Marlena McCall

LBST 2102
Mr. Robert Arnold
13 October 2011
Microtheme 5
In the 1988 Iilm Chocolat, directed by Claire Denis, horizons are a motiI, and
become a crucial element in the development oI the description oI the characters and
society. Horizon`s denotation is: 'The line at which the earth's surIace and the sky appear
to meet. However in Chocolat, it develops a connotation oI racial diIIerentiation.
Horizon is important to me particularly architecturally because it creates a
connection to the other, diIIerent elements oI a drawing and a common relation on which
to exist. Horizon is important to people because it allows them to organize what they`re
seeing in order to make sense and possibly draw a conclusion Irom it. In Chocolat,
horizon is a line oI racial diIIerentiation relative to a particular character`s view
concerning people oI diIIerent races` place in society. The Iirst time horizon is
mentioned, France as a small child, unknowingly introduces the idea, and then her Iather
describes the horizon in its literal meaning when explaining where the plane crashed
beyond the mountain. The director did a nice job placing emphasis on this scene
Ioreshadowing the importance oI the idea in the story.
DiIIerent characters in Chocolat, represent various views oI the horizon. Protee
and Delpich both believe the horizon is very real and nonnegotiable. They think the
whites belong above and the blacks below. They agree about this even thought they stand
on opposite sides. Protee rejects Aimee`s advances because he sees that as completely
inappropriate because she is white Iemale married to the property owner. Protee also
maniIests his views when he cries over being seen in the shower outside the servants
quarters because he believes that area should not be crossed by the whites.
Aimee participates in the colonial system because she has a houseboy` but she
and her husband have black Iriends, like Prosper, the doctor they call on when the woman
is sick. Her husband Marc explains his view to his daughter, France, who adopts it. Marc
says 'When you look at the hills, beyond the houses and beyond the trees, where the
earth touches the sky, that`s the horizon. The closer you get to that line, the Iather it
moves. II you walk towards it, it moves away. It Ilees Irom you. I must also explain this
to you. You see the line. You see it, but it doesn`t exist. He means that he sees the
division but it`s passable because it doesn`t really exist.