1. Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.

As like any other piece of art ahead of its time Orson Welles’s Citizen Kane was a victim of its

own success. Aside from being a film which broke Hollywood tradition it also managed to bullfight the

rich and powerful. It’s no wonder it had such a hard time to get theatres to play it. Inspiration was

drawn from a very force not to be reckoned with, and yet, Welles did exactly that. By using a powerful,

insanely rich, and well-connected figure like William Randolph Hearst, Welles and his greatest film ever

was doomed to be a commercial failure. Regardless, it was certainly ahead of its time. It broke new

ground in lighting techniques, camera angles, narration, and character development.

2. Find a related article and summarize the content.

In Roslyn Mass’s article A Linking of the Legends: The Great Gatsby and Citizen Kane she takes on

the task of comparing and contrasting Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby with Welles’s Citizen Kane. The

comparison uses the Joseph Conrad’s literary principles as a vehicle to explain how the narrative of both

pieces relate. Conrad’s principles describes that writers only repeat themselves but provide a telling of a

story that differs depending on who’s telling it and who’s reading it. He adds that it’s important provide

either several points of view or no view at all. In case of the latter, the reader would provide the

perspective.

The article recounts how Welles toyed with the idea on telling a story several different ways

using the same characters and events. What would differ would be the character providing the narration

and interpretation. The Great Gatsby offers a similar experience since the main character first learns

about Gatsby through what is told by different people.

http://library.kean.edu:2048/login?url=http://library.kean.edu:2054/login.aspx?

direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,cpid&custid=keaninf&db=aph&AN=6899373&site=ehost-

live&scope=site

3. Apply the article to the film screened in class.

The article applies itself by conveying the break from traditional storytelling. Both works, The

Great Gatsby and Citizen Kane provide an unusual experience for the viewer and reader. They provide

the story through different perspectives and even multiple narrations.

Another characteristic of both films is the building of fascinating larger than life people as the

center of the story. Later we find their demise and in isolation realizing they cannot purchase what they

most desire despite all their power and money.

4. Write a critical analysis of the film

It’s easy to see why this film is considered the best American film of all time. Presently, in

today’s standards, it could be considered slow, maybe even boring. Maybe, it’s because as technology

has progressed so has the ability to provide visual spectacle. Thus, using unusual narration to catch the

audience’s attention has been lost. And when it does happen, Pulp Fiction for example, it still relies

chronological displacement rather than different perspectives of characters.

Genius!

CHECKLIST FOR PLAGIARISM

1) (x) I have not handed in this assignment for any other class.

2) (x) If I reused any information from other papers I have written for other classes, I clearly explain that in the paper.

3) (x) If I used any passages word for word, I put quotations around those words, or used indentation and citation within the text.

4) (x) I have not padded the bibliography. I have used all sources cited in the bibliography in the text of the paper.

5) (x) I have cited in the bibliography only the pages I personally read.

6) (x) I have used direct quotations only in cases where it could not be stated in another way. I cited the source within the paper and in the bibliography.

7) (x) I did not so over-use direct quotations that the paper lacks interpretation or originality.

8) (x) I checked yes on steps 1-7 and therefore have been fully transparent about the research and ideas used in my paper.

Name: ___Dennis Rojas____________________ Date: ____________________________