Leo Tolstoy and Kurosawa - Essay Example

The movie revolves around the protagonist’s enlightenment and passion towards life. Both the works (novel and movie), deal with the same theme, but differs in treatment. Thesis statement: The novel The death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy and the movie Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa are two sides of the same coin, fear of death and passion towards life. Compare and contrast The techniques used by Kurosawa in the film Ikuru which differentiates his work form Tolstoy In the film Ikiru, Kurosawa made use of a number of techniques like flash backs and narrative ellipse which differentiates his work from Tolstoy.

Yoshimoto makes clear that “Second, the film presents this story in a complex narrative structure created by flash backs, voice-over narration, and narrative ellipses” (194). Apart from Ivan Ilyich, Watanabe does not try to keep himself aloof from his personal life. When Watanabe came to know that he is going to die due to cancer, he did not try to retrieve from the process of socialization. Instead, he decides to change his attitude towards life and to enjoy the remaining days. The director made use of the protagonist’s mind and deeds as a mirror which reflects his feeling and emotions.

Besides, the protagonist’s enlightenment or self-realization is not a gradual process. . The element of enlightenment in Ivan Ilyich and Watanabe The enlightenment or self-realization acquired by Ivan Ilyich does not help him to accept his illness. Instead, he considers the truth about life as a wrath exerted upon his life. He was not ready to give up his life. This affected his emotional equilibrium and his remaining days were painful. This negative feeling began to affect his relationship with his family members.

Gradually, his anger towards his illness transformed into anger towards others including his co-workers and others. This negative attitude towards life and death did not help him to enjoy his remaining days in his life. His self-centered attitude forces him to think that he will be uprooted from his life. This attitude towards death was not helpful because he was not ready to cope up with death. On the other side, Watanabe was practical because he was aware of the fact that death and life are two different sides of the same coin.

His philosophical attitude helped him to keep his illness as a personal secret and to enjoy the remaining days with happiness. To be specific, enlightenment in Ivan Ilyich’s life was a gradual process. On the other side, enlightenment was a rapid process in Watanabe’s personal life. Common struggles faced by Ivan Ilyich and Watanabe Both the characters were forced to fight against death and life. Ivan Ilyich hesitated to accept the truth but Watanabe was ready to accept death as the part of his life.

Ivan Ilyich was not ready to give up his bureaucratic style of life. But Watanabe was ready to his give up his mechanical life. The struggles faced by Ivan Ilyich and Watanabe were same. Watanabe was ready to accept the same, but Ivan Ilyich was not ready to do so. This transformed their