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Chaz brings up some excellent points in his analysis of the opening scene. It’s worth noting that as Irish immigrants, they enter New York in search of opportunities. Beneath the veil of glamor, our characters find the decaying regions of New York.
I think the contrast between the glamorous city and decrepit tenement houses demonstrates a theme of hope and despair that is continually elaborated upon throughout the film. Through Johnny’s emotional breakdowns, Sarah’s financial worries, and the atmosphere of grief upon the Sullivan family, it becomes nearly impossible to find hope.
However, the kindness of Mateo enables the characters to discover hope and to move forward in their lives. The setting of the baby shower greatly contrasts the initial scene, portraying optimism, and a celebratory atmosphere; this is much different than the anxious mood during the intro scene. I think the film argues the importance of rejecting superficiality. The grandiose rumors surrounding New York lifestyles are ultimately betrayed by the reality of life in New York. However, genuine relationships and interactions with other New Yorkers redeem New York, providing hope in a hopeless situation.
The introduction scene sets the stage for a continual decline of hope throughout the novel, until its climax, where a small ray of hope illuminates the Sullivan family’s darkest hour.
The seventies were a decade riddled with problems. As Ash points out, minority communities became increasingly marginalized, and those who partook in illegal industries found themselves increasingly persecuted. The film thus does an exceptional job illustrating the problems of 1970s New York. In the midst of a financial crisis and drug epidemic, we are given the opportunity to gaze through the lens of the average American immigrant.
The only issue I have with the movie is its unrealistic “happy end”. Considering the poverty most New Yorkers suffered, it is highly unlikely that a neighbor would have a fortune and be willing to give it away. It intrigues me how New York seems to value punishment and marginalization over reform and rehabilitation. In a city filled with prostitution and drug addicts, New York chose to cripple its citizens as opposed to assisting them.
Whether it’s Smoke or Let the Great World Spin, New York consistently seems to fail at helping its citizens and instead relies on the goodwill of other characters to make up for its shortcomings. In Smoke, Auggie’s girlfriend cannot provide her daughter with rehabilitation services because of its cost. Considering the film occurs over a decade following New York’s war on drugs, it’s almost comical how ill-prepared New York is to support its citizens. It’s only through Auggie’s five thousand dollar donation that Felicity can obtain help. Similarly, Tillie from Let the Great World Spin commits suicide after becoming isolated from her daughter. Tillie’s incarceration for supporting her daughter in the only way she knows how is representative of New York’s tendency to punish–and in a sense, imitates slavery practices in which families were split up.
I would’ve enjoyed the film much more if it portrayed New York as it really was. I dislike the “glorification” of New York because it wasn’t a time period that should be glorified. I would rather accept that the 1970s was a crappy time period that we should work to avoid in the future. The reality was that most New Yorkers would never have been able to pay off a hospital bill and that most would not be able to get a job as an actor.
Heavy bump. I think you’re bringing up a ton of really good points about Corrigan. My knowledge of Christianity is surface-level, and I don’t really understand too many biblical references, but I think Corrigan assumes the role of “Jesus”. Ciaran describes Corrigan as “a mad, impossible angel” to the homeless and alcoholics of Ireland. In the same way that Jesus dies for the sins of humanity, Corrigan bears the weight of peoples’ sins and eventually dies because of it. In this sense, I relate Corrigan’s masochism to religious fervor, much like how you describe Corrigan’s faith as unique.
While reading your hypothetical scenario in which Corrigan lives, you helped me realize that Corrigan forsakes a portion of humanity in pursuit of God. Although Corrigan gives his entire life for the benefit of humanity, he detaches himself from his family. At the end of the novel, Corrigan has never come to terms with his father and cuts Ciaran out of most of his life. Corrigan rejects the most personal aspect of humanity (familial relations) while trying to learn how to empathize with others. In doing so, he becomes unable to sympathize with his family, simultaneously becoming a character who is non-judgemental of everyone, yet judgemental of the people who he should know best.
You make an interesting argument regarding Tillie’s position in the novel. I agree with your analysis of Tillie’s approach to motherhood. I think it’s interesting to note that her approach is similar to Corrigan’s. Just as Corrigan drinks alcohol and suffers beatings by pimps in order to empathize with the homeless and prostitutes, Tillie shoots heroin and prostitutes herself to bring herself close to Jazzlyn–putting her in a position where she can protect her daughter directly and indirectly.
I also found your analysis of Tillie’s facade fascinating. Tillie’s private persona is a soft and caring mother, but her public persona is a cheeky prostitute. I believe her public persona to be a defense mechanism against the judgment of the world. By pretending to be a stereotypical colored prostitute, she can hide behind the stereotypes surrounding blacks and prostitutes, as opposed to exposing her insecurities to the world. To avoid drawing attention to oneself is a defensive behavior that evolved in humans over generations. That is why I find your analysis intriguing. It makes me believe that Tillie is shouldering the weight of the “black sex-worker stereotype” so that Jazzlyn develops her own unique personality.
On a tangential note, I think McCann may unintentionally fall into stereotyping as he creates backgrounds for the characters. It is notable that the parental figures are basically exclusively mothers. Corrigan and Ciaran’s father was absent from their entire youth and never reappears in the novel after the funeral. Tillie is a single mother raising Jazzlyn. Claire and Solomon are both parents to a child who died during the Vietnam war, but Claire is the only one that openly expresses grief. Solomon is reserved with his grief, which paints Claire as the more “parental figure”. From this, it almost seems as though McCann is falling into the stereotype wherein mothers are responsible for caretaking, and fathers are simply incapable of raising children. I can’t say much on the topic of McCann’s experience with colored narratives, but Wikipedia states “In 1988 he moved to Texas, where he worked as a wilderness educator with juvenile delinquents”. I presume some of his experiences with troubled youth may have inspired stories in his novel, but can’t really extrapolate much beyond that.
Overall, your analysis was a super interesting read. While writing my comment, your analysis brought a new question into my mind. Judge Solomon doesn’t really see Tillie as a person until she exits the courtroom. However, his attention is focused on how she is beautiful. He essentially objectifies Tillie as a sexual object, as opposed to seeing her as someone beyond a criminal. Based on my thoughts on McCann’s stereotyping of the “female mother” and his approach to humanizing Judge Solomon, I’m interested in what you (or anyone) thinks of McCann’s approach to writing women.
Oops. I said the film aged poorly as a joke (referencing how smoked meats usually don’t spoil as quickly). I’m mostly suggesting that the film’s emphasis on smoking is significant in the sense that it serves as a medium for helping push the characters forward in their lives. Almost every exchange between characters involves the smoking of a cigar. Even Rashid is seen smoking with Paul as they watch the ball game. However, I think it’s interesting to note that using smoke as a medium for connection is symbolically contradictory. Smoke often obscures a person’s view, making it difficult to see. The lack of transparency makes it difficult to see the truth. However, obscurity can also bring out the truth. For example, confession booths in churches often utilize veiled rooms where people can confess to their sins.
I don’t disagree with your opinion on smoke within current movies. I enjoyed Fight Club as well, and Deadpool is often seen smoking as well. I personally think smoking is still pretty popular in pop-culture, just like how alcohol and weed are gaining popularity in mainstream media. I also think you bring up an interesting point in regards to the portrayal of phones in modern film. It’s interesting how smoking used to be a medium for communication between individuals, but has since been replaced by phones, which can hinder communication between people. Sometimes when I hang out with people, we might be using our phones instead of talking. The same could be said with smoking in the past, but I feel like phones have replaced some of the significance of talking with other people since you can just communicate digitally anytime, anywhere.
Your analysis of sounds, vehicles, and transportation was very intriguing to read. I didn’t really think about the relevance of background noises, but now that you bring it up, it is very fascinating to think about how they add dramatic effect and influence the atmosphere of a scene.
When experiencing major changes in life, the emotions felt are often jarring and impactful. While dramas and tragedies often use gunshots and rain to intensify the mood, I think it’s very fitting that Smoke uses subway screeches and vehicles. The subway connects people from across all five boroughs, just like how the film connects the narratives of five characters: Paul, Auggie, Rashid/Thomas, Ruby, and Cyrus. The sharp screech of subway cars can be felt across all five boroughs and is thus fitting in a film that connects five different lives.
Your thoughts on cars and trains also made me realize how the lives of the characters progress. At the start of the movie, not a single character is moving: Paul is still mourning his wife, Auggie doesn’t have an intimate partner/family to connect to, Rashid/Thomas rejects the people around him (probably because he fears they may abandon him like his parents), Ruby cannot connect with her daughter, and Cyrus lives with the guilt of killing his wife and child (until he meets Thomas). The transfer of money from one person to another provides opportunities for each person. Rashid originally believes the money will sustain his future until he learns otherwise by Paul. The money then goes to Auggie, who believes the money will give him all the reputation he ever wanted until he learns that Rashid’s sincerely and hope for redemption after ruining his Cuban cigars is worth more than credibility. The money then goes to Ruby, who hopes to use it to rehabilitate her daughter and reconnect with her. Additionally, the transfer of cigarettes is used to facilitate conversation between people. Paul and Auggie talk as he buys his daily two packs of cigarettes. Cyrus and Paul offer each other cigarettes while they sit in silence at the family picnic. Auggie smokes a cigar before he confronts Rashid about his blunder. The exchange of cigarettes is comparable to the exchange of dialogue between characters. As characters smoke cigars, the smoke from the cigars diffuses into the air and mixes with others’ smoke.
I don’t really have anything to say about your analysis of cars as a motif because I think it’s perfectly explained. While Cyrus’ experience with cars has robbed him of his connections with his wife and son, cars can also provide opportunities, as you explained with Rashid x Paul. Ruby also uses a car to bring Auggie to meet Felicity. Overall, I really enjoyed your analysis, and it made me really think about how sounds and motifs are used in other movies. I don’t really pay much attention to background music and sounds while watching movies, but your essay has convinced me to pay more attention to minute details.
That’s quite an interesting take on how a person’s attitude towards responsibility ultimately shapes their fates. I found your points stressing the importance of connecting and taking responsibility for others very profound.
I often imagine what the world would look like if humans were like plants–unmoving and small. Each of us might be born and grow up in a single three by three feet plot of land, unable to see beyond our small little corners. However, I also imagine that by expanding our roots–by connecting with other “plants”–that we can expand our reach and learn more about the world about us. It takes courage to take responsibility for your own fate, and I think your analysis of Ruby and Auggie’s relationship with their daughter(?) implies a deeper lesson everyone could learn from.
This is where our opinions diverge, though. I don’t think Auggie and Ruby are stagnating in time and space. Both find alternative ways of moving forward that don’t necessarily rely on a major lifestyle change. I believe consistent small changes are better than individual large changes. When Auggie shows Paul his photo album collection, he explains that it’s the minute changes in each photo that teach him about the world around him. By observing smaller details like weather, the expressions of people, and the overall atmosphere of the photo, Auggie is able to develop an intimate understanding with the strangers in his photos, which I believe to be a non-physical version of “connection”. Over the course of the movie, Auggie is mostly situated in his cigar shop. In spite of this, though, he is present in every character’s story, minutely influencing their lives as they pass through his cigar shop (e.g. Money flows from Rashid/Thomas to him to Ruby to Felicity//His job offer to Thomas//His Christmas with the blind grandma).
Ruby is the foil to Auggie’s methods. Her connections with other characters are manifested in physical and tangible ways. She mentions how she consistently tried to connect with Felicity before reaching out to Auggie. Her own daughter ridicules her for having sex with Auggie, who she perceives as both old and unattractive. Ruby is unable to connect with her daughter because she lacks money, and her reason for connecting with Auggie was to ask for money. She is only able to find a reason to continue connecting with Ruby after receiving five thousand dollars from Auggie (for paying for Ruby’s rehab). Ruby’s connections are ultimately materialistic, and to say that neither Auggie nor Ruby try to connect with others (especially their daughter) is in my opinion, a bit of an overstatement.
I imagine Auggie and Ruby as smokers/liquor addicts. Smokers and drinkers know that their addictions are bad, but don’t stop. There is truth in your statement that a person’s denial of change and responsibility will lead them to stagnation in life. However, in an addict’s eyes, the journey to sobering up is daunting and seemingly endless. It may not be that they don’t want to change, but rather, that they cannot. Both Auggie and Ruby are old. In spite of the old adage, “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, both Auggie and Ruby find ways to continue to expand their worldviews. Each of them may not be making changes as significant as Paul or Rashid/Thomas, but they’re changing–and I think that deserves recognition.
-Chris
