The East has always held an exotic and seductive intrigue for the West. In Orientalism Edward W. Said characterized the "Orient" with "sensuality, promise, terror, sublimity, idyllic pleasure, and intense energy."1 With this view in mind, Asia is transformed into the likes of an exotic, devious woman with the capability of seducing the Western man.
The East's possession of these "powers" results in the West's desire to penetrate and control; the source of this need comes from the fear that Asia could somehow entice the Western foreigner in that land. The industry's system of double standardized miscegenation is to a large extent based upon traditional racist assumptions about and fear of the consequences of interracial sex and marriage.2 To counterbalance this fear, most of the interracial tales of seduction portrayed on the big screen conclude tragically. The Asian seducer or seductress dies and the once "tainted" Westerner finds a way to redeem him or herself.3
These seduction tales, feature mostly Eurasian characters, provide the means to explore issues concerning race, paternity, the patriarchal organization of the family, and the containment of female sexuality. To illustrate this, references will be made from the film, Lady of the Tropics.4
In this film, the Eurasian seductress's ability to entice a man is intertwined with her racial difference. Thus, she poses a double threat to traditional morality and racial boundaries. Eurasians, in this work, are portrayed as "vicious." Their behavior, such as pilfering, is considered "on par" with their genetic inferiority.5 Generally speaking, the foundation of white racism is laid upon biological, that is genetic, grounds.5
This film plays upon the exoticism of the East by portraying Khmer temples, barefoot dancers in gaudy costumes, gongs, Buddhist monks, and elephants. Manon, the seductress, embodies the ultimate feminine personification of Hollywood's opulent and mysterious Asia in the nuptial scene. Nevertheless, the film ends in her tragic death.6
Notes
1. Edward W. Said, Orientalism (New York; Random House, 1979), 118.
2. Eugene F. Wong, On Visual Media Racism: Asians in the American Motion Pictures (New York; Arno Press, 1978), 21.
3. Gina Marchetti, Romance and the "Yellow Peril" (CA; University of California Press, 1993), 68.
4. Ibid, 70.
5. Wong, 21.
6. Marchetti, 76.
