Difference between revisions of "JCM312/French Modernism: Jean-Luc Godard & Bertolt Brecht (Discussion)"
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<td>implicates the spectator in a stage situation</td> | <td>implicates the spectator in a stage situation</td> | ||
− | <td>''' | + | <td>'''turns the spectator into an observer, but'''</td> |
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<td>wears down his capacity for action</td> | <td>wears down his capacity for action</td> | ||
− | <td>''' | + | <td>'''arouses his capacity for action'''</td> |
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<td>instinctive feelings are preserved</td> | <td>instinctive feelings are preserved</td> | ||
− | <td>''' | + | <td>'''[instinctive feelings are] brought to the point of recognition'''</td> |
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<td>linear development [of plot]</td> | <td>linear development [of plot]</td> | ||
− | <td>''' | + | <td>'''in curves'''</td> |
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<td>man as fixed point</td> | <td>man as fixed point</td> | ||
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<td>man as a process</td> | <td>man as a process</td> | ||
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<td>feeling</td> | <td>feeling</td> | ||
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#Apply the following aspects of counter cinema to ''Breathless''. Do they fit? | #Apply the following aspects of counter cinema to ''Breathless''. Do they fit? | ||
#*Cite specific scenes, shots, dialog, etc. that support your answer. | #*Cite specific scenes, shots, dialog, etc. that support your answer. | ||
− | #*# | + | #*#In your own words, explain the "narrative intransitivity" aspect of counter cinema. |
− | #*# | + | #*#In your own words, explain the "estrangement" aspect of counter cinema. |
− | #*# | + | #*#In your own words, explain the "foregrounding" aspect of counter cinema. |
− | #*# | + | #*#In your own words, explain the "aperture" aspect of countercinema. |
− | #* | + | #*Make the case for ''Breathless'' as a classical film. |
− | #* | + | #*Make the case for ''Breathless'' as a counter-cinema and/or Brechtian film. |
#What aspects of Wollen's list match Brecht's list? | #What aspects of Wollen's list match Brecht's list? | ||
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Revision as of 13:52, 30 October 2012
The Modern Theatre is the Epic Theatre
- What does Brecht mean by the term "culinary opera"?
- He suggests that "dramatic theater" is culinary. Some film critics suggest that Hollywood classicism is also culinary. Do you agree? Explain.
- Consider the key aspects of "epic theater" that are boldfaced below. Do you think Breathless fits any of these aspects? Why or why not?
Brechtian alienation
- "Alienation effect"--Verfremdungseffekt
DRAMATIC THEATRE | EPIC THEATRE |
plot | narrative |
implicates the spectator in a stage situation | turns the spectator into an observer, but |
wears down his capacity for action | arouses his capacity for action |
provides him with sensations | forces him to take decisions |
experience | picture of the world |
the spectator is involved in something | he is made to face something |
suggestion | argument |
instinctive feelings are preserved | [instinctive feelings are] brought to the point of recognition |
the spectator is in the thick of it, shares the experience | the spectator stands outside, studies |
the human being is taken for granted | the human being is the object of the inquiry |
he is unalterable | he is alterable and able to alter |
eyes on the finish | eyes on the course |
one scene makes another | each scene for itself |
growth | montage |
linear development [of plot] | in curves |
evolutionary determinism | jumps |
man as fixed point | man as a process |
thought determines being | social being determines thought |
feeling | reason |
Counter Cinema
- What is Wollen's "counter cinema"? What is it counter to?
- Apply the following aspects of counter cinema to Breathless. Do they fit?
- Cite specific scenes, shots, dialog, etc. that support your answer.
- In your own words, explain the "narrative intransitivity" aspect of counter cinema.
- In your own words, explain the "estrangement" aspect of counter cinema.
- In your own words, explain the "foregrounding" aspect of counter cinema.
- In your own words, explain the "aperture" aspect of countercinema.
- Make the case for Breathless as a classical film.
- Make the case for Breathless as a counter-cinema and/or Brechtian film.
- Cite specific scenes, shots, dialog, etc. that support your answer.
- What aspects of Wollen's list match Brecht's list?
"DEADLY SINS" OF THE CLASSICAL CINEMA | "CARDINAL VIRTUES" OF COUNTER CINEMA |
Narrative transitivity | Narrative intransitivity |
Identification | Estrangement |
Transparency | Foregrounding |
Single diegesis | Multiple diegesis |
Closure | Aperture |
Pleasure | Un-pleasure |
Fiction | Reality |
Bibliography
- Brecht, Bertolt. "The Modern Theatre is the Epic Theatre." In Brecht on Theatre, pp. 33-42. Edited and translated by John Willett. New York: Hill and Wang, 1964.
- MacCabe, Colin. Godard: Images, Sounds, Politics. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University, 1980.
- Wollen, Peter. "Godard and Counter Cinema: VENT D'EST." In Readings and Writings: Semiotic Counter-Strategies. London: Verso, 1982.
External links
- Godard illustrations
- Breathless illustrations
- Wind from the East online — UbuWeb, TCF