Reflections on The Double

by Rowena J Ronson

The Double (2013), directed by Richard Ayoade and written by Fyodor Dostoyevsky over 150 years ago, asks of us a very relevant question, even now. If you feel you are living the life of Pinocchio, and your wish is to be ‘a real boy’ (or girl), what ingredients would you use to create your own Double – the person you truly want to be?

Would the real you be more confident and push themselves forward in relationships or at work; would they make sure their voice was heard and allow themselves to be seen? Would they be a somebody whom people remember rather than a nobody whom people ignore? Would they stand up for themselves and not allow others to walk all over them? Would your Double be observed and admired by others, would they make each day count? Would their life have meaning, adventure, love and no regrets? Would they be happy?

And would you stop yourself there, or would you further potentise your Double to flip from assertion to aggression, from confident to arrogant, from pushing yourself forward to penetrating beyond other people’s boundaries as well? In having more respect for yourself, would you then lose the necessary respect one needs for others? Would you let go of your grasp on reality as you delude yourself about your own self-importance?

This rather unusual film got me thinking about the many possible lives we could lead in this lifetime if we make different choices in how we view ourselves and how we consequently behave. It also got me thinking about how we view others who seem to have a life that we wish we could have, if we only believed we could. Do we find ourselves inspired by those who have more confidence and a higher self-esteem or do we feel angry and envious?

Double Take welcomes your thoughts on this curious and deep-delving piece and asks you to reflect on what your own Double might look like inside and out….