Gone with the Wind

Mario Jones

23 March 2011

Mr. Baines

History

“Gone with the Wind”

This historical analysis of the literary novel Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell presents varied, yet historically accurate depictions of slave life during the Reconstruction. The Civil War is largely romanticized through Mitchell's descriptions and portrayals of the conflict, but the historical relevancy of Reconstruction formulates a realistic view in the treatment of slaves through race issues. Summary: Gone with the Wind is a novel that depicts the romantic relationships between various characters of the Civil War era. The main character, Scarlet O'Hara, must endure the various problems with the soldiering Confederate men in her life, especially through that changes that occurred in Georgia during the war.

Vivian Leigh and Clark Gable play leading roles in this movie. Leigh plays the part of Scarlet O'Hara, a young vivacious, spoiled young woman in the full blush of maidenhood in the old South of plantations, magnolia blooms and lush wealth of the plantation life of white slave owners. Gable plays the part of Rhett Butler, a debonair roguish entrepreneur who turns stockade runner during the war between the North and the South. Scarlet was born and bred on a large plantation, which was named "Tara". Her father was a doting father who was both a Plantation and slave owner. Mr. O'Hara was portrayed as an Irishman who was kind to his slaves and considered them to be almost family members. Scarlet's mother was a matronly woman who commanded obedience in a genteel way from servants and children alike.

From the onset Scarlett O' Hara is shown as the only girl who has a mind sharp enough to match any man and a critical eye offering a Feminist critique of the feminine ideology governing the South, as early as the pre civil war days. Mitchell's feminist portrayal comes through in Scarlett's proposal to Ashley and her defiance of the norm by dancing with Rhett despite being in mourning. For...