Writer’s Choice
Pick one of the two movies (The Grand Illusion or Godfather 1) and write a two page (600 word) essay on it, linking it to one or more of the readings that seem most relevant (your choice). SHOULD BE ATTACHED HERE
You may want to pursue a specific question, such as: What turns Micheal Corleone into the monster he eventually becomes? And what does this mean, given the larger cultural-political issues of the Godfather (post-war capitalism, the shifts in American culture, etc.). Again, this is your choice.
Here is a list of some of the key themes we treated in The Grand Illusion and Godfather 1, to help you decide how to handle this.
1. The nature of an aristocratic caste or estate system versus modern democracy and “equality of conditions.”
2. What is the “grand illusion” of Renoir’s movie–is it the differences that divide human beings (national, ethnic, class, sexual), or is it the idea that we can dispense with these differences in a pacifist society of universal humanity? (Or both?)
3. How do the various differences dividing human beings play out in The Grand Illusion–national and class, first of all, any others, such as ethnic or gender?
