Existential themes and motifs in Andrei Tarkovsky’s films: The notions of space and transcendence
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47818/DRArch.2022.v3si075Keywords:
film philosophy, existentialism, material reality, transcendence, spaceAbstract
In this article Andrei Tarkovsky’s films are studied through the lens of existential philosophical traditions. At the heart of Tarkovsky’s narratives lies a yearning for authenticity, a need for freedom and an intention to communicate with otherness in its various manifestations. Whereas spirituality is clearly an important factor in Tarkovsky’s aesthetic explorations, we focus on materiality and corporeality: a violent sensuality, associated to what Albert Camus perceives as a revolt of the flesh, plays a crucial part in Tarkovsky’s seven films. A desire to escape oppressive aspects of everyday reality in order to approach an ideal location (mostly related to memories of childhood) gives rise to the urgent need for transcendence described in Tarkovsky’s body of work. The two key terms, the notions of transcendence and space, are closely related to one another. The importance of poetry, not as a literary term, but as a way to interpret and challenge everyday reality, will be a key factor in the reading of this process.
Metrics
References
- Berdyaev, N. (1948). The Russian Idea. New York: The MacMillan Company.
- Bergson, H. (2004). Matter and Memory. London: Courier Corporation.
- Bird, R. (2008). Elements of Cinema. London: Reaktion Books.
- Camus, A. (1942). The Myth of Sisyphus (Penguin Modern Classics) Paperback – International Edition, November 26, 2013. London: Penguin Classic (November 26, 2013).
- Governatori, L. (2002). Andrei Tarkovski: L'art et la pensee. Paris: Editions L'Harmattan.
- Johnson, V. T. (1994). Andrei Tarkovsky: a visual fugue. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.
- Kierkegaard, S. (1983). Fear and Trembling/Repetition : Kierkegaard's Writings, Vol. 6. Princeton: Princeton University Press; Revised ed. edition (June 1, 1983).
- Le Fanu, M. (1985). Bresson, Tarkovsky and Contemporary pessimism. The Cambridge Quaterly, Volume VIV, Issue 1, pp. 51-57.
- Merleau-Ponty, M. (2004). The world of perception. London and New York: Routledge.
- Pallasmaa, J. (2008). The Architecture of Image: existential space in cinema. Helsinki: Rakennustieto Publishing.
- Rolli, M. (2004, Fall). Immanence and transcendence. Bulletin de la Societe Americaine de Philosophie de Langue Francais- Volume 14, Number 2.
- Sartre, J.-P. (1965). Situations VII. Paris: Gallimard.
- Shestov, L. (1966). Athens and Jerusalem. New York: Behar Sozialistim.
- Tarkovsky, A. (1987). Sculpting in Time : Reflections on the Cinema. New York: Alfred A. Knop.
- Tarkovsky, A. (1988). Time Within Time: The Diaries 1970-1986. London: Faber and Faber.
- Tarkovsky, A. (1991). Andrei Rublev, With an introduction by Philip Strick. London and Boston : Faber and Faber.
- Visy, G. (2005). Film cultes: cultes du film. Paris: Editions Publibook.
- Whal, J. (2017). Transcendence and the Concrete: Selected Writings. New York: Fodham University Press.
- Zizek, S. (2009). The Parallax View. Massachusetts: MIT Press.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Yannis Mitsou
License
![Creative Commons License](http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by/4.0/88x31.png)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.