Notes 2 & 3

The Trouble With Henry

In Alfred Hitchcock's The Trouble With Henry a small town's peaceful life transforms into entropy when the restless corpse of Henry stirs up mayhem.  Stark contrast is seen as the distracted doctor blunders through the scene as comical upbeat music plays implying that death is no harsh and mournful occurrence but rather a lighter part of the cycle that occurs every day.  At first glance the bright and colorful fall landscape tells of more contrast between the vibrant leaves and the scythe of death.  However with a deeper look the leaves don't contrast death, but rather accentuate it, the leaves will soon shrivel up, fall to the earth, and be forgotten.  The autumn beauty of leaves advocates the shortness of life and abundance of it.

The Consent

BY HOWARD NEMEROV

Late in November, on a single night

Not even near to freezing, the ginkgo trees

That stand along the walk drop all their leaves

In one consent, and neither to rain nor to wind

But as though to time alone: the golden and green

Leaves litter the lawn today, that yesterday

Had spread aloft their fluttering fans of light.

What signal from the stars? What senses took it in?

What in those wooden motives so decided

To strike their leaves, to down their leaves,

Rebellion or surrender? and if this

Can happen thus, what race shall be exempt?

What use to learn the lessons taught by time.

If a star at any time may tell us: Now.

     Nemerov's detailed imagery appeals to all senses as he looks out into a "November night."  Watching as the "flattering fans of light" slump to the earth "neither to rain nor to wind" but to what?  What invisible menace struck down these once full of life pieces of nature.  If this genocide were to repeat, "what race shall be exempt?" he wonders.  The vivacity of the leaves being withered into nothing at the command of an astral being underlines that the end of life can be unexpectedly abrupt.