amy- czech film: relationships

How do we handle relationships?

After reading a little more of Martin Buber's I-Thou, there are several new ways to interpret the first Czech film watched in class. My eyes first saw the film from the perspective of the human experience. Part of me felt sorry for the older man's constant searching for some type of validation. Another part of me was annoyed with his flaws. In this way, the film really displayed the inner dichotomy of humanity in general. We all can sympathize with the trials of the human experience, but at the same time recognize the glaring flaws in ourselves and one another.

A prime example was the lostness within the protagonist's life. He desperately was searching for some sort of validation and meaning in his life. He was a man with simple desires that seemed to elude him every time he got close to his goal. All of his jobs failed him: teaching, delivery, and even the perfect satisfaction of the bottle window. As humans, we relate to the frustration that comes with our chasings after joy. Yet, we can still look at the protagonist and be disgusted with his blatantly selfish pursuits. Whether it be with his reckless sexual desires, which ties into disloyalty, or the outward lack of compassion towards the plight of his wife and daguhter, the protagonist is a mix of good intentions done in the wrong manner.

After reading a bit o' Buber, I started to be aware, in a very academic sense, how the I-It and I-Thou relationships deal with the perspective. I took this idea and thought over the movie. The trouble in the protagonist's family life was due to the fact that somehow that area of his life had turned into a bunch of "I-Its." The wife and daughter are just objects to be settled by some equation. The wife can be assuaged by giving a kiss every morning and evening, and the daughter needs to let go of any hurt and just move on. Deep down he may have loved his family, but it seems to me that he has forgotten. Until the end of the movie, he never truly relates to them.
On the other side, I find it very curious that he was finding all his I-Thou relationships outside of the people who were supposedly closest to him. The random older lady that he goes out of his way to help, the men at work, and at one point even his daughter's cheating husband! The protagonist does not truly want to love. At the heart of "I-Thou" relationships are the hard times where one reaches the end of his rope and holds on to the knot at the end with fingertips. It's not an easy task to love fully and the protagonist looks like he almost completely give up until the hot-air balloon. This is where he is able to restore that I-Thou relationship with his wife.

Like the hot air balloon sinking, the relationship with his wife was drowning until they mutually reestablish their I-Thou dynamic. This is essentially the fire being relit and lifting the balloon from the lake.