There are things in this world that are simply beyond explanation; Like the fact that hundreds of dogs have jumped to their deaths from the same exact spot on the Overtoun Bridge since the last sixty years. It is reported that an average of one dog per month jumped off the bridge since the 1960’s and some of them would jump again after surviving the 60-foot fall. The documentary “Overtoun” directed and written by Samuel Horta, informs its viewers about the Overtoun bridge in Dumbarton, Scotland and tries to bring light to the occurrences happening there. The director tries to persuade the audience that the events occurring on the bridge have no connection to the supernatural through the use of pathos and logos. The documentary also implies …show more content…
that people have an innate desire to seek the truth or explanation, and the explanation is often a series of false information formulated to suit their ideas. The targeted audience for this documentary are the people from Scotland. Followed by males between the ages of 15-30 years as they are more likely to show interest in paranormal incidents, whereas women would not be interested in the documentary based on the stereotypical notion that women do not like scary or gory content. The director Samuel Horta begins the documentary by looking at the supernatural events surrounding the bridge. He mentions that nature thrived around the town of Dumbarton and the regions surrounding it. The Celts were believed to be the first inhabitants of those lands and pagan Celts believed that sprits lived in nature. Horta also states that, “A significant aspect of Celtic mythology is the belief that odd animal behavior was a warning from the spirits.” In 1859, a man known as James White bought the estate, him and his business partners were the biggest producers of Potassium dichromate, holding complete control of the trade in the United Kingdom. He built the Overtoun estate with his wealth, a huge baronial mansion with lavish gardens, but his estate was tainted by two circumstances. James White was accused of hazardous waste disposal and labor exploitation on a massive scale. John White inherited the estate after his parents died, he bought some more land around the estate and in order to navigate he built the Overtoun bridge in 1895; The bridge was a massive gothic structure built with granite. Horta suggests the possibility of the bridge having empty spaces or hidden compartments which may have been used for alchemy by the Whites. After John and his wife passed away the estate was passed down to their nephew who sold it to the town of Dumbarton. The town used it as a general hospital during the war and a maternity hospital after the war. Eventually it was boarded up as the town had no use for it; it is then that people reported seeing a ghostly figure in and around the estate which was labeled as the white lady or the ghost of lady Overtoun. Local residents were quick to assume that the dog suicides were a warning against the ghost of Lady Overtoun. In 1995, another tragic event marred the bridge a local man threw his new born baby off the bridge under the assumption that his child was the Anti-Christ. The Overtoun estate is now a bed and breakfast that supports a Christian shelter for local young women. It's run by Bob and Melissa Hill, missionaries from Texas. The director tries to dismiss most of the supernatural claims in the second phase of his documentary. Horta suggests that the actual explanation behind the suicidal dogs is that small wild animals like minks make nests under the bridge and on the outside of the parapet. The smell of these animals attract dogs to them and since the bridge is built in such a way that from a dog’s height it would appear to be a flat surface beyond the sides of the bridge and not an elevated structure, making the dogs chasing the smell fall from the bridge. Horta also mentions that the ghost of Lady Overtoun originated as a prank played out by local children on each other, by using sheets attached to wire over the bridge along with small explosives. Horta implies that strange animal behavior sparks our fantasies and beliefs and that just the words supernatural, legends and ghosts will automatically attract people even if they have no actual basis. The documentary contains plenty of logical fallacies, beginning with the hasty generalization fallacy as the author applies the example of children playing pranks on each other to every sighting of the white lady. He then progresses to the Ad populum fallacy by distracting the viewers with statements like “The Scottish enlightenment, guided by a Unicorn, propelled western civilization forward (Horta).” He also employs the fallacy of composition, since although a few dog breeds may be attracted to the scent of minks, not all dog breeds have the same desire to hunt or possess the same smelling sense. The documentary also dabbles in the half-truth, since Horta mentions that dogs could have jumped off the bridge chasing after minks but ignores the fact that some of the dogs were reported to climb back up and jump off again. The director Samuel Horta is a student filmmaker and “Overtoun” is his first project. The narrators are the director himself and Racheal Mills a paranormal researcher. The director’s credentials do not establish a strong ethos, but the use of statements such as, “If we find value in Life by ourselves, we will not be afraid anymore” (Horta) boost his ethos. Overall, the documentary has a weak ethos. The director’s use of pathos is extremely effective considering the fact that the theme behind urban legends like the Overtoun bridge is death and fear. The director also includes interviews and testimonies from local residents and pet owners to evoke an emotional response. The director’s use of logos was moderately effective, since on one hand he provides historically accurate context and narrations from historian Michael Tylor, but on the other hand does not provide much concrete evidence to add proof to his claims and provides mostly anecdotal evidence. Most of the people being interviewed seemed knowledgeable and credible as they were explaining unforgettable incidents from their lives. I would personally disagree with the authors conclusion that the jumping of dogs over the bridge is caused by small furry animals living around the bridge as there have to be other factors at play.
The research Horta based his conclusion on is flawed in my opinion, in the experiment conducted by a canine specialist, ten dogs from different breeds were used to determine if the scent of male minks would make them sporadically chase them, during the test eight out the ten dogs blindly ran after the scent. According to me the sample size of ten dogs used in the experiment is too small to validate its claims. According to Jane Fryer from thedailymail.co.uk, the dogs have always jumped from the same side of the bridge, dogs shouldn’t care about which side to jump from considering that minks could potentially live on both sides around the bridge. The dialymail.co.uk is one of first newspapers to catch onto the story of the Overtoun bridge and over the years have published sevral articles about it. Furthermore, there are twenty-six thousand minks in Scotland and quite a few other bridges as well if the director’s conclusion was accurate we would be seeing similar occurrences throughout Scotland and the world. Another oddity about the mink theory is that the dogs who survive the jump climb back up the bridge and jump down again, the scent of the minks should be strongest at ground level why would the dogs need to climb back up just to be back in the same area they were in. Although the director offers a reasonable explanation behind the occurrences happening at the Overtoun bridge he does not provide enough evidence for me to accept his conclusions as there have to be other factors at
play.
A mink is a good specimen to study the human anatomy because it is so closely related in internal features to that of a human being. Since these features are so closely related it provides a sort of “model” that can be used in order to better understand the anatomy of humans.
In my last report on the mink’s external features in comparison to any human body, although there were clear differences, I was able to find many similarities between the two organisms who seemed very different at first sight. Clearly in this research and lab report about the respiratory system, similarities between humans and minks are not surprising.
A Mink is a Carnivore found in many parts of the world. Two animals are branched out of the name “Mink”, there is the American Mink and the European Mink. The differences between these two animals include that the American Mink is larger in addition the difference can be seen in their skulls as the American Mink has a mandible that attaches to the rest of the skull differently than the European Mink allowing for greater range of motion ones it will bite. The American Mink is a semiaquatic mammal in the Mustelidae family. The mink has a long slender body and had long thick shaggy tail.
Trifles” is a play written in 1916 by Susan Glaspell. The play’s audience consists of young adults to those in their late 50’s. Mrs. Glaspell takes a serious matter of domestic violence and uses her platform as an author to raise awareness about the issue. In the play “Trifles” a neighbor went to the home of Mr. and Mrs. Wright only to find Mr. Wright dead in his bed. He had been strangled to death by a rope. The neighbor questioned Mrs. Wright about the matter and her response was odd and suspicious. Mrs. Wright was taken to jail while the home is being investigated for further evidence. Mrs. Glaspell’s play “Trifles” effectively achieves the goal in raising awareness on domestic violence by the evidence of the crime and through pathos.
In Craig Lesley’s novel The Sky Fisherman, he illustrates the full desire of direction and the constant flow of life. A boy experiences a chain of life changing series of events that cause him to mature faster than a boy should. Death is an obstacle that can break down any man, a crucial role in the circle of life. It’s something that builds up your past and no direction for your future. No matter how hard life got, Culver fought through the pain and came out as a different person. Physical pain gives experience, emotional pain makes men.
There is this small bridge in a small city nearby. There was a car accident and a small child or baby died. And, um, it was in the local papers. It is said that at night, when your drive over it, you can hear the sound of a baby crying. And you know how signs on the side of the road reflect light and stuff? Well, you can’t see it with normal lighting, but when a car’s lights hit the sign at the right angle, you can see a baby’s footprints.
In April I sat down with a friend at my house and asked about any urban legends or ghost stories he had encountered. After a couple legends he had seen in movies, he mentioned a haunted bridge about ten minutes away from downtown. He is a twenty-one year-old White male; his father owns an appliance store and his mother helps out with the books. He first heard this story in the ninth grade from a couple of friends. Supposedly, they had heard from kids who had actually been to the bridge and heard strange things at night. The bridge is located off of Uniontown road, between a couple old farms. He has not encountered the bridge first hand but still remembers the story surrounding it:
[Establish credibility] As a life-long dog lover, I have run into BSL many times: from apartments with dog size limitations to cities that outright ban certain breeds.
The ocean is mysterious to mankind. The unfathomable vastness of the ocean intrigues humanity into exploring it. In life, the immense possibilities that lie in the future compel us to reach for the stars. In the poem “The Story” by Karen Connelly, an individual willingly swims into deep waters even though they are fearful of what may exist in the waters. The swimmer later finds out that their fears were foolish, which illustrates the human tendency to venture into the unknown. The theme conveyed in this poem is that life is like a rough, uncertain, uncontrollable ocean that we must find get through with experience.
In the short story “Skipper”, Aldan Nowlan introduces the protagonist, Skipper. Skipper’s mother Ethel yearns for a better life for her and her son outside of their mining community. In the short story “As Birds Bring Forth the Sun”, Alistair MacLeod introduces a young dog named cù mòr glas. Cù mòr glas is saved by a family man who lives by the sea. Aldan Nowlan’s “Skipper” and Alistair Macleod’s “As Birds Bring Forth the Sun” appear to have little in common, but both stories show the same series of events that lead to Skipper and cù mòr glas inflicting unintentional pain on their loved ones.
The theme in “An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge” is brought together by three necessary literary elements. The author incorporates symbolism into the story to help support the theme that nobody can escapes death and how thoughts in the mind are so substantial in the consciousness that it can take over the reality. The author uses symbolism to support the theme that nobody can escape death Bierce showed the piece of driftwood slowly being carried away. That piece of driftwood brought hope to Peyton Farquhar, because of this his mind started to wonder out of reality. He started to go into a fantasy world where he could escape and become that driftwood in the currents of the rivers. By giving Fargher this hope the author was able to allow him to escape in only his mind. Showing that there was no reality for the execution to go undone. The author lead us into such a unbelievable r...
They are forced to contend with the realization that their survival does not matter to nature. The correspondent comes to the realization, “When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that she feels she would not maim the universe by disposing of him, he first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples” (Crane 213). While the men may try to pin their trouble on the “mythicized deity,” that really does not serve them. When discussing this, Hilfer says, “The discomfiting thing about nature is that though we can address it, our messages can only come back stamped ‘return to sender’” (251). No matter how much the men in the boat try to make sense of what is happening to them, they cannot find the being or force behind
Article #1 is a very effective piece of propaganda in that it captures the reader?s attention successfully by placing a picture of a dog in the focal point of the article. The dog plays a vital role in this piece of propaganda in that it represents a loved one, family and anything cherished. It shows what could be left behind, if a driver chose to ignore safe driving. The breed of dog is also very important. Choosing a sorrowful dogs face, further enhanced the emotions of the reader, as the article wouldn?t have the same effect if a dangerous dog was shown instead
Word count includes Annotated Bibliography. Throughout the world, there are many different countries that contain diverse cultures, religions, and lifestyles. There are however certain aspects within these countries and cultures that act as a common ground between one another. One dominant aspect is the existence of dogs within these cultures.
Peter Pan never wanted to grow up, for he always wanted to be a boy and have fun. On the other hand, the general argument made by author, Anne Sexton, in her poem, “The Fury of Overshoes,” is that childhood is most appreciated when a person must be independent. A university student finds that he can relate to the speaker. The high school student, still a child himself, will feel the same as the speaker in her youth. A college student and a high school student reading this poem would conclude this poem with different feelings.