Is the Book Always Better than the Movie?

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A Patch of Gray There is an adage that is frequently referred to which states a picture is worth a thousand words. Often people do not consider the converse: if a thousand words are worth a picture. In another manner of speaking, is it possible for an author to be capable of producing a work that is effective in immersing a person in a complicated and detailed world? Unless it is a nonfictional account, it takes great writing skills to transport the reader into a setting while also providing clear aspects that strike out and provide a lasting impact. To make that challenge further demanding, the author must also consider how the biases that he or she possesses can effect how the narrative is done. Biases are very difficult to suspend for both the reader as well as the writer. The way that people view the world and the events that are occurring are a result of their biases that were forged from the experiences in their lifetime. To counter that, some see the solution to create a movie based on the literary work to help better capture the accuracy that the book attempts to achieve by visualizing the events. A common debate that often occurs is if the book or the film provides a better narrative. It would be more interesting instead to analyze the historical accuracy of a novel and a film that take place during the same time period and general location. A Patch of Blue is an award winning and critically acclaimed film that was released in 1965. It was based on the 1961 novel Be Ready with Bells and Drums by Elizabeth Kata. It is a fictional story about the relationship that develops between a black man and blind white woman set during the events of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. This contrast with Black Like Me, ... ... middle of paper ... ...es. "Takin' It to the Streets": A Sixties Reader. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print. Farrington, Brenda. “Elizabeth Kata and The Great Society.” The Sixties. Chapman University. Beckman 203, Orange. 4 Apr. 2014. Griffin, John Howard. Black like me. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1961. Print. Kata, Elizabeth, author. A patch of blue. Dir. Guy Green. Perf. Sidney Poitier and Shelley Winters. MGM, 1965. DVD. Kringas, Damian. "Kata, Elizabeth." . Dictionary of Sydney, 1 Jan. 2012. Web. 27 Apr. 2014. . Loving v. Virginia. The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. 27 Apr. 2014. . Snopes. "Dead Like Me." snopes.com: Death of John Howard Griffin. Snopes.com, 21 May 2013. Web. 26 Apr. 2014. .

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