'Madonna' and 'Whore' female character archetypes in film and literature are actually based on Madonna-Whore complex and first described by Sigmund Freud (of course). It is one of the most common and familiar tropes in storytelling to this day. Thanks to #metoo movement and an increasing number of female led, written and directed works becoming more mainstream, it is slowly disappearing. However, I notice and even subconsciously use it to label characters in my analysis according to these archetypes still - simply because they're impossible to ignore if you deal with cinema.
Madonna Archetype
Based on the Christian idea of the Virgin Mary, mother of Christ, Madonne archetype is exactly that - typically a virgin, or in some other way innocent, typically young woman. She's as pure as she is beautiful and has a heart of gold. She is loyal despite hardships, forgiving even when stabbed in the back (oftentimes by lying friend, cheating partner or society as a whole). She may be the mother figure or the typical 'damsel in distress' in films.
She is virtue, she is grace.
Typical representatives in pop culture:
Any Nicholas Sparks' novels based film stars a Madonna, at least in the beginning. She is our hero, our innocent young girl who finds her one true love in the first boy she locks eyes with.
Cinderella. Enough said here.
Alicia Florrick from The Good Wife.
And in period drama:
The nameless heroine from Rebecca - and as if following Freud's analysis of male desire, the polar opposite of Rebecca herself.
Jane Bennet from Pride & Prejudice is one of the typically 'perfect' females, as seen by men in search of a wife, especially back in early 19th century.
Mary Boleyn from The Other Boleyn Girl - although not her historical counterpart.
Demelza from Poldark for the most part.
Contessina from Medici: Masters of Florene, although not naive, is a proper mother figure. She is strong, protective, loving, faithful and resists temptation.
(I'm actually struggling to recall many more... it is partly because most of the Madonnas actually turn into Whores during the film/tv series - and also because this archetype is rather boring and forgettable).
Whore Archetype
Contrary to Madonna, this lady is based off another Christian religion Mary - Mary Magdalene. Although the ultimate 'Whore' in Christian religion is, of course, Eve - the clever seductress that brought shame on mankind.
A typical Whore is the sexy, mature, cunning, cold-blooded, back-stabbing, often ambitious woman. She is the Goddess, the evil temptress, the poisonous snake and the witch.
Typical representatives in pop culture:
Marvel's Black Widow - despite playing for the good guys, she's still a seductive, back-stabbing, cold-blooded killer. Exactly the same description applies to Gamora and Mistique (if I read comics, I'd probably name many more).
Seline aka Catwoman from The Dark Knight Rises & all of Batman adventures in general. Sneaky, sexy, has claws and kicks struggling old Batman the first time they meet.
Amy from Gone Girl. The ultimate Whore archetype: psychotic, beautiful, deadly.
Miranda Frost (another Rosamund Pyke huh) from Die Another Day - the back-stabbing one who turned on Bond.
Cersei Lannister from Game of Thrones.
Marilyn from Intolerable Cruelty - I mean, she does have some glimpse of human feelings in the end... but this woman is a man-eater.
Kathryn from Cruel Intentions, just like her origins from Dangerous Liaisons, is a manipulative, extremely sexual, spoilt woman who treats other people like toys.
Typical representatives in period drama:
Rebecca from the novel & film of the same name.
Anne Boleyn - in The Tudors, Wolf Hall, The Other Boleyn Girl and in history in general. Has there been a woman capable of keeping a powerful, rich royal at an arm's length for several years, constantly arousing him, yet cunning, determined and cold-blooded enough to make him break away from Rome... just to have sex with her?
Cleopatra - what a well-known powerful seductress.
Max from Black Sails - ambitious, clever, manipulative prostitute who takes Nassau.
Becky Sharpe from Vanity Fair - clever, cunning and merciless when it comes to fulfilling her ambitions.
Scarlett O'Hara from Gone with the Wind is the typical ambitious, sexy, unstoppable woman who is ready to kill, lie and cheat to get what she wants.
Milady from The Three Musketeers is another merciless killer who will happily get what she wants using her charms and her body.
Marquise de Merteuil from Dangerous Liaisons is the manipulative sexual predator who seeks to ruin young women's reputations and take revenge on men who underestimate her. Evil sex genius.
(The list can go on).
'Madonna turning into Whore' Trope
One of the most common and beloved tropes used by writers all over the world. Of course, it makes sense - from an innocent child one grows into a mature, experienced adult. Just like some heroes end up becoming the beast they're fighting, Madonnas experience their downfall - and often it is the whole point of their story.
Madonnas who fully embrace the Whore traits:
Morgana from Merlin - I recall watching the series when I was younger and I went: 'Wow, what a turn for her... She used to be the good, honest, gracious lady - and now she's literally an evil witch'. Literally. She has always been beautiful, but being evil definitely sexed her up - and made her an interesting, unpredictable character.
Cady Heron from Mean Girls does become a sexy bitch - and to think that she started off as a cute, goofy, naive 'new girl'
Dominika Egorova from Red Sparrow becomes a spy and a ruthless killing machine after her traumatic experience.
Moll Flanders, after being used for sex, quickly learns how to survive in the cruel world ruled by men. She uses her body and sharp mind to survive.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles is certainly a 'fallen woman'. The naive little girl is raped, disgraced and then rejected by a man ironically called Angel for lacking her 'purity'. Ups and downs of her life lead her back to the man who made her a whore in the first place - and in her second fall she becomes a killer.
Elizabeth from Poldark, although doesn't kill anyone, turns from a loving, slightly naive and insecure girl into a cunning, vain and cold-blooded lady.
Madonnas who remain honest and loyal despite ruined reputation:
Lady Seymour Worsley doesn't quite turn into an evil woman, but she certainly loses the innocence and naivety and fights back - using her sexuality in a way, although not the way one might expect.
Similarly, Veronica Franco from Dangerous Beauty literally becomes a prostitute because her beloved rejects her love - and uses her body to gain power, knowledge and independence. She never becomes evil, however.
Madonna vs Whore
Lastly, there are films that point out the Madonna-Whore dichotomy and actively play with it. Sometimes you have Madonna and Whore characters clash - literally and figuratively, and some films use the archetypes to point out the ridiculous double standards forced on women by those who think in these terms.
Easy A is a film based on satirising this binary seeing of women. Olive pretends to lose her virginity in order to save her new friend from bullying and ends up the target of hatred herself - so she embraces her newly acquired 'Whore' persona. She pretends to be the sexy seductress, while in reality she is the same fun, honest, loyal person - and a virgin.
Rebecca and Mr Winter's new nameless wife are in direct, yet indirect conflict. Rebecca is dead - yet her presence is everywhere, and the poor naive girl is haunted by her predecessor's superiority. She was stylish, confident, sexy, powerful and controlling - all these things that the heroine feels she should be but isn't.
The Vampire Diaries' Katherine and Elena, played by the same actress, are supposedly polar opposites - yet it's ironic to learn that the ruthless, cheating Katherine was once just as innocent and loving as her 'good' doppleganger... and Elena, once a vampire, embraces more and more of her evil twin's traits. Literally two sides of the same coin - loved by the same men and repeating a similar pattern.
Black Swan is yet another 'evil twin' story - with Nina learning from her far more seductive rival for the lead part and gradually embracing both the Madonna and the Whore sides of her personality. As she shifts from one to another, it becomes more and more difficult to draw the line between her real self and her evil side's projection - she ends up literally fighting and stabbing herself, imagining it is her evil rival.
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