Category: Final Draft-Midterm Essay (Page 1 of 2)

Kenny Paredes 

Prof. Scanlan    

English 2400     

10/28/2020

 Analyzing “Rear window” and “It Had To Be Murder”

    The “Rear Window” (1954) by Alfred Hitchcock is an adaptation from “ It Had To Be Murder” (1942) by Cornell Woolrich. Both tell a story about a man, Jefferies who had an accident and has to sit in his apartment in a wheelchair. Although he can’t move as much he turns to his window to observe his surroundings while carefully spectating each neighbor he realizes one of his neighbors by the name of Thorwald might be a suspect of murdering his own wife. Both also have some differences but are similar because they keep the same plot or storyline by using one of Linda chair’s three types of translations. 

    There are various similarities with minor differences between both text and film that show how Alfred Hitchcock was able to make Cornell Woolrich’s story “it had to be murder” come to life in his own way. Both explain the story of a woman being murdered by her husband, with very important symbols. In “It Had To Be Murder”, Woolrich explains when Jefferies observed how Thorwald would smoke his cigar by his window stating “It did surprise me, though, when a match-flare winked sometime later, to have it still come from the darkened living room”(8). In “Rear Window” a scene showed how the dog was found dead and everyone came out feeling bad for the dog. The only person who didn’t come out was Thorwald. The camera movement in the scene zoomed in showing Thorwald’s window and his darkroom, with the only thing visible being a small red light from the end of a cigar. Although there are some differences between the two the cigar in both the film and text remain the same. Furthermore, another similarity between the two is the use of a tool. In “Rear Window” it shows how Jefferies used a camera to help him see better inside Thorwald’s apartment. The scene shows Jefferies taking out the camera and pointing it towards Thorwald’s window to help him see in better detail what’s going on inside the apartment. The camera gives us an inside look at Jefferies’s view through the lens zooming in and out using close-up shots. In the text, it shows how Jefferies asks Sam about a spyglass stating, “He went, and I got the spyglass ready. I got him in the right focus after a minute or two. A face leaped up, and I was really seeing him for the first time. Dark-haired, but unmistakable Scandinavian ancestry. Looked like a sinewy customer,”(18). This shows how both have different things happening but use similar objects to help them with their investigations.

  Both, the story and film show how the roles of each character are given to different people but have similar jobs. In the text, it states, “I sealed it in an envelope and left the envelope blank. I said to Sam “Now here’s what I want you to do, and I want you to be slick about it…..Then when you get safely down again, give the outside doorbell a little poke, to attract attention.” His mouth started to open. “And don’t ask me any questions, you understand? I’m not fooling.” In the text, it states, Sam, a long time friend of Jefferies, is Jefferies’ caretaker and serves on whatever Jefferies commands him to do. In the film it shows that there is no Sam, Jefferies gives Lisa the letter to sneakily slide it under Thorwald’s door while Stella and Jefferies observe from the window. The role is given to Lisa his girlfriend and Stella his caretaker showing how the characters and roles make the film similar to the text just in its own style or way. In the film, it showed how Stella who is Jefferies’ nurse/caretaker helps Jefferies but does not obey his every command such as Sam in the text. They both play similar roles taking care of Jefferies but are two completely different characters.

   Overall, “The Rear Window” (1954) by Alfred Hitchcock was a modified film from “It Had To Be Murder” by Cornell Woolrich the same but modified versions of each other and some adjustments to make it their own. Although there were some similarities and differences between text and film the plot remained unchanged making it a traditional translation. The storyline is the same as Jefferies cooped up in his home glued to a wheelchair by the window observing his surroundings and, about Jeffery’s suspicions towards Thorwald. Both similarities and differences can or are noticeable through different parts or aspects of the film and text both taking place in a neighborhood street. The only similar characters besides Jefferies were Thorwald and his wife. There were more differences from the text to the film to make it more entertaining for viewers than the text. 

Queenie Chau

Film Lit Midterm

Course 2400, Section 0552 (Prof. Scanlan)

October 2020

Rear Window & It Had to Be Murder FINAL DRAFT 

The film masterpiece “Rear Window” by the late film director Alfred Hitchcock is adored and presented by teachers across the nation. Hitchcock based it on Cornell Woolrich’s “It Had to Be Murder,” the short story obviously being impressive enough to influence a Hitchcock film and also be relevant for seventy years. Although “Rear Window” is supposed to be a parallel of the short story, Hitchcock created his rendition with his own touches to cater to his audience, thus there are similarities but also stark contrasts. Due to the personalized style but unchanged settings and overall plot, “Rear Window” is a traditional translation of “It Had to Be Murder.” Both plotlines star an observant man who spends his time watching neighbors through the window, which eventually leads him to suspecting one of murder. I will be analyzing Woolrich’s characters, settings, and plotline to Hitchcock’s execution in his film.

The start of both pieces involved the same setting of Jeffries looking out the window in a peeping tom fashion. The story explained his critique of his neighbors and fast stream of thoughts that changed from neighbor to neighbor. In the film, the viewer is given a perspective similar to his, the camera quickly focusing at each neighbor for him to analyze. “Rear Window” L.B. Jeffries had much to reveal such as his occupation, reasoning of his injury and isolation, and more of his outward personality. “It Had to Be Murder” Hal Jeffries’ name was barely revealed with his injury unknown until the end, and occupation kept a mystery. The protagonist is seen going through character development in the film as his distant attitude with his girlfriend gradually dissipated after she revealed her capabilities of her reliability. Lisa had a great impact on Jeffries’ growth and strategic thinking, whereas in the story, she was not even a character. The closest reflection of Lisa’s role from the film would be Sam,  Jeffries’ caretaker. Though both played part in aiding Jeffries’ missions, Sam did not give the fresh perspectives that Lisa provided Jeffries. Furthermore, L.B. Jeffries had a caretaker named Stella who along with Lisa, provided him a support system. Hal Jeffries worked on his own with Sam practically acting as his servant. This shows more eminent character growth within the film due to the influence of the women around him.

In the beginning, Cornell Woolrich wrote in great detail of Hal’s observations of the Thorwalds prior to any suspicion. This to me had shown foreshadowing of the message from the title. Because Hal did not spend as much time monitoring the other neighbors, it led me to believe that the Thorwalds held more significance than the other bordering people living in the building. On the other hand, Alfred Hitchcock directed the camera to pan around the subjects with ample amount of time for each. He took wide shots of each window to showcase the subject(s) inside their apartment. If the subjects walked across a larger area than the camera could capture, it would follow the subject’s movements and pan to wherever they went. It did not feel as though the camera, which was L.B. Jeffries’ point of view, spent too much time was spent on the Thorwalds, thus no suspicion was placed on them until further on. The distinct difference of bringing in the suspicion of Thorwald is clear between Woolrich and Hitchcock. However, similarly, when the build up of solid suspicion arose, both Jeffries jumped to the conclusion quickly, but doubtfully. 

The build up to the capture of the murderer Thorwald were both portrayed well for the reader and viewer to feel the suspense. In the film, Hitchcock provided purely diegetic sound. The sound of the telephone ringing, the frantic movements of Jeffries’, the footsteps of Thorwald approaching the doorway; they all contribute to the tension. Furthermore, the lighting in the scene was tremendously dark, this adds to the feeling of anxiety and danger. In the story it was described as, “Suddenly, death was somewhere inside the house here with me. And I couldn’t move, I couldn’t get up out of this chair.” The way Woolrich explained how Jeffries came to that realization gave me a clear grasp of the fearful situation, in which I believed Hitchcock portrayed very well in that scene. This further shows me how the rendition of “It Had to Be Murder” was traditioinally translated.

“Rear Window” and “It Had to Be Murder’s” masterminds behind both had represented the plot well. Jeffries was more quiet and conserved in the narrative, however it fits well with the text as the reader can see his thought process with his every action. Hitchcock took this version of Jeffries and applied character development so that he had opened up in the film. This provides an equally good plot since movies need more verbal attention and without his warming up, Jeffries would’ve left the viewer to wonder. Although it contrasts the running theme of film Jeffries becoming more communicative, the scene with Jeffries waiting for Thorwald only contained background audio. On the other hand, the text was filled with his racing fearful thoughts: “I proceeded to breathe adenoidally, like someone in heavy upright sleep.”  I believe Hitchcock translated this scene into film perfectly because even through the silence, Jeffries’ panic was captured loud and clear. Alfred Hitchcock encased Cornell Woolrich’s “It Had to Be Murder” perfectly through traditional translation. 

Daniel Irala

ENG 2400

Professor Scanlan

Midterm Essay Final Draft

October 29, 2020

Midterm Essay Final

The short story, “It Had to Be Murder” by Cornell Woolrich was published in the year of 1942 that is about a man named Hal Jeffries or Jeff who is in a wheelchair with a leg injury. In order to pass the time, occasionally he looks at his neighbor’s windows and he believes that his neighbor murdered his wife. Alfred Hitchcock’s adaptation of the short story “Rear Window” was released in 1954 and the description of the book is relatively the same in the movie. By utilizing Linda Cahir’s three types of film translations: Radical, Literal, and Traditional, we can use it to see how accurate the film version is to the short story. Even though there are moments in the film version that are different to the text version, the main plot, Jeff’s character, character changes, and non-diegetic music makes the film a traditional translation.

A traditional translation means that is a close translation of the story but not entirely the same as the book. There are slight changes and that is what the film “Rear Window” is. The plot of the film, “Rear Window” stayed true to the short story, “ It Had to Be Murder”. In both the film and short story, Jeff had the assumption that his neighbor, Lars Thorwald murdered his wife, and his goal is to seek justice. However the way that it was delivered in the film was different than in the short story. In the book it stated, “He came forward and stood there by the window, as he had at dawn…  He stood there motionless for several minutes. And now his attitude was the proper one for inner preoccupation. He stood there looking downward at nothing, lost in thought.” (Woolrich, 2). In the movie, Jeff heard a woman screaming and he saw Lars Thorwald coming in and out of his apartment multiple times with his suitcase in the middle of the night. This scene plants the seeds into the viewer’s head that makes Mr. Thorwald suspicious. Another difference would be how in the story, Jeff hears a cricket chirping and his housekeeper Sam told him that it meant that there was a death nearby. While this small detail was not in the movie, overall the main plot remains the same.

For both films, Jeff’s character is very similar, as he is in a wheelchair with a leg injury. In order to pass the time, he has the habit of looking out from his window observing the other tenants which is what he does in both the film and story. One slight difference is the tool that Jeff uses to look out the window, in the story, he uses a spyglass and in the movie he uses a camera with large zoom lens. The biggest difference would have to be the introduction of some characters. The viewer is introduced to two characters that were not in the text, Lisa and Stella. Both Lisa and Jeffries seem to be in a relationship of some sort and Jeff’s personal life comes more into light than in the story which is another difference as in the story the reader did not really know too much about Jeff. Even though Sam is not in the movie, the actions that Sam did in the story appear on the film but they are portrayed by two characters, Lisa and Stella. Like Sam, who was Jeff’s assistant, Stella had more of a nursing role, in the movie she is giving Jeff food, taking vitals and massages. Lisa is the one that helps Jeff on solving the crime. Like Sam, Lisa went to Thorwald’s apartment to leave him a note that said “What have you done with her?”. As this was happening, non-diegetic music was playing, this high pitch jazz style music creates and adventurous and thrill seeking, high adrenaline vibe because what Lisa is doing risky because she is not supposed to be seen by Mr. Thorwald, she could get seriously hurt or killed.

In conclusion, while there were some differences, the main plot of the story remains unchanged, Jeff’s character is the same with additional information and with a view into his personal life that filled in that gap in the short story. While there are slight differences, the plot structure did not get drastically altered, which is important for this argument otherwise the film would then be considered a literal translation. Film makers such as Alfred Hitchcock are allowed to have their own spin when the film is based on a book or story as long as it is good, and it was, the director, producers, actors, actresses and audience everyone wins.

Riya Chopra 

ENG 2400

October 27th, 2020

Midterm Essay

Rear Window vs. “It Had To Be Murder”

The movie Rear Window directed by Alfred Hitchcock, is the visual recreation of Cornell Woolrich’s 1942 short story “It Had to Be Murder”. Here we see the encompassing impact of betrayal of one spouse to the other and how the mere curiosity of a neighbor turned into a full investigation of a possible murder. With a mix of romance and mystery, there’s quite the story being illustrated between a few partners in crime and a man who was caught by chance.

The movie and the story have quite the few similarities and differences ranging from the characters included to the visualization of it all. While the plot of Rear Window is similar to Cornell Woolrich’s short story “It Had To Be Murder,” the use of camera movements and angles makes this translation radical, according to Linda Cahir’s definition.Radical translations provide a more wider outlook onto the basic plot of stories, and we see such in both the written version and cinematic version. Hitchcock’s adaptation establishes a more intricate representation of scenes and the individual characters.  In order to prove this I will first analyze the use of Jefferies “camera lens,” exploring the use of point of view shots within the film and how this illustrates Jefferies’ investigation. Secondly, I will observe the scenes in which Jefferies observes his neighborhood with the use of pan shots. Lastly, I will discuss how the importance of close up shots in the film are fundamental in building Jeffries individual character as well as Lisa’s. 

In Woolrich’s short story “It Had To Be Murder,” it does not place any emphasis on what profession Jeffries is involved in, which essentially gives a very vague look into his character overall.  We see the only mention of his lens within the movie as the narration goes on as,” He went, and I got the spyglass ready. I got him in the right focus after a minute or two,” This is when Sam delivered the letter to Mr.Thorwald and Jefferies anticipated the conclusion of this interaction and wanted to observe his reaction to reading the contents of the letter. He uses this piece of equipment he has to provide himself with the proof that Mr.Thorwald was guilty as he had presumed. We know that he is very intuitive and bases his investigation off his habit and practice of observation, through this he is even able to gather the evidence he needs. This insertion of his equipment in the story gives us a slight link to his profession. The radical translation here develops first as we start to see more emphasis being placed on Jefferies character within the movie. We develop a more insightful connection to who Jefferies is and why this attribute of him being a photographer contributes to his investigation. He is more independent as a character whereas only being someone who observes and stumbles upon this mysterious couple because he was bored due to his injury. In the movie he is this charismatic man who may or may not be someone who works closely with the police, his knowledge on his equipment contributes to this plot development that Mr.Thorwald was a killer. 

We witness a P.O.V shot every time Jefferies looks into his lens. It is as he is looking through his lens that he notices the first few unfortunate interactions between Mr. Thornwald and Mrs. Thorwald, this camera movement in essence is composed of point of view shots. Jefferies looks through his lens to observe both characters, something we don’t see in the written story, the animosity between both characters and how Mrs.Thorwald seems to make fun of Mr.Thorwald compared to his obvious dissatisfaction of her humor. We see Jefferies smiling at her behavior and Hitchcock uses this capturing of the characters reactions through P.O.V shots. With these P.O.V shots comes the concept of vignetting, where a vignette is the darkening of the image around the edges of the frame, where the center of this visualized lens is called the mask. The mask will be more circular where we will be able to see what the character is seeing first hand. Hitchcock uses a lot of these shots, through vignetting, on characters’ faces, so we as the audience,  know what we should be thinking and feeling with the characters themselves. This observation of the animosity between both husband and wife, contributes to the motive of why Mr.Thorwald may have committed the murder, not only was his wife sick but she also made him feel “less of a man,” as he already was out of a job. The was a more developed visualization of both the characters’ reactions.

From the beginning of the film we see Jefferies studying his neighborhood down below. Throughout,  it is shown how Jefferries views his neighborhood and how exactly he observes his surroundings. This may be due to pure habit, curiosity or even due to his profession as a photographer. In the short story, “It Had to Be Murder”, we read as Jefferies describes his neighborhood, peering through his windows with his eyes.The narration goes on as,“Just to pick a few at random: straight over, and the windows square, there was a young jitter-couple, kids in their teens, only just married. It would have killed them to stay home one night… The next house down, Something about it, it used to make me a little sad. There was a woman living there with her child, a young widow I suppose… The third one down.. no longer offered any insight, the windows were just slits like in a medieval battlement, due to foreshortening. That brings us around to the one on the end…” This observation helps Jefferries understand his neighbors better and feel exactly what they are going through or experiencing, like he is there as their friend from afar. Here however, as he is observing he does not characterize his neighbors as much as we see in the movie. He is relating to their emotions, but not describing their movements as a fundamental part to their relation to the story, more so just describing the setting they are in. In movies pan shots move the camera from side to side on a horizontal axis, providing the sense of looking left to right. The radical translation here is the personalization through the pan shots as we see an individual story of each character play out leading up to the conclusion of each just as Jefferies. 

We see a variety of pan shots within the movies from when Jefferies observes his neighborhood to the scene where Lisa delivers the letter to Mr.Thorwald and the end of the film where everyone has a happy ending to their own story. These pan shots help us follow the major points in the story, giving us a sense of actually being within the film which in reality would be one of the major differences between the movie and the short story. The pan movement is used when moving from character to character, such as when Lisa and Jefferies are speaking throughout the film. For the duration of the film the camera movement is at a fairly medium pace and only quickens towards the end of the film where we see Thorwald and Jefferies in a physical fight. This quickening of the camera movement builds the suspense and makes it easier to capture the intensity of the scene itself, we as the audience are at the edge of our seats. As the audience this development of intensity is important because we feel as we are in person and actually witnessing the fight for ourselves. From this we receive Thorwald’s admission of guilt and make our way towards the lingering question, “what happens next?” 

A part of the story which played an important part in Jefferies character was his “partner in crime,” Sam. Sam was not only Jefferies’ caretaker but he was also the one that delivered the letter to Mr.Thorwald. He was the character that was unafraid and would do what Jefferies would ask of him to ensure that he got the information he needed to complete his investigations. In the story we see the narration go on as,”I said to Sam: “Now here’s what I want you to do, and I want you to be slick about it. You take this, go in that building 525, climb the stairs to the fourth-floor rear, and easeit under the door. You’re fast, at least you used to be….”even with these given instructions Sam listens and goes on to deliver the letter, however we do ot see any details on how he did but we do know why he did. We see here that Jefferies trusted the same way and knew that he would be able to take care of himself enough to be able to handle what he would possibly have to experience. The radical translation here is the insertion of Lisa’s character in replacement of Sam, not only is Lisa Jefferies’ lover but also his partner in crime. Lisa taking Sam’s place opened Jefferies up to more vulnerability and emotionalized his character more. 

Lisa is Jefferies accomplice and his main object of affection and we see the development of their relationship through a variety of close up shots. Hitchcock uses this concept of close ups shots of the characters to show what they are thinking, in this situation to show exactly how Jefferies feels about Lisa. Compared to the beginning of their interaction where Jefferies’ face was almost filmed with curiosity and amusement we see that he himself was not attached to Lisa as a possible love interest. However, as their investigation goes forward so does their love and interest in each other, the investigation is their love language. 

In one particular scene in the film, we see Lisa deliver the letter that Jefferies had written to Mr. Thorwald’s apartment and we see the fear visible in Jefferies’ face as he is not only scared for her life but her being able to successfully escape. His investigation was putting someone he was emotionally involved with in trouble. However, when she rushes back to Jefferies’ apartment Lisa states,” Wasn’t that close! Well, what was his reaction? I mean when he looked at the note..” As Lisa continues to speak we see the camera close up on Jefferies face, it seems his eyes were glowing in a way that expressed his likingless towards her and how her being able to accomplish such a daring task just made her a woman to desire. We see here that he loves her, as he smiles looking at her and admiring her courage, a clear and definite difference from the story. When a camera is closer to a character than it normally is, it draws attention to whatever is in the frame and here we see the love language between both characters. It can even be said that Lisa’s character played such a fundamental role that it changed the dynamic of the movie entirely, Jefferies may not have been apple to solve his case as he did. 

This radical translation of “It Had to Be Murder,” proposes a deep look into this story of Thorwald and his role as the murderer and Jefferies as the invesogator. The introduction of new characters such as Lisa and Stella provides a cynical and almost a deeper personalization of Jefferies life. The short story provided the important plot points for Hitchcock’s adaptation which contained masterful filing techniques. As the audience we were all related to the characters somehow, even the neighbors who all moved on and got their happy ending. In the end, it seems, everyone turned out happier for the better.

The story titled. “Like Water for Chocolate” published in 1989 by Laura Esquivel and the film version directed by Alfonso Arau in 1993 are both similar, as it relates to the plot. Linda Cahir’s states that film translations are either literal, radical, or traditional.  “Like Water for Chocolate” is based around Tita and Pedro, they are in love, but not able to marry one another because of a lifelong family tradition that she must obey. 

As stated before, both the film and the text versions of this story are very similar, but there are some features that are different. I will explain that the translation is traditional because it maintains the overall traits of the written work but revamps particular details in those particular ways that the filmmakers see as necessary or fitting, according to Linda Cahir’s ideas. In order to prove this I will describe Tita’s recipes and how they are shown in the film. Second, I will discuss Tita and Pedro dying in the film, compared to how it is described in the text. Third, I will explore the scene where Tita stands up to Mama Elena and how the text version picks up on that encounter. 

For starters, cooking is a big theme and action that surrounds the love story between Pedro and Tita. Cooking is a way for Tita to express her love and insert that love into all of the meals she prepares and this can be identified both in the book and in the text. “From the day on, Tita’s domain was the kitchen, where she grew vigorous and healthy on a diet of teas and thin corn gruels. This explains the sixth sense Tita developed about everything concerning food” (Pg. 5). The film shows Tita almost always in the kitchen and this is a major symbol. The recipes that Tita used were highlighted in the text, as well as how everything was prepared. The film just visualizes the food and the reactions to the characters when they ate it, the text once again going in depth with details. 

In the film, Tita and Pedro are being intimate and surprisingly Pedro passes away. “She could feel Pedro’s heart pounding against her chest. Suddenly the pounding ceased. A mortal silence spread through the room. It took her but a moment to realize Pedro was dead. With Pedro died the possibility of ever again lighting her inner fire, with him went all the candles”(Pg. 175). The film captured the intimacy and Pedro dying, alongside Tita also taking her life by swallowing matches. The matches would symbolize the love she and Pedro shared with one another, and how the passion literally set her soul on fire. The difference between the film and the text in this case is that the text really described the background of why Tita decided to take her life and the film visually just showed the audience Tita’s actions after Pedro’s unexpected death. 

Mama Elena appeared to be bitter and angry, the film brought these characteristics to the forefront. She constantly insulted Tita, criticized her, and even slapped her in the film, leading to Tita’s nose to bleed. It was not until the almost ending of the film that Tita spoke up and stood up to her mom, stating how much she hated her, Mama Elena was surprised by her statements. The book picks up a little more of how Tita felt afterwards but the film just shows Mama Elena disappearing but getting her revenge by harming Pedro. 

In Summary, both the text version and film bring these characters to life in different ways. The overall theme in this story to me is to not let family hinder you from your destiny. Tita spoke out and against her mother and followed her heart, even though her mother believed that it was morally wrong. Mama Elena suffered with her own personal demons and her relationship with Tita suffered because she was not honest about her life path. “Like Water for Chocolate” has many different messages and symbols in its entirety that readers can interpret from and that is what makes this piece of literature engaging and realistic.

Oscar Alonzo

English 2400 

October 25, 2020

Mid-term Final Draft

“Rear Window” vs “It has to be murdered” Comparison Essay

“It must be Murder” is a short story composed by Cornell Woolrich, and “Rear Window” is its mirror film by Alfred Hitchcock. Both the short story and the film are clarifying a similar story of a lady that got killed by her husband, yet everyone has their own characters and style. They are both giving the crowds brief criticism of what truly occurred in that area. A portion of the characters of the film are “James Stewart as L.B. Jefferies and Raymond Burr as Lars Thorwald”. There are significant images in both the short story and the film. L.B. Jefferies’ camera is one of the most significant images in the film. Jefferies utilizes the camera for various destinations in the film. For instance, he takes pictures that can assist him with utilizing them as proof since he can’t stand up and go to Thorwald’s apartment. He likewise utilizes it to see plainly what is happening to his neighbor. 

The character Jeff’s individual life wasn’t referenced in the story. In the story Sam was the helper for Jeff and caregiver. In the film adaptation, Sam was replaced by a woman named Stella. The similarities between both the story “It has to be Murdered” and the film “Rear Window” is Jeff’s injury and the reason why he started spying on his neighborhood. Jeff’s witness is murdered by Thorwald. Also. Lisa was Jeff’s helper with investigating and solving the case. 

There are many similarities and differences between the text and the film, one similarity is that Mr.Thorwald murders his wife and Jeff witnesses it by spying on the neighborhood. The second similarities is that Jeff’s injury is the same and reason to spy on the neighbor. The difference is that in the film, Jeff had Stella and Lisa. But in “It has to be murder” Jeff had a man named Sam to help him. Second difference is in “Rear window” he sends Lisa to go investigate Mr.Thorwald’s place. In “it has to be murdered” Mr. Boyne investigated Mr. Thorwalds’ place.

Taking everything into account the thing I have learned is that composed stories can be made as a film adaptation. Both the film and short story are like a mirror with minor changes in them. It shows how parts of the story can affect the mood/tone of the whole film from the text.

Mehriniso Muhammadieva

CST 2400

10/20/2020

Final Draft-Midterm Essay  

Laura Esquirel’s, Like Water for Chocolate, is almost like a modern-day Romeo and Juliet that are filled with appetizing recipes. This novel was published in 1983 and has become one of the valued parts of American literature. The novel’s publicity and fame then brought this movie to life on February 17, 1993, by Alfonso Arau. While the novel, Like Water for Chocolate, is similar to Alfonso Arau’s film version; there are also some distinguishable differences. The use of diegetic and non-diegetic sound makes this translation literal, according to Linda Cahir’s definition. In order to provide this, I will explore the narrators’ description of the scenes. Second, I will use the film’s use of diegetic and non-diegetic sounds to show actions. Lastly, I will discuss what the film has that the book does not. 

The novel and the film is a lateral transition due to the fact that the plot is there and the film does an amazing job recapturing the novel’s description. There are some distinct differences that are hard to recognize. The use of diegetic and non-diegetic sounds in the film and the novel is also the reason the transition is literal, both follow the same concept; which is the use of sound in the film/novel or outside the film/novel throughout the film/novel. From the day Tita was born on the kitchen table her life was planned out for her by Mama Elena. Therefore, Tita was always a rebel, she went against the rules and fell in love. However,  Mama Elena does not allow it by saying, “You know perfectly well that being the youngest daughter means you have to take care of me until the day I die.”(1,22). Tita goes through so much sadness and grief as she loses the people she cares for and cherishes. Tita is shown to have a strong character, no matter what she goes through she always has the will to be kind and forgive and live out her life breaking this tradition her mother passed on for the happiness of her niece.

What makes the film and the movie literal is the use of the plot and a few differences. As a reader/ viewer, we see the similarities throughout the film/ novel. For example, the scene where Tita is leaving with Dr. John and the hand-sewn “wail’ or rather her bedspread is left being dragged for miles. This similarity is iconic due to the fact the reader can clearly picture this and the viewer can see the same exact thing. What Arau does differently in the film is interesting, because it is barely noticeable but it is there. For example, the death of Mama Elena; in the novel, we have her dying of poisoning. What Arau does is add more action to the film by having Mama Elena die earlier during the attack; Mama Elena dies by being pushed off a cliff by the bandits.

Rumana Shakur

English 2400

October 29th, 2020

Midterm Essay 

Words can create a vivid picture

“Like water for chocolate” is an excellent sentimental story of an impossible passionate love during the Revolution in Mexico. The romance is trailed by the sweet smell of the kitchen secrets and cooking, with a creative mind and innovativeness. The story is that of Tita De La Garza, the most youthful of all little girls in Mother Elena’s home. As per the family tradition she is to watch after her mom till the day she dies, and subsequently can’t wed any men. Tita discovers comfort in cooking, and soon the kitchen turns into her reality, influencing each feeling she encounters to the individuals who taste her food. Almost as if she were casting spells on her food that only affects certain people. 

While the plot of the film version of “Like water for chocolate”(1992) is a Traditional transition – the movie kept the overall storyline, plot and setting very similar to the text but changes some minor details that filmmakers see fit and/or necessary, to Laura Esquivel’s text version of “Like water for chocolate”(1989), there are a lot of similarities and differences. An interesting point to note is that the movie is directed by Alfonso Arau. At the time this movie was produced, Arau was married to Laura Esquivel. Esquivel probably had a lot of say to the direction of this movie, on top of the fact that she was the one who wrote the screenplay. Therefore, the perspective of which this movie acts out the story was fairly close to Esquivel’s original, intended perspective.

The minor differences and similarities give the readers and viewers different perspectives. For example, in the film it starts off with showing us Tita’s father’s death and why he had a heart attack which they showed a bit later on in the film. However in the text it starts with Tita’s very dramatic birth. In the film Tita’s birth was humorized compared to the text that states, where she came into the world in a “great tide of tears” which also symbolized Tita’s lifelong sadness that was awaiting her. The opening to the film and text were different, the tone and mood in the film and text were also very different. 

Another major difference that I felt was that the characters in the movie were quite different from the way it was described in the book. One of these characters I will focus on is Mama Elena. While reading the text I visualized Mama Elena as a short, old grumpy woman who was threateningly violent at any time but she didn’t need anyone to protect her, she was strong as stated in the text of “Like water for chocolate”, “I’ve never needed a man for anything; all by myself, I’ve done all right.” (4,284). When she found Tita crying she gives Tita “a tremedous slap that that left her rolling in the dirt…” (2,83). However, in the movie she is represented as a tall, thin woman who didn’t look extremely violent. I was also surprised at the way she was able to be polite and courteous to the guests at the wedding. She came off a little too arrogant to me personaly. 

Also, the scene where Mama Elena goes to her bedroom and very sadly looks inside her secret box made me realize she too had emotions and care, despite the tyrannical figure she is. Similarly, the scene in which Mama Elena sobs for Getrudis in her bedroom showed that she actually did care for Getrudis. She did not destroy the presence of Getrudis in her home because of pure hatred — she was upset about it and did care, which seemed very unlike her to me while I was reading the text. 

In conclusion, people have different views and imagination. Every scene can not be imagined exactly the same by everyone. There are bound to be some differences. The mood and tone in a text or film can also drastically change the feel of a piece, which in “Like water for chocolate” did. The film had me getting mad and triggered at Pedro, Mama Elena and Rosaura. Sometimes accusing Tita of murder since her food seemed to have caused deaths (my opinion). The opening of the film gave away Mama Elena’s past too quickly whereas in the text it kept the mystery of Mama Elena’s husband’s death. Mama Elena’s characterization in the text was vastly different then what I had visualized while reading. She seemed a little more humane, she definitely wasn’t the nicest to Tita but was better than i thought compared to the text. 

Evgheni Melman

Prof. Sean Scanlan

English 2400, Section O552

October 20, 2020

Analysis of “Rear Window” translation style

The “Rear Window” (1954) film by Alfred Hitchcock is an adaption of the short story “It had to be Murder” (1942) written by Cornell Woolrich. According to Linda Cahir, there exist three types of translations for adapting a written work into a film: literal, traditional, and radical. In this essay, I will be analyzing which translation style did Hitchcock used in its adaptation of “It had to be Murder” and the implications of his choice on the story and viewer perception.

The plots of both the “It had to be Murder” and the “Rear Window” reveal the same story of a man named Jeffries. Both Jeffrieses are homestuck due to their leg injuries, both kill their time by peeping at their neighbors, and both get themselves involved into a neighboring homicide investigation thorough their peeping activities and prove that Mr. Thorwald is the culprit. This alone makes it hard to call the translation radical, so let`s explore the differences of both works in greater details to determine if it is a literal or traditional adaptation.

The most striking difference is in the characters surrounding Jeffrieses and helping them with outside activities that neither Jefferies can perform on their own. The “It had to be Murder” Jefferies has a male caretaker named Sam who is driven by a long spanning history with Jeffries and perhaps a paid servitude and is blindly obedient to any Jefferies’ request. The “Rear Window” Jefferies does not have a single “Sam”, instead Sam’s role is given jointly to his girlfriend Lisa and nurse Stella. Unlike written Sam, they are not just Jefferies captives and have a mind of their own with Lisa even becoming convinced that a murder was afoot and being excited about the prospect of helping to solve the case. Lisa even went to Thorwald’s apartment to search for the wedding ring completely on her own to Jefferies’ dismay. The inclusion of a girlfriend in general gives the viewer a better understanding of the protagonist’s personality (the written story mentioned nothing about Jefferies love life) while both Lisa and Stella add an element of women intuition to the whole story.

Another difference in the film version that lets the viewer understand Jefferies more is the inclusion of information about his professional occupation. In the “Rear Window” it is explained clearly that Jeffries is a photographer, while the written story does not place any emphasis on what he does for a living. This information gives us an insight about his personality and lets us understand why he is good at observing his surroundings and picking up what most wouldn’t, it is literally his job. In the story, on the other hand, his description left us guessing on whether he was a detective, a private investigator, or just a weirdo stalking his neighbors. Additionally, in the story, Jefferies observations are described from the first person, giving the reader the insight into his thoughts, while each time the “Rear Window”’s Jefferies observes his neighbors through his camera lens, we are presented with a point of view shot of exactly what he sees as if we are looking through his camera lens ourselves. This direct view, while lacking the Jefferies’ though process details, lets the viewer reexperience the Jeffries’ perspective and construct their own thought about observed scene while increasing the tension at the same time.

An obvious addition to the movie compared to the written story is sound. The “Rear Window” employs only diegetic sound for the most part. Diegetic sound is the sound that is natural to the scene, whether on-screen or off-screen, coming from actual objects or from implied ones. Non-diegetic sound in contrast is not natural to the scene, it could not be heard on scene in the real word. Non-diegetic sounds include sounds like narration, voice over, or sound effects. While non-diegetic sounds are often used to increase the suspense or add a more dramatic effect, Hitchcock managed to do all that with excellence with only diegetic sounds. Throughout the film we only hear sounds that naturally occur in the scene, like the sound of cars passing by and their honks now and then that not only distract the viewer, but the characters as well adding that final bit of additional suspense to already suspenseful scenes. Most sounds that we hear are also presented from Jeffries perspective like the heavily muffled conversations from the other apartments during the observation scene. This not only adds the dramatic effect, but also further locks the viewer into the Jeffries point of observing.

In conclusion, after this analysis we can clearly see that the translation of the “Rear Window” is traditional since there are not insignificant changes introduced into the film to aid in viewer’s perception. At the end of the day, this type of translation let Hitchcock take an already great “It had to be Murder” and turn it into a classic masterpiece that we know.