A beautiful and innocent Parisian girl, why is willing to devote herself to being a prostitute?
The traditional logic of "forcing the good into prostitution" in society cannot explain the character of Nana in Godard's "Do As You Want" . Even with little money, Nana, a shop assistant, could have many other means of earning a living. Standing on the street as a prostitute was her active choice.
Then the plot of "As You Like It" seems to have lost its rationality, but in the case of Godard in 1962, rationality is not important, what is important is his expression.
Godard's expression, the theme has been revealed in the opening subtitles. Montaigne said: Lend yourself to others. Give yourself to yourself.
The other is always at odds with the ego, and Montaigne is saying that you actually have to find a way to deal with both: "lending" yourself to others so that you can keep your true self to yourself.
There is a bit of the relationship between the "skin" and "spirit" that the Orientals say.
No profession can better symbolize the theme of "lending yourself" than a prostitute, so Nana pursues a separation of skin and spirit in this morally despised way.
While lending her skin to a man, her spirit is already beautiful, independent and free to do as she pleases.
This freedom to do whatever she wants is exactly what the scene in which she dances impromptu to jazz accompaniment is meant to convey.
But Godard is greedy in terms of philosophical expression. He routinely used a philosopher to have a mindless philosophical dialogue about language and expression with prostitute Nana in a coffee shop.
Contrary to the sage's hard thinking, Nana said she only felt that life should be easy and happy. Here we seem to see some kind of irony.
Sometimes Nana is also very philosophical, she said:
I raise my hand - I am responsible;
I turn my head - I am responsible;
I am not happy - I am responsible;
I smoke - I am responsible;
I close my eyes - I am responsible;
Even if I forget that I have a responsibility, I still have a responsibility.
This is almost a manifesto of an existential philosophy— existence has no value and meaning, beings give existence value and meaning; beings take responsibility for existence.
Only here can I understand "Do As You Like It": this is not a film that needs to be built on a reasonable story, Godard expresses the riddle of freedom and responsibility in existence.
Godard seems to be about to give a pessimistic answer to this puzzle, so he crafts a tragic outcome in a very unreasonable way at the end of the credits. This ending seems to say: Montaigne's perfect concept of "lending oneself" and "reserving oneself" is false and poisonous, there is no harmony and unity between freedom and responsibility, and between one's social existence and self-existence, forever No peace.
Is that true? This is an idea we need to take after admiring the innocent face of the prostitute/girl Nana.
(This film can be viewed on the 1905 Movie Network APP)
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