And here man undergoes a transformation as important as when he became a tool-user. He becomes a natural being again, having used his tools for hundreds of thousands of years to pull himself up by the bootstraps. Now, he no longer needs them. He has transcended his own nature, as that original ape did, and now he is no longer a “man.”
Instead, having grown old and died, he is reborn as a child of the universe. As a solemn, wide-eyed infant who slowly looks over the stars and the Earth, and then turns his eyes on the audience.
These last 20 seconds, as the child of man looks down on his ancestral parents, are the most important in the film. We in the audience are men, and here is the liberated, natural being, Kubrick believes we will someday become.
But when Kubrick’s space infant looked at the audience the other night, half of the audience was already on its feet, in a hurry to get out. A good third of the audience, must not have seen the space infant at all.
And here man undergoes a transformation as important as when he became a tool-user. He becomes a natural being again, having used his tools for hundreds of thousands of years to pull himself up by the bootstraps. Now, he no longer needs them. He has transcended his own nature, as that original ape did, and now he is no longer a “man.”
Instead, having grown old and died, he is reborn as a child of the universe. As a solemn, wide-eyed infant who slowly looks over the stars and the Earth, and then turns his eyes on the audience.
These last 20 seconds, as the child of man looks down on his ancestral parents, are the most important in the film. We in the audience are men, and here is the liberated, natural being, Kubrick believes we will someday become.
But when Kubrick’s space infant looked at the audience the other night, half of the audience was already on its feet, in a hurry to get out. A good third of the audience, must not have seen the space infant at all.
Good to see you and your nice essay. Rebirth is an attractive notion these days. We'll have to wait and see how it works out. In the meantime, a couple more shots...
The demarcation of the Swiss cantons of Bern and Valais.
...and the US and Canada near Waterton
Real imaginary lines?
All the best. Hope things are improving in your world and the forest is recovering as well as all of you folks.
up
0 users have voted.
—
“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
Comments
∞
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPpO1WGNpNI]
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-R4XKuI7rA]
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXS8P0HksQo]
The baby doesn't really
Anyhoo, I found the sequel to 2001 to be oddly exciting.
dfarrah
it's
really pretty jaw-dropping. How you can be wrong about everything.
How can
Kubrick himself didn't impart the scene with the meaning you desire it to have.
dfarrah
and then, THE classic case......
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
Been there, done that!
here's
one from your cousins, the crocodiles.
Beautiful essay
Hey hecate
Good to see you and your nice essay. Rebirth is an attractive notion these days. We'll have to wait and see how it works out. In the meantime, a couple more shots...
The demarcation of the Swiss cantons of Bern and Valais.
...and the US and Canada near Waterton
Real imaginary lines?
All the best. Hope things are improving in your world and the forest is recovering as well as all of you folks.
“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”