By Hannaan Fuad
Do you have a certain memory that you would like to forget if possible? Memories of a certain event maybe, or even of a certain someone? Memories that hurt you whenever you remember them? If there exists a machine that can erase these said memories safely and effectively, would you undergo the procedure to erase them?
For those of you who have watched the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, you already know where these questions come from. For those who have not, I suggest you go and watch the movie before reading further.
However, I will still explain the main essence of the film here for the sake of providing background information. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Eternal Sunshine) is a story about a fated couple, named Joel and Clementine. Joel was revealed to have undergone a memory removal procedure to erase his memories of Clementine after finding out that Clementine had erased hers of him. However, while undergoing the procedure, Joel then realized that he did not actually want to forget Clementine. It is also revealed that Clementine was having setbacks and was feeling like something was wrong after the procedure, but she did not know what was causing these feelings.
“Blessed are the forgetful, for they get the better even of their blunders.”
While this quote was written by Charlie Kaufman, the writer of the film, and not Nietzsche himself, Eternal Sunshine credited this quote to him through the character Mary and it aligns with some of his ideas and concepts.
Mary quoted this line while watching Joel undergo the memory-removing procedure. This quote is being used to illustrate the supposedly good fortune of those who chose to remove their memory that they do not want to remember anymore. They can live burden-free and unchained by past mistakes or bad events that happened to them. However, by the end of the movie, we can see that the main message this film is trying to get across is that the eternal sunshine for the spotless mind does not exist, as portrayed by Clementine’s restlessness, Mary’s regret (who was revealed to have also undergone the procedure) and Joel’s mid-procedure refusal. Therefore, in essence, the forgetful are not really blessed.
Watching this movie, one cannot help but question, what is the nature of identity and what is the role of memory in shaping it. Is there any value in bad memories and should one erase them in order to live life fully?
Nietzsche’s will to power suggests that the desire and drive to uphold one’s own values is a crucial aspect of human identity. In Eternal Sunshine, this concept can be seen in the way the characters (Joel, Clementine, and Mary) choose to forget their past mistakes. While it may not be their active choice to undergo the procedure specifically to shape their identity, it can still be seen as a way to shape their narrative and hence, their identity. This illustrates the constant struggle of men against the surrounding environment to establish their own identity and a reason for living in the said environment. Clementine, for example, who can be described as free-spirited and impulsive, said in response to Joel’s comment that his life is uninteresting:
“Does that make you sad? Or anxious? I’m always anxious thinking I’m not living my life to the fullest, y’know? Taking advantage of every possibility? Just making sure that I’m not wasting one second of the little time I have.”
This line embodies the search for personal identity, constantly seeking new experiences to establish her own identity within the surrounding environment. When her relationship with Joel soured, she took measures to erase him from her mind, essentially rewriting who she was and ultimately is, by changing the narrative of her life story.
Nietzsche’s will to power also acts as a foundation for his concept of eternal recurrence. Eternal recurrence is a concept in which Nietzsche presented a hypothetical scenario that life will happen again exactly the way it has happened before and will repeat eternally. This means that even the bad and unfortunate events that happened will also be repeated in the next cycle. Many scholars said that Nietzsche used this concept as a litmus test to know what kind of person you are. What would you do now that you know life will repeat itself with all the good and the bad in the previous life? Will you embrace that ‘fact’ or will you find a way out? This is where Nietzsche proposed the ideal way of going at life, and it can be seen as a response to eternal recurrence.
Amor fati. Amor fati is a Latin phrase meaning love of fate. Nietzsche suggested that one should ideally love one’s own life, not merely tolerate it or hide from it, but truly love and embrace life with all its beauty and flaws, in its past, present, and future.
“That one wants nothing to be different, not forward, not backwards, not in all eternity. Not merely bear what is necessary, still less conceal it…but love it.”
Therefore, with that kind of mindset, one should then live with all their might to lead a life in a way that one would want to repeat again. To lead a life unregretfully, unashamed, and unabashed. To do so, one needs to confront life with all its flaws and mistakes, and consequently to learn from those mistakes. This way, life will become an opportunity for personal growth and character development.
Eternal Sunshine suggests the notion of eternal recurrence through the characters of Joel and Clementine. In a scene toward the end of the film, the two characters contemplate whether they should get back together (or get together for the first time since they do not have memories of their past relationship) or not. All the while, recordings of their confessions on why they wanted to forget each other prior to the procedure were playing in the background, unearthing the bitter feelings and dissatisfaction each of them had, each blaming the other for the reasons their relationship did not work out.
Joel bitterly admitted that it was due to Clementine’s impulsive and reckless nature while Clementine blamed Joel’s passive and unadventurous nature. Listening to those recordings, Clementine was reluctant to ignite their dying flames, seeing that what the recordings say might be true and might be the same factors that will break them apart in the future, prompting them to erase each other from memories yet again, hence, eternally binding each other to a recurring cycle of relationship.
JOEL: “I can't think of anything I don't like about you right now.”
CLEMENTINE: “But you will. You will think of things. And I'll get bored with you and feel trapped because that's what happens with me.”
However, just like Nietzsche’s concept of amor fati, Joel’s response to Clementine’s line above (which is also the final scene of the film) is simple yet delivers the crucial point of the film. Joel simply smiled and said, “Okay” to which Clementine finally smiled back at him and echoed back, “Okay”. This final exchange suggests to the viewers that the couple embraced their possible fate of experiencing ‘eternal recurrence’. However, it is also possible for the audience to deduce that they might not repeat the same cycle and be able to stand the test of fate by learning from their past mistakes and making sure to live life together in such a way that they would not regret it later, which is notably a brighter note to end the film on.
In conclusion, based on this film and Nietzsche’s concept of will to power, the nature of identity is dynamic and ever-changing influenced by one’s ongoing choices and actions. At the same time, memories play a significant role in shaping our identity, both the good memories and the bad as they represent the complexity of human experience and identity and as Nietzsche put it in his concept of amor fati, embracing the good and the bad aspects of life including memories leads to personal growth and self-discovery. Eternal sunshine for the spotless minds does not exist because life cannot happen without storms and rain.
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