Books vs. Movies

Generally, movie adaptations of books are not exact replicas of the original. The reason is mainly that the original storyline needs to be modified in order to quench the audience's thirst for action, whereas those who read books usually enjoy the slow, steady build-up of a valuable plot which will never be replaced by movies. Moreover, books allow the reader’s imagination to roam free, but movies can offer a new and different perspective. The fictional novel The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White and its animated counterpart, also named The Sword in the Stone, by Disney are no exception. The animated adaptation includes several similar features as well as different elements, as shown in the plot events and the characters, which are essentially the deciding components in deciding which form of the story is superior.

First, the plot indicates some similar structures as well as different events. One example of a difference is the scene in the novel in which the Wart travels into the forest in order to “bring Cully,” the goshawk, back to Hob, whereas in the movie, the Wart ventures into the forest to retrieve an arrow that Kay shot. It indicates that the reasons behind the actions differ, despite the fact that the actions themselves are the same. The scene is an instance of a critical difference between the book and the movie because it is fundamental for the exposition, even if it looks insignificant at first. Although there are differences between the two, there are also many similarities, as shown when the Wart is transformed into different animals in order to experience and learn about important lessons. For example, the Wart learns to not “be tyrannical,” from being a badger in the novel, and about the powers of love from being a...

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...n the novel. Thus, these different elements included in the movie adaptation are what sets it apart from the novel.

In conclusion, the novel version of the Sword in the Stone is superior since it goes into much more detail, which furthers the development of the characters as well as the plot. Novels will usually be better when compared to the movie adaption because it allows for imagination, so that there can be many different interpretations for a single sentence, opposed to having one fixed view. Film adaptations contain more similarities than differences, but these differences are far more relevant since they are what sets apart the original novel from the movie. Comparing and contrasting the book and film may not seem to yield any meaningful results, yet, when analyzed closely, these insignificant figures are actually the deciding factor of which is preferred.