story unfolded and I viewed The Duchess being placed in the hands of man she didn't love and didn't love her, as I observed her effort to provide her husband with a male heir all the while her husband bedded various women he came across with the physique he truly desired, and as I solemnly took in her awakening of true love only to curve it whilst remaining in a loveless marriage for her children...the time ticked by and I began to realize there would be no redemption to this story.
However in hindsight I have come to realize there has been redemption and there can continue to be redemption for The Duchess and those who share a similar story. When we as women take hold of our new found strength to maneuver, freedom of choice and voice to state what we want and need and place these yearnings into fruition and finally the option to not back ourselves into a life not wanted. To keep the redemption going we can also raise beautiful women to do the same and encourage our friends and every other woman walking this earth to do the same.
Though this movie as a whole will always remain imprinted in my mind, there was one moment that stood out the most. The Duchess was wearing one of her extravagant attires on the night of their wedding. As he quietly undressed her without permission or warning, he commented, "For the life of me, I can never understand why women's clothes need to be so damn complicated?" The Duchess responded though his comment might have been rhetorical, "Its our way of expressing ourselves I suppose." Of course he did not understand this and asked, "Whatever do you mean?" She answered, "Well you have so many ways of expressing yourselves, whereas we have to make do with our hats and our dresses."
Well women of the world we still have our hats and our dresses but we have so much more available to us. This August marked the 90th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. constitution which granted women the right to vote nationwide. Progression was not so long ago, and it's up to us to continually use everything we have to make our marks and live our lives to the fullest. Let us not forget where we came from because it helps to steer us in the direction of where we are going.
In weighing The Duchess, I give it 600lbs, though very depressing as I left out a lot which may cause you to repel. I still would say at least one view is most definitely a good decision and may help to serve as a constant reminder of how precious the liberties we have today would have been to a woman of the past.
Weighing The Duchess
Submitted by: Jamees Wright
Weight Total: 600 lbs Good Decision
