Geeks logo

A Filmmaker's Guide to: Juxtaposition

Film Studies (Pt.51)

By Annie KapurPublished 3 years ago 3 min read
1

In this chapter of ‘the filmmaker’s guide’ we’re actually going to be learning about literature and film together. I understand that many of you are sitting in university during difficult times and finding it increasingly hard to study and I understand that many of you who are not at university or not planning on it are possibly stuck of what to do, need a break or even need to catch up on learning film before you get to the next level. This guide will be brief but will also contain: new vocabulary, concepts and theories, films to watch and we will be exploring something taboo until now in the ‘filmmaker’s guide’ - academia (abyss opens). Each article will explore a different concept of film, philosophy, literature or bibliography/filmography etc. in order to give you something new to learn each time we see each other. You can use some of the words amongst family and friends to sound clever or you can get back to me (email in bio) and tell me how you’re doing. So, strap in and prepare for the filmmaker’s guide to film studies because it is going to be one wild ride.

Juxtaposition

What is it?

The dictionary defines 'juxtaposition' as:

"...the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect."

In literature, juxtaposition is normally associated with poetry, but there are many other examples from novels you can read about too. Here are some terms I thought of as juxtapositions that you can investigate:

  • Better late than never
  • You can’t teach an old dog new tricks
  • All’s fair in love and war
  • When it rains, it pours

But from a novel, the best example I could think of was the opening to Charles Dickens' great novel "A Tale of Two Cities" in which things are placed side by side for perspective comparison. Take a look at this:

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."

Then there is the beginning of "Anna Karenina" by Leo Tolstoy and its extremely juxtaposed opening:

"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

What about in film?

In film, juxtaposition can be more difficult to see because we have to be really watching with a critical eye. They can come in the form of dialogue in which two things are spoken of side by side, or they can be ideas placed side by side symbolically in the movie and compared with each other through the narrative's story perspective.

Let's take a look at some of the films you could watch in order to explore juxtaposition:

  1. Drive (2011)
  2. Vertigo (1958)
  3. Batman (1989)
  4. The Godfather (1972)
  5. Dr. Strangelove (1964)
  6. A Clockwork Orange (1972)
  7. The Great Gatsby (2012)
  8. The Deer Hunter (1979)
  9. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
  10. Psycho (1960)

Let's take a look at some further reading. As with other recent articles on the filmmaker's guide, this will focus on primary source readings because of the nature of the terminology. It is far easier to see it in practice than read about how it happens.

Further reading:

  • Dickens, C (2003). A Tale of Two Cities. UK: Penguin Classics.
  • Dickens, C (1992). Great Expectations . UK: Wordsworth Classics
  • Dostoevsky, F. (2003). Crime and Punishment. UK: Penguin Classics.
  • Fitzgerald, F.S (2016). The Great Gatsby. USA: Alma Classics Evergreens.
  • Melville, H (2016). Moby-Dick; Or The Whale. USA: Collins Classics
  • Tolstoy, L (2003). Anna Karenina. UK: Penguin Classics.
  • Tolstoy, L (2016). War and Peace. UK: Penguin Clothbound Classics.
  • Woolf, V (2000). Mrs. Dalloway. UK: Penguin Modern Classics.

movie
1

About the Creator

Annie Kapur

190K+ Reads on Vocal.

English Lecturer

🎓Literature & Writing (B.A)

🎓Film & Writing (M.A)

🎓Secondary English Education (PgDipEd)

📍Birmingham, UK

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.