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As I Lay Dying - Zéro de conduite
Au cinéma le 9 octobre un film de James Franco Anglais As I Lay Dying Dossier pédagogique 1 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying SOMMAIRE DU DOSSIER Sommairep. 2 Introductionp. 3 Dans les programmesp. 4 Fiche technique du film p. 5 Activités pédagogiques n Activité 1 (Anglais) : Summing up the storyp. 6 n Activité 2 (Anglais) : Analyzing the film p. 11 n Activité 3 (Anglais) : Creating your own screenplayp. 18 Références complémentairesp. 22 Corrigé des activités (cette partie est accessible uniquement via le Club Zérodeconduite.net) p. 23 CRÉDITS DU DOSSIER Dossier réalisé par Sarah Bisson, septembre 2013, pour Zérodeconduite.net, en association avec Metropolitan Filmexport et Millenium Films. http://www.zerodeconduite.net/asilaydying Crédits Affiche : © Lagency / Design by Taste Contact Zérodeconduite : [email protected] / 01 40 34 92 08 2 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying INTRODUCTION C’est à une véritable gageure que s’est attaqué le réalisateur et acteur (Le Magicien d’Oz, La Planète des singes : les origines, 127 heures…) James Franco. Cinquième roman de William Faulkner (publié en 1930 aux Etats-Unis), As I Lay Dying (Tandis que j’agonise dans la traduction française) est en effet un des monuments de la littérature américaine, et un des jalons importants de la modernité littéraire. Si l’histoire qui lui sert de prétexte est relativement simple (le parcours douloureux d’une famille du Sud américain pour enterrer la mère défunte à quarante miles de sa maison), le roman se distingue par son utilisation de la technique du stream of consciousness (courant de conscience) et la multiplication des points de vue (pas moins de quinze narrateurs différents se partagent la parole au gré des cinquante-neuf chapitres du livre). James Franco a pris des partis non moins forts et originaux pour transposer à l’écran le roman, comme le choix de monologues face caméra ou l’utilisation du split-screen pour retranscrire la multiplication des points de vue sur une même action. Mais la grande réussite de la mise en scène et des comédiens est aussi de donner vie de manière convaincante aux personnages et à l’atmosphère si particulière du roman de Faulkner, situé comme la plupart des ses œuvres romanesques dans le comté fictif de Yoknapatawpha, Mississippi. Le film de James Franco permettra donc d’initier les élèves à l’œuvre tortueuse, complexe et fascinante de celui que l’on considère souvent comme un des pères de la littérature contemporaine américaine. En effet, en étudiant ce film, on évitera le risque de perdre les élèves en les mettant d’emblée face à un texte qui pourrait s’avérer hermétique au premier abord. La version cinématographique viendra ainsi préparer et éclairer la lecture du texte, puis nourrira par la suite une réflexion sur les différences entre les deux modes d’écriture que sont le cinéma et la littérature. d’un extrait du roman de Faulkner. L’étude de la quête à la fois tragique et burlesque de la famille Bundren à travers l’État du Mississippi sera l’occasion d’aborder les thèmes du déracinement et de l’errance (voyage, parcours initiatique, exil). L’analyse des procédés narratifs élaborés par William Faulkner et ensuite James Franco permettra par ailleurs de traiter le thème de l’expression des sentiments (Je de l’écrivain et jeu de l’écriture). Les activités de ce dossier d’accompagnement pédagogique auront pour objectif d’étudier les choix opérés dans l’adaptation cinématographique de l’œuvre littéraire majeure qu’est As I Lay Dying afin de mener un projet d’écriture de scénario avec la classe, à partir d’un extrait du roman de Faulkner. 3 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying DANS LES PROGRAMMES Enseignement Niveau Dans les programmes n Anglais Littérature en langue étrangère Série L Voyage, parcours initiatique, exil Piste : le déracinement, l’errance Je de l’écrivain et jeu de l’écriture Piste : l’écriture comme jouissance esthétique, l’expression des sentiments 4 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying FICHE TECHNIQUE DU FILM As I Lay Dying Un film de : James Franco Année : 2013 Langue : Anglais Pays : Etats-Unis Durée : 110 min Au cinéma le 9 octobre Avec (les comédiens principaux) : James Franco, Logan Marshall-Green, Danny McBride, Tim Blake Nelson, Ahna O’Reilly. Synopsis : Après le décès d’Addie Bundren, son mari et ses cinq enfants entament un long périple à travers le Mississippi pour accompagner la dépouille jusqu’à sa dernière demeure. Anse, le père, et leurs enfants Cash, Darl, Jewel, Dewey Dell et le plus jeune, Vardaman, quittent leur ferme sur une charrette où ils ont placé le cercueil. Chacun d’eux, profondément affecté, vit la mort d’Addie à sa façon. Leur voyage jusqu’à Jefferson, la ville natale de la défunte, sera rempli d’épreuves, imposées par la nature ou le destin. Mais pour ce qu’il reste de cette famille, rien ne sera plus dangereux que les tourments et les blessures secrètes que chacun porte au plus profond de lui… 5 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Summing up the story Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 1. Focus on the first scenes: - Listen to the sounds and describe the atmosphere. .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. - Explain what everyone - including the spectators - is waiting for. .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 2. Watch the whole movie and fill in the following family tree with the characters’ names: Darl – Addie – Vardaman – Dewey Dell – Anse – Cash – Jewel One name is missing in the list above: can you find who it is in the family tree? 6 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Summing up the story Au cinéma le 9 octobre 3. Why go to Jefferson? Fill in the following grid with the appropriate characters’ names. Names 4. In your own words, sum up what the Bundrens’ project consists in, using some of the expressions given in the toolbox. Motivation TOOLBOX to bury Addie so as to want to to get an abortion plan to in order to to get new teeth aim at + v-ing intend to to buy a gramophone ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... ..................................................................................................... 7 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Summing up the story Au cinéma le 9 octobre 5. Focus on the final scenes and fill in the following grid with the appropriate characters’ names. What they get Names a broken leg GETS committed to a mental hospital a new set of teeth raped a burnt back buried 8 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Summing up the story Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 6. Assess the result of the Bundrens’ quest, using some of the words given below. TOOLBOX eventually on the one hand… on the other hand finally while after all whereas as a result unlike in the end ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Summing up the story Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 7. The title As I Lay Dying derives from Book XI of Homer’s The Odyssey, in which Agamemnon speaks to Odysseus: « As I lay dying, the woman with the dog’s eyes would not close my eyes as I descended into Hades. » Can you explain the parallel between this quotation and the story? Say if you consider that the characters’ trip can be seen as some sort of odyssey and explain why. ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 10 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 1. Focus on the scene at the river, when the cart is overturned. - What sounds do you hear? ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... - Read the transcript of the dialogues of the scene. Can you remember what images correspond to the lines below? ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... - What is the effect produced by the voice over? ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre - Can you make connections between what is said and the images (clue: focus on the lexical field of water)? ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... - Explain what these simultaneous discrepancy and correspondence between sound and image reveal about the meaning of words and language. ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre - Describe the way Addie expresses herself: study the rhythm and sounds. Say if you think she is talking to someone / to herself, or if these are just her thoughts as they occur in her mind, or if this is a mix of both. Explain why. ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... - Contrast Addie’s words with the other dialogues in the scene, then contrast all the film’s voice-over words with most dialogues. What do you notice? What does this reveal about language again? ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre Extract from the script : CASH TO JEWEL/ JEWEL TO CASH: - Watch yourself! / - I’m on it! Come on! JEWEL TO CASH: Come on! Come on then, you can come, all right? JEWEL TO CASH/ DARL TO CASH: - Come on! / - Watch it! DARL TO JEWEL: Jewel! Let the rope go! CASH TO HORSE: Go! Go! ADDIE V.O.: I used to hear the dark land talking God’s love... His beauty and His sin. Hearing the dark voicelessness in which words are deeds... and the other words that are not deeds... just the gaps in people’s lack... coming down like the cries of the geese in the wild darkness... in the old terrible nights. ADDIE TO CAMERA: Anse had a word, too. Love, he called it. But I had been used to words for a long time. I knew that word was like the others. ADDIE V.O.: Just a shape to fill a lack. When I knew that I had Cash... I knew that life was terrible... and that this was the answer to it. That was when I learned that words are no good. Words don’t ever fit even what they are trying to say at. When he was borned, I knew motherhood was invented by someone... who had to have a word for it. Because the ones that had the children... didn’t care if there was a word for it or not. ADDIE TO CAMERA: Sometimes I would lay by him in the dark... hearing the dark land that was now of my blood and flesh... and I would think, «Anse.» 14 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre ADDIE V.O.: «Why Anse? Why is he Anse?» And I would think about his name until, after a while... ADDIE TO CAMERA (cont’d): I could see the word as a shape... a vessel. I would watch him liquify and flow into it... until the jar stood full and motionless. ADDIE V.O.: I told Cora one day... that he was my cross, and he would be my salvation. He would save me from the water and the fire. Even though I had laid down my life... he would save me. She told me it was sinful when she realized how we were talking about God. But sin and love and fear are just sounds... that people who have never sinned nor loved nor feared, have. But what they never had, and cannot have... until they forget the words. ADDIE TO CAMERA: She wanted me to pray, ask for forgiveness... because to people to whom sin is just a matter of words... to them, «salvation» is just words, too. I would think of him as dressed in sin. I would think of him as thinking of me... as dressed also in sin. Even more beautiful... because the garment he exchanged for sin was sanctified. I would think of the sin as garments which we would remove. And then it was over. ADDIE V.O.: He gave me Jewel. And Jewel was my salvation. WHITFIELD TO ALL: His grace be upon this house! DARL TO CASH: He got the saw, Cash! VERNON TO CASH: I got the rule! Found the rule, Cash! DARL TO CASH: He got your saw, Cash! He got your saw! 15 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 2. Compare this scene with the other dramatic incident (or trial in the characters’ quest) of the movie: the fire. - What effect does the use of slow motion produce? ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... - Which other device that is used many times in the film creates an impression of dilating time and giving several points of view at the same time? ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 16 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Analyzing the film Au cinéma le 9 octobre - Read the information given about Faulkner’s writing and make connections between the novel and the film director’s choices. Say if you agree with these choices or not and explain why, giving examples. INFOBOX Faulkner’s novel presents 15 different points of view in 59 chapters, each chapter narrated by one character, including Addie. The novel utilizes the stream of consciousness technique, which is a narrative mode that seeks to portray an individual’s point of view by giving the written equivalent of the character’s thought processes. ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 3 Creating your own screenplay Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 1. Observe the similarities and differences between the following extract from the script and the extract from the novel. - in the script, find which elements were probably taken from another chapter. - in the extract from the novel, find which elements were not taken into the script, then try to find reasons why. - find the elements that were taken from the novel and whose form was changed in the script. A/ Extract from the script : VARDAMAN TO FAMILY: Look, there’s Jewel! ANSE TO JEWEL: Where that horse? JEWEL TO ANSE: Delivered him to Snopes himself. ANSE TO JEWEL: You did right. VARDAMAN TO DARL: This here sure got me tired. Darl, if Snopes didn’t feed them mules on sawdust... would they be able to make the hill without us have to get out and walk? DARL TO VARDAMAN: Maybe. VARDAMAN TO DARL: When we stop at night in the barn, where do buzzards stay? VARDAMAN TO CAMERA: I asked Darl. He doesn’t know neither. Tonight I’m gonna see where them buzzards stay while we’re in the barn. 18 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 3 Creating your own screenplay Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre B) Extract from the novel VARDAMAN DARL AND JEWEL and Dewey Dell and I are walking up the hill behind the wagon. Jewel came back. He came up the road and got into the wagon. He was walking. Jewel hasn’t got a horse any more. Jewel is my brother. Cash is my brother. Cash has a broken leg. We fixed Cash’s leg so it doesn’t hurt. Cash is my brother. Jewel is my brother too, but he hasn’t got a broken leg. Now there are five of them, tall in little tall black circles. “Where do they stay at night, Darl?” I say. “When we stop at night in the barn, where do they stay?” The hill goes off into the sky. Then the sun comes up from behind the hill and the mules and the wagon and pa walk on the sun. You cannot watch them, walking slow on the sun. In Jefferson it is red on the track behind the glass. The track goes shining round and round. Dewey Dell says so. To-night I am going to see where they stay while we are in the barn. 19 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 3 Creating your own screenplay Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 2. Read the following extract from the novel which was not included within the scenario of James Franco’s film: WHITFIELD WHEN THEY TOLD me she was dying, all that night I wrestled with Satan, and I emerged victorious. I woke to the enormity of my sin; I saw the true light at last, and I fell on my knees and confessed to God and asked his guidance and received it. “Rise,” He said; “repair to that home on which you have put a living lie, among those people with whom you have outraged My Word; confess your sin aloud. It is for them, for that deceived husband, to forgive you: not I.” So I went. I heard that Tull’s bridge was gone; I said “Thanks, O Lord, O Mighty Ruler of all”; for by those dangers and difficulties which I should have to surmount I saw that He had not abandoned me; that my reception again into His holy peace and love would be the sweeter for it. “Just let me not perish before I have begged the forgiveness of the man whom I betrayed,” I prayed; “let me not be too late; let not the tale of mine and her transgression come from her lips instead of mine. She had sworn then that she would never tell it, but eternity is a fearsome thing to face: have I not wrestled thigh to thigh with Satan myself? let me not have also the sin of her broken vow upon my soul. Let not the waters of Thy mighty wrath encompass me until I have cleansed my soul in the presence of them whom I injured.” It was His hand that bore me safely above the flood, that fended from me the dangers of the waters. My horse was frightened, and my own heart failed me as the logs and the uprooted trees bore down upon my littleness. But not my soul: time after time I saw them averted at destruction’s final instant, and I lifted my voice above the noise of the flood: “Praise to then O Mighty Lord and King. By this token shall I cleanse my soul and gain again into the fold of Thy undying love.” I knew then that forgiveness was mine. The flood, the danger, behind, and as I rode on across the firm earth again and the scene of my Gethsemane drew closer and closer, I framed the words I should use. I would enter the house; I would stop her before she had spoken; I would say to her husband: “Anse, I have sinned. Do with me as you will.” It was already as though it were done. My soul felt freer, quieter than it had in years; already I seemed to dwell in abiding peace again as I rode on. To either side I saw His hand; in my heart I could hear His voice: “Courage. I am with thee.” Then I reached Tull’s house. His youngest girl came out and called to me as I was passing. She told me she was already dead. I have sinned, O Lord. Thou knowest the extent of my remorse and the will of my spirit. But He is merciful; He will accept the will for the deed, Who knew that when I framed the words of my confession it was to Anse I spoke them, even though he was not there. It was He in His infinite wisdom that restrained the tale from her dying lips as she lay surrounded by those who loved and trusted her; mine the travail by water which I sustained by the strength of His hand. Thee in Thy bounteous and omnipotent love, O praise. I entered the house of bereavement, the lowly dwelling where another erring mortal lay while her soul faced the awful and irrevocable judgment, peace to her ashes. “God’s grace upon this house,” I said. 20 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying As I Lay Dying Activité 3 Creating your own screenplay Un film de James Franco Etats-Unis, 2013 Au cinéma le 9 octobre 3. You are going to adapt this chapter into a screenplay. In your own words, sum up what is going on in this extract. Cross the passages you think are useless for your scene. Highlight the passages that can easily be turn into images (without dialogues). Pick another colour and highlight the dialogues you would like to keep and the passages you think might be easily turned into dialogues. Determine which lines you want to be delivered as a voice over. Determine which devices you are going to use: voice-over, split screen, slow motion… Write your screenplay, using the guidelines given here: http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/scripts/screenplay.pdf 21 Dossier pédagogique As I lay dying RÉFÉRENCES COMPLÉMENTAIRES Bibliographie - As I Lay Dying, FAULKNER William, 1930. Le roman à l’origine du scénario du film. - Pour élaborer le dossier pour l’épreuve du bac, on pourra compléter l’étude d’extraits du roman de Faulkner par la lecture d’un extrait d’un roman qui s’est fortement inspiré de As I Lay Dying : Last Orders, SWIFT Graham, 1996. - On pourra aussi étudier un extrait d’un autre écrivain du sud des Etats-Unis qui raconte également la dislocation de familles écrasées par les secrets, les rancœurs et les non-dits : Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, WILLIAMS Tennessee, 1954. 22 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Summing up the story éléments de correcTion 1. Focus on the first scenes: - Listen to the sounds and describe the atmosphere. Eléments attendus: sounds of rain + saw + terse/minimal dialogues. Oppressive and ominous atmosphere => sense of foreboding - Explain what everyone - including the spectators - is waiting for. Everyone is waiting for Addie’s death. 2. Watch the whole movie and fill in the following family tree with the characters’ names: Darl – Addie – Vardaman – Dewey Dell – Anse – Cash –Jewel One name in the list above is missing: can you find which? Name this person and explain how you found out about this person’s role. The person who is not mentioned in the list is Jewel’s father. This mystery keeps obsessing Darl, who never finds the answer. But the spectators learn that Rev. Whitfield (the clergyman who comes for Addie’s funeral service) is actually the man Addie had an affair with when they see/ hear her confessing about her being unfaithful during the river incident: her confession is immediately followed by a flashback of Whitfield blessing the Bundrens’ home after Addie death. 23 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying éléments de correcTion Activité 1 Summing up the story 3. Why go to Jefferson? Fill in the following grid with the appropriate characters’ names. Names Anse, Cash, Darl?, Dewey Dell, Jewel Dewey Dell 4. In your own words, sum up what the Bundrens’ project consists in, using some of the expressions given in the toolbox. Motivation to bury Addie to get an abortion Anse to get new teeth Cash to buy a gramophone TOOLBOX so as to want to plan to in order to aim at + v-ing intend to The Bundrens intend to/want to/plan to drive Addie’s body back to Jefferson in order to/so as to bury her next to her parents’ family as she wished. But this project appears to be some sort of pretext for some members of the family: Anse constantly refers to the promise he made to his wife but we eventually realize that he wants to go to the city to get a new set of teeth while Dewey Dell is ready to overcome any obstacle and trial on the way because she plans to get an abortion in Jefferson. 24 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying éléments de correcTion Activité 1 Summing up the story 5. Focus on the final scenes and fill in the following grid with the appropriate characters’ names. What they get Names a broken leg Cash Darl GETS committed to a mental hospital Anse a new set of teeth Anse a wife Dewey Dell raped Jewel a burnt back Addie buried 25 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Summing up the story éléments de correcTion 6. Assess the result of the Bundrens’ quest, using some of the words given below. TOOLBOX eventually on the one hand… on the other hand finally while after all whereas as a result unlike in the end Suggestion: Unlike Anse who gets what he came for in the end, the other family members are eventually physically injured (Cash, Jewel, Dewey Dell) or removed (Darl). On the one hand, Anse’s quest is a success, while all the others lose something: Cash loses his leg, Jewel loses his horse, Dewey Dell loses hope and Darl loses his freedom. 26 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 1 Summing up the story éléments de correcTion 7. The title As I Lay Dying derives from Book XI of Homer’s The Odyssey, in which Agamemnon speaks to Odysseus: «As I lay dying, the woman with the dog’s eyes would not close my eyes as I descended into Hades.» - Can you explain the parallel between this quotation and the story? The quote from Homer’s Odyssey conjures up the image of someone who cannot rest in peace even after his death, which appears to be Addie’s case as her decaying body is being carried, spending 9 days rotting in a coffin in the Mississippi summer sun, in and out of a fastmoving river, a burning barn, vultures, etc. and her narrative voice still survives, telling of her torments and obsessions. - Say if you consider that the character’s trip can be seen as some sort of odyssey and explain why. Suggestion: Their trip can be compared with some sort of odyssey insofar as it is a quest which aims at bringing someone back home and which is fraught with danger. Just like Odysseus, the characters have to overcome considerable obstacles in order to reach their destination. 27 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film éléments de correcTion 1. Focus on the scene at the river, when the cart is overturned. - What sounds do you hear? At first, there is no dialogue and only music. The dialogues between the protagonists of the scene at the river are reduced to just a few words and then we hear Addie’s monologue as a voice over while we see the characters fighting against the raging waters of the river. - Read the transcript of the dialogues of the scene. Can you remember what images correspond to the lines below? > Suivant productions élèves. Il s’agit de leur faire découvrir que son et image ne correspondent pas point par point dans cette scène. - What is the effect produced by the voice over? Addie’s voice over has a double effect on the perception of the scene: the absence of a realistic soundtrack of the events gives it both an extremely tragic quality as we focus on what we see (the characters’ mouths wide open as they are “silently” screaming, the rushing waters, the impact of the log on the cart…) and imagine the sounds and also a sort of surreal aspect as if it were all happening in a dream or in a memory => paradox: both realistic, vivid and somewhat at a distance, surreal. - Can you make connections between what is said and the images (clue: focus on the lexical field of water)? Lexical field of water in Addie’s monologue: liquify (sic), vessel, jar, water. When she says “I told Cora one day... that he was my cross, and he would be my salvation. He would save me from the water and the fire. Even though I had laid down my life... he would save me. She told me it was sinful when she realized how we were talking about God.” we understand that she is referring to her son Jewel who actually saves her coffin from the water in the scene, which gives a literal meaning to her metaphor. 28 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film éléments de correcTion - Explain what these simultaneous discrepancy and correspondence between sound and image reveal about the meaning of words and language. The gap between sound and images along with the metaphorical correspondence between Addie’s words and the scene as it unfolds under our eyes perfectly mirrors what Addie is saying about language: words are only signs devoid of meaning, empty vessels. The connection between signifier (the combination of sound and image that is the word) and signified (the concept that is referred to) is inconsistent and not to be relied on - Describe the way Addie expresses herself: study the rhythm and sounds. Say if you think she is talking to someone / to herself, or if these are just her thoughts as they occur in her mind, or if this is a mix of both. Explain why. Addie’s sentences are not linked with obvious logical connections, some sentences remain unfinished. The overall rhythm is apparently broken, erratic while the repetitions and alliterations give her monologue a sort of poetic logic based on associations (thoughts – sounds). NB : On pourra étudier plus attentivement le passage suivant, par exemple (logique non pas basée sur des connecteurs discursifs mais sur des repetitions et des allitérations): “Hearing the dark voicelessness in which words are deeds... and the other words that are not deeds... just the gaps in people’s lack... coming down like the cries of the geese in the wild darkness... in the old terrible nights.” As a consequence, it may be inferred that we hear her thoughts just as they occur in her mind => stream of consciousness. - Contrast Addie’s words with the other dialogues in the scene, then contrast all the film’s voice-over words with most dialogues. What do you notice? What does this reveal about language again? Just as in this scene, the voice-over monologues we hear in the film are all much more elaborate and complex than the dialogues between the characters, which remain extremely basic and do not reveal a lot about the characters’ feelings and thoughts. We discover that the characters have a particularly rich inner life (all with their own personal inner language: there is a huge difference between Cash’s very practical thoughts and Darl’s metaphysical musings for example) but that they are unable to express their thoughts and feelings when they speak. Language therefore appears as a powerless tool which can barely describe what really happens (=> Cf. Addie’s monologue on language). 29 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 2 Analyzing the film éléments de correcTion 2. Compare this scene with the other dramatic incident (or trial in the characters’ quest) of the movie: the fire. - What effect does the use of slow motion produce? The fire incident is first filmed in the same way as the scene at the river: there’s only music at the beginning but then we quickly hear the terrible sounds of the fire and the shouts of the characters. These sounds are then interrupted again at the end when Jewel eventually gets the coffin out of the barn. The use of a more “realistic” soundtrack in this scene (embedded in a sort of soundless frame) emphasizes the dramatic quality of the incident, while the use of slow motion tends to give the impression that time is being dilated, just as in a dream or a memory. - Which other device that is used many times in the film creates an impression of dilating time and giving several points of view at the same time? There is a device which is profusely used in the film: the split screen. Here the director often chose to show the same scene from two different points of view, cutting the screen vertically into two parts, often with a slight time interval between the two screens, thus disturbing the linear perception of time and creating an effect of dilatation. - Read the information given about Faulkner’s writing and make connections between the novel and the film director’s choices. Say if you agree with these choices or not and explain why, giving examples. Suivant productions élèves. Il conviendra de faire remarquer que l’utilisation quasi-systématique du split-screen répond à une volonté de retranscrire la vie intérieure des personnages telle que Faulkner l’avait fait avec la technique du « courant de conscience ». Les autres choix qui visent à reproduire l’effet de l’écriture faulknérienne sont les ralentis ainsi que le recours à la voix off. 30 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 3 1. Creating your own screenplay éléments de correcTion Observe the similarities and differences between the following extract from the script and the extract from the novel. - in the script, find which elements were probably taken from another chapter. - in the extract from the novel, find which elements were not taken into the script, then try to find reasons why. - find the elements that taken from the novel and whose form was changed in the script. Corrigé: les éléments sont surlignés dans les textes suivant le code de couleurs donné ci-dessus. 31 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 3 Creating your own screenplay éléments de correcTion 1. Observe the similarities and differences between the following extract from the script and the extract from the novel. A) Extract from the script : VARDAMAN TO FAMILY: Look, there’s Jewel! ANSE TO JEWEL: Where that horse? JEWEL TO ANSE: Delivered him to Snopes himself. ANSE TO JEWEL: You did right. VARDAMAN TO DARL: This here sure got me tired. Darl, if Snopes didn’t feed them mules on sawdust... would they be able to make the hill without us have to get out and walk? DARL TO VARDAMAN: Maybe. VARDAMAN TO DARL: When we stop at night in the barn, where do buzzards stay? VARDAMAN TO CAMERA: I asked Darl. He doesn’t know neither. Tonight I’m gonna see where them buzzards stay while we’re in the barn. 32 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 3 1. Creating your own screenplay éléments de correcTion Observe the similarities and differences between the following extract from the script and the extract from the novel. B) Extract from the novel VARDAMAN DARL AND JEWEL and Dewey Dell and I are walking up the hill behind the wagon. Jewel came back. He came up the road and got into the wagon. He was walking. Jewel hasn’t got a horse any more. Jewel is my brother. Cash is my brother. Cash has a broken leg. We fixed Cash’s leg so it doesn’t hurt. Cash is my brother. Jewel is my brother too, but he hasn’t got a broken leg. Now there are five of them, tall in little tall black circles. “Where do they stay at night, Darl?” I say. “When we stop at night in the barn, where do they stay?” The hill goes off into the sky. Then the sun comes up from behind the hill and the mules and the wagon and pa walk on the sun. You cannot watch them, walking slow on the sun. In Jefferson it is red on the track behind the glass. The track goes shining round and round. Dewey Dell says so. To-night I am going to see where they stay while we are in the barn. Note: Quand Vardaman parle de “track behind the glass”, il évoque le train électrique dans la vitrine du magasin de jouets à Jefferson, train électrique qu’il convoite pendant tout le voyage. Cet élément n’est pas très clairement développé dans le film alors qu’il est capital dans les monologues de Vardaman dans le roman. 33 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying Activité 3 Creating your own screenplay éléments de correcTion 2. Read the following extract from the novel which was not included within the scenario of James Franco’s film (…) - You are going to adapt this chapter into a screenplay. - In your own words, sum up what is going on in this extract. > Suivant productions élèves. Il conviendra de faire repérer toute l’ironie de ce passage qui montre très clairement l’hypocrisie du pasteur. - Cross the passages you think are useless for your scene. Highlight the passages that can be easily be turn into images (without dialogues). Pick another colour and highlight the dialogues you would like to keep and the passages you think might be easily turned into dialogues. Determine which lines you want to be delivered as a voice over. Determine which devices you are going to use: voice-over, split screen, slow motion… > Suivant choix des élèves. Cette tâche finale pourra donner lieu à une évaluation. 34 Dossier pédagogique As I Lay Dying
