Write a 4-6 page essay (Times New Roman, double-spaced, 1 inch margins), you will use the film “The 4oo Blows” by Francois Truffaut for this assignment.
Reflect on the national and international forces influencing the development of film’s language and messages.
Discuss how your chosen film’s formal structural patterns, economics, material conditions, technical developments and/or meanings are situated within an international context – and whether or not the film’s ideology successfully or problematically reflects its internationality.
Questions to consider:
In what ways is the film an international project? How does it rely on other cinemas to generate meaning?
In what ways does the film present itself internationally and nationally?
How do you see that international/national character affecting its story, the structure of its plot, its mise-en-scène, settings, character, editing, camera work, sound)? What does it MEAN that the film is international, and in what ways does it still speak to its national character?
Does it successfully negotiate an international ideology?
Sample solution
Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell.
In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.
God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.
Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.
To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.
References
Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.
Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.
Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.
Sample Solution
Sample Solution
The 400 Blows is a 1959 French coming-of-age drama film directed by François Truffaut. The film stars Jean-Pierre Léaud as Antoine Doinel, a misunderstood adolescent in Paris who struggles with his parents and teachers due to his rebellious behavior.
The film is considered to be one of the defining films of the French New Wave, and it has been praised for its innovative use of techniques such as jump cuts, handheld camerawork, and long takes. The film also explores themes of alienation, childhood, and the nature of reality.
International Influences
The 400 Blows is a product of both national and international influences. Truffaut was influenced by the films of the Italian neorealist movement, such as The Bicycle Thieves (1948) and Rome, Open City (1945). These films were characterized by their use of location shooting, non-professional actors, and a focus on social realism.
Truffaut was also influenced by the films of the American independent cinema, such as The Wild One (1953) and Rebel Without a Cause (1955). These films explored the lives of rebellious teenagers, and they helped to shape the depiction of adolescence in The 400 Blows.
National and International Presentation
The 400 Blows presents itself both internationally and nationally. The film’s use of location shooting and non-professional actors gives it an international flavor. However, the film also deals with specifically French themes, such as the French educational system and the French family.
The international/national character of the film affects its story, the structure of its plot, its mise-en-scène, settings, character, editing, camera work, sound, and meaning. The film’s international character allows it to speak to a wider audience, and it also helps to create a sense of alienation for Antoine, who feels like he doesn’t belong anywhere.
International Ideology
The 400 Blows successfully negotiates an international ideology. The film’s themes of alienation, childhood, and the nature of reality are universal, and they can be understood by audiences from all over the world. However, the film also retains its French identity, and it provides a unique perspective on the French experience.
Conclusion
The 400 Blows is a film that is both international and national. The film’s international influences help to give it a universal appeal, while its national identity allows it to provide a unique perspective on the French experience. The film successfully negotiates an international ideology, and it is a classic example of the French New Wave.
In addition to the questions you posed, I would also like to consider the following questions in my analysis:
How does the film’s use of language (both spoken and visual) reflect its international/national character?
How does the film’s treatment of time and space reflect its international/national character?
How does the film’s representation of gender and race reflect its international/national character?
I believe that these questions will help to provide a more comprehensive analysis of the film’s international/national character.
Reference
Truffaut, F. (Director). (1959). Les quatre cents coups [The 400 blows]. Les Films du Carrosse.
