Valerie Bettis created the solo dance, The Desperate Heart, in 1943. The dance was created with a dramatic touch, depicting the feeling of lost love. Bettis set this piece with the objective of analyzing lost love in a back and forth matter. This goal was achieved throughout Bettis’ work with the help of music, lighting, attire, vocals, imagery, and choreography. The vocals at the beginning and end of the dance are a poem written by John Malcom Brinnin also named The Desperate Heart. My analysis is based off of Bettis’ solo performed by Brook Notary at a concert on June 11, 1993. The Desperate Heart expressed an emotion that is widely felt but hard to artistically portray. Bernardo Segal composed the music, which acted as a catalyst for intense …show more content…
reactions and interpretations. There was no music while Brinnin’s poem was recited at the beginning and end of the dance. So after the vocals by Bettis were over the music began, creating an even greater impact. The piano was used in a way that resembled the two-way emotion of loss with a high and a low. For example, in some instances there was a light echo of the rhythm or a suddenly intensified score. Other elements of the performance contributed to Bettis’ dramatic theme, like the black scenic background and dimmed lighting. These features helped articulate the loneliness of loss to the audience. Even Valerie Bettis’ costume choice was emphatic. The performance attire was a red and white dress with integrating colors that formed a heart on the chest. The heart shape appears clearly as symbolism but the color choice is not as obvious. White represents purity and new beginnings; the color red represents passion and energy. Since Bettis was interested in the back and forth longing for love these colors are greatly significant. Brinnin’s poem was used in a way that escalated the intensity of Bettis’ choreography.
There was an apparent synergy between the poem and the dance composition. At some points the movement created a visualization of the stanza being vocalized. When the poem said “only the cold stone hangs at the breast”, the dancer falls to the floor because of the weight of the stone. She then recovers from the fall with her head last to emphasize the chest area. Bettis’ used movement from both extremes that clearly exemplified the to and fro of the emotion. For example, she would use a very bound movement with little effort followed by an intense movement with great use of space. Other parts of the work repeated the same movement numerous times to emphasize one side of the two-sided emotion. Her movements went with and against the music but the movement always followed the speed of the score. These movements displayed ones yearning for lost love with the reaching of the arms and the leg extensions. There was also a large amount of movement directed toward the heart, the point of pain. Brook Notary eloquently displayed these emotions through her facial expressions. A majority of movement can be viewed as sporadic but definitive. There was even parts of the choreography that was spastic and isolated with one area of the
body. Throughout the filmed performance there was little noise or interference from the audience. The subject was so profound that I think it took the viewers a moment to process and react. I myself didn’t have an immediate reaction during the performance and even after the first time it ended. With the final blackout, I was unsure whether I wanted to cry or applaud. I have my own stone in my heart for the lost love. After viewing the dance multiple times I realized that my reaction was empathy and sorrow.
Hope, desperation, relief, and joy were the emotional aspects that I grasped onto during the piece. While there was not a literal story, it was relatable and real. The dance was visually beautiful, because the lighting, costumes, silk, and choreography worked together to create a picture of water. Yet, the music and idea behind the dance gave the intense and emotional aspect. Each of these elements worked together to create a piece that was mesmerizing and light
Her goal was to move, not dance. She challenged the notions of what a quote on quote “female dancer” was and could do. Dance to her was an exploration, a celebration of life, and religious calling that required an absolute devotion (pg. 11, Freedman). She considered her dancers “acrobats of God”. An example of a dance which symbolized the “essentialized” body was Martha Graham’s Lamentation, choreographed in 1930, which served as an expression of what person’s grief, with Graham as the solo dancer in the piece. The costume, a tube-like stretchy piece of fabric, only allowed her face, hands, and feet to be seen, and, as Graham stated, “The garment that is worn is just a tube of material, but it is as though you were stretching inside your own skin.” In the beginning of the piece, she started out by sitting on a bench with her legs wide spread and arms held tight. Her head was going back and forth as if she was feeling sadness or maybe replaying thoughts in her head. By the way she was holding her hands so tight and close to her body, it symbolized the deep pain within her––the essence of her piece was grief, and she danced it from inside out. Russel Freedman, the author of Martha Graham A Dancers Life, stated, “She did not dance about grief, but sought “the thing itself”- the very embodiment of grief (p. 61).” Graham, dancing with strength and power, was encapsulated with her movement and was completely surrendered
Power can be defined as the ability to influence or outright control the behavior of people. A variety of different things can drive power, including both knowledge and experience. Power in most cases is needed to establish authority. In today’s country, the United States government has a lot of power. It has so much power that even American citizens are beginning to complain about it. Having all this power and authority has allowed the government to make decisions quicker. However, by making decisions faster, some mistakes can be made and innocent people can be convicted. This point is directly exemplified when using two New Yorker articles, “Surviving Solitary” and ‘A Shot to The Heart.” Both articles consist of results produced quite
These causes will change the heart significantly. The pathophysiology of heart failure is described differently as: (1) an oedematous disorder, by means of which the deviations in renal hemodynamics and excretory ability lead to salt and water holding; (2) a hemodynamic disorder, considered by peripheral vasoconstriction and decreased cardiac output; (3) a neurohormonal disorder, mainly by stimulation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and adrenergic nervous system; (4) an inflammatory syndrome, related with amplified local and circulation pro-inflammatory cytokines; (5) a myocardial disease, started with an damage to the heart trailed by pathological ventricular transformation. In heart failure, the heart sustains either a sudden or longstanding structural injury. When damage occurs, sequences of firstly compensatory but consequently maladaptive mechanisms follow (Henry & Abraham, ).
A strong relationship between the music and the text can be seen throughout the melodic line, particularly in measures 22-23; 26; 32-33; and 36 as the soloist sings the word “ah!” This word is particularly emotive and in fact does not even act as a word, but rather something closer to a sigh. The music reflects this by placing multiple notes on one syllable, stretching it melismatically to mimic the drawn-out and lethargic nature of sighing. Additionally, each instance of “ah!” involves an arching line within the melody (this is particularly evident in measures 26 and 36), which further solidifies the resemblance to sighing (an act that involves a “swell” of breath). The idea of sighing occurs in many instances throughout this piece, even acting outside of the melodic line. The string accompaniment contains occasional slurs, and these slurs usually occur on a strong beat moving to a weak beat (e.g. see both violin parts in measure 9). This adds to the...
The Hearts and the Fist narrates the story of Eric Greitens' astonishing experiences as both a soldier and a humanitarian.
The Tell Tale Heart and Greasy Lake have interesting characters to analyze. Edgar Allen Poe’s Tell Tale Heart has an eerie and dark tone that Poe’s literary work is known for. Greasy Lake by T.C. Boyle starts out with hardcore yet naïve teenagers looking to had a good time. However, their naivety and immaturity will led them into a very bad situation.
The story “Tell-tale Heart,” written by the amazing but possible insane, Edgar Allen Poe. Edgar instills a heavy sense of suspense and thrill through the story. Though it might not be noticeable at first glance but Edgar Allen Pow uses 3 major writing conventions; language, punctuation, and tone which in turn creates the feeling of suspense, not the setting or action. First of all, language is used to create and further intensify the suspense in “Tell-tale Heart.” When the protagonist is inside the Old Man’s room he states, “It was the mournful influence of the unperceived shadow that caused him to feel… to feel the presence of my head within the room” (Poe 2). The protagonists feelings have somehow caused the Old Man to feel his presence.
Through the use of suspense, authors can truly draw the reader into the story. Suspense in the case of gives the reader the sense of apprehension about was is going to happen next and anticipation. Two stories where suspense is depicted is Roald Dahl’s short story, “The Landlady” and Edgar Allan Poe’s story, “The Tell Tale Heart”. Roald Dahl’s short story, “The Landlady,” is about a young man, Billy Weaver who wants to find somewhere to stay for a night for cheap, since he is traveling for business. However, when he comes across a cheap bed and breakfast, the Landlady there, ends up acting very strange and Billy only uncovers some of her secrets, before it is too late for him to escape. In Edgar Allan Poe’s story, “The Tell Tale Heart,” is about someone, the narrator, who finds an old man’s eye immensely disturbing. After of seven nights of attempting murderer, on the eighth night, not only does the
The narrator in “The Tell-Tale Heart” is not guilty because of reason of insanity. Although the narrator claimed that he was not mad, he acted like it. He even thought that the old man had an “Evil Eye” that was vexing him. He actually seemed proud, and sounded like he was very confident, acting as if he was better than “mad” people. He is insane.
A 1958 Plymouth Fury, named Christine sets in a junk yard with a for sale sign. A boy named Arnie, with nothing going for him, besides harassment and daily assaults from bullies is in search of something, but what? Not until his best friend Dennis and himself are driving home from school, does he notice the red beauty, practically calling his name. He believes it is meant to be and goes against his best friend’s advice and purchases the breakdown car. His parents are none too thrilled with this spontaneous purchase. Everyone was against him when it came to Christine, but that was nothing new for our poor bullied Arnie. He was going to make her into what he believed she could and would be. The car gives him confidence that he never had before, she starts to control him and the evil becomes unleashed on anything and
The constant rhythm throughout the poem gives it a light beat, like a waltz; the reader feels like s/he is dancing. The rhyme pattern of...
In Edgar Allan Poe’s, “The Tell-Tale Heart,” I have confidence in that the narrator is a reliable resource. He described the way he murder an old man because he felt the man had a “vulture eye.” And that the eye was an “evil eye.’ The narrator couldn’t stand seeing the eye anymore. However, the narrator articulates how he is not a psychotic man. As if he was doing someone a favor by killing the old man. The narrator wasn’t concerned what the readers thought about his actions but about his state of mind. Some of his actions lead one to believe he isn’t a reliable source but he was the only one there; well, that is still alive. Although his actions coexisted unethical behavior, the source is reliable due to the fact he didn’t hide anything, he admits to the readers how and why he murder the old man.
In the short story, Tell Tale Heart, and The Black cat, Poe wrote as an antagonist, and in both of the stories he was insane but claimed he was not because he was smart enough to come up with an elaborate plan. In the Tell Tale Heart, he was a man who was obsessed with this guys eye, and he planned out an elaborate plan to kill him and hide him under the planks of the floor, and claimed since he was so smart to come up with a plan like that, that he wasn’t insane. Poe stated in the Tell Tale Heart, “How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe how healthily --how calmly I can tell you the whole story” (1). He thought this and decided that it was justified because he was smart. Their relationships in the story are just an old man that he finds intriguing because of his eye, and they have a trusting relationship because he gives him access to his house while he's sleeping.
Abstract:Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary defines the heart as "the viscus of cardiac muscle that maintains the circulation of the blood". It is divided into four cavities; two atria and two ventricles. The left atrium receives oxygenated blood from the lungs. From there the blood passes to the left ventricle, which forces it via the aorta, through the arteries to supply the tissues of the body. The right atrium receives the blood after it has passed through the tissues and has given up much of its oxygen.