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Dedric Cherry
Connie S Douglas
ENG 112-56
06 September 2016

Bloodied and Bruised : Women and the Progression of Slasher Films

A Rhetorical Analysis of Sarah Trencanskys Final Girls and Terrible Youth: Transgression in 1980s
Slasher Horror & Andrew Welsh On the Perils of Living Dangerously in the Slasher Horror Film:

Who will survive the bloodbath? No one if the murderous antagonist gets their way.
(Sorry partygoers, camp counselors, and enjoyers of transgression). Unless of course, you are
the final girl. Sarah Trencansky discusses these themes in Final Girls and Terrible Youth:
Transgression in 1980s Horror published online in 2001 in the Journal of Popular Film &
Television. Slasher films carry a perception that it is the most disreputable form of the horror
film (Pinedo 71/ Trencansky). They have a tendency to be filled with sex, drugs, murder, and
violence (most arguing that the greatest violence is to the women). Trencansky argues that not
only should the subgenre not be counted out, but that the Final Girl breaks the mold as well as
allows for the film to serve as social commentary. She notices that there is a theme created by
using teens to flip authority on its head, to bring attention to the face that one does NOT have to
follow a set of established rules to survive.
Andrew Welsh, the author of On the Perils of living Dangerously in the Slasher Horror
Film: Gender Differences in the Association Between Sexual Activity and Survival, published
online in 2010 online by Springer Science+Business, examines the argument that not only do the
characters transgressions all but cement their deaths, but that violence finds a home in women.

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That their is a subconscious sexism that is running rampant (the violence going to an even further
extent and more frequently if the victim is/was sexually active). His analysis is/was intended for
his peers and highlights correlations of behavior, gender, death, and death length in slashers.
Both authors believe to an extent that transgressions often lead to the death of the characters
(with an emphasis on women). Trencansky speaks from an observation of the themes explored in
films (context) while Welsh brushes context aside and speaks from studies of the film and its
characters (statistics).

Final Girls
The stance taken by Sarah Trencansky tends to be the most agreeable. Final Girls and
Terrible Youth was written for the Journal of Popular Films & Television and was written
accordingly. Trencanskys ideas and drawn examples flow seamlessly from one point to the next.
She trades ten dollar words for relatability. It feels as if she is in the room carrying on an
intelligent conversation with the audience. It helps the audience progress without having to pause
out of frustration or to look up words. The article tells a story as we progress from film to film,
heroine to heroine. When you reach the end Trencansky dives a little deeper, explaining how the
films transcend blood and gore. The lens pulls back and you see the women as stronger for
having gone through the ordeal, as well as the authority they need to question to do so. She plays
on the audience's understanding of social norms and then explains the who, what, and why of
women and their role in horror. Noting that These slasher series specifically concern the

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boundaries that exist between dominant society and its others, and their overt insistence on
women heroines who encompass more than the usual category of women is just one way that
1980s slashers break down binary divisions. (Trencansky) The main weakness is the length. It
tends to drag a bit. Other than that it was put together well and guides the audience to think about
the why which is very important.
On the Perils of Living Dangerously in the Slasher Film:
Where Trencansky focused on meaning and symbolism, Andrew Welsh was grounded in
the implications that can be drawn from the films. He noticed that the biggest concern or critique
in the slasher films was the punishment women faced for their sexuality. He points out that there
seems to be weight to this idea that media depictions of female victims tend to emphasize and
reinforce schemas of traditional gender roles, such as female vulnerability or the damsel in
distress. (Welsh) He acknowledges the critics then decides to see if the claims hold up under
scrutiny. Welsh gets 50 simple random samples and compares data. He looks at men and women,
their survivability, death likelihood, the length of the murders, and their sexuality on/off screen to
look for any signs of correlation. A drawback is that it does get a little long winded and fact
based. The latter, while not bad and even goes to prove points made, was just done in a way to
detracted from the message at times due to explanation. It does however prove a correlation
between gender, sexuality, and violence while addressing opposition lightly. Welsh intention was
fulfilled.

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CONCLUSION
It appears of the two that Sarah Trencansky is most effective in fulfilling her intention.
She wanted to inform and she did. Trencansky acknowledges more than her own view. The
audience gets to hear from the detractors of the slasher genre from the very beginning. Then page
by page she acknowledges, explains with example, and moves on. Each article speaks on the
problematic gender roles that we still observe to this day. Trencansky, pointing out that change is
possible with the observance of the Final girl; Welsh pointing out that Final Girl is a
problematic figure that is an outlier. Noting that it doesnt speak to the fact that sexualized
women are still the object of violence in film to this day.

Works Cited
Welsh, Andrew. "On the Perils of Living Dangerously in the Slasher Horror Film: Gender
Differences in the Association between Sexual Activity and Survival." Sex Roles 62.11-12
(2010): 762-73. ProQuest. Web. 8 Sep. 2016.

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Trencansky, Sarah. "Final Girls and Terrible Youth: Transgression in 1980s Slasher Horror."
Journal of Popular Film & Television 29.2 (2001): 63-73. ProQuest. Web. 8 Sep. 2016.