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Buffalo 66
Buffalo ‘66, a movie directed and written by Vincent Gallo starts with a baby picture of Billie Brown (played by Vincent Gallo himself), and then goes into shots of Billie getting out of prison. Billie the fresh free man is looking for a bathroom but has no luck in finding one. The shots used in the scenes where he’s on the search for a bathroom are some handy shots (a bit shaky), they cut in the middle and they are also shot from above this is, in my opinion to emphasize on the situation Billie is in. He really needs to go to the bathroom but has no fortune, until he enters a dance studio. There he meets Layla (played by Christina Ricci) a young blond girl that simply wanted some dance lessons. Billie asked her for a quarter to call his mother, and then suddenly decided to kidnap her. The reason for that was that he didn’t want to disappoint his parents, his parents thought he was successful and married.
After all this Billie didn’t find a bathroom yet until they drove off to his house. In the scene where he finally pees, there is a close up shot of Billie’s face, to show the audience his reaction. He enters the car, and he is more calm he apologizes to Layla for being so aggressive, while he’s apologizing to her there is a close up shot of her and his voice in the background, this emphasizes on Layla’s reaction. During the drive back to Billie’s home there’s alot of shots of the neighborhood, in my opinion this is to enlighten the audience on the type of surrounding Billie grew up in, this helps in understanding his character.
Billy and Layla finally arrive to his house, in front of the house there’s a huge sign: “Go Buffalo” this is a clue on the environment Billie lived in at home. It is obvious his parents are huge football fans by the decoration of the house. Layla get in the character of being Billy’s wife, she makes up a story that Billy works for the CIA and that she really adores him. The next scene shows us three of the characters sitting around a table, and every minute it keeps switching. It seems like the camera is going through a point of view of one of the characters, and it keeps changing each time someone else speaks.
The scenes, which cover thirty years of the characters’ lives from eight to thirty-eight, each revolve around an injury that Doug has acquired through his accident prone life. The play progresses in five year intervals, jumping backwards and forwards, in a nonlinear progression. As they travel and run into each other’s lives, the two characters face new injuries. As the play progresses every five years, a new injury is added to one or both characters. Their lives intersect through these injuries, leading them to compare their wounds, both physical (Doug) and emotional (Kayleen), and drawing them closer together. With each new scene, old injuries and problems may have gotten better or resolved, but some became permanent. Yet, through these experiences, they are bonded together through bloodstains, cuts, and bandages.
Billy Pilgrim time travels to various moments in his life at random, which suggests he has no power over his mind and the memories that haunt him. He “is spastic in time, (and) has no control over where he is going next” (Vonnegut 43), as he struggles to make sense of his past. Billy’s ability to remember events in an erratic sequence, mirrors the happenings of war. War is sudden, fast paced, and filled with unexpected twists and turns. Billy cannot forget what he experienced during his time as a soldier, and in turn his mind subconsciously imitates this hectic quality of war. This behavior proves that although the war is over, “psychologically, Billy has never fully left” (Vees-Gulani). For many soldiers, especially those who were prisoners of war (POW), it is inevitable that their mind will not be like it once was (Vees-Gulani).
“Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin relies on music to convey the theme of hardships for both Sonny and his older brother. The relationship between the two siblings is rocky. “I didn't write Sonny or send him anything for a long time.” said the older brother. Jazz is able to bring both of them closer together and have a better understanding of one another. With the older brother appreciating Sonny’s love for jazz it also allows him to the troubles in both their lives. Through Sonny’s music he was able to help his brother’s pain and in return his brother was able to help him. At first the older brother said, “I simply couldn't see why on earth he'd want to spend his time hanging around nightclubs, clowning around on bandstands," but towards the end of his brothers performance his views changed. He sends Sonny a drink after his performance and Sonny nods back to him. This represents the acknowledgment that Sonny now has his older brother’s approval. Even though Sonny and his brother still have different views and understandings of music it is still their own opinion. Their relationship and bond strengthen with the help of music.
“Cathedral” consists of three individuals. The narrator is the main character, which the story revolves around. The wife of the narrator is the second character, who is the least relevant. The third character is the blind man, named Robert, who is a friend of the wife.
In the story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver, the main character, goes through a major personal transformation. At the beginning of the story, his opinions of others are filled with stereotypes, discrimination and prejudice. Through interaction with his wife's blind friend Robert, his attitude and outlook on life changes. Although at first he seemed afraid to associate with a blind man, Robert's outgoing personality left him with virtually no choice. During Robert's visit, he proved to be a normal man, and showed the speaker that by closing his eyes, he could open his mind.
At first glance, one might assume Raymond Carver’s "Cathedral" illustrates the awakening of an insensitive and insulated husband to the world of a blind man. However, this literal awakening does not account for the fact that the husband awakens also to a world of religious insight, of which he has also been blind. The title and story structure are the first indicators of the importance of the religious thesis. It is also revealed when one examines the language and actions of the characters in the story. Finally, Carver’s previous and subsequent writings give an overall background for the argument that "Cathedral" has a significant religious import.
The narrator in Raymond Carver’s "Cathedral" is not a particularly sensitive man. I might describe him as self-centered, superficial, and egotistical. And while his actions certainly speak to these points, it is his misunderstanding of the people and the relationships presented to him in this story which show most clearly his tragic flaw: while Robert is physically blind, it is the narrator who cannot clearly see the world around him.
Although Slaughterhouse-Five may not be filled with delightful satire and comical scenes, there are accounts which the force the reader to laugh. In one instance, an extremely drunk Billy Pilgrim is searching desperately for the steering wheel of his car: "He was in the backseat of his car, which is why he couldn't find the steering wheel," Vonnegut writes (47). In another episode, Billy becomes "unstuck" in time while watching television, so that he sees a war film backwards and then forwards. The most humorous sequence takes place when Billy travels from the zoo on Tralfamadore to his wedding night with his wife, Valencia. He wakes up to find himself in the German prison camp. He then finds himself back with Valencia after returning from the bathroom. He goes to sleep, then wakes up on a train on the way to his father's funeral.
Don’t judge a book by its cover. We have all heard this cliché at least once in our lifetime. But how many times have we ever followed through with this expression? The author Raymond Carver writes about an experience where a couple is visited by the wife’s acquaintance Robert, whose wife has recently passed. The fact that Robert is blind belittles him in the eyes of the narrator, causing tension and misjudgment. In “Cathedral”, Carver uses irony, point of view, and symbolism to show the difference between looking and truly seeing.
An individual’s ‘Sense of Place’ is predominantly their place of belonging and acceptance in the world, may it be through a strong physical, emotional or spiritual connection. In Tim Winton’s novel ‘The Riders”, the concept of Sense of Place is explored through the desperate journey of its protagonist, Fred Scully. Scully’s elaborate search for identity throughout the novel is guided and influenced by the compulsive love he feels for his wife Jennifer and their family morals, the intensity of hope and the destruction it can cause and the nostalgic nature of Winton’s writing. Two quotes which reflect the ideals of a person’s Sense of Place are “Experience is not what happens to a man. It is what a man does with what happens to him.’(Aldous Huxley) and “It is not down in any map. True places never are.” (Herman Melville). Huxley and Melville’s statements closely resemble Fred Scully’s journey and rectify some of his motivations throughout the text.
Brothers tend to grow apart yet eventually find a way to revive an old beat up relationship. These brothers grew up on the rough streets of Harlem and went their separate ways. Sonny was a drug-addicted musician and his older brother was a high school algebra teacher with a family. The way the two brothers reunite through addiction, memories and strife make their bond seem stronger than ever. Sonny’s Blues, by James Baldwin, is a story about enlightenment through brotherhood when Sonny and his brother go to the club.
The story “Sonny’s Blues” By James Baldwin is about a jazz musician and his brother in 1950’s Harlem. The story centers on Sonny who uses jazz music as an escape from his depression. James Baldwin captures the art of jazz during this time period. The themes in this short story are perhaps varied, but all of them revolve around some form of suffering. One theme shows how music can promote change and understanding within relationships. A second theme reveals suffering caused by guilt. Yet another theme references the results of suffering brought about by searching for ones’ identity and how that leads to misunderstanding. There are also subthemes concerning racism and poverty.
The Rough Riders Towards the end of the nineteenth century, William McKinley defeated Grover Cleveland for the presidency and there was a huge push for the United States of America to expand beyond its continental boarders. (Lorant, p. 281) With an enthusiasm for a new urge for international Manifest Destiny, the American people wanted to match Europe^s imperial power by making America^s weight felt around the world. (Boger p.714) The extent of expansionism was felt in the Pacific Ocean with the occupation of the Hawaiian Islands and Guam, but the most famous example of Americas enthusiasm for international assertiveness came in
The Blues is a music genre also known as a uniquely American art form.The main influences of the Blues music genre were the economic structures of the USA that kept African Americans for majority locked in illiteracy and poverty, especially in the dusty corners of the Deep South of the United States. It was the endless struggle that helped shape much of the Early blues tradition. The blues style was developed from African American roots and traditions.
Every country has their own culture, and like other cultures, Spain too has its own specific culture. Part of the Spanish culture revolves around the bull. Bullfighting and bull runs by many people are recognized as the only Spanish culture in the world, and because of its importance it always begins on time. Still many people view it as a crime. Me being a foreigner I have first hand experience with different cultures. A long time ago in India’s ritual would be to hunt and kill the Indian tiger. Over time the Indian tiger became endangered and now they have become illegal to hunt. When I saw my great great grandfathers hunting pictures he had two tiger heads. Both rituals of bullfighting and hunting tigers are an inseparable culture for both countries. Thus, the Spanish culture revolves around the bull and will continue revolving around the bull forever.