Analysis Of Boylan's My Favorite Holiday Movie Involves A Giant Rabbit

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In “My Favorite Holiday Movie Involves a Giant Rabbit”, Boylan discusses her favorite Christmas movies and how their meanings have influenced her during the holidays. Through the use of allusions, metaphor, and imagery, Boylan argues that the holiday season is really about believing and practicing internal virtues to uplift oneself and one’s life. For example, Boylan makes several allusions to popular Christmas movies, like “The Snowman”, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”, and “It’s a Wonderful Life”. However, her most prominent allusion throughout the article is to “Harvey”, which “on the surface… is not a Christmas movie at all but the story of a man whose best friend is a six-foot-tall invisible rabbit”. At first, Boylan’s choice to reference …show more content…

Boylan chooses this quote for its strong contrast and repetition that help prove her point. The repetition and contrast between “big terrible things” and “big wonderful things” work together to express the idea that people can continue doing large, attention-worthy acts, but can change themselves to have good intentions instead. This hints largely at the idea of New Year and “new me”, where one reinvents themselves for the New Year. Boylan effectively connects her “Harvey” movie allusion to the deeper meaning of the holidays: self-improvement. Furthermore, the quote’s context of the bar is meant to show how people typically relieve their stress at bars. Symbolically, they will release their sorrows and problems to start anew. She also alludes to “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and quotes “Isn’t there anyone… who can tell me what Christmas is all about?” Again, Boylan’s choice of a seemingly childish movie emphasizes the real and deeper moral. The question makes the audience reflect on the true meaning of Christmas by touching on pathos. The question conjures personal images and thoughts specific to each reader and makes them question: what really is Christmas and what have I been

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