"Constructing Charlie Kaufman": - A Study of Kaufman's Postmodern Poetics
Authors
Kristensen, Lisa ; Nørremark, Kristina
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2009
Pages
142
Abstract
Dette speciale undersøger Charlie Kaufmans postmoderne poetik med særligt fokus på Synecdoche, New York. Udgangspunktet er Kaufmans særprægede kunstneriske identitet, hvor metafiktion, parodi, fragmenterede narrative strukturer og udviskede grænser mellem virkeligt og imaginært kobles til eksistentielle temaer som autenticitet, ensomhed, kærlighed, sygdom og død. Problemformuleringen spørger, om og hvordan Kaufmans arbejde rækker ud over en konventionel postmoderne tradition, der ofte forbindes med ren dekonstruktion og genbrug. Metodisk kombinerer studiet en kortlægning af et foreslået “kunstmanifest” for Kaufman baseret på hans udtalelser, paratekster og forfatterfunktion med udvalgte teorier om postmodernitet og eksistentialisme (fx simulation, metafiktion, identitetsperformativity, frihed og forholdet til den Anden). Denne teoretiske ramme anvendes i en tæt analyse af Synecdoche, New Yorks form og indhold, suppleret af eksempler fra Being John Malkovich, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind og Adaptation, for at belyse, hvordan Kaufman konstruerer alternative realiteter og inviterer publikum til aktiv fortolkning. Uddraget fremhæver især SNY’s bearbejdning af autenticitet og forbundethed gennem Caden Cotards livsprojekt som teater og synekdoke-motivets mange niveauer. Endelige resultater præsenteres ikke i dette uddrag, men afhandlingen tilsigter at diskutere, om Kaufman overskrider typisk postmoderne film ved at forene formeksperimenter med et alvorligt, menneskeligt anliggende.
This thesis examines Charlie Kaufman’s postmodern poetics with special reference to Synecdoche, New York. It takes as its point of departure Kaufman’s distinctive artistic identity, in which metafiction, parody, fragmented narrative structures, and blurred boundaries between the real and the imaginary are coupled with existential themes such as authenticity, loneliness, love, illness, and death. The central research question asks whether and how Kaufman’s work moves beyond a conventional postmodern tradition often associated with deconstruction and recycling. Methodologically, the study assembles a proposed “art manifesto” for Kaufman from his statements, paratexts, and authorial function, and situates it within selected theories of postmodernity and existential philosophy (e.g., simulation, metafiction, identity performativity, freedom, and the relation to the Other). This framework informs a close analysis of Synecdoche, New York’s form and content, supported by examples from Being John Malkovich, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Adaptation, to show how Kaufman constructs alternative realities and invites active audience interpretation. The excerpt highlights SNY’s treatment of authenticity and connectedness via Caden Cotard’s life-as-theater project and the multilayered synecdoche motif. While final conclusions are not included in this excerpt, the thesis aims to debate whether Kaufman transcends typical postmodern cinema by uniting formal experimentation with serious human concerns.
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Keywords
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