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WHAT IS ROMANCE? 

 

A quality or feeling of mystery, excitement, and remoteness from everyday life.

(Oxford English Dictionary)

1. MOVING IMAGE

Cinema and Train Travel have always been strongly connected by the similarity of watching a projected motion picture and watching a landscape roll by a train window. The power, freedom, mystery, and sensuality symbolized by the railroad have provided filmmakers with endless possibilities for plot, character, and metaphor. (Kardish, 1991) 

 

Both are: 

 

  • A means of transporting a passenger to a totally different place.

     

  • A series of events, stories and intersections of strangers. 

     

  • A representation of the past, the present, the future, and all three at once.

     

  • A symbol of change on a national scale and on a personal one, while expressing hope, rootlessness, entrapment, and escape, both physically and socially.

     

  • An exploration of death and life, both literally and metaphorically.

     

  • A journey with a starting point, a voyage, and an end corresponding to a plots beginning, middle, and end.

     

  • And the similarity of watching a projected motion picture and watching a landscape roll by a train window. 

 

WHY IS ROMANCE ASSOCIATED WITH TRAIN TRAVEL? 

The first film publicly projected was Lumieres The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station in Parisin 1895 which had such an astonishing effect on audiences that it was reported that when viewers saw the footage they reportedly rushed from their seats, convinced that the train would burst from the screen and crush them. This fearful or panicky reaction has been called 'the train effect’. It is such a common anecdote, cited by so many writers both at the time and later, that it has also been called `the founding myth of cinema’ or the cinema’s 'myth of origin. (Bottomore, 1999)

 

 

Unlike other forms of transport, trains seem to always evoke romantic images. But why?

 

There is something undeniably romantic about rail travel. Not for nothing did Brief Encounter recently top The Guardian's poll as the best romantic film of all time while songs by James Blunt (You're Beautiful) and the Divine Comedy (Commuter Love) both deal with fleeting moments of aching, unrequited longing experienced on a train journey. To christen this romance associated with the railway, a nine meter high sculpture of a couple embracing has been comissioned stand within St Pancras International station. The statue has been named the 'The Meeting Place' to celebrate the role of the station within the city. (Goodhart, 2011)

 

Considering the reasons behind the romance of rail, four elements experienced whilst on a train can be identified: 

  1. Moving Image

  2. Stranger Interaction 

  3. Proximity

  4. Escape

 

Video 19: The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station, 1895

2. STRANGER INTERACTION 

Chanel N°5 advert by Jean-Pierre Jeunet with Audrey Tautou and Travis Davenport, 2009

 

This featured commercial sells perfue by selling an experience. Set in the famous Orient Express the 'Train de Nuit' the story follows two strangers as the travel accross the world through a series of missed encounters. 

 

The tale of chance and fate explores the brief encounter between a man and a woman and fantisises how two destinies can be brought together. (Macleod, 2009)

 

This video is a perfect demonstration of the romance of the rail. When people imagine a journey through exoctic locations the envisage luxury and decadence portrayed here. 

Do we go to extreme lengths to not sit next to someone, start conversation or even make eye contact with other passengers on a train or is interaction with strangers seen as romantic? 

 

 

"We live in a world of strangers, where life in public spaces feels increasingly anonymous, however, avoiding other people actually requires quite a lot of effort, and this is especially true in confined spaces like public transport."

(Kim, 2012)

SPACES THAT ENCOURAGE STRANGER INTERACTION

Social interaction is the meaningful contact and social communication between people. Good places for interaction are places where people meet naturally and interact comfortably and often pleasurably because of the nature or attraction of the space and the activities associated with it. Trains are a key example as the confined space and journey duraction creates a meeting oppurtunity. 

 

Good places for interaction are spaces that make people from different areas and backgrounds want to be there. In order for that to be the case, these spaces need four basic characteristics:

 

  • There has to be a reason for people to go there

  • There has to be a reason for people to want to stay once they’ve arrived

  • People in the space have to feel safe and comfortable

  • The space has to be welcoming and accessible to everyone

 

Good public transportation can encourage interaction in many ways. It is used by riders of every description, and seating patterns often result in conversations among strangers, especially when there’s a delay. Both vehicles and waiting areas can offer inducements to making contact with others – short videos or movies, thought-provoking billboards, interactive games, etc.  Furthermore, many subway stations and bus depots have other attractions – places to eat, newsstands, performers – that invite people to linger, rather than rush out on arrival. (Ctb, 2014)

Paperman, Oscar winning animated short film - 2013

 

This short film depicts two stangers meeting on a platform. After an exchange of lustful glances they go their separate ways.

The fantasy escalates with lilting twists and turns that end happily ever after. (Giuliano, 2013)

 

This sense of unavailability heightens the sense of romance and the mystery involved in whether the strangers will meet again sets the plot for many train journeys. 

 

 

3. PROXIMITY

4. ESCAPE

 

 

Looking at the evolution of the railway, a common feature is involvement of trains in film and literature. The Victorians having got over the initial fear were obsessed with trains and so it was no surprise that when cinema was invented in the late 19th century, trains were the focus.

 

Nowadays, as beautiful scenery blurs past, passengers are still able to relax and unwind during their journey whilst visualising themselves in an old black and white film meeting and falling in love with a stranger.

 

When travelling by train, your journey is an integral and delightful part of your holiday experience. What you see from your seat is as much part of the holiday as arriving at the destination. (Great Rail Journeys, 2014)

Stories of couples meeting for the first time on train are filled with the romantic idea knees brushing and eyes catching. The close proximity experienced on public transport creates a scenario that enhances any suggestion of romance creating an excited tension. 

 

Nowadays most people admit that they avoid sitting next to a stranger on a train. But why? 

 

People like to maintain a certain distance from other people. How far we prefer to be from others depends on who they are and the setting we are in. The people we interact with tend to have the same preferences as us so we may not usually notice that we carefully maintain the same physical distance from each other during a given interaction. (Sammons, 2014)

 

Escape: To break free from confinement or control.

 

Escapism: The tendency to seek distraction and relief from unpleasant realities, especially by seeking entertainment or engaging in fantasy.

(Oxford English Dictionary)

 

Why do we crave escape from the modern world? 

 

Modern life is stressful. There is rarely any time to take a breath, let alone stand and stare. Sometimes, getting lost in a book, distracting yourself with a game, or letting your mind wander may be exactly what your brain needs.

It is said that travel broadens the mind and that if you follow the same routine every day, your imagination dies and inspirtation comes from nowhere. (Orchard, 2008)

 

Almost all forms of leisure activities could be termed escapism. They take our minds off the problems and stresses of reality. Historically, this could have been dancing, singing and storytelling, whereas now, escapism can take the form of holidays, sports, TV, video games, books, hobbies, and socialising. (Spark, 2008)

Cinema was born in the Golden Age of railway travel and changed human's perception of both time and space. From then onwards trains, their rails, cars, stations, and platforms, as well as the changing landscape as seen from their windows have played a substantial role in film culture. (Kirby, 1988)

Fig. 85: A Brief Encounter, 1945

 

The study of personal space is called proxemics and was pioneered by Edward Hall (1966). Hall suggested that, in Western society at least, distance during social interactions depends on the relationship between the individuals. (Sammons, 2014) 

 

It can be seen when observing passengers on a train that friends and family will stand closer together than strangers. It has also been proven that people that are attracted to each other subconciously stand closer to together suggesting an unknown presence of romance. (Sammons 2014)

Travel is a chance to escape, to leave worries behind and embark on new experiences. Trains are therefore seen a symbol of this escapism. 

 

 

 

Fig. 84

Fig. 86

Fig. 87

Fig. 88

Fig. 89

Video 20

Video 21

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