Topic > A cinematic perspective of the relationship between art and nature in The Tempest

The terrible spectacle of the wreck, which touched Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The same virtue of compassion in you, I have with such disposition in my art So sure ordered that there is no soul- No, no as much perdition as a hair put on any creature in the ship that you heard cry, that you saw sink. (1531) In The Tempest by William Shakespeare, the character of Prospero uses his magical art to create a storm and formulate feelings of compassion in his daughter Miranda. Similarly, 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 portrayal of the relationship between art and nature from a cinematic perspective. In his film, he elaborates on how The Tempest questions the priority of art over nature by incorporating artistic techniques and ideas with natural themes. The Tempest opens with Prospero's magical creation of a dangerous storm. In this scene, Shakespeare highlights the power that theater, as an art form, has to replace nature. It does this through the reproduction of the storm and its effects on the outside world in both the characters and the audience. This storm creation represents the power of art, working in theatre, to duplicate natural events and emotions through theatrical illusions, such as the sound of the wind, shaping the worried feelings within the characters. For example, the king and his men remain on Prospero's island due to the strong winds of the storm. Prospero's magical island then becomes the setting for the show. Shakespeare, the artist, leaves Act I, Scene 1, with an ambivalent outcome. The audience and characters do not know the fate of the ship's group, leaving their minds conflicted. In this situation, art manipulates their thoughts to such an extent that they become immersed in them, accepting their feelings as real, if only for a short period of time. Peter Greenaway portrays 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 character capable of using his supernatural powers to control nature. Not only does the director recreate nature, but so does his character. This shows the power art has over nature, as art repeatedly produces natural events, while nature cannot control or change its elemental existence. For example, Greenaway, through cinematic devices, does not rely on the occurrence of a natural event before producing a statement or work of art. The magical island setting in the play changes with the film's interpretation. The film revolves around a small swimming pool with a long corridor leading to Prospero's office, in contrast to the traditional theater setting. As a cinematic artist, Greenaway's small pool represents a larger sea, also serving as a figurative mirror because when you look into a pool of water, you can see yourself. 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 problems. Water reflects much more than just the surface. As you look into the water, you peer into a world full of organisms and life that they must focus on, just as Greenaway wants his audience to look deeper into non-issues.observable. Furthermore, Prospero has a "Book of Mirrors" which corresponds to the concept of artistic expressions reflecting life. This image reappears throughout the film as Greenaway takes the audience into his bizarre world, questioning the nature of art through the expansion of the imagination. In this world, sprites appear as children hanging from ropes above the water, watching a toy ship float in the pool. The director manipulates his surroundings just as Prospero does in The Tempest, treating the audience and characters like toy puppets. Shakespeare intends to amaze his audience with the depiction of natural events in his play, and Greenaway has similar, updated intentions with his film adaptation. Plan both the visual and auditory senses into this scene by adding ways for the performer to control the audience. For example, Ariel urinates heavily on the toy ship, smiling as it falls. Children symbolize innocence, but Ariel's curly red hair brings evil thoughts. The child appears innocent as his expression turns sinister, his natural action leading to harm. The image of the boy provokes feelings of disgust in the audience, juxtaposing an innocent child with destructive intentions. Greenaway incorporates a rough part of human nature with a respectable work in order to artistically mend a conventional separation between nature and art. Another striking visual scene occurs when the wind blows as Prospero walks towards his study. In the background, books fly through the air as naked men and women move around him. The winds become faster as people dance and the sounds of animal cries and machine guns appear. Here Greenaway reveals a social observation. He associates bestial ferocity with the cries of animals and nakedness with the sound of machine guns. Around the world, people create storms through violence and war, bringing only confusion and pain. Furthermore, flying books represent different political and social ideas, as well as problems related to too much book knowledge. This knowledge leads to destruction and confusion. Furthermore, books sometimes represent a form of civilization, but the imposition of knowledge on other cultures leads to unwanted conformism. Shakespeare separates the characters of Caliban and Ariel from the human world. In Act I, Scene II, Ariel arrives on stage, as a boy or little man, and acts as an obedient "spirit" (1533) to his master Prospero. They communicate using clear dialogue, as Ariel's lines move between words and songs. 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 musical art. Sitting on a bank, still mourning the wreck of my father, this music crept beside me on the waters, Soothing both their fury and my passion With its sweet air. From there I followed him, or rather he attracted 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, alters human nature non-somatically. The lyrics and melody alter perceptions, shape emotions, and add significantly to theatrical and cinematic effects. Greenaway also exploits the clever illusions of music and sound in his film adaptation. Peter Greenaway gives Ariel a high-pitched voice and sings all of her lines with an operatic vibrato. This vision of the boy implies human youth and innocence, but this perception changes when Ariel speaks with an artificial, abnormal voice. This unnatural juxtaposition between musical formof the play and a child encourages the audience to understand this character as not quite human. Greenaway hopes that his treatment of Ariel will expand the audience's mindset as they encounter this unusual child. Furthermore, he wants them to accept this character because it adds value to the film just as humanity's differences add value to the world. In the play and film, Ariel acts as both male and female, as she traverses 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 the separation and respect for their private and public lives. In addition to Ariel's dialogue, Prosperola's deep dialogue narrates over the voice of the speaking character, whose lips remain motionless. The director provides this sound and visual interpretation because he shows a technological spectacle specific to cinema. This craft corresponds to the theatrical illusions that amaze spectators of the Renaissance theater in Shakespeare's work. These tricks 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, reasserting the arts' control over nature. Greenaway's other techniques include the use of picture within picture, alternating between theatrical and cinematic settings, and the use of ballet choreography. Greenaway chooses choreography as a way to continue questioning the relationship between ferocity and civilization. It shows a bald Sycorax giving birth to a child in a graphic, yet natural, introduction to the life of Caliban. The characters representing the creatures that live in the forest paint on bare skin. Caliban cries as he is attacked and wrapped inside a tree, while blood and insects come out of his mouth, showing that this character is one with nature but has more than simple, animalistic emotions. These images reiterate his classification as a non-human savage, although the way the forest creatures, including Caliban, move implies an internal grace. These people can defecate on books, have green hands like monsters and wear little clothing; however, they dance in a sophisticated ballet style. These creatures have a soft flexibility rarely associated with the wild. Audiences expect tribal movements rather than an imitation of upper-class artistic enjoyment, underlining once again how Greenaway's interpretation transforms the mind. The director awakens his culture to accept wildness and radicalism in art. It presents the question of how to distinguish between the artist and the savage and confuses the audience by causing them to wonder who is truly savage: the creature that imitates a properly recognized and civilized art form or the modern culture that unconsciously infuses native practices as art into their company. Greenaway describes the diverse culture of the forest world through their actions and customs, while Shakespeare approaches the wilderness by focusing on language. It presents the power of language and education as a way to eliminate nature. "You taught me the language, and my profit is / I know how to swear. The red plague freed you / For learning me your language!" (1535). Although Caliban's perception of the world comes from living in nature, he speaks in intelligible verse, has a rational thought process, and causes the audience to debate between feelings of admiration for his natural innocence and disgust due to his uncivilized status. Furthermore, Shakespeare comments in the above quote from Caliban on the artificiality of customs and education. Prospero tries what, 1991.