ornamental line

Good, Honest Folk

"a beautiful little town . . . where people have hopes and
dreams even under the hardest conditions."
Lars von Trier's Dogville (2003)


Points for Reflection

Lars Von Trier's Dogville (2003), chps. 1-5

  1. what does the film’s setting, in the Rocky Mountains, near an old and abandoned silver mine, immediately suggest about the community after which the film is named?
  2. does the absence of walls, doors, and ceilings seem apropos for this story? Does Lars von Trier’s decision to shoot this tale on a stage alter its believability?  Does it adversely affect the degree of realism he achieves?
  3. return to the arrangement of homes and shops provided by the God’s-eye view with which the film opens. In light of later events, does the arrangement appear important?
  4. the commentator opens the film by claiming that the residents of Dogville are “good, honest folks,”  yet the film seems determined to prove the narrator wrong.  Consider the male narrator’s other observations.  Generally speaking, is the narrator’s perspective on matters reliable?
  5. why might von Trier have graced his central, male protagonist with the name “Tom Edison”?
  6. are Tom’s efforts to change Dogville, prior to Grace’s arrival, efficacious?
  7. what motivates Tom to reach out to Grace?
  8. what do Tom’s opening interactions with the townsfolk in “The Prelude,” and the verbal portraits he paints of them in “Chapter One,” together reveal about the inhabitants of Dogville?  Do they appear to be in need of the “moral re-armament” he recommends?
  9. is Tom’s manner of approaching his fellow citizens more like that of a school teacher, a preacher, or a peripatetic philosopher?
  10. Tom claims that his fellows are good and honest when he first meets Grace (18:16), though his descriptions of the townspeople when walking Grace around later prove rather sardonic (26:30).  What provokes such uneven feelings about his hometown?
  11. Grace looks at Dogville and sees “a beautiful little town . . . where people have hopes and dreams even under the hardest conditions” (26:35), whereas Chuck says it’s “rotten from the inside out,” that he “wouldn’t miss it if it fell into the gorge tomorrow” (43:50).  Whose perspective seems to be more accurate?
  12. does Grace grow to love the residents of Dogville? Do they love her?  Upon what definition of love are you relying in answering these questions?
  13. on July 4, why might Tom not kiss Grace right after she confesses that she loves him, and moves in closer towards him?
  14. why do the townspeople become increasingly less patient with and irritable around Grace the more she does for them?
  15. does Tom's response to Grace's sexuality differ from that of the other men?

Two white buildings of different heights with red roofs stand along a brownish-pink road. A dark blue sky
No. 162 (1966)
Poul Anker Bech



Dr. Paul Marchbanks
pmarchba@calpoly.edu