Thursday, April 16, 2015

"Life is Beautiful"

Prompt: Based on the Holocaust literature and poetry we have read, what connections can be made between Life is Beautiful and our reading? What events, scenes, or situations are similar or different? What is similar or different about the mood or tone of the pieces?
How is life shown as beautiful throughout the film. Pull out at least two examples from different parts of the film and explain your rationale. 



   When we read Night and see the film it didn't specifically leave us in tears, but it did show us the true realities of a life changing event the Holocaust. A poem develops the theme differently than a novel and a film such as the "Concert in the Old School Garrett." I think that the detail in "Life is Beautiful" most people didn't notice is that the deportation to concentration camps started later in World War II. If we think about it the film started in 1939, but it skips to five years later in which Guido and Dora have Giosue. In Night Elie along with his family is sent to Birkeanu until 1944, then they ended up in Auschwitz. In my poem it starts off with the piano being played by so many people, but suddenly it isn't touched for half a century which reveals the Holocaust. We think that the most vague similar event between the three pieces of Holocaust literature is that they start off with life prior to the war and how reality quickly catches up to the community which is Jewish. I noticed that the major connection between "Life is Beautiful" and Night is the strong bond between father/son in World War II. In my opinion the bond is different from the film and Night is was represented differently in the camps. If we take for example Guido he tried to defend his son from any event that occurred in the concentration camp. He even went as far as giving lies to Giosue by mentioning that the whole process was a simple game in which the winner won a war tank. Elie's strategy was a bit different he tried to protect his father instead of his father defending Wiesel. This can be considered a huge difference due to the reason that the only way to protect a parent in the camps is giving up the ration of bread provided by the German soldiers. In this way we can compare both plans in which one focuses more on humor while the other deals with surviving until the liberation of camps. 


  The material we have seen in these past couple of months relating to the Holocaust has its own unique way of carrying out the tone/mood. If we look at the film it starts off with happiness which connects to the beginning of Night. I think that the other similarity between the novel and the film is that the setting creates a positive atmosphere in which each character has something to do in either Sighet or Italy. In the next 20 pages the mood quickly transitions to negative as Elie boards the train heading to Auschwitz. We noticed that "Life is Beautiful" changed from cheerful to a sad tone after Dora realizes that Guido's uncle, Giosue, and Guido are boarding train heading to a labor camp. This occurs after viewing the film for over an one hour which explicitly shows that they transition at different times especially the loss faith within Elie Wiesel. I did notice that the other similarity between the two pieces of Holocaust material is that it gets even more negative after viewing what happens to the Jews. A young Elie witnesses the acts of German soldiers towards small children and Giouse mentions that all the children were taken for "showers" within the camp. This affects Guido.


   In the beginning of the film life did seem beautiful Guido and his friend were exploring the landscapes in which he falls in love with Dora. I think that the development of their friendship seems beautiful because two Italians are focusing on love instead of topics like World War II. In the first hour of the film life is beautiful because his constant efforts to impress the woman of Guido's life Dora. We can see that he is warm hearted in which his only intentions is to impress Dora and to include her in his everyday life in Italy an Axis power. There is one part of the film which clearly shows that life is beautiful for this couple even in the concentration camps. He puts on the song they listened to in the opera which truly warms the heart of Dora. I think that the second example that represents the title of the film is the effort Guido makes to help out Giosue. He even makes the camp into a game in which the winner obtains a war tank. I found it touching how this family was never truly separated and that it shows the unity of family which makes life beautiful for Giouse. It completely distinguishes itself from Night because this topic isn't really part of the novel by Wiesel.



This is a representation of how much Guido cared about his son Giouse and how this played a big part in "Life is Beautiful." I think that the film was trying to carry out the theme of family and how they are united even in the Holocaust.  In the book Night Elie gives up his ration of bread which creates a lesson different than the message provided by Guido. In my opinion this is what makes the film unique because it provides topics that usually don't relate to the atmosphere of the Holocaust.


This week I will comment on Amelia, Autumn, and Diego's Blogs.



   

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