Werner Herzog's Sublime
The films of Werner Herzog 's have often been approached from the point of view of a vision of the sublime '. Do you agree with this reading of his work? Discuss your answer with reference to at least two of his films.
The above question contains several separate facets. Firstly, there are many different definitions and interpretations of the sublime. For the purposes of feasibility, the most appropriate definition will be examined as well as the historical and modern-day relevance of the concept. Secondly, Herzog himself has consistently rejected any intellectual criticism of his work. "I never attempt to articulate my ideas in abstract terms through the veil of an ideology. My films come to me very much alive, like dreams without logical patterns or academic explanations" (2002, 65) It will require close examination of Herzog 's films and the academic analysis of these films if we are to accurately assess their level of relevance to the sublime. Thirdly, while the entire oeuvre of Herzog may or may not be approached from the point of view of the sublime, this essay will examine the question only in relation to films that have been viewed.
The Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy categorises the sublime into four distinct categories: Origins, Nature, Kant and Postmodern Revival. Of these four, it is Kant 's expansion on Burke 's notion that is given most attention and his which has assumed modern-day relevance. "When beholding a mighty object or phenomenon, we know that in relation to our puny natural being the mighty item has absolute physical authority." (1998, 203) But "while the mighty object indeed makes us fearful, we can, as rational beings, nevertheless evince a kind of moral resistance to it" or put another way " an overwhelming item in the natural world is contained by our rational comprehension of it" (1998, 203) It is this attempt to rationalise an irrational ' object or force that renders the experience an aesthetic one. The sublime emerged
The above question contains several separate facets. Firstly, there are many different definitions and interpretations of the sublime. For the purposes of feasibility, the most appropriate definition will be examined as well as the historical and modern-day relevance of the concept. Secondly, Herzog himself has consistently rejected any intellectual criticism of his work. "I never attempt to articulate my ideas in abstract terms through the veil of an ideology. My films come to me very much alive, like dreams without logical patterns or academic explanations" (2002, 65) It will require close examination of Herzog 's films and the academic analysis of these films if we are to accurately assess their level of relevance to the sublime. Thirdly, while the entire oeuvre of Herzog may or may not be approached from the point of view of the sublime, this essay will examine the question only in relation to films that have been viewed.
The Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy categorises the sublime into four distinct categories: Origins, Nature, Kant and Postmodern Revival. Of these four, it is Kant 's expansion on Burke 's notion that is given most attention and his which has assumed modern-day relevance. "When beholding a mighty object or phenomenon, we know that in relation to our puny natural being the mighty item has absolute physical authority." (1998, 203) But "while the mighty object indeed makes us fearful, we can, as rational beings, nevertheless evince a kind of moral resistance to it" or put another way " an overwhelming item in the natural world is contained by our rational comprehension of it" (1998, 203) It is this attempt to rationalise an irrational ' object or force that renders the experience an aesthetic one. The sublime emerged
References: Casper, Kent and Linville, Susan. 1991 ‘Romantic Inversions in Herzog 's Nosferatu ' in German Quarterly, Vol. 64, No. 1, Focus: Literature and Film (Winter, 1991), 17-24 Craig, Editor (ed.) 1998 Routledge Encyclopaedia of Philosphy Routledge, London Davidson, John E. 1999 Deterritorializing the New German Cinema University of Minnesota Press, London Elsaesser, Thomas 1989 New German Cinema Macmillan Press Ltd., London Singer, Alan. 1986 ‘Comprehending Appearances: Werner Herzog 's ironic sublime ' in Corrigan, Timothy (ed.) 1986 The Films of Werner Herzog, Methuen, New York 183 – 205 Wilson, Ellen Judy 1996, Encyclopaedia of the Enlightenment Book Builders Inc., New York Filmography Herzog, Werner, Fata Morgana (1970) DVD Anchor Bay, 2002 --- Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972) --- The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser (1974) --- Heart of Glass (1976) --- Stroszek (1976) --- Nosferatu, the Vampire (1978), DVD Anchor Bay, 2001 --- Fitzcarraldo (1982) DVD Anchor Bay, 2002 --- Cobra Verde (1989) --- Grizzly Man (2005)