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Kaitlyn Johonnesson
PHIL 3150
Prof. Tricia Glazebrook
April 10, 2014
Gender Politics in Stanley Kubricks The Shining
Stanley Kubricks The Shining is a story of an American family facing mental
breakdown, supernatural insight, and devastation. Jack Torrance, an alcoholic with a
history of domestic violence, takes on a caretaker position at The Overlook Hotel, a
secluded Colorado getaway, bringing his wife, Wendy, and son, Danny with him. As
with all Kubrick films, many analyses have arisen since the release of the movie in 1980
about its meaning, suggesting it is a story about the genocide of the Native American
peoples, the systematic murder of the Jewish people during the Holocaust, or the terror
of woman (Nolan 181, Kilker 54). Stanley Kubricks The Shining presents a family that is
destroyed by patriarchal norms that can only be saved by breaking the pattern of male
hierarchy. I will be discussing gender politics in The Shining, discussing minor female
characters in the film and Wendy Torrances character.
The role of minor female characters and the context in which they appear
throughout the film perpetuates patriarchal values of female subordination. In the
beginning of the film, Jack is shown interviewing for a position as a seasonal caretaker
for The Overlook with the hotel manager, Stuart Ullman. Women are now introduced to
the film, in subordinate positions such as secretaries and lobbyists, who are asked to do
menial tasks for the men (Kubrick, The Shining). This suggests that the movie takes
place in a modern culture dominated by the idea that men are important and women are

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only counterparts to men, having no identity rooted in the self, rather only in men.
Another female character is introduced during the interview, in an interspersed scene
with Danny and Wendy, where Danny is first seen shining, which is a supernatural
event that allows Danny to communicate with the world, seeing into the past, future, and
present, and even telepathically communicating with other people. During this shine,
Danny sees the river of blood envelope the elevators at The Overlook Hotel and faints
in the bathroom. After Danny collapses, a female doctor visits the house to examine
Danny. She shows concern for Danny when he mentions Tony, the little boy who lives
in (his) mouth, as he might have psychological issues or trauma (Kubrick, The Shining).
She and Wendy then leave to another to discuss the issues with Dannys imaginary
friend, who is associated with his shining abilities. Wendy reveals, uncomfortably, that
Jack once broke Dannys arm when he was intoxicated. She justifies her husbands
abuse by saying that good came from it because he has quit drinking alcohol. Although
Wendy does (personify) a deeply troubled woman who has genuine concerns for her
child's safety and the future of her marriage, she gives excuses for her husband, saying
that he grabbed Danny in a normal way and the alcohol caused him to misjudge his
strength (Manchel 68). The doctor seems apathetic throughout this scene, as if she is
unconcerned or speechless. Her indifference and lack of concern, or any emotion at all,
parallels the view of victims of domestic abuse in a patriarchal society; women are at
fault and cannot be sympathized with. This lack of emotional connection between the
doctor and Wendy, and thus the blame on Wendy for her husbands abusive actions,
displays Wendys oppression in her own family and in society. These two examples of
minor female characters occur in the beginning of the film, creating a setting in a very

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misogynist world that will ultimately cause Jacks demise. Wendy can only break from
the patriarchal role of woman when she escapes her husbands abusive behavior and
societys oppressive nature.
Wendys character progression in The Shining represents the feats women must
make in society to find liberation and freedom from oppression. Throughout most of the
film, Wendy fits nicely into the societal expectations of a woman, justifying her
husbands abusive behaviors, cooking and cleaning for him, even living in isolation for
months so that her husband can make money for the family while pursuing his writing
hobby. She is at first (the) apparent helper/supporter of Jack, living in denial of the
abuse in which she lives; this creates a connection between Wendy and the female
audience, while concurrently isolating her character from female viewership (Nolan
181). Women understand the pressure Wendy faces, having the same pressures of the
feminine construct, but the female audience reaches conflict with Wendy because they
are unable to relate to her due to her own inability to relate to her true self, as she is
preoccupied with adhering to patriarchal constructs dictated by her husband. This
isolation is symbolic of societys isolation with a true identity for woman, and contributes
to the recognition of female oppression that must be ceased. Once Wendy is faced with
Jacks desire to kill her and Danny, she finally begins to flee, attempting to leave The
Overlook, to save herself and her son. Wendys first attempt at escape fails, as she is
unable to fit through a small bathroom window while Jack tries to break down the locked
door. She pushes her son out of the window first, letting him flee to safety. Kilker writes
that this metaphorical cutting the cord symbolizes Wendy sending Danny out on his
own (in) the interest of masculine subjectivity, stating that only then is she able to find

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an escape (62). This suggests that even when Wendy escapes her oppressive
husband, she is still submitting to male superiority by sending her son to safety and
leaving herself to die. The Overlook, a container for suffering on historical and personal
levels, still will not allow Wendy to leave as she is the subordinate to Jack (Nolan 184).
It is not until she is able to contain Jack in the kitchen, where Jack is then associated
with femininity that she is able to leave. Wendy does not act according to misogynist
interests because she is determined to leave Jack and live a life not dominated by her
oppressor; this breaks the patriarchal mold, instead of perpetuating it. Wendy is able to
find a way to safety for her son and herself, displaying that woman must truly overcome
oppression to find safety in society. Wendy represents how women must break free of
patriarchal oppression to save themselves from the ultimate harm and eradication of
female identity.
Women in The Shining display both the oppressive values by which women must
abide and the empowered woman who has conquered her oppressor, finding safety in
her own strength. Wendy symbolizes the oppressed woman who is able to defeat the
patriarch in her life by restraining him and escaping the hotel that perpetuated her
oppression. Kubrick suggests that women must be willing to leave behind not only
harmful social constructs, but the inherently evil society itself. The Shining presents a
story of a woman who overcomes male hierarchy, saving herself and her son.

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Works Cited
Kilker, Robert. "All Roads Lead to the Abject: The Monstrous Feminine and Gender
Boundaries in Stanley Kubrick's the Shining." Literature/Film Quarterly 34.1
(2006): 54-63. ProQuest. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
The Shining. Dir. Stanley Kubrick. Perf. Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd.
Warner Bros., 1980. DVD.
Manchel, Frank. "What About Jack? Another Perspective On Family Relationships In
Stanley Kubrick's The Shining." Literature Film Quarterly 23.1 (1995):
68. Academic Search Complete. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
Nolan, Amy. "Seeing is digesting: labyrinths of historical ruin in Stanley Kubrick's The
Shining." Cultural Critique 77 (2011): 180+. Literature Resource Center. Web.
26 Feb. 2014.