Core Collection 2016 - Godolphin and Latymer SchoolToK (Theory of knowledge ... It was a tough task again to select only two projects for this year’s edition of the Core Collection

Core Collection 2016

Welcome back to a new edition of Core Collection, a publication celebrating our IB leavers’ (Class of 2016) achievements in the Core of the Diploma Programme!

The Core is made up of three elements: CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service), the EE (Extended Essay) and ToK (Theory of knowledge). All three elements allow us to consolidate the holistic approach the IBDP offers our students. The IB team wanted to give the school community the opportunity to witness what amazing things the girls achieve in the Core of the IBDP.

The year has started with a focus on REFLECTION. During one of our enrichment sessions the LVI got to work on what Reflection in the Core means and this was an excellent introduction to what will be required of them in CAS, EE and ToK.

In CAS LVI girls have embarked positively on their CAS programme whilst the UVI are working on their reflections about their CAS experiences. The CASathalon which was a great success last year will run again after Christmas. Both LVI and UVI will work together in a lunchtime triathlon event to attempt to break the 20km which were covered last year!

In the Extended Essay the UVI submitted their essays in early September and completed their Viva Voce before October half-term. The process of the Viva allows the girls to reflect on this challenging but rewarding academic writing process. The LVI has now started their programme of preparation for the EE with Mrs Vantini and will choose their research topic before Christmas.

In Theory of Knowledge the UVI girls have been completing their ToK essay whilst the LVI have embarked on their ToK journey through engaging, insightful and certainly animated class discussions and presentations. We have recently been focusing on Art as an Area of Knowledge and our recent visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum to see the Records and Rebels exhibition has pushed the girls’ boundaries of what they view Art to be. It was a thought provoking and ‘rocking’ visit !

I am once again very proud to share the work which follows and I hope you enjoy reading these outstanding essays and CAS achievements.

Bonne lecture!

Audrey DuboisIB Coordinator.

CASathalo

n even

t- Dece

mber 2015

Sometimes it is not immediately obvious why CAS sits alongside the EE and ToK; why is CAS the final piece in a jigsaw comprised of an academic research project and a course which probes our understanding and assumptions about knowledge? Well, EE, ToK and indeed CAS award our IB students with the opportunities to develop characteristics we can all admire: determination, inquisitiveness, compassion, and ultimately a deep rooted concern for the world around us.

In pursuing experiences classed as Creativity, Activity or Service (CAS), our IB students are shown the value of education outside of the classroom and the skills and lessons they can learn through interaction with their world. Godolphin girls are known to be eager, involved and near insatiable in their thirst for exploring diverse extra-curricular activities; the CAS programme celebrates and rewards the remarkable ways in which IB students not only contribute to this school ethos, but seek to help the wider community. A CAS experience can range from coaching netball to the younger year groups all the way through to volunteering at a refugee camp school, but in all they do, our students nurture their interests and passions and recognise their responsibility towards others.

It was a tough task again to select only two projects for this year’s edition of the Core Collection from our leaving class’ individual programmes. (At least one of a student’s CAS experiences must be a project, where they have shown initiative and leadership). However, here are the projects, as described in Charlotte and Lauren’s own CAS journals. Our leaving class showed such commitment to their CAS programmes, a sure sign of this being that one leaver is currently leading our new LVI cohort in a local food drive project.

Ciara Morris, CAS Coordinator

Creativity, Activity and Service Projects at Godolphin and Latymer

Charlotte Dyvik-Henke

For my CAS project, I decided that I wanted to help members of our school community – and set myself a challenge to create something that really didn’t exist previously! I established a GCSE tutoring group consisting of a group 15 sixth formers, who provided tutoring and mentoring to year 11 students preparing for their GCSEs last summer.

There was a lot to think about: I had to pitch my idea to several senior teachers within the school and then work with these teachers to formulate an appropriate plan of action. I then advertised the opportunity to the Year 11s, and took charge of organising and linking Year 11 and sixth form students. I was responsible for supporting my team of sixth form tutors, as for some it was quite a new experience.

My project tested my organisational skills, leadership skills and motivation – sometimes when things got difficult to organise I really had to push myself to keep going. And of course, I had to do some tutoring – quite a responsibility! However, when I and the tutoring team started to receive emails from the Year 11s about how helpful they found our tutoring, it was all worth it. Realising the value of what we did the for Year 11s means I now would like to extend this service to younger students or students outside of our school – but maybe my successor will have to work on that! It is great to think I’ve established something which will continue to make a difference to people’s school experience.

Plannin

g our

tutorin

g sess

ions for t

he Yea

r 11s

– and

catch

ing so

me sun!

Lauren Borgers

I have been part of the Air Training Corps and a Royal Air Force Cadet since the age of 12. Being part of the cadets gives me the opportunity to learn about the Air Force whilst developing many new skills and working with others. As cadets has a rank system it gives you the opportunity to set goals and push yourself.

Being an RAF Cadet also gives you the opportunity to get involved with incredible challenges. In 2015 in my LVI year, myself and a group of other Royal Air Force Cadets had the chance to take part in a 2 week expedition to South Africa. I was really excited about the trip and the more I thought about it, the more I realised that it would be ideal to use as my CAS project. Not only would it allow me to develop new skills and experiences for myself but we would also be helping a school community.

A lot of planning and preparation went into the expedition as we had to raise funds for the trip and for the Mkhize School where we would be volunteering plus attend training events to make sure we were ready for the physical demands of the trip. The training events were also really important so our group could get used to working together.

After 7 months of preparation and fundraising, the expedition itself was the most amazing experience of my life. Not only did I push myself physically and mentally by climbing the Drakensberg Mountains, I worked really hard with my team to put on a day of activities at the Mkhize Primary School. During the day we taught the children first aid and archery and opened up the new kitchen that we funded.

It was a wonderful experience that allowed me to engage with issues facing people on the other side of the world, such as the school not being able to provide food for all their pupils. Whilst out there we also learnt about the issues facing the South African ecosystems, such as desertification, so it was vital that we respected the environment whilst on our trek. Overall, it was an incredibly enlightening and exciting experience that has changed my life.

A snap shot of my South Africa trip:

Full Marks for Extended Essays 2016

This year, 2016, breaks a record for Extended Essays at Godolphin and Latymer: not only extremely successful results, as ever, in a range of subjects , but also no less than three essays, out of a cohort of 29, that gained highly impressive full marks! This is far higher than global IB average.

The Extended Essay is a mandatory part of the IB Diploma and is written over six months on a topic of the student’s choice; academic research and meticulous referencing skills result in a fascinating 4,000 argument. IB students are ahead of the game academically when they start university! And there is much fun to be had on the way, including a real passion for their subject and huge satisfaction in the finished product.

I would like to share the three full mark essays with you, to celebrate our students’ undoubted achievements, and here is an introduction to each of the three.

• The first one by Isabella Corich is a very fine Visual Arts exploration of to what extent Aaron Douglas’s wonderful mural ‘Aspects of Negro Life’ is a political statement of Civil Rights in America. Isabella combines her love of Douglas’s work and her knowledge of other artists such as Matisse and Picasso, as well as jazz music, with her research into the Civil Rights movement. Isabella’s analysis of art is beautifully illustrated by colour prints of each work.

• The second by Flavia Galdiolo is written entirely in French and is a very interesting analysis of the 2008 film ‘Entre les Murs’ (released as ‘The Class’ in the UK) and its focus on the plight of school students whose first language and culture is not French. Flavia argues that, while French state schools don’t sufficiently support such students, their disaffection is also caused by lack of more general social integration.

• Last but by no means least is Victoria Paines’ stunning investigation of the notion of damnation in Macbeth and Dr Faustus: close reading of both these wonderful plays, together with a finely researched grasp of historical and cultural contexts, leads to a remarkably successful argument, expressed in an impressively mature literary style.

Sarah Vantini, Extended Essay Coordinator

Extended Essay - Visual Arts

To what extent is Aaron Douglas’s ‘Aspect of Negro Life’ a political statement for Civil Rights in the United States of America?

Word Count: 3,961

Centre Name: Godolphin and LatymerCentre Number: 002194Candidate Name: Isabella CorichCandidate Number: 022194-0006

Isabella Corich 022194-0006

ABSTRACT

The aim of the following essay is to explore the question: To what extent is Aaron Douglas’s ‘Aspects of Negro Life’ a political statement for Civil Rights in the United States of America? The first section of the essay introduces a summary of history of the Harlem Renaissance looking primarily at the socio-political impact amongst African-Americans along with the influence of politics within the artistic world. The essay then moves on to a biographical description of Aaron Douglas’ life along with analysis of his unique style and technique through the evaluation of his influences and inspirations, such as that of Cubism and Marxism. The next section of the essay consists of an in-depth artistic analysis of Douglas’ mural series in chronological order working through each individual panel, primarily looking at the inclusion of detailed symbolism and motifs along with the overall composition and characteristics of mural. The analysis also includes the use of secondary artists and painting such as Matisse’s ‘Dance’ to evaluate Douglas’ influences for the mural series. The fourth and final section of the essay comprises of the fundamental analysis of political implication and influence within and around Douglas’ Aspects of Negro Life mural. By using a combination of information from within the essay, both historical and artistic, the political extent of the murals can be analysed and examined strongly focusing on the importance and relevance of the Jazz Age, political and social ideology and finally the assessment of other artistic figures of the Harlem Renaissance. The essay fundamentally concludes with the argument that Aspects of Negro Life was a strong political statement of civil rights within the United States through the support of the visual evidence which fundamentally establishes and validates the political extent of the mural.

Word Count: 293

2


3

(Fig. 1) Aspects of Negro Life: The Negro in an African Setting. Oil on canvas, 1934.

(Fig. 2) Aspects of Negro Life: An Idyll of the Deep South. Oil on canvas, 1934.


4

(Fig.4) Aspects of Negro Life: Song of the Towers. Oil on canvas, 1934.

(Fig. 3) Aspects of Negro Life: From Slavery Through Reconstruction. Oil on canvas, 1934.


Table of Contents

1. Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………6

2. Summary of History ……………………………………………………………………..…6

3. Biography of Aaron Douglas ………………………………………………………………7

4. Subject Matter ……………………………………………………………………………….9

5. Visual Analysis of Aspects of Negro Life …………………………………………………10

6. The Negro in an African Setting ………………………………………………………….10

7. An Idyll of the Deep South ……………………………………………………………….11

8. From Slavery through to Reconstruction………………………………………………..13

9. Songs of the Towers …………………………………………………………………….….16

10.Political implication and importance of Aspects of Negro Life ………………………17

11. Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………….…19

12. Bibliography ………………………………………………………………………………..20

13. Appendix ……………………………………………………………………………………21

5


To what extent is Aaron Douglas’s ‘Aspects of Negro Life’ a political statement for Civil Rights in the United States of America?

Introduction

Primarily influenced by modern Jazz and Blues music and its affect on the development of the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the U.S.A during the 1960s, I began investigating and researching the cultural history of the United States. During my research I came upon the artist Aaron Douglas (1898-1979) and his infamous mural Aspects of Negro Life (1934) situated in The New York Public Library's 135th Street branch, now the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. By looking at the series of murals I immediately became interested in how the art, in conjunction with the artist, played a pivotal role for civil rights within the United States, subsequently formulating my research question.

The investigation questioning the extent and significance of politics behind and within Aaron Douglas’ mural sequence ‘Aspects of Negro Life’ consists of analysis of the motive and significance behind the creation of the murals. Looking at both North America’s cultural history as well as Douglas’ personal history in relation to the Harlem Renaissance and African-American civil rights will aid the investigation. Specific political connotation and relevance will also be studied though each mural’s formal artistic qualities, such as composition, both individually and jointly will be essential in coming to a final conclusion to the research question.

Summary of History

The years following the end of the Second World War brought a lot of change in the lives of many African Americans. Key events such as the Wall Street Crash and the Great Depression particularly exacerbated this change. Geographically, there was mass migration from the rural south to the newly industrialised urban North, journeying on the pursuit of the self-determined ‘New Negro’. This ‘migration’ gradually transformed the cultural landscape of 1

the Northern United States, eventually becoming known as the New Negro Movement. This new found movement helped to promote a renewed sense of ‘racial pride, cultural self-expression, economic independence, and progressive politics’. As the New Negro 2

Movement gradually gained popularity it became known as the social, literary and artistic movement known as the Harlem Renaissance, fundamentally devoted to increasing the awareness of Black art, culture, and fundamentally the development and improvement of civil rights (see Appendix 1). Predominantly founded on the basis of racial pride, social 3

power and the importance of African culture and heritage, the Harlem Renaissance

<http://www.aarondouglas.ku.edu/resources/teacher_resource.pdf> [September 8th 2015]1

‘NAACP: A Century in the Fight for Freedom,The New Negro Movement’ <http://www.loc.gov/2

exhibits/naacp/the-new-negro-movement.html> [April 30th 2015]

Stokstad, M & Cateforis, D. ‘Art History’. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. (Trenton: Prentice Hall. 2002.) 3

page 1113 6


essentially “challenged the existing debased and caricatured representations of Blacks in art”. Often being referred to as the ‘Black Mecca’ of the world, Harlem became a safe 4

haven and ground where cultural awareness and political ideology could flourish through artistic expression. However, not only did the Harlem Renaissance act as a form of artistic proliferation but also a strong universal metaphor for the transformative period of black culture.

Biography of Aaron Douglas

Various artistic figures contributed to the development and progression of the Harlem Renaissance, however one of the most prominent figures is that of the artist, Aaron Douglas. Born a freeman in 1899 in the Midwest, Topeka, Kansas, Douglas can be 5

considered the ‘Dean of African American painters’ as well as the ‘founding father’ of the Afro-American movement the ‘Harlem Renaissance’. Through Douglas’ Barnes fellowship 6

specialising in African art and European modernism (see Appendix 1) he engaged significantly with modernist techniques. Establishing its importance and relation with African Americans, Aaron Douglas sought to portray and visually depict the ‘lives, labor, dreams and realities’ of African Americans. 7

Douglas predominantly developed a unique and personal style which shows a strong resemblance to early Cubism, through the use elongated angularity and geometrical forms. This ‘primitive-like’ style is displayed in the collection of paintings Aspects of Negro Life through the use of silhouettes and encirclement to portray the importance of African American history. Douglas’ strong use of encirclement draws strong parallels to Robert 8

‘The History of Harlem’ <http://www.harlemheritage.com/history-of-harlem/> [April 30th 2015]4

Kansas, located in the American Midwest, entered the United States as a slave-free state in 5

January 29th 1861, becoming the 34th state to enter the Union.

Hardy, S.L & Simmons, V. D. ‘Directors’ Foreword: Aaron Douglas: African American Modernist’. 6

(Yale University Press. 2007.)

Earle, S. ‘Harlem, Modernism, and Beyond: Aaron Douglas and His Role in Art/History’ .(Aaron 7

Douglas: African American Modernist, (Yale University Press. 2007.)

Bearden, R, & Henderson, H. ‘A History of African-American Artists: From 1972 to the Present’. 8

(New York: Pantheon. 1993.) 7

(Fig. 5) Map of United States of America. State, Kansas highlighted red.


Delaunay’s abstract paintings, acting as a medium of highlighting as well as a decorative element. Moreover, relating greatly to Picasso’s ‘Les Demoiselles D’Avignon’, Douglas incorporates racial Primitive-like features, such as simple palettes, angular shapes, 2-dimensional form, African sculpture and traditional masks within his works to draw out and raise awareness of certain themes that portray simplistic depictions of history. Through the use of specific modern styles of art, such as that of Cubism, paired with the relevance of the Jazz Age and a fusion of both European-Modernism and West African traditions Douglas was able to break the conventional ideologies at the time through a visual means. Similarly to other intellectuals during the Harlem Renaissance and the aftermath of the Great Depression, Douglas was influenced by the ideology of Marxism, often incorporating subtle symbolism into his works to further support the placement of the ‘Negro in history and society’. Due to the accessibility of art to the ordinary person, Douglas embellished his 9

works with strong symbolism and powerful themes through the use of Primitive Cubism to fundamentally teach the African-American man about Negro history.

Kirschke, A.H. ‘Aaron Douglas: Art, Race & The Harlem Renaissance’’. (University Press of 9

Mississippi: Jackson. 1995.) page 121 8

(Fig. 8) Pablo Picasso ‘Les Demoiselles D’Avignon’ oil on canvas, 244 x 234 cm Faces on the right show the influence of tribal masks and angular shapes, relating greatly to Douglas’ non-Western art

(Fig. 6) Robert Delaunay, ‘Rythme, Joie de Vivre’ oil on canvas, 200 x 228 cm

(Fig. 7) Robert Delaunay, ‘First Disc’ oil on canvas, 134.6 cm diameter


Subject Matter

Completed in 1934, under the commission of the Public Works of Art Project (PWAP), 10 11

the collection Aspects of Negro Life consists of four main panels which employ symbolic imagery and motifs to convey messages on life through a ‘Black man’s eyes’. As the title suggests, the four panels reveal the features and characteristics of internal and external life as an African American negro. The mural shows development of Black American history by focusing on life in Africa through to the liberation of African American slaves and rebirth of African traditions in modern day. The work, divided into the separate panels, acts as a four-part chronological sequence of the African-American’s journey in North American society.

‘Aaron Douglas’s Magisterial Aspects of Negro Life, Treasures of the New York Public Library’ 10

<http://exhibitions.nypl.org/treasures/items/show/170> [May 25th 2015]

PWAP - Public Works of Art Project - first of the United States art projects during the Great 11

Depression under the New Deal with its purpose being to ‘prove the feasibility of government patronage’ and provide ‘meaningful work to unemployed artists’. <http://www.britannica.com/topic/Public-Works-of-Art-Project> [June 13th 2015]

9

(Fig. 9, 10, 11) Images of Aspects of Negro Life mural arranged on site inside the Schomburg Centre, Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference division


Visual Analysis of Aspects of Negro Life

The Negro in an African Setting

The first of the four panels, The Negro in an African Setting (Fig.1), portrays a strong emphasis on the rhythmic side of music, dance and sculpture. The African fetish, drummers and dancers, set in the f o r m a l s p a c e a n d c o l o u r w o r k s collaboratively to recreate sense of exhilaration and ecstasy. . The main 12

subjects, the tribal drummers and dancers, are important central figures of historical ‘African tribal culture’ which help to portray this sense of movement in the painting. In the panel, Douglas subtly uses the technique of gradation, the transition of one hue, shade or texture to another. The application of this technique and the limited palette, of cool blues and violets, work to create a calming mood through the transition of colour and light intensities. There is also a strong use of contrejour within the piece. The use of photographic-like technique works to add a sense of weight within the piece, helping to further build up the composition. In addition, the darker shaded foreground figures work to create a sense of containment through their curved formation, forming the outer concentric circles which highlights the central axis of the fetish.

Kirschke, A.H. ‘Aaron Douglas: Art, Race & The Harlem Renaissance’’. (University Press of 12

Mississippi: Jackson. 1995.) page 121 10

(Fig. 12) Compositional Analysis. Douglas, The Negro in an African Setting, 1934, oil on canvas, 6’ x 6’5” / 182.9 x 199.4 cm

(Fig. 13) Pictorial Space Analysis, The Negro in an African Setting, 1934, oil on canvas, 6’ x 6’5” / 182.9 x 199.4 cm


Douglas effectively uses concentric circles throughout the Aspects series, however in the first panel, The Negro in an African Setting, the encirclement successfully works in the final composition and layout. With the canvas being a perfect square, Douglas is able to build up perfect circles which highlights and draws attention to certain symbols and images within the panel. In this panel, Douglas highlighted features predominantly comprises of African and Egyptian imagery. The silhouette figures in the panel show great similarity to figures such as the Benin Bronzes and Egyptian Nubian clothing accessories, such as the hedjets. Furthermore, the specific placement of the silhouettes 13

also connote Egyptian imagery through the frontal positioning of the body, specifically shoulders, and profile display of the face, which fundamentally shows hierarchy over full face, relating to Ancient Egyptian art and painting. Fundamentally, all of these factors work in conjunction with one another to create a successful portrayal and glorification of the African-American’s heritage.

An Idyll of the Deep South

By looking at the panel as a whole, it can divided into three main sections, however working together to form the culmination of the piece as a whole. In An Idyll of the Deep South, Douglas undermines the ‘myth’ of the "happy southern plantation Negro”. Douglas 14

is able to subvert this myth by surrounding the central panel which portrays a seemingly

Hedjets - formal name for the white Pharaonic crown of Upper Egypt. Also strongly resembles the 13

long cone crown seen on Iboya Benin bronzes; in Benin culture only the Queen (Iboya), King (Oba) and warriors were permitted to wear the crowns showing signs of strength and power.

‘Aaron Douglas, Narratives of African American Art and Identity’ <http://14

www.driskellcenter.umd.edu/narratives/exhibition/sec2/doug_a_02.htm> [June 8th 2015] 11

(Fig. 15) Compositional Analysis. Douglas, An Idyll of the Deep South, 1934, oil on canvas, 5’ x 11’7” / 152.4 cm x 353 cm

(Fig.14) Benin Bronze, located in West Africa, Yorubaland, of Queen Mother Iboya head displayed wearing the long cone crown


relaxed image with that of barbaric and brutal imagery. The central image depicts fairly relaxed imagery with connotation of hope and aspiration. Through the use of concentric circles, Douglas highlights the cheerful imagery of singing and dancing silhouettes depicted in the central section, showing the centre of gravity within the piece. On the far right of the panel, black labourers are seen working arduously in the fields. To the left of the central theme, silhouettes are seen mourning and grieving over the death of a man who has been lynched. However, despite the dark connotations, there is no visible body of the lynched man, leading the viewers to believe that it has merely been implied by Douglas to promote awareness of the ongoing violence occurring during the African-American history. As the mourning silhouettes surround the body of the lynched man, one figure, identified in the foreground and painted a darker shade than the other figures, can be seen on his knees looking up towards the distant ray of light emitted from the corner of the panel. An Idyll of the Deep South can be divided into a triptych. By Douglas splitting the panels into three-parts he not only able to display multiple themes and scenes but also mimics the sense of a religious arch. With triptychs tending to relate or primarily display religious imagery and biblical stories, such as ‘Adoration of the Magi’ by Lorenzo Monaco. Douglas creates the sense of a ‘holy’ story telling and progression of ‘Black’ history through his subtle three-part division. Furthermore, the lighter shaded figures on the far left work to create a sequence-like movement as if mimicking levitating or rising up to the star in the corner of the mural, displaying biblical connotations to an ascension to heaven.

The lighter shaded figures in the background central section of the panel can be seen conjoined by hand in dance. This depiction can represent the infinite unity of the arts, such as dance and music along with the rhythmic sense of liberty associated. Furthermore, these figures closely relate to Matisse’s, simplified-modernist painting ‘Dance’ (1910) possibly displaying Douglas’ influence in painting and imagery, particularly through the silhouette shapes.

12(Fig.17 ) Compositional Analysis, An Idyll of the Deep South

(Fig. 18) Henri Matisse, ‘Dance’, oil on canvas, 260 cm x 391 cm

(Fig. 16) Sectional Dynamism Analysis, An Idyll of the Deep South


The relation and reality between race and economic hardship is also portrayed through the star in the top left hand corner of the panel. Despite its small size the star has significance within the composition through its emission of light cutting across the panel. Although previously perceived as the North Star, a symbol of optimism and hope, Douglas revealed during a conversation with David Driskell in 1971 that in actuality the star was a depiction on the red star of Communism. This subtle motif demonstrates Douglas’ ingrained 15

influence of Marxist ideology. He further stated that the star’s purpose was to ‘illustrate the hope held by several Black Harlem intellectuals, believing that true equality might be attained through alternative policies of communism and socialism’. Douglas also uses 16

strong gradation across the panel to illustrate a growing sense of transition and progression of the ‘negro’ into prosperity and optimism. Starting from the first section on the far right on the panel there is an overpowering application of dark shades and tones used to depict the labouring field workers. As the composition transitions from right to left through the different themes, there is a progression of darker tones to much lighter tones, finally leading to the star of optimism. This progression can further emphasise the ascension and literal progression of the African-American from ‘slavery to reconstruction’ and most specifically accomplishment.

From Slavery through to Reconstruction

Possibly the most well-known part of the series, the third mural, From Slavery through to Reconstruction is intended for the contemporary viewer to understand the African American’s role in U.S history.

Similarly to the composition of An Idyll of the Deep South, the third panel in Aspects can be divided into three main sections. The first section, on the far right, comprises of silhouettes making up the background. Through the dull, faded silhouettes, Douglas symbolises the doubt and uncertainty of African American life during the time of slavery. The scroll-like

‘Aaron Douglas, Narratives of African American Art and Identity’ <http://15

www.driskellcenter.umd.edu/narratives/exhibition/sec2/doug_a_02.htm> [June 8th 2015]

Ibid. 16

13

(Fig. 19) Compositional Analysis. Douglas, Aspects of Negro Life, From Slavery through to Reconstruction, 1934, oil on canvas, 5’ x 11’7” / 152.4 cm x 353 cm


piece of paper held by the foreground figure acts as the focal point of the section symbolising the reading of the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation (see Appendix 1). The 17

encirclement works as a form of highlighting the importance felt towards the Proclamation. The repeated up-motion of the silhouettes arms connote a sense of exaltation and rejoice, as they celebrate the breaking of chains that bound them to slavery. This celebratory sense is further emphasised by the trumpet players in the foreground which depict a transformation from submission to exultation.

The second section of the painting embodies a sense based around strength and power by suggesting important Black leaders of the time, such as that of W. E. B. Du Bois. Douglas uses a step-like arrangement to create the perception of hierarchy and idolisation around the main central figure. The main silhouette figure is seen holding a document, possibly a ballot paper, and pointing in the direction of the Capitol building in the background. Similarly to the first section, Douglas uses the technique of concentric circling to draw the viewers attention to the paper held by the main figure, indicating the importance of the recognition of the Negro man’s role in society. Surrounding the central figure are several other silhouettes crouching below, almost gazing up in adoration and admiration to the main figure. In the foreground, slaves in the fields, picking cotton, are portrayed glancing away from the cotton plants and up towards the central figure. This movement away from the cotton towards the modern power of the leaders literally depicts the African-American’s transition from exploitation to recognition and emancipation. Furthermore, this sense of different levels connotes imagery of the African American’s literal ‘rise’ from slavery to power, embodies through the physical hierarchy of the main leader figure.

The third and final section of the panel, located on the far left, depicts the withdrawal of the Union soldiers from the South following the end of the Civil War, along with the rise of the white supremacist groups and torment faced by the African American throughout history (see Appendix 1). Similarly to the other sections of the painting, Douglas uses 18

faded and dulled colours to portray the departing Union soldiers, at the end of the


page 1113

Bearden, Romare, & Harry Henderson. ‘A History of African-American Artists: From 1972 to the 18

Present’ (New York: Pantheon, 1993) 14

(Fig. 20, 21) Douglas, Sections from Aspects of Negro Life, From Slavery through to Reconstruction, 1934, oil on canvas


American civil war, in contrast to the members of the white supremacist group, most notably the KKK, depicted with the recognisable and distinguishable white hoods. Douglas 19

uses brighter and more prominent white shades to depict the KKK members in order to literally depict their strong prominence during the time. Furthermore, in conjunction to the use of colour and shade to differentiate between the white-hooded figures and the soldiers, Douglas also uses contrast in physical size. Fundamentally, this use of slightly lighter shades and contrast in size, works to literally ‘bring to light’ the emergence of the supremacist groups. However, despite their continuous negative influence in African American history, Douglas draws attention to the important issue of white supremacist groups, however is cautious to not let them be the central focus of the piece. Alternatively, Douglas focuses the theme of From Slavery through to Reconstruction as a positive celebration and commemoration of African American achievement rather than a negative condemnation.The juxtaposition of the positive and negative figures acts a balance between the positive and negative implications of the struggle faced by African Americans throughout history. This balance further acts as an inspiration towards viewers, inspiring and encouraging them to “continue the struggle to improve the lot of African Americans”. 20

Throughout the panel Douglas uses a strong sense of levels to visually depict hierarchy and power. The use of horizontality moving upwards towards the central figure relates greatly to Géricault’s ‘Raft of Medusa’ symbolising the movement from death and demise towards hope and optimism as the figures are emancipated from the water, or the cotton fields in Aspects’ case. Furthermore, the rightwards ascent culminating in the black figure seen in Géricault’s painting acted as a great political statement during its time of creation due to its portrayal of Negro advancement in a time of elite royalism. This statement relates greatly 21

to the message of hope that is being portrayed through Douglas’ work.

KKK - ‘Ku Klux Klan’ - Founded in 1866 after the end of the American Civil War, was the United 19

States based hate group which inflicted and employed terror to publicly promote white supremacy against racial minorities. <http://www.britannica.com/topic/Ku-Klux-Klan> [August 19th 2015]


page 1113

<http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/raft-medusa> [September 13th 2015]21

15

(Fig. 23) Théodore Géricault, ‘Le Radeau de la Méduse (The Raft of Medusa)’, 1819, oil on canvas, 4.91 m x 7.16 m

(Fig. 22) Douglas, Aspects of Negro Life, From Slavery through to Reconstruction, 1934, oil on canvas


Songs of the Towers

The last panel of the four-part series fundamentally ‘represents the will to express ones self’ during the era of the Harlem Renaissance. The period of self-22

expression through the arts specifically granted African-Americans to voice their personal beliefs and viewpoints through various forms of music, art and literature. The following panel, Song of the Towers, can be regarded as a direct result of the free will and ‘spontaneous creativity’ seen through the Harlem Renaissance. 23

The panel depicts creative expression, a prominent theme embodied within the Harlem Renaissance and New Negro Movement. The jazz playing silhouette in the centre of the piece fundamentally depicts the overwhelming importance of expression and artistry through the encirclement around the saxophone. Along with the importance of music and artistry being highlighted through the saxophone, notions of hope and optimism are depicted through the Statue of Liberty in the central background. The juxtaposition of both the Statue of Liberty and the saxophone displays how hope and promise can be achieved through the freedom of expression that is embodied through creativity. However, despite the main focal point of the piece being the saxophone and the Statue of Liberty, epitomising hope and freedom, the jazz playing silhouette is seen standing above a wheel or cog which symbolises the growing industrialisation. 24

Furthermore, to the right of the central theme, there is a figure depicted ‘fleeing from the clutching hand of serfdom’ towards the prosperity that industry had to offer. The 25

background further promotes this industrial imagery through skyscrapers surrounded by billowing clouds of factory smoke. These three main images fundamentally work together to portray a ‘visual representation of black music and culture of that era.’ 26

All the panels in the series predominantly use concentric circles to symbolically highlight and emphasise the importance euphoria of the central theme. Through the use of the concentric circles along with other prominent geometric shapes the panel mimics features

Kirschke, A.H. ‘Aaron Douglas: Art, Race & The Harlem Renaissance’. (University Press of 22

Mississippi: Jackson. 1995.) page 123

Ibid.23

Ibid.24



O’Meally, R.G. ‘The Jazz Cadence of American Culture’. (Columbia University Press. 1998) page 18726

16

(Fig. 24) Compostional Analysis. Douglas, Songs of the Towers, 1934, Oil on canvas, 6’ x 6’5” / 182.9 x 199.4 cm


similar to that of the dominant 1930s Art Deco style. This impression of Art Deco is further promoted through the tall overpowering buildings in the background, along with he industrial imagery further works due to the close link that the Art Deco style had with the machine age of the 1920s and 30s.

Following the direction of the composition, the panel can be divided into three triangular sections. This particular division of the panel varies to that of the previous two panels (fig. 2 & 3). By dividing the panels triangularly, there is a sense of hierarchy which can not be achieved through the vertical division. The middle section which depicts the central theme is elevated through the support of the surrounded sections, which are s i tuated lower down in the composition.

Political implication and importance of Aspects of Negro Life

Despite the innocuous appearance, Douglas fundamentally created a strong politically statement through the mural. Douglas stated there was initially supposed to be a fifth and final panel. The panel would have moved on from the defeating yet hopeful theme of the fourth panel to a futuristic utopian theme, illustrating the unanimity between men of black and white skin This inspiring conclusion to the series would have been achieved though 27

strong incorporation of Marxist philosophy to portray the ‘revolutionary struggle between black and white workers’ working together against the Capitalist enemy. However, this 28

panel was never executed due to the ideological antagonism and hostility between communist and capitalist ideology within the United States as Douglas was convinced that “the whole mural would have been rejected by the [PWAP] authorities”. Example of this 29

artistic ideological antagonism can be seen through the 1933 Rivera-Rockefeller scandal, where Mexican artist, Diego Rivera was commissioned under the Rockefeller family to create a fresco mural following the theme of ‘Man at the Crossroads’. After causing mass controversy for the inclusion of Communist imagery, such as the Russian May Day Parade

de Mille, C. ‘Music and Modernism c. 1849-1950’. (Cambridge Scholars Publishing. 2011) page 23227



Ibid. 29

17

(Fig. 25) Artist Aaron Douglas (left) and Schomburg Collection curator Arthur A. Schomburg, examine Douglas’s painting “Aspects of Negro Life: Song of the Towers” (1934)


and Lenin’s portrait the mural was shortly ordered to be destructed. The Rivera-30

Rockefeller scandal distinctly illustrates the tensions between the arts and politics during a time of supposed freedom of self-expression that many artists were faced with.

Fundamentally, the absence of the final panel, demonstrates the political power of the piece through the containment and almost glorification of the radical ideology of the time. During the years prior to the creation of Aspects creative art, music and jazz in particular was considered a “source of bourgeois corruption” as stated by the communist literary figure, Mike Gold. Douglas’ interest in Jazz music, however, was openly directed towards 31

its ‘contemporary cultural and socio-political resonances’, which can be observed throughout the mural series, most prominently in the culminating panel Songs of the Tower. This proves that the inclusion of musical iconography, especially the saxophone 32

player in the final panel, acts as an outright defiance against the popular white bourgeois discord against Jazz music, particularly through the depiction of Jazz as a symbol of hope and optimism. This important symbol can seen reoccurring throughout the series with the inclusion of the trumpets in both the second and fourth panels, displaying hints of optimisms associated with music. Similarly to other figures in the Harlem Renaissance, musical themes were greatly used as public and powerful messages of hope and defiance along with the appreciation of cultural identity. For example: James Weldon Johnson’s 33

1899 poem and song ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’ (see Appendix 3), also well-known as the

‘Man at the Crossroads by Diego Rivera’. <http://www.diegorivera.org/man-at-the-30

crossroads.jsp> [August 24th 2015]

Erenberg, L. A. ‘Swingin’ the Dream: Big Band Jazz and the Rebirth of American Culture’. 31

(University of Chicago Press. 1999) page 132


James Weldon Johnson was an American author, songwriter, diplomat, lawyer and civil rights 33

activist best remembered for his leadership roles in the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) and development of the Harlem Renaissance <http://www.biography.com/people/james-weldon-johnson-9356013> [August 19th 2015]

18

(Fig. 26) Diego Rivera, ‘Man, Controller of the Universe’ replication of ‘Man at the Crossroads’, 1933


‘Black American National Anthem’ along with Augusta Savage’s bronze cast of the same title.

Due to the strong and celebrated status of music within ‘African culture’, each panel in the four-part series contains a musical reference: ‘the tribal drumming in Africa; the banjo and Negro spirituals in the South; a bugler heralding the era of Reconstruction and, finally, the contemporary saxophonist.’ This repeated 34

iconography within Aspects of Negro Life shows the political importance than music had not only to the development of African Americans, but also Douglas himself as an individual. Furthermore, in the compositional blueprint, the addition of the musical figures in Aspects works to symbolise the extent of freedom and liberty that music, particularly jazz music, can embody.

Due to the controversial historic belief of ‘black inferiority’ and ‘white supremacy’, Aspects was faced with great opposition and criticism during the Harlem Renaissance. Douglas, despite receiving praise for his euphoric and dignified portrayal of African American history, heritage and culture, also received great censure for his depiction in his mural series. Prior to the freedom of expression and cultural patriotism, it was rare for artists to use traditional African artwork for inspiration, however, as seen in Douglas’s work he took a personal chance and risk in using African heritage as the foundation of the murals theme through his Early Cubist-like style. Despite receiving negative criticism towards his work, Douglas’s Aspects of Negro Life series deeply reflects the continuous search of intrinsic African American identity, a foundation point of the Harlem Renaissance and New Negro Movement. Essentially, Douglas’s use of African themes simply worked to expedite the recognition and acknowledgment of African American culture though art.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Aaron Douglas’s Aspects of Negro Life, acts as an extremely strong political statement for civil rights in the United States of America. The visual evidence, shown within my formal analysis, demonstrates the political extent, particularly through the inclusion of musical iconography, colour gradation and geometric shapes, such as the repetition of the concentric circles. Although the mural series initially appears harmless, Douglas’ encompassment of the radical ideologies such as Marxism and communist symbolism, especially in the final two panels, provides a great deal of political defiance and opposition to the general state of racial affairs.

Word count: 3,961


19

(Fig. 27) Augusta Savage, ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing (The Harp)’, 1939


Bibliography • Bearden, R, & Henderson, H. ‘A History of African-American Artists: From 1972 to the

Present’. (New York: Pantheon. 1993.)

• Earle, S. ‘Harlem, Modernism, and Beyond: Aaron Douglas and His Role in Art/History’. ‘Aaron Douglas: African American Modernist’. (Yale University Press. 2007.)

• Erenberg, L. A. ‘Swingin’ the Dream: Big Band Jazz and the Rebirth of American Culture’. (University of Chicago Press. 1999)

• Hardy, S.L & Simmons, V. D. ‘Directors’ Foreword: Aaron Douglas: African American Modernist’. (Yale University Press. 2007.)

• Kirschke, A.H. ‘Aaron Douglas: Art, Race & The Harlem Renaissance’. (University Press of Mississippi: Jackson. 1995.)

• de Mille, C. ‘Music and Modernism c. 1849-1950’. (Cambridge Scholars Publishing. 2011)

• O’Meally, R.G. ‘The Jazz Cadence of American Culture’. (Columbia University Press. 1998)

• Stokstad, M & Cateforis, D. ‘Art History’. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. (Trenton: Prentice Hall. 2002.)

• ‘Aaron Douglas, Narratives of African American Art and Identity’ <http://www.driskellcenter.umd.edu/narratives/exhibition/sec2/doug_a_02.htm> [June 8th 2015]

• ‘Aaron Douglas’s Magisterial Aspects of Negro Life, Treasures of the New York Public Library’ <http://exhibitions.nypl.org/treasures/items/show/170> [May 25th 2015]

• ‘Aaron Douglas Teacher Resource’ <http://www.aarondouglas.ku.edu/resources/teacher_resource.pdf> [September 8th 2015]

• ‘The Civil Rights Movement’ <http://edition.cnn.com/EVENTS/1997/mlk/links.html> [September 8th 2015]

• ‘Kansas’ <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas> [August 13th 2015]

• ‘James Weldon Johnson’ <http://www.biography.com/people/james-weldon-johnson-9356013> [August 19th 2015]

• ‘Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division’ <http://www.nypl.org/locations/divisions/jbh-research-and-reference-division#!> [Accessed May 25th 2015]

• ‘Ku Klux Klan’ <http://www.britannica.com/topic/Ku-Klux-Klan> [August 19th 2015]

• ‘The History of Harlem’ <http://www.harlemheritage.com/history-of-harlem/> [April 30th 2015]

20


• ‘Hedjets’ <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedjet> [August 30th 2015]

• ‘Henri Matisse’ <http://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/tag/henri-matisse> [August 30th 2015]

• ‘Man at the Crossroads by Diego Rivera’. <http://www.diegorivera.org/man-at-the-crossroads.jsp> [August 24th 2015]

• ‘NAACP: A Century in the Fight for Freedom,The New Negro Movement’ <http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/naacp/the-new-negro-movement.html> [April 30th 2015]

• ‘Les Demoiselles d’Avignon’ <http://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/pablo-picasso-les-demoiselles-davignon-paris-june-july-1907> [Accessed July 30th 2015]

• ‘“Lift Every Voice and Sing” & Augusta Savage’s “The Harp”’<http://zocalopoets.com/2014/02/10/lift-every-voice-and-sing-augusta-savages-the-harp/> [Accessed September 18th 2015]

• ‘The Raft of Medusa’ <http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/raft-medusa> [September 13th 2015]

• ‘Robert Delaunay’ <https://www.centrepompidou.fr/cpv/rechercher.action> [Accessed September 13th 2015]

• ‘Sabbatical at the Schomburg’ <https://pages.wustl.edu/zafar/sabbatical-schomburg> [Accessed July 30th 2015]

21


Appendix

221. Timeline of Early Civil Rights Source: <http://edition.cnn.com/EVENTS/1997/mlk/links.html> [September 8th 2015]


23

2. Timeline of Aaron Douglas’ Life Source: <http://www.aarondouglas.ku.edu/resources/teacher_resource.pdf> [September 11th 2015]


3. Lift Every Voice and Sing

Lift every voice and sing, Till earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of Liberty; Let our rejoicing rise High as the list’ning skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea. Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won.

Stony the road we trod, Bitter the chast’ning rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, Have not our weary feet Come to the place for which our fathers sighed? We have come over a way that with tears has been watered. We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered, Out from the gloomy past, Till now we stand at last Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way; Thou who hast by Thy might, Led us into the light, Keep us forever in the path, we pray. Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee, Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee; Shadowed beneath Thy hand, May we forever stand, True to our God, True to our native land.

James Weldon Johnson

24

Source: <http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/lift-every-voice-and-sing> [September 11th 2015]

Extended Essay - entirely in French Dans quelle mesure le film Entre Les Murs, de François Bégadeau, rend compte du malaise des jeunes issus de l’immigration et de la faillite de l’école à les aider?

Word Count: 3999

Centre Name: Godolphin and LatymerCentre Number: 002194Candidate Name: Flavia Allegra GaldioloCandidate Number: 002194-0009

Flavia Allegra Galdiolo 002194-0009

1

Abstract

Cet essai s’axe sur les problèmes auxquels doivent faire face les jeunes vivants dans les banlieues défavorisées françaises en analysant le film Entre Les Murs. L’objectif est d’explorer la question: Dans quelle mesure le film Entre Les Murs, de François Bégadeau, rend compte du malaise des jeunes issus de l’immigration et de la faillite de l’école à les aider?

Pour répondre à la question, je me suis concentrée sur deux éléments que j’ai trouvés intéressants dans le film; tout d’abord le malaise des jeunes issus de l’immigration à travers le langage utilisé et ensuite la place du système éducatif. En utilisant le film, le site web du Ministère de l’Education Nationale et des dossiers cinématiques, j’ai pu explorer dans quelle mesure est-ce que les élèves dans les banlieues françaises sont privés d’une formation scolaire digne de celle à laquelle on pourrait s’attendre de toutes les écoles d’un pays qui a pour devise «Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité».

À travers l’analyse, j’ai conclu que le contexte scolaire du film apporte un éclairage sur la souffrance des enfants qui sont confrontés à un système éducatif qui ne fait qu’accentuer leur faillite scolaire et qui ne les aide pas à échapper au cycle de dégradation sociale dans lequel ils vivent. Toutefois, le manque de soutien pour améliorer des vies des enfants des banlieues difficiles ne vient pas seulement de l’école; malgré les quelques lumières d’espoir, le malaise réside dans l’absence de mesures d’intégrations sociales efficaces en France, chose qui empêche les enfants d’aujourd’hui de devenir les adultes dont la France sera fière demain.

Nombre de mots: 258


1

Abstract

Cet essai s’axe sur les problèmes auxquels doivent faire face les jeunes vivants dans les banlieues défavorisées françaises en analysant le film Entre Les Murs. L’objectif est d’explorer la question: Dans quelle mesure le film Entre Les Murs, de François Bégadeau, rend compte du malaise des jeunes issus de l’immigration et de la faillite de l’école à les aider?

Pour répondre à la question, je me suis concentrée sur deux éléments que j’ai trouvés intéressants dans le film; tout d’abord le malaise des jeunes issus de l’immigration à travers le langage utilisé et ensuite la place du système éducatif. En utilisant le film, le site web du Ministère de l’Education Nationale et des dossiers cinématiques, j’ai pu explorer dans quelle mesure est-ce que les élèves dans les banlieues françaises sont privés d’une formation scolaire digne de celle à laquelle on pourrait s’attendre de toutes les écoles d’un pays qui a pour devise «Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité».

À travers l’analyse, j’ai conclu que le contexte scolaire du film apporte un éclairage sur la souffrance des enfants qui sont confrontés à un système éducatif qui ne fait qu’accentuer leur faillite scolaire et qui ne les aide pas à échapper au cycle de dégradation sociale dans lequel ils vivent. Toutefois, le manque de soutien pour améliorer des vies des enfants des banlieues difficiles ne vient pas seulement de l’école; malgré les quelques lumières d’espoir, le malaise réside dans l’absence de mesures d’intégrations sociales efficaces en France, chose qui empêche les enfants d’aujourd’hui de devenir les adultes dont la France sera fière demain.

Nombre de mots: 258


2

Contenus Introduction p.3

Langage p.4 1.1 Langage Non-Parlant p.4

1.2 Langage des Enfants p.5

1.3 Barrières Linguistiques p.7

Education p.9 2.1 Lacune d’Apprentissage p.9 2.2 Professeurs Contre Élèves p.9

2.3 L’Espoir p.10

Conclusion p.12

Annexes p.13

Bibliographie p.16


3

Introduction

Le film-documentaire, Entre Les Murs, raconte l’histoire d’une classe de quatrième et de leur professeur au collège Françoise Dolto pendant une année scolaire. François Bégadeau, auteur du roman sur lequel le film est basé, joue le rôle du professeur de la classe et travaille avec le réalisateur, Laurent Cantet, pour produire un chef d’œuvre. Ils montrent la faillite du système éducatif et le microcosme de l’institution comme une réflexion d’une partie de la société française. En mettant en question les sentiments des enfants, ils jouent avec la langue pour illustrent la difficulté rencontrée par les enseignants pour améliorer les vies des enfants.

Le quartier dans lequel se trouve l’école est dans le XXème arrondissement de Paris, désigné ZEP (zone d’éducation prioritaire). L’objectif d’une ZEP est de «corriger l’impact des inégalités sociales et économiques sur la réussite scolaire par un renforcement de l’action pédagogique et éducative dans les écoles des territoires qui rencontrent les plus grandes difficultés sociales ».1

Pour analyser la question, je me concentrerai sur deux éléments que je trouve particulièrement révélateurs du film; le langage utilisé et la représentation du système éducatif. La façon dont ils sont montrés rend compte du malaise (défini ‘sensation pénible, mal localisé, d’un trouble physiologique’)2 des jeunes en vers leurs vies par le manque de participation au monde extérieur de l’école. On voit une jeunesse avec ses peurs et ses joies, une jeunesse vivante et une jeunesse plein de désespoirs aussi au sein des murs du collège. En analysant la question, on comprend dans quelle mesure l’importance du rôle joué par l’école dans les vies des enfants est essentielle dans leur formation et jusqu’à quel point un système éducatif en faillite les concerne. J’utiliserai Entre Les Murs pour essayer de montrer une partie de la France que les étrangers ne connaissent en mettant en lumière une France qui a besoin d’attention et une France négligée qui a besoin d’aide.

Je mentionne aussi que tous les acteurs, sauf Monsieur Marin étaient des vrais étudiants ou professeurs à l’école Françoise Dolto. C’est pour cela que le film me permettra d’analyser la situation du système éducatif; l’interprétation des personnages n’était pas de la fiction, mais les directeurs cinématographiques qui ont travaillé avec la spontanéité des enfants.

1 Ministère de l’Éducation nationale, ‘L’Éducation Prioritaire’, Le Système Educatif <http://www.education.gouv.fr/cid187/l-education-prioritaire.html> Février 2014 (Juin 2015) 2 Dictionnaires de français Larousse, ‘Malaise Définition’, Dictionnaires de français Larousse <http://www.larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais/malaise/48823> (Juin 2015)


4

1 : Langage

Le langage du film joue un rôle très important en illustrant la division entre les milieux sociaux du collège pour adresser un problème beaucoup plus grand existant dans les banlieues françaises. Représenté comme un des instruments des enfants pour se créer une identité, il décrit l’importance de la communication sous toutes ces formes. Entre Les Murs utilise la langue pas seulement comme une façon de proliférer tension entre les élèves et les professeurs, mais aussi comme un moyen de montrer une collaboration entre les deux quand on vit ensemble dans le vase clos de la classe. Le film est construit autour d’une joute verbale infinie et nous montre comment cet outil est le medium le plus important pour l’apprentissage.

1.1 Langage Non-Parlant

Constitué par des dialogues perpétuels, il y a peu de moments dans le film où on a laissé de l’espace pour le silence. Le film commence avec Bégadeau qui boit son café tout seul, mais après sa rentrée à l’école, il n’y aura plus ni une scène avec si peu de mots. Selon moi, Cantet et Bégadeau ont pris cette décision pour montrer que la clé pour l’apprentissage vient de la capacité d’être curieux et de pousser les limites du Français – car les langues sont éternellement en évolution – pour connaître le monde d’une perspective nouvelle. Cantet dit « Tout le film est construit autour du langage. J’avais envie de filmer ces joutes oratoires si fréquentes dans une salle de classe : peu importe la force et la pertinence des positions, ce qui compte avant tout, est d’avoir le dernier mot. »3. En outre, ces voix incessantes illustrent qu’il faut être en groupe pour stimuler les études des autres. Ça nous souligne l’importance de la langue dans le cadre scolaire – les questions incessantes posées par les élèves sont comme un match de tennis interminable et la supériorité réside avec celui qui a le dernier mot. A travers une langue provocatrice, les enfants veulent obtenir l’attention de leur professeur pour qu’il les valorise. De cette façon, avec les silences qui peuvent se compter sur les doigts d’une main, les réalisateurs nous présentent un aspect positif du collège – l’énergie de la jeunesse; une jeunesse vivante. Même si les réalisateurs essayent de dévoiler l’échec du système scolaire français à préparer ces élèves pour le monde après les études, ils apportent tout de même une lumière sur la détermination et la volonté des enfants en se définissant avec leur façon de parler. Cependant, cette indifférence vers la langue plus formelle caractérise aussi la difficulté des enfants à s’intégrer au-delà de l’école car ils s’identifient seulement au sein de leur groupe social. En même temps, on note clairement l’importance de la langue physique – c’est-à-dire les regards, les mouvements, les gestes, les apparences. Ça souligne l’inverse de ce qui a été mentionné précédemment car elle illustre la façon dont les jeunes expriment leur frustration à l’école. Souleymane qui se balance sur sa chaise, Arthur avec son style de vêtements gothiques et les filles qui se tiennent par les épaules;

3 Corre, Oliver, Rencontres cinématographiques pour la solidarité et la tolérance, Loudun, April 2009, p. 33


5

les actions des enfants illustrent très bien les difficultés des adolescents en train de se développer, comprendre la vie et trouver une place dans la société de leur pays. C’est clair que les efforts des enfants pour se définir, dans un cadre où tout le monde est traité de la même façon, ne sont pas reconnus. C’est ça l’origine du problème. Dans un pays ou la devise est ‘Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité’, le mot clé du malaise des jeunes vient de l’égalité. Même si c’est un trait positif, dans le contexte scolaire des banlieues défavorisés françaises, les enfants ont besoin d’une attention plus ciblée. Ils nécessitent d’être stimulés et pour ça il faut un soutien individuel de l’école, mais c’est un soutien que la France n’est pas prête à donner par manque de fonds. De cela, on comprend pourquoi il y a une telle indifférence en vers l’apprentissage par les enfants; ils ne voient pas le but de travailler sans percevoir l’effort mutuelle de la part des enseignants.

Le tatouage de Souleymane qui signifie «si ce que tu as à dire n’est pas plus important que le silence, alors tais toi»4 est indicatif de sa souffrance par rapport au système éducatif. A travers ces mots forts, Bégadeau nous montre le malaise du garçon face au collège car il n’est même pas capable d’exprimer ses sentiments à voix haute. Ici, le film met un accent sur la différence des vies des élèves à l’intérieur et à l’extérieur de l’école; dans la rue, ils sont traités comme des adultes et à l’école ils sont traités comme des enfants. Donc on voit la difficulté des gamins à comprendre leur rôle dans la société et comment l’école ne les aide non plus dans leur malaise à jongler les compétences dont ils ont besoin pour équilibrer ces deux vies. Par conséquent, on aperçoit dans quelle mesure le film illustre le malaise des jeunes issus de l’immigration: ils souffrent du manque d’une éducation qui devrait les préparer pour leur vie future mais qui en fait les prive de ce dont ils ont besoin.

1.2 Langage des enfants

Entre Les Murs nous indique la différence entre la langue parlée des enfants et celle des professeurs. La langue de la rue, le verlan et les expressions familières ne forment pas seulement une provocation pour le professeur, mais aussi une distinction prononcée entre les deux. Les enfants utilisent leur vocabulaire codifié même s’ils connaissent très bien les codes langagiers qui devraient être respectés en classe. Une hiérarchie est crée entre les différentes formes de français, ce qui stimule aussi la bataille infinie entre les professeurs et les élèves, pour établir qui a le plus de pouvoir dans la salle de classe. En plus, les enfants utilisent souvent des mots que les adultes ne peuvent pas comprendre, chose faite exprès pour que les professeurs se sentent exclus. Par conséquent, les enfants se donnent un statut en capturant l’attention de leurs enseignants et on amusant leurs copains. Un exemple c’est quand Monsieur Marin qualifie les attitudes de Louise et Esmeralda au conseil de classe de « pétasses ». Esmeralda utilise l’expression « péter un câble » 5 qui a été inventée par les jeunes comme un synonyme de « péter les plombs ». Voir Annexe A pour le dialogue.

4 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (00:53.06 - 00:53.12) 5 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (01:30.31 - 01:30.37)


6

Ça nous montre le manque de respect que les enfants ont vers leur professeur. On voit aussi comment un professeur en colère, consommé par la frustration, est capable d’insulter ses élèves au lieu de les aider à comprendre leurs torts. En outre, quand les enfants se trouvent en difficulté, la manière la plus simple de communiquer pour eux c’est le français populaire, chose qui est renforcé quand Boubacar et Souleymane demandent à Marin s’il est homosexuel; «Vas-y-mon frère, vas-y arrête de faire le keume!»6 De cette façon, Cantet et Bégadeau justifient le malaise des jeunes en illustrant l’incapacité des professeurs et des enfants aussi à gérer les situations difficiles. Donc c’est une autre raison pour la faillite de l’école à éduquer ses gamins à faire face de manière respectable aux situations difficiles.

En plus, le manque de maitrise de la langue française standard justifie la difficulté des enfants à s’intégrer dans la société française.

L’immigration vers l’Hexagone a été très élevée après la seconde mondiale et donc la population nouvelle exigeait une augmentation d’espace, chose qui a été seulement possible dans les périphéries des villes. Ce mélange de cultures est un trait caractéristique des banlieues et c’est pour cela que les différentes expressions et accents se fusent pour produire une langue nouvelle, parfois appelée le verlan, d’autres fois connue comme l’argot. On pourrait dire que cette langue a été créé par les jeunes, vu le fait qu’ils la transforment, l’adaptent et la façonnent selon eux. Bernard Lamizet, professeur de Sciences de l’Information et de la Communication à l’Institut d’Études Politiques de Lyon, a défini le langage des jeunes comme « l’ensemble de pratiques symboliques mises en œuvre dans les lieux où se reconnaissent les jeunes ».7 On peut ainsi dire que pour eux c’est un moyen de s’exprimer, de se reconnaître et de se donner une appartenance sociale. C’est-à-dire qu’ils se sentent faire partie de quelque chose de plus grand qu’eux. Cela leur donne l’assurance et la force dont ils ont besoin pour vivre dans des situations sociales parfois très dures. Par exemple, quand Monsieur Marin demande à Esmeralda si elle est française, elle répond « En fait, je suis française mais j’suis pas fière de l’être »8. De ça, on comprend donc que les jeunes issues de l’immigration ne s’identifient pas avec la France, mas avec leur pays d’origine et donc ils ne font pas un effort pour s’intégrer. Ça explique leur malaise face à l’école car ils trouvent inutile d’apprendre dans un contexte dans lequel ils ne font pas partie mentalement.

En outre, les origines sont importantes dans le film car ils créent une appartenance des enfants à leurs pays respectifs; cela devient soit un élément que les unifie, soit une autre raison pour se disputer. L’écart entre la France que voit Monsieur Marin et la France que voient les enfants est souligné par les noms que le professeur considère « normaux ». Khoumba, lui demandant, «Et pourquoi vous arrêtez pas de mettre des « Bill »…toujours des noms bizarres»9 met en évidence cette différence et le fait que ses choix ne représentent ni la diversité des élèves de 6 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008 (00:20.54) 7 Lamizet, Bernard, Y a-t-il un ‘parler jeune’?, in Cahiers de sociolinguistique no9, Presses universitaires de Rennes, 2004, p.75 8 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (00:12.29 - 00:12.49) 9 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (00:12.13)


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la classe, ni des habitants du pays. De cela, on voit la faillite de l’école à arriver à intégrer les élèves à la France car ils se sentent exclus du pays où ils habitent même quand ils étudient. Les enfants se démarquent l’un de l’autre avec les équipes de football qu’ils supportent, les vêtements qu’ils portent et comment ils écrivent leurs noms quand l’année commence. Au contraire, pour se distinguer du reste du pays, ils s’identifient dans la manière dont ils parlent et donc c’est une façon de proliférer les tensions entre eux et la France. Ainsi, le malaise des jeunes dans le film ne sera jamais éliminé car la formation que leur est donné par l’école n’est pas adaptée à leurs besoins; ils ont besoin de beaucoup d’attention individuelle et beaucoup de stimulation.

1.3 Barrières Linguistiques

Les barrières linguistiques sont évidentes parce qu’elles sont une des principales raisons pour expliquer le malaise des personnages. Wei, un enfant chinois, souffre particulièrement de son incapacité à s’exprimer comme les autres. Dans son autoportrait, il écrit « J’ai du mal à articuler le français des fois et tellement du mal à exprimer que cela empêche les autres de comprendre, et c’est une des raisons que je communique moins avec les autres »10. Le fait qu’il sent qu’il peut communiquer moins avec les autres affecte directement ses études. Comme j’ai souligné avant; la langue est le medium le plus important pour l’apprentissage. Avec cette difficulté, le garçon est immédiatement isolé du reste de la classe, il se sent toujours exclus et donc il n’a même pas le sentiment d’appartenance à l’argot que ses copains ont. C’est ça le malaise aussi – l’incapacité d’interagir en raison du manque d’estime de soi. C’est cela que devrait lui être donné par l’école. Dans l’ensemble, l’école est beaucoup plus prête à apprendre le français, les maths et les sciences, alors que l’école devrait être fondée sur la personne, c’est-à-dire de donner confiance aux enfants qui pourront ainsi affronter leur avenir avec courage et positivité. Dans les banlieues françaises, ce n’est pas le cas.

Un autre personnage affecté par les barrières linguistiques est la mère de Souleymane. La maîtrise d’une langue est nécessaire pour l’intégration sociale et l’incapacité de communiquer avec les autres habitants d’un pays réduit d’une manière significative les chances d’une amélioration de vie. Lors de la soirée parents-professeurs de Souleymane, on voit comment avoir un parent qui ne parle pas la langue du pays dans lequel on habite à des résonnances graves sur le comportement du garçon. Dès que ça se passe, on comprend la frustration qu’on sent de ne pas pouvoir discuter dans la même langue. On voit l’incapacité d’une mère à suivre les études de son fils et le malaise du fils à grandir sans un point de référence. On voit également, la faillite de l’école à aider les enfants qui ont besoin de plus d’attention. En décidant d’ignorer les exigences individuelles des élèves, l’école ignore aussi son devoir d’améliorer leur vie et de les aider à échapper au cycle de dégradation dans lequel ils habitent. Quand un enfant qui est au bord d’être 10 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (00:49.04 - 00:49.15)


8

expulsé dit «Je m’en fous moi, j’ai rien à dire. Faites, voilà, faites!»11, on comprend sa manque de confiance en soi et en l’école à l’aider à améliorer sa vie pour un avenir meilleur. C’est cela l’éducation que ces enfants reçoivent, une éducation sans espoir, mal adaptée à leurs besoins.

11 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (01:48.06 - 01:48.17)


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2 : Éducation

Le rôle de l’école est de munir les enfants de compétences et de les éduquer pas seulement avec les connaissances dictées par l’état, mais aussi de leur donner le courage de pouvoir entrer dans le monde adulte avec confiance et détermination. Le film nous ouvre les portes sur une réalité critique. Dans les banlieues dites prioritaires, le manque de compétences que les enfants reçoivent, le manque d’inspiration qui leurs est donné et le manque de confiance dans leur succès illustre pourquoi ce pays a tant de problèmes liés à l’intégration sociale et raciale et trop peu de solutions pour aider ses minorités en difficulté.

2.1 Lacune d’Apprentissage

Cette section repose sur la divergence entre ce qui est enseigné aux enfants et ce dont ils auraient besoin d’apprendre pour un avenir meilleur. L’exemple le plus révélateur de cette réalité c’est dans la leçon avec l’imparfait et l’indicatif du subjonctif. Certainement, dans un cours de français, il faut que les élèves apprennent la langue standard avec ses règles et la façon dont laquelle elles sont requises pour écrire et pour parler d’une manière plus formelle que le langage courant. Cependant, la discussion qui a lieu sur cette partie de la grammaire illustre le disfonctionnement de l’éducation en zones prioritaires. Voir Annexe B pour la discussion de la leçon.12

On comprend donc pourquoi les enfants des banlieues ont autant d’hostilité vers l’apprentissage des différents registres du français. Ils se sentent à l’aise avec ce qu’ils connaissent déjà car leur façon de parler les unifie et leur donne l’impression d’appartenir à quelque chose. Les élèves savent bien qu’utiliser un temps plus « snob »13, comme Monsieur Marin appelle l’imparfait du subjonctif, peut mettre en danger leur statut dans leur groupe d’amis en raison de se sentir supérieur d’eux. Toutefois la connaissance du langage, avec ses formes plus soutenues, est indispensable pour réussir à évoluer au sein des différentes classes sociales. Pour qu’un pays puisse se développer, il faut de la diversité, et pour qu’il y ait de la diversité, il faut des mesures d’intégration efficaces pour créer des enfants plus tolérants et plus ouverts d’esprit. L’école est le véhicule parfait pour la transmission des idées, particulièrement la tolérance, et en échouant à créer un environnement sans jugements, l’école faillit à la création d’un pays sans discrimination.

2.2 Professeurs Contre Élèves

Dans le film, les professeurs et les élèves sont illustrés comme deux équipes qui travaillent dans leurs groupes respectifs pour se soutenir. Les élèves sont présentés comme des individus qui essayent de se définir parmi leurs copains de classe. La caméra filme toujours les enfants assis en classe alors que seul Monsieur Marin se tient debout. Ça nous montre l’autorité qu’il a sur sa classe, même si souvent elle 12 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (00:17.23 - 00:18.48) 13 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (00:19.06)


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peut sembler inexistante! En revanche, les professeurs sont toujours filmés de haut. Quand monsieur Marin est interrogé par une autre professeure sur le fait qu’il a traité ses élèves de «pétasses», on voit les deux debout. Ça nous montre que le pouvoir vient de ce qui est plus haut, ce qui semble plus grand.

Du film, on comprend aussi la difficulté des professeurs face aux élèves pour essayer de créer une atmosphère digne de travail. Leurs tentatives de créer un cours stimulant et intéressant pour les enfants sont constamment ébranlés par le besoin d’imposer la discipline sur des élèves fréquemment ingérables. En donnant la liberté d’expression à ses enfants pendant un de ses cours, Monsieur Marin se trouve au centre d’une dispute entre Karl, Boubacar et Souleymane qui commence avec le football et finit par le renvoi chez le CEP de Souleymane. Voir Annexe C pour la dispute.14

Ce type de discussion a lieu plusieurs fois pendant le film. Les enseignants n’ont plus de control sur la classe quand les autres enfants décident de participer pour envenimer les choses et pour s’amuser, comme Esmeralda quand elle crie « Ah, il est vexé! »15qui fait répondre Souleymane avec vulgarité. Ces situations s’envolent très rapidement et c’est difficile pour un professeur de ne pas se sentir opprimé pas trente enfants. C’est clair aussi que l’espace laissé à la créativité devient limité par le comportement des enfants et donc, ils limitent aussi leurs possibilités d’échapper à la croyance que l’école est inutile. Souleymane, en se levant après sa discussion avec Karl, crée une atmosphère hostile pour le reste de la classe. Il se lève pour être au même niveau que son copain, qui est déjà debout, et pour sembler plus agressif. On voit comme les enfants copient les adultes pour qu’ils puissent sentir qu’être debout leur donne le même pouvoir que les professeurs. Egalement, Monsieur Marin fait lever ses élèves pour parler devant de la classe, ce qui nous montre ses efforts de leur faire comprendre que le pouvoir réside aussi avec ce qui est respecté, pas justement avec celui qui crie le plus fort. C’est cela l’Éducation. Malheureusement à Dolto ce sont des leçons très précieuses pour les adolescents mais de leçons trop peu enseignées par les professeurs. On comprend que le comportement provoquant des enfants vient de leur malaise de ne pas pouvoir contrôler leurs émotions. On voit donc un problème de plus en plus grand qui vient principalement du manque de soutien des collèges français pour ce public bien particulier - il nécessite un enseignement incluant un soutien moral et psychologique dans l’intérêt de tous.

2.3 L’Espoir

Même si on voit un mauvais côté du collège, on apprend aussi qu’il y a de l’espoir pour les enfants. Les professeurs font tous leur possible pour leur donner une éducation digne de celle qu’ils méritent. Souleymane, l’enfant qui à la fin de l’année sera expulsé par le collège, réussit aussi à produire le meilleur autoportrait. De cette façon, on voit comment l’utilisation des ordinateurs peut donner aux enfants

14 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (01:17.17 - 01:17.46) 15 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (01:17.49)


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l’inspiration et le vouloir de travailler. Sur le fond, le film nous montre aussi bien la preuve de l’échec du système que la possibilité d’un autre enseignement plus égalitaire. Des fonds en supplémentaire pour aider les élèves à s’intéresser a leurs matières peuvent faire la différence entre des enfants indifférents et des enfants engagés dans leurs études. En plus, le rêve d’Esmeralda qui écrit « plus tard, je voudrais être policière parce que les gens disent qu’ils n’y a que des mauvais policiers, alors ils en font des bons »16 indique qu’ici aussi il y a de bons enfants. Malgré tout, ces jeunes ont de l’espoir, des ambitions; vivantes et énergétiques; ingérables et épuisantes parfois, ce sont des enfants avec la volonté de vivre en dépit du malaise pernicieux dans lequel ils vivent. On voit tout de même qu’au fond d’eux, ils ont la capacité d’avoir le courage d’affronter la vie.

En outre, on voit la solidarité des adultes par rapport aux élèves pour aider la mère de Wei quand elle se fait arrêter par la police. Une des professeurs propose « faire une quête qu’on se mobilise tous, donc de, de voir après si on n’pouvait pas aller au tribunal pour avoir une action quelconque pour essayer de leur influencer leur jugement »17. Aussi le fait qu’un autre professeur annonce qu’elle est enceinte et souhaite que son fils soit aussi intelligent que Wei nous montre l’intimité qui existe entre élèves-professeurs et leur respect sous-jacent derrière une apparente hostilité. Cela souligne l’admiration qu’ils ont pour le courage que certains enfants doivent avoir pour pouvoir survivre dans les conditions qui leurs sont imposées.

16 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (00:48.15 - 00:48.24) 17 Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008, (01:09.50 - 01:10.06)


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Conclusion

Pour conclure, le film Entre Les Murs illustre très bien le malaise des jeunes issus de l’immigration.

Le contexte scolaire et le thème de l’appartenance apportent un éclairage sur la souffrance des enfants en face d’un système éducatif injuste qui manque des outils nécessaires pour leur faire comprendre qu’il y a de l’espoir pour leurs vies futures.

Quel futur? Malgré cette analyse seulement du langage dans le film et de la faillite de l’école, le problème du malaise des enfants issus de l’immigration va beaucoup plus loin que ça. L’école ne représente pas toute la société française. C’est la faillite du gouvernement de ne pas donner suffisamment d’importance à la formation des enfants des ZEP en France. Le problème réside dans le fait qu’à l’école, les enfants issus de l’immigration ne sont pas stimulés assez pour leur donner la confiance de terminer leurs études et d’avoir les mêmes chances de succès que les autres enfants français. Le problème réside aussi dans le fait que la discrimination des immigrants est toujours prévalente en France, que donc il n y a pas suffisamment de mesures d’intégration pour les étudiants et leurs parents aussi. Le problème commence depuis le début – dès qu’ils sont nés, les vies des enfants issus de l’immigration sont destinées à rester piégées dans un cycle sans espoir pour un futur sans vision. La France est en train de faillir sa nouvelle génération qui pourrait avoir la possibilité d’améliorer le pays mais y est freinée injustement.

Nombre de mots : 3,978


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Annexes

Annexe A : la conversation qui a lieu entre Monsieur Marin et Esmeralda après le conseil de classe.

François Marin Moi, j’suis désolé, mais rire comme ça… Louise Quoi! François Marin …moi aussi je suis désolé – en plein conseil de classe, c’est ce que j’appelle une attitude de pétasses. Esmeralda Eh, mais vous pêtez un câble ou quoi? – c’est grave!

Annexe B : La discussion qui a lieu dans le cours de Français sur l’indicatif et l’imparfait du subjonctif.

François Marin Si je veux construire un imparfait du subjonctif, je vais faire une concordance de temps. Je vais mettre un passé la « il fallait que je », Khoumba ?

Khoumba Fusse!

Esmeralda Mais vous croyez vraiment que j’vas aller voir ma mère je dirais « il fallut que je sois fusse » la ! Qu’est-ce qu’elle va comprendre?...Mais, euh, ça se dit pas dans la vie, j’sais pas.

Après, ils continuent avec:

François Marin Est-ce que je peux répondre à la question qui m’est posée? Si ça vous intéresse vraiment, la première chose que je constate c’est qu’avant même de maitriser un savoir en le courant de l’imparfait du subjonctif, vous êtes déjà en train de me dire que ce sert à rien. Commences par le maitriser et après vous pourriez mettre en cause de comment ça s’utilise.

Fille Monsieur! Monsieur! C’est que ils ont raison parce que c’est pas pareil que notre langage de maintenant, excusez moi ça c’était avant, même ma grand-mère elle parlait pas comme ça!

Boubacar Même ton arrière-grand-père il utilisait pas ça!


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Fille Mais voilà! C’est pareil!

Boubacar Mais ça, ça s’utilisait dans le Moyen Âge ça!

François Marin Mais non c’est pas dans le Moyen Âge.

Boubacar Bah si euh!

Khoumba C’est les Bourgeoises!

Boubacar Nous on peut pas se mettre à dire ça, on est des gens de la rue! On va dire ça et ils nous appellent stupides.

Annexe C : La dispute entre Karl, Boubacar et Souleymane qui commence avec le football et finit par le renvoi chez le CEP de Souleymane.

Karl Regard, regard les jens qu’on a, il y a Thierry Henry, y a Wiltord, y a Abidal, y a Thuram

Souleymane Eh, t’as oublié Diarra, il est où Diarra?

Karl Eh, Diarra déjà mon frère, il va jamais aller au Mali…

Souleymane …No, no, déjà, déjà, déjà, ferme ta gueule déjà mon gars, j’suis pas ton frère mon gars, mais t’est ouf toi! Frère a un macaque au moins!

François Marin Et allés, ça va…

Souleymane Mais ferme ta gueule toi!

François Marin On va discuter calmement!

Souleymane Il fait d’arriver, il commence à faire déjà le grande, va t’assoir sur ta chaise

Karl Ferme ta bouche toi!


15

François Marin C’est pas une coupe d’insultes, c’est de l’argumentation!


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Bibliographie

Corre, Oliver, Rencontres cinématographiques pour la solidarité et la tolérance, Loudun, April 2009, p. 33

Dictionnaires de français Larousse, ‘Malaise Définition’, Dictionnaires de français Larousse <http://www.larousse.fr/dictionnaires/francais/malaise/48823> (Juin 2015)

Entre Les Murs, [DVD], Artificial Eye, France, 2008

Lamizet, Bernard, Y a-t-il un ‘parler jeune’?, in Cahiers de sociolinguistique no9, Presses universitaires de Rennes, 2004, p.75

Ministère de l’Éducation nationale, ‘L’Éducation Prioritaire’, Le Système Educatif <http://www.education.gouv.fr/cid187/l-education-prioritaire.html> Février 2014 (Juin 2015)

Extended Essay - damnation in Macbeth and Dr Faustus

How do Marlowe and Shakespeare dramatise the theme of damnation in Doctor Faustus and Macbeth

Word Count: 3803

Centre Name: Godolphin and LatymerCentre Number: 002194Candidate Name: Victoria PainesCandidate Number: 002194 0022

Victoria Paines 0021940022

Abstract: Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus and Shakespeare’s Macbeth are dramatically compelling tragedies which explore the downfall of two very different protagonists. Their condemnation to Hell and the actions which cause this have gripped audiences for centuries; but the extent to which they use the same or different techniques to portray damnation is fascinating. Thus, this essay focuses on the dramatic devices used by the playwrights to answer:

‘How do Marlowe and Shakespeare dramatise the theme of damnation in Doctor Faustus and Macbeth?’

In order to examine such complex tragedies effectively, I selected key passages from both plays and explored them separately to identify the devices used by the dramatists. Having investigated them for their methods of presentation of damnation, I conducted research into the contemporary audience's understanding of theological damnation as well as the religious background of the plays. This involved the use of both primary and secondary sources, and Diarmaid MacCulloch’s A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years supplied vital historical information. In order to explore further the conclusions which I had drawn on the plays, I read a wide variety of criticism on the texts, focusing on the most recent interpretations, to decide to what extent I agreed or disagreed with the arguments of the critics. Having considered both plays independently of one another, and fully appreciated the diversity of techniques within each, I compared the playwright’s methods and underlying approaches to the dramatisation of damnation. I finally concluded that, while the plays follow a similar pattern (and presentation) of damnation at first, there was a fundamental divergence at the initial damnable actions Faustus’ Satanic contract and Macbeth’s murder of Duncan. The subsequent dissimilarity of the drama demonstrates the differing underlying intentions of the playwrights and structures of the plays. Word Count: 292

1


Abstract: Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus and Shakespeare’s Macbeth are dramatically compelling tragedies which explore the downfall of two very different protagonists. Their condemnation to Hell and the actions which cause this have gripped audiences for centuries; but the extent to which they use the same or different techniques to portray damnation is fascinating. Thus, this essay focuses on the dramatic devices used by the playwrights to answer:

‘How do Marlowe and Shakespeare dramatise the theme of damnation in Doctor Faustus and Macbeth?’

In order to examine such complex tragedies effectively, I selected key passages from both plays and explored them separately to identify the devices used by the dramatists. Having investigated them for their methods of presentation of damnation, I conducted research into the contemporary audience's understanding of theological damnation as well as the religious background of the plays. This involved the use of both primary and secondary sources, and Diarmaid MacCulloch’s A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years supplied vital historical information. In order to explore further the conclusions which I had drawn on the plays, I read a wide variety of criticism on the texts, focusing on the most recent interpretations, to decide to what extent I agreed or disagreed with the arguments of the critics. Having considered both plays independently of one another, and fully appreciated the diversity of techniques within each, I compared the playwright’s methods and underlying approaches to the dramatisation of damnation. I finally concluded that, while the plays follow a similar pattern (and presentation) of damnation at first, there was a fundamental divergence at the initial damnable actions Faustus’ Satanic contract and Macbeth’s murder of Duncan. The subsequent dissimilarity of the drama demonstrates the differing underlying intentions of the playwrights and structures of the plays. Word Count: 292

1


Table of Contents:

Introduction p.3 The Theological context and its effect on the theme of damnation p.4 Faustus: Choosing Damnation p.5 Faustus and the signing of the contract p.7 Faustus and the final reckoning p.9 Macbeth at the beginning of the play p.11 The murder of Duncan p.13 Macbeth’s selfknowledge: fatalism and nihilism p.16 Conclusion p.18 Bibliography p.21

2


Introduction

Unknown, eternal punishment and an omniscient, omnipotent judge. It is easy to see

why this theme of dreadful, neverending punishment as a consequence of human

action captivated Marlowe’s and Shakespeare’s contemporary audiences. The

combination of a human thrill derived from the spectacle of danger and the intensely

turbulent religious milieu of the time meant that ‘mankind’s pathway to perdition’

(Ryan, 2002, p.89) was a popular topic for the ‘mirror held up to reality’ (Bertolt

Brecht) that is, the stage.

Damnation, or the condemnation to eternal suffering in Hell, was one of the key

theological doctrines which remained despite England’s change from Catholicism to

Protestantism during the English Reformation (an event which brought religious

issues such as the afterlife, due to the discarding of Catholic ideas of Purgatory and

indulgences, to the fore in the minds of an already intensely religious people). What

was uncertain, in all the religious debate, was exactly how a mere mortal was

damned or saved.

The two greatest playwrights of the day, Marlowe and Shakespeare take the issue of

perdition as an underlying theme in the two great tragedies: Doctor Faustus (1592)

and Macbeth (1606). Both these plays chart the eponymous protagonists’ journeys

from pillars of their respective communities to damned souls. Given the playwrights’

shared early modern context, it is most interesting to examine these plays side by

side. Thus this essay will (with first Doctor Faustus, then Macbeth) analyse a number

of key scenes which demonstrate ‘How Marlowe and Shakespeare dramatise the

theme of damnation in Doctor Faustus and Macbeth’ in order ultimately to determine

the similarity or difference of the dramatists’ methods.

3


The Theological context and its effect on the theme of

damnation

An understanding of postReformation theological nuances is crucial to appreciating

this theme. Reflecting the change from Catholicism to Protestantism, pejorative

references to the Pope as the antichrist feature in Faustus (Scene 7) and to Jesuits

as equivocators in Macbeth (2:3), but also important are Calvinist concepts and

Protestant individualism.

Many critics categorise Doctor Faustus as an ‘engagement … with the exigencies of

late Sixteenth century Calvinism’ (Streete, 2001, p.141): its setting is the town of

‘Wittenberg’, verballyhomogenous to the Calvinist stronghold of ‘Wurttemburg’

(Riggs, 2014, pp.231248); and its dramatisation of the consequence (damnation) of

striving for ‘such things as God would have kept secret’ (Perkins, cited in Pinciss,

1993, p.254), namely deistic aspirations which were analysed by Cambridge

University’s Calvinist preacher, William Perkins, whom Marlowe would have known

(Pinciss, 1993, p.251). Marlowe’s scrutiny of ‘conjuration’ (Guenther, 2011, p.47), the

papal AntiChrist (Scene 7), the ‘doctrine of absolute predestination’ (Pinciss, 1993,

p.252), which was a fundamental Calvinist belief (Macculloch, 2010, p.634), and the

lack of mention of Purgatory, are also cited in support of this view.

Some critics also argue that Macbeth represents a ‘Calvinist world’ (Parry cited in

Poole, 2011, p.262), and a ‘bleak Calvinist view’ (Stachniewski cited in Poole, 2011,

p.262). However it has far fewer of the hallmarks of this major branch of

Protestantism than its Marlovian counterpart. Despite this, it was certainly influenced

by Protestant ideas, in particular the concept of individualism. This was central to the

4


Reformation, as the authorised English text of the 1568 ‘Bishops’ Bible’ allowed

Anglicans direct access to the scriptures, and the rejection of the priest’s

intermediary role in liturgy allowed direct communion with God. In Elizabethan and

Jacobean dramas, the popularisation of soliloquies was in harmony with this religious

change. Thus Macbeth has been described as ‘the tragedy of a man driven … to

become a savage individualist’ (Ryan, 2002, p.90).

However, most crucially for both plays, for the contemporary audience ‘of any faith,

the unrepentant sinner was damned’ (Myrick, 1941, p.224).

Faustus: Choosing Damnation

Doctor John Faustus is introduced to the audience as a man ‘excelling all’

(Prologue), yet, almost immediately, he sells his soul to the devil, embarking on a

lifestyle routed to the pits of Hell. Marlowe’s dramatisation of this journey begins by

establishing his protagonist’s hubris the characteristic which makes him capable of

this choice using language demonstrating overweening pride, relating Faustus to

the damned and so foreshadowing his satanic contract;

Why Faustus, hast thou not attained that end?

Is not thy common talk found aphorisms? (1:189)

This expert use of rhetorical selfquestioning relies on Marlowe’s audience’s

knowledge of Hippocrates’ works (‘Aphorisms’) subtly to demonstrate Faustus’

conceit, in equating himself to the greatest physician. Faustus’ certainty in his

superiority affects his discussion of Hell with Mephistophilis, a horrifying exchange for

the audience. In his time a belief in Hell was universal and standardised: a physical

location of deepest torment. Marlowe, however, modifies this compellingly ‘Why this

is hell, nor am I out of it.’ (3:77) into a psychological condition.

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The playwright further toys with the audience’s learnt fears in Mephistophilis’

cry of personal anguish;

Think’st thou that I, who saw the face of God,

And tasted the eternal joys of heaven,

Am not tormented with ten thousand hells

In being deprived of everlasting bliss! (3:7881)

This depiction of Mephistophilis’ fall is powerfully dramatic, starkly highlighting the

central issue: salvation or damnation, Heaven versus Hell, and makes Faustus’

deliberate selection of Hell mystifying to the audience. The triviality of Faustus’

response appears beyond foolish in this context:

Learn thou of Faustus manly fortitude,

And scorn these joys thou never shalt possess. (3:867)

Faustus’ attempt at didacticism highlights his prideful attitude and his apparent

awareness, yet actual incomprehension, of the true consequences of his actions: a

realisation saved for the climactic final scene.

Marlowe manipulates the audience’s fear through Mephistophilis’ own terror,

for how horrific must Hell be, if it reduces a devil to begging:

O Faustus, leave these frivolous demands,

Which strike a terror to my fainting soul. (3:823)

This informs our judgement of Faustus as his vaunted scholarship is subtly

undermined by Marlowe for instance his misquotation of famous biblical texts.

Faustus justifies his selection of Lucifer over God by reference to the severe

punishment of sin:

Stipendium peccati mors est: ha! Stipendium, etc.

The reward of sin is death? That’s hard. …

What doctrine call you this? (1:3947)

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but quotes only the text’s ‘harsh’ opening, omitting the reference to salvation which

follows ‘but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.’ (Romans

6.23, King James Bible) His contemporary audience would know the omitted portion,

and so Marlowe ingeniously presents Faustus as a man superficially learned but

without true theological understanding, and so with capacity for ultimate damnation.

Faustus and the signing of the contract

In this pivotal scene (Scene 5), Faustus signs his soul away to Lucifer, an appalling

step on the road to damnation. Marlowe dramatises this effectively for his

religiouslyobservant audience with Christian parody. Faustus concludes his contract

saying ‘Consummatum est ’ (Scene 5, 74), Christ’s last words before He died to

redeem humanity’s sins thus ensuring salvation and life after death. Faustus’

perversion of them characterises him as a quasiantiChrist as the Pope is later

depicted (Scene 11). Further distortions of Christian ideas are the substitution of sin

and a devil for God,

The god thou servest is thine own appetite

Wherein is fixed the love of Belzebub. (Scene 5, 112)

and invocation of pagan methods of veneration,

To him I’ll build an altar and a church,

And offer lukewarm blood of newborn babes. (Scene 5, 134)

Similar to the slaughter of the children in Macbeth (Act 4, Scene 2), the Herodian

connotations show Marlowe’s manipulation of the audience’s religious convictions to

anathematize Faustus.

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Marlowe also uses internal and external conflict to portray the enormity of the

decision to sin and Faustus’ culpability. As in the final scene of the play, Faustus

argues with himself,

Ay, and Faustus will turn to God again.

To God? He loves thee not: (Scene 5, 910)

This internal conflict is personified in the Good and Evil Angels,

GOOD ANGEL

Sweet Faustus, think of heaven, and heavenly things.

EVIL ANGEL

No Faustus, think of honour and of wealth (Scene 5, 201)

and keeps open the possibility of Faustus’ redemption, thus maintaining tension and

audience engagement throughout the play.

However, this debate also highlights Marlowe’s continuing emphasis on Faustus’

sinful nature: the last word always goes to either the Evil Angel, or the part of

Faustus which favours the Devil. He also ignores many signs warning him against

proscribed actions. In a method akin to Shakespeare’s, these involve a revolt of his

own body which attempts to prevent his perditious deeds; for instance,

my blood congeals and I can write no more. (Scene 5, 62)

A particular parallel with Macbeth, is that his ears and eyes deceive him,

O something soundeth in mine ears:

‘Abjure this magic, turn to God again’. (Scene 5, 78)

But what is this inscription on mine arm? …

My senses are deceived, here’s nothing writ;

I see it plain, here in this place is writ,

Homo fuge! (Scene 5, 7681)

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Faustus is forewarned; yet he proceeds. This deliberate choice recalls Calvin’s

teaching on the biblical text (Hebrews 10:26) of the damning consequences of

knowingly rejecting faith (Calvin Commentaries). Faustus is preoccupied with the

earthly, not immortal; unlike Macbeth who describes his soul as ‘mine eternal jewel’

(3:1:67), Faustus’ soul is just another possession in a list: after twentyfour years, the

devils may take his

body and soul, flesh, blood, or goods, into their habitation (Scene 5, 10910).

This cold, businesslike language both trivialises the enormity of the contract (which

the audience would recognise) and demonstrates Faustus’ wilful disregard of the

consequences.

Faustus and the final reckoning

Doctor Faustus’ final scene must have been a truly terrifying theatrical spectacle in

the Sixteenth Century, encompassing the apparition of devils, eleventhhour

repentance, and heartrending human desperation, in an enthralling climax which

provides the longawaited answer to whether or not Faustus can be saved. Marlowe

leaves Faustus’ consignment to Hell to the play’s final moments, and emphasises

his continuing doubt by the blunt repetition of ‘if’:

Gentlemen, farewell. If I live till morning, I’ll visit you; if

not, Faustus is gone to hell. (Scene 13, 567)

Stage directions give insight into the effects designed to enhance the shocking

spectacle: ‘Thunder and Lightning’ (Scene 13) and the ominous ‘Enter devils’ (Scene

13) frightened the audience so much, there were rumours of the apparition of ‘an

extra devil’ (Cox, 2000, p.125). The motif of the clock (an insistent and repeated

auditory device) ‘the clock strikes’ (Scene 13), neatly partitions the scene, increasing

9


tension and focusing the audience on time’s ineluctable progression, against which

Faustus fights so emotively in this quote from Ovid’s Amores,

O lente, lente currite noctis equi (Scene 13, 68)

Passionate language characterises this final scene:

O I’ll leap up to my God! Who pulls me down?

See, see where Christ’s blood streams in the firmament!

One drop would save my soul, half a drop: ah my Christ (Scene 13, 713)

Through repetition, impassioned language and the highly emotive issue (the

possibility of redemption by Christ’s Passion) Marlowe captivates the audience in this

deeply theological and deeply disturbing discussion of when the point of no return

has been reached. He effectively juxtaposes hellfire with the celestial alternative

offered by the Old Man (Scene 12), putting the means of his salvation ‘Christ’s

blood’ in Faustus’ speech (Scene 13, 72) and a ‘vial full of precious grace’ (Scene 12,

45) in the Old Man’s at an unattainable distance, removing it from ‘o’er thy head’

(Scene 12, 44) to the ‘firmament’ (Scene 13, 72). This adroit use of the Old Man as a

foil for the sinful Faustus is a literary device reemphasising the reason for Faustus’

damnation: an insufficient belief in God’s mercy.

Thus, Marlowe presents the inevitable conclusion to his protagonist’s psychological

inability to repent. The words of the Evil Angel ring true and it is ‘too late’ (Scene 5,

253); suggesting that Faustus was predestined to damnation.

Macbeth at the beginning of the play

The opening of the play, presents Macbeth as both a “valiant cousin! worthy

gentleman!” (1:2:24) and a man who can “memorize another Golgotha” (1:2:41). This

complexity is perhaps the first of Shakespeare’s methods to dramatise his

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damnation. Golgotha (the site of Christ’s crucifixion), is a horrendous description for

the original audience and so, immediately, they are aware of darkness within

Macbeth, illustrative of his potential as a damned soul. Shakespeare further links

Macbeth with sin through association with the witches. The Weird Sisters are given

the first mention of Macbeth and his language echoes theirs, for instance he

unconsciously repeats the witches’ famous line,

So foul and fair a day I have not seen. (1:3:38)

This affinity between Macbeth and dark magic (a force incompatible with Christianity

and a virtuous life) would have had especial impact, given the new King James’

obsession with ‘demonologie’ which sparked fear and persecution of supposed

‘witches’. Thus, Macbeth’s ready use of the language of black arts, suggests the

blackness of his soul and his capacity for sin (Stein, 1951, p.271). But, at this point in

the drama, the counterpoint is the positivity and praise of Macbeth voiced by

characters such as Duncan (1:2:24).

Further insight into Macbeth’s sinful potential is afforded by his response

when the witches’ prophecy begins to come true. In this aside, his mind leaps from

‘this strange intelligence’ (1:3:76) to regicide,

My thought whose murther yet is but fantastical, (1:3:139)

a thought not planted by the witches, but arising from Macbeth’s autonomous

musings.

Throughout Macbeth imagery of the natural world supplies the moral barometer and

indicator of ethical breaches. Macbeth appears so ‘rapt’ (1:3:143), that his body is

rebelling against normal action; he describes

my seated heart knock[s] at my ribs,

Against the use of nature? (1:3:1367)

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The mere contemplation of Macbeth’s future atrocities physically disrupts normality,

as later in Macbeth’s aside,

Stars, hide your fires!

Let not light see my black and deep desires; (1:4:501)

In Macbeth’s soliloquy in Scene 7, Shakespeare both continues to stress Macbeth’s

hidden darkness (the side of his character which causes his later damning actions)

and introduces Macbeth’s personal view on damnation. His preeminent concern is

with the earthly as opposed to the immortal, ‘we still have judgement here;’ (1:7:8).

This reference is linked in beautiful but Apocalyptic language,

heaven’s Cherubins, hors’d

Upon the sightless couriers of the air (1:7:2223)

with references to the Four horsemen of the Apocalypse, the orders of angels and

the staying of the winds of the Apocalypse, it accentuates Macbeth’s downfall, and

the saintlike nature of Duncan.

In characterising Duncan as a King who,

Hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been

So clear in his great office, (1:7:178)

Shakespeare clearly breaks with historical evidence, portraying Duncan as the

perfect King instead of a ‘dull coward and slouthfull [sic] person’ (Holinshed’s

chronicles cited Muir, p.169). This strongly vilifies Macbeth as Duncan’s death

becomes ‘sacrilegious Murther’ (2:3:66), with Macbeth himself describing it as ‘deep

damnation’ (1:7:20) pivotal in Macbeth’s journey to perdition. He fearfully

personifies pity ‘like a naked newborn babe’ (1:7:212) paradoxically ‘striding the

blast’’ (1:7:212). Such uncertainty keeps the audience on tenterhooks, as Macbeth

vacillates between murder (Hell) or loyalty to Duncan (salvation).

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The murder of Duncan

The murder of Duncan and its fallout are characterised by emphasis on the atrocity of

Macbeth’s actions Shakespeare’s main method for dramatising the protagonist’s

damnation here. In the dagger soliloquy (2:1) Shakespeare continues to use

language allying Macbeth with darkness, referencing the goddess of witchcraft,

Witchcraft celebrates

Pale Hecate’s off’rings (2:1:512)

Muir, in the Second Arden edition, suggest there is a deliberate pause between

‘witchcraft’ and the preceding word, emphasising Macbeth’s use of the language of

black magic (Muir, 1986, p.49).

This speech again sees the natural world revolting, and this time affecting not only

Macbeth’s body,

Mine eyes are made the fools o’th’other senses, (2:1:44)

but the Earth itself, as he fears that his very home may react in horror

Thou sure and firmset earth,

Hear not my steps, which way they walk, for fear

Thy very stones prate of my whereabout, (2:1:568)

This soliloquy demonstrates Macbeth’s ‘awareness that he is aligning himself with

evil’, (Foakes, Routledge, 2013, p.17), going so far as to declare, ‘Nature seems

dead,’ (2:1:50).

Duncan’s murder is so terrible that Macbeth cannot admit it (even to himself); instead

Shakespeare’s protagonist describes it in periphrastic terms, such as ‘the bloody

business’ (2:1:48). These horrific but distanced descriptions continue into Scene 2

and throughout the play, as Macbeth impersonally describes ‘the deed’ (2:2:14) as ‘a

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sorry sight’ (2:2:20). Renaming the killing is an indication of Macbeth’s attempt to

escape the perditious action. In a state of high tension, he asks

wherefore could not I pronounce ‘Amen’?

I had most need of blessing and ‘Amen’

Stuck in my throat. (2:2:302)

Here Shakespeare again opposes Macbeth and Christianity; through his inability to

pray (a fundamental doctrine of all denominations), and also, by the feverish

repetition of ‘Amen’ and later of ‘Sleep’ (2:2:34); hinting (just as in the dagger

soliloquy), at these sinful actions’ effect on ‘the heatoppressed brain’ (2:1:39). So

Shakespeare makes the audience aware, through Macbeth’s anguish, of the

protagonist’s attainment of perdition and of sins’ perils.

Macbeth’s later metaphoric description of the dead Duncan, emphasises his

awareness of damnation as, I believe that, ‘His silver skin lac’d with his golden

blood;’ (2:3:110); cannot merely be seen as Macbeth’s attempt to appear innocent,

but an expression of overwhelming horror at his actions. The gory corpse he made of

his kinsman can only be stomached if the image is translated into something unreal.

As well as the effect on Macbeth himself, Lady Macbeth’s response further

emphasises his monstrous actions. I believe that her faint which has fallen under

much critical discussion as to whether it was ‘real or pretended’ (Muir, 1986, p.67) is

a genuine reaction to her recent discovery of the true character of her husband: a

murderer. Lady Macbeth did not know of, or plan, the grooms’ deaths and the graphic

description of their dead bodies as,

steep’d in the colours of their trade, their daggers

Unmannerly breech’d with gore. (2:3:1134)

prompts a realisation of Macbeth’s unvarnished character.

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The Porter scene in Macbeth is much disputed by Shakespearean critics, with Pope

banishing it to the periphery of commentary (Muir, 1986, p.58), Coleridge proclaiming

it a mere interpolation (cited Muir, 1986, p.58), and Kranz believing it provides a

‘supernatural hangover’ (Kranz, 2003, p.362). However, I find that, by analysing the

Porter’s language and considering this scene’s position within the play, its true

significance is clear as not simply comic relief but a provocative and interesting

method of reexamining Macbeth’s damnation.

This scene falls immediately after Macbeth’s murder of Duncan, realisation of

damnation and deep regret,

To know my deed, ‘twere best not know myself.

Wake Duncan with thy knocking: I would thou couldst (2:2:723)

and the contrast in the change from poetry to prose is startling.

The scene opens with Macbeth’s Porter assuming the role of ‘Porter of Hell Gate’

(2:3:12) a humorous comparison (all the more effective for its inadvertence)

between Macbeth and Lucifer and his castle and Hell:

this place is too cold for Hell (2:3:17)

Hell is the outcome of damnation; so, by setting this scene there, immediately after

the murder of Duncan and the grooms, Shakespeare is accentuating to the audience

the future consequences of Macbeth’s actions.

Shakespeare then implies a connection between Macbeth and three sinners: the

‘farmer (2:3:4), the ‘equivocator’ (2:3:12), the thieving ‘English tailor’ (2:3:13).

Alongside the satirical contemporary commentary implicit in his quip about Jesuits (a

group for whom equivocation became a byword after Father Garnet’s famous trial),

Shakespeare here condemns Macbeth by the sheer banality of their crimes: if petty

criminals incur dread damnation, the regicide certainly does. This cataloguing of

transgressions continues into the description of the Porter’s nighttime activities

15


‘nosepainting, sleep and … Lechery’ (2:3:278), which are vulgar but eminently

forgivable, unlike Macbeth’s.

These contrasting dramatisations of Duncan’s murder and its consequences convey

its nature as Macbeth’s irremediable act of sin, unveiling the next phase in his spiral

of decline.

Macbeth’s selfknowledge: fatalism and nihilism

Shakespeare develops Macbeth’s tragedy in a completely different way from Doctor

Faustus in the seeming fatalism and nihilism introduced in Macbeth’s dialogue with

his wife (3:4) and his reaction to her death (5:5). This deviates from the traditional

view of damnation, towards ideas with which the audience would be unfamiliar and

thus captivated.

Macbeth reasons that

I am in blood

Stepp’d in so far, that, should I wade no more,

Returning were as tedious as go o’er (3:5:1357)

The bleak logic of this argument powerfully expresses Macbeth’s profound

disillusionment with life, forming a stark contrast to the language of perdition used by

Shakespeare’s contemporaries and by Shakespeare himself up to this point. This

complex metaphor (gory, disturbing and deeply melancholy) emotively establishes

the irrecoverable damage Macbeth has done to his salvation, compounded by a hint

of sinful acts yet to come:

We are yet but young in deed. (3:5:143).

In Macbeth’s response to the death of his wife, he presents a view of the afterlife

unlike the expectation of the Jacobean audience (Heaven or hellfire): a ‘most

16


desperate and apparently nihilistic statement of nothingness’ (Willbern cited Scott,

1986, p.174). This contrasts dramatically with Macbeth’s previous fear of ‘the life to

come’ (1:7:7) and represents a shift in Shakespeare’s dramatisation of Macbeth’s fall.

Macbeth now describes mortal life as all that there is,

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,

To the last syllable of recorded time (5:5:1923).

with introductory repetition and reductive alliteration (‘dusty death’) emphasising its

finality. This nihilism continues throughout the speech, culminating in the final

emphatic positioning of ‘signifying nothing’ (5:5:28).

However, as Macbeth confronts death his nihilistic language is tinged with

apocalyptic imagery such as ‘sound and fury’ (5:5:27) and ‘the last syllable of

recorded time’ (5:5:21), reminding the religiouslyconventional audience that, while

Macbeth may try to convince himself otherwise, he is a damned sinner in his final

moments before Hell.

Conclusion

To conclude, there are two major points which emerge from this analysis. Firstly, that

Marlowe and Shakespeare’s methods to dramatise damnation fundamentally diverge

at the point of the first damnable actions (Macbeth’s murder of Duncan and Faustus’

satanic contract). Secondly, that the structures and complexities of the play

demonstrate the dramatists’ opposing underlying intentions.

Marlowe and Shakespeare dramatise their protagonists’ journey from pillars

of the community (a noble warrior and an esteemed academic) to damned souls.

However, in presenting the consequences of their actions, their methods differ,

17


addressing unconventional theological issues in separate ways. The murder of

Duncan damns Macbeth absolutely, whom now ‘all great Neptune’s ocean [cannot]

wash … clean’ (2.2.634). In light of this, Shakespeare’s Macbeth demonstrates a

profound disillusionment with life a true death of the soul in life. However, Marlowe

chooses not to reveal to the audience immediately whether or not the gift of his ‘body

and soul to Lucifer’ (Scenes 5, 105) has ultimately damned Faustus. Instead the

audience observes his increasing sinfulness alongside a debate about when the

point of no return is reached one which continues amongst academics today.

Both dramatists, however, register their opprobrium for their protagonists’ depravity

and hubris using similar techniques in particular the effect of their damnable actions

on their own bodies. This serves as a warning of the drastic consequences which will

follow and they are signs (clear to the audience) which both protagonists choose to

ignore.

In contrast to similarities in imagery, Doctor Faustus follows the structure of a

preexisting genre: the mediaeval morality play. This is a choice which (although very

dramatically compelling) renders the play more formulaic and obvious than

Shakespeare’s Macbeth (where only the Porter’s scene compares to The Harrowing

of Hell scene in mediaeval mystery plays). The hallmarks of this genre are present

throughout, from personifications of abstract concepts (the characters of the Good

and Evil Angels and the Seven Deadly Sins) to the didacticism of the finale. In fact

nowhere are the differences in the framework of the plays more apparent than in the

endings. Faustus concludes with the protagonist dragged screaming to Hell and a

moralising message for the audience on the horrendous outcomes of sin; whereas

Macbeth ends with discussion of the kingship of Malcolm.

The ending of Macbeth differs greatly from Faustus in Macduff’s platitudinous final

speech, but even in the drama of Macbeth’s death in battle. While this scene would

18


have been thrilling for the audience, Shakespeare irrevocably damned his

protagonist much earlier on (the murder of Duncan), so the play ends with Macbeth’s

natural death. Thus Shakespeare chooses not to have an ostentatious dragging to

Hell, superfluous to his plot and to the theological issue of damnation as the

audience already know that Macbeth is irrevocably damned and that Hell will follow

his earthly demise. Instead Shakespeare subtly references Macbeth’s damnation,

highlighting differences between Macbeth at the start of the play (the brave, yet

fallible, warrior) and at the end (the ravening tyrant). This comparison is only

encouraged by the play’s cyclical structure; Macbeth ends as the play (and our

knowledge of the character) began: in battle.

However, whether or not a physical Hell featured at the climax of the play,

any portrayal of perdition was exciting for Jacobean theatregoers. Thus Marlowe and

Shakespeare’s choices for the dramatisation of damnation within their respective

plays, hinged upon a shared understanding of the contemporary audience. For that

audience the intrigue of damnation and ‘the magic of hell … and the key to enjoying

such performance safely [was] the firm knowledge that it is nothing more than a

shortlived illusion’ (Marchesi in Morrison and Uman, 2013, Chapter 7).

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Bibliography: Primary Sources Marlowe, Christopher, Doctor Faustus , edited by Roma Gill, New Mermaids, A & C Black Publishers, London, 2003 Shakespeare, William, Macbeth, edited by Kenneth Muir, Arden Shakespeare, Methuen & Co Ltd, London, 1986 Secondary Sources Calvin, John. "Commentary on Hebrews 10:1", "Calvin's Commentary on the Bible", http://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cal/view.cgi?bk=57&ch=10".184057 Accessed on 13 / 09 / 15 Cox, John D. The Devil and the Sacred in English Drama, 13501642, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2000 Foakes, R. A., ‘Images of death: ambition in Macbeth’ in Focus on Macbeth, Russell Brown, John, Routledge, London, 2013 Guenther, Genevieve, ‘Why Devils Came When Faustus Called Them’, Modern Philology , Vol. 109, No. 1 (August 2011), The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/662147> Accessed on 11 / 06 / 15 The Holy Bible, Authorised King James Version, Collins’ ClearType Press, Glasgow, 1958 Kranz, David L. ‘The Sounds of Supernatural Soliciting in “Macbeth”’, Studies in Philology, Vol. 100, No. 3, (Summer 2003), University of North Carolina Press, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/4174762> Accessed on 11 / 06 / 15 MacCulloch, Diarmaid, A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years, Penguin Books, London, 2010 Morrison, Sara and Uman, Deborah, Staging the Blazon in Early Modern English Theater , Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2013, <https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=sCi4cu9y46cC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false> (Accessed on 16 / 09 / 15) Myrick, Kenneth O. ‘The theme of Damnation in Shakespearean Tragedy’, Study in Philology, Vol. 38, No. 2, April 1941, University of North Carolina Press, North Carolina, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/4172527> (Accessed 18 / 09 / 15) Pinciss, G. M, ‘Marlowe’s Cambridge Years and the Writing of Doctor Faustus’, Studies in English Literature, 15001900, Vol. 33, No. 2 (Spring 1993), Rice

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University Press, USA, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/450998> Accessed on 11 / 06 / 15 Poole, Kristen, Supernatural Environments in Shakespeare’s England: Spaces of Demonism, Divinity and Drama, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2011 Riggs, David, The World of Christopher Marlowe , Faber & Faber Ltd, London, 2014, Digital File Ryan, Kiernan, Shakespeare, Palgrave, Basingstoke, 2002 Stein, Arnold ‘Macbeth and WordMagic’ The Sewanee Review, Vol. 59, No. 2 (Spring 1951), John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/27538065> (Accessed 18 / 09 / 15) Streete, Adrian, ‘Consummatum est’: Calvinist Exegesis, Mimesis and Doctor Faustus, Literature and Theology, Vol. 15, No. 2 (June 2001), Oxford University Press, Oxford, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/23925649> Accessed on 16 / 05 / 15 Scott, William O. Macbeth’s and Our Selfequivocations, Shakespeare Quarterly, Vol. 37, No. 2 (Summer 1986), Folger Shakespeare Library, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/2869955> Accessed on 16 / 05 / 15

21

Theory of Knowledge - The Spine of the IB

Theory of Knowledge, or ToK, is the academic spine of the IB Diploma programme. ToK focuses on questions rather than answers and encourages exploration of ways of thinking. Indeed, it seeks to ask one overarching question: how do we know anything? It does this by looking at a range of subjects students will study as part of their IB Diploma. As a result, it is stimulatingly cross-curricular, linking ideas across several disciplines and pits one discipline’s methods of obtaining knowledge against another’s. It is a new challenge for all IB students, particularly ones used to the clear demarcations of GCSE lessons.

Students are given a list of six titles to choose from in the September of their Upper Sixth year. From these intriguing questions they then craft their own knowledge question, drawing upon real life situations which they have looked at in the ToK course and their other curriculum choices before setting out to explore their ideas in 1600 words.

Alastair Wood, Theory of Knowledge Coordinator

Exemplar Essay

“Knowledge within a discipline develops according to the principles of natural selection.” How useful is this metaphor?

Word Count: 1536

Centre Name: Godolphin and LatymerCentre Number: 002194Candidate Name: Philippa MarksCandidate Number: 002194-0019


I could argue that all knowledge within a discipline develops according to the principles of

natural selection. This phenomenon is certainly seen within the Natural Sciences, an Area

of Knowledge which this essay will use as an archetypal example of the process. However,

following an examination of different Real Life Situations, I will investigate to what extent, if

it all, the metaphor of natural selection can be used in disciplines that are not driven by a

pursuit of proof or disproof.

The Darwinian theory of natural selection is one of the basic mechanisms of evolution. The

theory states that evolutionary change comes through the production of variation in each

generation and the survival of individuals with different combinations of these variable

characters. The strongest variants survive, creating offspring with advantageous 1

character. More pertinently, the weakest variants will not survive as only a few are 2

naturally ‘selected.’ In the context of my essay question, I will interpret the metaphor as

suggesting that as new knowledge is introduced (the equivalent of genetic variation), older,

irrelevant knowledge must be discarded in order to properly create contemporary, coherent

theories. In this way, knowledge presented following a certain amount of experimentation

can be selected, suggesting a hierarchy in the value of knowledge. The exploitation of the

word ‘useful’ in the question suggests that at times the metaphor is unhelpful. Creating a

Counterclaim which suggests that this metaphor is actually unhelpful leads me to conclude

that the usefulness of the metaphor may depend on the type of knowledge and discipline.

Montgomery, Stephen, ‘Variation’, < http://darwin200.christs.cam.ac.uk/node/75 > (6/10/15)1

Ibid.2

Page of 2 8

However, I begin with a Real Life Situation in which the metaphor of natural selection is

extremely pertinent and knowledge is discarded. In order for knowledge to be discarded,

there must be the introduction of new knowledge, lending the metaphor to areas of

knowledge with scientific experiment. The metaphor can be used in the Real Life Situation

of the discovery of gravity.

In what ways does advancement within the area of knowledge Natural Sciences adhere to

evolutionary theory as a metaphor? The movement of celestial bodies has captivated

scientists, who, in the past, attempted to explain planetary movement with an

amalgamation of Ways of Knowing: reason, intuition and, importantly, faith. During the

Middle Ages, physicists and philosophers alike venerated the geocentric astronomical

model; the Earth was the centre of the Universe with the Sun and other planets moving

around it. When Copernicus proposed in 1543 the heliocentric model, in which the Sun 3

was the centre of the Universe, he was regarded as a heretic. However, Copernicus’ 4

hypothesis was not fully formed. The telescope of Galilei Galileo confirmed Copernicus’

theories, placing himself in direct opposition with the Catholic church. With the novel 5

telescope, Galileo could confirm the movement of celestial bodies and phenomena. We

could ask: What does the role of faith play in the advancement of scientific theory? Both

Galileo and Copernicus abandoned sense perception and faith, rejecting the shared

knowledge of the Roman Catholic Church. Thus, Galileo and Copernicus were able to 6

Author not known, ‘The History of Gravity’ < https://www.physics.wisc.edu/museum/Exhibits-1/3

Mechanics/GravPit/index_HistGrav-2.html > (6/10/15)

Leveillee, N; ‘Copernicus, Galileo, and the Church: Science in a Religious World’ < http://4

www.studentpulse.com/articles/533/copernicus-galileo-and-the-church-science-in-a-religious-world?ab=ad-above&utm_expid=22625156-1.5tC6-gkOQEG4cY5MGWGX_A.1&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.co.uk%2F > (7/10/15)

Ibid. 5

Ibid.6

Page of 3 8

discard the theory of Geocentrism propagated by Aristotle and the Catholic Church to

come closer to the truth that we accept today. Galileo and Copernicus both were driven by

a need to answer the question of why planets moved in certain ways. They may not have

been able to do this if they had retained convention and supported the ecclesiastical

stance.

Is it necessary to have correct and incorrect knowledge when applying the metaphor of

natural selection? In this real life situation, there is a clear wrong and right when evaluating

evidence from a scientific standpoint. The Earth either is or is not the centre of the

Universe. Testing a hypothesis within the Natural sciences traditionally creates the

feedback mechanism. The theory is tested with experiments in co-ordination with a

prediction and then used to create a conclusion. However, conclusions must be used to

create new theories, fabricating a self-correcting cycle. The hypothetic-deductive

reasoning of Copernicus stimulated a series of improvements to his theories by Galileo,

Newton and Einstein, encouraging a sequence of evolutions that would then lead to the

dissolution of certain pieces of knowledge (namely the idea that the Universe revolved

around the Earth).

The idea of proof and theory as a central component when making the natural selection

metaphor useful is substantiated in a different Area of knowledge. For example, in the Area

of Knowledge of History, scholars were forced to question their own ideas in the

assignment of blame in the Cold War when the Soviet Archives were opened in 1991.

How do Areas of Knowledge other than those in the Sciences adhere to natural selection

as a metaphor when knowledge develops? Historians sought a perpetrator for the cause of

the Cold War. In a traditionally Western view, answering the question of who started the

Page of 4 8

Cold War had been reliant on the collective memory. American historians used fear of

communism (emotion) rather than reason or logic to create their idiosyncratic interpretation

of events from 1945-1975. Western Historians placed blame solely on the Soviet Union,

led by Stalin and underpinned by Communism. When the Soviet archives were opened up

in 1991, Western historians were keen to prove their assertions. However, the new 7

information provided by the archives sparked a whole new way of thinking. The knowledge

that sole blame was assigned to Russia had to be discarded. The Ways of Knowing shifted

when historians were introduced to this new information. To what extent do Ways of

Knowing change following the stimulus of a discovery? American historians were now

presented with equal evidence, incurring a use of reason rather than intuition and emotion

to understand the Soviet psyche. Peck writes, ‘To escape from the microcosm of our

culture and it’s dogmas… it is essential that we be sceptical about what we think we have

learned to date.’ The historians could no longer rely on inherent faith in the government. 8

Combined with the anti-establishment sentiment within the United States, the new

knowledge suggested that American President Harry S. Truman and the atomic bombs

were in fact responsible for starting the Cold War.

One could argue that the opening of the archives, which caused so many historians to

change their minds, catalysed decisions that were a result of the accumulation of

knowledge-this knowledge, combined with prior collective memory led to the epiphanies.

This perspective, however, fails to acknowledge the novel importance placed on the new

information. Because the new information from the archives made the antediluvian theory

outdated, the incorrect information was discarded and the theory was streamlined.

Gaddis, J; The Cold War, A New History (The Penguin Press 2005)7

Peck, S; The Road Less Travelled (Random House Publishing 1998) p. 1838

Page of 5 8

Soviet archives and information about Stalin’s plans evoked responses that changed the

direct path of knowledge, stimulating evolution. The conclusion that revisionist historians

reached is arguably stronger, because these prominent figures considered both the victor

and loser’s vested interest. Both examples within the areas of knowledge History and

Natural Science rely on new evidence to stimulate the feedback cycles.

Can knowledge be discarded in a pursuit that is not driven by determination of a theory? I

will now present my counterclaim. I posit that the metaphor of natural selection can

actually be unhelpful when defining situations with an accumulation of knowledge. The

proving Fermat’s Last Theorem acts as an example in which past conjectures are used to

solve a problem. The idea of incorrect and correct knowledge is still applicable in this

situation, because it is in the AoK Mathematics, however no knowledge is discarded. In

fact, the opposite occurs.

Fermat posed the relatively easy theorem in 1637 in the margin of a copy of Arithmetica.

However he did not provide the proof. The conjecture remained untouched for 358 years,

until in 1995, Professor Andrew Wiles managed to provide the first successful proof. In

1955, Japanese mathematicians Taniyama and Shimura identified the first concrete link

between elliptical curves and modular firms. This was known as the modularity theorem,

standing alone, with no apparent connection to Fermat’s Theorem. However, as Andrew

Wiles spent his six clandestine years solving the proof to the Theorem, he proved the

Taniyama-Shimura conjecture, inadvertently solving the final Fermat Theorem. 9

Mathematics is an area of knowledge governed by reason. However, I suggest that Wiles’

own imagination and utilisation of a theorem seemingly unrelated solved the Last Theorem

itself. What we witness in the case of Andrew Wiles is an accumulation of hundred’s of

Wiles, A; The Millennium Prize Problems (American Mathematics Society, 2006)9

Page of 6 8

years of work to allow for the evolution of knowledge, ending in a final concrete proof. One

turn of the feedback cycle mentioned above symbolises an end in evolution of one theory.

However, as shown by Wiles, knowledge develops and builds on foundations.

As I have proven, the metaphor of natural selection does not appear that useful when

defining examples of knowledge developing by accumulation. What makes this metaphor

useful or unhelpful is the quantification of knowledge that must happen in order for

knowledge to be discarded. With the exception of scientific Areas of Knowledge in which a

theory is examined, it is often difficult to prove certain ‘knowledge’ as useless. The

importance of a proof when examining the efficacy of this metaphor must not be forgotten.

Therefore, I suggest the metaphor of natural selection is only useful in contexts and

disciplines driven by proving or disproving theory.

Page of 7 8

Bibliography

1. Brockman, J, editor; The Universe (Harper Perennial 2014)

2. Darwin, C; The Voyage of the Beagle (Wordsworth Editions 1997)

3. Gaddis, J; The Cold War, A New History (The Penguin Press 2005)

4. Peck, S; The Road Less Travelled (Random House Publishing 1998)

5. Stone, O; The Untold History of the United States (Ebury Press 2013)

6. Wiles, A; The Millennium Prize Problems (American Mathematics Society,

2006)

7. Montgomery, Stephen, ‘Variation’, < http://darwin200.christs.cam.ac.uk/

node/75 > (6/10/15)

8. Author not known, ‘The History of Gravity’ < https://www.physics.wisc.edu/

museum/Exhibits-1/Mechanics/GravPit/index_HistGrav-2.html > (6/10/15)

9. Leveillee, N; ‘Copernicus, Galileo, and the Church: Science in a Religious

World’ < http://www.studentpulse.com/articles/533/copernicus-galileo-and-

the-church-science-in-a-religious-world?ab=ad-

above&utm_expid=22625156-1.5tC6-gkOQEG4cY5MGWGX_A.

1&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.co.uk%2F > (7/10/15)

Page of 8 8

Exemplar Essay


Word Count: 1600

Centre Name: Godolphin and LatymerCentre Number: 002194Candidate Name: Maria LarichevaCandidate Number: 002194-0017


I could argue that all knowledge within a discipline develops according to the principles of

natural selection. This phenomenon is certainly seen within the Natural Sciences, an Area

of Knowledge which this essay will use as an archetypal example of the process. However,

following an examination of different Real Life Situations, I will investigate to what extent, if

it all, the metaphor of natural selection can be used in disciplines that are not driven by a

pursuit of proof or disproof.

The Darwinian theory of natural selection is one of the basic mechanisms of evolution. The

theory states that evolutionary change comes through the production of variation in each

generation and the survival of individuals with different combinations of these variable

characters. The strongest variants survive, creating offspring with advantageous 1

character. More pertinently, the weakest variants will not survive as only a few are 2

naturally ‘selected.’ In the context of my essay question, I will interpret the metaphor as

suggesting that as new knowledge is introduced (the equivalent of genetic variation), older,

irrelevant knowledge must be discarded in order to properly create contemporary, coherent

theories. In this way, knowledge presented following a certain amount of experimentation

can be selected, suggesting a hierarchy in the value of knowledge. The exploitation of the

word ‘useful’ in the question suggests that at times the metaphor is unhelpful. Creating a

Counterclaim which suggests that this metaphor is actually unhelpful leads me to conclude

that the usefulness of the metaphor may depend on the type of knowledge and discipline.

Montgomery, Stephen, ‘Variation’, < http://darwin200.christs.cam.ac.uk/node/75 > (6/10/15)1

Ibid.2

Page of 2 8

However, I begin with a Real Life Situation in which the metaphor of natural selection is

extremely pertinent and knowledge is discarded. In order for knowledge to be discarded,

there must be the introduction of new knowledge, lending the metaphor to areas of

knowledge with scientific experiment. The metaphor can be used in the Real Life Situation

of the discovery of gravity.

In what ways does advancement within the area of knowledge Natural Sciences adhere to

evolutionary theory as a metaphor? The movement of celestial bodies has captivated

scientists, who, in the past, attempted to explain planetary movement with an

amalgamation of Ways of Knowing: reason, intuition and, importantly, faith. During the

Middle Ages, physicists and philosophers alike venerated the geocentric astronomical

model; the Earth was the centre of the Universe with the Sun and other planets moving

around it. When Copernicus proposed in 1543 the heliocentric model, in which the Sun 3

was the centre of the Universe, he was regarded as a heretic. However, Copernicus’ 4

hypothesis was not fully formed. The telescope of Galilei Galileo confirmed Copernicus’

theories, placing himself in direct opposition with the Catholic church. With the novel 5

telescope, Galileo could confirm the movement of celestial bodies and phenomena. We

could ask: What does the role of faith play in the advancement of scientific theory? Both

Galileo and Copernicus abandoned sense perception and faith, rejecting the shared

knowledge of the Roman Catholic Church. Thus, Galileo and Copernicus were able to 6

Author not known, ‘The History of Gravity’ < https://www.physics.wisc.edu/museum/Exhibits-1/3

Mechanics/GravPit/index_HistGrav-2.html > (6/10/15)

Leveillee, N; ‘Copernicus, Galileo, and the Church: Science in a Religious World’ < http://4

www.studentpulse.com/articles/533/copernicus-galileo-and-the-church-science-in-a-religious-world?ab=ad-above&utm_expid=22625156-1.5tC6-gkOQEG4cY5MGWGX_A.1&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.co.uk%2F > (7/10/15)

Ibid. 5

Ibid.6

Page of 3 8

discard the theory of Geocentrism propagated by Aristotle and the Catholic Church to

come closer to the truth that we accept today. Galileo and Copernicus both were driven by

a need to answer the question of why planets moved in certain ways. They may not have

been able to do this if they had retained convention and supported the ecclesiastical

stance.

Is it necessary to have correct and incorrect knowledge when applying the metaphor of

natural selection? In this real life situation, there is a clear wrong and right when evaluating

evidence from a scientific standpoint. The Earth either is or is not the centre of the

Universe. Testing a hypothesis within the Natural sciences traditionally creates the

feedback mechanism. The theory is tested with experiments in co-ordination with a

prediction and then used to create a conclusion. However, conclusions must be used to

create new theories, fabricating a self-correcting cycle. The hypothetic-deductive

reasoning of Copernicus stimulated a series of improvements to his theories by Galileo,

Newton and Einstein, encouraging a sequence of evolutions that would then lead to the

dissolution of certain pieces of knowledge (namely the idea that the Universe revolved

around the Earth).

The idea of proof and theory as a central component when making the natural selection

metaphor useful is substantiated in a different Area of knowledge. For example, in the Area

of Knowledge of History, scholars were forced to question their own ideas in the

assignment of blame in the Cold War when the Soviet Archives were opened in 1991.

How do Areas of Knowledge other than those in the Sciences adhere to natural selection

as a metaphor when knowledge develops? Historians sought a perpetrator for the cause of

the Cold War. In a traditionally Western view, answering the question of who started the

Page of 4 8

Cold War had been reliant on the collective memory. American historians used fear of

communism (emotion) rather than reason or logic to create their idiosyncratic interpretation

of events from 1945-1975. Western Historians placed blame solely on the Soviet Union,

led by Stalin and underpinned by Communism. When the Soviet archives were opened up

in 1991, Western historians were keen to prove their assertions. However, the new 7

information provided by the archives sparked a whole new way of thinking. The knowledge

that sole blame was assigned to Russia had to be discarded. The Ways of Knowing shifted

when historians were introduced to this new information. To what extent do Ways of

Knowing change following the stimulus of a discovery? American historians were now

presented with equal evidence, incurring a use of reason rather than intuition and emotion

to understand the Soviet psyche. Peck writes, ‘To escape from the microcosm of our

culture and it’s dogmas… it is essential that we be sceptical about what we think we have

learned to date.’ The historians could no longer rely on inherent faith in the government. 8

Combined with the anti-establishment sentiment within the United States, the new

knowledge suggested that American President Harry S. Truman and the atomic bombs

were in fact responsible for starting the Cold War.

One could argue that the opening of the archives, which caused so many historians to

change their minds, catalysed decisions that were a result of the accumulation of

knowledge-this knowledge, combined with prior collective memory led to the epiphanies.

This perspective, however, fails to acknowledge the novel importance placed on the new

information. Because the new information from the archives made the antediluvian theory

outdated, the incorrect information was discarded and the theory was streamlined.

Gaddis, J; The Cold War, A New History (The Penguin Press 2005)7

Peck, S; The Road Less Travelled (Random House Publishing 1998) p. 1838

Page of 5 8

Soviet archives and information about Stalin’s plans evoked responses that changed the

direct path of knowledge, stimulating evolution. The conclusion that revisionist historians

reached is arguably stronger, because these prominent figures considered both the victor

and loser’s vested interest. Both examples within the areas of knowledge History and

Natural Science rely on new evidence to stimulate the feedback cycles.

Can knowledge be discarded in a pursuit that is not driven by determination of a theory? I

will now present my counterclaim. I posit that the metaphor of natural selection can

actually be unhelpful when defining situations with an accumulation of knowledge. The

proving Fermat’s Last Theorem acts as an example in which past conjectures are used to

solve a problem. The idea of incorrect and correct knowledge is still applicable in this

situation, because it is in the AoK Mathematics, however no knowledge is discarded. In

fact, the opposite occurs.

Fermat posed the relatively easy theorem in 1637 in the margin of a copy of Arithmetica.

However he did not provide the proof. The conjecture remained untouched for 358 years,

until in 1995, Professor Andrew Wiles managed to provide the first successful proof. In

1955, Japanese mathematicians Taniyama and Shimura identified the first concrete link

between elliptical curves and modular firms. This was known as the modularity theorem,

standing alone, with no apparent connection to Fermat’s Theorem. However, as Andrew

Wiles spent his six clandestine years solving the proof to the Theorem, he proved the

Taniyama-Shimura conjecture, inadvertently solving the final Fermat Theorem. 9

Mathematics is an area of knowledge governed by reason. However, I suggest that Wiles’

own imagination and utilisation of a theorem seemingly unrelated solved the Last Theorem

itself. What we witness in the case of Andrew Wiles is an accumulation of hundred’s of

Wiles, A; The Millennium Prize Problems (American Mathematics Society, 2006)9

Page of 6 8

years of work to allow for the evolution of knowledge, ending in a final concrete proof. One

turn of the feedback cycle mentioned above symbolises an end in evolution of one theory.

However, as shown by Wiles, knowledge develops and builds on foundations.

As I have proven, the metaphor of natural selection does not appear that useful when

defining examples of knowledge developing by accumulation. What makes this metaphor

useful or unhelpful is the quantification of knowledge that must happen in order for

knowledge to be discarded. With the exception of scientific Areas of Knowledge in which a

theory is examined, it is often difficult to prove certain ‘knowledge’ as useless. The

importance of a proof when examining the efficacy of this metaphor must not be forgotten.

Therefore, I suggest the metaphor of natural selection is only useful in contexts and

disciplines driven by proving or disproving theory.

Page of 7 8

Bibliography

1. Brockman, J, editor; The Universe (Harper Perennial 2014)

2. Darwin, C; The Voyage of the Beagle (Wordsworth Editions 1997)

3. Gaddis, J; The Cold War, A New History (The Penguin Press 2005)

4. Peck, S; The Road Less Travelled (Random House Publishing 1998)

5. Stone, O; The Untold History of the United States (Ebury Press 2013)

6. Wiles, A; The Millennium Prize Problems (American Mathematics Society,

2006)

7. Montgomery, Stephen, ‘Variation’, < http://darwin200.christs.cam.ac.uk/

node/75 > (6/10/15)

8. Author not known, ‘The History of Gravity’ < https://www.physics.wisc.edu/

museum/Exhibits-1/Mechanics/GravPit/index_HistGrav-2.html > (6/10/15)

9. Leveillee, N; ‘Copernicus, Galileo, and the Church: Science in a Religious

World’ < http://www.studentpulse.com/articles/533/copernicus-galileo-and-

the-church-science-in-a-religious-world?ab=ad-

above&utm_expid=22625156-1.5tC6-gkOQEG4cY5MGWGX_A.

1&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.co.uk%2F > (7/10/15)

Page of 8 8

Godolphin and Latymer SchoolIffley Road Hammersmith London W6 0PG, T +44 (0)20 8741 1936, F +44 (0)20 8735 9520

www.godolphinandlatymer.com Godolphin Latymer&

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Core Collection 2016 - Godolphin and Latymer SchoolToK (Theory of knowledge ... It was a tough task again to select only two projects for this year’s edition of the Core Collection