Martin Blumenthal-Barby

Question 1

What did Martin Blumenthal-Barby say about the concept of the white ribbon?

Answer 1

— supposed to remind children of innocence and purity

— logic at play here is that the white ribbon will reprimand the children

— on the one hand, it evokes purity and innocence and on the other, implies the children’s regress, impurity, disingenuousness

Question 2

What did Martin Blumenthal-Barry say about the role of the narrator?

Answer 2

The narrators speech at the beginning alludes to the crimes of National Socialism — crimes that he said are foreshadowed by the events from this village in 1913/14.

This narrator talks for almost 2 and a half hours, but has so little to say about his own role in the story:
> what kind of witness are we dealing with here?

> why is his account so vague, relying on hearsay, disparaging itself as “obscure” and “strange” as if there’s little to none credibility to it?

> does he have something to cover up, to hide or to deny?
Is the viewer meant to be put on the stand as well with those same negotiated questions of guilt and innocence?

Question 3

What 3 categories can the children’s violence be organised into?

What did Martin Blumenthal-Barry say about his Right Hand of God?

Answer 3

At first glance, the children’s counter-violence appears to be a reflection of and a response to the parents’ education of them.

Children’s crimes can be broadly organised into 3 sets:

1. Crimes perpetuated against the parents
   > children punish their parents’ wickedness in the name of divine authority
2. Crimes directed at children [Karli, Sigi]
   > the punished children suffer their punishments merely in lieu of their parents

> maybe because they’re more readily available, more vulnerable

> beating of Sigi is the same form of punishment Klara and Martin suffered

3. Incidents that aren’t necessarily described as crimes but are listed by the narrator and characterised as similarly mysterious to the other crimes [worker’s death in the sawmill]

They don’t invent any rules but only radicalise the rules under which they were brought up.

They see themselves at the right hand of God and therefore believe themselves to have the right to judge and punish those who lead a life they deem improper.

Note tied around Karli’s neck is atttached with a piece of white string, making us think of the white ribbon

Question 4

What did Martin Blumenthal-Barby say about the Pastor’s punishment?

Answer 4

Pastor’s measures for his children rely heavily on the psychological degradation associated with the white ribbon

> motivated by the objective to turn his children into responsible members of society

> all aspects of the punishment are concealed from the viewers’ eyes
- they take place off-screen, remain invisible, capturing the viewers’ imagination and importantly, their ethical powers of imagination

• it’s relayed acoustically, in a separate and pronounced sequence
• boy’s groans of pain, his cries are audible through a closed door that both signifies his entrapment and also emphasis the viewers’ role as spectators
• the camera’s persistent focus on the closed door uses long takes, which André Bazin said stimulates an “active mental attitude on the part of the spectator”