Abstract
The more focused theme of today’s world is a love story. Every love story of the novel and cinema had something that attracts the audience and readers. This research paper simply focuses on the theme of love which attracts most of the people. The researcher argues on the cinematic adaptation of the theme of love in Ernest Hemingway’s novel For whom the bell tolls and film directed by Sam Wood,For Whom the Bell Tolls. The essay investigates how the male-female relationship presented in the novel and how it treated in the film. Now a day, adaptation is very popular. More ever, it is almost every movie made from adopted a text or anything. The story of both the novel and the film are similar, but the difference between them is in their presentation.Hemingway’s depiction of a love story between the hero and heroine in the novel and Sam Wood‘s in the film For whom the bell tolls have some comparison and contradiction. The researcher may follow the descriptive research method, comparative method, text study method, media study method and also literary criticism. For Whom the Bell Tolls has received a great deal of critical attention due to its treating of Spanish war in the novel as well as in the film. The researcher will conclude the thing with a brief note that, the written word and visual image, literature, and film are different things through their medium. The love story presented in the novel and film, both are same, but the difference between them touches with the cultural difference of literature and film. The author’s view towards novel and filmmaker’s views towards film and also the character’s intention of the presentation brings something different in the novel and film.
Keywords:- censorship, cinematic Adaptation, digital platform, Visual, Literary Source, emotional tiggers, giggled
Introduction
The present discussion is held on the particular theme of love in Ernest Hemingway’s standard novel, For Whom the Bell tolls and Sam Wood’s classic film, For Whom the Bell Tolls. The theme of love compared with pros and Cros with a view to adaptation theory. This investigation follows, Ernest Hemingway’s presentation of love story in novel For Whom the Bell Tolls, Processing of transferring from pros to Cros, Sam Wood’s direction of love story in the novel, Pros and Cros compared with special focus on Novel and Film, Theory of adaptation in the theme of love moving from novel to film.
This study also gives scope or directions for other researchers, academicians for professionals for further study. This investigation also analysis limitation and potentialities of both film and novel while transforming to another medium.
The Oxygen of the Novel and film is the story. Without a story, Novels and films are nothing. In search of the story, sometimes makers use different styles, one of them is adaptation style. At the present time, cinematic adaptation is the most popular. It is not just limited to, novel into a film, but it is also available at television serial, movie, stage play, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Internet, comic play, tragic play, books, video games, theme- story and music, songs, etc. The Internet is widely used for adapting because now a day,the internet is easily available for everyone, there you can surf everything.
Bela Balazs, in his book Theory of the Film, says:
“….A film script writer adapting the play may use the existing work of art merely as raw material, regard it from the specific angle of his own art form as it were raw material and pay no attention to the form once already given to the material.”(Bela, 1953:263)
Adaptation is applied to every genre. It is believed that older and middle ages people like to read novels and books, while young people love to see movies. So this imitates makers to use the popular story of texts into films. The purpose of makers is for knowledge, entertainment, financial, political and cultural reform.
The paper is limited to examining adaptation theory in the romantic portrayal of text For Whom the Bell Tolls and movie, For Whom the Bell Tolls. There are many critics’ comments on film adaptation from the text. Everyone has a different view. The critical thinking of Bela Balazs, Thomas Litch, Siegfried Kracauer, Louis G. Giannetti, Robert Scholes, Jeffrey Geiger, Yeo Zuo survey on adaptation theory.
Bela Balzas in his book Theory of the Film Comments on that every single literary work is a new art. Every work which transformed from another adds or cut something from original work. It is the only raw material for filmmakers.He adds ;
“It is also admitted that the literary foundation of the new art, new script, is just as much specific, independent literary form as the written stage play, there is nothing to prevent them from being literary masterpieces- the film script is entirely new form.”(Bela,1953:246-247)
Linda Hutcheon, who defined adaptation as
“a concept as as a reinterpretation and recreation by the artist of an earlier work of art, while taking into consideration the changed circumstances and it is also the way the audience interprets the adaptation work in an intersexual context.” (Hutcheton, Linda.2006:241)
Another critic Robert Scholes argued on Adaptation through narration and human behavior. The author says:
“Narration is a kind of human behavior that is specifically mimetic. Through this behavior human beings communicate and send across messages. So in this sense, a narrative can be narrated orally, written or enacted, presented in a drama or mime or represented through images or moving pictures.”(Scholes, Robert, 1981:200-208)
Jerrey Geiger in his book Film Analysis stated that audiences like to enjoy the visual experience of the movie. It does not require a deeper meaning of the film. Critics sometimes worry about the way this adaptation interprets the original written work.
“ Many moviegoers see the cinema as no more than an entertaining visual experience, requiring little explanation or thought.”(Jeffrey Geiger, 2005:110-112)
Edward Murray comments on the cinematic version from the text:
“Camera cannot photograph the white space between two lines. It means it is quite difficult to explain the essence of authors’s text on the screen in a true sense.”(Murray Edward, 1972:121-122)
Julie Wymeersch studied Hemingway’s use of language in For Whom the Bell Tolls, which is multilingual. The Spanish, English language is mingled in the novel.The author quotes as:
“Hemingway’s approach to language is of the utmost importance in For Whom the Bell Tolls, only since it reflects the multilingual environment in which the novel is set, but also because it functions in a way to characterize the Spanish people. In addition, it defamiliarizes the reader in such a way that he or she identifies even more with the protagonist besides adding to the novel’s humorous quality. These strategies employed by the author can be seen in a bigger framework, since the modernist movement shows a particular interest in languages and author’s experiments with them.”(Wymeersch Julie,2015:77)
Objectives
While reading a novel and watching a movie, the researcher came into contact with some omissions and additions in the Romantic portrayal. This brings the study of the romantic portrayal of thetext “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and screen versions, “For Whom theBell Tolls.”The Researcher conducts this study fromcollecting the data from the film and also from the novel, compare and contrast them, critically examined them with reference to adaptation theory.Adaptation is called to adapt from the primary source to the secondary source. It is borrowing, sharing and copying stories from the primary sources to the secondary sources.There is a trade that any book which won a noble prize and any other award and alsothe most known story and whose author is so famous, it should be adapted into film or video game or stage play or music,etc. This is the thing, which attracts the audience most and through it,adaptation will also become famous.
In short, adaptation means an acknowledged transposition of a recognizable other work or works or a creative and an interpretive act of appropriation/ salvaging or an extended intertexual engagement with the adapted work. Adaptation is comparing the thing. Adaptation is just not limited to one thing or one work, it is also all about one or more than one worksas well. It mostly focuses on the book’s story, theme, characters, events, contests, symbols, imagery e.t.c. The difference between the real story and the adapted story is the only medium, through which the story presented. When something is adapted to the other medium, it always brings some change, like something is added or something reducing. It has some similarities or dissimilarities as well.(Hutcheton, 2006:8)
An Adaptation from the novel to the film has a different medium. First, one is only expressed through words only,while another one is expressed through visually, orally and gestures. It is like comparing between telling and showing. One can read a novel as an individual and totally involved himself through the author’s words and deeply feel it and forget the rest of the world. The film is totally different. He or she can watch movies alone or also with family and friends. Audience involved in the film trough the performance of the actors.Films always present external appearances and novels presentthe psychological appearance. As Hutcheon Linda in her book expressed this feeling:
“Telling a story in words either orally or on paper is never the same as showing it visually and orally in any of the many performance media available”(.Hutcheton Linda,2006:23)
The audience feels the emotions in the film through the actors’ performance, it is presented through the actors’ perspectives. Readers feel the emotions in the novel through their own perspective. Readers cannot feel the music in the novel as he can see in the film. Everyone’s experience is different while sit and read a novel and sit in the dark and show the characters speaking and dancing in the film. Soundtracks also play an important role in the adapted film. It presents fearful sound, loud noise, songs e.t.c., which caught the attention of the audience most.Lawrence Kramer has arguedas:
“..it is the music in films that connects us to the spectacle on screen by invoking a dimension of depth, of interiority, borrowed from the responses of our bodies as we listen to the insistent production of rhythms, tone colors and changes in dynamics.”(Kramer,1991:156)
Numerousmovies are adapted from literary sourceslike novels. Ernest Hemingway’s novel For Whom the Bell Tollsis also adapted into the film For Whom the BellTollsdirected by SamWood. In this present study, the researcherscompared the theme of love in the novel and film, For Whom the Bell Tolls. The movie is quite along. It also has an interval. It was released and in 1943, directed and produced by Sam wood, and the music was given by Victor young. The protagonist, Robert Jordan’s role is played by Gary Cooper. His age is 43, but the performance of his role is great. At this age, he climbed a mountain and fought a war in the film is amazing. Heroine- Maria’s role is played by Ingrid Bergman. She is 19 years old and her beautiful look is totally similar to Maria in the film. Her appearance looked like boyish through her cutting ruffled hair. No one can satisfy this role like her.The drunken Gorilla- Pablo’s role is presented by Akim Tamiroff and the Woman of Pablo’s role is represented by Paxinou. The outer strong appearance of Paxinou is totally similar to the strong women, Pilar’s role in the novel. The film has earned nine Academy Award nominations. The Performance of all the characters is totally amazing.
The novel starts with the beautiful description of the scenery of the Bridge and streams alongside the road and the falling water from the bridge, white in the summer sunlight. The protagonist of the novel, Robert Jordan carefully observed the scenery and talking with the old man. There is also a description of the personality of Robert Jordan, how he looked like-
“The young man, who was studying the country, took his glasses from the pocket of his faded, khakhi flannel shirt, wiped the lenses with the handkerchief screwed the eyepieces around until the broads of the mill showed suddenly clearly.” (Hemingway,2004:4 )
The beginning of the movie is not presenting a beautiful natural landscape of bridge and stream. It opens with the war scene and fearful high music. Robert Jordan and his friend blow the rail and they followed by some military man. His friend Karkov met an injury in his leg and fell down that time Robert shoot him because they were followed by some military man. After this, he ran away and save his life. This rail scene is presented as a flashback of Robert’s story in the novel, wherein the film it is not a flashback but it is the starting of the story. Then starts a novel in the film, there Robert Jordon carefully observed the bridge and made a painting in his diary. The novel’s description of the scenery feels through the words while in the film it is visual. It looks like breathtaking.
Then Anselmo, the old man, and Robert Jordan went to another place, where they can safely live and also everyday they visit the bridge, after all they want to blow the bridge. Here it was the place where they met Pablo and his people and his first-ever love story starts. He met with the girl Maria. She carried food with her for everyone. Jordan saw her first time and fell in love with her at first sight.
“The girl stopped as she came out of the cave mouth carrying the big iron cooking platter.” (Hemingway,2004:24 )
Here in the film Gary and Ingrid’s expression and conversation and outer appearance are totally similar to Maria and Robert. Maria looked at him also and smiled and said, “Hola,comrade”. Robert was careful not to stare and not to look away because other persons are also available there. So, he made some distance from her. He observed how she sat down and put down the flat iron platter in front of him and gave food to him. Both looked at each other and smiled together. Both felt the same type of mutual feeling. The exterior outlook of the girl Maria is beautifully described in the novel:-
“Her teeth were white on her brown face and her skin and her eyes were same golden tawny brown. She had high cheekbones, merry eyes and a straight mouth with full lips. Her hair was the golden brown of a grain field that has been burned dark in the sun, but it was cut short all over her head so that it was but little longer than the fur on a breaver pelt. She has a beautiful face.” (Hemingway,2004:24 )
The outlook of Ingrid is similar to Maria. She is beautiful. She has a brown face and high cheekbones. Her golden brown-hair is short like Maria. Her boyish appearance makes her popular among the audience.
Robert Jordan stared at her and thought that her hair is so short to comb. At that time Maria looked at him and tell him that don’t stare at her. It’s three months, which her hair growing. It’s almost grown out now. Maria also stared at him all through the meal. When Robert saw Maria, his throat felt the thickness and he wants more wine everytime. This is the first-ever time he felt this type of feeling towards any girl. Whenever they talked about her hair, she passed her hand over her hair in embarrassment. In the Movie also Maria felt the same type of feeling. She felt embarrassment with her hair because her hair is not that much longer as the other girls have.
The novel not only tells the story of how Robert came to that place,but it also tells the story of how Maria came to that place. Maria’s hair had a long story in the past which was presented in the film very effectively. Through the conversation with Maria, Robert and Gypsy it is presented in the film and the novel both.
“They shaved it regularly in the prison at vallado lid. It was on the train. They were taking me to the south.“I found her hidden in the rocks. It was when we were leaving. Man, but this one was ugly. We took her along.” Gypsy said. (Hemingway,2004:25 )
Maria and Robert unknowingly felt the flow of giving and receiving love toward each other. They smiled and blushed with each other. It is the first time they felt the same emotion of love. This is the beginning of their long-lasting relationship of affection. Every single word of conversation which Earnest Hemingway is presented in the novel is in a hasty manner. In the film also Audience visually feels the starting affection of Robert and Maria. The audience also feels pathetic when Maria’s Past is revealed. Ingrid is looking innocent in the role of Maria. She is always smiling in the movie and always cares for the other person, but behind her smiling- happy face, there is a heart-rendering the pathetic past of her life.
Another character Pilar always takes care of Maria. Because of Pilar, Maria came out of this painful situation. She is the only person, who saves Maria from all the brutality of the world. She is so much loving, caring and kind person for Maria. She gave Maria in the hand of Robert because she knows the thing that Maria is totally safe with Robert. Pilar is with Robert in his work to blow the bridge. Pablo is against Robert. As a woman of Pablo, Pilar made her decision to become against Pablo, and now all the troops are against Pablo. Her presence in the movie makes a movie so strong. As Pilar says, “Here, I Command”, that time her strongest is not only proved through her words but her expression also. As in the film, she is standing in front of Pablo and talked very bravely. At last Pablo gave up and accept his failure and says, “You Command”. This proved that she is able to take care of that girl because of her braveness.
Songs are not left in this love story. As Gypsy is a singer, he sings during the night,
“It was the moon and the sun
And though I roam all over the world
The spending of it’s never done.” (Hemingway,2004:63)
Upto this time in the novel, they have only feelings toward eachother, but they expressed it during the night when Robert was sleeping in the robe with the safety of the pistol. At that time, Maria came there, she was shivering like a rabbit and Robert Jordan feels something unusual and he finds her and invited her into his robe and with his extra carefullysays:
“No. My rabbit Please.”
“I must not. If thou does. no love me”
“I love thee”
“I love thee. Oh, I love thee. Put thy hand on my head.” (Hemingway,2004:73 )
The first kiss of Maria and Robertas presented in the novel by Ernest Hemingway is fabulous through the words. The situation in the novel and film is different. As in the novel they lying together in the robe and readers understand all through the words, and in the movie kissing scene happens when they come down from the mountain.The intimacy as presented in the novel is something dissimilar from the movie. The Film is a visual thing so it has some restrictions. Physical intimacy is discussed in the novel through the words, while more physical intimacy is not pictured in the film. In the film, Maria doesn’t know how to kiss. At that time the conversation between Maria and Robert is –
“I cannot kiss”. She said
“I do not know how”
“There is no need to kiss”
“No to a home”
“ No No No. With thee and I will be thy woman.” (Hemingway,2004:73-74)
Robert Jordan explained to her how to kiss and also taught her everything. They together make their future plans. Now their dreams are the same and they are not alone. Pilar is the lady who helps her to how to become someone’s woman. This is the first time they felt that they became one soul. The night was so cold and they both tightly sleep, but in the middle of the night Robert awake for a moment and watch the luxury of sleeping and also felt the happiness of their two bodies touching and kissed the lying sleeping body of the girl Maria. In the daylight when he woke, the girl was gone and he felt the robe warm where she had been. Ernest Hemingway expressed the feeling of the meeting of love brings happiness and departure brings the feeling of sorrow and loneliness.The intimacy moment between Maria and Robert Jordan is best described in the novel. In the movie, the dominant theme is war and not love. A Lovestory is presented in the movie, but not that way as presented in the novel, as it is possible because of the censorship issue and so on. As when the unknown person came with a horse near the cave, Robert saw and shoot him, but the situation presented in the novel and film are totally different as in the novel. In the novel, they were sleeping together in the robe and enjoying the intimacy moment, at that time Robert saw the horse and shoot the man, while in the film, Maria and Robert both took a morning coffee together and suddenly, Robert saw the unknown person and shoot him in his chest violently.
Another love story that is presented in the novel is all about Pablo and Pilar. When it is a question about the Republic, Pilar forgot everything and she supports Robert and Pablo’s Group and not the Pablo. When she felt Pablo’s frustration and his timidness for death, she gave him full support. She always talks about Pablo as a great Guerrilla leader, his bravery and all this thing. When she finds him crying, she supports him in every possible way. This love story is presented in the novel very realistic way while in the film this story is not the perfect way as it is in the novel. In the film, both were looking like a fighter and as a leader. The conversation between Pablo and Pilar is presented in the novel which describesPilar’s love for Pablo.
“What passed with thee Pablo?’
I said to him and I took hold of him and held him
“Nothing, pilar. Nothing!”
“Yes something passes with thee”
“The people” he said, “The way they left me. The gentle.”
“Yes, but they are with me”, I said,
“and I am thy woman.” (Hemingway,2004:95)
Maria and Robert now at the situation in their relationship, where they take care of everything for each other. Robert tells Pilar that when he will out for the work, please take care of the girl and when Robert is out for the work, Maria waited for him and when he came back, she gave him food and liquor and taking care of every trivial matter as a wife can do for her husband. She wants to make herself Robert’s woman –Maria. In the film also when he came back from the work Maria’s happiness shown from her face and Maria rashly went to meet him and gave him food and do every work as presented in the novel.Maria has not interfered in the political work of Robert as Pilar always take part in the work of Pablo and always command on Pablo about Republic work, but Maria took aloof herself from the work of Robert Jordan. Maria had a fear of Jordan’s work. When Robert is away from the fight on the bridge and she is in the care of the horse in the forest, she fears so much for Jordan.
The love between Robert and Maria grows as faster that they gave each other affectionate names as Robert called Maria as Rabbit and Maria called Robert as Roberto and Ingles as well. This pet name is also used in the film. Through this, it is clear that first they are friends and after they are lovers. Even Pilar sometimesfelt jealous of their relationship because her relationship with Pablo is not that much intimacy type as that of Robert and Maria. This type of jealousy is not pictured in the character of Pilar in the film. It is possible that the director didn’t want to spoil Pilar’s positive,caring person logo in the film. She says in the novel-
“Yes, he can have thee.” Pilar said and looked at neither of them. “I have never wanted thee. But I am Jealous.”
“I thought not. But I give you back your rabbit. Nor ever did I try to take your rabbit. That’s a good name for her. I heard you call her that this morning.” (Hemingway,2004:161-163 )
Hemingway presented the conversation between them very interesting. Maria as a woman of Robert takes care of everything for him. As she says that she can roll cigarettes for him and also wash him and feed him, when he is wounded and during his sickness time and made a coffee for him, and cut his hair. Sometimes Robert makes a joke on her too. That is the dreams of Maria and Robert for their future life. When Robert is in his work, he was not disturbed and interpreted by Maria. She was waiting for him when he finished his work. She believes him so much and the volition of both is totally the same.
Happiness is a matter for them both. They always tried to make each other happy. That is the secret of their happiest relationship. In one incident in the film, when Robert came fromwork Maria told him to sit down and rub his feet well. At that time Robert made a joke on Maria and told her to dry them with your hair, as she had very little hair.
The novel and film, both presented Robert’s more care about his work. Robert is so much enthusiastic about his work. Sometimes he looks rude towards Maria because he does not even give attention to Maria’s tears. He is totally involved in the republic’s work. That doesn’t mean that he doesn’t love her, but he had a big responsibility for his people and republicwork on his shoulder. As Maria says,
“Good. I go, and if thou does not love me. I love thee enough for both.” (Hemingway,2004:279)
Robert looked at her and smiled through his thinking.
Like every love story, this story also has a triangle. The love triangle is discussed in the novel, but it is not pictured in the movie. There is love between Maria and Robert and there is a third person, Agustin, who also loved her. He loved her very passionately. Ernest Hemingway described his love as pure and divine love. Agustin didn’t want her as physically. He cares for her and he also asks Robert that he is serious about her or not, because he didn’t want Maria to be sad. He is happy when he saw she is happy with Robert Jordan. Sometimes he also felt jealous but that is just instinct. When Robert talks seriously that he cares for her and he will marry her that console him.
Every single word which is put into the mouth of Robert for Maria described his passionate and deep love:
“I love thee as I love all we have fought for. I love thee as I love liberty and dignity and the rights of all men to work and not be hungry. I love thee as I love Madrid that we have defended and as I love all my comrades that have died. And many have died. Many. Many. Thou canst not think how many, But I love thee as I love what I love most in the world and I love thee more. I love thee very much, rabbit. More than I can tell thee. But I say this now to tell thee a little. I have never had a wife and I have thee for a wife and I am happy.” (Hemingway,2004:361)
After the blowing of the bridge, Robert and all the peoplewent to a safe place with Pablo but Robert met an accident and his left leg is broken. This time is so much pain giving because he can’t move and he has to let Maria go for the future. As he told her with his broken heart that every dream they saw about Madrid is broken and now they will not go to Madrid in the future. Maria was crying so much. He gave her comfort through his speech. Maria didn’t want to go and she said that it is easier to stay with Robert but Jordan says go for both of us.
“You are me now, surely you must feel it rabbit.” (Hemingway,2004:482 )
The pain of departure is so much heart rendering. It melted the audience’s heart. The tears fell off from the heroine’s eyes is so much heartrending that the audience also cried for their departure when they saw the movie. The performance of the conversation between them is so much heart touching. Every line is so emotional and heart melted.
Conclusion
To conclude, the film adaptation from novel incorporates changes and narrative change is one of the changes. It also observed in the text For Whom the Bell tolls and the film For Whom the Bell tolls The dimensions of story in the novel are not remains same in case of its film adaptation. The changes made in the film are discussed in the above paras. One of the key differences is change of language as the story shifts from eye to ear. The production departments are more in film in comparison to the novel. Both the stories are similar but the methodology of presentation is different. Both novel and film are creative version. In film, narrative is back up by the camera, whereas in a novel, narrative is back up by soft copies or hard copies. The film is more entertaining than the novel. The film makes a story more valuable than the text, but it has also some limitations. From novel to film, the viewer moving from a purely representational mode to an order of the operableIt is also narrated in the same article by the author that the loss of the narrational voice may, however, be felt as the chief casualty of the novel's enunciation. It is also concluded that narrative film can be thought of as story without the level of the narration tale without a teller. This is actually caused by its iconic nature. The films show people the story, while the novels tell people the story. It is also examined that novel has one tense and film has three tenses. It is also examined that the myriad narrative, thematic, and stylistic choices that are part of every film. It brings films and their narratives into the realm of the social, allowing us to put their effects into perspective, to compare them to other films and other kinds of cultural artifacts, and finally to begin relating the films we watch to the wider world around us. Script writers can change over perception, whereas novel writer cannot do this. The time space is different in film and novel. Thus, it becomes evident that the novel and film have some similarities and dissimilarities. This paper also can’t conclude with the answer to which media is better than the other. Every medium has some limitations and expansion. The purpose of every genre is for entertainment and for knowledge.
Work Cited:-