Abstract
This article employs Merleau-Pontian phenomenology to deconstruct the mind-body unity in Gao Xingjian’s film, 'La Silhouette sinon l’ombre' (2003), which shows the protagonist’s sensory and bodily encounters with the physical world through a stream-of-consciousness technique. Applying this philosophy allows us to make sense of the apparently unconnected, disparate scenes and understand the relationship between inner and outer worlds by considering the role of subjective positionality. It explains how Gao brings the body to the screen as both perceiving object and subject of perception through an emphasis on sight and touch, and interprets the creative act as the synthesis of activity and interaction. 'La Silhouette' is an important contribution to contemporary francophone films exploring the relationship between artist, viewer and artwork due, firstly, to Gao’s tripartite aesthetics, dependent on the full integration of the senses, and secondly to the unique expression of the artist’s world via the intramedial, suggesting the coexistence of several consciousnesses.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 53-74 |
| Journal | Forum for Modern Language Studies |
| Volume | 55 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Early online date | 10 Jan 2019 |
| Publication status | Published - 10 Jan 2019 |
Bibliographical note
Although I received an email from the journal's editor stating that my revisions have been accepted, no official date of acceptance has yet been provided since my article is currently in the 'first look' queue. When final edits have been made, the link to the licencing agreement is sent to authors and at that point an official date of acceptance is provided.Keywords
- Gao Xingjian, francophone Chinese, film, phenomenology, consciousness, Merleau-Ponty, intramediality