Investigating narrative devices in Ransom and Invictus Flashbacks

Investigating narrative devices in Ransom and Invictus Flashbacks, flash-forwards, present tense, ‘over-the-shoulder’ shots and parallel editing

Essential Question: In what ways do Eastwood and Malouf use narrative devices to convey themes, issues and ideas through their texts? Success Criteria – we will: • Analyse Malouf's use of flashbacks, present tense and flash-forwards • Analyse Eastwood's use of over-the-shoulder shots and parallel editing • Compare and contrast the meaning conveyed through the narrative devices in Ransom and Invictus

How to use this Power. Point… • The first few slides feature information about the structure and style of each text, with reference to literary and filmic devices (underlined and featured in bold). These will be the metalanguage words you use in your essays and your writing tasks. • This will be useful to you when studying narrative devices and when using metalanguage in your essays • The activities you are required to complete are emboldened and featured in red later on

Narrative devices provide insight to the audience on: • The experience and feelings of individual characters • The experiences and feelings of many characters/broader society Narrative devices relate to the ways that texts have been structured (ordering and depiction of events) and the style of the text (the language, literary or filmic devices used)

Ransom: Comments on Structure • Ransom is a novel in five parts. These parts are not named, rather numbered. • The plot of the novel is generated from the narrative perspective of characters that are pivotal to the narrative. • The narrative voice uses a limited omniscience to describe both the physical and mental state of each main character. • Throughout the novel there is very little dialogue used to drive the narrative forward, rather it is driven by the internal reflection of the main characters as they consider the past and the future direction which their lives may take. • Malouf orientates his readers to the background and history of his characters via their thoughts. This introspection does move the narrative forward, but at a controlled pace. This, in turn, allows for description of setting to complement the thoughts and mood of each character as they contemplate their actions, as well as the wider significance of the events within which they are embroiled. • There is also no real antagonist in the narrative. Malouf deliberately gives the reader legitimate reasons to feel empathy toward Achilles, even though his defiling of Hector’s body is an affront to everyone, including the gods.

Ransom: Comments on Structure • Chapter One focuses on Achilles eleven days after his slaying of the Trojan hero Hector. The protagonist in this chapter is presented as a fallen hero; a man at odds with himself due to his suffering grief and guilt because of the slaying of his best friend at the hands of the Trojan prince, Hector. This chapter functions as part of the orientation of the novel. • In Chapter Two, the focus shifts to Priam, the king of Troy, who has a dream or vision which involves going to Achilles, as a man, not a king, to ransom the body of his son, Hector. The juxtaposition of Achilles’ personality with Priam’s is well achieved. Both are presented as being significantly changed in the aftermath of Hector’s death. This chapter also functions as part of the orientation. • Chapter Three is composed of Priam and the carter Somax making their way to the Greek camp. They are joined in this journey by the god Hermes, “the slayer of giants”, who is to be their guide. This chapter functions as the complication in the narrative. • In Chapter Four, Priam and Achilles meet. Achilles agrees to return Hector’s body to Priam. In sharing in Priam’ grief Achilles, finally, comes back to himself. This chapter functions as the novel’s climax. • Chapter Five, the final chapter, is the resolution and denouement. Each of the main characters has their stories intertwined to conclude the novel. Somax and Priam, thinking of their respective homecomings; Achilles and his son, Neoptolemus, who avenges Achilles by slaying Priam; even the fate of Troy, are all given to the readers.

Ransom: Comments on somax’s role and its interrelationship with narrative structure • Malouf uses character reflection to conclude the story. • He takes the narrative out of the hands of the kings and heroes, and gives it back to Somax. • Somax is the one who survives long past the destruction of Troy. It is he who gets to bounce many grandchildren on his knees, and who gets to speak of his adventure over a drink to anyone who will listen. • The twist in this conclusion is that later generations forget the details of history, and assume that Somax is just the borrower of someone else’s story. • This twist is ironic and indicates Malouf‟s awareness of his own relationship to Somax: an aging storyteller who has borrowed from an ancient, classic tale the inspiration to tell one of his own.

Ransom: Comments on style – Chapter I • The voice used by Malouf in Ransom is that of an omniscient narrator. The story is told in the third person. • Malouf‟s use of introspection, where each character’s thoughts form the core of the narrative, gives an intimacy to his writing. This intimacy draws the reader in so that they feel they are sharing in the thoughts of the character; thus, the novel reads almost as a series of first person accounts and reflections from different characters’ perspectives. • Malouf uses sentence length to generate a lyrical rhythm in his prose, especially in the opening chapter. • The pattern of his writing also changes to suit each character. This gives each character a unique voice. • Malouf achieves this through combining structural elements, such as sentence length and the ordering and eventual overlapping of each character’s story, with subtly distinctive syntax, and individual lexicons. • The character of Achilles for instance, has a more lyrical speech pattern, as suited to his status as a hero. He also tends to think poetically, in a sense, almost philosophically, about his life and situation. He reflects on and questions his values, and his right to be called a hero. He is also depicted as still being connected to the world of the gods. • This gives a depth to his thoughts, a spirituality which on first impression is surprising in a warrior, but Malouf is careful to construct Achilles so that this spirituality is explained - given that Achilles has continually faced the reality of life or death for the last nine years.

Ransom: Comments on style in Chapters II and III • Priam is depicted differently. His voice is initially constructed to present a more limited set of experiences. As with Achilles, Priam has had to deal with the stress of war lying on his doorstep, with all its destruction, waste and death, but unlike Achilles, he has been involved from afar. • Despite his age, he has not had the need to think deeply about his personal response to these stresses. Effectively, he has been hidden or sheltered behind his role as king of the Trojans. Protocol has provided his response to every situation. He has also let others do the talking for him. It has been his job to keep up appearances; to present as an aloof, regal presence, which portrays strength and surety by creating the illusion that he is somehow more than just a man. • Consequently, with the death of his son Hector, and the vision he has which prompts him to discard protocol and do “something new”, Malouf portrays Priam as being ironically aware of his own inexperience. • As such, Priam’s voice/thoughts are generated from his minute observations of nature; his newfound interest in small things. • For the first time, almost like a child, he takes an interest in the personal stories and the natural life which surrounds him. He finds a genuine interest and affection for Somax. • He also finds the ability to sympathise with Achilles, the murderer of his son. In this respect, although his phrasing and manner are at odds with his thoughts, Malouf has deliberately constructed this dichotomy so that his style of writing complements this character’s preoccupations, juxtaposed with his physical situation.

Ransom: Comments on style in Chapter III onwards • Somax is presented using a different style of writing again. He too keeps thoughts to himself, but he is portrayed as being more used to speaking – and, more specifically, telling stories. • Malouf‟s style of writing when presenting Somax‟ perspective becomes more balanced in its combination of thoughts manifesting themselves as physical actions. Somax‟ character rubs his nose when troubled or uncomfortable. This mannerism has a calming effect on Somax (and also on Priam and Achilles because of its natural unpretentiousness). It is a mannerism which describes the character as much as do his thoughts. • Such descriptive focus indicates the differences in social class between the characters. Achilles and Priam rarely lose control of themselves; they are above such human reactions. It is as if their every move is calculated to portray the image which they want their audience to believe. • Somax has no such pretension. He has no need for theatrics or pomp. Again, Malouf uses his style of writing to complement each character’s unique perspective. This also allows the reader to compare characters. • The mastery displayed by Malouf – the control he has over his art – becomes truly apparent when the reader realises that he has actually used these different styles to communicate just how similar these main characters are. • In spite of their differences, they are able to complete the ransom of Hector’s body, because underneath each character lies a common humanity.

Ransom: Comments on Style: Poetic lyricism: • The poetic lyricism evident in the opening lines of David Malouf ’s Ransom in which the putative hero, Achilles, is seen gazing longingly at the sea in the hope of hearing one more time the voice of his mother, alerts readers that a story which describes a place where ‘the sea surface bellies and glistens, a lustrous silver-blue’ (p. 3) is not one to necessarily meet expectations about a re-imagining of Homer’s The Iliad. Flashback, perspective and characterisation: • Characterisation is achieved through memory, flashback, the perspective of others, and words given to the characters as they reflect on their lives and plead their respective causes. • For example, when Priam is trying to gain Hecuba’s support for his plan to rescue their son’s body from the Greeks, we are privy to the thoughts of both characters. We understand why Priam wants to break with tradition and travel on a cart pulled by a mule, but we also understand why Hecuba thinks that in a king this is a sign of madness. • Similarly in the middle section, the viewpoint shifts between Priam and Somax.

Ransom: Comments on Style Metaphor and analogy: • In Malouf ’s literary prose, metaphor and analogy frequently convey complex ideas. • For instance, Priam describes himself as a ‘fixed mark’ or as ‘an abstract of the lands he represents, their living map’ (p. 43), and animal imagery is used to emphasise particular qualities in Achilles and the Greeks. • Malouf ’s doubling or mirroring (earth and water, joy and grief, body and spirit/idea) also portrays complex ideas.

Invictus- comments on structure News Flashes • The director cuts from the film’s scenes to news flashes from the media to give the audience information that would not easily be revealed through the narrative alone. • For example, newspaper headlines and snippets of TV news programs are used to give the audience the background information they need prior to watching the film, including news of Mandela‟s release and subsequent election as president. • News flashes are also used to show the time that passes between his release and the election. • While the film focuses on Mandela’s activities and involvement with the Springboks, the news flashes acknowledge that Mandela is also conducting many other presidential duties. These include addressing people at many different events, travelling and undertaking the many other public tasks necessary to his job. • Use of this technique helps to portray how busy Mandela is and avoids the perception that Mandela‟s spends most of his time focusing on rugby, while allowing the film to focus on the specific events central to the story. • News flashes are also used to show the varying attitudes in the community towards a range of topics. • For example, there a number of instances throughout the film where reports on the Springboks are used. • Topsport reports on the Springboks, at first describing them as “unprepared and arrogant‟, and Mandela is shown later in an interview discussing his newfound love of the Springboks.

Invictus: Comments on style Point of view • Invictus is told from the position of a third person omniscient narrator. It is narrated from a position where all events and characters can be seen and is not told from the perspective of any single character. • We see evidence of this when the focus changes from what Mandela is doing to what is happening in Pienaar‟s life to scenes of the crowd at the rugby. The focus constantly changes and the audience is privy to what is going on in a number of characters‟ lives, even when they are all in different places and events are seemingly unconnected. Values • Using an omniscient narrator can make it appear that the director is impartial. This is generally not the case, however. Directors make very conscious choices about what is to be shown in a film and how it is to be shown. • In Invictus, both Mandela and Pienaar are shown in a very positive light. The director has focused on the positive aspects of their characters and the good that they did in society. He has not explored any negative traits of character in any detail, although he has portrayed them as human, acknowledging Pienaar’s upbringing in a racist white household and Mandela’s problems with his family.

Camera shots and editing: • The camera has the power to tell many stories—it focuses on poverty from a bus window, on crowds gathered at a political meeting from above, on grunting rugby players in a scrum from beneath, or on the underside of a huge plane flying over a rugby ground with ‘Good Luck Bokke’ written on its undercarriage. • Over the shoulder shots (or third-person shot, where a shot of someone or something is taken from the perspective or camera angle from the shoulder of another person) are used frequently in Invictus • Sub-plots are developed in the film using parallel editing (alternating two or more scenes that often happen simultaneously but in different locations) • There are stories about Pienaar’s relationship with Mandela, the white and black security guards learning to work together, the Springbok team and the Pienaar family changing their view of the President and his ideas.

Invictus: Camera shots, editing, symbols and motifs: • Each story shows people changing, a sad exception being Mandela’s daughter. Members of the Pienaar household change their relationship with their servant Eunice as Mandela’s influence over the whole nation, in valuing the ideal of equality, gradually starts to be felt. • The ‘motif ’ of the little boy Sipho who keeps popping up at various points in the film’s narrative trajectory, is imbued with intense symbolic effect; as we follow him through to the climactic moment when the police embrace him, viewers understand he represents millions of young black boys brought up in poverty and now included in the nation’s story. • The opening scene of the white staff in the President’s office packing up their belongings, assuming they would have no place in the new black-majority government, is a powerful way to alert viewers to the magnitude of the job Mandela faces. • Mandela’s assertion when explaining why his body guards will be multi-racial: ‘The Rainbow Nation starts here. Reconciliation starts here. Forgiveness starts here’ (Sc. 4, 00: 13: 32) establishes the literal and metaphorical idea which frames not only Mandela’s presidential goals but the central theme of the film.

Invictus: Cinematography • There is a documentary quality to the cinematography of the filmmaking, an effect which is amplified by the use of parallel editing in the opening scenes of the film and during the final stages of the World Cup game. • It is the ultimate message of optimism and hope for a better future which remains with viewers, this message being poignantly captured in the final montage of images of Mandela, Pienaar and their peers, colleagues, family, friends and servants, as they revel together in their success. • It leaves viewers with a sense that we can all learn from the inspiring example of people prepared to put enmity behind them.

Invictus: Literary Allusion: • The title of the film, Invictus, is a literary allusion to a poem by William Ernest Henley, a poem which has been documented as providing comfort and inspiration to Nelson Mandela throughout his years of incarceration and solitary confinement in prison. • ‘Invictus’ is the Latin for ‘undefeated’ or ‘unconquered’. Freeman’s voice-over intones the poem when Pienaar is alone in the Robben Island cell, with music and fade-in image of Mandela to portray his invincibility despite his imprisonment.

Invictus: Style • Mirroring, repetition and doubling are evident in a range of scenes and used for a variety of purposes. • The most obvious doubling and mirroring is in the depictions of the two leaders, Nelson Mandela, and François Pieannar. • Close-up camera shots compare and contrast their feelings as leaders, as does the dialogue, particularly in the scene when Mandela asks Pienaar to take tea with him. • Also, the plot revolves around Mandela convincing white players to show interest in township blacks, and convincing the black population to show interest in rugby.

Activities: 1. – – – – – Look through the first ten pages of Ransom. Circle the present tense verbs (eg: “lifts”, “glistens”). What is the effect of writing this story in present tense? Which of the following words help outline this effect? Current In the moment Transports the reader Unfolds the drama in the present Existential Cinematic Dramatises Emphasises for the reader Creates Write a sentence that follows the QUESTION STAIRCASE APPROACH (why/how/what) that we have been looking at in class recently uses quotes from Ransom and some of the words above to answer the question. You can use this sentence starter to help: In Ransom, Malouf infuses the narrative with present tense verbs such as…. , … and … in order to…. Here, the verbs create/convey a sense of …, which serve to ….

Activities: 2. How does the present tense nature of Ransom link to Invictus? Do both texts seem like they capture a moment in ‘the present’? Why? 3. Consider the use of flashbacks (pp. 10 -13, 65 -68) and flash-forwards (212214, 216 -219) in Ransom. What is the overall effect of locating a character not just in one moment of time but also in the context of their past and future? You can use the words/phrases below to help you answer this question in sentence form that utilises the QUESTION STAIRCASE APPROACH : It shows that life is an ongoing cycle It emphasises the importance of the past It demonstrate the cycle of life and mortality It shows that every moment comes from somewhere in the past and leads to somewhere in the future • It demonstrates the interconnection of the past, present and future • •

Activities: 4. Does Invictus have a similar sense of the past, present and future when compared to Ransom? 5. Use the ‘Over the Shoulder Shots’ resource on page 46 of your Ransom/Invictus booklet. On Clickview, watch the scenes from the film where the Springboks win the World Cup. Which of these words and phrases describe the impact of the over-theshoulder shots and parallel editing? Write a three or four sentences utilising the QUESTION STAIRCASE APPROACH in answering this question. • • • Shows perspective Shows multiple perspectives Range of responses Illustrates confrontation Captures a panorama of views Depicts a pattern of responses Demonstrates division Portrays collective impact Illustrates the sharing of perspectives

Activities 6. Fill out the Invictus film technique table on pp. 47 -52 of your booklet. You may need to rewatch the opening and closing scenes of Invictus to help you. 7. On a separate page, compose a list of questions you still have about how Ransom and Invictus depict their ideas, issues and themes. These questions could be points of confusion or they could be aspects you want to delve into more deeply. We will use these to drive group conversations/debates next week.