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FILM^TEXT

JULIECLARKE

Fhere is a long tradition ofrepresenting the humanspecies in monstrous statesof being. These imaginaryconfigurations continue toproliferate in actual scientificendeavour and in popularcuiture, especially sciencefiction/techno-horror films.Monsters are boundarycreatures that inhabit thenterstice between the deadand undead, human and nothuman; they encapsulateontological distinctions withinone body. As such, they posea threat to human integrity.Margrit Shildrick explains:

Human monsters, then, bothfulfil the necessary function ofthe binary opposite thatconfirms the normalcy andcentrality of the acculturedself, and at the same timethreaten to disrupt that binaryby being ail too human. ̂

Edward Scissorhands(Johnny Depp), the protago-nist in Tim Burton's 1990 filmof the same name, is onesuch manifestation. As 'made'rather than 'born', Edward ap-pears super-human. However,his machine-like body betrayshim as 'all too human'; his

ontology, like ours, is acutelyentwined with technology andprosthetics. His steel scis-sorhands mark him assimultaneously human andnot human, normal andpathological, exposing the'fragility of the very taken-forgrantedness of such catego-ries'.^ Since Edward'sprosthetic hands are adominant external feature ofhis body and signify adistinction between hisotherwise human appearanceand a machine, he reflectscharacters from sciencefiction/horror films who also

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have prosthetic hands, suchas Darth Vader in Star Wars(George Lucas. 1977), theevii razor-fingered FreddyKrueger from A Nightmare otiElm Street (Wes Craven,1984) and Wolverine inX-Men (Bryan Singer, 2000).Although such characters areperceived as monstrousbecause they are part

couture and aliude to thefigure of the vampire. Likemost vampires, Edward iivesin a seciuded mansion, ispowerful in some respectand is potentially immortal.However, although Edwardaccidentally draws bloodfrom himself and othersbecause he cannot fuliycontrol his razor-sharp

It is through this dual imageof Edward as a liminalvampire/cyborg figure thatBurton constructs disabilityas fantasy. By placing him ina Gothic mansion repletewith winding staircase anddecorative interiors. Burtonreminds us that historicallythose with anomalous bodilyforms were isolated from the

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machine, the presence ofprosthesis underscores aninherent human vulnerability,one we associate in real lifewith disability.

Although Edward is amachine, his androgynousfeatures, ashen complexionand black leather clothingreflect subcultural goth

hands, he differs fromvampires in that he does notneed to feed off blood tosurvive. Edward is depictedas child-like, distant andasexual. In this respect he isalso vampirjc, for althoughvampires have been depict-ed as sexually attractive,their allure is covert.

rest of the community ininstitutions (often disusedmansions) or else paradedas public curiosities. Thesecontrary views of public andprivate space are presentedin the narrative.

Initially Edward is depictedas alone. He is later dis-played as a spectacle in the

neighbourhood and ontelevision, buf returns at theend of the film to his isolatedexistence in the mansion. Asfantasy space, the elaborate,ornate manor appears toprovide a marked contrast tothe homogenous contempo-rary architecture of thesuburban town and thereality of everyday life.Indeed, at the beginning ofthe film, when Kim (WinonaRyder) tells her granddaugh-ter the story of Edward, theview outside the bedroomwindow is of a Gothicmansion graced by a veil ofsoftly falling snow. Framedas fantasy space, this vistaevokes landscapes that mayhave been used in a Victori-an snow globe - a smalltransparent glass sphere thatcontained an enclosed,enchanted view of the worldmade more so by thepresence of gently fallingsnow in a liquid emulsion.This scene connects to oneat the end of the film whenKim dances underneathcascading snowflakes thatfall from an ice sculpture thatEdward has made of her. The

film also makes reference tothe fantasy space of child-hood, evoked by the miniatureworld of the snow globe,through an aerial view of thesuburb which makes (t looklike a tiny toy town, completewith pastel-coloured housesand cars. This suggests thateven the space of reality isimbued with a sense offantasy, which is reinforcedby the ready acceptance ofEdward despite his beingmarkedly different from hisneighbours.

When the neighbourhoodAvon lady. Peg (DIanneWiest). rescues Edward fromhis life of isolation and bringshim into her home, sheconsults 'the big Avonhandbook' for an appropriatecosmetic foundation to coverthe thick, deep scars onEdward's face. The scarsindicate that he has cuthimself many times whileperfecting the use of hisscissorhands. This self-cutting(accidental or otherwise) maybe the way that Burtondepicts a self-effacing act,one that rejects the disabled

body. A scene towards theend of the film that showsEdward slashing the walls infrustration attests to the factthat he understands that hishands are not only tools, butcan be used as a weaponagainst himself and others.

Burton highlights Edward'sprosthetic hands as tools byrevealing the direct relation-ship between the hands astool and the tool (scissors) ashands. By doing so hereveals that humans havealways been tool users and,as such, we might perceiveourselves to be prostheticallyenhanced. Since Edward isunable to feel human fieshthrough his steel hands, it isthe work that he does withthese tools that is alternatelyvalued and demonized inthe narrative. Edward'sneighbours overcome theirxenophobia and value himwhen he becomes a produc-tive worker within theircommunity. He is applaudedfor his propensity to cut hair,fur, ice and shrubbery intocreative styles and shapes. Itis in this respect that Burton

underscores that disabledpeople are commendedwhen, in spite of theirdisability, they show exem-plary skill in some area.However, the reality is that,unlike Edward, manydisabled individuals stillfind it extremely difficultto find meaningful workand often face employmentdiscrimination.

Burton attempts to humanizethe monster (or, in this case,normalize the disability) bycontrasting Edward's pruningwith the routine tasks of hisneighbours, who also prunetheir trees and mow theirlawns each weekend. Sincethese activities requirerepetitive movements,Edward's own mechanisticbehavior may be perceivedas typically human.̂ Wemight also view Edward'swork in the garden asnostalgia for a time whenthere was a direct physicalrelationship between thehuman body and work, onethat has been lost withpost-industrialization andinformatics.

The garden in EdwardScissorhands. which allowsus to see Edward's expertiseand obvious creativity informing animals and othershapes within the shrubbery.Is also there to make adistinct point about thedivision between the naturalworld and the unnaturalnessof Edward's body.

Paradoxically the garden andnature itself are revealed assimilar to Edward, for theyare highly constructed andformed through technologi-cal intervention. Edward, asmachine construct andshaper of things around him,becomes a metaphor for theimpact of technologies onthe organic world, particular-ly those deployed in itsredesign or modification.When Edward looks towardsa gigantic human hand thathe has fashioned from shrub-bery, we are alerted to thevisual and material differenc-es between his hands and ahuman hand. Undulatingfluidity is contrasted withcold, hard rigidity. This scenealso shows that the concept

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of the human emergesthrough nature but isdetermined by culture.

The relationship between thehand and technology isfurther exemplified in thescene in which Edwardwatches Peg using a canopener. We are privy to amoment when Edward'sinventor (Vincent Price)stands beside a machinecomplete with roboticassemblage that breakseggs, beats and rolls doughand, finally, with cookie-cutterstamps, presses variousshapes into the biscuitmixture. When the inventorholds a heart-shaped ccokieup to a life-sized humanoidrobot, signifying his desire tocreate a more humanconstruct (which eventuatesin his realization of Edward),we recall at once the Tin Manin The Wizard of Oz (VictorFleming, 1939).

The cookie-cutter devicedemonstrates the ability of amachine to reproducemultiple copies of a singleunit over and over again - a

reference to the clone-like,homogenous individuals wholive in identical suburbanhouses where most of thefilm's narrative Is set.Moreover, Edward, like thecookie-cutter apparatus,appears destined by hismechanical hands to beinvolved in a repetitive cuttingaction that enables him tocreate shapes in the sur-rounding shrubbery. However,unlike the uniformity of thebiscuits and the suburbancharacters in the film, Edwardstands out as unusual,exemplary and unique.

According to FriedrichNietzsche in Human, Alt TooHuman:

Wherever progress is toensue, debating natures areof greatest importance. Everyprogress of the whole mustbe preceded by a partialweakening. The strongestnatures retain the type,the weaker ones helpto advance it.*

Edward's scissorhandssignify the dehumanizing

wound of technology, since aprosthesis represents theloss of a bodily part; however,his body also characterizesour own forays into human/machine hybridization in anattempt to advance humanityand make it stronger.Overcoming is about allthings turning back onthemselves in order to goforward. In Nietzsche'swords, 'Pain is also joy, acurse is also a blessing, thenight is aisc a sun.'^

While some readingssuggest that Edv\/ardScissorhands parallels MaryShelley's Frankenstein or.The Modern Prometheus(1818), Edward's inventorneither rejects him nor instilsin him a sense of worthless-ness that leads to crime.However, Burton does adoptsome of the sensibilities ofFrankenstein (James Whale,1931) in which the deviantbody of the monster iscorrelated with a deviantpsychology. In The CriminalMan (1876) Cesare Lombro-so maintained that 'deviationin head size, excessive

dimensions of the jaw andcheek bone, excessivelength of arms [and] imbal-ance of the hemispheres ofthe brain' were indicationsof a predisposition tocriminality.^ Burton followsthis nineteenth-centurynotion of what is consideredmonstrous and criminal bypresenting Edward with anunusual persona andexcessively long and largehands, which becomedirectly linked with a feloni-ous act. Edward is labelled athief after he picks a padlockand steals high-tech stereoequipment from Jim's(Anthony Michael Hall)father's shop. His intellectualacumen is also questionedafter he is arrested, whenJim tells Kim, 'My old manthinks he's retarded, other-wise he'd still be in jail.'

Negative statements arebalanced in the film bypositive affirmations, suchas one from Joyce (KathyBaker) when she tellsEdward he is 'not handi-capped, but exceptional'.Even so, the women at Peg's

barbeque feed Edwardbecause he is unable to.affirming that no matter howcapable, he is still treated assomeone less than compe-tent. Likewise, Kevin (RobertOliveri) takes Edward toschool for 'Show and Tell',reminding us that in the pastindividuals considereddifferent were often paradedaround in travelling shows.

According to Cory Sampson,Edward's inability to socializeor to touch another humanbeing and his exceptionalabilities in one particular areaecho the symptoms ofAsperger's Syndrome.'Often, individuals withAsperger's Syndrome desiresocial interaction, but areunable to perform sociallydue to this deficit in inter-preting subtle and unwrittensocial rules.'' Sampson'sfocus reveals the power ofpsychiatry and medicine toname and label differenceand to propose cures thatwill bring those consideredless than human into therealm of the 'normal*. It ismore likely that, since

Edward is a machine, Burtonis alerting us to the primarydifferences between humansand machines, one of whichis an inability on the part ofthe machine to convincinglyconvey emotion.

Although he is adept atcutting hair, fur, shrubbery,

have such intimate proximityto his body.̂ His lack ofcontrol over his prosthetichands is more akin to thedifficulties experienced by DrStrangelove (Peter Sellers) inDr. Strangelove or: How ILearned to Stop Worryingand Love the Bomb (StanleyKubrick, 1964), whose

machines - like hystericalwomen, the mentally ill orcriminally insane - might alsobecome out of our control.

Regardless, Edward cannottouch another human beingwithout cutting them. Mightthis also be a trope for theway that human beings

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vegetables and ice, Edwardis by many standardsphysically disabled. He isunable to open a door, dresshimself or use eating utensilswithout cutting himself. Hesuffers cuts to his face andbody because he can't fullycontrol the actions of hislong knife-like hands, which

prosthetic arm rose up in a45-degree Hitler salutewhenever his unconsciousfascist tendencies arose. Inboth cases, the action oftheprosthesis appears to mirroran internal psychology, onerelated to an out-of-controlstate. Since the IndustrialRevolution it was feared that

wound each other in amyriad of ways? This fear ofhurting another is dramati-cally depicted towards theend of the film when Kimasks Edward to hold her.Although he says that hecan't touch her, she folds hisarms around her body in aloving embrace. Ironically, in 9

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the next scene we are takenback to the moment in whichthe inventor dies beforebeing able to attach Ed-ward's human-shapedhands. Burton shows thathuman touch is not to beinterpreted literally throughthe act of touching anotherwith one's hands but thatcommunication can occur inother subtle ways. PerhapsEdward's inability to touchexcept through a prosthesismirrors both the distancingand proximity to othersenabled by modern-dayelectronic communications.In this sense we are, likeEdward, both enabled anddisabled by technologicalinterface.

Dr Julie Clarke is an HonoraryFellow in Cinema Studies inthe School of Culture andCommunication at theUniversity of Melbourne. She

has been published extensivelyin Australia, Canada, theUnited Kingdom, the UnitedStates and Norway. •

Endnotes' Margrit Shildrick, 'This

Body Which is Not One:Dealing with Differences' inMike Featherstone (ed.),Body Modification, SagePublications, ThousandOaks, London, New Delhi,

2000, p,ao.^ Elaine L. Graham, Repre-

sentations of the Post/Human: Monsters, Aliensand Others in PopularCulture, ManchesterUniversity Press, Man-chester, 2002, p.39.

^ Suburbia in EdwardScissorfiands is similar tothat depicted in TheStepford Wives (Frank Oz,2004) and Pleasantviile (GaryRoss, 1998)-a place ofperfectly groomed gardens

with almost-identicalhouses, complete withstereotypical, cookie-cuttercharacters that follow arepetitive lifestyle.Friedrich Nietzsche.Human, All Too Human,trans. Marion Faber &Stephen Lehmann,Penguin Books, London,1994(1878), p.138.Friedrich Nietzsche, ThusSpoke Zarathustra, trans.RJ. Hollingdale, PenguinBooks, London, 1961/1969(1883-1885), p.331.Cesare Lombroso, TheCriminal Man. 1876,summarized in J. Hamlin,'Lombroso', University ofMinnesota, Duluth, 2002,retrieved from <http://www.d.umn.edu/~jhamlin1/(ombroso.html>, accessedApril 2004.Cory Sampson, 'TimBurton's Edward Scissor-hands as a Psychological

Allegory', The Tim BurtonCollective, 2004, <http;//www.timburtoncollective.com/edwardpsycho.htmt>, accessed30 August 2007.An interesting counterpartto Edward is Wolverine, acharacter in the sciencefiction series X-Men. He isone of many characterswithin the narrative thathas been genetically orsurgically enhanced, andsports retractable metalblades from his hands.Unlike Edward, Wolverineis able to recover from anyinjuries that he enduresthrough tissue regenera-tion.

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