Audiences can view various texts to enhance their own knowledge of the discovery. Two examples of this are Briar Rose (1992), written by Jane Yolen and Hotel Rwanda (2002), directed by Terry George. The two composers have created insightful texts that display similar discoveries associated with human nature including human depravity and the strength of human spirit. The composers have achieved this through a number of techniques and the creation of a character and their self-discovery as the texts progress.
The composers created these texts to reveal the potential evil that humans can display, to the audience. The contexts of these texts both involve genocide although separated by half a century. Much of Hotel Rwanda is historically correct and even begins with radio excerpts from the time the genocide happened. The historical context of Briar Rose becomes the background of the novel, which is the Holocaust in WWII.
Whilst Yolen and George depict genocides of the past, both texts are given a more seemingly human face. Briar Rose is entwined with a fairytale and Hotel Rwanda is centred around a love story. The human depravity shown in Hotel Rwanda is appalling. Tutsis are constantly referred to as ??? cockroaches??™ and the Hutu are also out to ??? exterminate those vermin??™. This dialogue chosen by George demonstrates just how shocking the Rwandan genocide was, and demonstrates to the audience how the blatant dehumanisation of the Tutsis, by the Hutu, makes it so much easier for the Tutsis to be killed. As well as this George highlights the negligence of western society towards the Rwandans.
After seeing horrifying footage of Tutsis being killed a reporter believes that ??? When people see this footage they will think ??? Oh my God this is horrible??™ and then go on eating their dinners??™. Audiences take this in and realise the truth of what he has said, and even though the Hutus are the ones being blamed for committing such atrocity, western society did not intervene as they should have done. This is then depicted when the soldiers come to the hotel and everything looks like it will be okay until the harsh truth is told to Paul Russeabagina. General Oliver tells him simply that ??? You??™re dirt; we think you??™re dirt Paul??™.
By now it has been established that Western society does not care for the plight of the Rwandans. George further highlights this with camera shots of the white people leaving the hotel. As a lady is leaving the audience can see she is holding a dog. By showing that the westerners care more for their pets than another human beings life, George has effectively magnified the human depravity in this scene. Yolen also effectively displays human depravity in her novel. She uses intertextuality allegory to depict the human depravity. The use of these metaphors hides the true horrors of genocide in her retelling of the fairytale.
The ??? bad fairy??™ described in Gemma??™s fairytale are the Nazis and the line ??? A mist. A great mist. It covered the entire kingdom??™, this is symbolic of the gas used to kill people at the concentration camps. Furthermore Gemma describes ??? a briary hedge began to grow, with thorns as sharp as barbs??™. This dark sentence symbolises the barbed wire fences around the concentration camps. Yolen uses these to demonstrate the horrors of the genocide and the use of these extended metaphors exposes the human depravity to the audience. As well as this Yolen uses flashback to demonstrate human depravity.
She shows that ??? Many would be dead in days of pneumonia coupled with despair??™. The addition of despair to this statement emphasises how terrible the concentration camps were. While Paul stays calm during most of the film, we as an audience see Paul??™s love for his wife and family.
This love acts as a driving force for Paul to survive. Paul is developed as a family man, he says ??? I cannot leave my family??™ when there is danger. Furthermore his love for his wife Tatiana is also shown when he tells her ??? I will never leave you??™.
This repetition and characterisation builds up the character Paul to be a family man. One of the discoveries portrayed in both texts was self-discovery. Both texts reveal just how much one individual can do, in the face of horror. In Hotel Rwanda, George uses the main character to display self-discovery. Paul is seen by the audience as ignorant and naive during the early stages of the film. Even after Rwandans are being killed and he has taken refugees into the hotel he asks ??? What if I lose my job,??™ and then goes onto say ??? I shouldn??™t have brought them here.??™ This immediately makes the audience think that Paul has not realised just how severe the genocide is and that he is still doubtful about what is happening around him.
As well as this he believes that because ??? the UN are here??™ everybody will be safe. But after seeing mounds of dead bodies he endures a paradigm shift, Paul finally understands just how bad the genocide is and realises that he is just a survivor. Dim lighting is used in this scene to add tension. To show that Paul has finally realised what is going on, George deliberately shows Paul breaking down.
Paul is sobbing on the floor with the camera shooting from above to emphasise how small and vulnerable Paul is. Similarly in Briar Rose, the self discovery of Josef is effectively demonstrated by Yolen. Just like Paul, Josef is seen by the audience as ignorant and naive at first. Josef believed that he would not be killed by the Nazis and that he would be safe. Josef had heard that homosexuals were being persecuted but deemed them to be only rumours and he ??? was good at dismissing rumour??™. To add to this, even after he is captured and taken to a camp he is told of a storeroom for five thousand corpses but he is doubtful of this as well, shown by ??? Five thousand corpses??? Josef murmured, still not believing.??™ Just like Paul, the audience see Josef enduring a paradigm shift. After seeing the effects of the Holocaust, he is no longer ignorant and understands how horrific the genocide is.
He also now realises that he is just a survivor. Audiences can see this when Josef is retelling the past to Becca saying that ??? This is a story of survivors, not heroes??™. The wording used by Yolen builds the character Josef up to show the self-discovery. Both composers effectively use the self-discovery of one character to emphasise human??™s capability of depravity.
In conclusion, Yolen and George have used a variety of techniques in their medium to depict the genocide. The uses of these techniques are very successful in highlighting aspects of discovery to audiences. Overall these texts have enhanced my knowledge of discovery to a greater level.