Hollywood melodrama: representations of gender and ethnicity in the film “Imitation of life” (1959)

Abstract

Melodrama achieved great popularity in the 1950’s, featured in the film and culture industry led by Hollywood. Considered to be a minor genre by the critics, who thought melodrama simply as a way of entertaining audiences, the following generations have (re)considered its cultural and social value. Films such as Imitation of Life, directed by Douglas Sirk in 1959, bring symbolic stories and roles to the big screen, raising questions of identity, gender and ethnicity, namely. Combining theoretical reflection with content analysis, in a cultural studies perspective, it is aimed to understand moments in which the dominant ideology is reproduced and also the emancipating value of melodramas.