‘.. Rear Window Reads Like an Ironic Reversal of Bentham’s ‘Panopticon’ as Exploited by Foucault’ Write an Essay Exploring the Significance of the Surveillant Theme Evident in the Film Rear Window.
‘.. Rear Window reads like an ironic reversal of Bentham’s ‘Panopticon’ as exploited by Foucault’
Write an essay exploring the significance of the surveillant theme evident in the film Rear Window.
“We’ve become a race of Peeping Toms – what people ought to do is get outside their house and look in for a change.” – Stella, Rear Window, 1954.
The theme of surveillance is all too clear in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 film, ‘Rear Window’. From the opening credits, we immediately get a sense of what this film is about. The slow uprising of the James Jeff’s (L.B. Jeffries a.k.a. Jeff) window blinds to reveal the setting, the courtyard and the apartment blocks we soon become all too familiar with is just perfect. This technique instantly puts a sense of surveillance and voyeurism into the forefront of the viewer’s minds.
We then see that Jeff, who we realise is a photographer, has broken his leg and is in a wheelchair, “virtually emasculating him and casting him in the passive role of the spectator” (Surveillance in the Cinema, A. Hultkrans, [Online]). It is by no coincidence that Jeff is a photographer; this sets the scene nicely for the whole film. A photographer is the ultimate voyeur, by having the need to peer into other’s lives as the main objective of their profession. Even though he is out of work because of his broken leg, he applies his work to his home-life, by looking and watching the actions of all his neighbours. Not knowing the real names of many of his subjects, Jeff assigns nicknames to them, such as Miss Lonely Hearts - a middle-aged woman who never has any company over, and Miss Torso - a young ballet dancer who often has different men over to her apartment for drinks. It is made clear to us that he enjoys watching the everyday routines of these people.
However, Jeff’s satisfaction doesn’t wholly come from watching his neighbours; it comes from him not being seen in return. This is the best form of entertainment he can get while he is injured and
Write an essay exploring the significance of the surveillant theme evident in the film Rear Window.
“We’ve become a race of Peeping Toms – what people ought to do is get outside their house and look in for a change.” – Stella, Rear Window, 1954.
The theme of surveillance is all too clear in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 film, ‘Rear Window’. From the opening credits, we immediately get a sense of what this film is about. The slow uprising of the James Jeff’s (L.B. Jeffries a.k.a. Jeff) window blinds to reveal the setting, the courtyard and the apartment blocks we soon become all too familiar with is just perfect. This technique instantly puts a sense of surveillance and voyeurism into the forefront of the viewer’s minds.
We then see that Jeff, who we realise is a photographer, has broken his leg and is in a wheelchair, “virtually emasculating him and casting him in the passive role of the spectator” (Surveillance in the Cinema, A. Hultkrans, [Online]). It is by no coincidence that Jeff is a photographer; this sets the scene nicely for the whole film. A photographer is the ultimate voyeur, by having the need to peer into other’s lives as the main objective of their profession. Even though he is out of work because of his broken leg, he applies his work to his home-life, by looking and watching the actions of all his neighbours. Not knowing the real names of many of his subjects, Jeff assigns nicknames to them, such as Miss Lonely Hearts - a middle-aged woman who never has any company over, and Miss Torso - a young ballet dancer who often has different men over to her apartment for drinks. It is made clear to us that he enjoys watching the everyday routines of these people.
However, Jeff’s satisfaction doesn’t wholly come from watching his neighbours; it comes from him not being seen in return. This is the best form of entertainment he can get while he is injured and