Soviet Myths in Modern Russian Cinema Panfılov’s (original) (raw)
Related papers
Acta Academiae Artium Vilnensis : Baltic cinemas after the 90s: shifting (hi)stories and (id)entities, 2010
Annotation: There are two feature films Das Leben der Anderen, Germany, 2006, and Kurpe, Latvia, 1998, analysed here in terms of their representations of the past. In spite of differences in perspective, genre, time period portrayed, time and mode of production, to name just few, both of these films are devoted to the same primeval idea – the search for truth. It is both truth in its ideal form as well as truth about the soviet/socialist past. Abstract: Marija Weste, PhD candidate, University of Linköping, Taking a walk in the past: An analysis of representations of the soviet past in films Das Leben der Anderen and Kurpe This article analyses two films portraying the recent Soviet/Socialist past in Latvia and in Germany. These films are Kurpe, 1998, by Laila Pakalnina and Das Leben den Anderen, 2006, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. In spite of differences in perspective, genre, time period portrayed, time and mode of production, to name just few, both of these films are devoted to the same primeval idea – the search for truth. It is both truth in its ideal form as well as truth about the soviet/socialist past. Moreover, both films Kurpe and Das Leben den Anderen are an attempt to reflect upon the methods of search for truth and the various truths at our, as spectators/eyewitnesses disposal, thus providing a meta-perspective for the subject of truth. Also the respective film reviews are preoccupied with the search for truth, the question on the agenda is if the films portray truth or fail in doing so. Of vital importance in the discussions upon the subject of truth is the perspective, the point of view of respective speaker or the gaze adopted in the current paper as a general term describing the position of eyes as the key perceptive organ in film be it camera, eye of the author, spectator's place or actor's
Socio-cultural Child’s Image (Soviet and Russian movies’ Analysis)
Cultural-Historical Psychology, 2016
The current situation of studies of childhood goes back to the classical psychological theories, in Russian psychology to cultural-historical theory. These theories were developed as a generalization and comprehension of the realities of childhood, which were typical at the time of the creation of these theories. Rapid social changes, especially in recent decades, led to the emergence of a wide range of sources that emphasize the changing daily life of childhood — childhood changed from epoch to epoch, there was even the metaphor of a “disappearance of childhood”. The article describes a gradual change of child’s image in relation to an adult, and the Soviet and Russian films of the 40-ies — 2000-ies were used as a material of analysis. Study is based on the assumption that a consistent analysis based on a theory of text structure M. Lotman, demonstrates the changing image of the child. In the 40s — 50s the child appears immature, pre-adult, and the adult — the embodiment of ideal f...
Rethinking History: Heroes, Saints, and Martyrs in Contemporary Russian Cinema
Iconic Turns, 2013
This chapter examines the historical films produced in Russia in recent years, the interrelationships between nation and religion addressed by focusing on the figure of the martyr and on the question of how martyrs are created in the currently ongoing process of rethinking history. Since the figure of the martyr is well suited to incorporating heroic, patriotic and religious moments, it can, on the one hand, illuminate the encounters of nation and religion in Russian cinema and, on the other, shed light on the complex process of transferring a typical religious figure and concept into the profane medium of cinema. The chapter focuses on cinematic techniques and textual strategies such as character development, iconography and narrative patterns. Keywords:contemporary Russian cinema; martyrs; nation; religious moments; saints
Although most preschool teachers encourage children’s art making activities, they usually abstain from involving their students in activities aiming to enhance their ability in recognizing, interpreting and understanding visual art works. In our effort to improve on this educational insufficiency, we worked on an art education plan which has been built on a narrative oriented interpretive process. This paper presents the pilot application of this educational project designed for the undergraduate students of two Greek University Departments of Early Childhood Education. The project has a double aim: a) to help the students become aware of themselves as future preschool teachers who are able to adequately understand the procedures and methods used in the analysis of an art work and b) to provide them with a useful tool of analysis and interpretation of art works proper for pre-primary school children. The whole project has been developed in two distinct but intertwined phases: the object of the first phase was to reveal and describe in a cohesive way the iconographic, morphological and cultural elements of the art works in order to create the appropriate interpretive background. In this effort we worked out a model of analysis based on Erwin Panofsky’s iconological method. In the second stage, we tried to transfigure the material developed in the first phase in such a way as to be functional in the educational deed. In quest of the appropriate educational condition in the pre-primary school, we concluded that the use of the fairy tale was the best means for presenting and elucidating a visual art work. In this framework, the interpretive material developed in the first phase has been used as an inducement for the creation of fairy tales, which in their turn can be used as stimuli or sources of inspiration for further educational activities. In this paper we present the theoretical framework, the method we used as well as a first analysis of the conclusions drawn from the pilot application of this project.
The Militarization of the Past in Russian Popular Historical Films
This paper is devoted to the problem of the militarization of culture in modern Russia. The two key scientific fields are public history and the politics of memory. Firstly, based on the official documents and statements of authorities, the paper will characterize the relations between the state and Russian cinema as well as the role of history and historical films in the contemporary politics of memory. Secondly, after identifying the role of popular cinema in Russia, the paper will explore the characteristics of historical periods in popular films, based on the hypothesis that the Russian past is mostly represented around or inside war, while the criticism of war is becoming less and less important for popular cinema
Myth Theory: A Study towards Mythic Tale and It's Reach in Today's Life
International Journal of English Language, Literature in Humanities, 2021
Myth can vaguely be said to have come into existence due to the urge of seeking answers to curious mind about the universe, nature, man or can be the result emerged from the need for religious stability of societal control using certain customs and rituals. Myth when looked with a proper outlook can be termed as meaningful, for it beholds metaphysics, the branch of philosophy that deals with the first source of things, including intangible concepts such as being, identity, time and space in its primary sense while developing close proximity to immediate perception of reality. The universal belief system is held and disseminated with a certain amount of pompousness in language and settings, based on mythic stories of a clan or cult. The purpose of this paper is to establish mythic tales as a vital ingredients for posterity to look upon and validate that the re-reading of mythic tales into fiction opens up a variety of possibilities, including: various perspectives and dimensions to the same story portrayed in/as legendary texts. Humanistic consideration is brought about by individual representation. There are a variety of ways to look at the philosophy that has been passed down through the generations through stories. Keywords: Myth, Mythic Tales, Re-Interpretation, Sociological aspect, Pedagogical value.