The Perks Of Being A Wallflower English Literature Essay

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower English Literature Essay Author: Stephen Chbosky was born on January 25th, 1970, in Pitsburgh, Pensylvannia. After growing up in Pensylvannia, Stephen pursued a directing career in movies, but ended up writing books. His first book was The Perks of Being a Wallflower, which was set in his very own home state. Stephen said that he relates to Charlie, but his life in High School was in many ways different. Themes: Like most books about teenage boys, this book encompasses the theme of independence. The main character Charlie had just started High School, a time where you become more independent from your parents, and try new things. Charlie never had many friends previously, and the one good friend he did have comitted suicide the year before, leaving Charlie scared, and alone. When friendship is found among some seniors, Charlie starts his journey to a more independent self. He found himself going to parties, smoking, doing drugs, going out with girls, and even driving throughout the book. Another important theme in the book is of happiness. Whenever Charlie walked down the hallway in the school, he would wonder if a person was really happy. In the hallways, I see the girls wearing the guys jackets, and I think about the idea of property. And I wonder if anyone is really happy. I hope they are. I really hope they are. Thoughts like this would constantly occupy Charlies mind. Many thing s made Charlie happy, wether it was an interesting read, a good song, or an inspiring movie. What made Charlie really happy though were his friends, and when he found himself having a good time with them, he would forget all the bad things in his life and enjoy the moment. Later on though, Charlie found out that he shouldnt put peoples happiness ahead of his own, because in the end, he would end up missing out on the best things in life. Characters: Charlie Charlie was the 15 year old protagonist and main character of the story. Hes a timid and introverted guy whos had way too many bad things happen in his life. His best friend comitting suicide, his aunt getting hit by a car, and being the outcast of the school are only a fraction of the things hes been through. He was very intelligent and loved reading books, but that didnt really help the fact that he was socially awkward to the point where he didnt take part in anything that happened around him. He was an extremely emotional kid, but this was due to the things that have happened in his past, which in a way had traumatized him. He loved music though, and along with movies and books, they were a great getaway from his life. He was an extremely caring person too, and always put others ahead of himself, even if a little too much at times. Patrick Patrick was the senior from Charlies woodshop class who ended up becoming a treasured friend to Charlie. He was one of the few homosexuals in the school and was constantly frustrated at the fact he had to sneak around with another guy instead of being open about it. He was a very good friend, and would always take Charlie to fun places with his Sam. He also accepted Charlie for the way he was and never criticized his actions. Sam Sam was Patricks half sister, and Charlies other best friend, also in senior year. She was a beautiful girl who would not leave Charlies thoughts no matter what. She was a great friend to him though, just like Patrick. Even though Sam told Charlie not think of her in any way more than a friend, near the end of the book itss her who finds she loves him with a passion. She would always give Charlie advice when he needed it, and just like Patrick, accepted him for who he was. Setting: The book is set in the years 1991/92, in Pensylvannia, USA. Plot: When Charlies best friend comitted suicide in 8th grade, his life became a mess, and his one good friend was gone. When he overheard some girls talking about some guy that listened, and didnt try and sleep with some girl he could of slept with, he decided to send letters to him anonymously every few days, to make sure people like this, good people, still existed. So the letters went on, for a year, describing his experience in freshman year. Charlie was no ordinary freshman though. His past left him emotionally crippled and socially awkward. When he finally made some friends, he followed his wise English teachers advice to participate, and stop watching life from the sidelines. So his friends became his best friends, and he went on to participate like he was so wisely told. Thats not where it ended though, because family issues werent too far away, neither was drama with girls, or arguments with friends. Throughout the course of this book, Charlie was forced to learn how to jug gle school, friends, and family, and when some secrets from his past were revealed, it seemed like his life couldnt get any worse. Literary Techniques: The author uses quite a few literary techiniques succesfully in the book. The book is comprised of letters alone sent by Charlie to a friend of his, therefore it is in first person narrative. Early on in the book, Charlie informs the reader that his teacher criticized him for writing run on sentences, and since the book consists of letters written by Charlie himself, some sentences are purposefully run ons, and the reader understands this. Also, since these letters are just a place for him to express his ideas, he doesnt utilize very creative language. He also explained this in the book and said that he found it pointless writing words that one wouldnt even understand. But I just have never heard anyone use the words corpulent and jaundice ever in my life. That included teachers. So, whats the point of using words nobody else knows or can say comfortably? The author also utilized flashbacks by allowing Charlie to share past experiences in his letters. As one woul d expect, no ones life can be interesting all the time, so when Charlies life loses interest, so does the reader in reading about it. Then again, when Charlies life has drama in it, it is almost impossible to put down the book. Target Audience: This book is aimed at an audience of teenage boys and girls. As the main character is a boy sharing his experience in High School, the book will mostly find its way into boys hands who are experiencing the same thing. Although Charlie has a complicated life, readers can easily relate to him and his experience at school and at parties. Its an easy read due to the lack of complicated language and basic plot, so most people can read this book, regardless of interest level. Purpose: The purpose of this book is mostly to entertain its readers. The book doesnt follow much of a plot and seems to include random ideas at times, but somehow the readers find themselves strangely attached to the main character, and feel the need to keep reading about this boys life. This book also opens the readers mind in a way, as to how High School was 20 years ago, and allows them to compare the two.

Lawrence School Poems

David Herbert Lawrence was an English novelist, poet and playwright. In 1908 Lawrence qualified as a teacher and found employment at Davidson Road School in Croydon. According to the author of D. H. Lawrence: The Life of an Outsider (2005): â€Å"He found the demands of teaching in a large school in a poor area very different from those at Eastwood under a protective headmaster. Nevertheless he established himself as an energetic teacher, ready to use new teaching methods like performing the Shakespearean dramas they had as text. Best of School† and â€Å"Last Lesson of the Afternoon† are two poems about his experiences as a teacher. Quite extraordinarily, they present two completely contrasting views. â€Å"Best of School† is about the pleasure a teacher experiences while partaking his duties as a teacher, while â€Å"Last Lesson† speaks about the unpleasant task of teaching. â€Å"Best of School† begins with an image of the â€Å"boys and the roo m in a colourless gloom of underwater float†. The poet compares the boys working in a classroom to an underwater scene. Their ideas and thoughts are like â€Å"bright ripples†.Their ideas are defined as â€Å"bright† because they are young boys and full of creativity and innovation. These boys’ heads are ‘busily bowed† in pursuit of knowledge, they are completely blind to the outside world. The teacher separates himself from the boys as a passive spectator sitting â€Å"on the shores of the class†. The pupils require no external help from him; they are a single entity, united in their pursuit of knowledge. They tend to look up to him from time to time to gain morsels of inspiration for their work and then carry on working busily. Having got what was to be had†, he stresses the fact that he does not actively take part in the children’s learning process, it is natural and voluntary. The â€Å"ripening morning† echoes th e ripening thoughts of the young boys and in the â€Å"sunlight† reflects the light of knowledge and intellect. â€Å"Last Lesson†, on the other hand is an exact opposite view. It begins with an image of weariness and disgust, the teacher begins by conceding defeat. Both the students and the teacher are being forced to sit in the classroom, waiting for the bell to ring.He says â€Å"I can haul them and urge them no more†. The teacher is experiencing great despair by having to sit in the classroom with his â€Å"pack of unruly hounds†, who are straining to be free. There is a sense of utter frustration; neither is the teacher interested in teaching and nor are the boys interested in gaining knowledge. The teacher can â€Å"no longer endure the brunt† of teaching a mass of uninterested children. The speaker in â€Å"Best of School† goes on to say that the boys are â€Å"like birds that steal and flee†.The boys raise their heads from tim e to time for getting the discipline necessary for concentration; the very presence of the teacher is an unspoken motivation for the students. He compares the glances of the students to the movement of tiny birds. â€Å"Touch after touch I feel on me†, he can almost feel the bright, inspired eyes of the students looking up to him for inspiration. He calls this inspiration â€Å"grain/Of rigour† that â€Å"they taste delightedly. † In complete contrast, the teacher in â€Å"Last Lesson† calls his students’ work â€Å"insults of blotted pages† and â€Å"slovenly work†. It is a sharp negative feeling that he expresses.He turns to the pile of sickly books on his desk and exclaims that it is impossible for him to plough through his corrections. To him it is a Herculean task, it is tedious and tiresome. The students are not interested in learning so the work seems to be a vivid insult to the teacher. He asks himself in desperation â€Å"sh all I take/ My last dear fuel of life to heap on my soul? † and ascertains, â€Å"I will not! †, â€Å"I will not waste my soul and my strength for this. † He realizes that it is a complete waste of both his time and energy to try to discipline his students and take them on a path to knowledge.He declares that he no longer cares how his students will fair because his students are so disinterested that both the teaching and their apparent learning, â€Å"goes down the same abyss†, down a deep dark hole of forgetfulness and oblivion. He continues the argument deliberately reducing the scope of education to inconsequential things like â€Å"A description of a dog† and saying that all his efforts are going to waste because his students are completely frustrated and not at all enthusiastic about learning. The larger picture of holistic education is lost due to their unwillingness to learn but the teacher also deviously justifies his argument.He says that the whole situation is rubbish and that nobody cares so there’s no point in this unnecessary pursuit. His final analogy in â€Å"Best of School† is probably the strongest and most beautiful one. The minds of his young pupils are like the â€Å"tendrils that reach out yearningly†. The young enthusiastic minds cling to the teacher for support. It is merely for inspiration and not learning. The teacher (tree) is wise, tall and firm. The students need the support and guidance of the teacher like a silent and strong beam of enlightenment on which they can fall back in times of trial.The teacher and student relationship is shown to be a beautiful one. The teacher is sitting at a distance but feels his students â€Å"clinging† to him. This is not an actual dependence for notes and explanation but it is spiritual and emotional, self-motivational. A stout and sturdy tree covered in tendrils seems to be covered in a green coat. Their lives are closely entwined and they grow together. The speaker says, â€Å"my time/Is hidden in theirs, their thrills are mine. † It is a delightfully rewarding experience for him to be able to contribute to the student’s spiritual growth and enlightenment in an unobtrusive way.The two poems, as mentioned earlier, present complete contrasts to each other. While the speaker in the â€Å"Last Lesson of the Afternoon† is tired of teaching and disturbed by just being in the classroom, the speaker/teacher in â€Å"Best of School† enjoys a fresh look at his job. Education is believed to be an individual process. Each one learns at their own pace and in their own way. When pupils find pleasure in learning by themselves, the process of teaching becomes an extremely rewarding one for the teacher. When the student is motivated, education is most worthwhile.The teacher believes that the pupils should make the journey on their own as only then will the journey be meaningful. It is surprising that whereas in one poem the teacher delights himself by inspiring his students, in the other the teacher is under a terrific compulsion to sit and wait for the bell before he can rush out of class. These two poems, present together, a great insight into the two perspectives of gaining education and knowledge. One is a tiresome, hauling process while the other demands independence and free thinking.

Utilizing The Sociological Imagination - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 4 Words: 1158 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2019/05/15 Category Sociology Essay Level High school Tags: Sociological Imagination Essay Did you like this example? All around the world, there is inequality in every society. The United States has one of the most diverse populations because of immigration, colonialism, and slavery. One example of where there is an issue of inequality is in race and ethnic groups. African Americans, Native Americans, and Asian Americans are the largest racial minorities in the United States, and Latinos and Jews are the largest ethnic groups (Shaefer 233). Sociologists definition of minorities is different than others because they look at the economic and political powerlessness of the group, not necessarily just by the number of people. Functionalists think that racial inequality is good to keep the society stable. They say that dominant people will benefit from the subjection of the minority. Conflict theorists think that racial discrimination and prejudice can have negative effects on a society. In Karl Marxs class theory, he viewed the exploitation of lower class as the basic part of the capitalist economy. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Utilizing The Sociological Imagination" essay for you Create order Marx said that by having racism, it keeps minorities in low paying jobs, and the capitalists could have cheap labor. With having cheap labor, when the dominant group demanded higher wages, they could be threatened with the thought that someone in the minority could replace their job because they have no choice but to work for low wages (Shaefer 229). Along with racial inequality comes a perspective called the racial profiling. Racial profiling is any arbitrary action initiated by an authority based on race, ethnicity, or national origin rather than on a persons behavior (Shaefer 229). A huge example of racial profiling that happens in our world today is when law enforcement officers assume because someone fits a racial profile, they are more willing to be engaged in illegal activity. Race also plays a huge role in the education of children. A study was done by the University of Chicago to see how different racial stereotypes affected the type of education a child was receiving. It has always been known as a part of history that African Americans have had unequal opportunities when it comes to schooling and education is looked at as social mobility for them. Although African Americans have made a dramatic increase in education progress over the years, they are still far behind that of a white student. In this study, researchers concluded that black students start elementary school with less schooling experience than white students and are more likely to have be below the modal grade for their age than white students. The University of Chicago also reported that gaps in the academic performance between blacks and whites can be clearly seen from age 9 through 17 (Epps 594). Racial inequality has been a large part of not only the American society, but societies all over the world. Another form of inequality pertains to gender. Women have always been inferior to men when it comes to gender gaps in the workforce. The occupational feminization theory is focused on the ratio of men to women in an occupation, and after World War II there was a steady increase in the number of women who started working. As the number kept increasing, the value of the jobs they were entering went down. Men did not want to work alongside women because they felt if a woman could do the same job as them it was too feminine. In a study done to show these gender differences it was said that, Within these feminizing occupations, studies have found a persistent gender gap in income even after controlling for additional factors (Schleifer 389). Women a lot of the time are looked at as less valuable to an occupation and receive less pay because there is this stigma that men can do the job better and more efficient. Within the same occupation, women tend to receive a lower pay than men because their work is devalued and looked at as not as good (Schleifer 390). Gender roles set apart the men from the women and lead them to have certain expectations of what is the right behavior for them to have. Men are looked at to be the bread winners of the family by working a labor-intensive job or being high up in the business realm, while women are looked at as being the caregivers and stay at home moms. Both sexes are equally capable of doing either job, but not many people see it that way. An example given in the sociology book explains that if a father takes his son to the doctors office and sits in the waiting area, the father will most likely get nods of approval by the receptionists and maybe even someone telling him hes a good father. Now, if a mother takes time to leave work or even a stay at home mom comes in with her son, she will not get a reaction at all because thats the stereotype of men and women (Shaefer 252). Functionalist think that gender differentiation provides to the overall social stability and is needed to maintain it. This perspective says that in order for a family to run smoothly and to its best ability, both adults need assigned roles in which they specialize in. Conflict theorists believe that the gender differences in males and females has always been of unequal power. Males are superior to females in the workforce and household duties because of their size and physical strength. In comparison to Marxs class theory, males are like the capitalist and control the wealth and power, while women are like the proletariats or working class. Women must look up to the men and follow their orders for anything to be accomplished. The interactionalist perspective is looked at differently than functionalist and conflict because it is looked at on a much smaller scale. Interactionalists examine every day interactions of the male and female and show that we do gender. By doing gender this means that there are specific things that males and females do all the time and have become accustomed too. Males typically hold open the doors for women and let a girl go ahead of them. Women practice this by consenting to the assistance of males and relying on their help when they think they are physically unable too (Shaefer 261). From a sociological perspective, there will always be inequality in the world and it doesnt matter if its race or gender or anything else. Inequality is simply a way of life. Works Cited Epps, Edgar G., and Carolyn D. Epps. Race, class, and educational opportunity: Trends in the sociology of education. Edmund W. Gordon: Producing Knowledge, Pursuing Understanding, vol. 10, no. 4, pp. 75-89, EBSCOhost. ezproxy.library.ipfw.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=truedb=aphAN=11055886site=ehost-livescope=site. Schaefer, Richard T. Sociology: A Brief Introduction. 12th ed., SmartBook, McGraw-Hill Education, 2018. Schleifer, Cyrus, and Amy D. Miller. Occupational Gender Inequality among American Clergy, 1976â€Å"2016: Revisiting the Stained-Glass Ceiling. Sociology of Religion, vol. 78, no. 4, 2017, pp. 387-410, EBSCOhost. doi:10.1093/socrel/srx032.

UtopiaThe Flawed Pursuit for Perfection - 1000 Words

Perfect societies have long been discussed and debated, prominent in the works of many great philosophers such as Plato and Thomas More. It wasn’t until the 16th century however, that a formal name was to be attributed to this unattainable perfection - a utopia. As a result, utopias and their opposite, dystopias have become prominent in modern works and form the basis for this analysis in William Golding’s The Lord of the Flies and Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games. Through their most recognised pieces, Golding and Collins demonstrate that free will and control cannot be moderated effectively to sustain a utopian society. Demonstrating that human greed and corruption dismantle these ideals, effectively creating a dystopia. Through The Lord of the Flies, Golding demonstrates the degradation of a potentially utopic society, into one that’s heavily characteristic of a dystopia. The downfall of the potentially perfect society within The Lord of the Flies is resultant of the greed and powerlust embodied by the antagonist Jack. Freed from social constructs and an overarching power, the boys are given an opportunity to live freely. Ralph’s government allows for individualism and free will, resulting in the failure of many systems which he tries to implement, such as the signal fire, however his predominant concern with physiological needs including safety and wellbeing creates a positive state on the island. Jack, envious of Ralphs leadership, begins to preoccupy himself withShow MoreRelated Utopia - The Impossibility of Perfection Essay example1686 Words   |  7 PagesUtopia - The Impossibility of Perfection The latter end of [this] commonwealth forgets the beginning. ?William Shakespeare, The Tempest From Platos The Republic to Karl Marxs Communist Manifesto, the search for a perfect social state has never stopped; its ultimate goal of achieving a human society that exists in absolute harmony with all due social justice, however, has proved to be woefully elusive. The pure concept of a utopia can be theoretically visualized as a perfect geometricRead More A Dystopian Future in Brave New World Essay examples4100 Words   |  17 Pagesrebel against the capitalistic class-divisions of their society.   Psychological mottoes and rigid class divisions have replaced traditional societal values such as family, religion and freedom.   A wonder drug that removes all psychological pain, the pursuit of carnal pleasures, and the replacement of identity and soul with idol worship of a Henry Ford type savior serve to create a dystopia that is frightening as well as the path already being forged in society when he wrote the work in the early 1930sRead MorePhilosophy Rejected Essay2019 Words   |  9 PagesPhilosophy is an interesting pursuit. It causes us to search for truth, ethics and ask the question â€Å"why?† more often than we would otherwise. However, I have found that philosophy itself rather distracting. It leads to false answers to what might sometimes be false questions. It leads to radically held beliefs that can be destructive, difficult to understand, and often contrary to reality. Worst of all, it often answers questions that we as humans have no business answering with any certainty. IRead MoreLibrary Management204752 Words   |  820 Pagesof control through rules.3 Other criticism centers on the relationship of the bureaucratic organization to its environment and the tendency of the traditional bureaucracy to ignore the outside world. The bureaucratic organizational model is seen as flawed because it treats the organization as if it were a closed system unaffected by the uncertainties of environment.4 Other criticism faults the bureaucratic model for being overly mechanical and ignoring individual and group behaviors in organizations

Analysis Of Disney s The Great Gatsby - 1205 Words

You probably can’t find anyone on the seven continents in the civilized world who has not heard the word Disney. No other person in the world has played both to, and with so many people’s imagination. Both young and old admire what Walter Disney accomplished in his lifetime. The dream started in 1923 with the creation of Disney’s first cartoon Alice’s Wonderland. Disney moved from Arkansas to California to create a series of cartoons about an adorable little girl Alice. The first cartoon, became a pilot for a series called Alice Comedies by M.J Winkle, a New York distributor on October 23, 1923. This day is a historic day in the film industry - when the Disney magic began. Disney’s amazing talent of drawing and the techniques he learned at the Chicago Art Institute, combined with his attention to detail caught the eye of the industry. Walt, with his brother Roy, created Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio to make a name for themselves. Alice Comedies sparked the idea for Walt of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in 1927. Disney who enjoyed drawing immensely and created 26 episodes in the first year. Dreaming big and ready to sign the contract for a second year Disney found out that his distributor, unbeknownst to him, contracted his employees without his knowledge to work directly for the distributor company, not for Disney. It was a shocking lesson for him to find out that he did not own the right to his characters. Disney who believed â€Å"All our dreams can come true, if we have theShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Walt Disney s The Great Gatsby 1660 Words   |  7 Pagesis the man who created the happiest place on earth. This.Is. Walt. Disney *que cartoon* Walt Disney’s Steamboat Willie, the first of many other Mickey Mouse cartoons, was a great hit all over the world. But it took a difficult and long journey to be where his legacy is today. Lets look back to where it all began†¦. Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5, 1901 in Chicago, Illinois. His parents were Elias and Flora Disney. He was born into the family with three siblings: Herbert, Raymond,Read MoreMedia Magic Making Class Invisible2198 Words   |  9 Pagesup. By showing the reader the background of the person, you could clearly see the pattern of lifestyle. If the personà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s parents were not so successful and only made about minimum wage, that child did not achieve a much higher status than their parents did. This supports Mantsios statement that what class you are born into affects you throughout your while life. He does a great job at convincing you, because he shows you real lifestyles. In another article, (Media Magic- Making Class invisible),

Mediaculture Free Essays

string(172) " between culture and society, the break down of the distinction between art and popular culture, the confusion over time and space, and the decline of the meta narratives\." Week 7: Suzanne Lacy and Leslie Labowitz, Feminist Media Strategies for Political Performance We live in a media centric world bombarded by the media images twenty four hours a day.   It is so powerful that we often cannot distinguish the ‘reality’ from the mediated reality. Media makes use of images around us to convey this very different articulated meaning. We will write a custom essay sample on Mediaculture or any similar topic only for you Order Now This often interludes with the notion of the people who control the media; which can either be the proprietor or dominant groups through force or coercion that control the opinions. These viewpoints are the factors that determine the news values, of the modern media, which often tend to trivialize or sensationalize the issues, according to the ideological stance. Feminist Media Arts have formed as a resistance to this distorted media views, to convey the ‘undistorted reality’ to the public. It’s more than an information campaign and the same time new mode of protest to decry the ugly stories media told about women. The feminist media work as the activists say ‘has three ultimate purposes: first, to interrupt the incessant flow of images that supports the established social order with alternative ways of thinking and acting; second, to organize and activate viewers (media is not the only, nor necessarily most effective, way to do this); third, to create artful and original imagery that follows in the tradition of fine art, to help viewers see the world in a new way and learn something about themselves in relation to it. ’ The authors in their essay point to the ways to attract the media to their campaign and force them to present their viewpoints. The authors say that ‘to understand how media operates, observe it -with detachment -and be pragmatic. It doesn’t matter what you think the media should cover, the object of the game (and it is a game) is to get them to play it your way. Mass media time is not a public service; it is a highly valuable commodity that is purchased by corporations and individuals who promote products, ideas, attitudes and images. The stakes of this game are high, and as artists the best we can hope for is a kind of guerrilla foray into that system.’ Here it would be wise to note the contributions of the Glasgow University Media Research Group (GUMG) and Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS), engaged in research in the process of news production and the relationship between ideology and representation. The research of the GUMG has been very controversial since the publication of Bad News in 1976. Bad News was concerned with the television coverage of industrial relations in 1975. The GUMG’s analysis of television news led it conclude that the viewers had been given a misleading portrayal of industrial disputes, a portrayal that distorted the ‘real’ situation. The descriptions attached to management were such that they persuaded the audience of the rightness of the management position against the demands made by the unions. Thus, it has become the inherent nature of the media to manipulate things. In 1973 Galtung and Ruge analyzed foreign news in newspapers and found that for any event to become a ‘news item’, and therefore considered ‘newsworthy’, it had to pass through a selection process. If it conformed to a particular set of criteria, the news staff judged it newsworthy. Galtunge and Ruge calls those criteria as ‘news values’. The essay tells different methods to persuade the media for the political performance. But the question remains, if the media conforms to certain pre-determined news values, how can these campaigns succeed, despite the systematic efforts by the activists. Week 8: Jesse Drew, The Collective Camcorder in Art and Activism. The essay attempts to portray the role of the video makers’ collectives, in many resistance movements. The invention of the video camcorder has in fact changed the course of history. These movements and the developments in technology when coupled with the ideology of post modernism, took art and activism to new heights. From the efforts of independent artists to the collectives such as Paper Tiger and the Independent Media Center, the revolt has spread to resist the images presented by the mainstream media and culture. So the environment was all set for a departure from the art-video, and experiment something new that reached the people. As the essayist says, television is, after all, at the heart of our popular culture, the culture of the everyday, and dominates the media landscape. Video, when all is said and done, is a form of television, ‘a media device that conveys information. It is natural that video artists cross the boundaries of art and activism, and frequently choose to ‘subvert the message, not just exploit the form. This artistic jujitsu, using the weight of television to fall upon itself, emerged as a popular strategy among video collectives. Increasingly, video artists in the 1980s and 1990s embraced the necessity to reflect on, intervene, and challenge the contested terrain of television, mass media, and popular culture, and leave the art-video aesthetic behind.’ As Strinati called it ‘post modernism is skeptical of any absolute, universal and all embracing claim to knowledge and argues that theories or doctrines which make such claims are increasingly open to criticism, contestation and doubt. The mass media are central to the post modern condition because we now take as real, is to a large extent what media tell us is real. We are bombarded from all sides by cultural signs and images in all aspects of media. According to Baudrillard, we have entered the world of simulacra. These are signs that function as copies or models of real objects or events. In the post-modern era, simulacra no longer present a copy of the world, nor do they produce replicas of reality. Today†¦..social reality is structured by codes and models that produce the reality they claim to merely represent.’ From the 1960s onwards there was a revolt against the modernists. The post modernists thought believed in the breakdown of the distinction between culture and society, the break down of the distinction between art and popular culture, the confusion over time and space, and the decline of the meta narratives. You read "Mediaculture" in category "Essay examples" The pop art of the 1960s demonstrates this clearly, for example, Andy Warhol presented soup tins and cola bottles as art, as well as challenging the uniqueness of Da Vinci’s portrait of the Mono Lisa by silk screening her image thirty times – Thirty are better than one. In fact post modernism has helped them to drift away from the so called artistic beliefs. In the words of the essayist ‘video artists in the 1980s and 1990s embraced the necessity to reflect on, intervene, and challenge the contested terrain of television, mass media, and popular culture, and leave the art-video aesthetic behind. The convergence of these new political, cultural, social, technological, artistic, and economic developments’ provided the impetus to the establishment of the counter movements like the Paper Television, and subsequently the Independent Media Center. In fact, video art has surpassed all other art forms in interpreting history. Week 9: Carole S. Vance, The War on Culture. The essay follows the great discussion in the world of art whether a self-censorship is inevitable when it comes to sexual images. Vance quotes instances where public ire overlooked the ‘artistic value’ when morality was questioned. Vance says that ‘the fundamentalist attack on images and the art world must be recognized as a systematic part of a right-wing political program to restore traditional social arrangements and reduce diversity. The right wing is deeply committed to symbolic politics, both in using symbols to mobilize public sentiment and in understanding that, because images do stand in for and motivate social change, the arena of representation is a real ground for struggle.’ He says that it is high time that a vigorous defence of art and images should be made. The author has given a new dimension to the culture war. This is not isolated with art or artistic movements. Representation of sexuality in media is more complex than in art, for example, counting the number of times that women appear on the screen because we cannot immediately identify a person’s sexual orientation in the way that we can identify markers of sex and race. Observations by Dyer on gay behavior can be more illustrative here on the representation of sexuality in media. He says ‘a major fact about being gay is that it doesn’t show. There is nothing about gay people’s physiognomy that declares then gay, no equivalent to the biological markers of sex and race. There are signs of gayness, a repertoire of gestures, stances, clothing and even environments that bespeak gayness but these are cultural forms designed to show what the person’s person alone does not show: that he or she is gay’. There are signs of gayness, for example gestures, accents posture and so on, but these markers of sexuality are socially constructed and are both historically and culturally specific. Media texts often rely on stereotypical narratives to indicate that characters in a story line are gay. These may include childlessness, loneliness, a man’s interest in arts or domestic crafts, a woman’s in mechanics or sports. ..each implying a scenario of gay life.’ Both lesbians and gays have been to use Tuchman’s term ‘symbolically annihilated’ by the media in general. The representation of these two groups has been particularly limited on television. The media has been very careful on such sensitive issues, but has not been so. Media has been overtly criticized primarily on its representations, but when coming to issues of morality, media tended to be very much conservative, and there of course has been   a lot of self-censorship. As the essayist says ‘symbolic mobilizations and moral panics often leave in their wake residues of law and policy that remain in force long after the hysteria has subsided, fundamentalist attack on art and images requires a broad and vigorous response that goes beyond appeals to free speech. Free expression is a necessary principle in these debates, because of the steady protection it offers to all images, but it cannot be the only one. To be effective and not defensive, the art community needs to employ its interpretive skills to unmask the modernized rhetoric conservatives use to justify their traditional agenda, as well as to deconstruct the â€Å"difficult† images fundamentalists choose to set their campaigns in motion.’ Artists can of course look at the way media behaves in this respect. Week 10: Kester Grant, A Critical Frame work for Dialogical Practice. Revolt, is word usually associated with the art movements and the biographies of artists themselves. Thus a shift from the galleries to community based installations is a natural course of the artistic history. The author explores these transitions as an inherent revolt that pervaded the artistic community. When the artists themselves began to question the gallery itself as an appropriate site for their work. At a time when scale and the use of natural materials and processes were central concerns in sculpture, the comparatively small physical space of the gallery seemed unduly constraining. Further, the museum, with its fusty, art historical associations, appeared ill equipped to provide a proper Context for works that explored popular culture or quotidian experience. Many artists saw museums, with their boards of wealthy collectors and businesspeople, as bastions of snobbish elitism in an era that demanded a more accessible and egalitarian form of art. There are many ways to escape the museum. In some cases artists chose to work in sites that were empty or depopulated (e.g., Gordon Matta-Clark’s â€Å"cuttings† in abandoned buildings, Michael Heizer’s or Robert Smithson’s land art projects in nearly inaccessible locations), suggesting a certain anxiety about the social interactions that might occur upon venturing beyond sanctioned art institutions. One strand of this work is represented by the agitational, protest-based projects of Guerilla Art Action Group (GAAG), the Black Mask Group, and Henry Flynt in New York. Drawing on the energies of the antiwar movement and the traditions of fluxus performance and siruationism, these groups staged actions outside mainstream cultural institutions (Lincoln Center, Museum of Modern Art, etc.) to call attention to the complicity of these institutions with broader forms of social and political domination.’ A different approach, and one more directly related to dialogical practices, emerged in the collaborative projects developed by artists associated with the Woman’s Building in Los Angeles during the 1970s. Artists, fueled by political protests against the Reagan administration’s foreign policy (especially in Central America), the antiapartheid movement, and nascent AIDS activism, as well as revulsion at the market frenzy surrounding neoexpressionism, with its retardaire embrace of the heroic male painter. A number of artists and arts collectives developed innovative new approaches to public and community-based work during the 1980s and early 1990s. The late 1980s and early 1990S witnessed a gradual convergence between old-school community art traditions and the work of younger practitioners, leading to a more complex set of ideas around public engagement. This movement was also catalyzed by the controversy over Richard Serra’s Tilted Arc in the late 1980s, Community art projects are often centered on an exchange between an artist (who is viewed as creatively, intellectually, financially, and institutionally empowered) and a given subject who is defined a priori as in need of empowerment or access to creative/expressive skills. Thus the â€Å"community† in community-based public art often, although not always, refers to individuals marked as culturally, economically, or socially different from the artist. References: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Suzanne Lacy and Leslie Labowitz, Feminist Media Strategies For Political Performance 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jesse Drew, The Collective Camcorder in Art and Activism. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Carole S. Vance, The War on Culture 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Kester Grant, A Critical Frame work for Dialogical Practice How to cite Mediaculture, Essay examples

Film Analysis Beowulf Essay Example For Students

Film Analysis: Beowulf Essay The year is 507 AD and Hrothgar, king of Denmark, has built a great mead hall. There he and his minions drink and party. The troll Grendel attacks and kills many of those present. The threat of new attacks keeps the population quiet. Until Beowulf, a viking hero from Gotalandand and monster killer come to rescue. Beowulf slays Grendal, but must then deal with the vengeance of Grendels mother, who is a sea monster. He succeeded in this, and receive great glory, and he is crowned king. When Beowulf has become an old man, awakened by an unfortunate circumstance a dragon to life. The dragon spreads fear and death, and Beowulf and his men to take up the fight. Beowulf kills the dragon, but in the attempt he suffered major injuries, which he eventually dies off. Beowulfs friend Wiglaf takes over the royal power. Character analysisHrothar is the king of Denes, a good and generous ruler and all in all a very successful king. With a great mead hall and a beautiful wife, every thing looks good, but he got a dark past. He has never had intercourse with his wife Wealhtheow, because he slept with a beautiful sea monster that tricked him into the great glory. Grendel is a monster thats half demon and half human, he lives at the bottom of a lake not far away from the Heorot. Grendal possess superhuman strength which makes him undefeatable, but he is a lonely creature who is trying to understand the world around him. Beowulf is the hero of the story, he is big, strong and powerful. But he is a very cold man, he shows very limited emotion and personality. He is a man of pride and hold his word and promises. He has heard word about a monster in Denmark and has come to rescue, and fall in love with the kings wife Wealhtheow. He kills the monster Grendel, but the monsters mother hold grudge and invade his dreams, he seeks Grendals mother and find himself lost in between glory and beauty. TechniquesThe director choose to use a special motion capture technique, known as performance capture using a special motion capture technique. film technique and recording method in which motion is detected and converted into digital information that can be processed by a computer. Registration is effected by the movement of fixed reference points of a real object such as a human body, are transferred to the corresponding points on a digital model, this is done using digital cameras or non-optical devices, such as a suit with motion sensors. The technique is used especially for creating special effects in movies and video games when you want to create a convincing illusion of natural movement in a 3D animation. Suspense and climaxI think theres two climaxes in the movie, one is when Beowulf seeks Grendels mother in her cave. It is quite in the cave and we cant see anything in the water, which make us wonder what; whats coming next? this creates a great deal of suspense. The second is when Beowulf is fighting with the dragon, and Wiglaf is trying to cross the burning bridge which took a lot of time and create suspense. Theme/messageThe theme in this movie is good vs. evil, revenge, royalty and an evil circle. I think the message of this movie is that we must stand together and work together to defeat the enemy. Even if the enemy is a monster but with courage, strength, loyalty, and integrity we can do it together. My optionI think the movie would be better if it was not animated, because when it is animated we dont really associate ourself with the movie. Which lead us to not really live in it, and not enjoy it as much as we could if it was something we could associate ourself with. And I think the movie is exaggerating too much, and its too unreal. Like Beowulf the dragon and Grendel, it makes too much cliche. .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 , .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .postImageUrl , .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 , .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4:hover , .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4:visited , .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4:active { border:0!important; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4:active , .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4 .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u98ea2398d2ed025ee9ff7a42af95c0e4:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Asian American Stereotypes in Film EssayBibliography: sources: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/beowulf/summary.html 9.10.14http://www.filmweb.no/skolekino/incoming/article1012337.ece 14.10.14