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  • Essay / A cinematic perspective on the relationship between art and nature in The Tempest

    The dreadful spectacle of the shipwreck, which touched Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The very virtue of compassion in you I have with such disposition in my art So well ordered that there is no soul - No, not as much perdition as a hair for every creature in the ship that you heard screaming, that you saw sink. (1531) In The Tempest by William Shakespeare, the character Prospero uses his magical art to create a storm and formulate feelings of compassion in his daughter Miranda. Likewise, Shakespeare uses theater to arouse feelings in his audience, while using art to control each character and their situation. Using the power of theatrical art, Shakespeare attempts to recreate and replace nature in this play. In Prospero's Books, Peter Greenaway examines the representation of the relationship between art and nature from a cinematic perspective. In his film, he explains how The Tempest challenges the priority of art over nature by incorporating clever techniques and ideas into natural themes. The Tempest opens with Prospero's magical creation of a dangerous storm. In this scene, Shakespeare highlights the power of theater, as an art form, to replace nature. He does this through a reproduction of a storm and its effects on the outside world, both in the characters and in the audience. This storm creation represents the power of art, working in theater, to reproduce natural events and emotions through theatrical illusions, such as the sound of wind, while shaping the relevant feelings in the characters. For example, the king and his men stay on Prospero's island due to the storm's strong winds. Prospero's magical island then becomes the setting of the play. Shakespeare, the artist, leaves the first act, scene 1, with an ambivalent result. The audience and characters do not know the fate of the ship group, leaving their minds conflicted. In this situation, the art manipulates their thoughts so much that they immerse themselves in them, accepting their feelings as real, even if only for a short time. Peter Greenaway depicts Act One, Scene One with a strong use of elemental imagery such as fire and water. He associates these elements with witchcraft, presenting Prospero as a magical figure capable of using his supernatural powers to control nature. Not only does the filmmaker recreate nature, but his character too. This shows the power of art over nature, as art produces natural events repeatedly, while nature cannot control or change its elemental existence. For example, Greenaway, through cinematic devices, does not rely on a natural event to produce a statement or work of art. The magical island setting of the play changes with the interpretation of the film. The film revolves around a small swimming pool with a long corridor leading to Prospero's office, contrasting with the traditional stage setup of the theater. As a filmmaker, Greenaway's small pool represents a larger sea, while also serving as a figurative mirror because when one looks into a pool of water, one can see oneself. Greenaway observes the need for people to re-examine the world in a mirror, not physically but in a sense that allows for a deeper understanding of its issues. Water reflects much more than the surface. Looking at the water, they discover a world full of organisms and life that they must focus on, just as Greenaway wants his audienceexplores unobservable problems. Additionally, Prospero has a “Book of Mirrors” which corresponds to the notion of artistic expressions reflecting life. This visual reappears throughout the film as Greenaway takes his audience into his bizarre world, questioning the nature of art through the expansion of the imagination. In this world, sprites appear as children hanging on ropes above the water, watching a toy boat float in the pool. The filmmaker manipulates the environment much like Prospero does in The Tempest, treating the audience and characters like toy puppets. Shakespeare intends to amaze his audience with a depiction of natural events in his play, and Greenaway has similar, updated intentions with his film adaptation. He relies on both the visual and auditory senses in this scene, adding ways in which the artist controls the audience. For example, Ariel urinates profusely on the toy boat, smiling as it falls. Children symbolize innocence, but Ariel's curly red hair evokes evil thoughts. The child looks innocent as his expression turns sinister, his natural action leading to evil. The image of the boy provokes feelings of disgust in the audience, juxtaposing an innocent child with destructive intent. Greenaway incorporates a raw part of human nature with a highly respected piece in order to artistically bridge a conventional separation between nature and art. Another striking visual scene occurs when the winds blow as Prospero walks towards his office. In the background, books fly through the air while naked men and women move around him. The winds become faster as people dance and sounds of animal cries and machine guns appear. Greenaway reveals a social observation here. It combines bestial savagery with animal cries and nudity with the sound of machine guns. In the world, people create storms through violence and war, which only leads to confusion and pain. Furthermore, the loose books represent the different political and social ideas as well as the problems associated with too much knowledge of books. This knowledge leads to destruction and confusion. Additionally, books sometimes represent a form of civility, but the imposition of knowledge on other cultures leads to unwanted conformity. Shakespeare separates the characters of Caliban and Ariel from the human world. In Act One, Scene Two, Ariel arrives on stage, as a boy or little man, and acts as an obedient "spirit" (1533) towards her master Prospero. They communicate using clear dialogue, while Ariel's lines oscillate between speech and song. This interaction allows this pixie to enter into a part of human nature, although human acceptance does not change the way Ariel manipulates others through her art of music. Sitting on a bank, mourning the king again over my father's wreck, this music slipped through me over the waters. , Calming both their fury and my passion With his gentle air. From there I followed him, Or rather he drew me (1536) In this scene, Ariel's melody evokes horrible thoughts of shipwreck in Ferdinand's mind. Shakespeare believes that music, as an art form, changes human nature in non-somatic ways. Lyrics and melody alter perceptions, shape emotions, and add significantly to theatrical and cinematic effects. Greenaway also takes advantage of the clever illusions of music and sounds in his film adaptation. Peter Greenaway gives Ariel a high-pitched voice and he sings all of her lines in aoperatic vibrato. This visual of the boy implies human youth and innocence, but this perception changes as Ariel speaks in an artificial, unnatural voice. This unnatural juxtaposition between the musical form of opera and a young child encourages the audience to understand that this character is not completely human. Greenaway hopes that his treatment of Ariel will broaden the audience's mindset when meeting this unusual child. Plus, he wants them to accept this character because he adds to the film just like humanity's differences add to the world. In the play and in the film, Ariel acts as both a man and a woman, while crossing between the ordinary human world and the magical, non-human world. This message promotes the incorporation of all races, genders and sexualities into society as well as separation and respect for their private and public lives. In addition to Ariel's dialogue, Prospero's deep emotion is told in the voice of the speaking character, whose lips remain still. The filmmaker gives this sound and visual interpretation because he shows a technological spectacle specific to cinema. This profession corresponds to the theatrical illusions that amazed Renaissance spectators in Shakespeare's play. These tips highlight the power of cinema as a magical art, inexplicable to those it entertains. This gives art a supernatural effect, as it takes human nature, such as the senses, and moves it, thus reasserting the arts' control over nature. Greenaway's other techniques include the use of picture-in-picture, alternating between stage and film settings, and the use of ballet choreography. Greenaway chooses choreography to continue to question the relationship between savagery and civility. It shows a bald Sycorax giving birth to a baby in a graphic, yet natural, introduction to Caliban's life. Figures representing forest creatures paint on bare skin. Caliban cries while tied and wrapped in a tree, as blood and insects come out of his mouth, showing this character as one with nature while having more than just animal emotions. These images reiterate his classification as a savage nonhuman, although the way the forest creatures, including Caliban, move imply an inner grace. These people can defecate on books, have green fingers like monsters and wear few clothes; however, they dance in a sophisticated ballet style. These creatures have a gentle suppleness rarely associated with the wild. Audiences expect tribal movements rather than an imitation of upper-class artistic pleasure, once again emphasizing how Greenaway's interpretation transforms the mind. The filmmaker awakens his culture to the acceptance of savagery and radicalism in art. It poses the question of how to distinguish the artist from the savage and leads the audience to question who is truly savage: the creature imitating a civilian, properly recognized art form or modern culture unconsciously infusing indigenous practices as art in their society. Greenaway describes the different cultures of the forest world through their actions and costumes, while Shakespeare approaches nature by focusing on language. It presents the power of language and education as a means to eliminate nature. "You taught me the language, and I don't benefit from it / Do I know how to swear. The Red Plague got rid of you / For teaching me your language!" (1535). Although Caliban's perception of the world comes from living in nature, he speaks in understandable verse, he has a rational thought process, and causes the audience to struggle between feelings of admiration for, 1991.