Journal Article Analysis: Cinematic Carcerality: Prison Metaphors in Film ~ Assignment 1-3-2

Cinematic Carcerality: Prison Metaphors in Film

            Metaphors are sometimes to see. First you must know what a metaphor is. Per the website dictionary.com, a metaphor is when you use a word or phrase to compare two objects that are not alike. For example the phrase “you’re turning a mole hill into a mountain”. In no way are they comparable but you understand the point of the statement which means that you are making something small into something big. Metaphors are used in everyday life, especially books and cinema. I will be discussing the prison metaphor in this paper.

The article I analyzed is titled Cinematic Carcerality: Prison Metaphors in Film by Jan Alber. In this article, Alber discusses the use of prison metaphors in film and the various ways they can be used to create an unwritten statement.  In society as a whole, we have grown to relate to film in many ways and metaphors create an even deeper connection to the story being told. The article discusses the analysis of Monika Fludernik and Charles Forceville and their interpretations of metaphors used in film. Fludernik states that there are two types of prison metaphors which is that prison is used as a tenor (Prison is X) and proper metaphors where prison is the vehicle (X is prison).  Secondly, she reviews Forceville’s analyzis of pictorial metaphors. Throughout the article several examples are given to discuss how metaphors can be used to portray a thought or specific feeling. One example given was in John Fowle’s 1969 novel The French Lieutenant's Women, where Charles Smithson thinks of his engagement as a “prison sentence”.  The film depicts a prisoner walking free and then is jerked down by chains into his cell. This metaphor was indicating that even in a free world, we are still restrained (Alber).

     Next, Alber discusses Forceville’s views into how pictures instead of words are used as metaphors in film. One example given was when the uniform of one prisoner blends in with the guards and the government officials. This pictorial metaphor is implying that guards and government officials are “imprisoned” by their work just like the prisoner. Next, one of my favorite prison metaphors is in the film, Lost Highway where David Lynch shows moths dying in a ceiling light during their quest to fly into the light.  This metaphor is used to show the degree of desperation of main character who is obsessed with his lover so much that he is close to self- destruction. When his lover tells him that she will not be able to see him, the film quickly shows a close up of his face and then moves to the moth scene. At that moment you can feel how her statement of not being with him had completely killed him inside. This example is a called a juxtaposition of disparate elements, meaning elements without obvious similarities. Alban lists the following ways that metaphors can be integrated into films:

·         Juxtaposition of disparate elements

·         Through interplay between the auditory and visual level

·         Matching Shots

·         Distortions

·         Focusing on the same entity in two different scenes

·         Context

·         Superimposition of two distinct images

           

            Popular movies, such as The Shawshank Redemption uses several metaphors to represent the prison as a womb and a tomb.  In the beginning, you see Andy Dufrensne enter the prison and darkness overcomes him which symbolizes that the prison has “swallowed” him. During the movie, Andy also makes the statement “Get busy living or get busy dying” in which he is relating to the feeling of hopelessness. By this, he means that if you don’t stay busy in prison, you will become “institutionalized” (Alber).  Another metaphor used within the movie is when you see the word “MOTHER” inscribed in the wall above the poster of Rita Hayworth in Andy’s cell. This is suggesting that Rita is looked at as a mother figure by Andy. These are all important metaphors to keep the viewer connected to the film. 
       Overall, I agree with the author’s main points and this article is definitely important in many ways. Reading this article gave me a whole new insight to the importance of screenwriting and how hidden metaphors are created. I learned a new perspective on the topic of prison metaphors and how important they are and convey significant connotations throughout. I have already seen The Shawshank Redemption, but I plan on watching some of the other movies listed within the article so I can see the metaphors that have been described. This article is important because it explains the reason behind metaphors and how to recognize them in film. Metaphors help us to understand a concept or thought in a new way or from a different viewpoint.                                                              

References

Alber, Jan. (April 2011). "Cinematic Carcerality: Prison Metaphors in Film." Journal of Popular

Culture, Vol. 44 Issue 2, pp. 217-232, 16p. Retrieved from: http://0-journals.ohiolink.edu.olinkserver.franklin.edu/ejc/article.cgi?issn=00223840&issue=v44i0002&article=217_ccpmif

Dictionay.com. (2013). Metaphor. Retrieved July 26, 2013, from

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/metaphor