Man-hating and androphobia in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Marnie”

Alfred Hitchcock’s 1964 film “Marnie” offers a powerful portrait of a woman twisted by both hatred and fear of men. I don’t want to spoil the movie for any readers who have not yet had the pleasure of watching it. However, played by Tippi Hedren, the title character appears to be a model of propriety. Early in the film, a male boss remarks on her modesty, saying that she was “always covering her knees as if they were some sort of national treasure.” Awhile later, we see Marnie tugging at her skirt.

The audience soon learns that Marnie lives with her aging mother. Meeting Mom gives insight into why the daughter fears and loathes men. When Marnie dyes her hair a light shade of blond, Mom sourly remonstrates, “Too blond hair always looks like a woman’s trying to attract a man. Men and a good name don’t go together.” Marnie makes a light-hearted remark about the Bible and Mom retorts, “We don’t talk smart about the Bible in this house.” Later Mom hits again on the man-hating refrain: “Decent women don’t have need of any man. . . . [Marnie] is too smart to go getting herself mixed up with men, none of ‘em.”

“Marnie” has quite a few surprises but, without revealing them, I can say that Marnie’s mother had special reasons for wanting to raise her daughter to be “decent.” That she did by pushing the Bible at her and repeatedly warning her against men. Marnie turns into an attractive young woman who is fiercely chaste with, in her own words, “no lovers, no steadies, no beaus, no gentleman callers.”

Marnie is not a lesbian. There is no suggestion of any closeness or warmth toward any female other than her mother (and that does not cross into an incestuous feeling). There is a moment in the film that may subtly hint at another woman’s lesbian attraction to Marnie. The character of Lil (Diane Baker) seems to give Marnie an admiring once-over. Marnie responds with the lowered eyes and look of distaste that we can expect she has when men look at her similarly. Then Lil asks, “Who’s the dish?”

Misandry and androphobia do not lead Marnie to a high opinion of her own sex. Marnie says she “knows” that “men are filthy pigs” – and that “women are stupid and feeble.”

In some ways, the fictional Marnie is remarkably similar to some real-life women and men. French actress Brigette Bardot has said, “Men are beasts and even beasts wouldn’t do the things they do.” She has also railed against women being in prominent government positions.

When I was in college in the late 1970s, I had a brief involvement with a strongly traditionalistic Christian religious group. This group opposed racial prejudice and was very well integrated in its make-up of different ethnicities. It also emphasized the importance of men’s leadership and women’s submission, both in the church and in the home. However, its women often seemed to have confused and confusing views on the genders. One said, “Guys don’t get serious” and “I like the idea of a guy taking care of me.” Another praised the idea of women “humbling [ourselves] to our brothers” and said “most guys will just get you into trouble.” I’ve also heard men themselves say, “men are pigs” – even when they opposed women in leadership or non-traditional roles.

How to explain the seeming contradictions? Some interpretations of the Bible place great emphasis on the “fallen nature” of humanity and might feed a negative views of people in general. An emphasis on chastity may make the other sex appear the enemy. People who buy into stereotypes of one sort may be prone to buy into those of another. Thus, the flip side of “men are filthy pigs” may not be “I am woman, hear me roar” but “women are stupid and feeble.” Seeing men as nasty brutes and women as weakly emotional may not be polar opposites but are frequently two sides of the same negative and bigoted coin.