Shot 27 / 11:12–11:19Select a shot, or shift-click to select multipleSelect a shot, or double-tap to select multiple

Modesta

35 min 55 sec147 shots

Framed as an old tale from an unnamed island, the film follows Modesta, a pregnant homemaker who cares for a young child and manages the household while her husband orders coffee and a cooked chicken. When the chicken escapes, her husband ridicules her pregnancy, dismisses women’s work, and threatens her, while other women describe the same exhausting labor and lack of consideration.

Modesta and her neighbors form the LML, the League of Liberated Women, choose a piece of firewood as their symbol, and demand freedom from beatings, shared responsibility for children and housework, and fair treatment in marriage. They confront the men and refuse to cook until the men respond; the men eventually acknowledge women’s right to fair treatment and reject violence, but they refuse to wash diapers and add conditions of their own. The closing lines claim that civilization has ended such conflicts, then undercut that claim by asking whether women have truly stopped using pieces of firewood.

Provenance and rights

Original producer: Creator listed on Library of Congress item record
Collection: Library of Congress — explicit public-domain National Film Registry set
Original title: Modesta
Date: Unknown
Original link: Open on loc.gov
Rights: public_domain