In the movie Terminator 2[1], Linda Hamilton’s character, Sarah Connor, works both with and against the traditional concept of true womanhood.In order to demonstrate how Hamilton achieves this, it is necessary to explain the concept of true womanhood.These concepts and ideals originate from the nineteenth century view of women in literature.One classic example is Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.According to literary works of that era, a true woman should embody piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness.[2]In T2, Hamilton embodies several of those characteristics yet at times also proves them to be untrue of her character.

    The first thing to notice about Sarah Connor when she steps on screen is her physical appearance.She is not a thin waif, nor is she plump.Her muscularity is her most prominent feature.She is incredibly physically fit with her arms bulging with muscles.She proves to be physically powerful with the amount of running and lifting that she must do.This is a deviation from the typical trend in women to be slender, soft, and graceful.On the contrary, Hamilton makes a deep impact with her presence; she seems to let the viewers know that she has strength and she will indeed use it.

    Sarah Connor is the main female character in the movie.All the other characters are male (John Connor and the futuristic terminators). The basic plot of the T2 is that a futuristic machine, Model T1000 is sent back in time to kill John Connor (Sarah’s son), in order to take over the world and the human race.This futuristic machine, played by Robert Patrick, is made out of liquid metal; he can take any shape form or image, and cannot be destroyed.Essentially, this machine in masculine form appears invincible.In addition to the T1000, the terminator sent from the future to help protect Sarah is also a masculine figure.This machine, Model 101, is not quite as invincible as the T1000.However, to compensate for the lack of fluidity and changeability, the character is played by Arnold Schwarzenneger, who is incredibly strong and muscular.

    In the beginning of the film, before Sarah is introduced on screen, the image gathered by the descriptions portray her as the antithesis of a true woman.First of all, she smokes.Second of all, she is a single mother whose son has been taken away from her.But most importantly, she is hospitalized in a mental institute.[3]Obviously, according to society, she has problems far beyond being a little less than pure.As a result, the opening image and description of Connor lead the viewer to believe that she is truly the anti-woman.

    However, rather than totally going against the ways of the “true woman,” Connor works with them as well.She works within the concept of the true woman when dealing with the issue of protecting her son.She is extremely nurturing, and will protect him at all costs.A couple of specific scenes show this nurturing quality.One scene takes place in the back of a truck: Connor covers John with a pile of bullet-proof vests in order to keep him safe from the gunfire.The other scene takes place in an elevator:As the T1000 is trying to kill John, Sarah keeps pushing him out of the way to keep him out of danger’s way.She is being protective and motherly, a virtue of the true woman, yet as she does this, she simultaneously goes against the other concepts of true womanhood.Instead of being pure and pious, she takes a gun in her own hands and fights back.This image of a strong female who knows how to use a gun and actually uses it is the extreme opposite of the purity and piety that a “true woman” should possess.

    In another aspect of the movie, Sarah Connor is both working with and against the concept of true womanhood.She is submissive in some ways because the terminator sent back to protect her is a man (or masculine robot) and she must listen to his advice and follow instructions in order for her son to survive.However, she is not completely submissive in all aspects of her character.She refuses to submit to the T1000; by being submissive, she would not be able to be nurturing.She must fight and rebel against the T1000, and her nurturing characteristic causes her to do so.This refusal of submission is best seen when the T1000 threatens to kill her and orders Connor to call out to her son.If she calls out to her son, she will possibly live, but her son would be killed as a result.Instead, she fights, determined to keep her son alive.She fights back with strength, courage and anger until the final end result is the T1000’s defeat.So, in this scenario, Connor is working with and against the submissive concept of the true woman.She is submissive to the Model 101, but not to the T1000.

    In addition to being physically dominant and aggressive, Connor shows the womanly and anti-womanly characteristics through the emotional and mental side of her character.Because she plays a single mother, her role in her son’s life is multiplied.Because there is no father figure, she is the guiding force for her son John.[4]He looks up to her because he has no one else in his life; Connor works against the concept of being domestic, because she must acquire the role of both the mother and father for John. 

    Linda Hamilton’s character Sarah Connor in T2 is a true example of a woman working both with and against the concept of true womanhood in both the physical and emotional realm.She is a woman who shows the very womanly nurturing side of her character, yet at the same time is extremely dominant and defeats the almost invincible male character in the end.She is strong and powerful, and will not allow the confining roles of true womanhood destroy her and her son’s lives.