Examining Violence In Titus Andronicus Film Studies Essay

Examining Violence In Titus Andronicus Film Studies Essay Titus Andronicus is probably one of the most notorious and violent plays that the poet and playwright William Shakespeare has ever written. But even if this certain revenge play is unheard-of, there is still a lot of room for interpretation, even more when it is compared to a film version. One could for example comment on the several murders, the cannibalism, the rape, the dismemberment of human bodies and so on. Thus, revenge and violence are an important topic in this play and that is why I will analyze the presentation of violence in Julie Taymor s version of Titus Andronicus named Titus and released in 2000, and compare it to the representation of violence in the primary source. What I would like to demonstrate is that in the film violence is presented in a grotesque way. So the question is, whether the play offers a grotesque basis for Taymor s film or whether this is rather her own interpretation. In order to do that, I will first define the concept of the grotesque, including its connotations and effects on the reader or the audience. Furthermore, I will pick out scenes that support my argument. To demonstrate the grotesque in the film I will depict and interpret three key scenes. The first scene will be Lavinia s rape, in which Lavinia is assaulted by Chiron and Demetrius and gets her hands and tongue cut off afterwards. In addition, I will present a scene, where a messenger delivers Titus Andronicus his own hand and his sons heads. The last scene will deal with the situation, where Titus dresses up as a cook and serves Tamora, his most dreaded enemy, and others her two sons that he killed and cooked earlier. 1.2. Information on the Play and the Film In this section I would like to give information on the play and on the film in short terms. Titus Andronicus, which is a revenge play as already mentioned, was written by Shakespeare in the late 1580s and updated around 1593 . Sw rdh claims that there are still critics who are not sure whether the play was written by Shakespeare alone, since it is very different from his other plays. Julie Taymor s film Titus was released in 1999 and failed at the box office although it was highly praised by critics. In her adaptation the story is set in Ancient Rome but is mixed with modern elements, such as cars and firearms. In addition, in Taymor s framing of the Shakespearean play the boundary between reality and fiction is crossed several times . This crossing of boundaries is a hint that Taymor uses the filmic mode in her adaptation. According to Jorgens there are several modes that are used to measure the films relative distance from the language and conventions of the theatre . In Shakespeare on Film he introduces the theatrical, the realistic and the filmic mode. The theatrical mode looks like a theatre performance and involves the audience. There are a lot of medium and long shots used. The realistic mode, however, takes advantage of the camera s unique ability to show us things [] . This for example includes close-ups. The filmic mode is the mode of the film poet, whose works bear the same relation to the surfaces of reality that poems do to ordinary conversation . That means that reality becomes insignificant in the filmic mode and can be mixed up with elements of the unreal. In this mode many non-theatrical techniques which also include close-ups, long shots, several camera angle and movements. In Taymor s adaptation the reality is penetrated by dream sequences that Taymor herself calls Penny Arcade Nightmares or short P.A.N.s. Two examples of the P.A.N.s will be discussed later in this paper. According to Jorgens, the filmic mode makes it possible for the directors not only to present what Shakespeare literally has written in his plays but also the subtext , which reveals the character feelings and thoughts between the lines of a play. In this paper I will show that the grotesque is what is hidden between the lines in Shakespeare s play and what is made extremely visible in Taymor s film. 2. The Grotesque According to Thomson the concept of the grotesque changes from time to time and has gained importance only since the 1950s. However, the concept of the grotesque is old and was already used by poets as Dante and Ovid. The modern way to define the grotesque is to view it as a fundamentally ambivalent thing, as a violent clash of opposites [ ] Thomson argues that the grotesque is always connected to the comic and the terrifying at the same time and that there is problem to decide whether something is funny (not only in the sense of comic but also in the sense of strange) or horror. This leads to an unresolved problem and [the] special impact of the grotesque will be lacking if the conflict is resolved .Thus he offers the definition that the grotesque is the unresolved clash of incompatibles in work and response . Something grotesque can also be named bizarre, absurd and macabre, which I think is also very common in both, the film and the play. One of the lines Titus says in the scene where he asks Aaron to cut off his hand is: Lend me thy hand and I will give thee mine (3.1.189). He asks Aaron to help him to cut off his hand and tells him that he will give him his hand when Aaron is done. This is a macabre situation because the fact that Titus is having his hand lopped off is very gruesome, but the line he is saying is funny (in the sense of comic) and this evokes two opposite feelings namely disgust and amusement which is, according to Thomson, the usual but abnormal reaction to the grotesque. Harpham puts the definition of the grotesque in different words: when we use the word grotesque we record [ ] the sense that although our attention has been arrested, our understanding is unsatisfied . He also explains that the grotesque has always to do with the clash of two opposites, such as the known and the unknown or the perceived and the unperceived . Although he agrees with Thomson concerning the reaction towards the grotesque, he elaborates more on the fact that the grotesque also depends on our own perception and interpretation of a certain issue. He argues that these two points (among others) play a [ ] crucial role in creating the sense of the grotesque . Yates also points out that in Greek mythology a grotesque creature was something that had human and animalistic body parts. This could be a person with the head of a bat, a plant with the teeth of an animal [] and so on. In Taymor s film, this definition of the grotesque is used several times. The most persistent picture is that of Lavinia as a woman with the head of a doe. This comparison will be discussed later. In this paper, I will define a scene as grotesque if it matches Thomson s definition. That means that I will analyse whether a scene is funny and terrifying at the same time in order to be called grotesque. 3. The Original Titus Andronicus and Taymor s Adaptation 3.1. Scene 1: Lavinia s Rape 3.1.1. The Main Scene The scene starts with Tamora s sons entering with the ravished Lavinia in 2.4.1 in the play and their hysteric laughter in 63:05 min in the film, ending at line 55 and at 66:19 min. This scene will be analyzed concerning camera movements, angles and framing, because this is very important for the interpretation of this scene. This scene was chosen as one of the grotesque scenes because Lavinia is presented in a very grotesque way. It is not only her looks but also the use of the camera and the music that create this impression. All of these elements will be explained in this chapter. The rape scene begins with an extreme long shot of the two brothers laughing and moving around Lavinia, who is only shown from the back, being obviously filmed after the rape and mutilation. It is filmed from a high angle and creates the image that the audience sees the scene from her point of view. There is also a hand-held camera used, which moves quickly and follows the two men (or rather boys) causing a jerky, ragged effect , which is very often used in the horror genre. In addition, the fact that Lavinia is only seen from behind arouses the feeling that something very uncomfortable is following. When Lavinia is finally seen from front view, a canted angle, suggest[ing] imbalance , and a long shot are used, so that Lavinia s whole body and her surroundings can be recognized. She starts moving, her face wreathing in pain. This adds to the grotesque impression of the whole scene. When Chiron and Demetrius leave we can see Marcus walking through the forest. As he sees Lavinia, he starts walking towards her. Here, a medium shot is used and the scene is filmed on eye level. The camera movement can be described as a reverse dolly shot, which just follows the character that is filmed slowly and steadily. The camera starts zooming closer to Lavinia and when she opens her mouth, there is a medium shot showing her upper part of the body, which is followed by a close-up at Marcus s face. This whole second part of the scene with Marcus and Lavinia is shot at eye level. This is a contrast to the first part where Lavinia is filmed with Tamora s sons. It creates the impression that Marcus and Lavinia are at the same level. Marcus is devastated and pities Lavinia and you can see how much he loves his niece, so there is no imbalance or violence at all. Tamora s sons, however, hurt Lavinia and make fun of her afterwards. Moreover, the steady movements of the camera in the second part of the scene and the fast camera movements in the first part of the scene also aggravate this effect. In the film version, a lot of lines from the play have been left out in this scene. However, the words that Marcus says in the play are shown by the actors through facial expressions and movements of the body. In the play he says: Alas, a crimson river of warm blood [] Doth rise and fall between thy rosed lips (2.3.22-2.3.24). These lines and the following monologue are left out in the film. But since Lavinia opens her mouth and the audience can actually see the blood, it is not necessary for Marcus to repeat that. The whole monologue where he regrets what happened to Lavinia is also made superfluous through the close-up at his face, which already has been described. At this moment, his facial expression demonstrates his distress and words are not necessary. Another important fact in this scene is that Lavinia is compared to a tree. Marcus says in the play: Speak gentle niece, what stern ungentle hands Hath lopped and hewed and made thy body bare Of her two branches, those sweet ornaments [ ] (2.3.16-2.3.19) Here, Marcus uses a lot of expressions that have to do with wood and wood processing, which are branches , lopped and hewed , thus comparing her body to a tree. When he finds Lavinia in the film version, branches have been plugged into her stumps. This creates a very grotesque impression. It is funny in the sense of strange, because it is a very uncommon picture and it is terrifying at the same time, if one thinks about the pain that Lavinia must feel at this moment. Although this is not explicitly mentioned in the primary source, one could say that the play provides a basis for Taymor s interpretation because of the several comparisons to wood. Taymor also sets the scene that is described here in a place that reminds of a dead wood, because there are dead, black trees and stubs everywhere, surrounded by a lot of mud. In this scene Lavinia is also standing on a stub, which adds even more to Marcus s comparison of her as a tree, and her movements remind of a thin tree that is swaying in the wind. What is also worth mentioning is that earlier in the film, in the scene where Chiron and Demetrius kill Lavinia s husband Bassanius in front of her, the scene is set in a verdant forest. But after her rape the forest is dead, which could also be an allusion to the destruction of Lavinia and her chastity. Another hint that Lavinia s rape should be presented in a grotesque way is that fact that the incident that happened to her is often compared to Philomela s story. Harpham argues that the grotesque can also be found in the work of the Roman poet Ovid. Interestingly enough, Ovid s work is also used very often as a metaphor in Shakespeare s play. Marcus says later in the scene about his niece: A craftier Tereus, cousin, hast thou met, And he hath cut those pretty fingers off, That could have better sewed than Philomel. (2.3.41-2.3.43) Here, he compares Lavinia to Ovid s Philomela who is raped by King Tereus of Thrace and gets her tongue chopped off, as well. That comparison establishes a connection between the grotesque scene in Taymor s film and Shakespeare s play. However, according to Cartelli and Rowe, Taymor does not present Lavinia as Philomela but as Daphne, who is also one of the protagonists of Ovid s poems. Daphne was like Lavinia a chaste virgin. She was persecuted by Apollo who was madly in love with her and so she asked her father Peneus, a river god, to change her shape in order to stop Apollo. Consequently, her father turned Daphne into a tree. The picture of Lavinia as Daphne is even more strengthened when Young Lucius brings her wooden hands to replace hers. Another important argument is that Lavinia is constantly compared to an animal. In the scene where Aaron talks Chiron and Demetrius into raping Lavinia she is very often referred to as a doe. Aaron even says: And strike her home by force, if not by words (1.1.618). According to the notes of this edition the word striking was used as a technical term for killing or wounding a deer . In Taymor s film, there is a P.A.N. that reflects this allusion, which will be discussed later in this chapter. Thus, Lavinia is often compared to animals and to trees, but she is never regarded as a woman. Hanson argues that female composite figures are seen as sexual animals in Greek mythology. Lavinia is reduced to a sex symbol (as would be called nowadays). Finally, one could say that Lavinia s rape scene which is depicted in a very grotesque way in the film is not explicitly grotesque in the play. However, Shakespeare provides a basis for the grotesque scene, by comparing Lavinia to a tree and to Philomela, whose story was perceived as grotesque, as well and by actually having her hands and tongue lopped off. 3.2.2. Additional Scene: Lavinia as doe woman This scene cannot be found explicitly in Shakespeare s play. However, it is important for the scene that was described above and adds crucial information for the picture of Lavinia in the play. This very short scene is also one of the already mentioned Penny Arcade Nightmares . It starts at 93:25 min and end at 94:15 min. Starks argues that [t]he P.A.N.s, which occur at strategic moments throughout Titus, [ ] further interrogate the act of viewing horror . She adds that they are supposed to mix reality and imagination. Usually, in P.A.N. the characters try to reprocess something that has happened to them. But there is also always a nightmare element in these P.A.N.s. This P.A.N. happens parallel to the action in the play. It is the moment where Lavinia writes down the names of Chiron and Demetrius in the sand. The stage directions tell us that [s]he takes [a] staff in her mouth, and guides it with her stumps, and writes (4.1.76). In the film the staff reminds of a phallic symbol (Lavinia is reduced to a sex symbol again) and the P.A.N. takes place while she writes. At the beginning she can be seen with the head of a doe on her head and with tigers jumping from both sides at her. There is a long shot used and the whole scene is shown in slow motion. The doe usually connected to innocence and weakness and one must involuntarily think of Walt Disney s Bambi. The tigers however are connected to strength and power. This shows that poor Lavinia had no chance to protect herself from the two brothers. The music in the background sounds psychedelic and is accompanied by Lavinia s grunts. The colours are mainly blue and black except for her white dress. Suddenly Lavinia looks scared and there are close-ups of her face and the faces of Chiron and Demetrius. The last shot shows Lavinia standing on a pedestal in a breeze in her white dress which reminds very much of Marilyn Monroe, who was a sex symbol in the 1950s. This comparison underlines the idea that Lavinia is reduced constantly to an object of desire in the play and in the film. This P.A.N. shows us what cannot be seen in the main scene. We can see how much Lavinia must have suffered and as Taymor puts it a bolt of electric shock seems to run through [Lavinia s] body . However, the comparison to Marilyn Monroe in that situation and the fast cuts that are put together in the P.A.N. create a very grotesque image. According to Cartelli and Rowe the arrangements in this scene are the same as in all the other P.A.N.s. The victim stands in the middle and is attacked from the left and the right side. Stark also connects the shot where Lavinia can be seen standing on a pedestal to the first shot after her rape. The idea is basically the same: Lavinia is standing on a stump, wearing a white dress in a breeze. In this scene she seems to be the one who is put above all of the others but she is also the one who is humiliated in the worst way. However, the two shots evoke completely different feelings. After her rape the audiences is shocked by that shot and we pity Lavinia. But in the second shot the audience looks at her as an appealing woman, who is teasing with her movements, which adds a grotesque element to the whole Lavinia theme in the film. But, from our point of view her representation in the whole play is grotesque as well because of her constantly reduced role. 3.2. Scene 2: Titus and many severed body parts This scene will deal with Titus cutting off his hand with the aid of Aaron in order to trade it for the live of his sons. But Aaron tricks him and so, Titus only gets the heads of his two sons and his own hand at the end. In the play this scene starts in 3.1.151 and ends with line 206, going on from 3.1.235 until line 241. In the film the scene starts at 75:19 min, goes on until 78:00 min and continues from 80:19 min to 84:21 min. The part in between is not connected closely to the scene and will be left out. In this scene hands play again an important role. Lavinia loses her hands after the rape and cannot be an independent person anymore. In this scene the meaning of hands becomes even more evident. According to Katherine Rowe the hand is perceived as a separate part of the body, which controls the material world. She argues that the hand is [ ] the body part most often associated with intentional, effective action [ ] . Even Aristotle discussed the importance of hands and claimed that the hand is the instrument of instruments . According to Rowe, the Greek philosopher Galen continued Aristotle s thought and asserted that the hand not only is the supreme instrument but also a tool that uses tools . In the play there are often allusions made to the hand and it is associated with many different adjectives and attributes. It is called victorious, noble, idle and so on. What is also interesting is that the hand is the one that gets credited for several deeds. In this scene for example Lucius says to his father: Stay father, for that noble hand of thine That hath thrown down so many enemies Shall not be sent. (3.1.163-3.1.165) Thus, it is the ultimate punishment to lose a hand and turn into a person, who cannot be independent anymore. But still, Titus does not hesitate to give his hand for his sons lives, even though the thought of cutting it off must be horrible. This is the part of the scene, which fulfils the criterion of being terrifying in order to be grotesque. The funny part (this time in the sense of comic) is fulfilled by what is said by Titus. He tells Aaron: Lend me thy hand and I will give thee mine (3.1.188) Titus is actually making a joke in this very serious, potentially life-threatening situation. This creates an image of something grotesque and this is also how Taymor presents the scene in her film. This part of the scene is set in a kitchen. Here, the grotesque is very explicit, because Titus enters the kitchen with Aaron, takes away the cook s carving board, which she just used to chop vegetables, lays down his hand and lets him cut it off with a cleaver. It is a comic situation because the severed hand looks unreal as if it is elastic and because there is no blood at all, but still the thought of the pain that one must suffer getting his hand lopped off and Titus s facial expression, create a feeling of horror, which is supported by a close-up at Titus s face. The use of the camera and the filming techniques do not have as much importance in this scene as in the scene discussed in chapter 3.1. However, it is noticeable that Aaron talks directly to the camera several times, which is called a face-on tracking shot. This creates the effect that he is directly addressing the audience and he usually does that, when he is supposed to say something aside in the stage directions of the play. However, what is more important is the use of music in this scene. When Aaron and Titus walk to the kitchen to cut Titus s hand off, a lot of trumpets, horns and string players can be heard. The music sounds aggressive, frightening and loud and fits to the determined walk of the two characters and their speed. When Aaron leaves the kitchen with the hand and starts talking to the camera, the music changes and jazzy sounds can be heard. This again underlines the words that are said and helps turning the mood from frightening to comic. The second part of the scene is even more grotesque, because Taymor once again mixes modern elements with those from the Roman Empire. Guneratne puts it in the following words: [ ] a derelict biker-clown pulls a wagon functioning as a mobile arcade [ ] and, after dancing grotesquely about and manically promoting his show like a demented carny barker, he unveils the severed heads of Titus s two sons and the hand Titus severed to ransom them . This scene is described as a P.A.N. by Taymor herself. According to Cartelli and Rowe The penny arcade evokes the carnivalesque atmosphere of a fair or beachside entertainment zone given over to casual meandering among games of chance, fortune tellers, tattoo parlo[u]rs, and overstuffed displays of cheap prizes and merchandise . This quote implies that what you usually can see in such a circumstance is meaningless and just used as entertainment, but seeing the heads of one s own two sons has actually nothing to do with entertainment and cheap prizes , which add to the grotesque effect. Cartelli and Rowe continue that the P.A.N.s also demonstrate nightmare and let the characters relive what has happened to them before. However, the P.A.N described here is different, since it reflects a situation that is actually going on and not just a dream of one of the characters: This still life P.A.N. signals the turn in the play where the nightmares are now reality and madness can be confused with sanity [] . To underline the grotesque picture of the messenger Taymor also changes his character. In the play he seems to be compassionate, talking to Andronicus about his father s death. But in the film, he seems to be uninterested in what he is saying, as if he is quoting something he, himself, has no stake in . The way he delivers his massage supports the grotesque in the film. However, in this short part Taymor did not take the play as a basis for her interpretation. In this whole scene the comic element is presented at first by the clown and the little girl. The music, that is played, sounds like circus music and stops abruptly as the clown pulls up the roller shutter. The effect is that the audience is shocked and terrified, since the two heads of the sons, which look fairly unreal and disgusting, swimming in a red fluid, put in a dirty glass cover, are finally visible for everyone. This is already very grotesque but it becomes even more grotesque when Titus asks Lavinia to take his dead, severed hand in her badly injured mouth. The picture of the raped and mutilated girl with the dishevelled hair and the hand in her mouth makes her look like a dog, which is a very disturbing thought. Finally, one could say that this is also a scene, where the play offers a grotesque basis for Taymor s version. Marcus suggests that Titus should rant but instead of ranting Titus starts laughing. This is a reaction, which is not expected by the reader and turns the situation into something uncommon. In addition, the moment where Lavinia shall take her father s hand and carry it in her mouth is really happening in the play and Taymor takes Titus s request literally. The effect of this scene is stronger in the film than in the play, because watching Lavinia taking the hand is much more disturbing than reading it. 3.3. Scene 3: Titus, the Cook The last scene that will be discussed in this paper starts in 5.3.26 and ends with line 65. In the film the scene goes from 138:30 min to 144:30 min. In this scene, the grotesque can be found everywhere. It is grotesque how the cakes containing the two dead sons are presented. It is grotesque how Titus kills his own daughter and how all of the protagonists are stabbed with a knife, a spoon and a candleholder. The music, the camera angles and filming techniques everything in this scene seems grotesque. This analysis will begin with the filming techniques. Directly at the beginning of the scene there is a close-up at the two pies that Titus made out of Chiron s and Demetrius bodies, cooling down on a windowsill. There is vivid, friendly, jazzy music playing in the background and the curtains are moving slowly because of the wind. This picture evokes the feeling that some lovely housewife who lives in a cosy home, made these delicious looking pies for her family. But of course, this is not the case and the knowledge of the two dead human beings inside that pies cause feelings of disgust and agitation. As soon as the guests including Tamora, Saturnius, Lucius, Marcus and others are seated Titus brings in one of the pies and cuts it. The first peace is for Tamora and inside the pie looks bloody and raw, once again creating disgust. The whole scene is shot at eye level and most frequently there are medium shots and close-ups used to show the characters. However, when everyone starts eating there are several extreme close-ups at their mouths chewing with pieces of the pie sticking between their teeth. Wilson argues that these kinds of shots are supposed to cause dramatic effect . Looking at these people chewing raises the feeling of disgust even more. What is also remarkable is the use of the camera in the very last seconds of the scene. When Lucius puts a spoon in Saturnius mouth and feeds it into him until he suffocates, the scene is suddenly shown in slow motion and finally comes to a complete stop. Suddenly, Lucius is the only one that can move. He spits at Saturnius and shoots him afterwards. Finally, the scene is over and the rest of the characters are standing in the Coliseum. My suggestion is that these last seconds are used in order to point out Lucius s role. He is the only child of Titus who all in all lost one daughter and 23 sons that is still alive. Lucius makes not only an end to the scene but also to the whole violence and revenge, and becomes the new Emperor afterwards. Music and sounds in general are also very important in this scene. They underline the action in the film and support the use of the camera. When the very beautifully looking Lavinia enters the room the music changes and there is a quite orchestra in the background. As soon as Titus says that she must die it starts getting louder and when he breaks her neck, which is highlighted by a creaky sound, the music gets very loud and dramatic. A few seconds later there is again a change. When Titus stabs Tamora the soft music changes after a short moment and becomes aggressive. Now, rock music is used and is played until the ends of the scene. The rock music underlines the chaos that is breaking out at this moment and since everything goes very fast from there adds to the perplexity that the audience experiences after the end of the scene. Here, Lavinia is once more reduced to an animal. The way her father breaks her neck reminds more of wounded sparrow then of a woman or even a child. Again, Lavinia is compared to a historical figure. Titus alludes to Virginius who killed his daughter Virginia because she was deflowered (5.3.38). What is shocking is that in this scene he kills Lavinia not because of her pain or shame but because he cannot bear looking at her and because he has already cried so much because of her pain. As always Lavinia is not regarded as a woman but as something that is there to serve men. An interesting point in this scene is the connection of the character Titus to Hopkins s role as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs. In this film Hopkins played a cannibal and in Titus he once again turns into one, when he serves the cakes. This adds a comic element and once again strengthens the grotesque impression of the whole scene. Cartelli and Rowe also observe that Hopkins sucks in his spit before slitting Chiron and Demetrius s throats , which is also usually connected to his role a Lecter and which happens shortly before the scene described here. Starks connects this last scene to the opening scene of the film and calls it a grotesque parody of the opening frame of Young Lucius (Osheen Jones) playing with ketchup-blood on the kitchen table [] . In the first scene of the film a boy can be seen playing with toy soldiers and other figures in a kitchen, wearing a paper bag on his head. Hinz describes the setting as a typical American kitchen of the 1950s and read the paper bag as a symbol for the thin wall between real and imagined violence . The picture of the boy with the paper bag on his head is comic but disturbing considering his violent game and thus grotesque. Young Lucius is a character who really exists in the play but in Taymor s adaptation his role is taken by a boy who acts as the audience. He appears in every scene described in this paper and has influence on the film. In this scene, or rather after this scene and after his father being elected as the new Emperor, Lucius leaves the Coliseum with Aaron s and Tamora s baby on his arm, which, according to Hinz, hints at the end of violence between the Romans and the Goths. 4. Conclusion In this term paper it has been shown that violence is treated as something grotesque in Taymor s adaptations of Titus Andronicus. First of all, the term the grotesque has been defined and afterwards three scenes were chosen from the film and interpreted. Whether a scene is grotesque or not has been analysed according to Thomson s criteria. Finally the film scenes have been compared to the corresponding scenes in the play. Camera angles, camera movements, the gestures of the characters, the music and of course the text is what was taken into consideration during the analysis of the film. What has been pointed out in this paper is that the play offers a grotesque basis for Taymor s interpretation. It was not only presented very explicitly through the actions of the characters but also hinted at by the stage directions, by the actual text (e.g. through the use of metaphors and allusions to Greek mythology) and t