Sunrise, the film by FW Murnau is by far one of my favorite silent films that I have yet to watch. I have seen many over the past few years including Metropolis, Trip to the Moon, The Cabinet of Dr Caligari and one of the most famed films made by Murnau, Nosferatu. Sunrise truly touched me beyond any other. It is an emotion wrought story that is filled with metaphors to construct a deeper message.
I would like to address my theory on metaphors in the film. To be concise and direct, I believe that the relationship between the man, the wife and the woman from the city represents the relationship between the city and the countryside, and the old life versus the new. The first scene in which we meet the woman from the city, her lavish style and modern look are juxtaposed enormously by her surroundings. It is plain to see that these people from this village earn most of their living through farming, and have not modernized to the point of cities at that time. We then meet the man, who is a farmer in the village. The relationship between the man and the woman from the city is certainly passionate, but there is corruption there. The plan to murder his wife- whom he previously was madly in love with, clearly defines that. The man is forced to face the seduction of the city, ready to throw away his home, wife and child. Even after the attempted murder, the man and wife are able to rekindle their love in one night, and all seems to be well. They fall into a storm, and he attaches bulrushes to his wife so she will stay afloat. The storm rages on, and their boat is capsized by the waves. The man finds himself on the shore, with his wife nowhere in sight. A search party is sent out and he believes all is lost when she is nowhere to be found. He then angrily throttles the woman from the city, realizing the treachery and corruption that she had led him to. As he furiously shakes the woman, the maid calls out to him and it appears that not all hope is gone. This then led me to the conclusion that this is the battle that the world was facing after the industrial revolution and world war one. His wife is found alive, still afloat on the bulrushes. He stays by her side, and as he holds her to him, the sun rises. The woman from the city leaves, unable to bear to see that the man she desired no longer wanted her.
Overall, I believe it to be evident that this whole story is based around the idea that the encroaching city is represented by the woman, and the tradition and warmth of the countryside is represented by the wife. The city begins to encroach on the country, but this film has a powerful point that love overpowers corruption. This story was ultimately riveting. By the end, I had goosebumps. Murnau’s work has blown me away and I will be so eager to watch more of his films in the future.
History of the Motion Picture 
I completely agree about the story was about the woman from the city is represents the rise of city living at the time and the wife represents the comfort of living in the country. I was pleasantly surprised about how much I absolutely loved the film because of the music instead of voices and the timeless comedy throughout the film.
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I also found myself indulged in your summary and your explanation of the metaphors throughout this film. I grew up on a farm, and the country side where the film originates reminds me of my home. For someone that was raised in the country, this is almost a tale as old as time. Many views that my parents share and have passed onto me are those like the seemingly endless battle of the country side, and city. It is not any kind of hatred or dislike that I have to the city, but rather the fact that I hold the country-side in higher regard. I believe that this film also shares with its metaphors, a message to be grateful for what you have. Sometimes it takes a drastic event in someone’s life to help them realize how great their life really is. Even if it took almost murdering his wife, the reborn relationship guided the man towards what he loved most all along.
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