


In the beginning of the film, Claudia functions purely symbolically, embodying the purity and authenticity that Guido associates with the ideal woman. I want to clean.” Claudia, in Guido's dream One might even say that it is precisely because of these gratuitous cultural critiques that Guido's film is destined for failure. All the same, it is important that critiques like this one pervade the film, since they plague Guido to the point of existential and creative crisis. This shades 8 1/2 in a thick layer of irony, since Fellini depends on cinema as a valid medium Daumier's very existence as a character in a Fellini film demands that cinema thrives. Daumier often functions as cinema's harshest critic, embodying classically stuffy critiques of film as a fundamentally lower art form than the novel, sculpture, etc. "Forgive me, but this might be the most pathetic demonstration ever that cinema is irremediably behind all other arts by 50 years." DaumierĪ motif on which 8 1/2 absolutely depends is the constant critique of cinema's role as an artistic medium. Just as the bees suck the life from the flowers in Gloria's eyes, so too does Guido suck the life from the women he believes he's pleasing. This quote, to the extent that it embodies Gloria's independence from men, ties into themes of Guido's at times chauvinistic relationship to women. She openly critiques Guido's past films and dances to the beat of her own drum, bucking social norms that would have her date a man her own age. Gloria is also the most educated woman we see in the film, as she is writing a doctoral thesis on the solitude of man in modern theater. During Guido's fantasy of his harem, Gloria notably spearheads the rebellion of women against Guido and even seems entertained by his decision to whip those who rebelled. In this quotation, Gloria reverses the notion that bees pollinate and give life to flowers, which strikes a chord with the feminist leanings she displays in the film. Gloria is a constant source of oblique, poetic statements about life and death, making this line (her first in the film) characteristic of her playful yet morbid taste. The cruel bee has sucked the life from these poor flowers.” Gloria Morin
