Current Forum: Session 2: Film Language in Classical Hollywood Cinema	Read 11 times 	
Date: 22-Jan-2001 21:02:17	
Author: FRANK, KYLE G. <kgf4068@garnet.acns.fsu.edu>	
Subject: Iconography and Ideology: The Meaning of Rosebud? 	
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       During the film seminar last semester, I had the opportunity to read Jason Gibson’s paper, which treats the subject of ideology in Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane. Specifically, Jason argued that the film participates in American capitalist ideology by promulgating the sentiment that the life of an aristocrat is not desirable because riches fail to purchase those things that make 
life complete (e.g. childhood and familial experiences that seem to be accessible only to the middle class). Furthermore, Citizen Kane promotes the idea that riches are destructive by retelling the events that led Charles Kane to his own isolated death after suffering a painful dissolution of prestige and friendship. 
       While I was watching the film again, I noticed how the sled, as an object and an icon, participates in this narrative, reinforcing the ideology that fosters social class stability by encouraging middle-class audiences to scoff at the rich and  to pride themselves in their own non-monetary treasures. Two scenes in particular drew my attention, revealing a cooperation between film technique and this theme of class. 
       The first of these scenes is the well-known and often described “Union forever” scene in which Mrs. Kane turns custody of Charles over to the wealthy banker, Mr. Thatcher. Many have remarked the irony of the shot in which deep focus maintains attention on both Charles, as he plays outside in the snow, and on the group inside, as they discuss the legal adoption 
details. Indeed, such observations rightly point out that the window frame encapsulates a microcosm of Charles’ youth--one that is oblivious to the “real” world of his mother, father, and Mr. Thatcher. What I find interesting, though, are the shots before and after the deep focus shot that involve the sled.
       The sequence is introduced by through the reporter’s readings of Mr. Thatcher’s diary found in the Memorial Library. The camera zooms over the back of the dark figure as if to peer over his 

shoulder in order to read the extreme close up of Thatcher’s words, “I first encountered Mr. Kane in 1871.” The paper dissolves into an empty, wintry landscape, establishing shot. The non-diegetic music employs flutes and harps, playfully stroking the notes of a ‘soft’ and pleasant melody. Although the mise-en-scene is extremely sparse and simple, nostalgia permeates the scene of a boy united with his snow sled. Thus, the boy has found true happiness without opulent material surroundings. The only material object that Charles possesses (in this shot) is his sled. Happiness, therefore, is not found in material wealth.
       After the ‘deep focus’ shot mentioned above, the narrative takes place outside Mrs. Kane’s Boarding House. Charles is at the center of a triangle of the adults who inform him that he will be leaving Colorado. As he begins understand what his mother, father, and Mr. Thatcher are telling him, he instinctively draws the sled up to his chest. The sled becomes his shield and then weapon against Mr. Thatcher and all of the materialism that he represents. However, the revolt is short-lived and the sled is left in the snow. The empty shot match dissolves into a nearly identical shot--only the accumulation of snow signifies that Charles is no longer there. Another dissolve confronts the spectator with an extreme close up of some wrapping paper. The sound of ripping accompanies the uncovering of Charles’ new sled, “The Crusader.” Although fancier and more expensive, the spectator is encouraged to read this shot as devaluing the new sled. Not only is the close up image of wrapping paper uncomfortable, but also the camera tilts to an extreme high angle, showing Charles’ POV of Mr. Thatcher. Here the spectator identifies with Charles, feeling belittled and isolated, even though the mise-en-scene employs is cluttered with 
material riches that are traditionally welcoming (e.g. the Christmas tree). The scene ends with the dialogue between Mr.Thatcher and Charles wishing each other a “Merry Christmas” and an abrupt cut to Mr. Thatcher stating, “And a happy New Year,” in a letter to the now twenty-four-year-old Charles. As a result, Charles’ youth has been taken away (metaphorically and literally), which reinforces the sentiment that riches are not the way to happiness.

       The second scene involving the icon of the sled is, obviously, the last scene, in which reporters gather together in the basement of the deceased Kane’s estate. They stand in light but low-key lighting reveals only silhouettes with the occasional protuberance of a face here and there. The discussion about jigsaw puzzles asserts the futility of their quest to interpret “Rosebud,” and the crane up with the zoom out of the camera, along with the echoing sounds of there voices, suggests just how empty their search has been. In fact, they were searching for a missing piece of a jigsaw puzzle. After the reporters leave, the camera cuts to a God’s-eye-view of Mr. Kane’s possessions crowded together followed by a dissolve, then a track shot that reveals an enormous puzzle of innumerable pieces--material acquisitions that did not bring happiness to Kane. 
       Workers throw items into a fire, including a sled. The camera zooms in and then cuts to an extreme close up of the sled with the word “Rosebud” emblazoned on it. As flames engulf the sled, the spectator now recognizes the missing piece. However, it is too late. The sled, a material possession, can be and is destroyed, going “up in smoke” (as evidenced by the match 
dissolve to an exterior shot of the Xanadu with smoke rising from the chimney). The ending sequence, therefore, reminds the spectator of the temporal nature of material possessions. Kane’s enormous acquisitions (being rich) did not grant happiness, and although he still owned the “Rosebud” sled, he could not enjoy it—other than as a lost memory—after he became rich.
       Citizen Kane reinforces class ideology through the icon of the sled. Technique and image converge to reinforce the theme that happiness is not to be found in material possessions, but in the absence of riches. As a result, Citizen Kane participates in class ideology by encouraging the targeted audience (assumed to be the white, middle-class male, according to Simmons) to eschew riches and, therefore, passively to accept its social class.