Film Review: Suffragette

An image from the Suffragette film

I didn't vote in this year's General Election- why not?  Well, it just seemed like too much hassle.  I got back from work later than I'd have liked and I wasn't too sure where the nearest voting station was or where I'd put my voting card.  So I stayed home and soon forgot about voting between candidates promising cheaper car insurance and other mundane policies.       

Suffragettes was a poignant, heart wrenching reminder of the sacrifices that these women suffered in order for us to have the vote.  The vote, which I am now ashamed to say, I squandered.  Many of us are aware of the suffragette movement and pinnacle figures such as the Pankhurts and Emily Davison, who was trampled by the King's horse at the Derby races.   The Suffragettes film shows the stark reality of the challenges that these women faced, particularly their treatment in prisons and brutal force feedings which they endured.  The main character in the film, Maud Watts, starts off as a timid woman whose husband appears as caring and loving towards her.  Ever the romantic, I had hoped that he would be supportive of her contributions towards the suffragette movement and stand by her through the repeated unjust incarcerations.  But this was not the case.  The quick deterioration of their relationship and the lack of rights that she held as a mother was a deeply disturbing revelation.  A must-watch for every modern woman.

I will certainly never squander my vote again.    

by randomdaymusings