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German Expressionism KEY TERMINOLOGY (Social Context = main issues - these…
German Expressionism KEY TERMINOLOGY
Oneiric
= the depiction of dream-like states (this relates to some extent to all of the films, especially TCODC and Nosferatu)
Social Context
= main issues - these are mirrored in the look and feel of all the films
Redefining of borders • Germany had to hand over other countries – Germany was losing its identity. They were vulnerable in terms of loss.
• Also had to reduce the armed forces to the extent that they could only police their borders. Navy also depleted.
Morale of the people / propaganda • Leadership – people were convinced that they had won the war, even when they’d lost it.
• German leaders kept going despite it being futile. People feel lied to and betrayed. At this point, still a monarchy but military leadership tied up with aristocracy.
• A decline in people’s faith in the government. These themes echoed in films.
• The propaganda of the time was about protecting innocent lives and brave German soldiers. Femininity under threat. Lies and betrayal – a lack of trust in authority figures.
Communist uprising in Germany This was fueled by the earlier Russian revolution. The elected government feared that the communists would over run Berlin moved to Weimar. This feeds into the national psyche, suddenly lost, all money gone, starvation, no jobs, the King has gone – overall dark time and huge loss of morale. Germany in turmoil. Average working people are deeply perturbed.
Weimar republic The abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm who was the King during the first world war.
Legacy of war Shell-shocked and disfigured soldiers returning. PTSD and shock.
Crime Outbreak of ‘sex murders’ – vicious murders, speculation that they were perpetrated by traumatized soldiers, psychologically disturbed and loss of awareness of value of human life
Spanish flu epidemic 30-50 million dead. More than WW1. 1/5 of the world’s population killed. Hits a country that is already suffering.
Film noir
(which came later) = heavily influenced by German Expressionism, as was Hollywood's gothic melodrama (films include:
'The Innocents'
(1961 - one of my personal favourites!) Hitchcock's
'Rebecca'
(1940) and
'My Cousin Rachel'
(1952)
Chirascuro
= is the main lighting style which characterises the period (an effect of contrasted light and shadow)
• Chiaroscuro lighting, diagonal composition and geometric shapes which adds to the discomfort / angular existence / distortion of perception / this is what expressionism is.
Stylised mise-en-scene
= an attempt to depict the expression of the feeling, rather than the reality.
Subjective flashbacks
= the first time that the concept of the
unreliable narrator
is foregrounded.
•
Rahmenhandlung
= a framing device. Renders the narrative subjective (the story is told as Frances thinks it happened). A particular kind of storytelling – story within a story.
Themes of German Expressionism:
• Betrayal and distrust of authority.
• Human evil and corruption.
• Insanity (that often derides from obsession)
• Loss of identity / manhood.
These themes do not change – we would expect more variety in style, due to the rapid technological change and greater capacity of cameras etc.
Foreboding and paranoia
= all GE films can be noted for an overriding tone of darkness, due to the social context of World War One and Germany's losses.
Diagonal Composition
= the arrangement of lines on the
diagonal when we look at the mis
e-en-scene - this characterises the look of the interiors and some exteriors.
• Traditional art is a representation of what it actually looks like
•
Expressionism
is a representation of what things feel like.