Summary:

A man buys his wife a player piano for her birthday, but, when the piano plays, people show their innermost selves.

 

Bechdel Test:

  • Passes!
  • A few women tell Ester “Happy Birthday”
  • Marge talks to several women about her diet

 

Gender Roles of Important Characters:

  • Fitzgerald
    • Masculine (8)
      • Self-reliant, assertive, strong personality, forceful, analytical, willing to take risks, aggressive, individualistic
    • Feminine (1)
      • Childlike
  • Ester
    • Masculine (3)
      • Analytical, willing to take risks, willing to take a stand
    • Feminine (8)
      • Yielding, sympathetic, sensitive to others’ needs, compassionate, eager to soothe hurt feelings, soft-spoken, tender, gentle
  • Marge
    • Masculine (3)
      • Self-reliant, independent, strong personality
    • Feminine (3)
      • Cheerful, affectionate, warm
  • Greg
    • Masculine (5)
      • Self-reliant, independent, assertive, willing to take risks, willing to take a stand
    • Feminine (2)
      • Sensitive to others’ needs, soft-spoken

 

Analysis:

This episode has less disrupted gender roles than some of the episodes, but it still does some interesting things with gender. First of all, it passes the Bechdel test, so yay! Next, it makes the villain someone with lots of masculine traits (you like the characters with more of a mix of characteristics, even if that mix is limited, way more). Also, in the episode, Ester, who is mistreated in her marriage, cheats on her husband, who is the “bad guy.” The audience is made to sympathize with Ester, allowing the audience to understand why the affair occurred and thus giving women more control, which was quite the development for when this episode would have originally aired.

Shared by: Grace White
Image Credit: The Twilight Zone, CBS via Netflix