"Christmas... that magic blanket that wraps itself about us, that something so intangible that it is like a fragrance. It may weave a spell of nostalgia. Christmas may be a day of feasting, or of prayer, but always it will be a day of remembrance, a day in which we think of everything we have ever loved."
This quote by Augusta E. Rundel illustrates so well the innermost feelings of the speaker in
Dylan Thomas' A Child's Christmas in Wales, who reminisces about the most beautiful time of
the year he passed with family and friends. However, he does not just recount facts in an
emotionally detached way; and it is the aim of this term paper to analyze the confounding of
the adult and the child speaker, that is, the former being entirely plunged in his memories
surrounding him “like a fragrance”, he seems to actually be the child he was, reliving some
scenes again.
First of all, after having given some information about the text version of Thomas' work, I will
introduce Gérard Genette's theory of narratology, and mainly focus on the distinction between
narration and focalization. This subtle difference, as well as other terminology referring to the
question of perspective, is very enriching, as it permits to localize the narrator's point of view
and involvement, to understand the story's organization, and eventually, to reflect on the how
and why of the blurring of boundaries between the adult speaker of the here and now (at the
moment of speaking), and the child speaker experiencing the events. I will argue that those
two are intertwined, with several gradations more or less explicit in text and film.
Next, the way of narrating, the style, and linguistic issues will be examined, in order to
attribute certain expressions or sentence structures either rather to the adult, or to the child. Of
course it is not always possible to draw a clear-cut line, but nevertheless, there are passages
which I believe to be revealing when arguing in favor of a perspective. It is crucial not to
forget that the latter does not stay static, but that we can detect shifts of position throughout the
story. This gives reason to dwell on some scenes in further detail.
The second part of my work will deal with the film A Child's Christmas in Wales. As above, I
will begin with some general remarks; then I would like to investigate the impact of the
camera position because a stage director, by means of making different choices concerning
distance, or angle of vision, can influence the spe.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. A Child's Christmas in Wales: The Text
3. Gérard Genette's theory
4. The way of narrating
5. A Child's Christmas in Wales: The film
6. Different 'translations' from text to film
7. Conclusion
8. Bibliography
Objectives and Research Focus
The primary objective of this paper is to analyze the narrative techniques and perspectival shifts in both the text and the 1987 film adaptation of Dylan Thomas's "A Child's Christmas in Wales," focusing on how the boundaries between the adult narrator's perspective and the child protagonist's experience are blurred.
- Application of Gérard Genette's narratology, specifically regarding narration, focalization, and narrative levels.
- Examination of linguistic and stylistic markers that indicate a child's versus an adult's perspective.
- Analysis of cinematic elements such as camera positioning and the role of music in establishing atmosphere and perspective.
- Comparison of narrative strategies between the original text and the film version.
- Exploration of how the work achieves universality by intertwining personal childhood memories with nostalgic reflection.
Excerpt from the Book
4. The way of narrating
"You can struggle with rhyme and meter and style and still not have a poem", said Dylan Thomas once (qtd. in Baughan Murdy, 107). In my opinion, it is legitimate to not only claim that A Child's Christmas in Wales bears resemblance to a poem, but also that some aspects which hold for Thomas' poetry are true for the short story in question. But what are the main features all poems have in common?
According to Vera and Ansgar Nünning, the characteristics are relative brevity, density and reduction of the topic, subjectivity, musicality, and deviations from everyday language (47-49). By definition, short stories fulfill the first condition: they begin in medias res and can be read in one single sitting. With Thomas' short story, this is perfectly possible. The second requirement goes hand in hand with the first one, and again we could say the same thing is true for short stories, which nearly always concentrate on only one line of action and one subject-matter. Also the third point is suitable for a formal description of short stories. Naturally, many people like to think back at how they celebrated Christmas when they were children; however, in our short story by Dylan Thomas, the narrator gives an account of his personal Christmas Eve. Now I will discuss the last two criteria, concerning more precisely stylistic and linguistic issues.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter outlines the motivation for the study, focusing on the blend of adult reflection and childhood memory in Thomas's work and introducing the methodological framework.
2. A Child's Christmas in Wales: The Text: This section provides historical context regarding the origin and publication of the prose work, emphasizing its nostalgic and poetic qualities.
3. Gérard Genette's theory: This chapter explains the theoretical framework used for the analysis, focusing on Genette’s concepts of narration, focalization, and narrative levels.
4. The way of narrating: This section examines the stylistic and linguistic features of the text, comparing them to the characteristics of poetry and analyzing the narrator's perspective.
5. A Child's Christmas in Wales: The film: This chapter introduces the 1987 television adaptation and discusses the complexities of portraying the child's perspective through a cinematic lens.
6. Different 'translations' from text to film: This chapter provides a comparative analysis of how specific scenes are handled in the film versus the text, focusing on shifts in perspective and visual techniques.
7. Conclusion: This chapter synthesizes the findings, confirming how stylistic choices and cinematic adaptations work together to create a universal portrait of childhood.
8. Bibliography: This section lists all secondary literature and sources cited within the term paper.
Keywords
Dylan Thomas, A Child's Christmas in Wales, Narratology, Gérard Genette, Perspective, Focalization, Childhood, Nostalgia, Film Adaptation, Narrative Levels, Stylistics, Poetic Prose, Point of View, Narration, Literary Analysis
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this paper?
The paper examines the narrative structure of Dylan Thomas's "A Child's Christmas in Wales," exploring the intersection of adult reflection and childhood memory.
Which specific themes are addressed?
Central themes include the nature of nostalgia, the construction of the child's perspective, narrative reliability, and the translation of literary themes into visual media.
What is the main research question?
The research asks how the boundaries between the adult narrator and the child speaker are blurred and how these shifts in perspective are represented in both text and film.
Which scientific method is utilized?
The paper employs Gérard Genette's narratological framework (narrative levels, focalization, and voice) combined with stylistic analysis to examine the text and its filmic adaptation.
What is the focus of the main section?
The main section analyzes stylistic markers (like alliteration and rhythm) in the text, and evaluates camera techniques and sound design in the film to understand how they shape the audience's emotional response.
What are the primary keywords associated with this work?
Key terms include Narratology, Perspective, Focalization, Nostalgia, Dylan Thomas, and Film Adaptation.
How does the author characterize the narrator's reliability?
The author argues that the narrator is essentially 'autodiegetic' and often unreliable, as the narration is colored by the emotional distance between the adult speaker and the memories of the child.
How does the film version address the challenge of representing a child's perception?
The film uses camera positioning (often keeping the camera at a child's eye level), specific musical choices, and framing techniques to allow the viewer to experience the world as the young protagonist would.
- Quote paper
- Manü Mohr (Author), 2013, Nostalgic memories. Perspective and perspectival changes in text and film of "A Child's Christmas in Wales", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/265231
