The Seventh Seal: Metaphor: DEATH IS A GAME OF CHESS

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The Seventh Seal Metaphor DEATH IS A GAME OF
CHESS
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Seminar Presentation Defence of a Thesis
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The Seventh Seala film by Ingmar Bergman (1957)
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• Criterion Edition DVD Cover

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• Plot Summary
• A knight, returning from a Crusade to Sweden,
  challenges Death to a game of chess.

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Revelation 51 81 (KJV)

• And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on
  the throne a book written within and on the
  backside, sealed with seven seals. (51)
• And when he had opened the seventh seal, there
  was silence in heaven about the space of half an
  hour. (81)

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Thesis

• I argue that Ingmar Bergmans The Seventh Seal
  is constructed with the metaphor of the game of
  chess DEATH IS A GAME OF CHESS and, the related
  metaphor, DEATH IS A PERSON because

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Thesis

• Check-mate shah mat the king is dead
  chess is a game to the death.
• The film is shot in black and white.
• The chess pieces are black and white.
• Death is personified, a type of metaphor.
• The film is constructed by the chess game the
  conclusion begins with the end game.

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CONSTRUCTION

• 1-3 (minutes) Reading from Revelation. Chess Game
  fade out
• 14 Skull mask
• 17-22 DEATH IS A CONFESSOR
• 47 Chess
• 55-56 Chess game fade out
• 113 Chess
• 117 Chess

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CONSTRUCTION

• 119-123 Chess fade out
• 127-134 Conclusion Reading of Revelation
  End-Game Dance of Death (Totentanz)

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Dance of DeathTotentanzHans Holbein

• http//www.psymon.com/initials/death.html

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• Dance of Death

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Other Films

• Love and Death. Dir. Woody Allen. United Artists,
  1975.
• Pale Rider. Dir. Clint Eastwood. Warner Bros.,
  1985.
• And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard
  the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
  And I looked, and behold a pale horse and his
  name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed
  with him. (Rev. 67-8)

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Further Reading

• Bragg. Melvyn. The Seventh Seal (Det Sjunde
  Inseglet). Rpt. 1998. British Film Institute.
  London BFI Publishing, 1993.

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Filmography

• The Seventh Seal (Det Sjunde Inseglet). Dir.
  Ingmar Bergman. Janus Films, 1958 The Criterion
  Collection, 1999.