'The Hurricane' Film Analysis

1.     Motif is defined as a “distinctive feature or dominant idea in an artistic or literary composition.”  In Norman Jewison’s The Hurricane, what motifs are explored?  Explain, in detail, one of the motifs you have identified, and elaborate on how the motif is a significant part of the film. 

Rubin Carter is constantly being oppressed and unfairly treated by white people, as are his fellow black people. Although a motif in itself, it leads to Hurricane being untrusting of white people (another motif), especially in Lesra’s foster family. His mistrust in white people becomes a key part later in the film, where he eventually must trust them if he wants to be released from prison.

2.     Symbolism is a key component of any literary work.  What symbols are evident in The Hurricane?  Identify and elaborate upon two symbols that you identify.

The Hurricane’s name represents brute physical strength, which he proves is true by becoming a middleweight legend and overcoming prison. Furthermore, his body also represents strength, and he views it as a weapon. Carter goes on to believe that controlling his ‘weapon’ (body) is freedom. Therefore, Carters body is a symbol of freedom.

3.     Justice, or the notion of justice, plays a significant role in both The Hurricane and To Kill a Mockingbird.  Examine Jewisons’s portrayal of the arrest, interrogation, and court proceedings.  Keep in mind Atticus Finch’s cool demeanour when he was in the courtroom.

Rubin Carter is relaxed when being confronted by the police, and continues to be whilst he is being arrested.  During his trial, Hurricane remains calm and speaks coolly, since he knows he has done nothing wrong. On the other side, the prosecutor is frantic and determined to prove Hurricane guilty. When asking the surviving witness if Carter was the man who attacked him, he is persistent and tries to force him into lying.

4.     There are several similarities between To Kill a Mockingbird and The Hurricane.  Choose one significant parallel—theme, motif, or symbol--that exists between these discourses, and elaborate on your choice.  Be sure to make a clear connection between the book and the film in your discussion. 

The racial prejudices are very evident between both sources, especially the way the cases were built. In The Hurricane, the lawyer built his case around lies, purely to get Rubin Carter in jail, who he has been pursuing for almost all of Carters life. This was mostly because of his race. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the case was built upon false assumptions, and people wanted to see ‘justice’ be dealt against Tom Robinson not because of his ‘crimes’ but because of his race.

Obasan Discussion

Paragraph #1

Joy Kogawa uses interesting metaphors and other figurative language to describe and set up an image of her family's living space in chapter 29. First, she describes the conditions she worked in as being difficult, using metaphors to describe what the work is doing to her body, such as comparing her bone marrow to mud, or saying such things as "all the oil in my joints has drained out ". This is used to give a feeling of how hard it was to work under the circumstances, and the metaphors are purposely grim to portray her perception of what is happening to her. Kogawa also uses a strange metaphor for the beets, comparing their uprooting to a surgery being performed on someone (Nomi) by Aunt Emily, the stems of the beets seen as hair being scalped, and them being pulled compared to tumours or organs being removed from the walls of her chest. Perhaps Nomi chooses to compare herself with the beets because she they have become her life, and Joy Kogawa uses this metaphor to reiterate the Naomi's desperate feeling. Finally, the writing style deviates slightly in this chapter, becoming more like a monologue instead of a recounting of events, comparable to chapter 22, sounding more depressing and hopeless. For example, in when she says "facts about evacuees in Alberta? Fact is I never got used to it", the tone becomes more cynical, as if the writing style reflects her attitude and feelings. All of this chapter is comprised of unique writing styles to reflect the emotions of Nomi and her family, especially through the use of metaphors.

Paragraph #2

In Obasan, the RCMP are portrayed as brutal overlords instead of noble protecters, to show what the Japanese perceived them as. At some points in the book, Nomi talks about how she used to admire the RCMP, such as on page 108, where she says "remember how I almost worshipped the Mounties?" and "how I'd go around saying their motto". This is used in a context where she is losing hope in them, and she reiterates their motto 'Maintain the Right' as if asking why they deviated from it. Later, she talks about how their red coats now represent fear, rather than inspire hope. This gives a portrayal of their perception by the Japanese, who are now scared of them. Finally, Nomi talks about how the RCMP are cruel to the Japanese, like how they had to give up their belongings to them or "suffer the humiliation of having them taken forcibly by the RCMP. Once again, this is used to show how the RCMP have changed the eyes of the Japanese, by giving examples of their deeds. The portrayal of the RCMP is not used to insult them, rather to give attention to what the Japanese had to deal with.

Taming of the Shrew Blog Post

Hamburger Paragraph #1

A motif in Taming of the Shrew is disguises, and it is shown that clothes do not make a man. A multitude of characters use disguises to overcome an inability to do something that they might not be able to, due to their class. For example, Tranio (a servant) dresses up like his master, Lucentio in order to secure permission from Bianca's father, which eventually works, however he is discovered by Lucentio's father. In the introduction, Sly is dressed up like a lord and tricked into thinking he is one. He is fooled by this, but only after other evidence is displayed to him, which shows that clothes alone do not make a person someone else. Finally, Petruchio dresses ridiculously on his wedding day, much to the disdain of all in attendance. Although not a disguise, per say, Petruchio proves that clothes are unimportant by saying: "To me she is married, not unto my clothes", implying that the person is important, not what he wears. Taming of the Shrew teaches an important lessen here, showing that it's whats inside that counts.

Hamburger Paragraph #2

Taming of the Shrew shows a different side of marriage, for profit rather than love. Unlike other Shakespeare plays that revolve around love, Taming of the Shrew displays how marriage can be used for economic gain, rather than love. The play shows how the wealth of people determines who will marry who, instead of basing it on emotions. Furthermore, the play also displays how families (specifically the fathers) will give their consent to the richest man. For example, Luciento must masquerade as a wealthy tutor in order to convince Bianca's father. Finally, the play dictates that love is not the only way to achieve a happy marriage. Petruchio doesn't care about who he marries, as long as she is rich, proved by him marrying the shrewish Katherina. Taming of the Shrew puts happiness of marriage in a different yet not so uncommon light.

Hamburger Paragraph #3

The relationship between Petruchio and Katherina is a unique one, unlike most other relationships. Petruchio comes to Padua seeking a wealthy bride, not caring about who he is wed to. Katherina is the one he chooses to marry, despite her seemingly hating him. Katherina is described as being shrewish and not wanting to be married. The only reason she decides to marry Petruchio (other than him tricking her father) is because she doesn't want to turn into an old unmarried woman. FInally, Petruchio tries to "tame Kate", which succeeds in later in the book, much to the surprise of the other characters in the end of the book, and Horentio claims: "thou hast tamed a curst shrew". This is surprising, as at first Kate was so against marrying, however in time she is transfermed into an apathetic wife upon realizing that she can never push away Petruchio. All of these reasons prove that the relationship between Petruchio and Kate is strange and unique.

To Kill a Mockingbird Chapter 12-20

Hamburger Paragraph #1

The importance of Jem and Scout sitting in the colored booth during the trial can be related to other parts of the book. The kids are primarily in the booth to be able to see their father Atticus and the trial, because they were unable to get a seat in the rest of the courtroom. The reverend brings them up there because they knew each other previously. However, they sitting up there is symbolic because they don’t care being up in a colored booth with black people. This is not because they are ignorant, but because they aren’t racist and don’t see anything wrong with being with black people. This goes hand in hand with them wanting to see the trial, where they what happens to the defendant, Tom Robison. After going to church with black people and their caretaker, Calpurnia, they have a different perspective on the case, seemingly with more respect for black people. To conclude, the seating of the children has a certain impact on their attitude to the case.

Hamburger Paragraph #2

The writing style of the story changes significantly during the trial portion of the book, and this affects the reader’s perspective of it. Throughout the chapters previous to the trial part of the book, the story is narrated exclusively through Scout, using her opinions and thoughts to give the reader her perspective. However, once the trial begins, the narration changes to more fact based, with less opinion involved. In fact, the story seems less like it is being narrated through a person, and instead appears to being told outright with less of a bias. With the exception of the dialogue between Scout and Jem, the trial is narrated in more of a third person perspective for the most part. Finally, the tone goes from childhood problems innocence, to a racist attitude. Since neither Jem nor Scout ever showed signs of racism, it would be difficult to display this tone through their perspective. The tone is an important part of a story, and in order to convey certain ideas it must be changed at times.

My representation of these chapters is an cartoon of alienation. I chose this as my representation because that is what Scout feels like when aunt Alexandra moves in with them. The shifting of power upsets Scout because it completely changes her life.

To Kill a Mockingbird Chapter 9 - 11

Hamburger paragraph 1

Scout and Jem should learn to be proud of their father Atticus for what he is currently instead of what he was. The kids seem ashamed almost of what Atticus does, yet they still respect him. This is because he teaches them to be kind and courteous and not to loose their temperature. Furthermore, Scout and Jem don’t fully understand why Atticus is defending Tom Robinson, and they need to learn to accept that black people should be treated fairly. Moreover, Scout should learn about it before she picks fights over it. Finally, they should not dwell on the past, since upon learning of Atticus’ weapon skills, Jem wishes for Atticus to indulge on his past. Atticus wants Jem to have a good upbringing, so his past shouldn’t concern him. To conclude, the children should concern themselves with their own problems rather than their fathers life. They should be proud of him for what he is.

Hamburger Paragraph 2

            The Finch family would do a lot better to support each other instead of disagreeing all the time. Firstly, Alexandra and her side of the family discourage and mock Atticus, due to his beliefs and morals. For example, Francis tells Scout that Alexandra believes that Atticus is doing a poor job at parenting and shouldn’t defend a black man in court.  Next, Uncle Jack seems to be trying to help support, but he also seems to be trying to discourage Atticus form influencing the children. This is because he doesn’t have kids of his own, and therefore doesn’t know what’s best for them. Lastly, Francis strongly disagrees with the ethics of Atticus and his family. This is due to Alexandra’s influence on his, but he seems to despise Atticus’ side of the family. In conclusion, the Finch family spends too much time fighting each other, whereas they could get more accomplished if they came to terms with one another.

I chose a disguise as my representation because it represents Atticus hiding his past from his children, because he believes they will be better off not knowing.

The Loons

Hamburger paragraph #1

The imagery displayed in ‘The Loons” greatly helps convey the story for a multitude of reasons. First, since the story is called The Loons, it would only make sense to have loons featured within the story, so the brief encounter with them is enhanced with beautiful imagery. The lake they are upon is called “black glass with a streak of amber”.  Another good example is the environment, well describing it with imagery. The environment is an important part of this story due to the stereotype of the natives knowing the forest and their surroundings. The final use of imagery comes from the description Piquette Tonnerre, when it is used to draw out her profile with words. The way the author describes her clothing, her tubercular leg and somehow even her personality is done incredibly well. It is important to have a good picture of Piquette, as she plays a key part in the story. In conclusion, imagery is a great way to describe the story, as it adds detail to the picture already painted by words.  

Hamburger paragraph #2

Similies are often a great way to relate to the audience. Foremost, the use of a similie helps the audience understand by relating the situation at hand with a similar one that is familiar to them. For example, in the story, there is a similie that says that the strawberries hung like lanterns. Perhaps not everyone has seen strawberries hanging delicately from a branch, but surely everyone has seen a lantern hanging from somewhere. Similies can also be used to reiterate a certain situation. If the two things that are being compared are similar enough, it is almost like a reinforcement. Lastly, similies can be used to compare two completely different scenarios to bring variety. For example, in The Loons, an example, the jukebox is compared to thunder. Thunder is irrelevant to the situation at hand, however the comparison makes sense. To conclude, similies are excellent at relating situations in a story to an experience in the readers life.

Representation:

Aside from the obvious reason of choosing a loon to represent the story, it is also a metaphor for the ending of an era. In the story, everything changes for Vanessa. Both her father and Piquette die in the end, yet Vanessa seems somewhat apathetic to it. Similar to how those people died and Vanessa doesn't much care, the Canadian loon will migrate and leave for a time, yet it is never a large deal as it happens so often.

A little about myself:

Interests: Crime fighting and .44 magnum revolvers.

Extracurricular Activities: When I'm not fighting crime or down at the headquarters, I indulge in various outdoor activities.

English Goals: I hope to be on task more often, as most people would. Furthermore, I need to be more creative in my writings.

Any other info: I can write a pretty good essay.