Jacques Tati’s irrepressible Mr. Hulot, along with Charlie Chaplin’s Tramp
character, is one of the greatest examples of the everyman. He walks through life with a
whimsy that becomes his trademark. Although dialogue is sparse, he exposes the curious
intricacies of life from behind his trenchcoat and pipe. In Mon Oncle, Hulot goes on
outings with his nephew while Tati elucidates the rather arduous issues of modernity.
Hulot goes back and forth between the bourgeois neighborhood and what can only be
described as the “modern sector” with a carelessness shared only by the mischievous
children and lackadaisical canines that roam the streets.
Hulot has no job, but his days remain filled with admiring children, the talkative
street-folk and vendors, and his meddling sister in the modern sector. Altogether, the film
has one of the most meager, yet clever uses of sound. Tati can do more with periodic
buzzers and whistles than the average film could achieve with all of its modern
technology, which is concomitant with the issues within the film. The only two
exceptions to the slight soundtrack are the clamorous and deafening sounds of
construction during the opening sequence and the technological mishaps at the plastic
factory, both being examples of the entropy of modern life. While Hulot’s sister and her
husband stammer around figuring out whether their awkward fountain is spouting or the
phone is ringing, the altruistic Hulot contorts his window so the reflection prompts a
caged bird to sing with delight.
Tati parodies the sterile efficiency of the modern sector. First there is a montage
of cars, each traveling at a uniform distance from the next, never an arrow unfollowed. In
comparison, the Arpels (the sister’s family) step clumsily along the circuitous stone paths
in their garden. The ineffable Hulot chooses either to walk freely, incongruous with the
paths that have been laid out, or to navigate them deftly as if he were engaged in a game
of hopscotch like the little children outside of his house. At times, Hulot can maneuver
the cobblestones with obliviousness shared only by the family’s dachshund. The people’s
movements in deference to the courtyard’s gravel squares are reminiscent of the
characters moving around the checkerboard floors of a country estate in Renoir’s Rules of
the Game (1939).
The silly characters of Mon Oncle play around in a modern world that makes little
sense to Hulot. He finds himself uncomfortable with the strange angles of the art-deco
chair and grimaces humorously. His bout with the futuristic kitchen brings to memory a
similar scene in Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times (1936) in which an unsuspecting
A 1996 Ford Mustang next to my car revs the engine and my mind loses interest in the squirrel and moves to the cars next to and opposite of me. There are two cars, a BMW and an old pickup truck; the name is not visible. You can see the eagerness of each car; the impatience in these cars is more than of child the day before their birthday. These cars remain perpendicular to the lanes but are moving freely to their destination and seem to be mocking the stationary cars at the red light. The BMW reacts by slowly creeping up as close to the edge of the intersection as possible.
‘He was the kind of man – powerful of body, even tempered and not easily led.’ This quote is very straightforward and you understand that he is fair-minded. After this quote you think he sounds like a good man and a rule-follower; however you then get to the line ‘ he’s a sinner, a sinner not only against the moral fashion of the time but against his own vision of decent conduct’.
Heroes in literature and history, more often than not, meet tragic ends, unless they were created by Walt Disney. These particular people are often seen as someone who is apart from the masses in morals and attempt to accomplish a higher calling for the common good. The problem with this type of hero is that they are destined for suffering.Two such characters exist in classic literature, Winston Smith of George Orwell’s 1984 and Hamlet of William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet, Prince of Denmark.” Hamlet is the true classic tragic hero, though, because he is of noble birth, possesses high moral standards, completes the task he is given to better the world, and causes tragedy in both his life and the lives of others.
What is he searching for? What is his attitude toward his quest? What do these details suggest to you about his character?
...ctions do not have to be moral, in order to see him as a character that shows immense strife, great power and apparent flaws. His immorality is a disturbing aspect and makes it difficult to use the word, Hero, but it can also be argued that without his presence the story would hold no value. He is the main attraction and his journey becomes man’s journey. Writer William Blake shares:
For my second example, I looked to Sir Gawain. The story of the Green Knight is seeped with instances of chivalry, and honorable men. “Always keep one’s word of honor,” was an obvious code for this particular story. Not only did Sir Gawain show respect for the codes of chivalry by serving his king, exhibiting courage, and fighting with honor; he kept his words of honor that had been spoken with the Green Knight. Although he was distracted in his course, he kept the appointed new year challenge with the knight. Not a perfect instance of chivalry, yet his example leads nicely into my next character assessment.
self-centered. His life is the mirror of a Greed Tragedy. In his case, the flaw
this idea. He is sympathetic, kind, and generous, but when his motives are questioned, he
he makes a number of choices, "turns", that put him on a path of his
A tragic hero can be described as a great or virtuous character in a dramatic tragedy who is
realizes that the controlled society he lives is one that tries to eliminate all individuality. This causes him to act out in violence against authority as a means o...
boy attitude and tough outside, while also having a good heart and a caring personality. His character brings out the reader’s ‘id’ as Freud would say. It brings out the naughtiness inside the reader’s personality, while still making him lovable because he is really a good person on the inside.
I could summarize my own character analysis of Hamlet as essentially a picture of an impractical man, who has nevertheless proceeded with optimal effect under existing external and internal conditions.
In his life he would have to make many sacrifices for his country, and the second would be supporting his wife and kids. He took on hardships with ease, he always had a certain calmness to him, this is something I idolize about him, I would like to learn how to act this way. He’s my hero because he was special, not like anyone else I have ever met, he knew he was special, but he never he never flaunted it. In this essay I will try to paint a picture of my hero, and give examples of why my grandfather is my hero.