In the film Rashomon, we are given contradicting testimonies from the characters, but what is strange is that the bandit, the samurai, and his wife all claim to be responsible for the killing. Another strange aspect is that the fourth witness, the woodcutter, should have been the most objective person, but even he tells a version that may not be true. An explanation for the testimonies that these 4 give is that they were not motivated by a sense of justice and a search for truth, but rather by their own pride and sense of honor, which is shown by what the characters say and how the film used visual and audio aspects to help tell their stories. The first character telling their version of the story is Tajomaru, the bandit, who claims to have tricked the samurai, raped the wife, and then killed the samurai in a fight. All of these aspects in his story can be explained by his sense of pride and honor, and another example of it is shown even before he tells his version of the events. When he is shown tied up and a man is explaining how he found Tajomaru on the ground, and says that he must have been thrown off his horse. Tajomaru then quickly turns and looks at the man before laughing wildly and scoffing at …show more content…
But strangely, by claiming she is responsible and that she was honorable, she putting the fault on her husband instead. In the end of her testimony, she says “What could a poor helpless women like me do?”, meaning that she had no control over the situation. By taking all the responsibility, she is subtly shifting it toward her husband instead, who was stupid enough to be tricked and tied up by a bandit, and blamed her for being raped instead of saying that he was responsible for it. The bandit is not blamed, as he is a bandit, and is not expected to be honorable. Her story allows her to maintain a sense of pride of being a honorable, loyal wife while blaming it on her husband
Often, when a story is told, it follows the events of the protagonist. It is told in a way that justifies the reasons and emotions behind the protagonist actions and reactions. While listening to the story being cited, one tends to forget about the other side of the story, about the antagonist motivations, about all the reasons that justify the antagonist actions.
...at if he was not revealing himself to her that there was a good reason for it. Since she knew this, she went along with his act and did not give him away. On numerous occasions she makes comments that would lead one to think that she doesn't know the identity of the beggar, but it is merely the fact that she is highly intelligent and is able to hide what she knows very well.
Akutagawa is famous for his use of symbolism and aspects of modernism in order to convey a hidden truth about human nature in society. To put it simply, his story, “In a Grove,” is a tale about a murder. However, underlying throughout the story are themes of deception and honor. The murder victim, a trained samurai is lured into a grove and killed, and the suspects are his wife, the robber, and himself. Rather than plead innocent, each suspect pleads guilty to preserve their honors. The blade is a recurring symbol in this story and shows the preservation of this honor. On page 25 the robber, Tajomaru, claims that he “didn't like to resort to unfair means to kill” the samurai, Takehiko. Instead, he claims that he offered to cross swords with him, and then killed him after twenty-three strokes. In this way the sword represents a means to accomplish an act of honor. To murder the samurai without a fight would be dishonorable, but by using the sword Tajomaru achieves honor. Furthermore, Takehiko goes on to claims, You, you don't use your swords. You kill people with your power, with your money,” (Akutagawa 20). Takehiko makes the accusation that the Ju...
These sagas reveal the contentions that can arise between men in a stateless society, and follow a deliberate sequence of injuries; then cases of revenge and then settlement. They also valued heroic qualities like courage, loyalty, physical ability, and over-zealous defense of rights and honor.
... sins, but she can’t take back what she did so she will forever have blood on her hands. This guilt and all of the lies she has told is giving her true trepidation and in the end she decided to end her terror by taking her life.
But once the accusations started, she couldn’t back out for fear that her name would be ruined even more. She was just as scared as the other girls involved, but had to hide it behind the lies and cunning actions because she had no one to turn to in her time of need. She felt power, and like she had a place in life for once, when the other girls followed her and her decisions.
In the story "So Much Water So Close To Home" a young girl is raped, killed and found in a river where four men are fishing. What makes this story interesting is that after discovering the body they did not report it until after they left, three days later. When one of the men who discovered her, the husband of the narrator, Stuart returns home he doesn't tell his wife about the incident until the following morning. Because of this, Claire believes that all men are responsible for the murder of the girl. Due to these facts she acts irrationally, suspiciously, and with distrust not only towards her husband, but also to all men in general.
are better people then they really are. It even shows this need for flattering falsehood going
As the story begins, the narrator's compliance with her role as a submissive woman is easily seen. She states, "John laughs at me, but one expects that in marriage" (Gilman 577). These words clearly illustrate the male's position of power in a marriage t...
lived in demanded her to give up her conspirator or bear the consequences of the
...us on deadly revenge. In each case, a retribution that is carried out in a cruel and callous fashion. The men fulfilling these actions are cold, calculating, and contemplative. They have painstakingly endeavored to seek retribution against what has plagued them: Fortunato and his insults to the Montresor and the old man’s piercing, chilling eye for the man from “The Tell-Tale Heart”. Driven to the point of madness by their own obsessions, they plot to murder their offenders. The tales are told each by the man who has indeed committed the crime. Each man’s insanity becomes more and more clear as they narrate confession; the Montresor with the unfailing ease with which he dictates his account and the man from “The Tell-Tale Heart” with his jagged and rough delivery. Their distinct mental instability calls into question to reliability of the report they give.
Another trait that is displayed by the Pardoner and a character in his tale is hypocrisy. Although the Pardoner is extremely greedy, he continues to try and teach that "Avarice is the root of all evil" (6). The characters in his tale display great hypocrisy as well. As the tale begins, the friends all act very trustworthy and faithful towards all of their friends. They nobly make a decision to risk their lives while trying to slay their friend's murderer. As they talk about their challenge, they pledge "to live and die each of them for the other, / As if he were his own blood brother" (241-242). At the end of the tale, the "brothers" begin to reveal their true nature. They all turn on each other in an attempt to steal the treasure for themselves.
Throughout the story, the protagonist states her intentions to herself, but then does not act upon them because of her husband. This is further shown when she speaks of her husband and her brother, who "is also of higher standing," (Gilman 317) showing the high ranking of men in society. They keep her from doing the things she wants because they believe it is best for her to rest. She disagrees with the adage. " Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good" (Gilman 317).
For example, the old man that lived beneath the boy and his father testified that he heard a fight between the boy and the father and heard the boy yell, “I’m gonna kill you,” along with a body hitting the ground, and then claims that he saw the boy running down the stairs. With this information, along with other powerful eyewitness testimonies, all but one of the jury members believed this boy was guilty. The power of eyewitness testimony is also shown in Loftus’s (1974) study. In this study, Loftus (1974) found that those who claimed to “see” something were usually believed even when their testimony is pointless. She discovered in her study that only 18 percent of people convicted if there was no eyewitness testimony, 72 percent of people convicted when someone declared, “That’s the one!”, and even when the witness only had 20/400 vision and was not wearing glasses and claimed “That’s the one!”, 68 percent of people still convicted the person. This proves that in 12 Angry Men and Loftus (1974) study, eyewitness testimony is very powerful and influential in one’s decision to convict a
...r debts were based on deception, and she is too scared to tell her husband anything, adding another lie to the web she has entangled herself into. A tragic character to the end, she even has to lie to get the arsenic, saying she has to kill rats but in all reality she wanted to kill herself.