Blog 8

Blog 8 03-10-2010

Light of Thy Countenance: Literature or Not?

Alan Moore’s Light of Thy Countenance is a work of art, not just for its graphics, but also for its literary nuances. Some may not consider it a work of literature because it has pictures and carries preconceived notion that “comics” are not worthy of being called literature. However, if it is read closely, it is like reading a traditional novel. What a graphic novel can offer depends on the content. In this case, the graphics in Light of Thy Countenance enhance the narration of the story because the diction already makes it vivid. It can also offer an easier time catching when the point of view changes. Repeated images, such as the character Maureen Cooper, and themes such as “TV as a God” appear within the graphic novel literally as images. While many graphic novels are purely for entertainment, and do not use very many literary elements, this graphic novel should be considered literature because it incorporates these various literary devices.

Traditional novels incorporate many literary devices to present their work of art. Light of Thy Countenance is not so different. It has images, motifs, themes relating to present-day problems, and changes in point of view.

In the beginning, we zoom in on a single lady named Maureen Cooper, but then we zoom out and find out she, Maureen, is not the topic of interest. In fact, it is the actress that plays her, Carol Livesey, but we zoom out change point of view again, and eventually an omnipresent being is actually narrating the story. If the graphics were not there, catching the change in point of view might have been trickier, but nonetheless, we do realize, with or without the graphics, that element is there, and it makes the story more interesting.

When we realize an omnipresent being is doing the narrating, he talks as if he knows everything. Since television plays a major part in our lives, and a major theme in this graphic novel, he talks as if the world revolves around him like a god. He mocks people for “praising” television instead of praising a real god. The image of Maureen appears again and he mocks people for knowing more about Maureen’s life instead of their own. He mocks people again for having television take over their lives, and, for example, having husbands or boyfriends imagine hot TV stars instead of seeing what’s in front of them. These are a few examples of the use of literary devices in Moore’s graphic novel. Whether or not the graphics are there, this is a piece of literature worthy for anybody to study from.

Blog 7

Blog 7 03-04-10

Blade Runner Response

In the movie Blade Runner, we see a group of androids called Replicants who were made to be intellectually and physically similar (if not superior) to humans. After a revolt, they were declared illegal on Earth. In this sense, they were out casted by society, just as Frankenstein’s creature was, except they were out casted by law.

Four Nexus-6 Replicants, named Roy, Leon, Zhora, and Pris, escape to Earth to try and find the secret to living longer because they only have a four-year life span, just as the robots from R.U.R. tried to do. Roy searches for his creator, Tyrell, to find this secret. Roy killed Tyrell because Tyrell did not have the power to make him live longer, just as the scientists of R.U.R. were killed by their creations to become human and to live longer.

In the short time that they had, the Replicants developed memories and responses to those memories, like the creature did as he observed his neighboring cottagers. As Rick Deckard “retires” the female escapee Replicants, the male ones become enraged by their deaths, showing that they care for one another. One Replicant, named Rachel, thinks she is really is human, due to Tyrell’s, experiments. As Deckard told Rachel that her memories are implants, she tears up because she believes her memories are real. Although she may not be technically human, by saving him from Leon’s killing blow, she shows how human she is and how much she cares for Deckard. Similarly, as the creature felt bad for stealing, he shows that he cares by doing the cottager’s chores and not stealing food. Another comparison of caring would be Robot Primus and Robot Helena’s relationship at the end, where they were protecting one another from certain death by dissection.

Roy asked to be forgiven by Tyrell because he has done “questionable things,” but Tyrell dismissed him because Tyrell was proud of what Roy did. This is comparable to Victor’s dismissing of the creature although he dismissed the creature for the opposite reasons. We see a similar idea of an irresponsible creator, where they either hated the creation so much that they wanted nothing to do with it or were too blind by their pride to actually care.

Although it was Deckard’s job to retire the Replicants, Roy saved him from falling off a building although Deckard was trying to kill him. Roy probably did this because he valued life so much. He lived in fear of dying and becoming someone’s slave. Perhaps, to him, becoming a slave was the same as dying in that one loses their soul, their personality, one of the many roots of what is considered human. Once he dies, the memories that he had and valued will disappear and fade into history, and he will be no more. He wanted to live on, to be someone, to be himself, to be human.

(I feel that my blog seems too summary-like and observational. Only paragraphs 2, 3, 5 relate to my essay.)

Blog 6

Blog 6 02-23-2010

Connections Between Frankenstein and R.U.R.

I would like to first note that both stories include someone trying to mess with the natural order of things, namely trying to “improve” mankind. Victor Frankenstein, out of curiosity and out of his desire to “better” mankind, used his knowledge from his studies to build a human of his own. Rossum’s Universal Robot’s manufacturing company sets out to create a perfect “human” being that will relieve humans from the pains of labor and create a “paradise on earth.” I note this first because the themes of improving mankind from both stories stood out and were very similar to each other.

Another similarity would be that the creature from Frankenstein and the Robots from R.U.R. developed into human beings. The creature grew into a being that has matured from not knowing how to communicate his thoughts and feelings to one who could eloquently give reasons for his point of view. This is what makes him human: to be able to communicate thoughts and feelings through words and actions, to have a conscience that gives him the ability to reason out choices. The Robots, through the persuasion of Helena Glory’s desire for them to be treated like normal human beings and Dr. Gall’s implementation of “feelings,” developed the power to think for themselves. This makes them more human, having opinions, on top of looking exactly like one with the exception of super strength and super memory/learning ability.

However, the Robot’s ability to make sensible decisions is not as superior as the creature’s. The creature, although hurt and emotionally abused by society, reasoned with Victor to convince him to make a companion to him happy, and gave Victor consequences if he refuses. The Robots just thought of themselves as superior, and because they read it in the books, they conquered the humans just so they could become accepted as humans themselves. Since the Robots knew that they would die out someday, they demanded that Alquist, the last human being, spill the secret of their reproduction, although it was gone for good. They kept demanding no matter how many times Alquist said they needed humans to reproduce. Not so sensible, those Robots. They acted upon rationality, in that it is in their best interest to do reproduce so that they can last longer.

At the end of R.U.R., Robot Helena and Robot Primus seem to have been flirting with each other for some time. They expressed feelings of joy, laughter, happiness, and even love for one another when they were faced with Alquist’s request for someone to dissect (this meant certain death to a robot). Both Robots offered themselves to be dissected in each other’s place, but concluded with Primus saying that Alquist cannot take either of them. This demonstrates the ability to care, one ability of which Robots cannot comprehend. With the creature, he demonstrates his ability to care by feeling guilty that he has been stealing food from the cottagers and follows up on it by cutting logs for them and not stealing anymore.

Other similarities: Adam and Eve, punishment, (isolation? VF: studies, RUR: island).

Blog 5

Blog 5 (Essay #2 Brainstorm) 02-16-10

What It Means to be Human

In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the main protagonist, Victor Frankenstein, creates a creature that is abhorred by him and society. However, it is the creature’s outward appearance that makes him horrid. He displays some intellect in that he strategizes how to get food and where not to tread; as he knows that he is still an abhorrence to society. He has emotions and feelings, but did not understand what they were until later. He was capable of learning as well. From the desire not to be alone and shunned, he made an effort to be a part of society. It is only human to feel emotions of rejection and wanting to fit in, so the creature acted upon his feelings to do so.

In taking action to fit in, he yearns to communicate with others, just as humans do, so he “led [himself] to apply with fresh ardour to the acquiring the art of language” (91) of which his neighboring cottagers speak. He also learns “the science of letters” (95) to read books and letters in which he acquires over time. Perhaps Shelley characterizes the creature wanting to learn the basics of communication to show that he is not the monster that Victor and others in society fear him to be. Just like any other outcast, the creature wanted to fit in and enjoy life as any other human would.

Contrastingly, Victor deliberately outcasts himself from other people, and occupies himself with himself. It is first with his studies and of the making of the creature. “Winter, spring, and summer, passed away during [his] labors” (38) as he did not yet respond to his family’s letters. If he was so enraptured by his studies, why did he not share them? Is it because he is embarrassed to be in the process of making a “monster?” As the story progresses, he finds out about the murder of his little brother, William. Then he learns of the unjustly punishment of Justine Moritz for the crime. He knew that the creature murdered his brother and that Justine was innocent, yet he did not do anything but weep at their demise. He knew he was at fault, but he did not take responsibility for it. However, he did take it upon himself to bare the burden alone for his punishment. This characterization of Victor as a self-inflicted outcast can be seen in a couple of ways. He was either so absorbed in his studying that it was all that mattered, or he wanted to be alone to take on the burden of the deaths in which he was a part of. The former shows that he is a selfish monster, only wanting the joy of being able to create something amazing from the use of his studies. The latter shows that he is not that selfish and is willing to take his own punishment, but it is still selfish in the fact that he keeps it all confided and does not do much about it. This dehumanizes Victor in that it makes him feel like he is not part of society, and therefore, shuts himself out from it just as he shuts the creature out for being ugly. Although it is human for others to reject as it is to accept, a monster would reject on the basis of appearance, as it does not fit in with others. Victor takes it to an ugly level himself, rejecting his own creation from his selfish occupations.

Blog 4

Blog 4 02-02-10

Differing Perspectives and Changes of Time in Stories

In Ambrose Bierce’s “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” the point of view changes back and forth from an objective third person view to a more subjective third person view. From the first part of the story to next part of the story, it transitions from purely descriptive to someone narrating the story of another person. The first part is done to set the scene where the beginning of the syuzhet takes place. Assuming that the beginning of the syuzhet takes place in “current time,” it describes the scene at that moment in time. This objective point of view only offers a pure description of everything around the area, so the narrator does not give any insight to what is happening on the inside of a character. However, towards the end of the first part, from what was a completely vague description becomes an increasingly subjective description. It then goes on to describe a man in the midst of all the images.

The second part describes what is happening in that man’s head just before he gets hanged. These are flashbacks to what happened before the scene that was described previously, so this is taking place somewhere in the past. We find out his name is Peyton Farquhar, and that he has a family, and that a soldier told them that no civilians can mess with the railroad. This second part provides the reader with background information on why he is getting hanged, but it does not provide if he actually committed the crime. This subjective form of the third person perspective offers more insight into the character(s) and what they think, but it is limited to only that character (if he is the main character).

The last part of the plot changes back to the “current time,” but it is not purely descriptive anymore. It describes what Peyton is going through. It seems like he escaped the hanging to return home with only mere bruises and pains, but that is only what is still going on in his head. Peyton actually died instead of escaping. This was really surprising because one is led to think that he really escaped. The whole last part of the plot was just a big “story” happening in Peyton’s head just before he died!

I find these alternating changes in time to be interesting because they do happen in the story. The fabula’s rearrangement makes the syuzhet more intriguing because the pacing increases as you get to the end and creates anticipation, whereas if we put the first part in the middle (as it is the middle of the fabula), it’ll die out before we want to read what happens next.

Blog 3

Blog 3 01-25-10

Poetry and Pop Culture

In the machinimized version of Langston Hughes’s “Suicide’s Note,” clips from the video game Halo are used to portray the suicide scene supposedly depicted in the poem. It could be just a person washing their face in the river if one had not known about the title, but it would not be called “Suicide’s Note,” would it? The scenes of the player on the cliff’s edge, looking down, and perhaps contemplating whether he should live on or not, greatly enhances the tone of the poem. In addition to the scenes, the music adds to the meaning of “Suicide’s Note.” Gary Jules’s “Mad World” also depicts thoughts of suicide, which makes the tone even sadder. These enhanced effects from the machinimized version connect deeply with the words and makes it clear to what this poem means.

The scene that really connects the poem and the video is where the player is about to jump, while at the bottom, the text read “asked me for a…” Then as the player jumped, the poem finishes the line with, “kiss.” The maker of this video carefully placed these frames together to create a metaphor to which why a person would want to jump off to their death in a river. In the poem, the river “asked [him] for a kiss” represents the action of a suicide because one can infer that some person is coming in contact with the water and conclude that they drowned themselves from the kiss of death.

The scenes that depict “the calm, cool face of the river,” stay true to the picture, displaying a calm, serene river that the player jumps to his death in. However, the calmness of the river in the video kind of detracts the vision of the river that is supposed to be depicted in the poem. In fact, the whole brightness of the video should be turned down a bit to stay true to the tone. One would imagine the poem’s scene to be gloomy and tired, like this scene from PS3’s Flower:

http://blog.landofthegeeks.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/flower-playstation-3-ps3-069.jpg

The song “Mad World” sets down the mood. It sounds sad, and it describes how one gets tired of life and how one wants to “drown in [their] sorrow.” It is a nice match to the tone of the poem because it also depicts suicide. The lyric’s dark tone enhances how the video as a whole feels. Without it, the video by itself would have seemed humorous because it just shows a video game character falling down into a river for no reason.

A reference to poetry in pop culture occurs in The Whitest Kids You Know, where “Hamlet” is being acted out on stage (although it is not in iambic pentameter, and not even in its exact words). This skit is more about what really happened to Abe Lincoln. The president and the people of his time may have been watching “Hamlet” in its dramatic form, as plays were popular back then. Here is a clip of the skit:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7VwMBn37qM

Blog 2

Pro-Tech or Anti-Tech?

Richard Brautigan's "All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace,” describes nature and technology together in some sort of fashion. It could be noting that technology is becoming one with nature and living in complete harmony with it. It is also possible that the poem is completely dipping into total sarcasm, hinting that technology is taking over nature. The way one can interpret if the poem has a pro-technology message or an anti-technology message depends on how one wants to construe the evidence.

If this poem has an anti-technology message, it states the message completely sarcastically. The lines “(the sooner the better)” (2) and “(right now, please)” (10) hint technology is growing way too fast, and technology is taking over the natural ecological system. In the first stanza, he wants to “think of a cybernetic meadow/where mammals and computers/live together mutually/in programming harmony.” This could note that nature and technology cannot live perfectly with each other because it is either one or the other; in this case, it could be that technology is overrunning nature. The “cybernetic forest” the speaker is talking about “where deer stroll peacefully past computers” could be talking about an e-waste dumping site, but I’m not sure if they existed back then.

If this poem has a pro-technology message, it could not be more obvious. Lines 2 and 10 note that the new technological world is growing, and the speaker is ready to welcome it in. The last stanza could be saying that technology is becoming part of nature, being “joined back to nature” (19). One would say that it is so becoming part of nature that everything is being “watched over by machines of loving grace” (23). Since technology is so powerful, it can "watch over" life.

I would say that the tone for the poem would be against technology because not all of nature can be in harmony with electronics. Animals, plants, even some humans are not “tech-savvy” and/or cannot keep up with the newer and ever-growing technology. If e-waste dumping sites existed, they would be “part of nature” in a “cybernetic forest filled with pines and electronics.”