1
Masculine world
• No female in the mob: male control/power
• World of violence: boxing, crime, murder, fist-fight at the end
• Women should be protected; Father Barry and Pop do not want
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Edie to be exposed to such aggression/violence
Park scene: Terry picks up and puts Edie’s glove on his hand
Edie dressed in a white nightgown-frailty, vulnerability
Edie suggests there are other ways of seeking revenge for his
brother’s death
Contrast between masculine and feminine
Hero (Terry) is very masculine: ‘strong, silent type’
Joey’s jacket is passed onto KO and then Terry
Type of coats/jackets represent roles played by men in society
2
Individual heroism and collective struggle
• Narrative begins with sacrifice of Joey (“everybody loved him”)
• While Terry appears to be the hero, he is constantly influenced by
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others
Throwing the tokens for the workers is akin to throwing crumbs for
pigeons
Always an individual who instigates and enforces change when there
is a collective struggle
Father Barry encourages action against the mob; influences Terry
The struggle (for the workers) is job security; they are oppressed by
the bosses, who use fear, intimidation
Terry was protected by the mob; he has made sacrifices (his career);
when he testifies, he also risks his connection to Johnny’s gang
McCarthyism-Communist blacklist to prevent infiltration into USA
lifestyle/values
Final ‘long walk’ scene
Motif of Joey’s jacket (passing on the mantle of hero)
3
Moral struggle and individual conscience
• Displayed through characterisation of central protagonist Terry,
who constantly questions his actions; regrets his role in Joey’s
death; conscience is influenced through fear, his moral
standards and his love for Edie
• “you know, if I spill, my life ain’t worth a nickel”
• “how much is your soul worth if you don’t?”
• Father Barry invites Terry to contemplate which is the correct
choice (bar scene)
• To testify or remain loyal: shows his ability to overcome fear of
rejection by his community
• Car scene with Charley-Terry has to decide whether to follow
his brother’s request or ‘be somebody’, Charley’s struggle
4
Family and community bonds
• Johnny’s relationship with Terry: slaps him on the back,
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acts like the father figure
Terry and Charley have grown up with the mob (they can
be considered as a family-united by desire for money)
Strength of sibling bond between Terry and Charley
Terry is united with workers in final scene (acceptance)
Terry can be seen as a recluse (escapes to pigeon coop)
and outsider
Tommy feels betrayed by Terry
Edie’s family (shows financial hardship and sacrifices)
The Church gives workers the right to speak (place for
communal bonding)
5
Redemption
• When someone has taken a morally wrong path, they turn
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it around and makes a choice that is more morally correct
Terry decides to testify against the mob (encouraged by
Edie’s love and Charley’s death)
Terry is initially presented as a ‘bum’
A series of events (and people) encourage Terry to have
confidence and courage to face Johnny by himself
Charley redeems himself by not killing Terry (and
confessing his involvement in ‘fixing’ the boxing matches)
Workers redeem pride in themselves
Redemptive power of love (sibling and romantic)
6
Power and corruption
• Power is enforced through fear and violence: those who testify are
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silenced through threats or murder
“hawks single out pigeons and kill them”
Hierarchy (those in the lodge, the loft and the hold)
Money laundering (criminal activity)
Created demand for work (selection of workers created desperation)
Father Barry and moral righteousness AND the bosses/mafia and
their physical power/intimidation
Terry is torn between these powerful forces
Johnny Friendly-the corrupt leader
‘The man upstairs’
Terry was corrupted by his relationship with the mob
Father Barry appeals to their sense of right/wrong and takes
advantage of their role as victims who are ‘crucified’
Use of lighting to convey darkness (of the corruption)
7
Loyalty and betrayal
• Influences: money, fear, relationships, family, morality
• Workers are compelled to be loyal ‘D&D’ because they are
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controlled by fear
Pigeons used as symbol of loyalty and betrayal
Shifting and conflicting loyalties
Terry’s gestures indicate his internal conflict and reluctance to
act (hands in pockets, touching head and chin, eyes)
When Tommy finds out that Terry has testified, he kills the
pigeons (belonging to the Golden Warriors)
One message of the film is that betrayal can lead to death
Father Barry is loyal to his faith and his congregation (workers).
He realises the importance of being a part of the struggle.
Edie remains loyal throughout the film
Charley does his best to look after Terry
Lack of remorse
8
ON THE WATERFRONT
Background context
Social, cultural values of the production era (and filmmaker)
How meaning is constructed
9
Background
• Post WWII and Great Depression
• Produced at the time of America’s “red scare” of the
1950’s (Cold War)
• Set on New York’s Docklands (Hoboken, New Jersey)
• Longshoremen – dock workers who loaded / unloaded ships’
cargoes.
• Documentary style approach (realism of Italian cinema)
• The movie reflects an aspect of American life at that time.
10
• The film is based on a series of Pulitzer Prize–winning
news articles by Malcolm Johnson, published in the New
York Sun in 1949.
• The articles exposed the murder, extortion and stand-over
tactics infesting the docks, which were controlled by the
corrupt Longshoremen’s Union.
• A Congressional inquiry, like the one in the film, was set
up to hear evidence from the dockworkers in an attempt
to clean up the waterfront.
11
USA: historical, social, cultural values
Patriotism: protecting American values and promoting the
‘American Dream’
• Allegiance to group, trust, loyalty
• Personal responsibility, honesty, integrity
• Conformity and conservatism
• HUAC mandate was to locate and vilify those who were
perceived to be a threat to the American way of life
• Increasing economic prosperity-manufacturing boom,
consumerism, marketing and selling
• Hard work; aspiration
Morality and Family Values
• Obedience to patriarch (and church)
• Decency; chastity/purity (restrictive/prudish sexual mores)
• Clear division/delineation of gender roles-primacy of the role of
homemaker/mother glorified in popular culture (TV/magazines)
12
The American Dream
• The American Dream is "that dream of a land in which life
should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with
opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. It is a
difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret
adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary
and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high
wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man
and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of
which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others
for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of
birth or position." [Adams,1931 in ‘Epic of America]
• A phrase connoting hope for prosperity and happiness,
symbolized particularly by having a house of one's own.
Possibly applied at first to the hopes of immigrants, the phrase
now applies to all except the very rich and suggests a confident
hope that one's children's economic and social condition will be
better than one's own.
13
USA: social, cultural values
• Empire State Building
• Build during Great
Depression in an attempt
to create jobs
• Construction was around
the clock 24 hours a day.
• To prove to the world that
the American workforce
and spirit was strong and
citizens should not give up
hope on America
• 102 floors, 18months
• Completed in 1931
14
The union movement
• Prosperity meant high wages and few labor complaints,
depriving unions of the high-profile status they enjoyed in
1930s and 1940s. Also weakening unions was the
decrease in blue-collar workers because of the rise of
automation and the accompanying increase in white-collar
jobs—office employees, managers, salespersons. This
loss of blue-collar workers stripped the labor movement of
its core influence and contributed to the sharp decline in
union membership during the 1950s.
15
USA: social and cultural values
• Though 1950s prosperity
benefited many Americans, it
also obscured widespread
poverty. More than one-fifth
of the nation lived below the
poverty line: some in
desolate rural conditions as
migrant workers, others in
the crowded and dirty slums
of American cities. As
wealthy whites moved to the
suburbs, cities exhausted
their funds attempting to
provide social services to an
increasing number of poor
urbanites.
16
USA: social and cultural values
• The U.S. population accordingly grew from about 150
million to about 180 million during the 1950s. The baby
boom, as this explosion was called, was a product of and
a cause for conservative family values—especially about
the place of women in American society.
• Dr. Benjamin Spock, author of the wildly successful Baby
and Child Care (1946), suggested that mothers devote
themselves to the full-time care of their children.
• Popular culture depicted marriage and feminine
domesticity as a primary goal for American women, and
the education system reinforced this portrayal.
17
USA: social and cultural values
• This revival of
domesticity as a social
value was accompanied
by a revival of religion.
• Religious messages
began to creep into
popular culture as
religious leaders
became famous faces.
• It was during the 1950s
that Congress added the
words “under God” to
the Pledge of Allegiance.
18
CONTEXT
Cold War, Communism, Kazan and HUAC
19
Cold War and Communism
• After World War Two, the United
States began to focus on the
differences between itself and the
Soviet Union (Russia)
- Russia was a Communist country
(since 1917)
- USA was capitalist and
democratic
- Tensions began to rise in what
was known as “The Cold War‟
- Soviet Union was becoming
strong
- China became Communist in
1949
- By 1950 fear of communism was
rife in America
20
Elia Kazan, the film’s director
• Kazan, a Communist Party
member in his youth, had
testified in 1952 to the HUAC
(House Un-American
Activities Commission)
against his peers in the film
industry and had been
subjected to much contempt
and rejection.
• Kazan had his own reasons
for wanting to tell the story of
a courageous whistleblower
who risks life and reputation
to follow his conscience and
give testimony.
The Hook
• The Great Depression left many Americans
wondering about the stability of US policy, and
influenced the two men to explore socialist and
communist ideologies. After attending some
informational meetings, Kazan joined the communist
party (and later left); Miller did not join.
• Miller and Kazan witnessed mobsters monopolizing
jobs on the Jersey docks as workers, desperate for
income, were exploited. This served as the
inspiration for their collaborative play The Hook, a
story about one man’s struggle against injustice on
the docks.
• Miller and Kazan move to Hollywood, taking their
script with them.
22
HUAC hearings
• HUAC subpoenaed many
actors, screenwriters, and
directors to coerce them into
informing on their colleagues
making public which of their
friends now had, or formerly
had, any associations with the
Communist Party.
• HUAC subpoenaed Kazan
once, and at his initial hearing
he refused to divulge details.
• At a second hearing in 1952,
however, Kazan chose to give
the names of seven former
colleagues from his Group
Theatre days.
23
Hollywood blacklist
• Kazan’s justifications, however,
were met with much criticism,
particularly from his good friend
Arthur Miller, who believed
naming names was a betrayal of
fellow artists.
• Many believe that Miller’s play
The Crucible, whose hero (John
Proctor) dies rather than accuse
people of being witches,
represents this view.
• On the Waterfront celebrates as
a hero a man who informed on
mob leaders, and many people
believe that Kazan made the
film as a response to Miller, and
other critics.
On The Waterfront
• Elia Kazan, recognizing the parallel between himself and
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John Proctor, had an opportunity to answer back to Miller.
Together with Bud Schulberg, he reworked the script of
The Hook into the screenplay for On the Waterfront,
starring Marlon Brando.
Brando’s character, Terry, gives a speech at the end of
the film in which he justifies his decision to name names.
In The Hook, Terry is beaten to death for his actions, but
in On the Waterfront he overcomes his wounds and
triumphs.
This film won 8 Oscars and was a huge success.
25
Moral ambiguity of decision to testify
• The choice Terry makes to
inform on the union officials
echoes the choice Elia Kazan
made to inform before HUAC
on former communists, but
Terry achieves results that
are far less morally
ambiguous than the results
Kazan achieved.
• Kazan effectively instigated
the blacklist of many of his
creative, intelligent, and
politically active peers. The
only loser from Terry’s
decision is Johnny Friendly, a
merciless bully who clearly
deserves what he gets.
26
Elia Kazan and Terry Malloy
• Kazan’s testimony allowed him to pursue a directing career
undisturbed. However, many of his subsequent films deal with
themes similar to those in On the Waterfront.
• The recurring themes also suggest that Kazan felt a need to
continually assert the right of the individual’s conscience over
that of a mob or governmental authority.
• At the end of On the Waterfront, Terry is surrounded with
people who admire and respect him. His informing has
elevated him in the longshoremen’s eyes, and he has no
reason to doubt his decision.
• Kazan, though he built a successful career, was never fully
embraced by Hollywood, and his own decision to inform
stranded him in morally ambiguous territory.
27
HOW MEANING IS CONSTRUCTED
28
Structure and style
• Kazan wanted his directing in On the Waterfront to be
invisible so that the actors’ performances could be the
focus of the film.
Conveys the sense of a community
• exhausted, paralysed and rendered fearful by corrupting
forces within its midst that have wrested democracy from
the grasp of the common people. “It ain’t part of America”.
• Samples from film noir-stylistically, but not in terms of
narrative elements (no femme fatale or protagonist/hero
who knows what he is doing is wrong, but does it anyway)
29
Narrative: Production and Story elements
Story elements
• Narrative structure
• Characterisation
• Appearance, personality,
motivation
• Setting
• Symbols and motifs
Production elements
• Acting
• Gesture, movement, facial
expressions
• Costume
• Mise en scene
• Cinematography
• Film format
• Lighting
• Visual Composition
• Camera shots and movement
• Editing
• Sound
• Diegetic/non-diegetic
30
Two entwined narratives
1. The love story: Edie goes down to the docks to find out about
Joey’s death
2. Terry’s redemption story begins when he is first attracted to
the beautiful, grieving, angry girl.
How are they entwined
• It takes Edie’s moral strength to draw Terry away from his
allegiance to corruption and it takes the sexual attraction
between them to draw Edie out of her convent-bred
conservatism.
• The two main characters are: the flawed young man and the
pure, angelic young woman who helps him overcome his
doubts and failings to become a hero.
• Redemptive power of love
31
The actors’ faces and gestures
help the viewer to understand the character.
 Terry’s stretching of the soft
woollen glove onto his rough
workman’s hand as he walks
with Edie in the park teases
her yet shows his fascination
with her
 Terry’s gentle turning aside of
the gun Charley pulls on him in
the taxi expresses everything
that is needed about the love
between the brothers
 the confusion and misery on
Terry’s face as he talks to Edie
in the pub reveal the internal
struggle of this inarticulate
character
32
Mise-en-scene
• Mise-en-scène refers to everything that appears before
the camera and its arrangement—composition, sets,
props, actors, costumes, and lighting.
• The “mise-en-scène”, along with the cinematography and
editing of a film, influence the verisimilitude of a film in the
eyes of its viewers.
• The various elements of design help express a film’s
vision by generating a sense of time and space, as well
as setting a mood, and sometimes suggesting a
character’s state of mind.
• “Mise-en-scène” also includes the composition, which
consists of the positioning and movement of actors, as
well as objects, in the shot.
33
Cinematography: black-and-white film format
 Black-and-white photography
gives a stark presentation of
the dirty tenements and the
treacherous docks
 Shadowy tenement buildings
and laneways seem to close in
around the characters, who
are trapped in their narrow
lives, and
 The sharp vertical lines of
cranes and staircases hint at
the dangers that await them.
Contrasting with this darkness
is the expansive rooftop, open
to the sky, Terry’s place of
refuge.
34
Lighting
• In certain scenes, the
film samples heavily
from the film noir
genre.
35
Lighting
• Artificial lighting is
used to illuminate
Edie’s hair, creating a
halo effect and
emphasizing her
angelic personality.
36
Visual Composition
• The shape, size and
positioning of buildings,
objects and people
within the frame conveys
meaning
• Take note of where the
main character is
located and what
appears in the
background/foreground
of the frame
37
Visual Composition
In the foreground, the pile
of rocks forms a pyramid
shape, with Terry and
Edie at the pinnacle (top
of the pile). In the
background, we see the
skyline of NYC, partially
obscured by fog, with the
Empire State Building
directly behind Terry. The
visual composition of this
shot reflects the distant
and elusive promise of
the American Dream.
38
Camera angle
• High angle shots are
used to show
vulnerability, a loss or
lack of power and
sense of that character
being intimidated,
dominated,
overwhelmed or
undermined
39
Camera shots and movement
• After Terry and the mob leader
brawl on the waterfront, Terry is
badly injured and struggles to
remain conscious. In a final
show of defiance against the
mafia leaders, Terry staggers to
his feet and walks into the dock
with his fellow longshoreman
workers. To instill the scope of
Terry’s determination, the
camera frequently cuts from a
medium close-up of Terry
stumbling toward the loading
dock to a POV shot of his
perspective. Imitating Terry’s
experience, the shaky camera
wildly rattles around, going in
and out of focus and cutting to
shots of Terry walking along the
waterfront.
40
Camera shots and movement
• Mid-shots and medium
close ups are used
during conversations
between two characters;
or to depict emotions of
one character while
showing them in a
particular setting
41
Camera shots and movement
• Close-ups are used to
convey intense
emotions and
emphasise dialogue.
• Tight framing can also
reflect the tension
between characters or
a character’s internal
struggle.
42
Camera shots and movement
• Extreme close-ups are
rarely used, so when they
appear in a film, this is an
indication that the
message is significant.
• The tight-framing
(generally a part of a
character’s body) signifies
intensity of emotion, or it
may be used to emphasise
a symbol/motif (in this
case, Edie’s woolen
gloves).
43
Kazan makes use of symbolism
.
Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colours used to represent abstract ideas or concepts
Clothes represent qualities of
their wearers
a. The windbreaker that is
passed from Joey to KO to
Terry connects its wearer to
the struggle for justice.
b. The fine, warm overcoats of
the Union bosses show their
swaggering prosperity,
c. while the workers’ poverty is
apparent as they shiver in
shabby jackets.
44
Kazan makes use of symbolism
The prize fight that Terry has lost, and that still rankles him,
foreshadows his taking on the Union, with even higher stakes and a
second chance to ‘be somebody’.
Empire state building -Across the Hudson, the Empire State
Building looms like the Emerald City from the Wizard of Oz,
distant and strange. It represents dreams and a different life, yet
it’s always glimpsed through a fog. Its sleek jutting frame
contrasts dramatically with the ramshackle rooftops of Hoboken,
with their discolored patches and mismatched roof levels.
The Hudson River - separates Hoboken, New Jersey, from New
York City. Manhattan may as well be a thousand miles away,
since the Manhattan life the longshoremen imagine is so
different from daily life on the waterfront. The river is a border, an
edge that the longshoremen will never be able to cross.
45
Symbols & Motifs: Pigeons
The pigeons are cooped
up in a cage. They’re
fragile. Their natural
impulse is to fly, but
they’ve been trained not
to. In many ways, the
pigeons represent Terry
Malloy.
46
Symbols & Motifs: Pigeons and rooftops
Though he’s a tough former
boxer, his excessive care for
these birds indicates a special
affinity between them. The
imagery of him actually inside the
cage himself, evident when he
tends the birds, suggests this
affinity as well.
Malloy is a dreamer, a delicate
and sensitive man, and much of
the conversation that he has with
Edie about hawks and pigeons
can be translated into words
about each other. In many ways,
Malloy essentially is a pigeon—
that is, he appears on the rooftops
and on the street. He is rarely
shown inside.
47
Symbols & Motifs: Pigeons and rooftops
The pigeons also have a
negative connotation:
stool pigeon, a slang term
used to describe
informers. Every time a
character uses the term
stool pigeon or its
abbreviation, stoolie, Terry
Malloy’s conflict boils to
the surface.
The rooftops symbolise
freedom, a yearning to
rise above the crime and
corruption on the streets.
48
Symbols & Motifs: Hooks
• The sharp metallic hooks that
the longshoremen use to
help them load and empty
pallets hang over their
shoulders menacingly.
• These hooks represent the
forces that literally hang over
them in the form of Johnny
Friendly’s goons. Over the
course of the film, Terry,
Dugan, Luke, and many
other longshoremen have the
hawk-like talon of the hook
pressing against their chests.
49
Symbols & Motifs: Mesh
• The wire netting
initially separates Edie
from, placing her
outside his world. In
this scene, he gently
gives her a pigeon
egg, through the mesh.
Symbolically, this
signals the start of
their relationship.
50
Symbols & Motifs: Fences
• Fences serve as
barriers, to keep
characters within the
confines of their
environment, adding to
the restrictive
atmosphere.
• The wrought iron bars
of this fence take on
the appearance of
prison bars.
51
Symbols & Motifs: Crucifix
• In numerous scenes, the
shape of a crucifix is
noticeable part of the
landscape. In the
background of the roof
scenes, even the
television antennas
create this shape. This
could be read as a
constant reminder of the
place of religion in that
society, and/or the
impending crucifixion of
those who testify.
52
Analysing how meaning is constructed
Throughout each of the three parts of the film, Kazan and
Kaufman use camera angles that emphasize entrapment,
solidified by the setting of laundry hanging on lines, which
form diagonals that intrude on human space, alleyways
with blinding lights and diffused lighting that emphasizes
moral confusion.
53
Analysing how meaning is constructed
Kazan employs numerous symbols and motifs to depict the corruption that
longshoremen of the 1950 have faced. One of the most prominent
metaphors is that of the pigeons and hawks. The stevedores are likened to
pigeons, who are always at the mercy of their owners. They can only be
released at the whim of others as they are always trapped in a cage. The
chicken wire fencing of the pigeon coop is a visual representation of the
way the workers are entrapped. On the other hand, the mob is likened to
hawks, as they swoop on the longshoremen at every opportunity.
Furthermore, the way Tommy kills all of Terry’s pigeons creates tension
and suspense as the audience is led to compare Terry’s fate to that of his
birds. In addition to pigeons, Kazan also employs the symbol of the Empire
State Building. It represents, in essence, the American dream, and the way
everybody has certain ‘inalienable rights’. However, it is fenced off by an
imposing iron fence, and covered by thick fog. The iconography and
composition of this fence in the Glove Scene infers that wealth, success
and freedom are beyond reach for the residents of the dock. Moreover, the
iron fence is a visual representation of a border almost, separating the
Hoboken Docks from the rest of America. This sentiment is similarly
expressed by Jimmy Collins, as he tells Farther Berg ‘this ain’t part of
America’. These symbols of corruption imbue the film with tension, as
viewers are left pondering the danger that the workers face, as well as their
eventual fate.
54
VIEWS AND VALUES IN THE TEXT
55
Analyse how values are…
• Constructed and conveyed
• through character, plot, dialogue, filmic elements
• Endorsed, supported, promoted or reinforced
• Challenged, questioned or discredited
56
Views and values in the text
• Values can be motivating factors that influence, guide or
direct action
• Values are
• Tenets (religious connotations)
• Principles
• Morals
• Beliefs about right/wrong ways of behaving
• Priorities
57
Views and values in the text
• Loyalty to others-group, family, country
• Concern for others or self-protection
• Solidarity
• Truth-the characteristics of honesty and integrity
• Freedom to express dissent against a higher authority
• Freedom to earn an honest wage (workers’ rights)
• Courage
• Fighting a ‘fair’ (legitimate) fight
• Religious tenets: faith and sacrifice
• Reward for hard work and honest labour
58
Views and values in the text
Any discussion of On the Waterfront must address its politics –
whatever they may be. It’s difficult to avoid viewing the movie
through the prism of its makers’ actions during the HUAC witch
hunts.
Is it an apologia for informing? Kazan endorsed that
interpretation, saying, “On The Waterfront was my own story.
Every day I worked on that film I was telling the world where I
stood.” He felt “what made the film strong” was “I did not duck
the parallel, I admitted it and stressed it.”
Years later, though, the director opined that any comparison
between Terry’s predicament and his own “falls short. I always
felt my situation had values on both sides (while) the issue in the
film is terribly clear.”
59
Views and values in the text
Director Elia Kazan described On the Waterfront as a
classic story of redemption: “This motion picture is about
one thing only: a young man who has let his dignity slip
away, and regains it!”
a. Is the story of Terry’s redemption a simple one?
b. What things make Terry’s struggle to redeem himself so
difficult?
c. Does Terry redeem himself? How?
60
CHARACTERS
61
Characters and characterisation
Characters are constructed through the following techniques:
• Personality/characteristics
• Actions/behaviour
• Relationship with other
characters
• How other characters
respond to them
• Back story
• Motivation
• Development (how the
character evolves and
changes throughout the
narrative)
•
•
•
•
•
Appearance
Costume
Props
Camera shots/angles
Acting (gestures, facial
expressions)
• Dialogue
• Musical score (leitmotif)
62
Function of characters in the text
Characters serve the following functions in a text:
To illustrate
• Themes and ideas
• Views and values
To interact with other characters in order to create the
action, provide conflict and propel the narrative
63
Practice Essay: deconstructing and planning
TOPIC: Father Barry: “There’s one thing we have in this
country, and that’s ways of fighting back”.
How does On the Waterfront explore the power of the
individual?
1. Interrogate the topic
2. Brainstorm-key ideas, values, scenes, quotations, vocab
3. Write a contention
4. Write 2 supporting arguments
5. Find evidence for each argument-2 examples and 2
quotations
6. For one of those arguments, write a close scene analysis
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Sample Essay 1 (introduction)
The 1954 film, On the Waterfront attempts to demonstrate
that ones potential to fight back is often limited by
oppression and heavy handed ways. The genesis of the
film comes from Malcolm Johnson’s (1949) investigative
articles which documented the extensive corruption on the
New York Docks. Director Elia Kazan, uses the narrative of
the Hoboken docks as a vehicle for his message; in which
the individual, as represented by protagonist Terry Malloy,
can fight back and bring change for the collective good, but
requires assistance, as evidenced by the influences of Edie
Doyle and Father Barry.
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Sample Essay 1 (1st body paragraph)
Kazan sets up a restrictive, bleak Hoboken, in order to convey how
corruption can control and limit access to individual freedoms.
Kaufmann’s grainy, black and white filming makes the docks seem
grimy and unappealing, a potential metaphor for the life of the
longshoremen. In a similar fashion, the neighbouring Manhattan
skyline is covered in fog suggesting that there is a barrier to success
and fortune. As the members of the local ‘374’ sit in Friendly’s bar, they
seem unaffected by their role in the murder of “lousy cheese eater”
Joey Doyle, emphasising the predatory nature of the docks.
Furthermore, it is the pervading “D & D” which undermines all potential
for the individual to become empowered. The residents knowingly
deprive themselves of their democratic rights, as the need for survival
in a place that “ain’t part of America” overrides. Despite the efforts of
Mrs Collins, she too is told to “shut up” by fellow longshoremen, as her
willingness to speak of the “same things [which] happened to [her] son
Andy” threatens her survival in a place where answering “no questions”
is paramount.
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Sample Essay 1 (2nd body paragraph)
Father Barry attempts to enlighten the longshoremen and encourage
the men to act within their rights; however for the most part, this falls on
deaf ears. Attempting to motivate the men, Barry compares silence with
propagating murder, and asks how the men can continue to call
themselves “Christian”, although to his dismay; bowed heads and
averted gazes suggest that Father Barry’s influence may not be enough
to change the “d & d” mentality. Even Joey Doyle’s best friend, Jimmy
Collins remains silent amidst Father Barry’s pleas, showing the
perverted loyalties among the longshoremen. This desire to inspire
change is once more seen in the hold of the ship, in which Father Barry
holds true to his promise to “walk with” Kayo Dugan “every step of the
way” and once more, speaks to the longshoremen. The low camera
angle perpetuates Father Barry’s brooding influence, serving to
reinforce his declaration that the docks are “[his] church”. Whilst
emphasising that “anybody that sits around and lets [murder] happen”
is condoning the “crucifixion” of his fellow man, close ups of Terry
Malloy suggest that the message resonates with him in particular, and
consequently this allegiance to the cause is embodied with Malloy
punching union “cowboy” Tillio.
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Sample Essay 2 (introduction)
By the end of Kazan’s film On the Waterfront, a type of triumph has
occurred as Terry Malloy drags his broken body down the pier, as a
final show of individual strength against a corrupt authority. According
to Father Barry, Terry has “lost the battle”, but this final solitary walk
demonstrates his chance to “win the war” against those who have for
so long exploited this working class community. Terry, who for most of
the film is a reluctant hero, is pushed into involvement when the conflict
between the corrupt dominance of the Mob and those that they exploit
to maintain their power is brought into his personal sphere with the
murder of his brother Charley. As the longshoremen file in behind their
new hero, one can hear Johnny Friendly’s warning, “I’ll be back” and
despite the triumphant soundtrack reinforcing Terry’s victory, the viewer
is left to wonder whether or not that will be the case. While the roller
door closes on Johnny, the possibility of another crooked “labour
leader” emerging to take advantage of the working man for their own
gain is certainly not beyond the realm of possibility.
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Sample Essay 2 (1st body paragraph)
Terry Malloy’s power is cemented as he moves from reluctance
to become further embroiled in the investigation into waterfront
crime and finally to a sense of clarity regarding what he needs to
do to satisfy his conscience. The fact that Terry begins the film
as a man desperate to maintain his “cushy” position, being taken
care of by Johnny Friendly makes his redemption all the more
significant. Terry begins the film like most of the men on the
waterfront, acutely aware of his own apparent powerlessness.
This is exemplified in the way he is pushed and shoved by
Johnny’s henchmen outside the bar at the film’s beginning. Terry
believes that his only strength is physical and that his days as a
fighter lie far behind him. However, after the murder of his
brother Charley, Terry is prompted to enforce the power he holds
as an individual. As he barges into Johnny Friendly’s bar he is
filmed from a low angle visually highlighting the sense of
command he is now prepared to exercise over those who have
hurt him.