The Hours (Film) Literary Elements

The Hours (Film) Literary Elements

Director

Stephen Daldry

Leading Actors/Actresses

Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore

Supporting Actors/Actresses

Miranda Richardson, Ed Harris, Stephen Dillane

Genre

Drama, Period Drama

Language

English

Awards

Academy Award, BAFTA and Golden Globe, Best Actress - Nicole Kidman. Best Oicture Academy Award - Scott Rudon, Robert Fox. Best Supporting Actor - Ed Harris. Best supporting actress : Julianne Moore

Date of Release

2002

Producer

Scott Rudin, Robert Fox

Setting and Context

Three different settings; in London and suburbs whilst Virginia Woolf is writing her novel "Mrs Dalloway"; Los Angeles just after the end of World War Two and New York, 2001/2

Narrator and Point of View

Point of view of each of the three central female characters depending on which one is being portrayed at the time

Tone and Mood

Depressing, foreboding

Protagonist and Antagonist

The women are the protagonists and society's expectations of them that keep them trapped in unfulfilling situations are the antagonists

Major Conflict

Conflict within each of the characters regarding their feelings about their lives and also their feeling about mortality and suicide

Climax

The discovery that Laura Brown is Richard's mother is the climax as it shows how time passes and intertwines

Foreshadowing

Virginia's constant focus on suicide with reference to her main character foreshadows her own preoccupation with the possibility of ending her own life

Understatement

Laura is dissatisfied with her life which is an understatement since she wants only to escape from it

Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques

No specific filming techniques

Allusions

The film constantly alludes to the finished novel "Mrs Dalloway"

Paradox

When Richard is in a relationship with Clarissa it seems that he is being dishonest hiding his homosexuality behind the guise of a straight relationship which is paradoxical in that Clarissa is doing the same thing

Parallelism

There is a parallel between Clarissa Dalloway, the fictional character, and Clarissa Vaughn, as. Otho leave the house in the morning with the purpose of purchasing flowers

Update this section!

You can help us out by revising, improving and updating this section.

Update this section

After you claim a section you’ll have 24 hours to send in a draft. An editor will review the submission and either publish your submission or provide feedback.

Cite this page