Has Storytelling Come to an End? a Comparison Between Walter Benjamin’s Definition of Storytelling and Patrício Guzmán’s Essay Documentary Nostalgia for the Light
Student reference number: 33249050
Title: Has storytelling come to an end? A comparison between Walter Benjamin’s definition of Storytelling and Patrício Guzmán’s Essay Documentary Nostalgia for the Light1 Course code: MC71001A - Issues in Media & Culture
Submitted by Laura Belinky Gaiarsa, student reference number 33249050, Ma Screen Documentary - Programme code 730038A (f/t) - in the Programme in Contemporary Cultural Processes, Goldsmiths College, University of London, 2013.
1
Constructed title, does not refer to any given Essay Questions. 3.927 words. 1
Has storytelling come to an end? A comparison between Walter Benjamin’s definition of Storytelling and Patrício Guzmán’s Essay Documentary Nostalgia for the Light
“The securest amongst our possessions has been taken from us: the ability to share experiences.” (Walter Benjamin, The Storyteller, p.143)
Introduction
In his text “The Storyteller” Walter Benjamin states that “the art of storytelling is coming to an end”.2 He sets as background the increasing incommunicability of experiences of modern man, declaring that after the first World War period the human capacity of sharing experiences was quickly disappearing. The essay, published in 1936, details the characteristics of what Benjamin sees as a true storyteller, exploring as a model and example the russian writer Nicolai Leskov. Since then, has storytelling, as defined by Benjamin, really come to an end or has it been reinvented through new channels, keeping its core features but using them in different ways? This essay considers Benjaminʼs critique of contemporary storytelling, then goes on to argue that the key aspects he identifies in fact live on in modified structures in contemporary art forms, including the documentary. On the next pages the documentary Nostalgia for the Light (2010)3 is outlined along with the attributes that shape it into an “essay documentary” as described in Laura Rascaroliʼs articleThe Essay Film: Problems,
Title: Has storytelling come to an end? A comparison between Walter Benjamin’s definition of Storytelling and Patrício Guzmán’s Essay Documentary Nostalgia for the Light1 Course code: MC71001A - Issues in Media & Culture
Submitted by Laura Belinky Gaiarsa, student reference number 33249050, Ma Screen Documentary - Programme code 730038A (f/t) - in the Programme in Contemporary Cultural Processes, Goldsmiths College, University of London, 2013.
1
Constructed title, does not refer to any given Essay Questions. 3.927 words. 1
Has storytelling come to an end? A comparison between Walter Benjamin’s definition of Storytelling and Patrício Guzmán’s Essay Documentary Nostalgia for the Light
“The securest amongst our possessions has been taken from us: the ability to share experiences.” (Walter Benjamin, The Storyteller, p.143)
Introduction
In his text “The Storyteller” Walter Benjamin states that “the art of storytelling is coming to an end”.2 He sets as background the increasing incommunicability of experiences of modern man, declaring that after the first World War period the human capacity of sharing experiences was quickly disappearing. The essay, published in 1936, details the characteristics of what Benjamin sees as a true storyteller, exploring as a model and example the russian writer Nicolai Leskov. Since then, has storytelling, as defined by Benjamin, really come to an end or has it been reinvented through new channels, keeping its core features but using them in different ways? This essay considers Benjaminʼs critique of contemporary storytelling, then goes on to argue that the key aspects he identifies in fact live on in modified structures in contemporary art forms, including the documentary. On the next pages the documentary Nostalgia for the Light (2010)3 is outlined along with the attributes that shape it into an “essay documentary” as described in Laura Rascaroliʼs articleThe Essay Film: Problems,
Bibliography: 1. Paul Arthur, “Essay Questions: From Alain Resnais to Michael Moore,” Film Comment 39, no. 1 (2003): 58 2. Walter Benjamin, Selected writings, Volume 3, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1936, 3. Svetlana Boym,The Future of Nostalgia, Basic Books, New York, 2001 4. Rachel Moore, Savage theory, cinema as modern magic, Duke University Press, Durham, 2000 5. Bill Nichols, Introduction to Documentary, Bloomington, Indiana University Press, 2001 6. Laura Rascaroli, “The Essay Film: Problems, Definitions, Textual Commitments”, Framework: The Journal of Cinema and Media, 49 (2), 2008, pp. 24-47 7. Hans Richter,“DerFilmessay:EineneueFormdesDokumentarfilms”(1940),Schreiben Bilder Sprechen: Texte zum essayistischen Film, ed. Christa Blümlinger and Constantin Wulff (Wien: Sonderzahl, 1992), 195–98. Filmography: 1. Nostalgia de la luz, (Nostalgia for the Light), Dir. Patrício Guzmán, Atacama Productions and others, Chile, 2010 2. La batalla de Chile (The Battle of Chile), Dir. Patrício Guzmán, Chile, 1978 3. Chile, la memoria obstinada, (Chile, Obstinate Memory), Dir. Patrício Guzmán, La Sept Art and others, France, 1997 4. The Pinochet Case, Dir. Patrício Guzmán, Benece Paco Poch and others, Chile, 2001 5. Salvador Allende, Dir. Patrício Guzmán, JBA production and others, Chile, 2004 Web pages: 1. John Anderson, “Nostalgia for the Light”, online.wsj.com, 18/03/2011, [accessed in 11/12/2012], 2. Pat Aufderheide, Interview with Patricio Guzmán interview, centerforsocialmedia.org, 25/10/2002, [accessed in 11/12/2012], 3. Britannica Online Encyclopedia, Augusto Pinochet, http://www.britannica.com/ EBchecked/topic/461158/Augusto-Pinochet, date of publication not available, [accessed 02 January 2013] 15