"The Power of Christ Compels You". En studie av eksorsisme i tre filmer.

Denne oppgaven er en studie av fenomenet eksorsisme i de tre filmene The Exorcist (1973), The Exorcist III (1990) og The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005). Målet har vært å finne ut hvilke roller eksorsisme, kjønnsroller, det overnaturlige og Den katolske kirke spiller i disse tre filmene. I tillegg inneholder oppgaven en sammenligning av de tre filmene. De tre filmene er både like og forskjellige når det gjelder deres tilnærming til eksorsisme. En viktig del av det katolske eksorsismeritualet er det offisielle Rituale Romanum. Dette ritualet inneholder regler eksorsisten må følge når det gjelder å drive ut demoner. Rituale Romanum benyttes i stor grad i The Exorcist (1973), og til en mindre grad i The Exorcist III (1990) og The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005). Ritualet brukes blant annet for å fastslå at tegnene på demonisk besettelse er ekte. Filmene er også fylt av religiøs symbolisme, spesielt i form av katolsk ikonografi. The Exorcist (1973) bruker selve ideen om en invaderende, demonisk kraft som tar kontroll over en ung jentes kropp og sinn som et middel til å skape skrekk og uhygge. I The Exorcist III (1990) er eksorsisme lagt til nesten som en ettertanke. Filmen fremstår mer som et overnaturlig mordmysterium. The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005) fokuserer på temaet vitenskap vs. religion, hvordan mentale lidelser kan virke som besettelse, og motsatt.This thesis is a study of the religious phenomenon of exorcism in the following three films: The Exorcist (1973), The Exorcist III (1990) and The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005). The goal of the study has been to determine how exorcism has been depicted in the films as well as the function and depiction of gender roles, the supernatural and the Roman Catholic Church. The present thesis also includes a comparison of these three films and how their differences relate to the decades in which they were produced. The three films are both similar and different in their depiction of exorcism. A vital part of the catholic ritual of exorcism is the official Roman Ritual, called Rituale Romanum in Latin. The ritual contains methods for expelling demonic powers and rules of conduct with regard to the exorcist, who must have express permission from a bishop to perform such a ritual. Rituale Romanum is featured heavily in The Exorcist (1973) and to a lesser degree in The Exorcist III (1990) and The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005). Still, this official ritual is the basis for each of the specific rites of exorcism in each film. The ritual is also used to determine that the signs of demonic possession are indeed real, and not the product of a mental illness. It is worth noting that the rituals themselves fail in each respective film, allowing the demon(s) to continue their existence. The films are also filled with religious symbolism, especially in regard to catholic iconography. The primary function of the religious imagery is to horrify the audience when the demon(s) desecrate and violate crucifixes and statues. Blasphemous actions and words convey the demon(s) utter loathing of everything that can be considered sacred. In my thesis I find that the films approach the subject of exorcism in different ways. The Exorcist (1973) uses the very notion of an invading, demonic force taking control of a young girl's body and mind to create an atmosphere of horror and dread. In The Exorcist III (1990), possession as a theme is downplayed in favor of a more existential narrative. In this film, exorcism is added almost as an afterthought. More than any of the others, The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005) focuses on the theme of science versus religion, and how mental illness can seem like possession and vice versa. This film lets the audience themselves decide which version of the narrative to believe: was Emily Rose possessed by a total of six demons, or were her symptoms simply the result of an illness.Master i ReligionsvitenskapMAHF-RELVRELV35