Reproduction and the Maternal Body in the Alien series

Chapter 6: Conclusion

Real life scientific expansion and development are arguably significant influences on the science fiction film. In reciprocal fashion, it is habitually argued that science fiction cinema itself foretells scientific innovation and progression. Research into the debate of whether science imitates art or art imitates science has lead to conclusions that there is indeed a correlation between the influences of real life and fantasy:

There is an interesting relationship between science fiction films and the development of biomedical instrumentation […] It is interesting that the ideas presented in films actually lagged behind the real technology for a while (approximately 1930-1965). However, for most of the time (before 1930, and after 1965), the imagination of movie directors, and the audience’s interest and fascination with effects stimulated the movie industry so that the instrumentation in the movies surpassed the exponential growth of modem technology.

(Boutillette et al., 1999: 144)

As the research suggests, science fiction cinema is increasingly prophetic within the individual narrative of a film. While Boutillette’s study considers an increased imagination of filmmakers and the audience post-1965, it does not reflect on socio-contemporary attitudes and developments in biological reproduction.

As postulated in this thesis, the Alien series forms a grand narrative that is significantly influenced by societal unease surrounding the threat to human biological function. It is an unease that differs significantly over the course of the saga, with each film examining current attitudes towards the threat of maternal existence, which are contemporary to each film. While films such as Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982), Jurassic Park and Blueprint (Rolf Schübel, 2003) offer individual reflections on themes of reproduction and the threat posed to the maternal body, the Alien series differs in that each instalment forms part of a metanarrative that is a contemporary commentary on medical and scientific advancement and anxiety.

Alien offers a narrative trajectory that unfolds in each subsequent film in the series. While displaying scenes of the monstrous and the abject, scenes which would also become a thematic and visual presence in the story arc of each film, Alien highlighted the anxiety surround modern advancements in the medical world. These anxieties would be exemplified in the character of Ash, who is later revealed to be a robot, an uncanny construct, displaying characteristics of human nature that made him undistinguishable to the rest of the crew. To add further concern to this manifestation of robotic evolution, Ash represents the evil of humankind, under orders from the Company to bring back the alien, even if it were at the expense of the now dispensable crew. Both Ash and the alien represent the threat to the maternal body: Ash signifies the ability of man to create without the need of the biological body, and the alien represents the capability of birth without intercourse, with horrific consequences. Furthering the element of the maternal, Aliens amplifies the alien quintessence in the guise of the Alien Queen, a creature with the purpose of procreating, again without the aid of a sexual partner. Juxtaposed in this manifestation is Ripley, who here represents the blue collar working class hero, the feminist icon who does not let the presence of the Alien Queen prevent her from her maternal duties to Newt, the surrogate daughter, a reflection of ‘80s increase in surrogacy in the United States. Alien 3 serves as a threat to this surrogacy, offering the narrative of contamination, a plague representative of HIV that projected early ‘90s issues surrounding the presence of homosexuals and the deadly sexually transmitted disease that threatened society. The final instalment, Alien Resurrection, through the reproduction of Ripley as a clone, establishes society’s awareness of the progression of recombinant DNA cloning, reproduction at the absence of the maternal body, and the possibilities of science to bypass the laws of nature.

This thesis has demonstrated that throughout the Alien series, horror and the grotesque are frequently associated with the maternal. The human body is presented as a space of monstrosity and trauma in relation to that of reproduction, and the manifestation of the alien, both hostile and phallic, represents the manifest fear of the abject body. While Barbara Creed considered the films’ abject aspects in the context of the maternal reproductive body, this thesis extends her premise. It argues that such abjection does not derive intrinsically from the maternal body, but, in line with other science fiction films, stems from the series’ reflections of threatening real world technological advancements in the sphere of reproduction and genetic manipula.

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Filmography

Alien, 1979. [Film] Directed by Ridley Scott. USA: 20^th Century Fox

Alien 3, 1992. [Film] Directed by David Fincher. USA: 20^th Century Fox

Alien Resurrection, 1997 [Film] Directed by Jean Pierre Jeunet. USA: 20^th Century Fox

Aliens, 1986. [Film] Directed by David Cameron. USA: 20^th Century Fox

Blade Runner, 1982. [Film] Directed by Ridley Scott. USA: Warner Bros. Pictures

Blueprint, 2003. [Film] Directed by Rolf Schübel. Germany: United International Pictures

Bride of Frankenstein, 1935. [Film] Directed by James Whale. USA: Universal Pictures

Brides of Dracula, 1960. [Film] Directed by Terence Fisher. UK: Universal Pictures

Charlie’s Angels, 1979. [TV programme] ABC, 1976-1981.

Frankenstein, 1931. [Film] Directed by James Whale. USA: Universal Pictures

Jurassic Park, 1993. [Film] Directed by Steven Spielberg. USA: Universal Pictures

Metropolis, 1927. [Film] Directed by Fritz Lang. Weimar Republic: UFA

Rambo, 1982. [Film] Directed by Ted Kotcheff. USA” Orion Pictures

Sleeper, 1973. [Film] Directed by Woody Allen. USA: United Artists

Star Wars, 1977. [Film] Directed by George Lucas. USA: 20^th Century Fox

Terminator, 1984. [Film] Directed by James Cameron. USA: Orion Pictures

The Bionic Woman, 1978. [TV programme] ABC/NBC, 1976-1978.

The Boys From Brazil, 1978. [Film] Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner. UK/USA: 20^th Century Fox

The Clonus Horror, 1979. [Film] Directed by Robert S. Fiveson. USA: Group 1 International Distribution Organization Ltd.

Wonder Woman, 1979. [TV programme] ABC/CBS, 1975-1979.

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