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| Hope Lies in the Next Hour
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by SaraH
"Did it matter then, she asked herself, walking towards Bond Street, did it matter that she must inevitably cease completely; all this must go on without her; did she resent it; or did it not become consoling to believe that death ended absolutely? but that somehow in the streets of London, on the ebb and flow of things, here, there, she survived, Peter survived, lived in each other, she being part, she was positive, of the trees at home; of the house there, ugly, rambling all to bits and pieces as it was; part of people she had never met; being laid out like a mist between the people she knew best, who lifted her on their branches as she had seen the trees lift the mist, but it spread ever so far, her life, herself."
Virginia Woolf in "Mrs. Dalloway"
Death is absolutely individual, and thus makes freedom, which is above all about independence, possible. The nature of death - that it ends and that it's solitary - is the source of the reason for living. Most people live to overcome death, to seek immortality by leaving something behind, be it a child, a piece of art or an enterprise, and to seek connection by socializing. Many aspire to conquer death in this way without consciously realizing it. The few who do are forced to come to terms with their illusion.
Yes, illusionary is the wish to overcome death, for the essence of life is so much more than deeds of value and words of wisdom; the precious material that composes life is the fleeting moment, just like a river is made up of droplets of water. With the perish of the body, the hours lose their meanings. The edifice of wisdom and creativity remains an abstract idea, an intangible memory of something gone.
Why do we still live, then?
When Pandora opened her box all sorts of Evil flew out. The last thing that came out is called Hope. Hope is fragile and Hope is strong. Hope is the possibility promised by the next hour. As long as the moments keep coming we can be indulged in the dream that one of them would bring something beautiful, something grand, something that transcends evil, solitude, and death itself. An illusion, yes, but as vivid and promising as a mirage. We live for the fireworks that light up the dark if only just for a moment, and as long as we are living, we just might see some.
"There's just this for consolation: an hour here or there when our lives seem, against all odds and expectations, to burst open and give us everything we've ever imagined, though everyone but children (and perhaps even they) knows these hours will inevitably be followed by others, far darker and more difficult. Still, we cherish the city, the morning; we hope, more than anything, for more."
Michael Cunningham in "The Hours"
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Posted by shera on 2008-08-05 18:45:40 | Rating: | Views: 66
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The Hours is by far one of the most disturbed movies I have seen...and I cant imagine anything by Ms Wolfe would make me feel any different. It seems bleak.
And, there have been different interpretations of Pandora's Box I guess? As I recall it, Hope is the one thing that did not escape the box...hence the concept of "not losing hope". It is a bit confusing how something like hope would be associated with and in a box with "worldly evils".
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Posted by brainstormer
on 2008-08-31 01:38:57
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I cannot imagine any serious or responsible filmmaker making a film about the disturbing reality just for the sake of depressing the viewers. More often than not those bleak or dark films serve as reminders of what could be done to achieve something better, and I think The Hours is no exception. After all, what happens with the Meryl Streep character at the end of the film does point to something brighter than the rest of the film, no?
As for Pandora's box, I don't see how we, who share the one and same world with both Mother Theresa and Hitler, could question the unimaginability of Hope being in the same box as all the Evils.
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Posted by shera
on 2008-08-31 01:51:06
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But, if hope shares space with all the evils and is the only thing to remain in the box...what other "good" things might have escaped the box? And to what effect?
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Posted by brainstormer
on 2008-09-04 23:26:50
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Please ask the author of the Greek myth. =)
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Posted by shera
on 2008-09-06 16:09:50
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I would if I travelled back in time...but then I might run into some crazy people out to kill me:P
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Posted by brainstormer
on 2008-09-17 21:51:55
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