“The Fly” by George Langelaan Have you ever asked yourself just because something can be done, should it? This is a major theme in the short story “The Fly” by George Langelaan. The story unfolds late one night as Francois receives a phone call from his sister in law, Helene, informing him of his brother’s death which she caused. Helene supposedly operated a machine in Francois’s factory that ultimately crushed the head and arm of her husband, Andre. This short story was published in Playboy Magazine and later made into a movie. Although the two bear many similarities, the differences between the short story and the movie are striking. First and foremost, one of the more obvious differences between Langelaan’s short story and it’s 1958 …show more content…
Francois goes on to reveal that Henri, Helene’s son, has discovered the fly that his mother has been obsessing over. Francois then orders Helene to confess so that he can ensure the safety of his nephew. Helene reluctantly gives in and produces a written confession that Francois takes home to read. On the other hand, in the movie adaptation, Helene is visited by Francois while she is under observation in her home. He demands the same request, only this time Helene does not have a thick wad of papers of which the truth has been written. Instead, Francois quickly calls up Commissioner Charas who is also present for Helene’s verbal …show more content…
The confession begins a couple of months back when Andre discovers how to transmit matter. Andre works day and night to perfect his transmitting device. He experiments on many objects including an ashtray and their house pets- a cat named Dandelo and a dog named Miquette, the dog of which does not exist in the movie. One day Helene has not heard from Andre and began to worry, She decides to check on him in his lab. Upon checking on him, Helene discovers that one of Andre’s experiments have gone completely wrong. In efforts to transmit himself, Andre transmits himself as a fly flies in with him. As Andre emerges out of the transmitter, he realizes that he is not entirely human… he has the head and the arm of a fly. Helene begs Andre to go through the transmitter once more, hoping to reverse the effects. This is where a significant difference comes into play; in the short story, Andre disappears in the transmitter and emerges changed again, but not for the better. Andre now has the ears and nose of his former pet cat, Dandelo. Andre soon comes to the conclusion that asking Helene to help destroy his body is the only way to solve the
Perhaps the most evident display of transformation comes in the form of Isabelle’s social and moral evolution which is stimulated by her illicit relationship with Stephen in Part 1 of Faulks’ naturalistic novel. Isabelle’s husband, Azaire is a symbol of the “old wealth” in the Belle Époque era; he is a factory owner and enjoys an important social presence within Amiens: “There would have been no doubt that this was a property of a substantial man”...
Marie had just traveled from her hometown of Ville Rose, where discarding your child made you wicked, to the city of Port-Au-Prince, where children are commonly left on the street. Marie finds a child that she thinks could not be more beautiful, “I thought she was a gift from Heaven when I saw her on the dusty curb, wrapped in a small pink blanket, a few inches away from a sewer as open as a hungry child’s yawn” (79). Marie has suffered many miscarriages, so she takes this child as if it were her own, “I swayed her in my arms like she was and had always been mine” (82). Marie’s hope for a child has paid off, or so it seems. Later, it is revealed that the child is, in fact, dead, and Marie fabricated a story to sanction her hopes and distract her from the harsh reality of her life, “I knew I had to act with her because she was attracting flies and I was keeping her spirit from moving on… She smelled so bad that I couldn’t even bring myself to kiss her without choking on my breath” (85). Her life is thrown back into despair as her cheating husband accuses her of killing children for evil purposes and sends her to
I think Fly Guy was very hungry, but he never stopped and he thing best thing to eat. Firstly, He never gave up even when everybody told him to leave and to get away from their food. In the book it states that the boy, girl, and old lady yelled at him and told him to leave. Even though they told him to leave he never stopped looking for food and his friend; Fly Guy is very brave not to give on something he wants. Secondly, I think he always love his best friend very much. In the book it said when he came home he started to look for his friend but he was nowhere to be found. This can infer that he does care about his friend. So, the moral of the story is that if you always work hard and never give up, you will get what you want.
...ce, although both writings are interesting in their own ways, the most interesting aspect of both writings together is that they both have a similar plot and theme. It is rare that two
It seems as though in today’s society, suspicion lies in every corner. No one trusts anyone anymore, everyone lies, everyone steals, everyone pretends to be someone they are not. However true or false these statements might be, there is a need in today’s society to be able to explain everything, coming up with every possible lie or predicament within every story. Natalie Davis is from today’s society, and once again, she has found the need to investigate Bertrande Guerre’s role within The Return of Martin Guerre. The only pieces of evidence that are reliable come from Jean de Coras, the main judge in the trial.
They both are thought to be a freak or crazy, as they do not fit the normality. As Marie-Laure is blind, and Etienne has agoraphobia and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. They both lost someone that was important to them in a world war. Etienne lost his brother during World War I, and Marie-Laure lost her father during World War II. They fell broken because of the one person that understood them and that was there for them was gone and they did not know how to handle it because they when though everything together. As the story goes on you get to see Etienne’s and Marie-Laure’s relationship get strong and they began to mend the damage, and become support systems for each
In Part I, Meursault is spending the night next to his mother's coffin at a sort of pre-funeral vigil. With him are several old people who were friends of his mother at the home in which she had been living at the time of her death. Meursault has the strange feeling that he can see all of their faces really clearly, that he can observe every detail of their clothing and that they will be indelibly impr...
Ballet is one of the world's oldest and newest forms of dance. One man that created new audiences for ballet and mastered the dance to its fullest was none other than George Balanchine. He brought the standard ballet to levels no one has ever seen before. In the world of dance, there have been many wonderful and talented choreographers but Balanchine's work affected the dance world so much that he was a legend long before his death. Not only was he legendary worldwide but also his influenced American Ballet. George Balanchine's unique style of dance created the "American style" of Ballet.
She requests that Arden’s body be brought to her and, upon seeing him, she speaks to Arden and confesses to the murder, and expresses her guilt, wishing he were still alive, by saying “...And would my death save thine thou shouldst not die” (“Arden” 8). Though she previously conveyed how free she felt, the combination of the hand-towel and knife used to kill Arden, his innocent blood stains on the floor, and his distorted, unmoving body triggers Alice to feel an overwhelming and unbearable sense of guilt. Once this guilt comes upon her, she cannot stop herself from begging her dead husband for forgiveness, though he cannot offer it to her now. The guilt of her actions causes her to expose the people who helped her enact this heinous crime. Because Alice reveals the truth behind Arden’s murder, every character pays a penance for their
Many times in literature we can make assumptions in which a few major characters from two completely different stories can have much in common. Authors like Coraghessan Boyle of Greasy Lake and Raymond Carver of Cathedral demonstrate this perfectly. We as readers of these brilliant works can find ways to compare and contrast these in the sense that they are quite similar. From what we can tell both the narrator in Greasy Lake and the Narrator in Cathedral have a lot in common even though they come from completely different worlds. In T. Coraghessan Boyle’s short story “Greasy Lake”, the narrator tells a coming of age story of himself and two other teenage boys who think that they epitomize the image of “cool” and go to the Greasy Lake to
Though he may seem acquitted and amiable, Gerard de Villefort can be dangerous and even murderous. Gerard has done numerous things in his life to corroborate his sinfulness, including the assayed murder of his son, Andrea, by burying him alive when he was a newborn. Gerard is also one of the three main conspirators in the Count's arrest and imprisonment; it is he who is the most measurable of the three. The Count, Edmond Dantes, was an innocent man about to be married, before Gerard’s conception between right and wrong was twisted by the name of his father in a letter. Also, Gerard forces his wife to commit suicide; even though he had had many faults of his own.
Wilbur and Orville Wright spent their lives building and working with mechanical devices. They began with little toys as children and then grew up and began working with bicycles. These works lead them towards their work with airplanes. The Wright Brothers tried for many years to build a successful flying machine and succeeded. The Wright Brothers laid the foundation for aviation when they made history by being the first to create a successful flying machine.
When Meursault returns home he decides to take another day off and relax at the beach. On his way out he sees an old man beating his dog and cussing at it ruthlessly. Normally most people would be bothered by the fact of a man beating a small dog, but Muersault watches as if nothing bad were happening. When Meursault is at the beach he meets a girl, named Marie, which he finds very attractive. Meursault and Marie become very close. As the story progresses they begin taking part in sexual activities. Marie tells Muersault that she loves him and asks if he loves her back.
The relationship shared by Pierre and Helene is best described as a lustful charade. It is no coincidence that Pierre, one of the most introspective characters in the novel, first marries a shallow, inwardly-ugly adulterer. His first recorded attitude towards Helene is one of admira...
Florens’ perception of a moment early in her youth had a profound impact on her, rendering her desperate for love and validation from others. In the opening chapter, Florens divulges her sorrowful account of the moment that defined her childhood, recalling her mother pleading to her master, “Take the girl, she says, my daughter, she says. Me. Me” (9). From Florens’ perspective, her mother willingly volunteered Florens to be taken away from her family, in the interest of protecting her baby brother.