German Culture and History
Question one: Can Caligari serve to represent some aspect of Weimar society? How does “Disorder and Early Sorrow” illustrate some of the issues facing Weimar Germany?
Thomas Mann’s Disorder and Early Sorrow evaluates the encounters of Cornelius family as they carry out party preparations to be held at their home. The story exposes the nineteen twenties Weimer society. It was characterized by dissatisfaction as a result of economic unsteadiness in the society as well as social upheaval. Professor Cornelius is the family patriarch and a history professor who is quite satisfied with his profession. He is caught unaware by the revolution and is dissatisfied with the modern artistic styles referring to them as deceitful and phony. Conversely, the styles are appreciated by his children as well as his friends. Social upheaval and most importantly, the art in the Wilmer society are emphasized in the Disorder and Early Sorrow. The novella exposes Germany after the First World War.
It initiates by highlighting family interactions, which are distinguished through generations since the young ones are referred to as the little folk, the teenagers as the big folk, the parents as the old folk while the grandparents are the ancients (Mann p. 182 ). The story depicts the mid twenties setting of the Wilmer society. As the party is being prepared, there are digressions which reflect the encounters of the past and help to analyze the scope, character’s nature and most importantly, the times that are being reflected. In the Disorder and Early Sorrow, the professor is critical of his children and his career in that he says “only the most fanatical. . . could be capable. . . of tearing this purest and most precious feeling out of his heart” (Mann, p. 190). However, he is a critique of the modern artistic styles of dressing, entertainment and theatre, which he sees as unhistorical. Ingrid and Bert, the professor’s children are in their teens and adopt another culture’s mannerism and accents while in the bus through impersonifying factious personalities. They shout and come up with factious and outrageous stories, an aspect that irritates an old man aboard, who reproofs them. Fortunately, the man alights in the next bus stop while Ingrid and Bert instead, continue their pretences over the phone and calls anyone they wish to such as opera singers since they take pleasure in dancing and acting.
Role of authority is manifest in the Wilmer society. This is reflected by Ellie, one of the youngest daughters is critical of her style and appearance since her father regulatory states that her ears are unequal and out of balance. As a result, she unleashes her hair to cover the ears. Snapper is only emotionally and psychologically affected by reprimands of his dad and at one time when weeping, the nurse notices her blue face. She overreacts and alerts other family members only to realize it was some of the wall’s painting that got to her face since she was wet of tears. The nurse also plays an important role of teaching the children songs, poetic prose, and plays imitating teacher and student, which exposes the dimension of artistic styles used in the Wilmer society. Elli teaches Snapper on names of diseases and birds while correcting him by demanding him to stand at the corner. The role of art through entertainment is further exposed by the professor who dislikes the party since it disrupts his schedule. He prepares on how to welcome the guests, which he accomplishes by giving them a packet of cigarette. The guest’s dressing styles are questionable to him since some women have tight shoes while males have worn makeup which portrays modern theatrical impressions. This disgusts the professor who isolates himself from the guest since the artistic styles are repugnant to him. Besides, he is envious to see his youngest lovely daughter Ellie dance with Max, viewing the party as a bad influence to her. She is heart broken from rejection and weeps uncontrollably only to be consoled through literary snippets by Max.
In comparison, the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, is nineteen twenties film directed by Robert Wiene. The film is a Germany expressionist which makes it a horror movie and a contemporary picture art of the 1920s. Germany expressionism was the artistic movement in the styles, filled with exaggerations to exert emotions as well as aspects of anti-naturalism. The film‘s setting includes sharp bizarre angles, painted backdrops and warped architecture intended to express symbolically, the fractured psychology of sinister characters.
The scenes initiates with Dr. Caligari, a hypnotist and mesmeric ambience who displays before the town residents, a sleepwalker somnambulist, called Cesare, whom does not question his word. Cesare in the film is tall and slender wearing black clothing and has a horrifying appearance in the casket as his cabinet. Cesare has the ability to predict the future and is used to accomplish Calgari’s ominous deeds which involve reenacting savage killings such as that of the supposedly rude town clerk, Alan. Disturbed, Dr. Caligari together with his accomplice kills a number of people in the Wilmer society. In the eyes of the Francis, the narrator the reader is informed of the pursuits of Dr, Caligari and his interactions with an experimental sleepwalker, used to determine if he could perform abhorrent deeds unwillingly. From the narration, Francis, Jane and Alan are friends who visit Caligari, where Alan enquires from Cesare “How long have I to live?” while the Cesare prophesies “Until dawn” (Wiene, 1920). Surprisingly, it comes to happen as Cesare stubs Alan that very night. Francis suspects that Caligari and his Cesare are to blame. Cesare now abducts Jane due to her beauty and takes off only to die of exhaustion. Investigation starts as the police unveils Cesare’s cabinet only to find a dummy and Cesare as a culprit of yet another murder. On noticing it, the insane Caligari runs away but is caught up with and is locked up. The story ends as the audience realizes that Francis and Alan are in a lunatic asylum (Wiene, 1920).
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is an extremely artistic film which reflects a complete fledged artwork. The context of the film depicts a time of the establishment of modern art of expressionism in the Wilmer society where Germany chose artistic positioning in theater work. Politically, the film could be a critique of short-sighted Prussian power in Germany having initiated the First World War as symbolized by Caligari while its puppet people are depicted by the Cesare. Besides, it could depict the Wilmer’s militarists who possessed powers to conscript the citizens to go into war to murder and be murdered in return. Expressionism was opposed to Nazism in the nineteen twenties, which was facilitated by Adolf Hitler (Brockmann, 2010). The film narrative style convinces the spectator to see it as real. Ironically, it challenges the spectator’s analysis terming him as fanatical, which portrays ambiguously that madness is closely related to reality.
The film is however, a historic lesson whose manipulative concept was embraced in the films of Nazi propaganda (Brockmann, 2010). In addition, the film reflects the obscurity and fear that characterized the postwar Germany with its persuasive horrific atmosphere as a caution on the negativity of National Socialism. The citizens could be forewarned using the hypnotist to symbolize Adolf Hitler while the Cesare to stand for the German’s oppressed citizens who were filled with fear after the horrors of the First World War. Most importantly, the film reflects the role of authority, which manipulated its subjects into dutiful zombies. Like the Thomas Mann’s Disorder and Early Sorrow, the Cabinet of Dr. Caligari reflects personal paranoia depicted by sought of insane and weird characters as the populace of the Wilmer society.
References
Mann, T. Disorder and Early Sorrow. Pdf.
Wiene, R. (1920). The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Berlin: Decla-Film-Ges. Holz & Co. DVD.
Brockmann, S. (2010). A Critical History of German Film. New York: Camden House.
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