Stuck on your essay? Browse essays about Rear Window and find inspiration. Learn by example and become a better writer with Kibin’s suite of essay help services May 01, · Rear Window is a study in relationships and how they evolve and change. In the apartment complex which is the setting of the film, the viewer is exposed to a medley of alternate versions of relationships, each juxtaposing another. To start with there is Therefore, Rear Window one of Alfred Hitchcock’s highly inspired audience participation films. When a person watches it, he feels, tantalized, shocked, and exhilarated. Further in this essay, I will summarize the plots, discuss the styles used, and deconstruct parts of the. Continue Reading
Rear Window: Analysis and Summary Free Essay Example
Simply fill in the form below, and the download will start straight away. Rear Window is usually studied in the Australian curriculum under Area of Study 1 - Text Response. For a detailed guide on Text Response, check out our Ultimate Guide to VCE Text Response. Whilst he is indeed known for his hair-curling thrillers, Rear Window is a slightly subtler film which focuses not on a murderer at large, but rather a crippled photographer who never even leaves his apartment.
Our protagonist L. After breaking his leg after a racing accident, Jeff begins to spy on his neighbours, one of whom rear window essay suspects of having committed a murder. Despite some initial misgivings, his insurance nurse Stella Thelma Ritter and lover Lisa Grace Kelly also come to share his suspicions and participate in his spying.
Their contributions ultimately allow the mystery to be solved. On the other hand, Kelly portrays a character much like herself, a refined and elegant urbanite whose lifestyle inherently clashes with that of an action photographer. Before getting into the nitty-gritty of the film, it is crucial to understand a bit about its historical context.
Released in the post-war periodthe film is undoubtedly characterised by the interpersonal suspicion which defined the era. In particular, there was a real fear in America of Communist influences and Soviet espionage - so much so that a tribunal was established, supposedly to weed out Communists despite a general lack of evidence. This practice of making accusations without such evidence is now known as the McCarthyism, named after the senator behind the tribunal.
During this era, people really did fear one another, since the threat of Communism felt so widespread. At the same time, the s saw a boom in photojournalism rear window essay a legitimate profession. To some extent, this was fuelled by the heyday of Life magazine an American weekly, as well-known then as Time magazine is today. This explains the prevalence of cameras in his life, as well as his ability to emotionally distance himself from those whom he observes through the lens.
Another crucial historical element is the institution of marriagerear window essay how important it was to people during the s. It was an aspiration which everyone was expected to have, and this is reflected statistically - only 9. People also tended to marry at a younger age, generally in their early 20s. Conversely, divorce was highly frowned upon, and once you were married, rear window essay, you would in general remain married for the rest of your life.
In particular, divorced women suffered massive financial difficulties, since men, as breadwinners, rear window essay, held higher-paying jobs, and women were only employed in traditionally female roles e.
secretaries, rear window essay, teachers, librarians. Possibly the central tenet of the film is the big question of privacy. The character rear window essay Doyle says almost these exact words:. So to speak. Evidently, this is a major moral dilemma.
If you suspect that someone has committed murder, does this give you the right to disregard their privacy and surveil them in this way?
In some ways, the audience is also positioned to reflect on this question, and in particular, reflect on the paranoia that characterised and defined the McCarthy era. Somewhat separate to these questions is the romance between Jeff and Lisa, rear window essay, since Hitchcock seems to keep the thriller storyline and the romance storyline separate for a large part of the film.
Their contrasting lifestyles and world views present a major obstacle in the fulfilment of their romance, and the murder mystery both distracts and unites them. The cinematographic techniques employed in Rear Window are important ways of shaping our understanding of the film, and Hitchcock uses a wide array of visual cues to communicate certain messages. Lighting is one such cue that he uses a lot - it is said rear window essay at certain points in filming, he had used every single light owned by the studio in which this film was shot.
In this film, rear window essay, lighting is used to reveal things: when the lights are on in any given apartment, Jeff is able to peer inside and watch through the window almost resembling a little TV screen; Jeff is also able to channel surf through the various apartments - Hitchcock uses panning to show this.
On the contrary, a lack of lighting is also used to hide things, and we see Thorwald utilise this at many stages in the film.
Jeff also takes advantage of this, as he often sits in a position where he is very close to being in the shadows himself; if he feels the need, he is able to retreat such that he is fully enshrouded, rear window essay. Low-key lighting in these scenes also contributes to an overall sense of drama and tension. Another handy visual cue is the cross-cutwhich is an example of the Kuleshov effect.
The Kuleshov effect is an editing technique whereby a sequence of two shots is used to convey information more effectively than just a single shot, rear window essay. Specifically, the cross-cut shifts from a shot of a person to a second shot of something that this person is watching. By the way, to download a PDF version of this blog for printing or offline use, click here! That being said, rear window essay, one of the benefits of studying a film is that these symbols tend to be quite visual - you are able to see these recurring images and this may make them easier to spot.
Because he has been rendered immobile by his leg, readers can infer from this symbol that he is also incapable of working or even leaving his apartment, let alone solving a murder mystery. The broken leg is in this sense a symbol of his powerlessness and the source of much of his discontent.
Another interpretation of the broken leg however, is that it represents his impotence which on one hand is synonymous for powerlessness or helplessness, but is on the other hand an allusion to his apparent inability to feel sexual desire.
Being constantly distracted from Lisa by other goings-on in the courtyard definitely supports this theory. It is the main means through which he observes other people, and thus, it also symbolises his voyeuristic tendencies - just as his broken leg traps and inhibits him, his camera lens transports him out of his own apartment and allows him to project his own fears and insecurities into the apartments of his neighbours, watching them for entertainment, for visual pleasure.
In this latter sense, the camera lens can also be understood as a phallic symbol, an erection of sorts. Her initial wardrobe represents her elegance and refinery whilst also communicating a degree of incompatibility with Jeff. However, as she changes and compromises throughout the film, her wardrobe also becomes much more practical and much less ostentatious as the film wears on, until she is finally wearing a smart blouse, jeans and a pair of loafers. The change in her wardrobe reflects changes in her character rear window essay well.
Finally, the wedding ring of Mrs Thorwald is hugely significant; wedding rings in general represent marriage and commitment, and are still very important symbols that people still wear today. Now it's your turn to give these essay topics a go! In our ebook A Killer Rear window essay Guide: Rear Windowwe've take 5 of these essay topics and show you our analysis, brainstorm and plan for each individual topic.
This rear window essay topic breakdown will focus on the THINK part of the strategy. Within the THINK strategy, we have 3 steps, rear window essay ABC. These ABC components are:. While we should rear window essay film techniques as part of our evidence repertoire in each essay, this particular type of essay prompt literally begs for it.
Contention: Through a diverse range of film techniques, Hitchcock instils fear and apprehension into the audience of Rear Window. P1: The opening sequence of Rear Window employs various film techniques to immediately establish underlying tension in its setting.
If you find this helpful, then you might want to check out our A Killer Text Guide: Rear Window ebook, rear window essay, which has all the information and resources you need to succeed in your exam, with detailed summaries and background information, as well as a detailed analysis of all five essay prompts! Download a PDF version of this blog for printing or offline use. How To Write a Rear Window Film Analysis. Rear Window: How Does Its Message Remain Relevant Today?
The Ultimate Guide to VCE Text Response, rear window essay. How To Write A Killer Text Response rear window essay. How To Embed Quotes in Your Essay Like a Boss. Now quite sure how to nail your text response essays? Then download our free mini-guide, rear window essay, where we break down the art of writing the perfect text-response essay into three comprehensive steps.
Click below to get your own copy today! We've explored themes, characters, symbols and provided a summary of the text over on our Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel blog post, rear window essay. The Prompt: ' The distortion of memories can be harmful. The first thing to note about this prompt is that it's a theme-based prompt, focussing specifically on the theme of memory, which plays a significant role throughout the novel!
But more specifically, it's asking directly about the impacts distorted i. So ultimately, you have to look at which memories are distorted throughout the novel, and evaluate whether this process is ultimately helpful to the characters or not. P1: Tyler's distortion of memories is largely detrimental and therefore harmful because they are tainted with violence and thus exacerbate his suffering.
P2: However, Kirsten uses this as a coping mechanism, enabling her to move forward from the trauma associated with the collapse of society and therefore the distortion of memories is necessary in her case.
P3: Further, Clark's rose-tinted view of the past world allows him to come to terms with the collapse of society and again is rear window essay. While Emily St. John Mandel's post-apocalyptic novel Station Eleven illustrates the harm which can be associated with the distortion of memories, it ultimately expounds on the benefits which can be garnered by those who alter their perceptions of reality given how this can serve as an invaluable coping mechanism to process trauma.
The non-linear structure of her novel, achieved through the interweaving of pre- and post-lapsarian scenes 1allows her to sculpt parallels between her characters who are able to accurately recall both the positives and the negatives of the 'modern world'.
She thus advocates that whilst the distortion of memories can perpetuate and enable violence, rear window essay, it can alternatively result in tangible benefits when utilised in a positive manner, thus exposing Mandel's credence in how this can actually serve to benefit individuals and entire communities as a whole.
Annotations 1 It is really useful to show an understanding of how the novel has been constructed and why - so through Station Eleven not following a traditional model of time, rear window essay, this allows Mandel to really contrast between her characters - namely Kirsten and Tyler. Mandel expounds 2 how the rear window essay of memories can ultimately exacerbate the suffering experienced by vast sectors of the community, arguing that it is this which actively perpetuates harm due to the inability of humans to adequately process trauma, particularly trauma which stems from one's childhood given the loss of innocence which accompanies this.
Indeed, Tyler, who was characterised as a young boy during the 'neutron bomb' of the Georgia Flu and the subsequent destruction of civilisation 'had the misfortune of remembering everything', ultimately resulting in dire consequences for the majority of characters who interact with him, rear window essay. This ultimately results in significant consequences, thus allowing her to denounce how the distortion of memories with Tyler's recollections largely being defined by extreme violence and gore can be extremely harmful.
Indeed, 'ruling with a combination of charisma, violence and cherry-picked verses from the Book of Revelations', Tyler damages the overwhelming majority of people he comes into contact with, from having numerous 'child brides' to rendering the town of St.
Deborah by the Water 'unsafe' to his cult containing only a few 'true believers', 3 serving as the embodiment of humanity's insatiable lust for power. Through his reciting of only phrases from the Book of Revelations, labelled the most exclusionary and brutal book of the New Testament 4Mandel condemns the selectivity of Tyler's beliefs, advocating that his internalisation of only the most harmful and violent phrases exemplifies the lack of benefits associated with violently distorting memories given the inability of humans to process such immense trauma and suffering.
Whilst Mandel explains Tyler's actions as stemming from the violence underpinning his childhood, particularly given that he was raised by a 'lunatic' whom others deemed 'unsaveable', rear window essay, she dispels the notion that this excuses them, arguing the degree of hardships inflicted by Tyler himself are unjustifiable, thus further exposing her credence in the necessity of being able to forget harmful memories in order to overcome them. Ultimately, through her portrayal of Tyler's inability to forget his childhood as 'a boy adrift on the road', Mandel reveals the potential for harm to be imposed due to the distortion of memories so that they are marked by violence, rear window essay, arguing that this can indeed be overwhelmingly dangerous.
However, Mandel also displays a belief in the positives which can be gleaned by those who inherently distort their memories as a mechanism to process traumatic times in their lives, arguing this can provoke significant, tangible benefits. Conveyed through the non-linear structure of her novel, Mandel sculpts parallels between Tyler and Kristen given their similar ages and respective connections to protagonist Arthur through him serving as their father and father figure respectively, with the significant difference being that only the latter was able to forget 'the year [she] spent on the road…the worst of it' 5.
As such, only Kirsten is able to adequately move on from this extremely traumatic period in her life, exemplifying Mandel's credence in how the distortion of memories can truly serve as an invaluable coping mechanism rear window essay individuals to overcome significant harm, rear window essay, with Kirsten experiencing a large rear window essay of post-lapsarian fulfilment given her 'friendships' with her fellow members of the Travelling Symphony, her 'only home'.
Despite Kirsten's past being underpinned by significant violence, rear window essay, with her having three 'knife tattoos' to commemorate those she has had to kill in order to survive, her continued ability to adapt her memories into less traumatic ones is applauded, with her murders having been portrayed as occurring 'slowly…sound drained from the earth' as a way for her to rear window essay 'these men [which she] will carry with [her] for the rest of [her] life', thereby exposing Mandel's credence in the necessity of being able to overcome trauma through distorting memories.
As such, she ironically went on to perform Romeo and Juliet following one such event which, given Mandel's depiction of the unparalleled significance of artistic forms of expressionism facilitating human wellbeing as Kirsten 'never feels more alive' than when she performs, exposes Mandel's illumination of how altering false realities 6 can ultimately provoke tangible benefits given Kirsten's ability to simply move on despite the traumatising nature of the truth.
Ultimately, rear window essay, through the juxtaposition between Rear window essay and Kirstens' distortion 7 of memories, Mandel expounds how distorting memories can wield both consequences and benefits, with the latter occurring when employed subconsciously by individuals to process harmful memories. Annotations 5 Rear window essay is quite sophisticated to go back to the construction of the novel throughout the essay as opposed to just briefly mentioning it in the introduction!
This shows you truly understand why the author structured the novel the way she did, which in this case is to highlight the similarities and differences between Kristen and Tyler, rear window essay.
Rear Window - Essay Writing (VCE English)
, time: 20:01Rear Window by Alfred Hitchcock | Lisa's Study Guides
Oct 04, · Download. Analysis, Pages 3 ( words) Views. In the ’s film Rear Window, director Alfred Hitchcock sets his entire work looking through a man, L. B. Jeffries’ rear window. Because of his broken leg, Jeffries is confined to his apartment, and even to his wheelchair. It is here, in his apartment, that the protagonist watches, or even spies on his blogger.comted Reading Time: 5 mins Analysis of Themes in Rear Window Essay. Words6 Pages. Fear of Marriage and Voyeurism in Rear Window. In Alfred Hitchcock's classic thriller Rear Window, Jimmy Stewart stars as L.B. Jeffries, a world traveling magazine photographer accustomed to living a fast pace active lifestyle. When Jefferies injures himself taking a risky picture he is immobilized, confined to a wheelchair inside his Therefore, Rear Window one of Alfred Hitchcock’s highly inspired audience participation films. When a person watches it, he feels, tantalized, shocked, and exhilarated. Further in this essay, I will summarize the plots, discuss the styles used, and deconstruct parts of the. Continue Reading
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