Liminality is the state of being betwixt or between, derived from the Latin word limen, or “threshold.” The term has been used primarily by anthropologist Arnold Van Gennep and his contemporary, Victor Turner, to describe the nebulous social and spiritual location of persons in ritual rites of passage. Their work has focused on the sites of betrothal, adolescence and other nebulous states of initiation in which an individual’s status of kinship or influence in the community is undecidable.
The concept of liminality does not necessarily indicate an occupation of the “center” as in an equidistant or otherwise fixed position between extremes. Rather, liminality denotes an indeterminate (see indeterminacy) existence between two or more spatial or temporal realms, states, or the condition of passing through them. A postmodern understanding of this term rejects the privileging of any clearly definable center over a broader sense of middle ground with indistinct boundaries.
A postmodern liminality, likewise, considers the process or passage equally important as the end result, or destination. Liminality has also been a popular concept in literary’ studies, particularly in the 1980s as a result of increased critical attention to literature depicting the life phases of immigrant, exile, border and ethnic identities. The treatment of liminal experience in literary studies involves postmodern themes of dislocation, identity/selfhood and transmission of culture, for example, the negotiations of straddling two or more cultural identities or challenging the totalizing impulses of dominant culture.
How Was The Liminality Between Literature And The Other Arts?
“In every great writer there is a great painter, a great sculptor and a great musician”. That is the modernist dream, the desire of that renovating, disinhibiting, disturbing and founding movement that was the Hispano-American modernism, where the poet, creator of the word and artisan of the form, reveals a constant concern to find the expressive vehicle able to verbalize the vagueness, the mystery, the emotion, the aromas, the sensations, the sighs, etc. It is about the “magic” of language, its “plastic form” and its “own music”.
Liminality between Visual arts And Literature.
POETRY IS A CLEAR EXAMPLE OF THE LIMINALITY BETWEEN VISUAL ARTS AND LITERATURE. A SAMPLE IS THE CALIGRAMS THAT REPRESENT THE IMAGE TO WHICH THE SPEECH MENTIONS, DRAWING THROUGH THEM BY ITS OWN WORDS
LIMINALITY BETWEEN AUDIOVISUAL ARTS AND LITERATURE.
For a long time literary works, was carried to the representation apartir of corporal expression, music and scenographic elements; who use the arts for the design.
EXAMPLES OF LIMINALITY IN LITERATURE
Liminality in literature and other arts refers to the use of themes, narratives, or visuals that explore transitional or in-between stages. This concept can be applied across various forms of art, each with its unique expressions and implications. Here’s a guide in a tabular format that outlines how liminality is used in different art forms:
| Art Form | Description of Liminality | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Literature | In literature, liminality often appears in narratives and character development, especially in stories about rites of passage, transformations, or journeys. It can manifest as a phase where characters are between identities or stages of life. | Coming-of-age novels, stories with a hero’s journey, Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” |
| Film & Theatre | In film and theatre, liminality can be presented through visual storytelling, settings, and character development. It’s often used to enhance the narrative arc, showing characters in transitional phases or settings that are neither here nor there. | Movies like “Inception,” plays that use dream sequences or depict characters in a state of transition |
| Visual Arts | Visual arts express liminality through imagery that captures moments of transition, ambiguity, or surreal environments. Artists might depict scenes that are dreamlike, or that blend reality with fantasy. | Paintings that show twilight (neither day nor night), surreal art |
| Music | In music, liminality is conveyed through lyrics, tonal transitions, and compositions that evoke feelings of being in an in-between state. It can be found in musical pieces that transition between genres or blend different musical styles. | Songs that shift between major and minor keys, concept albums that tell a story of change |
| Dance | Dance utilizes physical movement to express liminal states, often portraying transitions, metamorphosis, or the blending of different dance styles to create something new and undefinable. | Performances that depict transformation, fusion of different dance styles |
| Photography | Liminality in photography is often captured through images that depict transient moments, blurred lines between reality and illusion, or subjects in states of change or transition. | Photographs of shadows at dusk, images capturing motion blur |
This guide should help you understand how liminality manifests in different artistic mediums, offering a broad view of its application and significance in the arts.
In conclusion, liminality in literature and other arts provides a gateway to explore the thresholds between different states of being. By blurring boundaries and challenging conventional norms, artists invite us to embark on transformative journeys. Through their creations, we are reminded of the beauty and complexity of liminality, and the inherent potential for growth and self-discovery within these transitional spaces.
