Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Mono No Aware
Mono no aware is the Japanese idea of the awareness of the transience of beauty and the ultimate sadness of life. After watching Early Summer can you better understand this concept? Where there scenes that evoked both feelings of joy and sadness, moment of beauty and tears? What were your emotionas at the end of the film? What did you think about some of the images we discussed in class: the waves, the caged bird, the child's balloon? Are there moments when you felt the sadness and the beauty of life?
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In Early Summer, Ozu embodies the concept of mono no aware with aesthetically pleasing and thought-provoking images that symbolize the transience of beauty in the natural world. For me, a scene that depicts this concept is the scene where the grandparents are sitting outside watching the balloon float away. They are looking up to the sky, and the man exclaims, "some child must be crying". This reflection came from their own personal experiences, when their son let go of his balloon accidentally and was encompassed by a sea of sadness. This struck me as odd, considering balloons are typically a symbol of joy and childhood bliss. Although when they see the balloon, they only express their thoughts from personal experiences of sadness. This balloon represents both the classical joy and childhood bliss that comes from a balloon and the sadness that can override that joy when it is lost. The message of this fleeting balloon is clear: everything beautiful and joyful in life is fleeting. Life itself is fleeting. And while some people interpret this idea as sad and terrifying, I interpret it the other way. Since beauty and life is so fleeting, it is best to take advantage of everything beautiful in our lives. To be cliché, people should "stop and smell the roses" every day and take moments to appreciate the beauty that is in this world and in our everyday lives.
ReplyDeleteAnother aspect to consider in this scene is the positioning of the camera. Both of the figures are near the ground and then the camera looks up to the sky to see the balloon. This also emphasizes the idea of mono no aware by showing how small humans are in the grand scheme of life. Their lives, along with the balloons', are fleeting while the sky will remain.
ReplyDeleteThe Japanese idea of mono no aware derives from the key principle that the beauty in life is only seen as beautiful because it is fleeting, as is the nature of life in general. Often, this idea is portrayed through the more experienced, or in a simpler term elderly, characters in the film that have more experience dealing with these matters. The grandparents and the great uncle often are most insightful through their actions, not necessarily through their words, comparatively speaking with the middle generation that encompasses Noriko, her friends, and her brother. For example, the great uncle’s games with the children should convey the message of appreciating the smaller things in life because the absence of such things will bring upon sadness. Even when the children are attempting to mock him, he always comes away with a smile because he knows of the fleeting nature of these encounters with children well on their way to growing up and losing this sense of childhood blissfulness. The scenes that show the whole family around the table, because of the eventual division at the end of the film, seem to be the most important. The division of the family because of Noriko’s wedding stress the importance of family spending time together. Due to the eventual collapse of the unified family, these meal scenes could drive one to tears upon a secondary viewing because the audience would realize that this time spent as a family was limited. Of course, the family time spent together was only special, on par with the mono no aware, because it was fleeting. The various symbols of the film seem to be attempting to get the audience to recognize this short-lived happiness. The bird was once free but then was caged, the balloon was once adored by a child but is not floating into oblivion, and the literal motion of the waves coming and going all exemplify this idea of mono no aware.
Before watching Early Summer, I was intrigued by the concept of Mono No Aware. It definitely gave me a Western world vibe and almost felt reminiscent of a Buddhist culture. After watching Early Summer, I did indeed get a better feeling of Mono No Aware. Everything that seemed to cause happiness was intertwined with sadness and the inevitability of that thing ending. Specifically Noriko's marriage invoked sadness along with the usual joy. She was splitting up the family, and they would never be the same. They would never be able to wake up with her in the same house. Or see her at dinnertime. She would no longer be a part of the family's daily routine. Of course they would see her and be able to visit, but things would not be the same. For the next stage in life to happen, the previous stage has to end. The way I personally could connect Mono No Aware to a Buddhist concept is through Vipassana Meditation. Essentially one is supposed to focus on the flow on life. Instead of closing your eyes and focusing on breathing and "nothing" as with traditional meditation, the individual should focus on the neverendingness of life. It is constantly moving and it is indeed beautiful. I thought this aspect was symbolized by the waves -- depicting the literal flow of life. Every second you witness cannot be duplicated and there is definitely a beauty in that. It causes us to appreciate the moment and the small things we often overlook. The film in general seemed to take this aspect and expand upon it. Essentially taking the audience through everyday life, I believe it was trying to the viewer to see the beauty in the simplest of things.
ReplyDeleteMono no aware is a Japanese concept that is evident in the entirety of the film Early Summer. Central to the concept of mono no aware is the idea that beauty is both magnificent and sad because of the fact that anything that is beautiful will deteriorate with time. Thus things that are forever have no beauty; only things that will wither have the capability to be beautiful. Mono no aware is a concept shown in both the film as a whole and in specific imagery. The major items of imagery that evoke mono no aware are the waves, the caged bird, and the child’s balloon. The first image scene in the film is waves. As one wave reaches the shore, it then passes back towards the water. The waves are both beautiful and fleeting because of their quick coming and going. The second example, an image of a bird stuck within a cage, is also striking, yet this time the bird reflects sadness not because of its passing away, but because of its inability to be free. The last image of a balloon ascending towards the sky reminds us of the happiness of infancy, yet is immediately followed by a character saying “a child is crying somewhere”. This image which is normally associated with happiness and beauty then related to the thought of a crying child. In each example of mono no aware, beauty is portrayed with a sense of sadness, often based upon the fact that the beauty is soon to disappear. In addition, the plot is an example of mono no aware. As Noriko goes to marry, in what is supposed to be a joyous day, the viewer is also reminded of a negative consequence. The marriage is uniting two people, but also is breaking up a family that has been together for a long time.
ReplyDeleteYes, I definitely think the film helped me better understand the concept of Mono No Aware. During the class discussion I at first struggled identify moments in the film that were both happy and sad, but over time, as I began to review the film, I started to understand just how frequent these scenes are. The idea that life can be both happy and sad, that there can be fleeting moments of beauty that also remind us that life in general is sad, is a theme that is displayed throughout the film. I think one of the scenes that showed this most clearly was the final scene, from Noriko's father and mother watching the wedding process, to the final shot of the wind blowing across the grain in the field in front of what seems to be Noriko's family home.
ReplyDeleteThis scene in particular shows the immediate beauty of the subject, while also the longing sadness associated with. The wedding process is beautiful, ornate, and regal. Norkio's mother comments on the beauty of the bride, but at the same time, wonders allowed about who she's going to marry. This thought brings back memories of when their family was once whole, when Noriko lived with them, and when everything seemed so much simpler. She verbally reminds herself of all of the great memories she's made with her family, but this too ushers in both feelings of happiness and sadness. I personally remembered back to all of the happy moments the family shared, but at the same time thought about how possibly never again would new memories like those be made, as their family is now scattered across Japan.
The final scene, as the wind blows across the grain, really helped me see both the beauty and sadness in life. The wind, rippling across the grain, creates a beautiful and harmonious landscape. But the shifting grain, flowing in the wind, also serves as a reminder that nothing is permanent, that time changes all, and that even families can crumble from the passage of time. The scene certainly evokes a sense of beauty, but also one of deep sadness, as it leaves the audience with the cold conclusion that time allows some to move forward in their lives, while in the process leaving others behind.
There are a lot of rather bitter sweet scenes in the film Early Summer. The ones that stuck out to me the most, however, were those between the young boys and the elderly. There is an early scene that shows the old man giving the young boy a treat every time he says “I love you”. After the old man is finished giving our treats the boy drops the act and tell the old man blatantly, “I hate you” which is meant to be funny and cute but I saw it as a little sad because the boy doesn’t really know not to interact with this person that is so much older than him. The conversation makes the age difference very pronounced reminding the audience that they will not be able to connect for much longer. At the end of the film the audience is left with a sort of feeling of mortality as they now know that beauty, youth, and happiness are all transient ideas. The image of beauty and sadness that resonated most with me was that of the caged bird. This animal was very beautiful and it could be imagined that it would have been even more so if it wasn’t caged. The cage is holding the bird back just like Noriko’s family had sort of trapped her. The overarching theme of the movie is a perfect fit with the idea of mono no aware because of the main story line with Noriko’s love life. She is young and getting married yet her family continues to remind her of her getting older and needing to marry soon, which means she might need to settle or make irrational decisions.
ReplyDeleteAs a film heavily rooted in the concept of mono no aware, "Early Summer" suggests that everything joyous in this world is only made so by its fleeting nature. Ozu provides an excellent visual metaphor through the image of the balloon floating further and further out of reach, eventually prompting one of the characters to note that somewhere, some child is undoubtedly mourning its loss. On a larger scale, however, the film tackles this idea through its examination of Noriko’s marriage, a transition in a family’s life that simultaneously marks the beginning of a new, happy era and the inevitable death of another. Noriko’s family is certainly glad that she will soon be moving on, but that “end date”, so to speak, only puts more value on their time together as a cohesive whole. They only have so much precious time before that portrait they worked so hard to maintain is scattered and made incomplete. By the end of the film I was actually left thinking of my own current transitional situation, and in fact, I would be surprised if the final image of Shukichi and Shigae looking on as a wedding procession marches through the fields did not evoke similar bittersweet feelings from most of my fellow seniors. Right now we are at a point in our lives where we, along with our families, anticipate the future and cannot wait to see what is in store, but at the same time we mourn, and perhaps even fear our departure from the homes that have nurtured us for eighteen years. While I think Early Summer is sympathetic towards our condition, it also forces us to recognize that such times are merely natural parts of life. Going back to that final scene, what makes it so effective and poignant is that the wedding the parents watch is not their own daughter’s. Its generic nature demonstrates both to them and us that everyone passes through these same phases, and the only way to really appreciate the days we live in now is to recognize that they cannot last forever. Like waves on a beach or winds through a field, times are always changing, and that’s what makes them beautiful.
ReplyDeleteOzu’s use of mono no aware throughout Early Summer is rather exceptional. There are many images shown throughout the film that evoke the feeling of beauty and sadness. These include the caged bird (and further still, the uncle unable to leave the city), the balloon and the scene where the sisters are sitting on the beach, giving their goodbyes to each other. For me, the images that caused the feeling of the combination of joy and sadness the most were either the ones that delved into the cyclical nature of the world, or the “small world” aspect of mono no aware. For example, throughout all the drama that goes on throughout Early Summer, the final scene of the rolling hills and flowing fields is a calming reminder that no matter what happens in this family, or any other family, the wind will keep blowing, the grass will keep growing and the world will keep turning. Another scene that inspires the feeling of beauty and tears for me is one of the final scenes with the mystery bride walking down the road. It feels as if all the families in the area are struggling with the same events, it connects the people in a way that dialogue couldn’t possibly. It gives the breath of relief that the families trial is over, it gives them closure on letting go of Noriko into the world. The use of mono no aware throughout the film allows for a universal beauty to be shared with an otherwise slice of life film, in a way that nothing else could hope to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteIn the film Early Summer, mono no aware is a Japanese concept clearly seen throughout the entire film. Similar to mono no aware, is the concept of how beauty is both sad and magnificent and also how anything that has beauty will ultimately deteriorate over time. Through this, things that last forever have no beauty, only things that deteriorate have the ability to be beautiful. This concept of mono no ware is shown in the film as a whole, as well as in specific imagery. Some items of imagery that are seen to represent mono no aware are the bird in the cage, the waves, and the child’s balloon. The first images that the viewers see are the waves at the beginning of the film. The waves are both beautiful and short-lived because of their quick coming and going. Also, the bird in the cage stands out because the bird portrays sadness because it never has to ability to be free. The last image of the balloon floating up into the sky, prompts the viewers of the happiness of infancy. There is then an immediate response by a character saying how a child is crying somewhere. The balloon flying up into the air ultimately has the connotation of happiness and beauty, which is then related to the thought of a crying child. As seen through every example of mono no aware, beauty is seen to be affiliated with a sense of sadness, based upon the fact that the beauty is soon to disappear. Also, the plot of this particular film is an example of mono no aware. As Noriko goes to marry, which is supposed to be the happiest day of her and her family’s lives, the viewer is also reminded of a negative consequence. Noriko’s marriage is bringing two people together as one, but at the same time is breaking up a group of people, a family, which has been together for a long time.
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ReplyDeleteIn Early Summer, the film clearly epitomizes the notion of "mono no aware." The concept of "mono no aware" is a "Japanese term for the awareness of impermanence, or transience of things, and both a transient gentle sadness at their passing as well as a longer, deeper gentle sadness about this state being the reality of life." This concept is shown often throughout the film with scenes like the balloon, a character like Noriko, and opening and closing transitions with waves (of grain and water). When the grandparents of the family are sitting and watching the balloon float away, one of them mentions how a child is now crying because he had lost the balloon. This scene epitomizes mono no aware for the sole fact that the child lost the 'beautiful' balloon, suggesting that everything beautiful or great is not permanent. Noriko's character is considered a beautiful girl, and in the end she leaves the family to live with her new husband. Moreover, the caged bird is building off the concept in a sense, and ironic at the same time. The cage implies the family does not want the bird to be free, which is exactly what is being done with Noriko, where the family is trying to control and plan her future, not allowing her to be free and make her own choices.And eventually Noriko does leave, which ends up breaking up the family. The waves are a concept of fleeting beauty. The other scene and character take up the majority of the middle of the film as the waves are shown in the opening scene and the final scene, reminding the viewer of mono no aware throughout the entire film.
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