A River Runs Through It Essay

Different types of media can be used to present the same ideas and information, but with the use of different types of media, the ideas can be perceived as different things. The same principle comes to be true after viewing the work of “A River Runs through it” by Norman Maclean. After having observed the novel and the film, both forms of media proved to have its advantages. The novel does a much better job of accurately representing the theme of the story and allowing the reader to interpret the overall message as well as representing characters for what they should be, however the movie gains an advantage by using visual representations as well at audio to help the audience understand. One thing in particular that the book does much better is making use of complex metaphors and themes, such as: the river for life, and oneness with nature, that string themselves together as you turn each page of the book, while in the movie the metaphors and symbolism are represented in a much different way through picture. In the book, both themes regarding the river are very vivid and clear, as they use strong imagery of nature to draw pictures in the minds of the readers. In the movie both themes are represented and referred to much less because of the lack of narration.
Movies use music and sound to the fullest extent, even in some ways to control the audience's mood and emotion. In “A river runs through it” the director of the movie, Robert Redford, uses sound and music specifically to assist the audience with determining the emotion of the scene. During almost all of the fishing scenes the same slow symphonic calming music is played. The choice in music is important because it allows the audience to remain calm and come closer to feeling at one with nature much like Paul, Norman, and their dad