The following is an excerpt (Part II) from "Symbolic Action, Drama, and Conflict, With a Commentary on the Film Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence." Parts I and III of the essay can be found by clicking on the "Essays" link above and selecting that title from the list.

Many film productions offer exceptional insights into conflict. But with respect to the theme at hand—the inevitability of point-of-viewness and its role in creating and resolving conflict—some candidates are more illustrative than others. The film Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983) is a fine dramatic example of extreme conflict and capably illustrates the importance of a well-developed ability for framing with respect to conflict management.

The location in time and place for most of the action in the film is Java, 1942. War is the most destructive form of human conflict, but the setting for the film—a Japanese prisoner of war camp—provides a context for a form of interaction between the combatants other than deadly violence. In prisoner of war camps during WWII this interaction would, at the very least, consist of various acts of dominance, submission and intermittent defiance. A cinematic portrayal of this cycle would not necessarily be particularly noteworthy. But in this film, the arousal of an undercurrent of mutual respect between the four central characters alters the nature of the conflict, creating exceptional drama and a key insight into the roots of conflict.

The film opens with a scene in which a Japanese sergeant, known to the prisoners as "Hara," is attempting to extract a confession from a Korean guard whom he believes has sexually attacked a Dutch prisoner. A British officer, John Lawrence, has been summoned by Hara to witness the episode. Lawrence intervenes and wants to discover exactly what happened by questioning the men. When the Korean guard attempts to commit suicide with Hara's approval and assistance, Lawrence tries to stop both men. Hara is enraged at Lawrence's tolerant attitude and his attention to explanations. For Hara, what these men have to say is irrelevant.

This incident establishes the primary theme for the film. Hara cannot understand Lawrence's interest in seeing other points-of-view. He interprets this interest as weakness. 

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Topics addressed:

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