In examination of The Water Knife, the two main themes have been hopefulness and desperation. On one hand, countless view the main characters and their actions as an excessive sign of hopefulness. On the other hand, the premise of The Water Knife is built around desperation and contends the result of Catherine Case governing over the water supply from the Colorado river. Others even maintain that the surrounding areas of Texas, Phoenix, Las Vegas, and California are affected from the drought so immensely because they elected to disregard advice from the book Cadillac Desert that warned of the impending drought. In contrast, my own view admittedly is torn between both subjects of hopefulness and desperation. Consequently, I view both conjointly …show more content…
as working together resulting in desperation ultimately ending in hopefulness for the future. Therefore, I insist a novel cannot present an impressive conclusion without the importance of essential desperation to shape the storyline. While it is true Catherine Case is the furthermost despicable main character of The Water Knife, most will readily agree that she brought such assumptions on herself.
According to Angel, Catherine’s most trusted assistant she is branded as “The Queen of the Colorado.” Basically, Angel illustrates Case in her office surrounded by maps of the Colorado river basin, studying data from her domain as a queen would allowing numbers to rule her life. Catherine created hysteria and desperation among countless citizens “in seconds when she shut the water off to their pipes.” In other words, Catherine’s arrangements for shutting off resident’s water were abrupt and unforeseen generating the greatest form of fear. Where this agreement usually ends however, is on the question of absent compassion from Case towards the citizens affected by her water knifes shutting off water to their homes and cities. Whereas some are convinced that Catherine is a killer for using such harsh tactics, and cutting so deep into the Colorado river, others inside the Cypress buildings the technological brain child of Catherine maintain Case is a saint offering salvation through a fake facade filled with greenery, koi ponds and extravagant water recycling …show more content…
systems. Though Lucy does not say so directly, she apparently assumes that her pathway in life is to be the journalist conqueror that protects Phoenix from itself.
In the beginning, Lucy’s arrival was comfortable and non-invasive of her private life, her intentions were to report laid-back stories and to make swift cash. To put it bluntly her and fellow colleagues, made jokes about Zoners, and the Merry Perrys while reporting collapse porn during the fall of Phoenix. However, it is simply not accurate that an individual cannot become personal with their surroundings during such traumatic events. As stated by Lucy after she set down roots in the city, educated herself on the Cadillac Desert and stories adjacent to her career “she was one of the actors” in her own written story. In other words, Lucy believes that becoming an actor of her written stories, and opening herself up to her environments she has not only grown to care for the public she has also become one of the people she reported about. As a result, she finds herself desperately reporting on the wrong things, excessively considerate about each dead body found not comprehending how much she endangers herself in the
process. In conclusion, then, as I proposed earlier my feelings are strong on the importance of desperation from various characters to enhance the novels storyline. Supporters of Catherine Case and her cut throat ways of water industry cannot have it equally both sides of the spectrum. Their assertion that she is a savior in many successful resident’s eyes is contradicted by the millions of normal citizens whom cannot afford water or to reside in her high-priced living structures. By focusing on Case’s technology and frontage of a perfect world without unlimited water supply, wealthy executives overlook the deeper problem of the struggling, despairing ordinary citizen. I wholeheartedly endorse that individuals develop and adapt to extremely scare conditions to survive, Case and the executives have overlooked the desire for humanity to endure in unforeseen situations and underestimate the power desperation aids in creating humans to act out of typical character.
Diane Urban, for instance, was one of the many people who were trapped inside this horror. She “was comforting a woman propped against a wall, her legs virtually amputated” (96). Flynn and Dwyer appeal to the reader’s ethical conscience and emotions by providing a story of a victim who went through many tragedies. Causing readers to feel empathy for the victims. In addition, you began to put yourself in their shoes and wonder what you would do.
Near the end of both stories, the authors show us the desperate emptiness of a life near finished without the fruit of its labor, and the aggravation of the old restless mind that cannot find peace. Throughout the stories stark images of desperation show the lives of the two main characters at a point when they have realized the futility of life.
Andi Anderson (Kate Hudson) is a beautiful, young, and successful writer who maintains a “How-To” section in “Composure” magazine. Her dream is to “write about things that matter, like politics and the environment, and foreign affairs- things I’m interested in.” (How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days, time stamp 02:00). She knows that the only way she will eventually be able to write about subjects she’s passionate about is to be successful in writing her superficial “How-To” section in the magazine.
The California water drought has been declared a crisis by the governor of California. 2013 was the driest year on record, and California could be running out of water. Californians should be water wise, and their use, or no use, of water will have an enormous impact on this drought. They can use the techniques published in a recent Time article called, 5 Ways to Bust California’s Drought, to reduce their water use. Landscape techniques, alternate water sources, and the personal conservation of water can reduce the use of water, and can have a positive change on this water crisis.
The main character, Eleanor Vance, can be seen as the victim of the novel. She ultimately commits suicide, like Maria, because of her susceptibility to the supernatural elements and experiences that happen in the haunted Hill House that Eleanor gets invited to stay at with others to investigate this paranormal phenomenon. Eleanor has been isolated from society because she has taken care of her mother for eleven years. This job has led to Eleanor missing out on many experiences and social interactions that has cause her social awkwardness and withdrawal from society. As in the novel, it states Eleanor “ had spent so long alone, with no one to love, that it was difficult for her to talk, even casually” (Jackson 3). This isolation causes her to make what can be considered a reckless decision to take up Dr. Montague’s offer to stay at Hill House. This then leads to Eleanor’s tragic suicide, which closely resembles the circumstances that lead to Maria’s suicide in The Shadow in the Corner as well. The social isolation that Eleanor experiences causes her to come in contact with supernatural forces and become impacted by them on a deeper level than the other characters in the
Everyday the average American family uses about 400 gallons of water a day. In some countries, the average family is lucky if they can even get enough to fill up a glass. In Linda Sue Park’s A Long Walk to Water, we hear the story of a boy in Sudan, named Salva in search of water and refuge. Salva shows that he is a survivor by making it through challenges like, dangerous animals, loss of loved ones, and mother nature. This story takes place during a war in sudan. It forces Salva to leave home and go on a journey with a group of people that he’s never met before.
Texas, with its abundances of natural resources, is facing a new demon, one that doesn’t even seem possible, a shortage of water. Water, without it nothing can survive. Texas is the second largest state for landmass in the nation and ninth for water square miles. Within the borders of Texas are more than 100 lakes, 14 major rivers, and 23 aquifers, so why has water become such an important issue for the state? Politicians and conservationists all agree that without a new working water plan, the state could be facing one of the most damaging environmental disasters they have ever seen. The issues that shape the states positions are population growth, current drought conditions, and who actually owns the water.
Sylvia Plath wrote the semi autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar, in which the main character, Esther, struggles with depression as she attempts to make herself known as a writer in the 1950’s. She is getting the opportunity to apprentice under a well-known fashion magazine editor, but still cannot find true happiness. She crumbles under her depression due to feeling that she doesn’t fit in, and eventually ends up being put into a mental hospital undergoing electroshock therapy. Still, she describes the depth of her depression as “Wherever I sat - on the deck of a ship or at a street a cafe in Paris or Bangkok - I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar, stewing in my own sour air” (Plath 178). The pressure to assimilate to society’s standards from her mother, friends, and romantic interests, almost pushes her over the edge and causes her to attempt suicide multiple times throughout her life. Buddy Willard, Esther’s boyfriend at a time, asks her to marry him repeatedly in which she declines. Her mother tries to get her to marry and makes her go to therapy eventually, which leads to the mental hospital. Esther resents the way of settling down and making a family, as well as going out and partying all night. She just wants to work to become a journalist or publisher. Though, part of her longs for these other lives that she imagines livings, if she were a different person or if different things happened in her life. That’s how Elly Higgenbottom came about. Elly is Esther when Esther doesn’t want to be herself to new people. Esther’s story portrays the role of women in society in the 1950’s through Esther’s family and friends pushing her to conform to the gender roles of the time.
Like Esther, Joan Gilling grew up in the same small town; she also won the writing competition and was sent to New York to work for the same magazine. Joan was also very conscious about how the world identified her as an individual. She didn’t want to conform to what society sa...
Lawrence Berkove believes that the story was about self-assertions which were the cause of Louise Mallard 's death. She was obsessed with the thought of living for herself. Lawrence Berkove called her immature, egotist and a victim of her own self-assertion.
Americans today tend to believe that the Colorado River drought has been a recent occurrence, although drought relief strategies have been implemented since early 1997. To summarize, in the book The Colorado River Basin Drought Planning and Organizations, Colorado is named as the original state to acquire a drought relief plan. For instance, various assume water levels are diminutive in the Colorado and blame is due to the previous ten years of drought throughout the United States. Although it is true that water levels are at a record low, initial plans in the early 1920’s to introduce manufactured structures into the water basin is the original reason Colorado’s water system began to be compromised. It follows, then the supplementary natural
The initial interaction between Lucy and Cheng Huan at the store creates an interesting dynamic of uneven attraction. Objects and figures within the frame emphasizes this fact, such as an unconscious Lucy in the center. The organization of objects, and set-pieces in the shot is referred to as the setting. As an integral component in mise-en-scene, setting helps locate the actors and even control how the story is. The one-sided adoration prevalent in this scene exemplifies the possible alternative motivations behind Cheng’s kindness. In these shots, Lucy’s face always points towards the camera so that the audience can see both characters clearly, and while Lucy sleeps, Cheng stares at her with considerable intensity. By acknowledging his lust, many of his actions can be interpreted in a completely different way. At (46:22) Cheng ...
Grillo, I. (2009, April 11). Dry Taps in Mexico City: A Water Crisis Gets Worse. Retrieved January 2014, from Time: http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1890623,00.html
For instance, Angel can recognize Lucy’s resemblance to Phoenix due to his encounter with others who have been negatively influenced by their environment. After a careful observation of Lucy’s photograph, he describes her appearance to possess “striated sun-browned skin, wild pale grey eyes” and that “She’d gone native. In some indefinable way, she’d gone pure Phoenix. She was going crazy. Lost in uncharted territory” (Bacigalupi 141). His comment that Lucy is a full-fledge native indicates that through Lucy’s many years in Phoenix, she has adapted with her environment to the extent that she is now immediately identifiable as a part of Phoenix. She has suffered due to her hostile surroundings, but rather than feel disgust for this horrible place, she developed a deep, personal connection with it. Towards the end of the novel, Lucy realizes that the moment she wrote about forbidden topics signifies the point where “she’d become another bit in the maelstrom, paddling just as madly as everyone else to keep her head above the water and to avoid being sucked down for good” (Bacigalupi 290). This reveals that like the helpless Phoenix who does not wish to collapse under the powerful states, Lucy does not wish to fall under the influence of the malevolence that surrounds her. However, it is evident that both Phoenix and Lucy are unsuccessful in the prevention of their downfalls. Phoenix is pushed on the brink of extinction as Las Vegas cuts off its water supply and Lucy is forced to abandon her own will and commit
The weather in this novel controls their crops and the river flow; which controls their food and water supply. They depend on adequate rainfall to help their crops to grow and for the river to be full. They also depend on the sun to warm things up and make the crops grow. However, if there is too much rain or too much sun it can cause many problems, such as a drought or a flood. These things are significant in this novel, because t...