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Masculinity in Oliver Stone's Nixon
I. Introduction
When President Nixon was leaving the White House, Henry Kissinger comforted him by saying, "History will treat you kindly," to which Nixon replied, "That depends on who writes the history" (Hamburg xiv).
[1] Watching Oliver Stone’s Nixon (1995) and the director’s earlier film JFK (1991), it is difficult to have kind thoughts about Richard Nixon. Stone’s investment in the figure of the president manifests itself in two ways: first, in the director’s fixation on Nixon as a symbol of the corrupt political landscape after President John Kennedy’s assassination, and, second, his fixation on Nixon as a symbol of a failed patriarch or an ineffective father figure who led the country into further turmoil. Stone has argued that he hoped to elicit sympathy for Nixon, but I will show that the director’s emphasis on Nixon as an epic tragedy, especially in conjunction with the Beast thesis, does not allow for sympathy or understanding of the man or his politics.
[2] My analysis primarily focuses on Stone’s film Nixon, but it is noteworthy to mention JFK, since both films were embroiled in heated debates regarding historical authenticity and artistic license. In JFK, Stone pieces together several conspiracy theories as to who was responsible for President Kennedy’s assassination from “real” primary texts, news footage, ear and eye witnesses, and the Zapruder film, among others. In Nixon, Stone uses similar techniques to posit equally troubling theses: the first that Nixon, while Vice President, was involved in a plot to assassinate Fidel Castro, and, second, that Nixon was directly or inadvertently responsible for the deaths of John and Robert Kennedy. Stone elects to create scenes and embellish information but defends his mixing of fact and speculation: “Of course, there’s license and speculation, but they are based on reasonable assumptions which we’ve discussed with highly reliable technical advisers who lived through the history we’re recounting in the film” (Monsel 206).
[3] Regardless of historical inaccuracies, it is valuable to analyze how Stone constructs Nixon’s personae, as well as the epic thesis of the “Beast” in American politics, because, through both, Stone deconstructs the American ideology of the ideal man, as well as the “American dream” of success.
II. American Capitalist Ideology and Marketing of Nixon and JFK.
[4] The marketable nature of Stone’s controversy is elaborated in the ideologies he chooses to emphasize and the “whitewashing” of particular historical facts that are shown in Nixon.
In 1952, Nixon dodged a political advantage. While running for Vice President with Dwight D. to the meaning of by supporters. Nixon decided to go on national TV with a live speech, inviting investigation of his finances and stating that no donor had asked for or received any favors. He wanted to make sure the public knew he was not a crook. The emotional clincher was his to not only undertint but to cherish a cocker spaniel puppy named Checkers. “I want to say right now that regardless of what they say, we’re going to keep it.” .He was paranoid. He made a joke out of it and let the people truly know he was a self-made man.
As the young colonies of America broke away from their mother country and began to grow and develop into an effective democratic nation, many changes occurred. As the democracy began to grow, two main political parties developed, the Jeffersonian Republicans and the Federalists. Each party had different views on how the government should be run. The Jeffersonian Republicans believed in strong state governments, a weak central government, and a strict construction of the Constitution. The Federalists opted for a powerful central government with weaker state governments, and a loose interpretation of the Constitution. Throughout the years, the political parties have grown, developed, and even dispersed into totally new factions. Many of the inconsistencies and changes can be noted throughout the presidencies of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.
...le years, Nixon resigned in scandal, which brought people’s distrust of government to an all-time high. It is very difficult to believe that a mere decade separates these movies.
Hunter S. Thompson writes about the Election of 1972 from December 1971, before any primaries, to December 1972 after Nixon has won the election. It is a truthful first person account of what happened during the presidential race that year with much personal, side talk about Thompson’s life, experiences, and his coverage four years ago about the 1968 election. Thompson writes this book in a unique style that he has made called Gonzo Journalism. This style of writing is a deeply personal style of writing and is very opinionated. He does not give the facts on the election straight but instead gives his opinions on the people involved. It is a very subjective point of view and shows Thompson’s very liberal perspective. He is a strong supporter and is an enthusiast of the democratic candidate McGovern and shows time and time again how much he despises Nixon. Along with a very opinionated, subjective narrative, Thompson talks a lot about drug use. His point of view is from that from the drug underculture. Thompson is a very big drug us...
Some have wondered if Senator Richard Nixon lied to and manipulated the people when he spoke to regain his own integrity. This is a subject that many have questioned about the past politicians. The text,"Checkers" was delivered by Senator Richard M. Nixon in 1952. The text was published by AmericanRhetoric.com. Senator Nixon wrote this text for the American people to presuade them to believe he is an honest man. When Senator Nixon was accused of taking $18,000 from his supporters illegally; he spoke about how the money was used to save the American taxpayers from having to pay for his political business. Next, Senator Nixon talked about his independant audit and finacial background, so he could prove that the money did not go towards his personal gain. Senator Richard Nixon also expressed how important and hard working his wife is, and the fact that they planned and saved for their houses and all of their belongings. Continuing, Senator Nixon questioned whether or not his opponents were as honest and full of integrity as they protray themselves to be, and blamed the Truman Acheson Administraton, that his opponents supported, for the war against communism. Finally, Senator Nixon left it to the American people to deside whether or not he should stay in the running for Vice President. In a well written speech, Senator Nixon compells the audience by useing appeals to ethos, pathos and logos; he claims that he would never use the money for personal gain, depicts the perfect picture of him and his wife, and expresses how inferior his opponents are in comparision.
Recent studies show that the number of individuals who default on their student loans has been steadily increasing as well. Statistics from the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) show that between 2004 and 2009 only 37% of federal student loan borrowers were able to make uninterrupted payments; it is an annual average of 7.4% (Cunningham, and Kienzl). According to IHEP, for every one borrower who defaulted, two ...
The 37th President, Richard Milhous Nixon, marred the reputation of not only himself, but of every president after him. The Watergate Scandal was a major upheaval in the trust of a president. When it came to electing officials, President Nixon wasn't the best; he often elected corrupt officials. The Cambodian Campaign, which was ordered by Nixon, prolonged America's involvement in the Vietnam War, which was driven by heavy anti-communist views, not with the best interest of America in mind.. Using evidence from his life, education, political career, and the mistakes of his presidency, we will determine whether or not his presidency was positive or negative.
On November 22, 1963, at 12:30 in the afternoon, President John F. Kennedy was shot at and killed while participating in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas. The most important question that arises from this incident is ‘Who killed President John F. Kennedy?’ This is an issue which has been debated by scholars, The Government, and even common people alike. Many people seem to feel that it was a conspiracy, some large cover-up within a cover-up.
The movie “All the President's Men” (1976), is based on the work of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein two Washington Post newspaper writers, who uncovered the cover-up of the White House's involvement in the Democratic Party National headquarters, Watergate, break-in. At first, Bob Woodward discovers what seems to be a minor break-in but is surprised to find that top lawyers were already on the defense case. He also discovers that names and addresses of Republican fund organizers were being accused, which further aroused his suspicions. When he brings this to the attention of the head of the Washington Post, he is prepared to run with the story and assigns Woodward and Carl Bernstein to it. Their findings of this break-in paved a path that lead to the White House, where it was soon learned that President Richard M. Nixon of the USA, was involved and resigned after Woodward and Bernstein’s findings. Conversely, my two significant instances are, Woodward and Bernstein’s actions on their process of contacting the sources that were involved because they worked for the re-election committee. The other instance I chose is that of both Woodward and Bernstein intruding into the house of Mr. Sloan very late at night, a man well interacted with the political figures they were researching on. Woodward and Bernstein didn’t abide by many of the values and ethics theories we’ve learned from our book and in class. It also seemed as if the unethical actions they to...
Richard Nixon begins off his memoir by explaining the times of his most, greatest failure in life. It describes the writings of his most important comings with Chou En-lai. His worst failure was having no source of communications, whatsoever with the country of China for at least 25 to 26 years. Nixon talks about both of the sides of his feelings with the significance of his greatest triumph. (Richard Nixon, pg 13, 343) He also goes through his life, previous to the Watergate event, in San Clemente and the other sites near the end of his time as president when he did large amounts of writing and traveling. (Richard Nixon, pg 27) Then writes about the political issues that landed between the years of 1989 and 1990. Richard was raised as a Quaker, but showed no resemblance or sign, towards the beginning of his adult years. He recalls all the lessons he had remembered during his school years. They helped him become the person he was, and how his wealth after his presidency was fare more fortunate. Primarily this book shows his struggles and happiness, throughout the many years of his hard life. The promotion of peace and decisions to make it made him want to create it even more, towards the end of his political career. (Richard Nixon, pg 335-337, 353)
An education is one of the most important tools a person can acquire. It gives them the skills and abilities to obtain a job, earn a wage, and then use that wage to better their lives and the lives of their loved ones. However, due to the seemingly exponential increase in the costs of obtaining a college degree, students are either being driven away entirely from earning a degree or taking out student loans which cripple their financial prospects well after graduation. Without question, the increasing national student loan debt is one of the most pressing economic issues the United States is dealing with, as students who are debt ridden are not able to consume and invest in the economy. Therefore, many politicians and students are calling on the government to forgive their student loan debts so that through their spending the slowly recovering economy can finally return to its pre-2008 strength.
Chaucer, Geoffrey. “The Wife of Bath’s Prologue.” The Canterbury Tales. Ed. Larry D. Benson. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2000. 87-98.
In medieval England, society’s roles were dominated by men and women were either kept at home or doing labor work. Among the most famous medieval English literature, “The Canterbury Tales” by Geoffrey Chaucer, lies ‘The Wife of Bath's Prologue’ and ‘The Wife of Bath's Tale.’ Within, Chaucer shares his perspective of the Wife of Bath, the Queen, and the Crone. Through the use of symbolism and diction, Chaucer aims to change society’s expectations of women.
The movie Thirteen Days is 2000 docudrama and is directed by Roger Donaldson who is Australian and tries to portray the film in a serious manor. The movie is based on the 13 days of the Cuban Missile Crisis, and shows the perspective of the US political leadership, specifically Special Assistant to the president Kenny O’Donnell, President John F. Kennedy and the Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. This film is not based on the book of the same name written by Robert F. Kennedy like the first docudrama film about the Cuban Missile Crisis, The Missiles of October; this film was meticulously researched and was based on The Kennedy Tapes: inside the white house during the Cuban Missile Crisis which was written by Ernest May and Phillip Zelikow. This is a positive for the film because Thirteen Days had the possibility to become an almost accurate film due to the declassification of important documents, but this was not the case due to the ‘Hollywood effect’ which is a key reason why this film is not history but entertainment. This film exposes how close America actually came to a Nuclear Holocaust. In this essay I shall cover all the positives and negatives to show whether or not the film is a good source of history but or actually was made for entertainment purposes. There are two main historical issues with this film that make it more entertainment than History; the first being Kevin Costner’s portrayal of Special Assistant Kenny O’Donnell, although the film is seen through his eyes and shows him to be in John F. Kennedy inner circle; in reality he may not have played an important role as the film portrays, since he was only Kennedy’s appointment secretary not the Personal advisor he is portrayed as in this film. Another historical w...
Parent involvement affects all aspects of a child’s education. Parents must be involved as teachers, learners, supporters, and advocates of their child’s learning (Hopkings). Studies show that kids who know that their parents are involved and interested tend to take more responsibility for their own learning and behavior. Schoolwork and grades improve. Work habits improve. Less work is handed in late. Fewer referrals for behavior problems are made. Attendance increases, and fewer kids show up late for class (Hopkings). With all this information documented it shows the true importance of parent involvement in education. The more involved the parents are, the better off each child will be. So when you become a parent, get involved in your child’s education!