Performance and Popular Culture

1. Marvin Carlson states that “all performance involves a consciousness of doubleness” (pg.73). How is this concept exemplified in any of the films encountered in this module?

This “consciousness of doubleness” means a role or a behaviour a body tries to execute with keeping that original model of that action in mind to be used as a benchmark for comparison. The performer is always aware and conscious of the conventional way of properly performing that act and will try his best to stick to those customs and ‘correct’ mode of behaviour, as this would meant that he is performing well. The performer would be judged on his success of his performance based on a universal standard that may or may not be directly implied, and it may not even be measurable. The audience in this case can be the performer himself and not just an external observer. For example, an athlete may have a mental image of some other athlete’s successful performance, and he would know that he has performed successfully only when he sees himself performing as well as that other successful athlete. This form of performance is different from the ‘theatrical’ performance sense and it shows that everyday behaviour can be a performance itself as long as there is some kind of audience (the performer himself or an external observer) to see that act. Taking a look at My Fair Lady, this type of performance can be seen when Eliza Doolittle first meets the members of the upper class society. In order to pull of being a high-class elite, Eliza has to keep a mental image of how a high-class lady is supposed to behave. She would compare her actions to those of a conventional high-class lady, and if they were exactly the same, then she would believe that she is performing that role successfully. Another example that presents this kind of performance is in Hugo. The Station Inspector sees himself as a law enforcer if he manages to catch orphans creating mischief at the train station. He has a mental image of a...