“Vincent is not a hero” Discuss
Andrew Niccol has created a character that is portrayed as being a struggler from the moment he was born, he was destined to play this role as soon as he was conceived naturally as he was to wear the label of “God child” for the rest of his life , this label determines they life style and quality of life he will lead and the prospects are not good -“They used to say that a child conceived in love has a greater chance of happiness. They don't say that anymore”. Niccol leads us to believe that Vincent is a man who has overcome the odds in order to achieve his dream in a society where individuality is an unrequited trait and the ability to conform plus right DNA is all a person needs to succeed. What can easily be missed is the reality that in order to achieve his dreams he had to become a criminal which raises the question, is this man who is seen as a hero defiant of his opposition, worthy for our admiration considering the un-admirable form he had to take on to gain it?.
The measures Vincent goes to, to achieve his dream of becoming an astronaught make him seem less of a hero than he is portrayed as, The idea of changing your identity from an “invalid” with problems that prevent one from leading a normal life, to taking on the identity of a “Valid” with a physical make-up so perfect that “you could go anywhere” with his “helix tucked under your arm”, again lowers the opinion of his character and makes it difficult to separate his true identity to the false one he has taken on, Throughout the film Niccol makes it hard to distinguish which parts of Vincent’s personality actually are, we see many instances where Vincent shows admirable qualities such as him romantically letting go of a strand of Irene’s hair and saying “the wind caught it” . But this incident could also psychologically be a way of ensuring if Irene ever had a piece of him, that she would do the same and his identity would be protected. His personality as we knew it before he took on Eugene’s identity portrayed him as lonely dreamer. He was the stereotypical outcast down to finest detail. He sat by himself, ate by himself , dreamt of great things and in true Hollywood style left home and took on the job that all people take when they have nothing left, a cleaner.
In life, there could be multiple ideas on what heroism really mean. Many people would be curious about what it would take for them to become a hero. In the short story “The Mystery of Heroism” by Stephen Crane, a young union soldier’s name Fred Collins, who is engaging in a devastated war, decided to take a risk of running across a raging battlefield in order to retrieve water from a well for his fellow soldiers. Collins reveal the essence of bravery and courage by endangering his life to retrieve water for his fellow soldiers but at the same time he also did it to assist himself. Collins wants to prove to all of his company that he is brave enough to take risks. As a result, Collins demonstrates that his heroic actions is based on whether
This challenge which brewed deep within Victor makes him forget about his own life and leads him into isolation and a complete concentration on project. Blinded by his quest, Victor is unable to measure the consequences of what he is trying to do. Victor returns home feeling frustrated and feeling as though all his hard work had ended in the utmost failure. In addition, Victor feels guilty, realizing that his creation is the cause of his little brother’s death. During this time, he also encounters that an innocent victim, Justine, is sentenced and condemned, a person of great significance, someone like a sister, to the love of his life, Elizabeth. In analyzing the following paragraph, the reader is able to see the difficulty that Victor has in expressing his emotions.
Brent Staples presents an essay that explains the current "grade inflation" that is taking place in colleges and universities currently. According to Staples, the problem resides in the competition that goes on between all colleges nowadays, and to keep students from attending classes that aren't as interesting as others, such as humanities. The author uses an economic principle as a metaphor to explain what the problem consists of. He begins by stating that "shabby products" can compete with the "superior" ones, if their price and quality appear to be better and more accessible. This goes down to a point, where inflation is generated and those "superior products" are not "superior" any more, they lose their superiority. With an apprehensive tone, the author expresses his concern about the future if this continues to happen. This is what eventually will happen in schools, well they're "showering" students with A's and great grades only to keep up in statistics or preventing the loss of jobs, since many classes would be greatly avoided.
In 1952, Golding wrote a classic novel, Lord of the Flies and shows people are born evil. In this novel William Golding proves his point in writing this novel, while Jean Jacques Rousseau thinks the opposite of Golding. Rousseau thinks that people are born naturally good and pure, but society is what makes and turns some into evil. The novel Lord of the Flies starts out with a planes crashing and young boys being the only ones to survive. They are to start their own “government and rules” and the boys need to make their own society and survive until someone comes to rescue them. For a while they all behave, but then it becomes chaos and stop their society and do not follow their own rules. In my opinion, I would have to agree with Rousseau, because he thinks man is naturally good and pure and that society corrupts man.
Today’s films and TV shows have a large impact and sometimes change the way people think. The TV show “Arrow” does exactly that while asking the question if a vigilante could be classified as a hero. Vigilantes have accomplished quite a few astonishing objectives, from Julius Caesar’s assassination to something in today’s time, Mr. Extreme. In films there will always be the people who criticize the actors, all the way done to the characters behavior and ideas. Avoiding a huge question, can a vigilante like Oliver Queen be considered a hero because of his actions?
Parkinson's disease is a neurological disorder that is named after "the English physician who first described it fully in 1817" (4). The disease causes disturbances in the motor functions resulting in patients having trouble moving. Other characteristics that are not always present in every patient are tremors and stiffening of limbs. All of these characteristics, of the disease are caused by "degeneration of a group of nerve cells deep within the center of the brain in an area called the substantia nigra" (5). Dopamine is the neurotransmitter for these cells to signal other nerve cells. However as the cluster of nerve cells fail to operate, the dopamine can not reach the areas of the brain that affects one's motor functions (5). On average Parkinson's patients have "less than half as much dopamine in their systems as healthy people do" (8). The problem and controversy that arises from this disease is in the cure. Researchers, for years, have been attempting to unravel the mystery of what causes Parkinson's disease and how it can be treated and or cur...
Heroes are rarely seen in today's world. Too many people are worried about money or power to be concerned with others around them. But then that leads to the definition of a hero. It is possibly a person who does moral good in the world, or perhaps someone who stands up for those who do not have the power to do so themselves. Heroes come in all shapes and sizes, but people must remember that they are still human. They do make mistakes and they can be selfish. Such is the case in both Hamlet and Tempest. Both main characters have been slighted in some way and both eventually get their revenge. They are similar and different in the ways that they go about this business. Thus, Hamlet and Prospero shall be discussed in detail to each other and how they performed as the "hero" of the play.
As the story begins, the reader is immediately told of Victor’s noble stature in society as he states “I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most distinguished of that republic” (Shelly 14). His family was constantly travelling when he was younger and his parents devoted all their affection towards him. As he grew older, his desire for knowledge leads him to travel abroad so he could earn the best education. Victor was born into a happy, enjoyable, and wealthy life, but still strived to excel at everything in his life. The passion he expresses towards bettering himself in the means of knowledge connects the reader to him. Everyone has goals, and seeing someone push themselves to the limits to achieve them gives a sense of hope. Unfortunately, Victor’s lust for knowledge go...
Society commonly distinguishes the faults of life, the unorthodox aspects of deteriorated childbirth, as simply being irrelevant to the essential advancement/evolution of that particular group. Mankind has always wished to develop superior physiological and psychological features in comparison to those of the preceding generation. Thus strains of debilitated traits are often looked down upon and ostracized from the progressive majority (Darwin's Theory) as though they were mere ‘accidents’ of nature, deficient of any noteworthy potential. Rodman Philbrick, an American author residing in Boston, Massachusetts, delivers a morally enigmatic novel titled Freak the Mighty, imploring the elements of a pair of discriminated companions and the wondrous adventures they spent together. Maxwell Kane, the objective protagonist had a life riddled with isolation from his peers due to his supposedly inferior brain. But when Kevin, a seemingly brilliant child with a frail physique comes into his daily life, their encounters become those of Freak the Mighty. In a conjecture regarding to the plot, Kevin is the acclaimed hero of the story because he provided the main protagonist with a purpose, rescued him from immediate peril, all while persevering through the dreaded consequences of his disease.
Golding has a rather pessimistic view of humanity having selfishness, impulsiveness and violence within, shown in his dark yet allegorical novel Lord of the Flies. Throughout the novel, the boys show great self-concern, act rashly, and pummel beasts, boys and bacon. The delicate facade of society is easily toppled by man's true beastly nature.
Into the Wild, written by John Krakauer tells of a young man named Chris McCandless who 1deserted his college degree and all his worldly possessions in favor of a primitive transient life in the wilderness. Krakauer first told the story of Chris in an article in Outside Magazine, but went on to write a thorough book, which encompasses his life in the hopes to explain what caused him to venture off alone into the wild. McCandless’ story soon became a national phenomenon, and had many people questioning why a “young man from a well-to-do East Coast family [would] hitchhike to Alaska” (Krakauer i). Chris comes from an affluent household and has parents that strived to create a desirable life for him and his sister. As Chris grows up, he becomes more and more disturbed by society’s ideals and the control they have on everyday life. He made a point of spiting his parents and the lifestyle they lived. This sense of unhappiness continues to build until after Chris has graduated college and decided to leave everything behind for the Alaskan wilderness. Knowing very little about how to survive in the wild, Chris ventures off on his adventure in a state of naïveté. It is obvious that he possessed monumental potential that was wasted on romanticized ideals and a lack of wisdom. Christopher McCandless is a unique and talented young man, but his selfish and ultimately complacent attitude towards life and his successes led to his demise.
Such a series of tragic events has a great toll among the two main characters (Cox ) . For a vicious, careless indivi...
What makes someone a hero? A hero isn’t a celebrity or someone who can fly, have super speed, or shoot lasers out of their eyes. A hero is just an ordinary citizen that fights to solve a widespread issue in today’s society. A hero is an ordinary individual who rises to the occasion and fights the issues with superhero behavior, without the actual super powers. A hero is someone just similar to everyone else, but when they see a problem they have the bravery to step up and fix it without thinking twice. In the United States, a hero is someone whose character and qualities inspire others to live in life with fulfillment and compassion.
Through this essay Richard Rodriguez writes about his experiences as a son, and as a student. Through his relationship with his parents the reader can see how Rodriguez was separating for his
For our paper we’ve chosen to analyze the film, The Wild Child. The film helps to serve as a great example for multiple psychological phenomena and concepts pertaining to the material that we have learned throughout the course this quarter. Right from the opening scene of The Wild Child, the viewer is able to make note of the complexity that is the life of the young Victor; otherwise known as the wild child in this film. The viewer is able to view Victor’s lack of social awareness, his inability to cope in a way society deems fit when placed in a stressful situation, quintessentially he lacks the basic skill of language to voice his distressed thoughts. All of this can be analyzed from the opening situation in which he frightens a women picking