Amelie - Intercultural Film Review Essay Example for Free

Amelie Intercultural Film Review Essay Amelie is a French movie about a young twenty something girl who’s world opened up to her when her mother dies and she is allowed to venture out. After a health misdiagnoses at a young child Amelie is stranded in her home away from all people and relationships until her mother passes away and she finds herself free. She becomes a waitress and decides to help all the people around her until one day she herself finds love. This film shows a French cultural pattern where the people are open minded, whimsical, unique, and quirky. The main character Amelie, wants to get the most out of her life. She takes the viewer on a path through a series of subplots where she is trying to help people that surround her find happiness and joy. Paris and the people of France are shown in a whimsical and fairytale environment. All the while, Amelie, is removed from all human contact which makes for an interesting film if one is attempting to view this film through the lens of interpersonal communication. All the communicating in the movie is done through the use of metaphors, scheme, plots, tricks, and the like. It’s interesting because Amelie doesn’t directly communicate with people even though she is not anti-social. She is very social and likes to help people but she does so almost exclusively nonverbally. One exception to this is when Amelie helps a blind man to cross a busy street and, opposite to her normally silent nonverbal character, she proceeds to very quickly describe everything that she sees and everything that is happening to the blind man in exceptional detail. This is done as an act of kindness for someone who can’t see and not as a form of actual or real communication. All real communication in this movie, is done in a childlike fashion of cat and mouse. It feels almost like interpersonal communication in this movie is a game that is not to be taken seriously. When Amelie finds a boy that she is romantically interested in, she finds herself needing to communicate with him only from a distance. Amelie once again plays one of her games in order to conceal her identity. Nino, the object of Amelie’s affection, is a boy who collects old photos from an old photo booth. The use of pictures in this movie is overwhelming and must have some reason behind it. Itâ€℠¢s almost as if the characters are communicating through the pictures rather than with words. Even when Amelie was quickly describing the surrounding to the blind man she was helping across the street, it was as if she was creating a picture in his mind so he could connect with her. Perhaps Amelie can only  communicate through imagery like metaphors and photographs because she spent her entire childhood alone with only her parents because they thought she was too ill to be around others. I have mixed feelings about this film because I can appreciate a good romantic comedy and I understand the feeling the director was trying to create but I’m not a fan of the fanciful fairytale romances which I think this movie falls into. I would have preferred a movie with a real underlining tone and I could do without all the whimsy. Amelie felt like a child in a woman’s body, not unlike 13 going on 30 ¸ and for me the doe eyed cutesy character began to wear on me and I found myself more annoyed than anything by the end. The setting is Paris, but not the real Paris but rat her a fantasy version of Paris not unlike a dream or the Paris you can see in old movies. The story itself felt very Disney-like in that the mother dies in the beginning which is the impetuous to the main character being forced unprepared onto the world, the main character then helps many sub-characters out along the way to finding her true love. Very Disney indeed. I’m certain that I would not recommend this movie to my friends or my family, but maybe it would have a place in a cultural communications classroom. I think the only problem I would have with it is that it doesn’t portray an actual or real culture, and only portrays a fantasy like culture. The lead character is able to form relationships and make the audience care about her without having to say much at all, which can have some value when it comes to the study of nonverbal communication. Also, there might be a value to getting a feel for the French culture from this film, because even though I didn’t love the story or the film-making, there was something about the ‘sound’ in the film. The dialogue did draw me into the French culture which was interesting because I don’t speak any French. Even though I struggle to pinpoint the feeling or atmosphere of the film, I do think that something was captured even if it was just the Disney version of Paris and French Culture.

Character Analysis of The Wife of Bath of Chaucers Canterbury Tales Es

Character Analysis of The Wife of Bath of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales The Canterbury Tales is Geoffrey Chaucer's greatest and most memorable work. In The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer uses "a fictitious pilgrimage [to Canterbury] as a framing device for a number of stories" (Norton 79). In "The General Prologue" of The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer describes in detail the pilgrims he meets in the inn on their way to Canterbury. Chaucer is the author, but also a character and the narrator, and acts like a reporter to provide a detailed description of the pilgrims. Through his description, the reader is able to paint a picture of each of the characters. In "The General Prologue," he describes each character by giving a detailed description of the character's appearance, clothing, social status, beliefs, and other relevant details. However, Chaucer never condemns his characters: "What uniquely distinguishes Chaucer's prologue from conventional estates of satire, however, is the suppression in all but a few instances of overt moral judgement. . . . It is up to the reader to draw up the moral indictment from the evidence presented with such artlessness even while falling in with the easygoing mood of 'felaweship' that pervades Chaucer's prologue to the pilgrimage" (Norton 80-81). Chaucer is thus able to create a tension between the ideal and the real. He builds up the reader's expectations and then shatters them. Although The Canterbury Tales was probably written in the late fourteenth century, many of the pilgrims of The Canterbury Tales seem real and true to life even today. One of the most memorable pilgrims of The Canterbury Tales, as well as one of the most memorable women in literature, is the Wife of Bath. The "lusty and domineering"... ...urteenth century, her ideas, beliefs, and behavior are more like a woman of the twentieth century or possibly even the twenty-first century. She is truly a woman ahead of her time. Works Cited Abrams, M. H. et al. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Vol. 1. Sixth Edition. New York: W.W. Norton, & Co. 1993. 76-144. Benson. Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales. February 1997. October 24, 1998. Online. Internet. Available http: icg.harvard.edu/~eng115b/ Bobr, Janet. Welcome to Camelot. 1998. October 24, 1998. Online. Internet. Available http: www.csis.pace.edu/grendel/prjs3f/arthur1.htm Canterbury Tales. 1998. November 30, 1998. Online. Internet. Available http: userzweb.lightspeed.net/~cheezit/pilgrims/index.html Jokinen, Anniina. Geoffrey Chaucer (ca. 1343-1400). July 1996. October 24, 1998. Online. Internet. Available http: www.luminarium.org/medlit/chaucer.htm

Allegorical on the Bell Jar Essay

Just as all roads lead back to home, the protagonist exhibits that everyone will eventually become manifestations of the society it is born within. In this excerpt, the author uses the strong allegory of the protagonist plummeting down the slopes and skiing towards the inevitable end of conforming towards mankind and society. Although the protagonist’s gender isn’t explicit, we can assume that it’s a girl due to its unambiguous sub theme of feminine repression. The author presents the protagonists struggle in two distinct parts: the struggle to conform and the inevitable realization and acceptance of her fate. The author is able to do skilfully do so with a myriad of literary devices and extremely significant allegories. In the beginning, the protagonist is still struggling against the implications of society and is unwilling to accept her fate. The monotony of her â€Å"pale† life is emphasized by the repetition alliteration of â€Å"hill after†¦hill† and â€Å"great grey eye†. This shows the boring reoccurrence in the protagonist’s life and is constantly being overshadowed and judged by the watchful eye of society. Additionally, the protagonist is having an internal battle with doing what she innately feels is right against becoming what she knows everyone else wants her to transform into. Therefore, she has an â€Å"interior voice† that is persistently â€Å"nagging† her â€Å"not to be a fool† and conform and lose herself and â€Å"save [her] skin†. Obviously, she has fought hard to persist as her authentic self and is bitter about giving up who she really is. She feels like she has lost her sense of self and is no longer an individual, but merely â€Å"camouflaged† amongst everyone else as a product of society. The long sentence structure in the second paragraph of the excerpt displays that there was a very long and meticulous thought process about her present situation. She is â€Å"bordering† on the edge of a life changing decision. She has to decide – should she â€Å"kill [her true] self†, or should she resist the temptations of society? She is representing man’s struggle against oneself – the hardest battle to. However, she finally overcomes her inner battles and comes to realize that it is in her best interest to abide to society’s expectations. Henceforth, she tries to â€Å"measure the distance† and calculate how much of herself she will have to lose in the process. Buddy is a representation of society and the word is also slang for friend. â€Å"His†¦folded† â€Å"arms† signifying his lack of approval and his natural masculine instinct to repress femininity. As a result, we can understand the extent upon which female repression has been engrained into society and social stigma. Such is the product of a society filled with conformists and a lack of individuality – â€Å"numb, brown†¦ inconsequential† and boring beings. The next paragraph accentuates her defeatist attitude as the excerpt inches to the climax of the plot and has resolved to finally conform to the ‘American dream’ and fit into the mould society cast for her. Inevitably, she â€Å"aim[s] straight down† as she realizes that despite her best efforts at resistance, it is all to no avail. Once again, the short sentence structure is the implicit sign of the distinct change of internal character into one that has finally decided to join and become a part of society. Subsequent to the protagonist’s â€Å"descen[t]† into society, she â€Å"plummet[s]† herself straight into the heart of the situation. Nevertheless, even though she has physically committed herself he is still mentally â€Å"suspended† and trapped between what she wants and who she is. As a result, she represses those thoughts from â€Å"r[ising] higher†. This is the pivotal point upon which she consigns herself to follow society’s expectations because she understands that without social rules and stigma, â€Å"the world would not exist† and be able to function properly. Her â€Å"answering point in†¦[her] body† instinctually gravitates â€Å"towards† following social norms because despite the struggle against it, everyone will eventually cave to the expectations of others. She has become â€Å"inflate[d]† by the â€Å"inrush† of the external pressures of being part of a society . She realizes that she is finally experiencing the typical emotions, even though she feels removed from the â€Å"smiles† and â€Å"what it is [supposed to feel like] to be happy†. In spite of that, she feels â€Å"doubleness† as if it is not really herself going through the motions – she doesn’t feel true to herself and who she really is but simply sees a reflection of her figure that she can no longer recognise. On her way â€Å"hurtling† down, she has flashes of her â€Å"own past† that â€Å"recede[s]† and she has to make a decision between the light of the â€Å"white sun† and the darkness of an endless â€Å"dark tunnel†. Ultimately, she focuses on the â€Å"bright point at the end† of the tunnel and becomes a small â€Å"pebble† in the â€Å"bottom of [a big] well†, which is an analogy to her small and insignificant self in a world filled with billions of people. Her metamorphosis is paralleled to that of a rebirth into her new life. She has chosen the light and she is being christened into her new life as an innocent â€Å"sweet baby† that is being reborn again from â€Å"it’s mother’s belly†. All throughout this process â€Å"Buddy† and the â€Å"other faces† of society watchfully gaze and â€Å"h[a]ng over† her to ensure complete control. Gradually, she is transformed by the â€Å"strokes of [a] grandmother’s wand† creating a fairytale element to her change. The â€Å"familiar voice† of her conscience reminds her that she was doing â€Å"fine† by herself until â€Å"man[kind] stepped into her path† and created the platonic change within her. Society has already taken it upon themselves to â€Å"unfasten [her] bindings† of her previous ‘life’ and releasing her of her previous sins of not conforming. The â€Å"lodge fence† that blocks her way is a symbol of the white picket fence, which is a representation of the American Dream. She is finally being trapped into society’s expectations of what she should become. Yet she is still treated as an outsider and isn’t trusted and treated like an enemy with a â€Å"concealed weapon†. In the end, the light triumphs the dark and society overcomes her. The rising of the white sun shining in the sky displays her birth and final decision to conform to society. Even though she tries to challenge and return to her old self, she is unable to escape. Not only is she restricted by society itself but herself as well. She is â€Å"stuck† as society now has full reign over her. Thus, society and lack of freedom prevail and it’s triumph is evident in the â€Å"final smile†. In conclusion, the excerpt uses skiing as an allegory for mankind’s eventual and inevitable decline into conformity towards the American dream. There is no place in society for people who do not follow social rules and expectations. The protagonist is assumed to be a woman due to the stigma of females repressed role in society. She begins with the struggle between light and dark and the battle between being true to oneself and taking the easier path and following the well-worn road that society has taken. Later on, she understands and realizes that it is inevitable and ultimately conforms. Not matter how hard we may try to contend society, it will always prevail and have the power to manipulate us.

The Main Materials - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 708 Downloads: 3 Date added: 2019/06/10 Category Literature Essay Level High school Tags: Discourse Community Essay Did you like this example? When it comes to marching band there are many styles like military, corps style, carnival style, scramble style, and many more. Among high school bands the most common style is the show band style, since they focus on providing entertainment to people at football games and competitions. Most high schools and universities have show bands that do more than play for the crowd at games, but also compete against other bands that are on their same level. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Main Materials" essay for you Create order Most bands will learn one show consisting of multiple different pieces of music that are fused together to create one cohesive journey. They usually learn this shows at a band camp in the summer, where they are also taught the different marching and stances that they will need to know if they do not already. Bands spend all season continuously trying to perfect their show, always having early morning practices and night practices multiple times a week. The main materials used in high school Show Marching Bands are the instruments and the different flags, rifles, and batons used by the Color Guard members. The Intellectual tools used by all members is the ability to understand the jargon of marching and reading/playing music. Knowing the different terms that describe the way in which you are needed to march and the stances that are appropriate to use at different points in a performance are crucial to the efficiency of both learning and correcting the drill, or routine. There is always passion behind the reason that the members are in Marching Band. Whether itrs because they love to play their instrument, enjoy the physical aspect of marching, or they relish in the ability to entertain the audience while taking them on an emotional adventure, there is always something there that makes all the commitment worth it. Winning a competition isnt bad either. There are very few times that bands will win prize money at competitions, but there are always great rewards like scholarships, new equipment, or even an opportunity to have a renowned clinician come in to work with the band that will help them build their skills and come back even stronger for the next season. The ending goal for most bands is to be able to see that all their hard work has paid off through winning competitions or getting recognized throughout the community for their good work. Marching Band is more about the pleasure and accomplishments the members get out of the experience than any prizes that can be won. The community of high school marching bands, consists of not only the different schools that are local and all in the same conference, but also universities that are state wide competitions and different music foundations that can be local, nationwide, or anywhere in between. These different groups that organize the competitions all have the goal of bringing people in the Marching Band community together and making it accessible to see what bands are working on outside of your own. Whoever is putting on the competition usually contributes by either preforming in exhibition their selves, or bringing in a renowned band to play for those who have competed and who are there to watch. While there are some discourse communities that are all about pushing the boundaries and breaking rules, Marching Band is not one of them. Points are taken off if there is too much space between people in a set, if someone moves when they should be at attention, or not rolling your feel while you march. Everything in Marching Band is about uniform so with each wrong move, points get deducted from the total score. Presentation is also a big part of this uniformed look, so wearing the right type of gloves, making sure all hair is tucked in your hat, and your pants being the correct length are requirements that are drilled into you from the start of your very first competition. Crossing the field lines is never an option, and neither is talking during a performance. The number one rule of Marching band though, is to never swerve for anyone. If there is a judge in your way on the field, you run them over. And always stretch before you do anything in Marching Band. Ever.