Film Analysis: Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby

TL;DR

You're exploring how both Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Baz Luhrmann use "subversive affections" to challenge societal norms. Barrett Browning portrays love as a divine force against Victorian restrictions, while Luhrmann uses romantic desire to reveal materialism's hold in a fragmented modern world. Ultimately, you're arguing that deeply entrenched social values are hard to change.

1. The Mental Model

Think of "subversive affections" as love or strong emotional connections that go against what society expects. These affections aren't just personal; they become tools to highlight and critique the hidden tensions and rules of their respective eras.

2. The Core Material

You're analyzing how two different artists—Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Baz Luhrmann—use the idea of love (or "subversive affections") to challenge the values of their time.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning: Subverting Victorian Ideals

You've identified that Barrett Browning uses "subversive affection as a divinely sanctioned and spiritually authoritative force" to challenge Victorian society, especially its expectations for women.

• Context: Her own experiences of "illness, isolation and parental control" shaped her perspective of "emotional confinement."
• Challenging Restrictions: Victorian women were expected to be "passive, modest, obedient and emotionally restrained." Barrett Browning initially feared expressing her affection, seeing it as akin to a "cuckoo-song," showing her awareness of these social pressures.
• Love as Transformation:
  • The rhetorical question, "And hold the torch out, while the winds are rough, between our faces, to cast light on each?" demonstrates a strong, persistent love ("flame") that withstands external dangers, even if "forbidden."
  • Her letters, though "dead paper, mute and white," "seem alive and quivering" due to the love within them. The "white" symbolizes blankness and silence, but the "quivering" suggests the transformative power of her affection, bringing both the paper and herself to life. This "subverts these values by demonstrating affection as a transformative force that resists societal erasure."

Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby: Materialism and Class Divisions

Luhrmann's film "challenges the contextual values of the 1920s and the contemporary postmodern world," highlighting "fragmented society and cultural decay," and critiquing "the pursuit of wealth and rigid social class status and the spiritual emptiness throughout."

• "We were born different" hierarchy: This phrase encapsulates the divide between "old money" (Tom's inherited wealth) and "new money" (Gatsby's illegally acquired wealth). This distinction is crucial in understanding the "rigid social class status."
• Daisy's Dilemma: Gatsby's desperate hope that "Daisy never loved Tom" is contrasted with "close-up shots of Daisy highlighting the discomfort with Gatsby and vulnerability Daisy feels to choose between social status and security." This shows how romantic desire clashes with ingrained social structures and materialistic values.
• The American Dream's Corruption: The film suggests that "material excess demolishes the authenticity of love and the unattainable American Dream." This ties into your argument that social values, particularly materialism, are "resistant to disruption."

Here's how the subversive affections work in both texts within their contexts:

graph TD
    A["Barrett Browning's Context: Illness, Isolation, Parental Control, Victorian Expectations"] --> B["Subversive Affection (Deep, Expressed Love)"];
    B --> C["Challenges: Female Emotional Restraint, Social Conformity"];
    C --> D["Outcome: Love as 'Divinely Endorsed Challenge'"];

    E["Luhrmann's Context: 1920s/Postmodern Fragmented Society, Materialism, Class Divisions"] --> F["Subversive Affection (Gatsby's Romantic Desire)"];
    F --> G["Challenges: 'Old Money' vs. 'New Money' Hierarchy, Material Excess"];
    G --> H["Outcome: Reveals 'Dominance of Materialism', 'Social Values Remain Resistant'"];

3. Worked Example

Let's look at how Luhrmann visually emphasizes Daisy's "vulnerability" when faced with choosing between Gatsby's passionate but illicit love and Tom's security. During Gatsby's desperate plea for Daisy to declare she never loved Tom, Luhrmann uses tight close-up shots on Daisy's face. Her expressions flicker between longing for Gatsby and fear of defying her established social order. The camera lingers on her subtle shifts in expression – a slight wince, a hesitant glance – visually reinforcing her internal conflict. This sustained visual attention on Daisy's emotional turmoil, rather than solely on Gatsby's fervent words, highlights how her choice is not simply about love, but about the overwhelming pressure of her "social status and security," demonstrating how "material excess abolishes the authenticity of love."

4. Key Takeaways

• Subversive affections are emotions that defy societal norms and expectations.
• Barrett Browning uses love to challenge Victorian constraints on women and expression.
• Luhrmann uses romantic desire to expose the destructive grip of materialism and class in society.
• Both artists show how powerful emotions can reveal deeper societal tensions.
• The concept of "old money" versus "new money" is critical in Gatsby's critique of class divisions.
• Daisy's internal conflict highlights how social status and security can overshadow authentic love.
• Luhrmann ultimately suggests that deep-seated social values are highly resistant to change.

Common mistakes to avoid:
- Don't just summarize the plots; analyze how the affections challenge context.
- Be careful not to treat "subversive affections" as only positive; Gatsby's love is also tied to destructive materialism.
- Ensure you clearly link the artist's techniques (e.g., close-ups, imagery) to the challenging of values.
- Don't forget to explicitly connect the works to their respective "contextual values."

5. Now Try It

Review your notes for another scene or line from The Great Gatsby (Luhrmann's film) or a sonnet from Barrett Browning. Identify a specific instance where "subversive affection" is evident. Then, in 3-4 sentences, explain how that particular moment actively "challenges the contextual values of the time it is created in," using specific details or quotes.

Success looks like: You've identified a clear example, connected it directly to a societal value mentioned in your notes, and explained the challenge it poses through the lens of subversive affection.