A Separation - CULT ANAL

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School

Oakland Community College *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

1900

Subject

Arts Humanities

Date

Oct 30, 2023

Type

odt

Pages

Uploaded by GeneralInternetBuffalo7

HUM1900- Cultural Analysis A Separation (2011) The Iranian film, A Separation , directed by Asghar Farhadi, tells the story of the life of the middle and lower class in Iran as well as the conflicts that arise in relation to their cultural institution. Simin and Nader are a separated Iranian couple with an 11-year-old daughter. Simin has been making plans to move abroad, and Nader, who takes care of his elderly Alzheimer's-stricken father, does not want to go and there is also Termeh's schooling to consider. The reasons for Simin wanting to flee are vague, although she does tell the divorce judge in the opening scene, "I don't want to raise my daughter under these circumstances.”. “What circumstances?”, the Judge retorts. These words provide the impetus of the film – and coupled with its realistic approach to narrative and cinematography, the audience can interpret the conflict and reasoning between the characters and their struggles with family, religion, and the patriarchy. A Separation examines the clash of cultures going on in current-day Iran: tradition versus modernism where both sides lack respect for the other. Nader is desperate for help with his father while he is at work, so he hires a caretaker, Razieh, who is desperate to keep her family afloat though keeping it a secret from her husband, Hodjat. The old man soils himself while in Razieh's care which poses a grave challenge for her as Islam considers it a sin for a woman to be in the presence of a unclothed man, so she obtains religious approval to clean him. Later, she makes a decision while caretaking to restrain the old man, a decision that will have vast repercussions. Nader, furious and under a lot of pressure, fires Razieh and shoves her out of the apartment. Soon after, Razieh and Hodjat miscarry their unborn and blame Nader due to his physical actions. This is where the viewers are invited to an indictment of a society that leaves many of its participants no way out. In terms of class and patriarchy in A Separation , Razieh and Hodjat are conservative and

traditional in comparison to Nadar and Simin who are noticeably modern, educated, and of a higher class. Razieh comes from a poor and more traditional background and wears the black chador imposed on women in Islamic theocracies ruled by holy men whereas Simin choses to wears a scarf and jeans symbolizing a feminist diversion from religious ideology. Moreover, Razieh and her husband consider Simin and Nader to be godless tools of Western capitalism. To Simin and Nader, the others are ignorant, backward, and exemplify all they dislike about Iran. The point-of-view (POV) from Hodjat is that he is what happens when an entire class of people are emasculated for want of meaningful work as he has been in and out of debtors' prison for a couple of years. He is strong, obviously capable, handsome and responsible, thought society has failed him...and now that his family has been devastated by their encounter with Simin and Nader, he is determined to make them pay. While the conflict serves the purpose of furthering the plot, it also acts as more insight to Iranian politics. When Razieh and her husband take the issue to law enforcement, Nader finds himself facing time in prison if he is found guilty, though with the inherent advantage of being a wealthy male, the sentence he faces is minimal despite the fact that his crime is second-degree murder of an unborn baby. In Iran, murder is not a wrongdoing against God, but against people, therefore harsh criminal sentences are set aside as alternative damages can be sought from the guilty as equitable compensation (This differs from American Law where murder is harshly punished by the state and damages are recovered civilly). It is later revealed that compensation was Razieh’s real intention behind her accusation as she saw the situation as an opportunity for financial gain due to her social status and her husband’s debts. The central conflict is extremely compelling on its own, but it is the narrative and the realistic neutral POV of the camerawork that make the film resonate to the viewers. Farhadi uses the primary characters and their confrontations as a commentary on Iranian culture and society. While everyone can relate to subject matter such as marriage, social status, morality and guilt, seeing it in a context outside

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