Anna Bea D.

Geronga

ENG 198 SP2

The Tart with a Heart, Penetrating the

Angel-Slut Dichotomy: An Analysis of Pretty Woman (1990)
Pretty Woman (1990) is a romantic comedy film directed by Garry Marshall starring
Richard Gere and Julia Roberts. It features Edward Lewis, a rich and workaholic businessman who
propositions a kindhearted prostitute, Vivian Ward to stay with him for a night, and later a week as his
escort to social events. The film starts with a chance encounter along Hollywood Boulevard, a business
proposition, and progresses into a grand exposition of the growing romance between Edward and Vivian,
all within a span of a week. Unlike the other heroines of the canonical variety, the heroine is a prostitute,
the proverbial bad woman who is the very image of the impure and the tainted, but, of course, unlike the
whores whose fiendish desires have caused them societal damnation, Vivian is a tart with a heart, a
hooker with a heart of gold. Shes a Cinderella trapped in a financial limbo, whos saved by her prince a
prince, whom she, simultaneously, rescued from a limbo of his own.
The film has strains from fairy tales, particularly Cinderella. It is a rags-to-riches story
entwined with romance. It is a modern fairy tale, a retelling shoved into the pits of reality. Though there is
a change in scenery (from the clutches of an evil stepmother to the red-light district of Hollywood), the
characters of the classic tale remain recognizable, even if their forms have changed. For a heroine, instead
of an abused domestic servant, we have a prostitute, and for a hero, instead of a prince, we have a
corporate raider. The fairy godmother takes the form of a kind hotel manager, and the evil stepsisters of
Cinderella could very well be the snooty saleswomen who judged and dismissed the heroine when she
tried shopping on Rodeo Drive. The film even portrays the transformation from pauper to princess every
time Vivian wears a beautiful dress. Yet, with all these influences in mind, what made the film interesting
for me are its deviations from the classic tale. Vivian is not simply a damsel in financial distress whos
saved by her prince. She, too, is a liberator in her own right for she rescued her prince from himself.
From the very beginning, it was implied that somehow Vivian would help Edward one way or
another. Their meeting along Hollywood Boulevard is a foreshadowing of sorts, and it also sets the
relationship of the two, in my opinion. It actually reminded me of the meeting of Mr. Rochester and Jane
in Charlotte Bronts Jane Eyre. Edwards failure to drive a stick shift is reminiscent of Mr. Rochester
falling off his horse. And then, there are the two heroines, Vivian and Jane, who are willing to help the
distraught men. In the novel, Jane took care of Mr. Rochester when he went blind, nursed him back to
health, and saved him from hopelessness caused by the loss of his estate and his love (an interesting twist,
if I may say so myself). In the film, Vivian saved Edward from himself, not just from the monotony of his
life, but the cyclic numbness that comes with his work as a corporate raider. Edward is a businessman
whose world revolves around his work so much so that hes barely living. When Vivian came along, it
was as if she brought him back to life. Through her eyes, he began to experience a sense of wonder
behind the things that he had taken for granted like the most mundane of things such as stepping on the
grass barefoot. Jane and Vivian both encouraged the men they love to live again. But the difference
between the two women lies in their occupation: Janes a governess, while Vivians a prostitute. And for
me that difference is a significant divergence from the canonical romantic trend.
The heroines of the canonical romances and the foundational 20 th century texts we discussed in
class feature virgins. The fact that Vivian Ward isnt one allows me to venture on penetrating the angelslut dichotomy. At this point, I wish to present two female characters from Kathleen Woodiwiss The
Flame and the Flower (Heather Simmons and Louisa Wells) and compare them with Vivian Ward.
Heather as a heroine is an ingnue. She was mistaken for a prostitute and was raped, and that was when
she lost her virginity. Sexually pleasing as she is to the eye, looks aside, I would classify her as an angel,
(excluding the fact that she is kind). Louisa Wells, Heathers foil in the novel enjoys intercourse outside

of marriage, a lot. I would classify her as a slut (in spite of her bad temperament and callousness as an
individual). My classification is based on the two womens chastity, and the sexual identity, if not image,
they project to their society. Where does one categorize a prostitute in an angel-slut dichotomy? Some
would say under slut, definitely, but then we must consider the function of sex to a prostitute it is a
means to get by. To have sex excessively is a job requirement as much as it is an occupational hazard.
Vivian as a prostitute does not have sex excessively out of desire. To her its business, in which shes like
a robot and just do it. But then we must also take into consideration the idea that when in love, Vivian
does make love outside of marriage. If the basis of the angel-slut dichotomy is chastity, if not sexual
expression, then Vivian as a heroine is a slut. But if we consider the entirety of a womans sexual identity,
or the identity of a woman outside of sex (its all or nothing), then perhaps, we can surmise that as a
woman, Vivian cannot simply be pigeonholed into one category or another. To be an angel or a slut, that
is the question. Though, if well be honest, and look at women as complex beings, well realize that angel
and slut are two categories that are not mutually exclusive. Throughout the film, Vivian has proven that
she is not a bad woman, that she is sweet, compassionate, a woman with a kind of integrity that puts men
like Philip Stuckey (the man who attempted to rape her) to shame. She is a kind of woman that knows
what sex is, but also knows what making love is. Shes an angel. Shes a slut. She can be everything she
wants to be within the spectrum of female sexuality.
The romance between Edward and Vivian started with a business proposition which requires the
consent of both parties. I would just like to highlight the idea that the whole time Vivian stayed with
Edward, she could always have said, no, whether she loved him or not, paid by him or not. It is a choice
that was not afforded to some of the females in the foundational 20 th century texts such as E. M. Hulls
The Sheik and Woodiwiss The Flame and the Flower. And I am pleased with this deviation.
We have reached a moment in time where were highly tolerant of the blurring of lines, good and
bad, angel and slut. Before there were clear cut lines on who the angels were and who, the sluts, but now,
ideally they matter not. Do we attribute this to the shifting morality code of our contemporaries or the
acceptance of female sexuality? Either way, I would like to pose that our perception of women will
always be intertwined with the development of the romance narrative.