Psycho Social and Cultural Context

Question 1

When was Psycho released?

Answer 1

1960

Question 2

Liberation/protest movements which were gaining traction at the time?

Answer 2

• Lgbt movement
• Civil rights movement
• 2nd Wave Feminism
• Anti-Vietnam movement

Question 3

Geopolitical tensions that set a mood of dread and fear in the population of America?

Answer 3

• The Cold War tension between the USA and USSR: constant threat of nuclear war

Question 4

Views at that time around disability?

Answer 4

• discriminatory, fear-mongering.

Question 5

Events/cultural phenomena linking to the LGBT community at the time?

Answer 5

• Lavender scare: a mass moral panic about LBGT people
• Belief in homosexuality as a mental illness

Question 6

What was the Hays code? How did it impact Psycho’s production?

Answer 6

• Moral code imposed upon all films from 1934 to 1968: forced limitation on sexual content, violent content, depiction of “morally complex” characters
• Meant Hitchcock had to edit some aspects of the film: although he managed to keep most of what he originally intended to depict

Question 8

Does Psycho accept or challenge typical representations of the time?

Answer 8

• The film somewhat challenged traditional representations by even depicting a woman taking agency: but mostly, the film used traditional representations of social groups as dictated by the societal context of the time.