Secondary Research Post
Gooch, Joshua. “Making a Go of It: Paternity and Prohibition in the Films of Wes Anderson.” Cinema Journal 47.1 (2007): 26-28. Project Muse. Web. 1 Dec. 2009.
http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/cinema_journal/v047/47.1gooch.html “The Royal Tenenbaums”
Alteration of the Glove – How Wes Anderson’s film, The Royal Tenenbaums, uses Signification (symbolization) in order to structure the fatherly role, as seen by Margot Tenenbaum. This symbolization results in an increasing desire to have a relationship with her brother Richie.
Authors argument:
The authors argument states that Wes Anderson and his film, The Royal Tenenbaums, uses signification in order to show the disconnects and desires between the character Margot Tenenbaum.
Main Points:
The scene where Margot’s finger is accidentally chopped off symbolizes an irrevocable detachment with her biological father. Her father failed to fulfill his responsibility by giving her up for adoption, and cuts off any chance of future relations with this one incident. Margot’s ordeal with her biological father causes her to be very distant and secretive, as shown by her chronic lies and seclusion.
Margot and Richie’s incestuous relationship and how the signification through Margot’s dismemberment leads to her desire for Richie. The loss of Margot’s finger becomes a gap that must be filled and she looks to Richie.
Minor ideas/references:
The Idea that Margot’s wooden placeholder for her dismembered finger symbolizes its loss as well as the pain the lost caused.
The image of the dismembered glove as a defining symbol in which the narrative of the film relies upon.
How Royal’s run ins with the law and failure as a family legislator hinders Margot’s ability to see him in the role of her father.
Points that other writers may use for their papers:
The use of signification in “The Royal Tenenbaums” and how it relates to Margot as a character.
How the absence of a fatherly figure is symbolized through Margot’s dismembered finger and the Alteration of the glove.
The main cause for Margot’s ensuing desire for Richie being her dismembered finger.
Caucasia
One of the common themes throughout Caucasia has been that of “passing” and how Birdie associates herself as multiracial. In this section we see Birdie alternating between two different aliases, that of Birdie Lee and Jessie Goldman. Birdie transitions from these personas in order to keep her mother happy, and essentially leads two different lives.
Birdies confusion and resentment relating to her double life is seen on page 297 where she imagines herself as the monster from Frankenstein.
“I had liked the image of myself as a monster, an unfinished creation turned against its make, and had terrorized a shrieking, giggling Alexis, walking toward her with my arms out in front of me, my legs stiff as wooden planks.”
Its easy to see why Birdie associates herself with Frankenstein because she has no real permanent identity. Like the monster she is outcast and different from everyone else. She wants to be Birdie Lee and be with her sister but is forced to become the Jewish Jessie Goldman when with her mother.
#19 Caucasia
A passage that caught my eye came at the very beginning of the reading. On page 87…
“My mother looked out into the night and said, “Everybody who can will fuck you over. Never trust power, wherever it comes from. It’s always”— her voice had raised a notch—”and I mean aways, corrupt. ”You hear me?”
This statement says a lot about Birdies mother and how she feels about society in general. As a white women who is married to a black man she is already outcast and this passage shows how discontent she is with the ways of the world.
#18 Caucasia
A passage I thought was relevant is on pages 10-11.
“She sleeps wit these wihte boys, then acts surprisd when they don’t take he home for diner. I told her, these ofays just want their thirty minutes of difference.” I was pretty sure “ofay” meant white, and without really thinking, I piped from the backseat, “Isn’t Mum ofay?” My father threw me a sharp look. “Yeah, but that’s different.”
Dictionary.com defines the word ofay as a disparaging term for a white person, but I’m sure over time the meaning has evolved to represent different things pertaining to white culture.
In this scene Birdie questions her father asking the question “Isn’t mom ofay?”
Birdie sees her father poking fun at white people calling the “ofays” realizing that her own mother would be considered an “ofay.” Though Birdie’s father doesn’t see his wife as just another white person, but something different all together. He has a sort of double standard that makes his wife immune from the “ofay stereotype. Birdies father sees his wife and his marraige as “different.” somehow. This passage offers insight into Birdies fathers understanding of how he feels about his interracial marraige.
#16 Paper Brainstorming
For some reason this didn’t post last week, I thought it did. I never saved a draft.
For the paper I took both the Osacar Wao and Disgrace novels and developed what I thought to be the main themes of each. In Oscar Wao I figured the main theme was that of love and the ensuing quest each main character, Oscar, Lola, and Beli take trying to find their own true love. To contrast the main theme of love I choose the underlying (Fuku) or bad luck curse which is believed to plague the family in Oscar Wao.
For Disgrace I choose the theme of death as represented by how it changes David Lurie.
#17 The Incredibles
I’ve seen The Incredibles a few times before and it is one of the better Pixar movies only surpassed by Up. The story follows a seemingly perfect super hero who is both famous and invincible. He saves lives and fights evil. What the public doesn’t see, though, are the intricacies of his family life and just how hard it can be to adapt to real world. Following a series of misteps Mr. Incredible is forced into retirement following a unjust lawsuit and enters the Superhero Relocation program where he and his wife and kids to adjust to normal family life.
Their two older children Violet and Dash are faced with conforming to school and social lives, told to never the world their true abilities. Dash reluctantly tones down his super speed ability while shy Violet tries to take on life where she would much rather always be invisible. The fifth member of the family, baby Jack Jack, is shown to be nothing more than a normal baby, with no powers to speak of.
Enticed by an opportunity to get back in the superhero business, Mr. Incredible is flown to an island where he is used to test a giant “Omnidroid robot” who we later find out to be invented by the villian of the movie Syndrome. Mr. Incredible keeps this double life from his family, as we know a lot of people do every day whether it be some kind of addiction or affair. It is here that Mr. Incredible learns of Syndromes plan to unleash the robots on Earth and soon his family is involved in a quest to stop Syndrome from unleashing his robot creations on mankind.
The Incredibles packs a rather punctually social message about American culture and conformity. Mr. Incredibles ability grants him to much attention but he is forced out by society, despite his good intentions, because he is different. Mr Incredible says, “They keep finding new ways to celebrate mediocrity.” A great analysis of the populace today.
#15 End of Disgrace
Finishing Disgrace I found it to be unapologetic and viscerally real in its language and descriptions. It is a journey about a severely flawed character caught in the middle of the imperfect world of post-aparteid South Africa. Told from David’s point of view made the novel just that much more interesting to the reader in that you had to interpret what was happening through Davids own skewed reality. The ending of Disgrace is a very open ended and symbolic conclusion. The reader is given any details about what happens to David, Lucy, or any other character. This creates an ambiguous, but in my opinion, astute ending to a very emotionally charged and moralistically complex book.
Lucy is resistant to David’s assertion for her to escape the harsh landscape that is South Africa to Holland. David was trying to save his daughter from the harsh realities in an attempt for her to get over the grave atrocities committed against her. This is another aspect of David and his journey of redemption with its sucess ending in question.
My favorite passage from the book is on p.219 a few paragraphs from the end.
“What the dog will not be able to work out, what his nose will not tell him, is how one can enter what seems to be an ordinary room, something unmentionable: here the soul is yanked out of the body; briefly it hangs about in the air, twisting and contorting, then it is sucked away and is gone. It will be beyond him, this room that is not a room but a hole where one leaks out of existence.”
This is a fantastic description of death and how it is inevitable and uncertain. Beautifully written and depressingly real.
#14 Disgrace 106-150
#13 Disgrace 47-105
David acted like a beaten man at his hearing, someone who knew they were guilty and just did not care anymore. David did nothing to save his career and livelihood, he just pronounced he was guilty in an attempt to just get on with his life. A section I thought was worth mentioning is the panels response to David and his actions… “The question is not whether it is good enough for me, Professor Lurie, the question is whether it is good enough for you. Does it reflect your sincere feelings.?” p.54
Reading the second part of disgrace I was taken aback by the sudden home invasion at Lucy’s house in South Africa. Their actions were especially brutal. David was burned using liquor to ignite the flames, burning his face and especially his ear. The methodical killing of the dogs in Lucy’s kennel was also almost psychotic in the way they were murdered, systematically one by one. Lucy’s rape was also disturbing, especially the way she acted. She did not act hysterical or overly emotional after the crime that was committed against her, she instead acted weirdly calm.
Some questions I would ask… Are these kinds of home invasions common is post Aparteid South Africa? Are there still lingering rational tension between both the black and white citizens of South Africa?
I see David’s trip to visit his daughter Lucy as an act of redemption. David wants to rekindle his lost relationship with his daughter Lucy, and sort his own life out. David is a man of many character flaws which in turn have landed him in the situation he sees himself in now.
#12 Disgrace
Reading the beginning of Disgrace I noticed some resemblance to the television show Californication. The show centers around a famous author, Hank Moody, who lands a teaching job at a Californian college when no one will hire him to write. As a womanizer himself, Hank becomes infatuated with a student of his named Jackie. Jackie works nights at a strip club to put herself through college and Hank dreams of watching her in the club and tries to resist his desire to be with her saying how it would conflict with the student teacher relation. Hank starts to notice Jackie missing class and instead of ignoring it stops by the strip club where she works. Unfortunately, temptation gets the better of Hank and they finally sleep together. The past episode ends with Jackie back in Hanks writing class, much to his chagrin. Hank knows how unethical his actions are but instead escalated a relationship with Jackie in order to fulfill his own selfish desires, much like David in Disgrace. While different in some aspects, I felt the parallels between the two works were worth mentioning.
Another thing I liked while reading Disgrace was David and Rosalind’s post divorce relationship. David and Rosalind do not seem to despise each other, but instead now have a friendly relationship. While Rosalind is critical of Davids irrational behavior with Melanie I never got the notion she wasn’t over their past marriage, but now tries to help David work out his character faults. I liked how they were referred to as “War Veterans.” The reference makes you wonder about the other skeletons David might have in his closet that escalated the divorce I think part of the reason they are now building this friendship is the common bond they share with their daughter Lucy, who lives away from her parents.
I don’t see how David can survive with his job in hand in light of the scandals leak to the paper. It will be interesting to see what direction David will take his life if he is fired. If I had to guess I would assume he will seek redemption for his past misdeeds, away from his former life.
