Sunday, October 28, 2007

The Sea Inside 3

1.) To start the film, there was an Extreme Long, High angle shot on the sea to show where he loves to be. The signifcance was the set the scene and put it out there that the sea portrays a huge role in the film.

2.) There is always an angle a little above eye level (maybe 15 or 20 degrees above eye) when it is showing him in bed, to give us the perspective that he is lover than us and not a capable. The significance of this is to show that Ramon is never going to be like us normal people again and that he is injured and quadrepalegic for life, and will always lie lower and steriotypically less important than us.

3.) When Ramon is telling the story about his accidnet, and it shows him as a young man, the shot is a medium, low angle shot to show that he is more powerful than he is now. The significance is to prove that nowadays he is physically "less" than what he was in his "before the accident" life. It portrays him as a much more powerful human being and gives us the feeling that he is greater and stronger than us and that he is superior to who he is currently.

4.) There is always an eye level, medium shot on Julia when she is talking to Ramon to give us the feeling that we are there and its a normal situation. This was the most common shot in the film, because it gives us sence of real life and makes us feel like we are actually there.

5.) There is an extremely fast Dolly over the span of the ground and forest all the way to the sea when he is "flying." The significance of this is that it shows he is allmighty and powerful when he just lets his spirit fly away in his dreams, and he can do whatever he wants.

The Sea Inside 2

There are many similarities and differences between The Sea Inside and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, the main similarity bieng the fact that the two main characters are quadrepalegic, meaning they cant move any part of their arms and legs. In DBATB, Jean-Dominique Bauby uses the bink of his left eye to write the whole book from a specific alphabet code that he developed, Whereas in The Sea Inside, Ramon edits up his old poetry books to for a magnificent book of poetry with the help of a close friend Julia. Another difference is that Bauby is in the hospital during his writing of the book, and dies in the hospital, whereas Ramon is always at home, and he is transported from place to place by his family and close friends. Another similarity is that both are men who set their goals high and work until they achieve them. Bauby set his goal to finishing that whole book, and he died two days after it was published. Ramon set his goal to finishing the book and then commiting scuicide, which he also accomplished. A final difference is that Bauby just died of the failure of his body, whereas Ramon died by commiting Scuicide. Overall i believe that DBATB was much more powerful, just because the man (Bauby) is in a hospital, and sets the analogy to a Diving bell and a Butterfly, which really hit me hard. I thought that was the best metaphor/analogy i had ever heard, and that struck me to be a very powerful statement. To add to the power of the memoir, Bauby wrote a whole book by blinking an eye, whereas Ramon already had his poetry written so all he had to do was edit.

The Sea Inside 1

My reaction to the film is it was a very dramatic film with tons of agony, and there are alot of crucial decisions that take place in the film. In General, I believe that if one should wish to die, and they are in a situation in which they have no way of functioning, their wish shold be granted. But in this case, Ramon is still breathing without oxygen tubes, and functioning in every way except moving. I believe that the courts responce to him was fair, for he should not be granted that wish because it would honestly be commiting scuicide, and Ramon is too good of a person, and too "functioning" to do that to himself. There are people out there who are simply living on the hospitals equipment, and in that case, i would say yes, but in Ramons case, if you ask me, its a capital NO. I think that his freinds that agreed to help him are not trying to be mean, but just simply good friends. If you see a friend in that much trouble, i think i would help them out. Morally its wrong, but ethically, in the situation like with Ramon, there really wouldnt be more you can do but help him die, for he is your friend, and youd want for him what he wants for himself.

Week 6, Post 1 (Summary pt 6)

Sorry Mr. Hatten, once again, our internet has been down over the weekend so ive been using my grandmas computer, and I posted this on friday, but for some reason it didnt go through.

In The final Part of this memoir, Chris Gardner is "in" his internship at Dean Witter, in training to become a Stockbroker. Meanwhile, Christopher Jr. is kicked out of his daycare program because Chris doesn't have enough money to pay the ignorant lady who wont settle for anything unless there is money involved. So Chris has to take Christopher Jr. to Dean Witters office everyday when he leaves for his internship, and Dean Witter kindly lets Christopher Jr. stay with him, actually he seems to like him alot. Chris Gardner keeps working hard and studying to the point that he is exhausted the next day at the office. The big test is the deciding factor as to wether or not he is chosen, and he completely surpasses everyone esle in the class with a score of 98%, and becomes the next new Broker. His life now begins to shine. They purchase an apartment, with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and big living room, etc... Christopher Jr. finally gets a warm bed to sleep in, and Chris has a place to do his work on his new computer at home which he purchased with his rapidly rising salary. He works his way up at Dean Witter, and eventually becomes one of the top brokers, and brings in a huge income. His story is one of the biggest "life-changing" stories ever, as in he started on the street with a son, and became as big as he is by hard work and persistancy.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

W5, P2

~Sorry Mr Hatten that this took so long..we upgraded to high speed internet and something with my Xbox Live messed up our internet connection so it was just fixed last night.

The fifth section of the book starts with Chris and Christopher Junior scared at night all alone sleeping in a dark alleyway because Chris Sr. Has gone broke. All he can say to his helpless son is to never let anyone tell you that you cant do something, you can do anything you want if you set your mind to it. Christopher seems not even too frightened though in the dark, wet alley, he seems to be handling it alot better than the everage 7 year old would be. The next morning is the big morning for Chris Gardner, in which he gets the once in a lifetime chance to be the interviewee of Mr. Dean Witter himself, the founder Of Dean Witter Stock Broking. Chris spends the whole morning getting ready, because he knows if he blows this then he will have to spend a whole new 6 months finding a new job, which will drain the money even quicker and Christopher Jr. might starve. At the interview he introduces himself kindly and they talk for awhile, and Chris seems to be doing very well. Dean Witter offers Chris an internship in which one of the interns will be hired to actully work for the company, and Chris gladly accepts this offer. Not knowing that this intern job does not pay, he goes home happy, and he celebrates with Christopher Jr., and Chris is ready to head to his very first day at "Work" the next day.

REACTION

I strongly feel that Chris Gardner has shaped up so well as a man in this book that it is almost unbelieveable. We, as readers just read the book for pleasure most of the time, but when I really think deeply about his situation, I wonder, how is this possible? The man has come out of poverty, spotted a shining new red ferrari, and now has his heart set on something we would normally say is extremely out of his reach. He is raising a son to top it all off. He is the most wonderful father one could ask for in my opinion. Though he hardly has any money, and cant even afford a house to keep his kid under, he cuddles up with him night after night, and reads him to sleep. He keeps assuring Christopher Jr. that one day it will all be better, and as i said in the previous paragraph, he is constantly telling him not to ever let anyone tell him he cant do something. Chris Gardner has really shaped as a man and a father throughout this memoir, and it will be very interesting to see how the book ends because he is just starting to find his trail in life.

w5, P2

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Week 4, Post 2

Chapter 6:The World Beyond, is so far my favorite chapter of this memoir. It starts with Chris Gardner, taking his first ever trip by plane to boot camp in Hawaii.This is the main changing point in his life, because it is his first real "job" and he is devoted to serving for his country. Little does he know that he would never have to fight in a war, just trained, and he has to find another path to take. Chris Gardner then talks about how much harder it has been living on his own without a constant guardian. He wasnt put n the streets with a semi-decent car and a wallet with a credit card in it, whatever money he makes is all from sctatch and he has no "booster parents" to hoist him up when he falls. In Chapter 7, there are mainly just a ton of picture of "life" as he calls them. Starting with him as a baby, and then his mother (Bettye Jean Triplett). Next is his Boot camp grad. day photo with his full grad class of about 30 men. His Miliatary ID is next, then a beautiful picture of him and his sun on a park bench relaxing, and so on...Until finally there are pictures of grown up Christopher Gardner Jr. and there is even a Picture of Chris Sr. shaking hands with president Clinton. And after the pictures he prettymuch comes right into how hard life is getting with a son and no woman to support them, yet how he has gotten to a good start selling day to day machines that hospitals use.

Week 4, Post 1

1.) "For the next three years I lived what could have been called in some respects a storybook life (pg.157)."--> the author (chris Gardner) most likely used this quote to really show us readers how his life turned around. His life is really beginning to shape up. This quote is very important to the book because it sets the whole scene. As the reader i begin to realize that Chris Gardner is no longer a child but a man and is doing good with his life.

2.) "Over the next thrity days, everything that I was and everything that I hoped to become flew out the window. (pg.172)"--> This quote by Chris Gardner is the exact contradict to the one before, it shows that life can always flip right back over and kick you hard in the ass. All was going well for Chris, until he left his mothers city, and without that backup option, he began to get nervous, and lost his "mentality." Chris Gardner adds the quote to really show us that no human in life is "safe" and that you always have to keep working to achieve. As the reader this impacts me mostly in a way to keep reading because i really wanted to know what happened next, weather a tragedy, or simply he went broke. It really helped me keep focus in the book.

Monday, October 8, 2007

My thoughts

I thought that The Diving Bell and the Butterfly was a very interesting book overall. I was amazing to me that Jean Dominique-Bauby could write this whole entire book of metaphors and tales all in in head, then blink it to tell the tale to someone else. The main critisicm i had for the book was that there were too many fantasies and dreams, to the point where i couldnt really tell weather it was a dream or it was actually happening to him. I was clear to me throughout the memoir that the author was extremely "locked-into" his own mind, and had nothing to do other than think about his past adventures and fantasize about things he'd deam to do. The whole "locked in syndrome" explains itself. I also thought that Jean Dominique Bauby was an extremely descriptive writer in the sence of similies and metaphors, to the point that sometimes i couldnt even tell if the object he was reffering to was the "metaphorical object" or the actual one. But overall, the book was very interesting. I really enjoyed the small "chapters" or sections because it kept switching it up so just incase i lost track of what he was talking about, I could get right back on in the new section. Overall, i didnt necessarily love his writing and style, but anyone who blinks to tell a story that they have written in their head, i can appreciate.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

W3 P2

Journal

So far, if there were one word i could use to describe this book, it would be miraculous. The book starts with Chris Gardner as a child in his home where he loves the candy that his mother makes him. I realte to that in many ways, one bieng how my grandma always used to make me fruit tarts when I went over to her house, and how id grasp that tart with my hands and enjoy every single bite with every bit of my taste buds, just like Chris explains his candy experiences. The whole candy thing made me see that this author really likes to be descriptive, just like I like to write, because he spent almost a page and a half just talking about the warm goodness of the candy. Some Strengths of the book so far are the descriptions that Chris Gardner (author) uses to place a nice mental picture in my mind at all times. It really helps because the plotline is somewhat difficult, so its makes it alot easier to understand with vivid details. The only weakness about that though it that sometimes its a little too much and I stop paying attention to the little details and when I do I might miss something else, so ive had to re-read a couple times thus far. Another strength in the authors writing style is that he never dwells over a "chapter" like some authors I dont' like do. I mean, at times he might spend too much on details, but they are important, and he knows when to move on when it comes to irrelivant things.

I think that later in this book, Chris's devotion to work and hos effort will pay of, but he will run into some major difficulties once his son (Christopher Jr.) is born. But i believe he will pull through as a broker in the end.

w3 p1. b

Author Background

Chris Gardner was born on February 9th, 1954, who struggles with homelessness about 15 years of his life. Thesedays he is a successful stockbroker and entrepeneur. On his own, directly in the middle of his homeless life, he amazingly raised his son Christopher Gardner Jr., without even letting him know how awful of trouble they are in. Chris has his eye on stockbroking ever since he saw the "life-changing man" who he claims was driving around a couldasack with his Red Ferrari. Ever since then he has been determined to succeeding even more that he did the previous day, and has become one of the most famous "book to movie" authors ever. (The Pursuit of Happyness starring Will Smith was released in 2006.)

Address to image- http://aalbc.com/reviews/chris_32.jpg

Source-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Gardner

w3 p1

Chapter 1 and 2 - Candy /The No-Daddy Blues

Chapter one starts out with Chris Gardner, the main character, in his "home" growing up, and he vividly describes this "maple syrup candy" that his mother always used to make him. How he'd grasp it with joy and how every bite made him tingle with happyness. He also talks about Betteye, his mother, who accomplished everything in life. He says she has always been loved and never has "he" seen one who hates her. He says that she ran away from home in Louisiana because her father didnt pay for her college which she initally promised him. Chris also talks about his "father," not his real father, but the only one he knows. He is an abusive man with an extremely short temper. Chris describes him as rude and crude. He introduces Sharon, his little sister, who is always enthusiastic about everything, and his baby sister Kim.

Chapter 3 and 4- Wheres Momma?/ Bitches Brew

In Where's Momma, Chris talks alot about his mother and how she has been struggling lately to keep the family under controll. Freddia Triplett, Betteyes's hsband, abuses her constantly, and she is not happy with him. Chris explains his discomfort in the household and how he is longing to get "outta here and inta the world." He occasionally visits his uncle archie who takes him in caringly and doesnt let anyone tell him he cant do something in this world. At about the age of 13 in Bitches Brew, Chris is really growing up to become a mature person. Hes already seeing the perspective of life not many kids his age do and that is that childhood ends someday, and youre going to have to live on your own. He is an extremely smart 13 year old. He is saying how between the ages of 10-14 he keeps recieving training from his uncle to become a "professional golfer," which is his uncles dream for him, yet through all the hardships, chris has his eye on only one thing, becoming a broker.

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Post 2-Loaded Words

1.) Death- pg 17, this is a very strong word particularly for the book i'm reading because Chris Garnder (author) has seen and felt alot of death within his life, so seeing someone leave is a huge thing to him. He probobly chose this word to show what times he's been through and to give a sad effect.

2.) Daddies- pg 39, this is really showing how as a child in the orphanage, he and him companions were really fond of a dad, and called him a daddy, showing their closeness to them.

3.) Rage- pg 51. This word really shows the abusiveness of the people who took care of him as a child and how they treated him, and so it was passed onto him and he has to get rid of it.

4.) impossible- pg 51, this Word shows the bielef he has in life, and the way he was raised. He probobly chose to use it to show that he never thought he could make it as far as he ended up making it.

5.) customs- pg 69, this word is very strong in the content of this book. It shows how he adapted to many different styles and customs throughout his childhood.

6.) shotgun-pg 69, this is a straight up scary thought, and that is what hes trying to set in your mind to envision his childhood.

7.) bitches-pg 75, this word plain shows the times he grew up in and the level of vocabulary he has at a very young age. He throws it in there to really get to us about his childhood.

8.) colors- pg 82, although it may not seem like much, colors is very very srtong and loaded. It shows that he has respect for all people and their beliefs no matter the color of their skin (its implied in the phrase the word is in)

9.) crime- 99, crime and mischief is all he grew up around, crime, and those who partake in criminal activity. He used this word to show how he overcame this.

10.) motherfucker, pg 107, simply this shows hos anger as a young man growing up was very tough for him.