Taylor Burns
The Government’s Grasp
Atlas Shrugged tells the story of a failing United States economy, characterized by strict government regulation and the sudden disappearance of many of the country’s most influential industrialists. Through this setting, along with a mysterious strike lead by John Galt, the movie’s message becomes clear; to promote a laissez-faire economy that cultivates individual achievement, and denounce one dominated by political bosses and corruption.
As early as the opening scene, Atlas Shrugged reveals the crisis that the country is facing, foreshadowing the result of intense government regulation. The news is broadcasting stock values dropping dramatically, leaving major businesses and traders in a panic. Furthermore, conflicts in the east have called for a halt in oil imports to the United States, spiking gas prices to a historical high.
Atlas Shrugged is told through the eyes of Dagny Taggard, the movie’s protagonist. Dagny is the Vice President of Taggard Transcontinental, a family-run railroad company that she operates alongside her brother Jim. Taggard Transcontinental’s railroads are old and derailing, posing a major threat to the company’s future. Considering rail is now the most common form of transportation due to its affordability, this is a major issue for the country. In an attempt to save the family business and prevent future derailments, Dagny decides to reline her rails with Rearden Steel, a new metal created by Hank Rearden. She is convinced the metal is tougher, lighter, and cheaper than other steels.
When Dagny goes to Hank’s office to negotiate a partnership, it becomes evident that the government is attempting to regulate Rearden Metal. Hank is shown sorting though lette...
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... and today’s government would not be able to get away with ignoring such a catastrophe without appearing suspicious. Furthermore, due to the democratic system that the United States has developed, it is unlikely that the regulations in Atlas Shrugged would pass. However, if such laws were to pass, the United States allows its people to bring their arguments to court, where they are given the platform to contest their concerns and bring forth rightful behavior and change.
I do not think that there is a difference in the likelihood of the events happening between today and ten years from now. The United States has already established a stable system that it operates on, which was created centuries ago. If anything, I think that it would be less likely that the government has corrupt relationships with businesses in the future, as the country is only progressing.
“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man 's needs, but not every man 's greed.” As humans, we work countless hours in order to have a greater opportunity to succeed in life to fulfill our wants. F Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby, utilizes effective language and punctuation in the text in order to accomplish his purpose: Illustrate what material goods does to a society. From a rhetorical standpoint, examining logos, ethos, and pathos, this novel serves as a social commentary on how pursuing the “The American Dream” causes people in society to transform into greedy and heartless individuals.
Money, death and lies are the central theme of this book. Which has existed since the beginning of time and present in society today. This play heavily focuses on falsehoods and fate. The question of whether or not should we as a society be doing anything to change America, my answer is affrimative, I agree we should. With that being said, the only way to stop greed is to stop the capatilistic machine. Destroying currensy on a global scale and putting zero emphasis on money and more emphasis on building
Throughout the philosophical novel known as Atlas Shrugged, its author, Ayn Rand, leaves no question as to the primary theme within the story. In fact, Rand herself stated that the theme “is the role of the mind in man’s existence.” The story indicates that it is the presence and awareness of the mind that promotes prosperity and morality. For the duration of the book, as the men of reason and strong morality disappear, panic spreads through the remaining men in power, who are representative of the incompetent. They represent the men who avoid reason, acting upon such things as feeling and responsibility. Rand, through her lead character, condemns men of this nature, writing; “Are you seeking to know what is wrong with the world? All the disasters
The use of theme in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey brings upon the ideas of misogyny, sexual repression and freedom, and salvation from an omnipotent oppressor, through the story of Chief Bromden, who lives in an insanity ward. Even from the beginning pages of the novel, the reader is introduced to such characters as Nurse Ratched, or the “Big Nurse,” who is said to be the dictator of the ward and acts upon the ward with the utmost control. Another branch of the theme of oppressors and salvation that relates to Nurse Ratched, as well as Randle McMurphy, is the idea that they are both representatives of figures based in Catholicism. Sexual repression and freedom is seen with the ultimate punishment in the ward, a lobotomy, being stated as equivalent to castration. Both of the operations are seen as emasculating, removing the men’s personal freedom, individuality, and sexual expression, and reducing them to a child-like state. All of these different pieces of the theme relates to a powerful institution that, because of the advances of the time, such as technology and civil rights for women, is causing men to be common workers without distinctive thoughts that must fit the everyday working mold of the 1950s.
Discuss how Upton Sinclair portrays the economic tensions and historical processes at hand in the late 19th and early 20th centuries
The utilization of imagery has dependably been a common path for authors to convey essential issues to general society. It is not remarkable to peruse a straightforward youngsters' story and find hidden political or good messages, for instance, Horatio Alger's novel Ragged Dick. This story was composed after the Civil War, when America encountered a time of immense modern development. The free enterprise hard working attitude had turned into an all inclusive thought in the North, and accordingly the Government consented to stay bankrupt issues, taking after the modern arrangement of "free enterprise." This enlarged the hole between the rich and poor people, making it troublesome for a less lucky individual to work his way up in the public
... industriously at that time yet the doom of the Stock Market Crash of 1929 loomed over the heads of American citizens. One could say that throughout the course of history, the significance of Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby has gained more fame and momentum in the minds of Americans today. Fitzgerald was indeed the best modernist of his time, due to the fact that he predicted, based on the actions of the wealthy, that the direction of nations would be controlled by few people. In the United States today, one could say that most of this nation is controlled by the corporations and that in a few years, the massive companies will be able to buy a presidency. Although this is just a speculation, so was the idea of Fitzgerald. Modernists in the future should still read and praise this book, The Great Gatsby, because it is a look into the gears of the economy of a nation.
In this world, and in the world of Ayn Rand’s imagination, there are two kinds of people: those who live to create, and those who wish to live as parasites feeding off the benefits of those creations. In Atlas Shrugged, she explores what might happen when the creators of the world stop creating; the parasites are left to try to live on their own. The novels that Miss Rand writes always reflect this sort of thing. She writes of the battle between the two types of people as some write of the battles between good and evil. In reality, each side of the battle can be equated in such terms. These writings provide a detailed analysis of the two forces, and leave the reader with a profound sense of vitality and inspiration.
Tyranny, it has happened before and will happen again. It is up to us to take a stand, to hold the government back.
Martin Ritt’s Norma Rae portrays the plight of the Southern factory worker during the 1970’s. As the film progresses and Norma Rae fights for her rights, it is difficult to believe that economic system under which she works is that of capitalism. Yet, the very idea that she is able to advocate for her self and for others, as workers in a factory with the support of a union organizer, demonstrates the role of the worker in a capitalist society. Norma Rae was able to form a union because the system maintained that she had the authority to do so.
This was by far my least favorite paper of all of them simply because "The Dubliners" is incredibly hard to understand when you don't have enough time to read back through it like I had previously to understand the other stories. "The Dead" and "The Sister's" are two different stories. "The Dead" is the longest story in "The Dubliners" and the most difficult to understand because of the many different themes running through it. While "The Sisters" is much shorter than the latter, with an easier storyline.
The observer can see this through the explicit cinematography of the movie and depiction of the Great Depression made by the director. However, the director left out a key aspect of the events of the depression, the stock market crash. Perhaps, this catastrophic event was irrelevant to the plot and message of the movie, but it is important to the actual Great Depression of the United States. Furthermore, the nation of 2010 is well on its way to repeating history. There are frightening similarities between that dreadful time of the 1930’s and the present that should not be overlooked, or the United States might condemn itself back into that horrific state it has so long tried to avoid.
Who is John Galt? John Galt is the ideal man. Ayn Rand illustrates the embodiment of the lost virtue—the human mind— in John’s character through his juxtaposition against the modern “man”. In the collectivist society portrayed in Atlas Shrugged, men are punished for using their only method of survival—thinking. John Galt utilizes his mind to create achievements and prosperity. By vowing to live his life only according to his own selfish ends, he earns the right to live freely to delight in this virtue. This highest virtue is the value he holds of his own life—a demonstration of his eternal love to life itself.
Gone With the Wind, written by Margaret Mitchell, inaccurately portrays time period during the American Civil War (1861-1865) and Reconstruction Era (1865-1877). Set in Clayton County, Georgia and Atlanta, Mitchell falsely depicts the rise of the feminism through Scarlett O’Hara, for it did not exist at the time. In addition, although she accurately maintains the historical background of the novel by providing details about the war and important figures, the portrayals of several key characters in comparison to those who lived in the actual time period are not realistic. Overall, especially because the novel is written in a biased point of view of
Steinbeck portrays to strengthen the logic and persuasiveness of his argument; how the Great Depression affected individuals and their own American Dreams. Steinbeck uses allusion to show the reader that “ the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry”, Archetype to show the prejudice attitudes towards each group of people during the great depression, and lastly foreshadowing to hint to the readers what will happen throughout the novella. Through the use of these devices Steinbeck is able to capture the image of the “American Dream” and portray how certain characters were truly