In Pushkin’s poem The Prophet, the narrator undergoes a process of spiritual cleansing. His soul is initially filled with so much sin and despair that he does not know how to proceed with his life. His only remaining desire is to be blessed by God. At the moment when he is at a crossroad, an angel appears and rips his evil tongue and heart from his body, replacing them with the tongue of a wise snake and a burning coal. I believe that the snake tongue is symbolic for wisdom and the burning coal represents a heart of love. Unable to bear the change, the narrator is left dead. Yet God takes pity and brings him back to life, saying that he must spread his message and replace the vile hearts of men with love.
The thesis for my essay, though tentative, is likely to be: By thoroughly revolutionizing a passage of the Bible in his poem The Prophet, Pushkin questions the orthodox interpretation of God’s plan. Yet unlike the skeptics before him, such as Ovid and Milton, he shows that God is capable of forgiving sins, accepting the thirst for knowledge, and reviving the human race through love.
In my video, I plan to show that a person can only be revived through love. The clip will start with my actor standing in the middle of a crazed city (perhaps at rush hour). There will be lots of loud sounds and commotion around her. Meanwhile, desperate thoughts will run through her mind. She will wish for peace, beauty, and God. Her eyes will close and the scene will fade into darkness. As she opens her eyes, she will find herself lying in a dark forest. Lost and confused, she will proceed to find an escape. All the while, she will be questioning herself and her past decisions. When she comes to the belief that she must change and open her heart to love, she will find an opening in the forest. As she steps into a field of flowers, the sunlight will hit her face and she will finally smile.
This is likely to be a difficult video to shoot and plan for, as I will have to rely on many things that are beyond my control (such as the weather and lighting). If anybody has any suggestions on how I can best plan, they would be much appreciated. Also, is the message that I am trying to send in the video clear and somewhat reflective of my thesis?
