ENG 2140 Study Guide - Final Guide: Meddle, Jab, Outerspace
Document Summary
Section a: maria"s transformation scene within fritz lang"s metropolis is a very powerful one, which emphasizes the continuing alienation of mankind through machine. When the scene opens we see maria lying on a table with her electrodes strapped to her head and body, and encased within a glass coffin. Seemingly uncoincidentally, because of our point of view the orb which will draw energy from maria to the cyborg hangs in front of the very centre of the pentagram. This piece of german expressionism, the battle between light and dark, good and evil (as the pentagram is associated with the devil) further places maria and the cyborg as opposing forces. However it is not simply maria and the cyborg at opposition but all of nature against. Maria is a symbol of the purity of nature, while the cyborg maria is a symbol of the citys decadence, and our alienation from nature as the cyborg is a person devoid of anything natural.
