“Thursday”, a 1991 short film by Leighton Pierce, is described by the filmmaker as “something to do with the sensory pleasure of momentary solitude in a domestic setting” (Pierce). Through viewing the piece, it can be observed by the viewer that Pierce desired to capture this essence through the mere use of two naturally generated elements; visuals and sounds. These elements are primarily created by the “domestic setting”, which is Pierce’s own household. Through “Thursday”, Pierce uses a combination of sounds and visuals to emphasize the otherwise unnoticed “sensory pleasure of momentary solitude in a domestic setting”.
Perhaps the first thing the viewer acknowledges in the exposition of the film is the visual aspect, that being the sunlight that is shone through a window in a darkened room. We can also see tree branches and leaves dancing in the wind outside of the window. From this we figure the film is being shot from inside some sort of building. The next shot shows the shadow of what could be the same tree on the paneling of possibly a neighboring house, which supports the idea that the film is being shot form inside of a home. It is possible that Pierce intentionally used shots from outside of the home in the exposition as opposed to inside to give the viewer the idea that the house represents the lead role in the film. By introducing the piece with shots of an empty home, the viewer might expect another role to appear. Pierce then begins to elaborate on his idea of “sensory pleasure of […] a domestic setting” in the visual facet by showing a multitude of shots of inside the home and outside from the perspective of the home. We then begin to appreciate the more insignificant features of both the inside and o...
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...rmation we seek, for example “I remember big fat ties with fish on them.” (Brainard 6) could perhaps
take place in any time period, others, such as “I remember the day Marilyn Monroe died.” (Brainard 7), gives the reader an idea of when the author was alive. It is through these devices that Brainard keeps us reading to find out more of his past.
Both Pierce and Brainard used excellent methods in their respective works to create intriguing and interesting pieces that give inspiration to the viewers and readers. By avoiding the use of generic and cliché tactics in their works, they encourage the viewer and the reader to think about their choices as shaping their individual stories.
Works Cited
Brainard, Joe. I Remember. New York: Full Court, 1975. 6-19. Print.
Thursday. Dir. Leighton Pierce. Vimeo. N.p., 2009. Web. 10 Mar. 2014. .
Eric Rauchway’s Murdering McKinley: The Making of Theodore Roosevelt’s America is an examination of the events, social conditions and dramatic political changes taking place in America immediately prior to and during the birth of the 20th century that led to the assassination of William McKinley and the rise of progressivism. It is furthermore an investigation of the motives behind the assassination, and an analysis of the events leading up to what made possible “Roosevelt’s America,” arguably the first recognizably modern period in American history from a 21st century perspective: the progressive era.
I read a book about the Boston Massacre the was originally named the bloody massacre. The amount of killed persons is generally accepted to be 5 people. The Fifth of March is a 1993 novel about the Boston Massacre (of March 5, 1770) by historian and author Ann Rinaldi, who was also the author of many other historical fiction novels such as Girl in Blue and A Break with Charity. This book is about a young indentured servant girl named Rachel Marsh who finds herself changing as she meets many people, including young Matthew Kilroy, a British private in the 29th regiment.
In "Our Secret" by Susan Griffin, the essay uses fragments throughout the essay to symbolize all the topics and people that are involved. The fragments in the essay tie together insides and outsides, human nature, everything affected by past, secrets, cause and effect, and development with the content. These subjects and the fragments are also similar with her life stories and her interviewees that all go together. The author also uses her own memories mixed in with what she heard from the interviewees. Her recollection of her memory is not fully told, but with missing parts and added feelings. Her interviewee's words are told to her and brought to the paper with added information. She tells throughout the book about these recollections.
Dissociation can occur any time in our life and there is two kinds of dissociation, childhood and adulthood. Child dissociation is different from adult dissociation. Child dissociation occurs when the child is actually experiencing some sort of trauma, like abuse. Adult dissociation happens in situations like stress or family related issues. Another difference is that child dissociation does not last very long (usually a hour), but adult dissociation lasts for a longer period of time. Dissociation occurs when something so painful is happening that the mind leaves the body to go elsewhere. In Martha Stout’s essay “When I Woke up On Tuesday, It Was Friday,” she defines dissociation as the mind leaving the body and transporting our awareness to a place so far away, it feels like the person is watching from outside their body. In her essay, she tells her audience about the dangers of dissociation, such as blackout, unable to relate to others, a sense of not knowing who one is, and the sense of lost time. She also includes some of her patient’s stories and experiences with dissociation, how they struggle for sanity and how she helps them see a new meaning of life. She tells her audience that often when patients or people dissociate they have lack of self-control and self-awareness. Dissociation can happen to anybody in a dire situation, for instance a child getting abused or some other traumatic event. Martha Stout has her audience/reader rethink about dissociation particularly the harmful side of it. She has help me see that although dissociation is helpful, it could lead to suicide thought, accidents, loss of identity and sanity.
Perhaps no other event in modern history has left us so perplexed and dumbfounded than the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany, an entire population was simply robbed of their existence. In “Our Secret,” Susan Griffin tries to explain what could possibly lead an individual to execute such inhumane acts to a large group of people. She delves into Heinrich Himmler’s life and investigates all the events leading up to him joining the Nazi party. In“Panopticism,” Michel Foucault argues that modern society has been shaped by disciplinary mechanisms deriving from the plague as well as Jeremy Bentham’s Panopticon, a structure with a tower in the middle meant for surveillance. Susan Griffin tries to explain what happened in Germany through Himmler’s childhood while Foucault better explains these events by describing how society as a whole operates.
Learning how to read literary works like a college professor can be tough, so when feeling lost like Dante while reading a confusing book, it helps to have a Virgil guide us. Thomas C. Foster, author of How to Read Literature like a Professor thoroughly guides his readers to look for similar literary elements or ideas from different works and make connections. His idea for this book comes from his love for books which thrived as a child and leads him to inspire others with his works. Actually, it even inspired me. This is an informative book that revolves around the idea of creative thinking, which has opened my eyes and made me like the book even more than I did before.
Breaking rules is what makes humans learn. This is what David Levithan interpreted in his 322-page fictional novel, Every Day. David Levithan uses characterization, vivid imagery, and irony to convey to readers that systems don’t follow rules.
Jean-Luc Godard’s Weekend, released in 1967, embodies the entirety of the French New Wave cinema in its prime, as well as being a masterpiece and a hit worldwide. Strewn with different types of cuts and camera angles, as well as lots of bright colors, Godard creates a humorous, crash-filled piece with a dark underlying plot. The combination of these seemingly opposing factors only adds to the genius of Godard, who throughout the piece alludes to something deeper thematically- the human self-destruction of civilization.
The star-studded romantic comedy Midnight in Paris is one of Woody Allen’s most recent films which he did both, wrote and directed. It is a film about a man named Gil (Owen Wilson) who travels to Paris with his fiancée’s parents in order to expand his imagination and he ends up embarking on a journey to the 1920s while walking the streets of Paris at night. Not only is this film engaging and witty, but it also manages to provide both, overt and covert examples of postmodernism in film. By analyzing Woody Allen’s 2011film Midnight in Paris, we can identify the presence of many underlying motifs in both the narrative and the characterization of the film when using some of Frederic Jameson and Jean Baudrillard’s concepts on postmodernism.
The author skillfully uses literary techniques to convey his purpose of giving life to a man on an extraordinary path that led to his eventual demise and truthfully telling the somber story of Christopher McCandless. Krakauer enhances the story by using irony to establish Chris’s unique personality. The author also uses Characterization the give details about Chris’s lifestyle and his choices that affect his journey. Another literary element Krakauer uses is theme. The many themes in the story attract a diverse audience. Krakauer’s telling is world famous for being the truest, and most heart-felt account of Christopher McCandless’s life. The use of literary techniques including irony, characterization and theme help convey the authors purpose and enhance Into The Wild.
“American Beauty” has many facets of ordinary, predictable and typical scenes of life in suburbia with characters to match. Portraying the appearance of such a lifestyle can be done in costume, narrative, clichéd dialogue or the juxtaposition of scenery and props. In this satirical film the character’s façade disappears as the reality of their life is presented to the audience seamlessly and continually by the techniques of the cinematographer.
In his novel The Hours, Michael Cunningham creates a dazzling fabric of queer references managing to intertwine the lives of three different women into one smooth narrative. In this essay, I will discuss what makes The Hours queer literature, how the novel has contributed to the queer genre, the cultural significance of the novel, and I will discuss several points made in Jeanette McVicker’s critical article “Gaps and Absences in The Hours.” My aim, however, is not to say that Michael Cunningham’s The Hours is strictly a queer novel, but to highlight what makes the novel queer and to discuss Cunningham’s idea of sexual orientation as a fluid entity.
In a great essence, John Green changed the way authors are respected in the game of writing. He managed to stabilize his popularity, capture the hearts of fans from every background, and deliver influential works of literature that top standardized goals today. Whether it be helping charities with web projects or swaying minds, Green’s inspiration continually effects the 20th century’s today.
Roland Barthes, Camera Lucida, explores the stream of consciousness Barthes experiences when viewing his Winter Garden photo. The photo depicts his mother as a child and how Barthes decides to handle the understanding of this image. For this essay my Winter Garden photo will be titled The Father. This essay will be an attempt to work through the ideas and vocabulary used by Barthes in understanding his own photo.
As an audience we are manipulated from the moment a film begins. In this essay I wish to explore how The Conversation’s use of sound design has directly controlled our perceptions and emotional responses as well as how it can change the meaning of the image. I would also like to discover how the soundtrack guides the audience’s attention with the use of diegetic and nondiegetic sounds.