Stories Are Just Stories, Film or Prose
Sunday, February 26th, 2012 by
Permalink for this paragraph 0 Until Friday’s class Reader Response had still been a little iffy for me. Talk about yourself? Your reactions? Your feelings? After being told all throughout high school to never use the word “I” this seemed so backwards. Even after reading the article assigned I wasn’t in that mindset. This may stem back to the fact that the subject matter was a movie instead or writing.
Permalink for this paragraph 2 The thing that helped me most in this though was the opportunity to discuss the movie in small groups. It helped to bring something really conceptual down to a more easily understood level. My group was just talking about the movie like you would talk to friends about any movie. This opportunity to converse allowed us to discover and articulate things we wouldn’t have otherwise. For example, we had a real breakthrough when discussing the love between Scotty and Madeline/Judy. Which was creepier/more unhealthy? It was easy to argue both ways. Scotty could only love Judy as a contrivance of Madeline, showing a dangerous obsession. Judy on the other hand let Scotty change her completely, showing low self esteem. Yet, it goes even deeper than that. I believe that Scotty fell so hard for Madeline because she too had an affliction (possession versus his vertigo) and he felt that he could be heroic again. Judy probably felt intense guilt over deceiving Scotty and felt very alone after being tossed aside. These musings came from our modern perspectives, other stories we have experienced and the emotional connections we made with characters.
Permalink for this paragraph 1 My point is that Reader Response is simply a more structured experience of stories. It gives the reader/viewer an opportunity to express their ideas and opinions in a critical manner.
Permalink for this paragraph 0 Strangely enough after responding to Vertigo I have found myself examining other films. Just last night I watched Schindler’s List for the first time. I was fascinated by the choice to film it in black and white. This lead to being intrigued by the little girl in the red dress (the only color until the very end of the story). This lead to me wondering about Schindler’s shifting attitudes through out the movie. I could go on and on but what I really want is to seriously discuss movie with people, re-creating the experience of discussing Vertigo. What does it mean? How did it make me feel? Did it change my perspective? How did these choices affect my experience?
ashleystern
I really like the idea of Scotty falling so hard for Madeleine because she also has an affliction. You should have brought that up in class! I had never thought of that before but it makes a lot of sense considering how weird it is that he was so in love with her after only spent tops a week with/knowing her. I have always felt more comfortable with small group discussions as well. It seems less threatening and easier to get your ideas out there so I’m glad the small groups helped you understand reader response better
I loved this point your group brought up in class– about which love was more unhealthy– because I had not thought of their relationships in that way. I was more looking at Scottie’s end of the romance and how he was treating Judy, and not necessarily looking at how Judy was treating him.