Personal Response The Pianist

Roman Polanski s The Pianist presents viewers with the story of one man s desire to survive against all odds, as he endures terrible hardship and pain. Set in Warsaw, Poland, during the German invasion of World War 2, it follows the journey of Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish piano player who tries to stay alive as the Jewish people are all forced into submission. The Pianist gives a very stark portrayal of the events the Jewish people endured, but also details a story of survival, and the desire to live, despite horrific circumstances. No matter what happens, Szpilman never loses the will to live, and as his world crumbles around him, he stays incredibly strong. I find myself amazed at the true grit and determination that Szpilman displays, and the way that he never loses hope, and attempts to survive no matter how dire the situation.

German forces pushed in to Poland in 1939, and after a short siege, Germany took control of the city of Warsaw, the capital city. Szpilman is instantly thrown into the thick of things, as a mortar attack bombards the radio station at which he is playing. This is only the start of a string of hardships that he has to endure. Himself, along with all the other Jewish citizens in Warsaw, are gradually and methodically stripped of their rights, until the point where they are segregated in a small part of the city away from the suburbs, now occupied by a majority of Germans. Throughout all of the changes, Szpilman does not display any open distress; it is clear that he is concerned for the welfare of his family, but does not let himself fall into hysterics over what is going on. To me, this was a very definite portrayal of his character, of a person who is very level headed and determined to stay in control of his emotions. I admire the way that he handles the situation, and I cannot help but think that I would not be able to display the control that he does, however I cannot provide a definite answer to this, as it is difficult to judge how one would act, without being put in such a situation. Indeed, at first, many of his family members do wish to

rebel, and Szpilman s sister states, after the news that Jews need to wear Star of David arm bands, I won t wear it. I won t be branded. I am a highly optimistic person, who believes that no matter what is going on, there is always potential for good to happen. To this point, I believed that in most circumstances, there is always a strong point to be argued for living, and that we should always look to stay alive. Watching The Pianist rocked this view majorly. While I had heard horror stories, both within the holocaust, other wars, medical stories and the like, the lack of emotional connection to such stories meant that I could not fully appreciate the situation may people find themselves in. However, Roman Polanski presents the film in such a fashion that the viewer cannot help but be drawn in, and thus feels more involved with the themes inherent than they otherwise would have been. This emotional connection had a vast impact on my views. From the right through the film, particularly in a scene where a group of Jews are randomly chosen, instructed to lay down on the ground, and do nothing while they are executed at gunpoint. Knowing full well what their fate was going to be, I wondered why they did not fight back. To me, it seemed that they had nothing to lose, as they were going to die anyway if they did not act. But not one of them attempted to change the situation, something that I, at the time, put down to their lack of belief in the possibility of something good coming from it, a notion that I was entertaining at the time.

As the film progressed, I began to understand more why they may have felt in that way. Much of the time, they had no control of situations. This was no more evident than in a scene when German soldiers stormed a 4th story flat and, when a wheelchair bound man could not stand up, they took him to the balcony and threw him over the edge. The futility of fighting back in this situation quite apparent, and yet at the same time I kept thinking, They cant just let the soldiers kill him! . Attempting to aid their relative would have likely ended up in their own physical torment, or death, and as such was probably the right move to make. A conflict of emotions took

place in my mind, and for the first time I had a certain appreciation of the dilemma of situation that they found themselves in, and how hopeless the entire series of events must have felt.

This occurrence was only 30 minutes in, and already my thoughts and feelings had begun to change shape. The inability to take any control of a situation reminded me of a time in my past, on a camping trip when I was 9 years old. I had left our campsite in the bush on a cold night for a toilet break, and upon attempting to return I found that I did not have any idea which direction to go it. To continue moving around could result in me getting more lost, and would risk injury, yet at the same time I did not want to stay still, as the idea of spending an entire night outside was terrifying. While only a very small-scale event, the hopelessness I felt at that time was all too real, and in a small way I connected with the story being told, and experienced the emotions being produced much more powerfully.

It is not long after the murder of the wheelchair bound man Szpilman s family is affected in a major way, they are forced out of their home and sent to the Jewish ghetto. Wladyslaw, and his brother Henryk discuss this issue, saying, They won t get all of us in. It s too small, there s 400,000 of us in Warsaw No, there s 360,000 , so it ll be easy . Displacement is never an easy thing, but to have to pick up only a small amount of you possessions, and leave your home much be incredibly hard. As the film presented this scene, I was astonished at how resigned to their fate they were. You could see the sadness in their eyes, and the fear in their body language, yet they bore it and dealt with it as best they can, something that impressed me incredibly, as a true demonstration of their nature. To put 360,000 people into a place the size of the Jewish Ghetto is fraught with lots of issues, yet that is what they were forced to do, and to complain was to risk being beaten, and potentially killed. 100,000 Jews died in the Warsaw ghetto between their displacement in 1940 and the uprising in 1942[1], and as

such it seems that unknowingly over a quarter of the population were just giving themselves over to death. At this point, I was beginning to come to the thinking that there were indeed many situations where it is futile to struggle on, that the will to survive only prolongs, and that the option of death would be the better choice. This shift in my perceptions shocked me, and I found myself wondering at why such a change had happened. I said to myself, Why do you suddenly feel so different to how you used to feel, after having only seen half of a film? . I realised, however, that this was so much more than just a film, it was an embodiment of emotion, designed to drive one to deeper thinking. And that was the effect that was taking place in me, without me having any control of how I felt or how my perceptions changed. It was when the residents of the Jewish Ghetto staged their uprising, that I again reconsidered my point of view. I was getting to the point where I was thinking that being submissive was the best choice in circumstances like this, and seeing a group of men fighting against the odds again gave rise to the notion of wanting to live. They realise they are being wiped out, and don t just want to be complacent and let it happen. A friend of Szpilman s (name unknown) also working in the ghetto tells him (after stating evidence about trains taking jews to concentration camps), they are exterminating us. Won t take them long. We re sixty thousand left. Out of half a million. Mostly young people. And this time, were going to fight. The scheme they work up, smuggling guns in amongst food such as potatoes, and then throwing them over the wall to the others confined, was an impressive act. They risk being vaught on many occasions, and yet stick to their plan and keep going. As they did all of this, I felt again

The courage showed by the men in the ghetto is tremendous, but Szpilman decides that he does not want to be a part of it. Despite the extermination of Jews by the Germans taking place, he realises that fighting in this uprising is effectively guaranteeing his death, and that he would have a better chance surviving. And there it is, that desire to survive that transcends everything else. When Szpilman first asked to get out, I simply thought he did not wish to be a part of the

fighting, but soon realised the truth of the matter. Szpilman recognised that engaging in combat against the German forces would effectively seal his death. It would be a much more honourable death than that afforded to many of the other Jews killed, but it would be death nonetheless, something which Szpilman did not wish to experience. This change, from helping out the resistance to leaving them and seeking refuge, got me thinking a lot more. Despite the fact that he was helping the men who were going to stage an uprising, he knew what would happen, and wanted to stay alive more. By getting out, although not helping his mates, he was increasing his chances of survival, something which must be seen as admirable, considering the circumstances.

That is what is portrayed for the majority of the second half of the film; Szpilman s struggle to stay alive. He is moved from house to house, under the care of many different people,, with very little freedom, yet a great deal more safety. Everything comes to a head though, and again his life is in danger more than ever, and at this point I felt concern for what decisions he was going to make in regards to his life. With his flat being directly across the road from a busy German hospital, he sees first-hand the carnage, as the Jews attempt to fight the Nazi soldiers. This does not go well for the Jewish people, and their resistance concerns the German forces to the point of driving a tank through the streets, and shelling the building on either side of the road, including the one in which Szpilman is staying. Szpilman displays how committed he is to surviving, even with the odds ridiculously highly stacked against him, and I admired the way in which he kept clarity of thought. With the door to his apartment locked, he is unable to get out, until a shell from the tank blows a hole in the wall between his and next doors apartment. After going through and getting out, he moves up and down stairs, dodging fire from enemy soldiers, and eventually end up getting away and surviving. For me, this was the climax of the film in relation to my issue; it would have been easy to give up, and not go through the pain of explosions, flying shrapnel, loud noise, and injuries from jumping of high objects, yet he never waivers in his attempts to get away. This justified my position at this point that no matter how

dire things become, if you have the will to survive, then good things have the possibility of happening. Due to Szpilman s efforts, he manages to survive the war, being rescued a few months later by Russian forces. He would go on to enjoy a long life, get married and have children, and live until the age of 88. This shows the silver lining of such hardships that he had to endure; though painful, he managed to survive the war, and lived a good life from then on because of it.

This text provided me with a very good insight into human nature, and the desire to survive that we have, which often transcends all other desires. Where I in the past thought that life was good and that a will to live should be inherent in all situations, I have now come to realise that there are some situations where life is worse than death, and that dyeing is a much better alternative. However, if you have the will to keep going, good things can happen, and there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Roman Polanski presents this film in such a fashion that anyone viewing it instantly is drawn into to the ever changing plot, and does a highly effective job of presenting the storyline to us. The Pianist is a very moving text, and certainly one that has had a profound effect on me.