Nor from the Second Level: Multilayer juxtaposition and the Two Social Reality approach

In the Malaysian short film, Nor from the Second Level, in addition to the use of Soviet montage editing techniques, the juxtaposition between the Malaysian deputy prime minister’s speech and the monologue of Nor, the protagonist, creates a conflicting discourse about the survival of the working class and other marginalized groups during economic turmoil. The juxtaposition of the two voices is aligned with the concept or approach called ‘Two Social Reality’ and was conceptualized by the Malaysian social anthropologist Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, who argued that our overall social reality is defined by the social phenomena that take place within the two social realities: ‘authority-defined’ and ‘everyday-defined’.