The Stereotypes in Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands: Part Three
- Scott Barnard
- Nov 11, 2017
- 2 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
The Desperate Housewife
The desperate housewife flirting with the plumber.
The first article on The Stereotypes in Edward Scissorhands focused on how Tim Burton creatively manipulates them, enriching stereotypes to create new and deeper meanings, while the second article focused on The Bumbling Dad trope. This article will focus on another stereotype Tim Burton used effectively in Edward Scissorhands, that being, The Desperate Housewife.
Tim Burton stereotypically represents The Desperate Housewife to emotionally manipulate his audience. Joyce has all the trappings we have seen before with desperate housewives; she is attention seeking, gossipy, flirtatious and manipulative. Joyce is important in Edward's story because it is her character traits that cause Edward's demise. The effect of this trope is fundamental to the story while also emotionally manipulating the audience. Remember this scene?
Who could forget, right?
Like a predator, Joyce walks Edward into the back room of the hair salon where she tries on smocks for him before eagerly climbing on top of Edward, unbuttoning her blouse, exposing her cleavage, and leaning in for a kiss. Then the weight of the two of them on the chair causes it to topple over and Edward quickly leaves the salon. Joyce shouts out, "Edward! Edward come back here! You can't do that!"
After this event, Joyce's gossipy, manipulative, attention seeking and vindictive desperate housewife traits turn full force into discrediting Edward. She eventually leads the stereotypical Pitchforks & Torches rabble that literally runs Edward out of town during the Boggs' Christmas Party; which plays on another trope - Twisted Christmas.
Why has Tim Burton not subverted The Desperate Housewife stereotype? Because Joyce represents a major aspect of what is wrong with suburban life. She is one of those people who are bored, gossipy, unimaginative, desperate for attention and will do whatever it takes to get attention, no matter who they discredit or accuse of attempted rape. This is a person to hate. The antagonist. A villain. And I will add, all fairytales need an evil woman and Edward Scissorhands is, after all, a gothic fairytale. Joyce plays a crucial role in Edward's story of ruin and innocence lost, but she also plays a role in Tim Burton's statement on suburbia.
Written by Scott Barnard