Finding Deep Meaning in Film As was demonstrated in my analysis of Uys’ (1980) film, the techniques used for biblical interpretation may be used not merely for biblical interpretation or as a means to read literature as an example of the modern parable. These techniques may also be used to the interpretation of film as a medium of communication. Rosenberg, Lucchesi, Boardman, Vinson, Flynn, and Derrickson’s (2005), The exorcism of Emily Rose, provides a wonderful platform for examining these techniques as it is fraught with meaning, should the viewer take time to peel back the layers of the onion. Rosenberg et al. (2005) tells the story of the death of Emily Rose and the Catholic priest who is charged with the negligent homicide. On …show more content…
There are many theological themes that flow from the basic narrative if one takes time to consider them. Beyond the question of the cause of Emily’s death, one finds themes that relate to faith and rational thought, the existence of God and demons, the relationship between faith and science, suffering and faith, compassion and pain, and submission to a higher authority. While I will not take the time to delve into each one of these themes independently, I will select a few that are the most critical to this author. The first theme that becomes apparent is an overt attack on religion. Early on in the film, we find a group of lawyers talking about who will prosecute the case. It is stated that, “We need a Christian on this, preferably a Catholic. Someone who knows this stuff inside and out, and who the public will see as unbiased. We’re going after a holy man here” (Rosenberg et al, 2005). It was not merely about identifying a prosecutor who was capable, but one who took attack the faith and discredit the exorcism rite. The courtroom attacks on Father Moore continue in this vain claiming that his views were based upon, “archaic and irrational superstition” (Rosenberg et al, 2005). The Christian faith is depicted as the product of fiction; because it cannot be rationalized. A second theme that flows from the film is the question of the existence of God and demons. Peter Chattaway (n.d.),
One of the prevalent themes of Emily’s work is death. Since she wrote about her inner world and troubles, death as a theme could not be avoided. Emily Dickinson had to face the losing friends to death. Several deaths of family members, including her mother, father and a nephew helped contribute to the theme in her poetry. These events affected her health but she found a way to cope with the idea of death with her poetry. She developed an attitude towards death, seeing it as a transition from mortality to immortality. She accepted its inevitability and tried to make peace with the idea itself. This kind of comprehension was something Emily needed in order to cope with the loss of her loved ones who had been her only support and company in her isolated lifestyle. The theme of death is shown in the poem I picked for the research paper. In the poem called “How Far Is It To Heaven”, by Emily Dickinson it again deals with death but heaven and hell is included. This poem has only a few lines but it gets straight to the point and the theme of the poem hits you right in the face. One example is clear from the first two lines where it asks “How Far Is It To Heaven?” (Line 1) and “As far as Death this way” (Line 2). The poem is so simple but portrays a powerful message to the reader. Another huge theme of
“At last they could pity Emily” (453) or at least that is what the community thought they could do when Emily lost her father and became “humanized” (453). Emily is one of the most prominent people of her time and is even recognized through a story all written about her. This analytical essay of “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner without doubt, uses symbolism to portray change and decay throughout the story by using Emily’s home, Mr. Grierson, and herself.
In spite of her suffering, it is almost shocking how Emily behaves extraordinary well even in stressful situations. When she is left at nursery school, she acts unexpectedly contrary to most kids her age. “‘She did not clutch and implore “don’t go Mommy” like the other children’” (Olsen 291). She prefers to stay at home but even while trying to convince her mother to let her stay, she does it subtly, “‘Never a direct protest, never rebellion’” (Olsen 292). Does Emily behave well by choice? Her mother is worried and wonders, “What in me demanded that goodness in her? And what was the cost, the cost to her of such goodness?” (Olsen 292).
In the sixth chapter of Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Foster examines the Bible and its importance throughout stories, poetry and film. The Bible is one of the most commonly known pieces of literature and is even “nonsectarian” in Foster’s eyes (44). Because stories from the Bible are so well known, the Bible is a tremendously easy for authors to reference when constructing a new composition. Especially “prior to sometime in the middle of the twentieth century” writers were “solidly instructed in religion” and could count on the public being very well acquainted with Biblical stories (47). This widespread knowledge of the Bible lead to greater understandings throughout literature, and the recognized allusions helped
Miss Emily is also decaying, but it is subtle and internal--the awful smell that begins to permeate from her dwelling is a reflection of the withering woman within rotting. Perhaps most tragically, Miss Emily’s isolation is far from self-inflicted. Her blind devotion to the ones she loves; her father, her husband, her home; only serves to further condemn her actions. Her neighbors disregard toward her inabilty to let go of her father after his death, despite the delicacy of her being, caused for her madness to fester. “She told them her father was not dead.
Among many twentieth-century writers who have attempted to write about murder and mystery, William Faulkner’s ability to create an uncomfortable mood is incomparable to any other. "When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral." In the introduction of A Rose for Emily, the pages are immediately infested with the theme of death, which brings the reader to question why this story has such a depressing tone upon separating the front cover from its pages. Making the solemn mood such an integral part of this piece not only provokes thought within the reader, but also gives a sense of security. It is clearly spelt out that the author is trying to make the audience feel a certain way. This specificity so early on in the piece makes his writing more believable and settling into the discomforting tone. A Rose for Emily is a poetic collage of psyche solutes meant to provoke life-altering observations and internal search.
Aside from being a source of entertainment and pleasure, films have also taken on a new role, that is, to make visible and critique the different ideologies that are present in society. The word ideology is defined as “a relatively coherent system of values, beliefs, or ideas shared by some social group and often taken for granted as natural or inherently true.” (Bordwell and Thompson, p.503). Ideologies help us to better understand films and their influence on society. They also reveal much about the society from which they originated. In this essay, I will explore the different ideological messages conveyed in films with reference to All That Heaven Allows (Douglas Sirk, 1955).
Emily Dickinson is one of the most important American poets of the 1800s. Dickinson, who was known to be quite the recluse, lived and died in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts, spending the majority of her days alone in her room writing poetry. What few friends she did have would testify that Dickinson was a rather introverted and melancholy person, which shows in a number of her poems where regular themes include death and mortality. One such poem that exemplifies her “dark side” is, “Because I Could Not Stop for Death”. In this piece, Dickinson tells the story of a soul’s transition into the afterlife showing that time and death have outright power over our lives and can make what was once significant become meaningless.
The tale of the life and death of Emily Grierson helps to expose the underlying circumstances of social and cultural heritage and the lost realities that people live. Both the film and the book provide a stirring account of her relationship with the community and how she was viewed by the people around her. Isolation is a constant theme for both literacies. The underlying tragedy of her life is highlighted at the end, as the corpse of her only lover is found to have been one of her most important possessions. Emily’s wicked attraction to corpses helps to expose the increasingly dark and gloomy sense of behavior that the text attempts to convey. The direction of the story is an important
Emily Dickinson concentrates many of her poems on the theme of death, predominantly her own. These “poems about death confront its grim reality with honesty, humor, curiosity, and above all a refusal to be comforted (“Emily Dickinson 1830-1886” 1659). While this was not an out of the ordinary topic during the American Romantic era, Dickinson seemed near obsessive in her focus. Additionally, Dickinson seems questionable in her thoughts on religion, another theme popular during the American Romantic era. Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for death” and “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain” both explicitly examine the concept of death, the afterlife, and the author’s obsession with the melancholy.
The novel The Exorcist, written by William Peter Blatty, was highly controversial and popularly read during its publication in the 1970's. This is mainly due to the many ways in which it challenges the rationality of that time. The story begins with the gradual demon possession of an adolescent girl named Reagan, and then goes on to narrate how her state of possession affected those around her. The book makes clear how the religious weakness in the affected members of the community created the perfect atmosphere for such demon to thrive. The Exorcist ultimately attacks any rational or scientific explanation by personifying evil through a demon possessed child, while establishing the validity of traditional Catholicism in the final pages of
In Faulkner's story, an onlooker tells of the peculiar events that occurred during Miss Emily's life. The author never lets the reader understand Emily's side to the story. Instead, the reader is forced to guess why Emily is as strange as she is. In the story, Emily had harbored her father's dead body in her house for three days (par. 27). The reader is told of how the town looked upon what Emily had done, but the reader is never able to fully understand Emily's actions until the end of the story.
The Stories We Tell is a documentary film directed by Sarah Polley. The film follows the story of her family up to the discovery of Sarah’s true parentage from an affair that her mother had in Montreal. The film uses contrastive organizing to present various viewpoints on the life of Sarah’s mother, Diane, through interviews. One interesting aspect of this film is that it tells the story outside of the directors perspective but it is ultimately centered on the directors life. Sarah is interviewing the friends and family members of her mother but she never actually answers any questions herself or describes her accounts of her childhood or the discovery of her biological father. She remains investigative and unsentimental. The Stories We Tell
Finally, the author highlights the sufferance that fetters the mother's consciousness. Emily’s mother becomes aware that she was too preoccupied with providing for her daughter and she forgot to provide her with what matter the most, her presence. She is mindful of the fact that that she continuously removed Emily from her life. Moreover, she put a mark on Emily’s behavior and personality. She regrets her conduct, but she is also aware that it is too late to change anything. The mother states, “There were years she did not want me to touch her. She kept too much in herself, her life was such she had to
Many live attempting to decipher the riddle of life. What is life? What is the purpose? What makes? Even though we only seek happiness why can’t we ever seem to achieve it? When we do reach happiness why can’t we seem to grasp it and hold it for more than the few short hours that pass like seconds? The question we must answer first is “What makes happiness, true?”