From Before Human to Beyond Human:

A Film Analysis of 2001: A Space Odyssey

Mandy Mok 408110039 Section D

Introduction

01

Literature Review

02

Methodology

03

Textual Analysis

04

OUTLINE

Introduction

01

Motivation & Thesis Statement

Introduction

• Directed by Stanley Kubrick; release in 1968

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• A revolutionary science fiction film
• used to be “juvenile, simplistic, and creatively stagnant;”
• 2001 revolutionized the genre with “innovative, sophisticated filmmaking” (Bradley 108)

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• An epic journey exploring the evolution of humanity and its encounter with the infinite and unknown cosmos
• 3 segments: “Dawn of Man,” “The Jupiter Mission,” & “Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite”

Motivation

• Appreciating Kubrick’s aesthetics, artistry, & cinematography
• Examining its philosophical significance
• Signified by its opening sequence accompanied by Strauss’s “Also Sprach Zarathustra”
• Symbolic connection to Nietzsche’s philosophical novel Thus Spoke Zarathustra

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Aims to offer:

• A perspective on the Convergence of Philosophy & Cinema
• A discussion of films as platforms for philosophical discourse & contemplation

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“Man is something that shall be overcome. Man is a rope, tied between beast and overman — a rope over an abyss. What is great in man is that he is a bridge and not an end.”

Thus Spoke Zarathustra

1. Three transformations of the spirit (Braak 6)
2. The importance of self-overcoming (Braak 1)
3. Present the greatly misunderstood Nietzschean ideas (Freeman 1), including:
1. Overman/ Übermensch (“superman”)
• A further evolution/ transformation of humankind (when humanity is facing an unprecedented crisis)
2. The “will to power”
• A characteristic of everything that lives: an instinct for growth and durability
• Drives evolution of humankind

4. “remain faithful to the earth” (philosophical)

• Opposed to Socrates (physical): “liberated from the prison of the body and of earthly existence”

Thesis Statement

By the film’s narrative structure, visual storytelling, cinematography, mise-en-scène, and the use of music and sounds, 2001: A Space Odyssey

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1. captures Nietzsche’s three metaphorical stages of spiritual transformation in Thus Spoke Zarathustra,
2. depicts the role of the will to power in consciousness development, and
3. portrays a sense of detachment from the natural world and disconnect between humans resulting from technology.

Literature Review

02

6 articles

• Abrams, Jerold J. “Nietzsche’s Overman as Posthuman Star Child in 2001: A Space Odyssey.”
• Nietzsche’s theory of evolution and Thus Spoke Zarathustra influence the film’s narrative structure (248)
• Mapping the pre- to posthuman stages, reflecting Nietzsche's concept of the overman (247)

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• Braak, André van der. “Zen and Zarathustra: Self-Overcoming without a Self.”
• Three stages of spiritual transformation described in Thus Spoke Zarathustra

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• Zepke, Stephen. “Against Nihilism: Nietzsche and Kubrick on the Future of Man.”
• Portrayal of human evolution from apes to the Star Child (39)
• The monolith represents the will to power and causes reflection, which is a catalyst for consciousness and transcendence (38, 40)

• Silva, Arturo. “2001: Kubrick’s Odyssey of Film History.”
• The Star Gate sequence as an abstract journey of light, symbolizing transformation and growth in Bowman’s vision and perception (674)

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• Stoehr, Kevin L. “2001: A Philosophical Odyssey.”
• Detachment and disconnection are central themes, both in form (cinematic technique) and content (narrative) (122, 124)
• Emphasising the nihilistic dangers of disregarding the human body (130)

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• Orris, Scott. “Empty Space: The Depersonalization of the Future in 2001: A Space Odyssey.”
• The detachment and emptiness in technological achievements in the space age (109)
• Cinematography to depict the future dystopia of dehumanization (111)

Research Methodology

03

• Divided into 3 parts
• Integration of
• relevant sources and supporting evidence from scholarly articles
• analysis of the narrative structure, visual storytelling, cinematography, mise-en-scène, and music/sound
• Establishing an examination of philosophical themes in 2001: A Space Odyssey

Textual Analysis

04

With Conclusion

Part I:

Nietzsche’s three transformations of the spirit

Three Transformations of the Spirit (cont’d)

• The 3-parts narrative structure:
• Reflects the camel→lion→child transformation; other→self→cosmic oriented perspective (Braak 6)
• 1st Transformation - The camel stage:
• “The Jupiter Mission”: Dr. Floyd’s subordinates
• Weight-bearing spirit: reverence & compliance
• 2nd Transformation - The lion stage:
• Discovery One’s journey to Jupiter:

Bowman overthrows HAL (Zepke 57)

• “Identify delusion in sacred”: Rebellion & independence
• 3rd Transformation - The child stage
• “Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite”
• Overcoming subjectivity/ ego
• Transcends “the restrictions of space and time” (Stoehr 121)

Three Transformations of the Spirit (cont’d)

• The Star Gate sequence: The transition stage from the Lion → the Child
• “the destruction of subjective integrity necessary for the emergence of the new” (Zepke 57)
• Visually abstract & narratively unexplained
• a psychedelic light corridor
• ‘slit scan’ technique”: time displacement effect (Silva 674)
• “the effects of psychedelic drugs” (Zepke 55): a philosophical (not only physical) journey beyond human comprehension

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• Ultimately, Bowman’s point-of-view is fractured: disintegrates subjectivity

Three Transformations of the Spirit (cont’d)

• Camera → objective visionary experience without identification with subjectivity
• Radical shift in perception of reality as to → confront new and unfamiliar ideas
• “cosmic narrative of birth, growth and development” (Silva 656, 676)
• represents “self-renewal and transformation”

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• Deconstruction of ego/ human-centered → cosmic-oriented perspective

Three Transformations of the Spirit

• “Star Child” - Vision of the final stage, the overman
• “new and higher form” of “posthumanity… and not confined to earth” (Abrams 260)
• “A place existing beyond human experience” & “beyond infinity” (Zepke 56, 58)
• Bowman’s gaze dissolves time
• transcended the human perceptual conventions of time & space
• “to prepare to go forward into the next stage of the overman” (Abrams 254)
• Kubrick completes the “one final stage left” of Nietzsche’s “movement of life… that it is not yet finished” (Abrams 247)

Part II:

Nietzsche’s Non-Darwinian evolution

& Will to Power

Non-Darwinian evolution & Will to Power (cont’d)

• Nietzsche’s theory of evolution centres the “will to power” (Conway 537)
• Opposed to Darwinism (evolution by natural selection)
• “through an internal force instead of external, environmental forces in the face of which the individual is passive” (Wilson 360-361)
• Nietzsche: “the tremendous shaping, form-creating force…
• utilizes and exploits external circumstances” (qtd. in Wilson 361)

Non-Darwinian evolution & Will to Power (cont’d)

• “The dawn of Man”: Internal will to power driving evolution
• The monolith has caused reflection (Zepke 38)
• “An internal outside → the condition of overcoming”

• The apes “investigate, to touch and taste and smell → evaluation”
• “creative disjunction” forces the apes “open a space between the sensations of their perceptions and their bodies’ action” (40)

Non-Darwinian evolution & Will to Power

• Outgrowing his previous existence
• “the apes… now impregnated with a new future” (Zepke 39)
• Future consciousness
• Mind transcends the animal body’s limitations → the new inside of human consciousness

Part III:

Detachment from the natural world Resulting from Technology

Detachment from the natural world Resulting from Technology (cont’d)

• The body’s significance in Nietzsche’s philosophy:
• “celebrating the will to power,” which is “centralized in the abilities of our bodies” (Zepke 42; Richardson 216)
• In the space age,
• Use machine to “push humans past the confines of their own physical bodies” (Stoehr 121)
• “Technological means to replace the natural world with a realm of indirect impressions” (Stoehr 119; Zepke 44)
• Resulting in “an interruption in man’s instinctual will to power”
• Kubrick evokes the dangers inherent in the “detachment and a cold emptiness in the technological achievements of humanity” (Stoehr 122; Orris 109)

Detachment from the natural world Resulting from Technology (cont’d)

• Camera angle, camera motion, & mise-en-scène:
• Challenges audiences’ perception of spatial orientation
• Limits “fixity and continuity” (Stoehr 124-25)

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• Constantly questions audiences’ perspective
• “feeling of disorientation amidst the splendor of technological progress” (Orris 111)

Detachment from the natural world Resulting from Technology (cont’d)

• Music & sounds: Detachment from the physical world
• Johann Strauss’s “Blue Danube Waltz”
• Abstract/ disembodied perspective (Stoehr 126)
• Elegance vs. cold environment → dislocated from the visual image
• Slow tempo → weightlessness/ experience of zero gravity
• Minimal dialogue → characters lack emotional connection
• < 40 minutes of dialogue (qtd. in Orris 111)
• Without disclosing about themselves
• Bowman & Poole
• Dr. Floyd keeps conversations simple courtesy

Disconnection Between Humans Resulting from Technology

• Visual storytelling of communication breakdown & technological interference:
• Intimate communication becomes impersonal

• Mise-en-scène → “familial division” (Silva 672)

• Video-chat devices → “a father and his daughter is more detached” (Orrbis 112)

Conclusion

This research paper examines and analyzes 2001: A Space Odyssey focusing on its narrative structure, visual storytelling, cinematography, mise-en-scène, and the use of music and sounds.

• identified how the film captures Nietzsche’s three metaphorical stages of spiritual transformation in Thus Spoke Zarathustra,
• Portrayal the Non-Darwinism evolution of consciousness through the role of the will to power,
• Presentation of a sense of detachment from the natural world and the disconnections between humans resulting from the technological advancement.

2001: A Space Odyssey offers an unique and unconventional cinematic experience of minimal dialogue and mastery of cinematic languages, inviting audiences to dive deeper to reflect on the human condition, spirituality, and the impact of technology on human lives.

Works Cited

Abrams, Jerold J. “Nietzsche’s Overman as Posthuman Star Child in 2001: A Space Odyssey.” The Philosophy of Stanley Kubrick, edited by Jerold J. Abrams, University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, 2009, pp. 247–65.

Braak, André van der. “Zen and Zarathustra: Self-Overcoming without a Self.” Journal of Nietzsche Studies, vol. 46, no. 1, Spring 2015, pp. 2-11.

Conway, Daniel W. “Life and Self-Overcoming.” A Companion to Nietzsche, 2006, pp. 532-47.

Kubrick, Stanley, director. 2001: A Space Odyssey. 1968.

Nietzsche, Friedrich. Thus Spoke Zarathustra. PHIL 394: Online Readings, edited by Freeman, Timothy J., University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, 2012, pp. 1-13., https://www2.hawaii.edu/~freeman/courses/phil394/Thus%20Spoke%20Zarathustra.pdf. Accessed 1 June 2023.

Orris, Scott. “Empty Space: The Depersonalization of the Future in 2001: A Space Odyssey.” Contemporary Science Fiction II Dossier, Film Matters, vol. 9, no. 1, 2018, pp. 109-16., Intellect, doi: 10.1386/fm.9.1.109_1.

Richardson, John. “Nietzsche on Time and Becoming.” A Companion to Nietzsche, 2006, pp. 208–29. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470751374.ch12.

“Will to Power.” Encyclopædia Britannica, www.britannica.com/topic/Thus-Spake-Zarathustra. Accessed 1 June 2023.

Schauer, Bradley. Escape Velocity American Science Fiction Film, 1950-1982. Wesleyan University Press, 2017.

Silva, Arturo. “2001: Kubrick’s Odyssey of Film History.” Quarterly Review of Film and Video, vol. 39, no. 3, 2022, pp. 656-89, doi:10.1080/10509208.2021.1971040.

Stoehr, Kevin L.“2001 : A Philosophical Odyssey.” The Philosophy of Science Fiction Film, edited by Steven M. Sanders. University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, 2008. pp. 119-34.

Wilson, Catherine. “Darwin and Nietzsche: Selection, Evolution, and Morality.” The Journal of Nietzsche Studies, vol. 44, no. 2, 2013, pp. 353-75.

Zepke, Stephen. “Against Nihilism: Nietzsche and Kubrick on the Future of Man.” Journal of French and Francophone Philosophy, vol. 17, no. 2, 2007, pp. 37–69., https://doi.org/10.5195/jffp.2007.197.

THANKS!