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LAST OF THE MOHICANS

Cooper's Corner

Annual Conference - James Fenimore Cooper Society

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[quote][i]Originally posted by richfed[/i]
[br][b][u]DATES:[/u][/b] Sunday, July 13 - Thursday, July 17, 2003

[b][u]PLACE:[/u][/b] State University of New York, Oneonta, NY

[b][u]GENERAL INFO:[/u][/b] http://www.oneonta.edu/academics/english/cooper.htm

[center]Michael Williams, he of the [url="http://www.mohicanpress.com/dissertation.html"]LOTM Dissertation[/url], [of which a chapter is largely devoted to this web site and its spawned community - still in the trying-to-find-a-publisher-stage] will be speaking on Tuesday, July 15 @ 2:15 PM.[/center]

[u][b]His program:[/b][/u] [font=Comic Sans MS]

[b]"Cora and Alice in Hollywood: Cooper's Women on the Big Screen"[/b]

A presentation that traces, across multiple film
adaptations of The Last of the Mohicans, the various manifestations of
Cooper's famous binary pair of women, the Munro sisters Cora and Alice. Some
of the most interesting criticism of the last two decades on The Last of the
Mohicans has been in feminist approaches to the novel.  Little of this
insight has extended to scholarship on the multiple film adaptations,
however.  Adaptations of this novel each intersect with issues of American
national identity differently, in ways that are related to the social and
political climate in the period of each film's production.  The evolving
screen representation of Cooper's women demonstrates that American national
identity is a gendered construct-and that conceptions of the American female
have likewise evolved, over the 85 year history of Mohicans adaptations.

This presentation will draw, quite selectively, on my recently completed
Ph.D. dissertation, and will focus on the three major films in the Mohicans
adaptation chain: 1920 (dirs. Maurice Tourneur and Clarence Brown), 1936
(dir. George B. Seitz), and 1992 (dir. Michael Mann).  I will be using clips
from each film to make my points comparatively.  I will demonstrate that
there are conceptions of distinctly female American national identity, that
such conceptions are as shifting and subject to negotiation as national
identity in general, and that this is particularly visible in adaptations of
The Last of the Mohicans.  Two main lines of analysis support this argument.

First, the binarism that defines the character of the two sisters is not the
mythic one of Fair/Dark, as critics such as John McWilliams have suggested,
but rather, Old/New World, that is, American/European.  This structure is
perhaps most noticeable via an examination of the contrast between Cora's
increasing confidence and activism and Alice's opposite evolution from the
flighty blonde of early versions to Jodhi May's suicidal passivity in 1992.
Film clips will tell the tale, particularly in a comparison of the climactic
cliff-top confrontation scene.

Second, these films address very particular dimensions of the "American
woman."  Every version of Mohicans activates, in its own way, issues of
violence and militarism as defining elements of American history and
character.  Representations of Cooper's women-here, particularly, Cora
Munro-vary distinctively in just this area: as characters who are not just
defined by their wartime experiences, but who are increasingly able to
participate actively, who are as confident and capable of violence as their
male counterparts. 
[/font=Comic Sans MS]

[b][u]The Full Program:[/u][/b]

[b]SUNDAY, JULY 13, 2003[/b]

4:30 pm	Registration
		in Room 104,
		Morris Conference Center

5:30 pm	Reception/Cocktail
		Otsego Grille: downstairs, Morris Conference Center

6:00 pm	Welcoming Dinner
		Otsego Grille Room

7:00 pm	Welcome & Introductions
		by President Alan B. Donovan
		Otsego Grille

[b]MONDAY, JULY 14[/b]

All lectures will be presented in the Catalog Room, room 118, 
		On the first floor of the Milne Library

8:30 am	Continental Breakfast
		available outside The Catalog Room, Milne Library 118

9:30 am	Daniel Larkin. SUNY College at Oneonta. “James Fenimore
[/quote]

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T O P I C R E V I E W
richfed	Posted - June 24 2003 : 6:59:02 PM DATES: Sunday, July 13 - Thursday, July 17, 2003 PLACE: State University of New York, Oneonta, NY GENERAL INFO: http://www.oneonta.edu/academics/english/cooper.htm Michael Williams, he of the LOTM Dissertation, [of which a chapter is largely devoted to this web site and its spawned community - still in the trying-to-find-a-publisher-stage] will be speaking on Tuesday, July 15 @ 2:15 PM. His program: "Cora and Alice in Hollywood: Cooper's Women on the Big Screen" A presentation that traces, across multiple film adaptations of The Last of the Mohicans, the various manifestations of Cooper's famous binary pair of women, the Munro sisters Cora and Alice. Some of the most interesting criticism of the last two decades on The Last of the Mohicans has been in feminist approaches to the novel. Little of this insight has extended to scholarship on the multiple film adaptations, however. Adaptations of this novel each intersect with issues of American national identity differently, in ways that are related to the social and political climate in the period of each film's production. The evolving screen representation of Cooper's women demonstrates that American national identity is a gendered construct-and that conceptions of the American female have likewise evolved, over the 85 year history of Mohicans adaptations. This presentation will draw, quite selectively, on my recently completed Ph.D. dissertation, and will focus on the three major films in the Mohicans adaptation chain: 1920 (dirs. Maurice Tourneur and Clarence Brown), 1936 (dir. George B. Seitz), and 1992 (dir. Michael Mann). I will be using clips from each film to make my points comparatively. I will demonstrate that there are conceptions of distinctly female American national identity, that such conceptions are as shifting and subject to negotiation as national identity in general, and that this is particularly visible in adaptations of The Last of the Mohicans. Two main lines of analysis support this argument. First, the binarism that defines the character of the two sisters is not the mythic one of Fair/Dark, as critics such as John McWilliams have suggested, but rather, Old/New World, that is, American/European. This structure is perhaps most noticeable via an examination of the contrast between Cora's increasing confidence and activism and Alice's opposite evolution from the flighty blonde of early versions to Jodhi May's suicidal passivity in 1992. Film clips will tell the tale, particularly in a comparison of the climactic cliff-top confrontation scene. Second, these films address very particular dimensions of the "American woman." Every version of Mohicans activates, in its own way, issues of violence and militarism as defining elements of American history and character. Representations of Cooper's women-here, particularly, Cora Munro-vary distinctively in just this area: as characters who are not just defined by their wartime experiences, but who are increasingly able to participate actively, who are as confident and capable of violence as their male counterparts. The Full Program: SUNDAY, JULY 13, 2003 4:30 pm Registration in Room 104, Morris Conference Center 5:30 pm Reception/Cocktail Otsego Grille: downstairs, Morris Conference Center 6:00 pm Welcoming Dinner Otsego Grille Room 7:00 pm Welcome & Introductions by President Alan B. Donovan Otsego Grille MONDAY, JULY 14 All lectures will be presented in the Catalog Room, room 118, On the first floor of the Milne Library 8:30 am Continental Breakfast available outside The Catalog Room, Milne Library 118 9:30 am Daniel Larkin. SUNY College at Oneonta. “James Fenimore
2 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First)
Lainey	Posted - June 27 2003 : 5:46:45 PM quote: I hope it doesn't seem as academic and boring to others as it seems to me, viewed on your website. I still write like an academic most of the time -- a curse, I guess. Not at all, Michael! If it were at all possible - I'd be thrilled to attend! Your program synopsis alone is enticing enough to entertain a northern travel. (Almost revives my former Cooperphilia habits; I'm reformed - but only of necessity!) I hope it goes over very well. Anyone living north of south really ought to try to make this event! (PS: I don't get these info e-bits any longer since my MP address was seized in an unpleasant coup. Please pass along your thoughts after the conference.)
mikewilltoo	Posted - June 27 2003 : 3:10:35 PM Rich, thanks for the very complete post. I hope it doesn't seem as academic and boring to others as it seems to me, viewed on your website. I still write like an academic most of the time -- a curse, I guess. With this presentation, I'm going to try and talk for less time than I show film clips. That should help. The films are more interesting than I am, I think. And more fun. It was fun putting the clips together for this -- jumping from one version to another to make comparative points. I am still struck, almost physically, when clips from the 1992 version come on screen. I still think it's a great film, after a large number of viewings. Greetings to you and all your compatriots. I hope your community survives "the summer of no Gathering" in good spirits.

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