In the film Brokeback Mountain, Ennis del Mar has been taught to participate in the patriarchal society of America, and those beliefs play a huge role in the way he treats his family. There are many scenes throughout the film in which this attitude Ennis has towards his family is shown. One scene in particular happens when Ennis brings the children to Alma's work, and he leaves them with her instead of taking care of them himself. This event occurs for the sake of his own job, even if it is at the expense of hers'.
In this scene, Alma is once again left to take care of the children, even though Ennis promised to look after them for one night. When he gets called into work, he automatically chooses to drop the children off with Alma so that he can keep his own job. Ennis believes that because Alma is the woman in the relationship, she should be the one to look after the children. When Alma asks, "What about my job?" Ennis' silence speaks louder than words.
It is clear that Ennis believes that as the man of the house, he should be the one who brings home the money and provides for the family. This makes him feel powerful and important, and it reassures him of his masculinity. When Alma questions Ennis about her own job and Ennis remains silent, he is telling her that what he wants is more important, and as the man in the relationship he gets to have the final say on what is going to happen.
This scene really made me feel for Alma because it is obvious that Ennis views her as someone who is there to take care of the children, and he believes it is her job as a woman to fulfill that role. I felt like the look of resignation on Alma's face really spoke of how her relationship with Ennis had been like up until the point where they got divorced, which consisted of Ennis calling all the shots. In the patriarchal society they live in, Alma has no voice and no input on what happens in her life until she decides to divorce Ennis.
