In what way is the magic lantern (p.9) a symbol that will radiate outward in Combray-- as well as the rest of the work that portrays, among other things, the growth of an artist. Discuss the meaning of the magic lantern.
Tne Narrator from "Swann's Way" as Alladin from "Arabian Night": The Significance of the "Magic Lantern"
The object of the lantern found in the room of the "I" of the poem has a dual role in the story- it brings magic closer to the magics depicted in "Arabian Nights" and serves as a mirror for the artistic potential hidden in the mind of the narrator. Indeed, the light produced by the lantern alters the mini-world of the protagonist in a way that he feels thrown into another realm. The very description of the effects created by the iridescence demonstrates that the author has the congenial tendency to look at the world in ters of artistic creation.
We all know the story of the Alladin and the magic lamp. In that story, Alladin, a young rebellious youth, leads humble life alongside with his mother. Yet, he is satisfied by this way of living until a mysterious uncle (who is indeed an evil genie) arrives to their house and blinds the thoughts of the impoverished folk with promises of riches. Alladin's accidental getting hold of a magic lamp (to the chagrin of the genie) helps him and his mother depart to another realm that brings regrtes as well as joys. Like Alladin, the "I" of the novel feels comfortable in his own room. He feels special attachment to every single object. That can be deducted by looking at the frequent use of the possessive promoun my: "the good angel of certainty had made all the surrounding objects stand still, ...my chest of drawers, my writing-table, my fireplace, the window overlooking the street, and both the doors" (9). Tne mentioning of the angel conveys ideas of purity. The facts that the "I" pays special attention to such trivial objects signifies his humility, in a sense. His life seems as simple as that of the impoverished Alladin. Therefore, for him the beautiful illusion created by the lantern are nothing more than an evil magic destroying his little world: "But my sorrows were only increased, because this change of lighting destroyed, as nothing else could have done, the customary impression I had formed of my room" (9). The author feels engulfed into the spell cast upon him by an invisible, yet omnipresent, evil magician.
However, his careful observation of both the reality and the beautiful illusion created by the lantern shows that he has an aesthetic eye, which is very important for the gifted artist. He can see many different things depicted through those lights: "...it substituted the opaqueness of my walls an impalpable iridescence, supernatural phenomena of many colours, in which legends were depicted, as on a shifting and transitory window" (9). There is a figurative palette in the mind of the "I" that with whose colours he makes the reality looks brighter. Yet, he realizes this brightness is fake, even evil.
Tne Narrator from "Swann's Way" as Alladin from "Arabian Night": The Significance of the "Magic Lantern"
ReplyDeleteThe object of the lantern found in the room of the "I" of the poem has a dual role in the story- it brings magic closer to the magics depicted in "Arabian Nights" and serves as a mirror for the artistic potential hidden in the mind of the narrator. Indeed, the light produced by the lantern alters the mini-world of the protagonist in a way that he feels thrown into another realm. The very description of the effects created by the iridescence demonstrates that the author has the congenial tendency to look at the world in ters of artistic creation.
We all know the story of the Alladin and the magic lamp. In that story, Alladin, a young rebellious youth, leads humble life alongside with his mother. Yet, he is satisfied by this way of living until a mysterious uncle (who is indeed an evil genie) arrives to their house and blinds the thoughts of the impoverished folk with promises of riches. Alladin's accidental getting hold of a magic lamp (to the chagrin of the genie) helps him and his mother depart to another realm that brings regrtes as well as joys. Like Alladin, the "I" of the novel feels comfortable in his own room. He feels special attachment to every single object. That can be deducted by looking at the frequent use of the possessive promoun my: "the good angel of certainty had made all the surrounding objects stand still, ...my chest of drawers, my writing-table, my fireplace, the window overlooking the street, and both the doors" (9). Tne mentioning of the angel conveys ideas of purity. The facts that the "I" pays special attention to such trivial objects signifies his humility, in a sense. His life seems as simple as that of the impoverished Alladin. Therefore, for him the beautiful illusion created by the lantern are nothing more than an evil magic destroying his little world: "But my sorrows were only increased, because this change of lighting destroyed, as nothing else could have done, the customary impression I had formed of my room" (9). The author feels engulfed into the spell cast upon him by an invisible, yet omnipresent, evil magician.
However, his careful observation of both the reality and the beautiful illusion created by the lantern shows that he has an aesthetic eye, which is very important for the gifted artist. He can see many different things depicted through those lights: "...it substituted the opaqueness of my walls an impalpable iridescence, supernatural phenomena of many colours, in which legends were depicted, as on a shifting and transitory window" (9). There is a figurative palette in the mind of the "I" that with whose colours he makes the reality looks brighter. Yet, he realizes this brightness is fake, even evil.