McLean-Smits 1 Avalon McLean-Smits The Fable, The Trickster, and Power in the Films of Orson Welles Orson Welles

was an auteur in American cinema. Some might describe Welles as a powerful creative mind whose work has influenced generations of aspiring actors, writers, and directors. His career spanned from theatre to radio to film and back again. He was well respected but studios were wary of him because of his style of filmmaking. He contributed to many innovations in cinema technologically and stylistically, but his methods were unconventional at times and the public never seemed to know how to react to his films. Because of this, Welles would fight with his studio for final say on cuts of his work among other things. There was a definite struggle between Welles and the studio heads, but it was not just Welles who struggled for power and authority. In a large portion of Welles pieces, his characters battle with their own rise and fall of power. The use of the fable as a storytelling device is characteristically Orson Welles. Like the fable, Welles work presents a message to be learned about what it means to have power. This paper will examine a variety of Welles films, but specifically The Fountain of Youth (1956/ 1958) in attempt to show how through the conventions of a fable, Welles conveys what it means to have power and its affect on society. The paper will start with an examination of the elements of the

McLean-Smits 2 fable before using Welles often forgotten short film The Fountain of Youth. In Doron Narkiss paper, Chaucers Escape From Fable, it is defined that the classic of model of a fable is an authoritarian allegorical form, which represents and enacts a hierarchical power system, relating deictically to implied or specified addressees (46). Traditionally speaking, people associate fables with short stories directed at children often using animals to portray lessons and good morals to be learned. Fables were originally apart of medieval church practice with the same goal although the work did not have to be specifically directed at children (Narkiss 46). What the church did do was use fables to assert their authority. They would use fear, but also charm to present a specific way to live life so that one could go to heaven instead of hell when he or she died. Fables are closely associated with folktales, fairy tales, trickster tales, and myths, all which contain fantastical elements and a message. Narkiss considers topics such as authority, allegory, a social historical context, and a thematic emphasis on power that of the trickster, the traditional underdog who emerges tainted but victorious (47) as aspects that are well associated with the form of the fable. What Orson Welles does with the fable is turn it into a fabular tale, a longer story employing the elements of the fable and then he makes it visual. The length of the fable is something that concerns Narkiss, as it is what is analyzed in the paper on Chaucers fabular

McLean-Smits 3 tales. Narkiss explains that extending the length of the fable allows for complex structure, deeper characterization, as well as more possibilities for the manipulation of aesthetic issues, plot development, and narratorial commentary (47). What stands out about fables are the fantastical elements, for example: animals speaking and wearing bonnets or other human clothing. Fables are about real life and reflect activities and ideas that exist in the real world but the fable employs characteristics that do not exist in real life which are usually implemented to aid in the emphasis of the message. Fables are often told in third person. Welles certainly employed the model of the fable through his narrative commentary and through style. Through Welles use of light and shadow, camera angles and lenses, props, and narrative Welles was able to employ the fable to tell the story of power, control, and greed. The character that Welles tends to incorporate in his films is that of the trickster. The trickster tale is a fable concerning a character whose purpose is to trick the hero of the story. Edith Strader explains, trickster tales often celebrate values or actions that are disapproved of by society but that may be necessary for the survival and success of the small and weak. For me, The Fountain of Youth is an excellent example of a film where a character that appears to be weak but has a substantial amount of power and is able to get revenge by using it. What Humphrey Baxter does is seemingly harmless but it has an

McLean-Smits 4 incredible impact. In Orson Welles films, Gabriel Paletz notes that the narratives often made commentaries about what was going on in society at the time, expressing that Welles identification with the 1936-42 moment provides the blueprint for his career (218). Since this period in time dealt a lot with ideas about power in politics and undermined ideas about what a democracy was, it is no surprise that the characters in Welles films would have to deal with power. I believe that Welles fascination extended beyond those few years. The trickster in a trickster tale or fable deals with theme of power through the characters deceitful, greedy, and manipulative behaviour. In fables, the characters who express acts of greed, power, deception, or other attributes deemed negative within the fable, often find themselves dead, exposed, or with nothing. These are common endings for the characters in Welles films. As pointed out earlier, Narkiss stated that authority is also a common theme in fables, as it is in Welles work. To have authority is to have power and for me Welles loves to question authority through his work. Much of his work shows how a person with a title can gain so much respect and trust and how problematic this can be for society. His films incorporate people in the justice system, the government, high social class, people of wealth, and sometimes even those with

McLean-Smits 5 beauty as those with authority in society This can be seen in Citizen Kane when people trust the newspapers and Kanes word as truth and Paletz sees Kane as well as Mr. Clay from The Immortal Story (1968) as dictators (221). In Touch of Evil Welles character Captain Quinlin gets away with planting evidence and throwing the guilt upon whomever he pleases because of his badge and perhaps even his because of his race since Vargas is Mexican. The police, the law advocates, and the justice system in general within his adaptation of The Trial (1962), maintain authority and control over Joseph K. This, too, is a film that deals excessively with fantastic elements, the power of authority, and comments on the treatment of individuals through this distorted power. Unfortunately, in this film, it is not the authority figures who learn their lesson or die. Even in looking at Welles adaptations of Shakespeare one can see the theme of power, for Shakespeare certainly dealt with the topic of authority portraying kings and queens and how birth somehow denotes authority in a monarchy. Money is also a marker of authority for Welles. Mr. Thatcher and Mrs. Kane in Citizen Kane have authority because of their positions and wealth. Mrs. Kane bosses her husband around and sends her son off to be raised by Mr. Thatcher at the bank because she believes that the bank, a place with authority and money, will be able to raise him better than his own family. Beverle Houston describes Kanes mother as newly empowered (3) when she gets the inheritance and this is

McLean-Smits 6 effectively to give Kane authority and power because he will be out of the impoverished rural environment (3). In Magnificent Ambersons Georgie is powerful because of his social class. He is given privileges like not having to maintain a job and being able to do what he pleases. Even Mr. Amberson is given power when Isabel chooses him, a man with money, over Eugene. In fact, Isabels story ends with a very poignant fable moral that says that it is Better to marry a man without money, than money without a man (Thompson 41) as Mr. Amberson is very much a man that is forgotten and goes unnoticed throughout the film. Houston relates Georgie and Kane to each other again in terms of their behaviour for both men are powerful and are able to manipulate those around them (2), a theme common in fables. Fantastical elements in Welles work enhance the idea of a fable in order to show how power affects society. The way that Welles attributes power to his characters is through positions of authority in society, money, and social class. A pertinent film of Welles to look at is The Fountain of Youth. This film stands out because the three protagonists, Humphrey, Caroline, and Alan, all succumb to using trickery at one point in the film and each of the characters experiences feelings of power. The film depicts how power can be handled in different hands and its affect on society through the authority of science, the media, and position in society.

McLean-Smits 7 The Fountain of Youth was Welles only attempt in the world of television (Rick Jason, Orson Welles and the Feet of Clay). Welles originally adapted the film from a John Collier short story Youth From Vienna (1951). It was originally done in 1956 as a pilot for Desilu; the pilot did not sell but it was later aired on NBCs Colgate Theatre in 1958. Rick Jason in his autobiography provides interesting insight into the filming which highlights the fantastical and fable-like nature of the film: the sets consisted of projections of a setting and minimal furniture. Jason describes how in transition from scene to scene, timing would need to be precise as it involved the projection dissolving, the lights going out, the projection changing, and the camera pulling back to capture the new setting while the actor hit his first mark. The intricacy involved is astounding, but what is important is that very little of the film is real. It appears to be real, but it is more like a dream since everything is simply a projection. The idea of a youth extract, Carolines disintegrating portrait, and Orson Welles ability to come in and out of the scenes as he pleases create a feeling of fantasy while Welles narration links the film to the style of the fable. Like a fable, the film is short. The characters may not get deep development but that is unimportant because it is the punch line of the film that is the most important. What aids in the punch line of the film is the narration. In a typical fable, the narrator often comments on what is happening in the plot and provides side commentary. The narration in

McLean-Smits 8 the film is also a wonderful example of how like a fable the film is. Fables and the like are generally told from the third person perspective. Orson Welles narrates The Fountain of Youth and while he sometimes even speaks for the characters, his narration provides the audience with insight into what is to come and background information. The narration feels very much like story telling, but it also sets the narrator up as another figure of authority. Welles choose how the story should go, he even speaks for the characters instead of letting them do the talking. In this sense, since I argue that Welles wants people to question authority, he is effectively asking audiences to question the authority of a fable. Welles as the narrator is not the only person with authority in the film. The characters exemplify a variety of different types of authority and power. As stated earlier, Humphrey Baxters authority comes from the fact that he is a scientist while Carolines power comes from her beauty and Alans from his good looks and skill. The pair of them have power because of their position in society. Both being idols and adored by the public, they can command attention and get what they want. In the beginning of the story, Caroline has power over Baxter because he is enamoured with her and he is heart-broken when she does not end up waiting for him and becomes engaged to Alan Brody, the professional tennis star. At this moment, Baxter is able to turn Caroline and Alans power, their looks, into a weapon for he knows that their

McLean-Smits 9 downfall is their greed. Before Humphrey leaves for Vienna, Caroline admits to him that she is just a little bit greedy for attention but that she promises she would let him know if she ever felt it getting a real hold of [her] (The Fountain of Youth). For both of Alan and Caroline, they need their youth in order to maintain their livelihoods and this makes them greedy for the youth extract. Alan needs his youthfulness in order to defeat the younger tennis players coming in while Caroline needs her youth to preserve her looks and keep herself in the spotlight. In an act of revenge towards Caroline for leaving him, Humphrey Baxter uses his authority as an endocrinologist to release information surrounding an extract that will be able to stop the aging process. The news leads Caroline and Alan to Humphrey who presents them with a single bottle of the youth extract. The reason Humphrey can assert his authority as a scientist has a lot to do with the scientific climate during when the film was made. This is where the film makes a comment on society. The short story and film were published and released after World War II and during a time, the 1950s, where plenty of scientific discoveries and innovations were being made including the atom and hydrogen bombs, the polio vaccination, and a variety of other medical advancements. The scientist and his/ her knowledge becomes authoritative as it can save or destroy society. This is why Humphrey and his experiment are so important in terms of a social and

McLean-Smits 10 historical context. When Humphrey makes a joke about it sounding quite like the wedding service for the two of them when he presents them with the bottle he is expressing his new found power over Caroline and Alans new marriage. What is necessary to look at is how Caroline and Alan even ended up at Humphreys to begin with. They hear about Humphreys new scientific discovery in the news. What is so powerful about the release of information is that it lands Humphrey on the cover of Time magazine and gets released over the airwaves by the gossip columnist. Mediums that present the news are taken to have authority when presenting information; people assume that what a newspaper, a magazine, or the radio tells them is the truth. The media has power over its audience. This phenomenon is something that Welles experienced first hand with the broadcast of War of the Worlds (1938), which sent listeners into a panic. It must be noted though that the people who present the news also took what Humphrey told them to be truth. Orson Welles undermines the authority of news and the title of scientist. In addition, Humphrey instills fear into Caroline in order to have control over her. He reminds her of the awful freaks with gland problems in order to assert his authority further. Humphreys deception is manipulative and key to the plot of a fable. The morals and messages presented at the end of the film are that beauty is not everything, greed is bad, and most certainly that authority needs to be

McLean-Smits 11 questioned. In conclusion, it is clear that the theme of power is important to Welles. He portrays power in his films to make comments on aspects of society that have power and how they use it. His use of the stylistic elements of the fable assist in portraying a message and moral that needs to be learnt by his audiences. As seen in the discussion of The Fountain of Youth, fantasy and narration are stylistic elements that reflect the fable. In addition, the act of citizens taking the news to be authorities on the truth and the news taking science to be authorities on the truth creates commentary of the social climate, much like a fable does. Last but not least, the film provides the viewer with a message that they should take away from viewing the film. It is clear that this is not the only film in which Welles employs the fable and themes of power. Perhaps the themes of power can also be used to reflect how Welles saw the studio system in Hollywood. It seems that he made quite a few films about a topic that he wanted very much in his own life and felt that he did not have enough of.

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Bibliography Fulton, Brittany. The Darker Side of Self - Lighting and Reflection as Character Development. digitalarchive.wm.edu. (2008). Thesis. Houston, Beverle. "Power and Dis-Integration in the Films of Orson Welles." Film Quarterly 35.4 (1982): 2-12. Print.

McLean-Smits 13 Jason, Rick. "Orson Welles and Feet of Clay." Scrapbooks of My Mind A Hollywood Auto-Biography. Argoe, 2000. Scrapbooks of My Mind. Web. <http://www.scrapbooksofmymind.com/>. Narkiss, Doron. The Fox, the Cock, and the Priest: Chaucers Escape from Fable The Chaucer Review. 32.1 (1997): 46-63. Print. "Orson Welles." Interviews With Film Directors. Ed. Andrew Sarris. New York: BobbsMerrill, 1967. 455-78. Print. Paletz, Gabriel M. Orson Welles: An Auteur of the Thriller. New Review of Film and Television Studies. 4.3 (December 2006): 217-239. Print. "Science & Technology in The 1950s." Shmoop. Shmoop University, Inc. Web. <http://www.shmoop.com/1950s/science-technology.html>. Strader, Edith. "Trickster Tales." 6 May 2005. Web <http://dukes.stark.k12.oh.us/TIS/trickster.html>. The Fountain of Youth. Dir. Orson Welles. Perf. Joi Lansing, Rick Jason, Dan Tobin. 1958.

McLean-Smits 14 Thompson, Stith. Motif-index of Folk-literature; a Classification of Narrative Elements in Folktales, Ballads, Myths, Fables, Mediaeval Romances, Exempla, Fabliaux, Jest-books, and Local Legends. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1955. Print. Thomson, David. Rosebud: The Story of Orson Welles. New York: Vintage, 1997. Print. Welles, Orson, and Peter Bogdanovich. This Is Orson Welles. Ed. Jonathon Rosenbaum. New York: Da Capo, 1998. Print.