“A League of Their Own” is a phenomenal movie as it presents expectations of society from women. Dottie Hinson is shown as a gifted baseball player, but it is just a game for her, unlike her sister, Kit. Dottie is content with her life and only joins the team so that her sister may join as well. Dottie’s character may look plain in contrast to other characters as she “has it all”, but it is her innate leadership skills that allow other players to shine. She is also seen as the perfect image for the baseball team management as they thought that “the prettier the player was, the more dramatic it would be when they did something athletic”. Dottie takes it upon herself to assemble a line-up of the team for the match when she realizes that the manager is not interested in the Girls’ Baseball team. According to him, the girls were not “Ball Players”. Dottie crushes his opinion by leading her team through matches and securing numerous wins. Dottie also saves the Base Ball league by raising the interest of the spectators. Dottie proved everyone wrong through her leadership skills, which allowed her team to shine (Marshal, 1992).
Miss Maida Gillespie’s commentary during the earlier scenes of the movie shows utter disgust for women who are doing any kind of athletic activities. It is briefly mentioned that the education system is trying to make women masculine and unappealing to society. This was the time when women’s education started to include physical activities and sports. However, allowing women to play sports professionally was seen as a way of creating gender confusion. This sentiment was raised as sports was a “manly” activity, and women who took part in it would bulk up their muscles. This would make them look like men, and they would become undesirable, meaning any chance of marriage would be lost. Women were expected to be frail and delicate as a flower, needing men to come to their rescue whenever they needed help. They were supposed to look pretty for their men and take care of their needs. In the commentary, she states, “When our men come back from the war, what kind of girls will they be coming home to?” (Bird Designs, 2007). This statement shows that women were not supposed to have their interests as they were born to serve the needs of their husbands and children.
References
birdesigns. (2007, July 14). A League of Their Own. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJEeQY-ns5o
Marshal, P. (1992, July 1). A League of Their Own. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104694/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
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