Document Type

Article

Major

English, Communication

Mentor

Prof. Eleni Coundouriotis, Dept. of English

Disciplines

English Language and Literature | Other English Language and Literature

Abstract

In this essay, I compare nineteenth-century novels to the film adaptations they inspired throughout history. Specifically, I examine how filmmakers amplify and detract from feminist themes present in the original works. To do this, I consider the film adaptation as an essay on the source text. No matter how directly a filmmaker attempts to transpose the narrative, the representation of narrative gaps within the source text will change. I theorize that these changes arise in tandem with cultural change, and that film adaptations of nineteenth-century novels that actively revise the text fall under the category of the essay film.

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