Community and the Individual in John Ford's The Quiet Man

2963 Words6 Pages

Community and the Individual in John Ford's The Quiet Man

John Ford's The Quiet Man is a romantic comedy that demonstrates Ford's world-view by way of symbolic visual devices as well as in the basic plot: the outsider being indoctrinated into a community through the gradual understanding of rituals and rites of passage, as well as the little nuances of everyday life. John Ford, a filmmaker with a strong Irish ancestry and pride in his roots, directed this film about the return of a retired boxer to the town of his birth, Innisfree; the plot is just the backbone of a film which is fleshed out by the ideas Ford expressed throughout all his films: the value and meaning of community, communicated with a unique dramatic rhythm. This dramatic rhythm follows a pattern of assertion -> resistance -> accommodation. Ford also uses many icons (specific visual imagery repeated throughout many of his films which have a consistent meaning and/or function for Ford) to express his ideas, such as the use of doorways, which represent a boundary between a safe area and a dangerous one, and the watching/waiting shot, which shows someone in the throes of hope or sorrow, and demonstrates homecomings or departures. Other icons found in the film, and the larger body of Ford's work, include the horizon shot, which shows the passage from one mode of life to another, and the parade/procession, which displays community harmony, usually used in a showing of community success. Also used is the reaction-shot, which serves to appraise the importance of a dramatic happening through the reactions of various characters, and lastly and very importantly, the shared imbibing of spirits, which is part of any sound celebration in Ford's world.

The opening sce...

... middle of paper ...

...mily makes life easier and more pleasurable. Ford uses his icons to show the passing from one situation or lifestyle into another (such as horizon shots: from the American life to the Irish, or from the single life into the married) or to show the community in harmony (processions/parades, and shared spirits). His unusual dramatic rhythm is felt on a larger level (Sean's assertion into the community, the resistance of Red Will and later Mary Kate, the accommodation of the donnybrook and the final dinner scene) as well as in each individual scene; this progression from assertion to resistance to accommodation, paired with the iconography, gives The Quiet Man a flavor and style all its own, and with the gorgeous Irish countryside as backdrop, the result is an essay on the ultimate ideal situation of community harmony and the individual sacrifice it takes to achieve it.

Show More
Related

  • Loneliness In 'Speaking Of Courage'

    226 Words  | 1 Pages

    In The things they carried we see men that are together fighting the same war, however, every one of them are fighting an emotional burden creating loneliness and isolation not unification. For example we see this in Jimmy Cross as he holds onto the picture of Martha. It shows the love and thoughts he has for her, and with him holding unto it gives the sense of isolation he is carrying. His feelings of always wanting to touch her really show the lonely feelings that he is all alone and far away from every reaching Martha. Loneliness is presence in the men even after the war. We see this in “Speaking of Courage” where Norman Bowker is aimlessly driving around a lake near his hometown, thinking

    Read More

  • The Film Analysis Of Ford's Romantic Action Western Film

    959 Words  | 2 Pages

    In most of Ford’s western films, they are about principles, patriotism, and the interrelationships his characters have as they have to deal with while living in the outskirts of civilization during the great American Frontier movement of the 1800s. Ford was able to transport his filmgoing audiences into another realm and time period by picturesque images, staging actors in static poses, noble tough characters with morals, and designing worlds dominated by the western lifestyle. Truly a great film and by a director who knew how to translate a time in American history like no

    Read More

  • Henry Harrison Ford's Loss Of Social Behavior

    524 Words  | 2 Pages

    Henry (Harrison Ford) suffered injuries to his brain after being shot in the head when he went to go buy cigarettes from a local shop. When he was shot, the bullet went into his right frontal lobe; the part of the brain that is responsible for decision making and language. Henry was also shot in his subclavian artery, which brought him into cardiac arrest and eventually anoxia. Due to the bullet to the head, Henry’s loss of memory has affected his social behavior by causing him to act less educated than he used to as well as by making him feel uncomfortable around people that he knew before the accident. His work life and family life were changed due to him not being able to remember his own family, co-workers, or what to do at his own job.

    Read More

  • The Warriors Movie Analysis

    1127 Words  | 3 Pages

    There is a brilliant use of diagonal dimensions in this scene in the railing behind the hearse, again sending a message of disorganization and anxiety. There is also the use of movement here as a gentle breeze ruffles the hair of the character, almost as a caress, and it is a stark contrast to the underlying sense of danger. The brightly colored almost cartoon-like use of the graffiti hearse and the colorful signs as dominate contrasts suggest that there is bit of hope for the characters in this film. At second 5 the scene changes to a center framed shot with the main character shot at a quarter turn. The subsidiary focus is the characters in the background who also are at a quarter turn. The shot is with a hazy lens to depict their secondary significance to the main character. The lighting used here is both high and low key with the emphasis in high key lighting on the center foreground character to draw the viewer’s eye to him. He also appears taller than the subsidiary characters to reinforce his status as the

    Read More

  • Father Flynn Character Analysis

    638 Words  | 2 Pages

    Father Flynn, is immediately depicted as a godly, yet, down-to-earth, and caring man who wants to bring the dated rules of his church and school up to date with the 1960’s era. Flynn takes a special interest in the youth boys of St. Nichols, spending extra time coaching them in basketball and

    Read More

  • Cinematic Techniques and Celia Foote

    1131 Words  | 3 Pages

    All of these examples prove that this film uses strong cinematic techniques that further immerse the audience into the film. The visual experience is one that is significant to film itself; therefore it is the most important element to this medium. Without a strong idea of cinematic technique, the film would not be succesful. This film successfully suspends reality, and for about two and a half hours, the audience feels as if they are in Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s during the civil rights movement.

    Read More

  • Racism and Identity in Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man

    2213 Words  | 5 Pages

    In Ralph Ellison’s novel The Invisible man, the unknown narrator states “All my life I had been looking for something and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what it was…I was looking for myself and asking everyone except myself the question which I, and only I, could answer…my expectations to achieve a realization everyone else appears to have been born with: That I am nobody but myself. But first I had to discover that I am an invisible man!” (13). throughout the novel, the search for identity becomes a major aspect for the narrator’s journey to identify who he is in this world. The speaker considers himself to be an “invisible man” but he defines his condition of being invisible due to his race (Kelly). Identity and race becomes an integral part of the novel. The obsession with identity links the narrator with the society he lives in, where race defines the characters in the novel. Society has distinguished the characters in Ellison’s novel between the African and Caucasian and the narrator journey forces him to abandon the identity in which he thought he had to be reborn to gain a new one. Ellison’s depiction of the power struggle between African and Caucasians reveals that identity is constructed to not only by the narrator himself but also the people that attempt to influence. The modernized idea of being “white washed” is evident in the narrator and therefore establishes that identity can be reaffirmed through rebirth, renaming, or changing one’s appearance to gain a new persona despite their race. The novel becomes a biological search for the self due through the American Negroes’ experience (Lillard 833). Through this experience the unknown narrator proves that identity is a necessary part of his life but race c...

    Read More

  • James Joyce's Dubliners

    1429 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the story Dubliners by James Joyce, he writes about a few different themes, some of these being autonomy, responsibility, light, and dark. The most important of the themes though must be the individual character in the story against the community and the way they see it. I have chosen to take a closer look at “Araby,” “Eveline,” and “The Dead” because the great display of these themes I feel is fascinating. Many things affect the way the individual characters see the community, for example their family, friends, fellow citizens, or even new places. In Dubliners, the way the characters see the community affects them and other people around them.

    Read More

  • The Use of Sound in Coppola’s The Conversation

    2672 Words  | 6 Pages

    As an audience we are manipulated from the moment a film begins. In this essay I wish to explore how The Conversation’s use of sound design has directly controlled our perceptions and emotional responses as well as how it can change the meaning of the image. I would also like to discover how the soundtrack guides the audience’s attention with the use of diegetic and nondiegetic sounds.

    Read More

  • Archetypes In Spaghetti Western

    1154 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the opening scene, the camera zooms out to focus on both the men individually. The camera switches focus back and forth from Harmonica to Frank. The camera views the men from their faces to the whole body picture. By doing this effect to the men’s character it builds suspense on who may or may not fire first in the movie. Throughout, the beginning moments of the duel, the camera angles follows both men capturing them both, but the while the camera angle is facing both of the men I can see the emotional expressions in each of their faces. In Harmonica’s face, I see revenge, hurt, but also a man of much courage and bravery to defeat a man who had him kill his brother. In Frank’s expression I see a man of much confusion since at this point in time he still does not truly recognize who Harmonica is. Both men lead to a very suspenseful, but meaningful ending to the movie. I can sense violence in the future by the way the camera was used. The camera angles allowed Leone to depict a scene of terror, but builds the bigger picture of what Leone intended for it to be. I feel that movement was also a major key in the film. Right before, the men start to approach one another Frank begins to take off his coat and throw it to the grown. From this, Frank realizes that he is going to have to face the consequences of his actions, and be a man about it. I

    Read More

  • John Ford's The Quiet Man

    721 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Ford’s 1952 drama, The Quiet Man, is a classic American film about an American, Sean Thornton, who returns home to his roots in Ireland. Ford uses emotional scenes, film techniques, and an impactful ending to make this movie effective enough to be nominated for best picture.

    Read More

  • The Strangers That Came To Town Essay

    645 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nelson Mandela once said “For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”1 This quote describes the story “The Strangers That Came to Town” very well. Mr. Duvitch cast off his “chains” by immigrating to America seeking freedom and better opportunities. Dr. Switzer also showed freedom by living in a way that accepted the Duvitch family. Andy’s father accepted the Duvitch family, which in turn let them feel free. In his short story, “The Strangers That Came to Town” Ambrose Flack is showing that true freedom is about being accepted.

    Read More

  • Soliloquies In Macbeth

    771 Words  | 2 Pages

    Polanski’s amplified sounds and unnatural silences create a sense of discomfort and pain to the viewer adding to the brilliance of the production. The landscape shots and camera angles used are what make this film exhilarating.

    Read More

  • Bus 44 Belonging

    658 Words  | 2 Pages

    The movie has been set in Hong Kong. In the beginning it sets a calm and relaxed mood for the audience as it attracts them to wonder what could be happening next that could perhaps interrupts the peaceful setting.

    Read More

  • Henry Ford's Essay: The Power Of Words

    363 Words  | 1 Pages

    Words can have different interpretations depending on the person. One quote may have more of an impact than others. Everyone is influenced in a different way, so each quote will have a different importance. During hard times, these quotes give us guidance and reassurance that the struggle will soon diminish.

    Read More

More about Community and the Individual in John Ford's The Quiet Man

Open Document