Are we alone? Is any higher power watching out for us? Many have those questions run through their mind when tragedy strikes in their lives. Director M. Night Shyamalan effectively explores those questions in his film Signs, in which a family is at a critical point as they face an alien invasion. As the story develops, Shyamalan reveals the universal theme of man’s struggle with faith through the use of symbolism, conflict, and flashback. To begin with, Shyamalan used symbolism to reveal the insight of a man’s struggle with believing that he’s not alone in the universe. Early in the film, we see the outline of a cross that use to hang on the wall of the main character's home. We can imply from the beginning of the film that Graham lost his
The third symbol is Bobby spray painting the wall. Bobby paints a self-portrait of a “Pale Ghost Boy” referring to himself and he is also holding a faceless baby in a carrier. The faceless baby could represent feather lack of identity because he’s new to the world. And Bobby painting himself as “pale” and “ghostly” because he could be scared and could feel like no one supported him. This symbol is important because it shows how he isn’t fully mature because he is spray painting but it shows how lonely he feels being a single parent taking care of Feather.
Another prevalent symbol to me is the idea of sin. In The Ministers Black Veil Hooper just suddenly one day shows up to church wearing a veil. At first the people are sort of angered by it. People soon start to flock to his congregation to view the spectacle, and go so far as to test their '"'courage'"' by seeing who will go and talk to him. I think that the veil could represent sin. In The Ministers Black Veil Hooper was either trying to hide his sin from the people so that they could not judge him, which is god"'"s job, or maybe he was trying to protecting his self from the sins of the people. In the end of The Ministers Black Veil Hooper dies, and sees his congregation all wearing black veils, which would probably hint that maybe it represented the sin in all of us. In The Birthmark Georgiana"'"s birthmark could represent, as some religions believe, the original sin which is bestowed on all by the '"'hand'"' of god. But, unlike Hooper, Georgiana could not help her markings.
We come into this world with nothing and leave the same way. Our lives here are short and full of heartbreak if we do not lay hold on the spiritual aspect of life which the characters in this story strived for in their own ways. This world is full of symbolism in much the same way the story depicts it through the tattoos, so much the center point of the entire story. Parker was continually looking for perfection and acceptance with one more tattoo. He wanted the world and Sarah Ruth to focus on the tattoos he regarded as perfect instead of his inferiority.
Throughout his book, Mike Alsford provides examples of the problems many heroes are faced with, and delves into the psychology behind the choices they make in order to solve these problems. A goal for most heroes is to save the innocents while restoring balance between the powers of good and evil, which often involves defeating an enemy. The enemy is often one villain accompanied by a throng of followers - an army, slaves, disciples, and/or brainwashed specimens. Now this is where it gets tricky. The hero knows the villain cannot maintain the present state of power he/she holds without destroying innocent lives, but there is also a link that binds the villain to innocent individuals, and this link is affecting everyone connected to it. As with the conversation in the film Clerks, there is a persistent problem of differentiating the innocents from the guilty. Do we blow up an entire planet because the inhabitants are mind-controlled by an evil dictator, or do we try to break the link that is binding the masses to the one, in doing so freeing the minds of the entire population? How do we decide who is truly evil and deserving of death or who is simply being held under the control of something beyond them? Also, a general problem that arises when battling the issue of who exactly to save is that of humanity versus other lifeforms. Who is more worth saving, based on their species? Are the humans always innocent when standing up against aliens, robots, cyborgs, etc.? Is it justifiable to commit xenocide in order to preserve the human race? What makes humans more worthy of life than others? This is the "greater good" - humans against the universe or one group of humans against another so we can "save the children" - but how have we a...
In the movie “Night of the Living Dead” by George A. Romero, we are thrust in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. During this apocalypse, many themes and aspects of human nature are present. This conflict seems to bring out the aspects of humans that show how imperfect we are, in addition to how we function in groups. Before I delve into these topics, I shall begin by summarizing key aspects of the film.
In his essay, “Why We Crave Horror Movies” King attempts to bring understanding to the phenomenon of the horror film genre. He states “sanity becomes a matter of degree” eluding to the theory that sanity is relative and that all humans are relatively insane. Jack the Ripper and the Cleveland Torso Murderer were the examples of humans on one extreme of the spectrum of sanity; saints represent the other safe end of the sanity spectrum. He illustrates the thought that in order for human kind to stay functionally sane there needs to be some sort of outlet for our violent “mad” thoughts. In King’s view horror movies provide a stable outlet and mental relief for innate madness. King argues that his insanity/ant civilization emotions are ingrained
The biggest symbol would be the road ironically this is because the road has not been destroyed by any of the natural disasters. This is a symbol of hope for the man and the boy. It`s also a reason for them to keep going and surviving if they can. While the road may be the most obvious symbol in the novel I feel that it is the most important too. This is because their entire journey is based around the road and their will to survive.
Man has always been driven to create. We constantly shape the world around us by inventing stories of heroes and monsters, by crafting complex but passionate ideals about good and evil. Some relish in the power that this manipulation of reality wields; others are more innocent in that they are simply yielding to a universal longing for something in which to believe.
Encouraging the human race to look beyond what the eyes see, Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense leaves its audience pondering the truth about reality. After being shot by a previous patient, children’s psychologist Dr. Malcolm Crowe experiences the opportunity to make up for his failed attempt to treat his gunman when he was just a boy. Another young boy, Cole, becomes his next subject. Sparking Dr. Crowe’s interest with common traits to that of his ex patient, Cole pleads for treatment for his condition. After revealing that he can see dead people, a skill that has caused him to be bullied, Cole and Dr. Crowe are able to work together in order to better understand his connection between life and death. Communicating with the other side proves difficult
We all have those moments where we feel that the world is against us, and we wonder why all of this is only happening to us. I remember a particular moment in my life when I was feeling stressed by something out of my control and felt like I was all alone in my struggle.
...n earth is not alone” create engagement and curiosity. The montage sequence of Will barricading his home and the sheer sunset reflecting from the window informs that the protagonists are vulnerable to night. The bird’s eye view shot of Will in the bathtub with his dog and hugging a sniper emphasises the protagonist’s vulnerability. This visual construction has really exerted a strong emotional effect for the audience as well as a clear emotional synopsis of a dystopian narrative.
Though not a film to be taken too seriously, this movie has the power to whisk audience members away for 2 hours, into a world in which the bad guys finish last and the power of good conquers evil.
Entrails torn from the body with bare hands, eyes gouged out with razor blades, battery cables, rats borrowing inside the human body, power drills to the face, cannibalism, credit cards, business cards, Dorsia, Testoni, Armani, Wall Street; all of these things are Patrick Bateman’s world. The only difference between Bateman and anybody else is what is repulsive to Bateman and what is repulsive to the rest of the world. Bateman has great interest in the upper class life, fashions, and social existence, but at the same time he is, at times, sickened by the constant struggle to be one up on everybody else. On the other hand Bateman’s nightlife reveals a side of him never seen during the day. Bateman is relaxed, impulsive, and confident while torturing and killing. He doesn’t have to worry about being better than anyone else. The only competition he has is his last victim. Torture and murder are the two true loves of Patrick Bateman.
The point of the movie is to never be afraid of anything because as long as you believe in God he will protect and help you in your time of need. This is shown by the fact that the Jews kept praying to God and God sent Moses to save them. Thi...
The Garden of Eden presents itself as another symbolic location. The event that Emil told the story of stealing the apples from the garden was a very symbolic point of the novel in which Emil breaks away from his light realm. The garden that Emil stole the apples from represented the Garden of Eden and the apples, or forbidden fruit, symbolized Emil's first sin. This event foreshadows what is next to come in the conflict of good and evil. Emils first step out of the light realm gives way to more symbolic events where he becomes more submerged into the dark realm. At the beginning of the novel, Emil notices that there is a coat of arms above his house representing the Cain religion. The coat of arms contained a sparrow hawk bird on it. Hesse uses this symbolic approach to give the sparrow hawk purpose in the rest of the story, as a symbol of the mark of Cain. Emil discovered that the bird represents the god Abraxas. From this point, Emil is determined to find the meaning of the bird and Abraxas. After the rain washed away a painting of Beatrice that Emil painted, Emil could see Demian and himself in the canvas. Emil then painted a picture of the sparrow hawk on the same canvas. Hesse used this event to symbolize the connection between Emil, Demian, and Abraxas. After bringing these characters together as one, Hesse was able to conclude Emils transformation into the New World. Emil sees the bird again above the hallway of Frau Evas home.