Hiroshima, Mon Amour: From iconography to rhetoric

Abstract

This essay is an iconographic study of Alain Resnais’ classic film, Hiroshima, Mon Amour. The author argues that the meaning of the film can best be discerned by understanding the language and logic of cinematic form as that form becomes manifest through the introduction and development of specific iconic motifs. It is further argued that any construction of an overall meaning or interpretation must necessarily go beyond the confines of iconography proper to include consideration of the entire compositional process; that is, interpretation requires that one move from iconography to rhetoric.