More Analysis

Preliminary Analysis of "Wit"

(1) Camera close-ups. Just in the first scene, the faces of Vivian and Dr. Kelekian take up the entire screen, which gives the audience the sense that they are meant to experience these scenes very personally.

(2) Breaking the fourth wall. Clearly this is written into the play, but Vivian's direct gaze into the camera draws in the audience and makes them part of the story. Our opinions matter. Even our attention to her story and its details matter, since she invites us to be part of it with her.

(2) Lighting. There is always a white light, whether from the window or a small light in or outside the room, but the light never shines directly on Vivian's face (at least while she is in the hospital).

(3) Music. The music reflects Vivian's experience--usually quieter, almost lethargic and nostalgic, with brief periods of tense and frantic chords.

(4) Flashbacks. Vivian's memories are seen in very real detail through her own eyes, so her memories and her current state is often intermixed. These experiences make up who she is, so they are seen in real time (in her current state).

(5) Emma Thompson's performance. Her acting emphasizes her relationship with Jason vs. Susie. Around Jason she is formal, stiff, and uncertain. He makes no effort to befriend her; when he gets engaged in conversation with her, it is to talk about his work and interests. Around Susie she gradually becomes more comfortable, even laughing with her. She is honest with Susie, even though emotions are difficult for her.

(7) The character of Jason. There are many thing to be said about Jason, but the thing that stuck out to me in the film was his obsession with cancer. He was fascinated with it because the cells multiplied endlessly, which is, as he says, "an error in judgment." The same thing can be applied to Jason himself as he makes crucial errors in judgement.

(8) The character of Susie. As with Jason, there are many things to be said about Susie. Almost ironically, it is Susie with her kindness who could have caused the experiment (Vivian's treatment) to be a success. She insisted that they have mercy on Vivian, but because the "experts" ignored her and Vivian's obviously horrendous condition, the treatment was a failure.

(9) Language. John Donne's poems mean everything to Vivian. She hides behind her words; we see her turn to poems in moments of distress or solitude. She turns to the poems for comfort and also for escape from her situation and from herself.

(10) Theme. There was a focus on knowledge and its cost--yes, it's beneficial to be inquisitive, but if the cost is humanity, then it is not worth the price.

I tried to keep these short and sweet so I wouldn't expand on/analyze anything too early in the writing process.
I could look at 7, 9, and 10. Both Jason and Vivian make an essential error in judgment by believing that getting information and gaining knowledge comes above all else. We see this in Vivian during her memories--she did not care about her students as much as she cared about the work they produced. Jason shows this through his narcissism and impersonal attitude with everyone--he cares only about his research and looking like the smartest person in the room at all times. We see that when their walls are dissolved--Vivian's words and Jason's perfect performance--they have to live with themselves. It is clear in seeing Vivian's deep regret and guilt that it isn't worth it to be smart if all personal connections are severed in the process. She pays the price later when she is the one being used for information and her well-being is not even considered.

Working Thesis Statements
(1) Both Jason and Vivian were consumed with the things that represented them best--Jason longed to increase his knowledge and status without restraint, and Vivian had planned to search within words forever for companionship, which she could never have found.

(2) Although they were both intelligent and ambitious, neither Jason nor Vivian could have found the answer to their most important questions because of their blinding pride and their solitary search.

(3) Although they both made great contributions to their respective fields, Susan had more success than Jason, since ultimately Jason's project failed when Vivian died while Susan excelled in her role as Vivian's nurse before and after her death.