charulata and jeanne dielman

in the cinema of satyajit ray by darius cooper ,the author observes how charulata ,from the film of the same name ,is expected to observe the world from a distance,in accordance with the the traditional code of hindu femininity ,and that as a result the house becomes the only world in which she is allowed the freedom to wander. now while jeanne dielman is not as socially restricted her entire material and philosophical sense of self is defined through her existence in the home. isn’t the similarity between a 19th and late 20th century story curious.

I agree with your observation. One could also add that Charu is trapped in a marriage with a husband who doesn’t pay any attention to her, and can’t relate to her interests, while Jeanne Dielman lives together with her son who has no interest for her concerns either. Charu tries to escape from her daily routine into writing poetry and getting involved in a love affair, while Jeanne Dielman escapes into prostitution (and murder). There’s an interesting notebook entry on “Jeanne Dielman” which can be found here.

I had to google Jeanne Dielman. Need to catch up :(

moving the thread back to the top

Liamallen, as you suggested in your intro, the difference in the choices they each have. Jeanne opts for a life of private ritual and semi-isolation, even if she isn’t completely cognizant of the implications of her choosing. In contrast, Charu is forced by circumstance to submit to her life of isolation. She chafes against that fate whereas Jeanne snaps when confronted by the experience of something beyond her self-imposed boundaries, something that threatens her narrow and comfortable sense of self. That’s my short answer version of the events anyway…

my inquiry has been expanded upon from both possible angles from two insightful contributors [thanks apursansur for the link] yet ungrateful fool that i clearly am ,i still wish this thread to continue, i think that probably has something to do with the dearth of discussions about ray. [one interesting and entirely superfluous bit of information about charulata is the affair between ray and miss mukherjee ,apparently a film has been made on the subject]

back to the top with this thread

An interesting aspect is how the directors approach the issue of lack of fulfilment of their main characters; Akerman has long takes in real time for household chores rarely given much time on screen, and quite attractive but inoffensive pastel colours, which may underline in turn the mundane and the female, certainly compared with brash loud Hollywood, and together make the ending more surprising.

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