Being strangled to death is a captivating headline. A teenage girl being strangled to death, possibly by the hands of an ex-lover, is enough of a tragedy that people practically drool for details. It instantly becomes something to tickle minds with dangerous questions about themselves. The story needs to be told to satisfy the masses, for curiosity, as well as to generate the perpetual fear of people. Sarah Koenig tells the story of the end of Hae Min Lee, about twenty-one minutes at the end of a school day, and what it has resulted in. Koenig puts herself as the narrator needed to bring the world along and experience someone else’s life, and death. She says in silent words ways to think about this story, as well as how to grab an audience …show more content…
by the throats while having them crying for more. Having different types of media means experiencing things in many different ways. A movie feels different from a book, and a book from a newspaper. The choice of a podcast really suits the story told in Serial. Sarah Koenig has a voice both interesting and captivating; she talks with confidence and elegance, making you feel as if it were just the two of you in a room talking over tea. Thrown in are a variety of different sounds with purpose of making sure you are still paying attention, from playing recorded clips of conversations, to transition tones when the subject moves on. Without visuals, it allows personal images and connections to be made for each sentence and phrase. Despite, Koenig has a colorful vernacular that keeps your thoughts flowing, with phrases like, “But mostly these incidents seem to be tit for tat” (Koenig, “The Breakup”). The general mood is pleasant, despite the gruesome story being told. Koenig has a unique view of the story of the story of Hae Min Lee’s murder. Being a complete outsider, with no personal or professional ties to any of those involved, she is not here to gain anything, or here because she could lose something. Koenig is not trying to prove guilt or innocence; she is trying to find the truth. This she explicitly states in the first episode, “For the last year, I've spent every working day trying to figure out where a high school kid was for an hour after school one day in 1999-- or if you want to get technical about it, and apparently I do, where a high school kid was for 21 minutes after school one day in 1999” (Koenig, “The Alibi”). From this you can see no ulterior motives; her purpose is to find answers to the murder of Hae. If Koenig was given an alignment she would be a neutral good. She is without bias or judgement, and portrays herself as a sort of noble, dauntless figure. Most of what is said of her is ideas between the lines. Since the media is a podcast, an impression of her is more said in how she talks. Koenig makes a perfect narrator by offering clarification on facts, precise descriptions of the surrounding environment, and connecting the points in the story audibly. She wants you to listen, she wants you to try and figure it out, she wants you as entangled in it as she has become. Adnan can be viewed in a plethora of lights and be seen wildly different in each.
On one hand Adnan can be seen as yet another falsely convicted teenager wronged by the system. On the other hand, he could be a manipulative, deceiving criminal, who strangled his girlfriend and is lying to the world to get free. A metaphor can surface from these two ideas; how much can you really trust your instincts on strangers? “I mean, the only thing I can say is, man, it was just a normal day to me” (Koenig, “The Alibi”). Is this a statement of utter denial, or of a teenager saying there was nothing different from any other day? It is all put up to perspective. Rabia and Saad believe his innocence, whereas Jay and the court believe otherwise. The insight Sarah gives to us on Adnan is from a completely unbiased place. Laced into her words you can see her uncertainty of his innocence or guilt, but also her confidence in what she has found. Whereas the court thought Adnan was in torment over his loss of faith due to being with Hae, Sarah saw it more as being an overstuffed idea. She and Adnan talked about his faith, and he admitted though he was serious and cared about his faith, it was not causing him any grief being with her, since he also has been smoking weed and breaking haram for a while; it was not really a big
deal. Sarah brings the tale of Hae’s murder to the world as a story, so it is only natural to view these real people as characters in a murder mystery novel. One could say that removes the realness and seriousness of the entire incident, but it would be a lie if you said you never felt as if you were connected in a real way to a character. As a listener, the story starts to develop. Questions become posed and answers hidden in plain sight. Subconsciously, those who listen crave more, more details, more answers, more story. It leads to the question of Koenig’s real purpose. Is it really to tell the truth, or is she trying to tell us a story. Questioning people’s motives is a key characteristic in developing opinions on people. Who is Sarah to the story? It boils down to deeper than the death of Hae, or persecution of Adnan, because even though now they are being pursued by interest, there is more than the ex-lovers to Serial. Serial is Sarah, she brought it to world, she produced and narrated it. It has become more than the story, it has become Sarah, too. Was this the intent? Perhaps this was merely coincidence, and all that she wanted was truth, and it manifested into something much greater. Koenig is a character you find yourself wanting to keep an eye on. Though she was not there for the entire backstory, she is the one who revived it and made it a story to be heard. Sarah is entwined into Serial now, and perhaps that is a good thing, maybe even the purpose for its popularity. The methods utilized by Sarah showcase her brilliance, and lead the humble reader to manifest secret desires of solving the case. She connects with the people inside and outside the story, and makes it all a genuinely pleasant experience. Her motives and purpose may be foggy for now, but that is because the story has just begun. You don’t play all your cards in the first round.
Adnan's innocence away from him? Jay's story was documented, but his first story kept changing, which seemed off, if he was there shouldn't there be one story and only one story? But his final story, the story that never changes is the one after the mysterious session. Although even that story has flaws. Many to be exact. He says Adan called him after he killed Hae, but we know that they were never friends, only mere acquaintances. Theoretically, would you call an acquaintance after you you killed
When Rabia begins speaking of Adnan the sentence she leads with is that “He was like the community’s golden child”. By using this phrase, Rabia is connoting that he was considered perfect, which is a very bold statement to claim. After she elaborates upon her description Koenig later fact checks her “accolades” as any reporter would. She finds that Rabia “was mostly right, though she sometimes gets a little loosey-goosey with the details”. Rabia would have successfully convinced Koenig, as well as the listeners at hand, of Adnan’s reputation by simply describing him as a ‘boy with potential’ or as one ‘generally known to be respectable’ but by choosing to pronounce him a “golden child” specifically, she identifies him as impeccable, and thus incapable of committing a crime. Rabia personally knows that her descriptions are not entirely true, being that she was close with him, however, she still chooses to make use of them despite their inconsistencies. Not only does she go forth with them, but she chooses to falsely summarize him as a “golden child”, despite knowing that he was not in fact perfect. Rabia could have chosen to just state the facts as they really were, in the less
Teachers, friends, classmates, relatives and parents could not believe he kills his girlfriend. The reality sometimes is very hard to face especially when feelings are involved. Parents never will accept that their own child who was raised with comfort, love and support could be capable of murder somebody. Disturbing people could be disguised very well under a charming appearance. Many serial killers were known as decent, brilliant and admired persons. When a teenager is carrying a burden as Adnan was, probably feeling guilty for giving back to his parents, his religion and customs could transform him in another person for a few moments when he felt betrayed, humiliated, dishonored and abandoned by the person for whom he did all this. Then he kill Hae Min Lee in a rage 's attack or probably as Jay said Adnan was planning the murder in detail; that is why the police could not found enough evidences to probe him clearly
This was something that honestly suited Adnan’s defense more than Jay’s. Remember when I said “He didn’t seem like some sort of assasinator?” Well, he really wasn’t. Why would he kill Hae anyway? Hae and Adnan had dated for about two years, but during the end, it’s like most high school relationships. Someone in the group, or both members, eventually lost interest and break up, which in this case, Hae was the one who broke up. She fell in love with another person, named Don. When they had a break up, Adnan was emotional, and upset. Now, that would make sense, but that was two months before Hae’s death. Why would Adnan kill Hae 2 months after they broke up? I mean, he was described as a player, and sometimes he’d cheat on her. Even after they broke up, many friends his said Adnan eventually got over it.
Jay describes his active-involvement with Adnan in the crime. If Jay tells us the truth, he brings Adnan to school, holds onto Adnan’s cellphone and car so he could pick Adnan up when Adnan calls; picks Adnan up after he committed the murder, cruises around with Adnan, and brings Adnan to track practice. Additionally, Jay cruises around with Adnan in the afternoon, accompanies Adnan to LeakIn park and aids Adnan in digging the hole to bury Hae. Which criminal incriminates oneself? When Jay speaks about picking up Adnan he says: “I noticed that Hae wasn't with him. I parked next to him. He asked me to get out the car. I get out the car. He asks me, am I ready for this? And I say, ready for what? And he takes the keys. He opens the trunk. And all I can see is Hae's lips are all blue, and she's pretzeled up in the back of the trunk. And she's dead.” Jay goes to pick up Adnan from the actual murder and describes the episode in detail. Jay uses short sentences for dramatic effect, and speaks confidently, which is unusual when incriminating
Millhone’s personality is “free spirit” and a tomboy type of character in this novel. She tends to avoid the typical female gender orientation by wearing mostly jeans, shorts, and, most importantly, turtleneck sweaters as a normal part of clothing attire when she begins her day with a morning jog: “A pair of shorts and an old cotton turtleneck. I’m really not a physical fitness advocate” (Grafton 67). In this manner, Millhone is not a woman that is overly concerned with her appearance, which gives her a carefree quality in her behaviors. This aspect of Millhone’s character defines a tomboy personality that cares very little for the traditional “feminine” gender role.
Grace Paley’s “Samuel” and Kate Chopin’s “Désirée’s Baby” both deal with tragic deaths caused by peoples’ actions both directly and indirectly. These two short stories have similarities whose narrator tells the deaths of two young and innocent people who were the victims of a harsh and unsuspecting society. Paley’s “Samuel” is about a group of boys who are having fun on a subway train leaping from platform to platform between the cars. The adults are watching the children with mixed emotions. The men watching the boys reminisce back to memories of their childhood; while the women are angrily showing discontent on their faces directed at the boys. The action of one of the passengers causes the train to come to a halt throwing one of the boys
In this podcast Sarah explores and digs deep into the two options, is Adnan guilty? Or is Adnan innocent of his past? Adnan Syed should stay in jail and not be released from prison due to some main reasons that lean towards Adnan’s guilt. It didn’t seem like a healthy relationship should look like.
Ultimately, The Death of Woman Wang, by Jonathan Spence is a timeless, educational, historical novel. Spence purpose to enlighten the reader of the Chinese culture, tradition and its land were met through the use of sources, like the Local History of T'an-ch'eng, the scholar-official Huang Liu-hung's handbook and stories of the writer P'u Sung-Ling. The intriguing structure of The Death of Woman Wang will captivate any reader's attention.
The critics who perceived this book's central theme to be teen-age angst miss the deep underlying theme of grief and bereavement. Ambrosio asks the question, "Is silence for a writer tantamount to suicide? Why does the wr...
...h narrators see more horror than they could imagine was possible. Each day is quite likely to be their last and they are under no illusions what sort of horrific death could be lurking over the top of the next attack.
The article Reasonable Doubt by Alice Camille presents reasons for defending the actions of Thomas, the apostle of Jesus Christ, and relates the factors that not only made Thomas doubt his faith, but the testimonies of the resurrection witnessed by Thomas himself. The article also discusses evidence demanded by Thomas to prove that Jesus had risen from the dead.
Stand By Me, Rob Reiner’s 1986 film, captures the beauty and fragility of human life and friendship through experiences with death. The film operates on two different levels; it serves as a coming of age story of Gordie Lachance, Vern Tessio, Teddy Duchamp, and Chris Chambers, but also as a reflection of the meanings of life and death by the Writer. The Writer serves as the narrator, looking back on the events leading up to his first encounter with a dead body. The film makes wonderful use of the five formal axes of film design to convey its powerful message: life is best enjoyed with a friend, because death is all around.
"When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy." [P.1], says eleven-year-old Ellen. Thus the young narrator begins her life-story, in the process painting an extraordinary self-portrait. “Ellen Foster” is a powerful story of a young girl growing up in a burdensome world. As one reads this work presented by Kaye Gibbons, a chill runs down their back. Ellen, the main character is faced with a hard life dealing with endless losses, with the deaths of both her parents and her grandmother being included. Why would one get a chill you wonder? This individual has thoughts and feelings that many have never experienced and cannot express. Ellen is merely a child no older then the age of ten but if not knowing this fact, readers would think she was an aged woman who has lived their life sufficiently.
• AW has had some problems of her own; she was very depressed after an abortion in senior year at college. She slept with a razor under her pillow for three nights as she wanted to commit suicide. Instead she turned to writing and in a week she wrote the story “To Hell with Dying”. She only stopped writing to eat and sleep.