Ambiguous Framing When Henry James’s novella, The Turn of the Screw was adapted into Jack Clayton’s 1961 film, The Innocents, the frame story was conspicuously missing. Francesco Casetti’s “Adaptation and Mis-adaptations” says the reappearance of a story creates an area of discourse between the two stories (Casetti 82-83.) Both The Turn of the Screw and The Innocents are successful and entertaining stories only The Innocents has a much lower level of ambiguity. Much of the loss of ambiguity comes from the difficulty in translating Henry James’s famously complex syntax to the screen. However, if the film was framed by the story of Douglas’s narration, it could have maintained some of the ambiguity that was lost. Douglas’s story creates another …show more content…
Both the climax of the governess’s story and the fame story revolve around the sending of a letter. The governess’s letter to the master mysteriously disappears before it can be mailed out (James 76,) and later in the confrontation with Miles, the fact comes out that the letter never had anything in it to begin with (James 84.) And just to reinforce the fact that there was nothing in the letter, the governess and Miles repeat the word ‘nothing’ two more times each (James 84.) Going back to Casetti’s argument that a reappearance creates a discursive field, the letter that Douglas plans to send becomes suspect. Yet, unlike the governess’s letter the novella never discloses whether or not Douglas’s letter is sent, or whether or not he actually receives the manuscript book in the mail. All the novella says is that Douglas produces the manuscript book on the third day and it is not even opened and read from until the fourth day (James 4, 6.) If Douglas did receive the manuscript in the mail, his postponement from the day of the third, when he claimed to receive the manuscript, and the night of the fourth gave him plenty of time to transcribe the story into the manuscript book, and even more time if he had the manuscript book in his possession all along. But up until this point, all of the ambiguity is delivered through the narrative …show more content…
The narrator of the frame story says, “But Douglas… had begun to read with a fine clearness that was like a rendering to the ear of the beauty of his author’s hand (James 6.) This quote makes very clear that Douglas is a skilled orator if not an author outright. The phrases ‘fine clearness’ and ‘rendering to the ear of beauty’ as well as his earlier ability to draw out the suspense of the promised story for four days show that excels in at least two of the skills that would be required of a writer: the ability to sell a work and a knack for grabbing the audience through the skilled reading of a story. But the three most important words in the quote for drumming up ambiguity are contained in the phrase, ‘his author’s hand.’ Because the phrase does not say the governess’s hand or even more simply the author’s hand, this phrase could either mean that Douglas is the author of the manuscript or that the governess is the author of the manuscript depending on one’s reading of this line of the frame story. Since the last mention of the governess as the pronoun, ‘she’ was two full paragraphs before the word, ‘author’ and the mention of Douglas using the possessive pronoun, ‘his’ is right next to it, most of the evidence points to Douglas being the author. However strong the evidence is that Douglas is the author, the ambiguity remains.
The only real way to truly understand a story is to understand all aspects of a story and their meanings. The same goes for movies, as they are all just stories being acted out. In Thomas Foster's book, “How to Read Literature Like a Professor”, Foster explains in detail the numerous ingredients of a story. He discusses almost everything that can be found in any given piece of literature. The devices discussed in Foster's book can be found in most movies as well, including in Quentin Tarantino’s cult classic, “Pulp Fiction”. This movie is a complicated tale that follows numerous characters involved in intertwining stories. Tarantino utilizes many devices to make “Pulp Fiction” into an excellent film. In this essay, I will demonstrate how
Irony is a technique that uses words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning. For example, dramatic irony is a type of irony which is shown in the first Shrek movie. Fiona loves Shrek but only Donkey and the audience know. In this situation, dramatic irony is being created because the character Shrek does not know that Fiona loves him but the audience does. The short stories “The Lottery” the reader may find both situational and dramatic irony that both create the ironic ending.
On page 89 of the book Letters From a Slave Girl it states, “As the girl absconded from the plantation of my son…” But, at the end of the paper, it is signed as the author’s name of “James Norcom.” If the paper were to say “my son,” I would assume that Doctor Norcom wrote
narrator because we only know what she wants us to know, resulting in leaving out important facts. “I did write for a while in spite of them; but is does exhaust me a good deal---having to be so sly abut it, or else meet with heavy opposition.” (Gilman, p326) She is not honest about writing with her husband, and this proves that she is more than willing to tell her story her way.
”Macbeth retold” uses themes similar to the original play but uses a modified plot to appeal to the more modern audience. Retold utilises settings to create a controversial atmosphere. In contrast Shakespeare’s Macbeth uses an array of themes, a historical plot and language features that revolve around Elizabethan times. Even though the similarities are quite apparent, there are also some less obvious differences, the differences improve the sensitive response and the understanding that a modern audience may consume.
A sense of dramatic irony is thought to be used throughout the reading. However, the book often takes a turn so that the reader’s previous thoughts on the plot are changed.
There are several points mentioned in the story telling governess is not reliable in whatever she is saying. Things like governess promising Mrs. Grose to write a letter to her master telling what was going on at Bly which was stolen by Miles, but she letter admitted that it contains nothing, and telling Mrs. Grose that the ghost of Miss Jessel wanted to posses Flora but the story tells that
The relationship between the frame story and the framed story in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is the central key to understanding the message the film tries to convey to the audience. This essay will cover the how the resolution of the frame story changes the meaning of the framed story told by Francis, the impact and importance of the style of the framed story, and the important analytical interpretation of why the story ended the way it does.
Fictional rhetoric and theatrical provide a situation to show the relevance of this episode beyond the
Some novels and plays seem to advocate changes in social or political attitudes or in traditions. Choose such a novel or play and note briefly the particular attitudes or traditions that the author apparently wishes to modify. Then analyze the techniques the author uses to influence the reader or audience’s views. Avoid plot summary.
James opens the novella with a framing device where there are ghost stories being told around a fire on Christmas Eve and one of the members of the party, Douglas speaks about tale who was narrated by a governess, who was his sisters governess and dead for more than 20 years. As he is telling this tale the other members wonder if the governess was in love to which he replies that she was and only to a man she has seen twice and who tells her to not trouble her as she was to handle all the responsibility herself.
Douglas clearly cares about the governess, and maintains personal connection to the story even though it’s been sitting in a drawer for twenty years. Douglas feels attached to the story because he lived the story so many years ago.(as Miles) “Nobody but me, till now, has ever heard. It's quite too horrible.”(p. 292) This shows that the manuscript isn’t just a good ghost story for him to tell people because he’s never shared it before. He also finds that Douglas’s audience is more perceptive than he appears ready. They make inferences about he and his love, and Douglas reveals bits and pieces about her. “I liked her extremely and am glad to this day to think she liked me, too. If she hadn't she wouldn't have told me.(p. 293) In the story, she mentions several times that Miles was the most beautiful boy that she had ever laid eyes on, and over infatuation with the boy like that would easily lead Miles to believe he was the object of her utmost affection. To add to the fact that the woman he was in love with was the governess was when one of the guests mentions that
Discuss in detail Bennett’s dramatic techniques from page 70 “boys come in” to “the bell goes” on page 74 and consider how this passage might be viewed as a significant and dramatic moment in the History Boys.
Known for his tragedy, intrigue, comedy, and romance, Shakespeare extends his boundary of prowess in the play Macbeth. The irony present in the play, the double-meaning of the characters’ actions, and the complexity of setting all contribute to a thrilling story of murder and looking beyond the superficial. Dramatic, situational, and verbal irony greatly contribute to the theme of things are not what they seem in Macbeth text and film. Shakespeare uses the contrast in irony to convey this in the character’s words, actions, and the audience’s awareness. The textual and film evidence fully supports the theme and displays the author’s affluent use of irony.
“Could I do anything with the boy? I thought I could” (ibid, pp. 42). Unreliability of the narrator can also be established if there exist internal contradictions in the narrator’s language. Constant distortion of facts and inconsistencies in the narrator’s narration is evident right from the beginning. However, these flaws on the part of the narrator have been dealt with outmost subtlety by the author and hence fail to catch the reader’s attention immediately. The planted evidences, the omission of certain important details regarding the murder and the events that led to the murder shift the suspicion of the reader from one character to another as desired by Dr. Sheppard, the unreliable narrator. The inconsistency and uncertainty of the final outcome are instrumental in keeping the reader engrossed and attentive to each detail while they are being misguided by the unreliable narrator. The overt curiosity that Dr. Sheppard carelessly displays in probing about any kind of message left behind by Mrs. Ferrars in regard to her suicide, his efforts to keep Flora Ackroyd from involving a