Daisies: Lessons in Food

The 1960s was a time most remembered for its groovy fashion and psychedelic music. It was also a time of political and social change, and just as all of this was heavily present in Canada and the United States, as most commonly seen in regard to the hippie movement, it was present in other parts of the world as well. One instance in which this is all illustrated is in the film, Daisies (Věra Chytilová, Czechoslovakia, 1966), a story following two girls, Marie I (Jitka Cerhová) and Marie II (Ivana Carbanová), who, after deciding that the world is being spoiled so they will be spoiled too, begin playing various pranks on people, such as getting drunk and stealing the show at a nightclub, tricking men into dates and later abandoning them, and robbing a lady. The movie is not only funny and aesthetically pleasing, it contains strong messages in regard to the time in which it was created. Daisies was made as part of the Czech New Wave of the 1960s, in which the goal of the Czech filmmakers was to liberate the ideals of socialism from the reified state in which they had been trapped (Bates, 1977). Another main idea was to make Czech people aware of the oppressive systems in which they are a part of and are impacted by. Additionally, Daisies is a feminist film, as it brings to light patriarchal systems and beliefs which subordinate women. The film does this by using the mise-en-scene, particularly the food, as a way to comment on, and symbolize rebellion against, social issues of the time.

One of the first scenes where rebellion is symbolized by food is when the Maries go on a date with an older man near the beginning of the film. In this scene, the girls order many dishes and indulge in the food, and later make the man pay before abandoning him on the train. The girls’ goal of being spoiled and going bad because the world is, is clearly seen here; going out with an older man was, and still is, not seen as proper behaviour for young girls, nor was revelling in lots of food and the girls make note of both of these behaviours. This is first seen when Marie II comments on Marie I not eating lots of food and how she cannot believe that she is scared of gaining weight. While this may not be an explicit notice of what was seen as proper behaviour for young girls at first glance, one can make the connection between beauty standards for girls of being small and slim, and how they are expected to treat food. The expectation regarding dating older men is much clearer, as Marie I explicitly tells the man that she is scared of being made fun of by Marie II for being with an older man just before she is supposed to leave with him on the train. By ordering and eating an excess amount of food, and then leaving the older man the bill, soon after deciding to be spoiled just as the rest of the world is, the Maries challenge the social norms of femininity of the time, specifically with the way that they revel in their gluttony with food, thereby upholding feminist ideas that coincide with the Women’s Right’s Movement of the 1960s. While challenging femininity and social norms with food may not have been an explicit goal of Second Wave Feminism, the girls still play into this movement as this behaviour is largely anti-patriarchal and embraces their independence from ideals thrust onto them by the dominant culture, thus proving how rebellion against social issues is demonstrated through the use of food in the mise-en-scene.

Another instance in which food is used as a symbol of rebellion is during the scene in which Marie I and Marie II are mockingly listening to a message a man is leaving for one of the girls. While listening to the man profess his love and beg her to answer the phone, the girls simply listen, while occasionally giving a snarky comment to the other, all while cutting up and eating food. However in this instance, their use of food has another meaning, as all the foods they consume in this scene are phallic shaped ones. In this scene, the girls are rebelling not only against what was seen as proper behaviour, but against patriarchal structures which demean them - in this case, the male gaze; the idea that women are simultaneously looked at and displayed, with their appearance coded for strong visual and erotic impact so that they can be said to connote to-be-looked-at-ness (Mulvey, 1975). (Although Mulvey’s description of the male gaze did not come until many years after this film, this is not to say that it was not still present and used in films before then). The girls eating these phallic shaped foods could have easily been directed to be seen as seductive and, in Mulvey’s words, to be a projection of the male phantasy, but that is not the way Chytilová made this scene. By having the girls cut up bananas, sausages, and other foods, all while teasing the man on the phone, they take back the power from the men and the male gaze and are able to use it to their advantage. This usage of the male gaze correlates to the women’s rights movement of the 1960s, and in doing so, the Czech New Wave. The film’s way of commenting on and going against certain aspects of the patriarchy, particularly the sexualization of women, upholds feminist beliefs which were a big social issue at the time. By doing this, the film also upheld the main message of the Czech New Wave, to make people aware of the systems of oppression which impacted them all, by bringing to light the ways in which women were being subordinated by structures which benefitted men. It is through the mise-en-scene, specifically through the usage and symbolism of the phallic shaped food in this scene, that the film is able to comment on social issues of the time, and therefore proves how Daisies uses food as a motif for rebellion against social issues.

There are many other instances throughout the film in which the Maries indulge in an excess of food, and while at first glance it may seem slightly ridiculous, the ideas regarding the wasted food come full circle (for lack of a better term) at the end of the movie. During the final title card at the end of the film, the sentence, “This film is dedicated to those who get upset only over a stomped upon bed of lettuce”, is shown on the screen. This comment on the usage of food in the film is clearly a deliberate one; Chytilová had dealt with censorship with her movies in the past (Skupa, 2018) and was therefore aware of how certain groups of people (particularly those in positions of power) would view her film. By having this comment at the end of a movie that is filled with not only food wastage, but other current issues of the time such as issues regarding women’s rights and war, Chytilová drives the point of Czech New Wave home, as she makes a final comment bringing to light other, actually serious issues of the time that should be taken seriously rather than an excess of wasted food. Ironically, the government later attempted to put a distribution ban on the film (Skupa, 2018). While the most they were allowed to do was limit where it could be distributed, the message of this final frame still remained, and if anything, was proven to be true by the attempted ban, thus proving how food in the mise-en-scene is used as a symbol of rebellion against issues of the time.

In the 1966 film, Daisies, rebellion against social issues of the time is illustrated through the use of food in the mise-en-scene. As a film which was part of the Czech New Wave, stances regarding oppressive systems, particularly in feminist terms, were very prevalent; the Maries challenge social norms by the ways in which they are gluttonous with food, as seen in the first scene when they go on a date with an older man and order many dishes, and again in the scene where they listen to a man’s message over the phone. This scene also makes a point regarding the sexualization of women by having the girls cut up and eat phallic shaped foods, actions that could have easily been made to be erotic and pleasing to men, but instead use the male gaze to their advantage and reclaim the power it previously held over them. The final title card of the scene also makes a point about social issues by explicitly commenting on the usage of food throughout the film and the way in which it was interpreted by authority figures of the time. Daisies demonstrates all of this and more, all within an aesthetic whirlwind of the 1960s. While the antics the girls partake are mischievous, and at times harmful, the director is still able to have them successfully portray the part of a population that does not need nor want to water their identities down to socially accepted norms or submit to social structures that dominate them; those who feel they deserve to be spoiled just as the rest of the world.