Abstract This paper explains that, in his film "The Mirror", Andrei Tarkovsky provides his audience with a collection of his childhood memories. The author points out that Tarkovsky tries to remember his childhood home exactly as it was in his past but some of his memories are not as pleasant as he hoped; therefore, he relies on his imagination to create a new vision that will always be pleasant and desirable. The paper relates that the film is unconventional because of his use of a "creative relationship" to form the timeline. The author relates that critic Peter Green believes that Tarkovsky's intention when planning his film was to reflect his mother; therefore, his obsession with his mother is important to the film. The paper states that critic Ian Christie stresses the importance of the actual place where the filmmaker spent his childhood.
From the Paper "When remembering his father the images reflect his emotions, "expressing hope and despair". In the establishing shot, a man is walking towards what Tarkovsky describes as his childhood home. Metaphorically, this could be the filmmaker seeing the father he was so desperate to see returning home. The very first shot is a young boy at the doctor's office. At first, he is unable to talk, but once he is cured, he is portrayed as perfect. This sequence could once again be translated as Tarkovsky sending a message to his father, that he wants his dad to be proud of him and see him as intelligent."
Abstract This paper takes a look at the life of infamous serial killer Andrei Chikatilo who was known to eat the intimate parts of his victims. The paper starts off with a list of Chikatilo's crimes and goes on to summarize his life. The biography of Chikatilo includes excerpts from several websites and the author explains how events that occurred when Chikatilo was growing up marked and shaped the mass murderer he was going to be. The paper also has a section on Chikatilo's first kill and describes how his initial experiences characterized him as a serial killer.
Outline:
Summary of Chikatilo's Life
Chikatilo Begins His Killing Spree
From the Paper "As if that wasn't bad enough, war with Germany was raging and the Ukraine sustained massive bombing raids by the Nazis. So Chikatilo was growing up in a time of food shortages and war, which doesn't excuse the brutal behavior he exhibited, but does explain his background and sets the table for what was to come later in his life. And on top of all that, his father was drafted and sent to war against Germany, where he got captured; and when he did finally return home, he was "vilified" by his community for being captured by the Nazis. This harassment spilled over into young Chikatilo's life as he was called a "coward" and was bullied very roughly in his school."
A look at the life, times, and work of Russian physicist and human-rights advocate Andrei Sakharov, including his work to end the arms race between Russia and the US.
780 words (approx. 3.1 pages), 3 sources, 2000, $ 27.95
From the Paper "Andrei Sakharov is considered to be the forefather of the democratic reconstruction or "perestroika" of the former USSR. He was born on May 21, 1921 in Moscow, Russia, into a family of cultural and liberal advocates. This is where he learned his basic principles and morals that would one day make him the world's most famous political dissident. He studied Physics at Moscow University and was recognized early as a brilliant student, thus exempting him from serving in the 2nd World War. This brilliance led him to be chosen to work on the Soviet Union's first hydrogen bomb in 1948, that became a reality to the world in 1953. However, his personal beliefs led him to protest the testing of the nuclear weapon in 1953, fearing the effects of nuclear fallout, as he also felt this would only accelerate the arms race, not help to prevent it."
This paper discusses the influence of Alexander Pushkin's narrative poem "The Bronze Horseman" on Andrei Bely's novel "Petersburg", focusing on the symbolism of the statue of Peter, the Great on the city and the fate of Russia.
1,350 words (approx. 5.4 pages), 2 sources, 1994, $ 47.95
From the Paper "This study will discuss the influence of Alexander Pushkin's narrative poem "The Bronze Horseman" on Andrei Bely's novel "Petersburg". The study will consider the symbolism of both works, focusing on the symbolic significance of the statue of Peter the Great and of the city and society of Petersburg itself.
It is obvious immediately that the novel by Bely owes a debt to the poem by Pushkin. The epigraph which begins the first chapter of the novel is taken directly from Pushkin's poem:
It was a dreadful time, in truth,
Of it still fresh the recollection . . .
Of it, my friends, I now for you
Begin my comfortless narration.
Lugubrious will be my tale.
It is, then, a serious and often solemn tale which Bely ... "
A description of the life of Tsar Ivan Vasliyevich Groznyi as presented by Andrei Pavlov and Maureen Perrie in their historical book "Ivan, the Terrible".
2,100 words (approx. 8.4 pages), 0 sources, 2006, $ 65.95
Abstract The image of the "Terrible Tsar" has resonated profoundly in both popular historical imagination and the hearts of the Russian people for hundreds of years. This paper examines how Andrei Pavlov and Maureen Perrie reexamine the sadist tsar's rule under equitable microscope, finding a powerful leader whose religious and personal beliefs birthed a powerful Russian led by a dangerous Renaissance prince. It looks at how they present Ivan as a leader obsessed with his unlimited rule, infuriated by his power struggles and powerfully devout to a stately religion and how he also achieved a system of autocratic rule yet previously not witnessed in Russia.
From the Paper "As he tended to greatness that might serve to further cultivate his own crown, he denied those less glorified even the hope of upward mobility, not only socially, but also politically, and geographically. In 1553, his abrupt change from expansion and focus on the building of the nation came at the same time as his near-fatal illness; historians traditionally associate his fear of death and illness to his approach to life and the manner in which he led his territory. This socio-interpersonal change was made greater by the death of his first wife, Anastasia Romanovna, whom the ruler suspected to have been poisoned by the boyars in hopes of putting his cousin Vladimir on the throne."
Abstract This paper discusses Russian born filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky's film "Nostalghia". It is compared and contrasted with Hamid Nacify's notion of accented cinema in which culture plays a influential part in filmmaking. Tarkovsky's films are characterized by metaphysical themes, extremely long takes, and memorable images of exceptional beauty. The paper shows that recurring motifs in his films are dreams, memory, childhood, running water accompanied by fire, rain indoors, reflections, and characters re-appearing in the foreground of long panning movements of the camera.
From the Paper "Compared to other forms of art that have been around for thousands of years (i.e. paintings and drawings, cinema is relatively new and has only been around for the past century. The first films came out in the 1890s and were shown first in theatres in the United States, France, Germany, and Great Britain (Binkowski 70). By the early 1900s, the cinema had spread to all parts of the world through the development of advanced technology (Taylor 166). Watching a film at the cinema soon became one of the most popular forms of entertainment that reached audiences throughout the world in large cities and in urban sprawls."
Abstract The paper introduces Russian writer, Valentin Rasputin and his success in Russian literature. It analyzes his book, "Live and Remember" - considered as one of the most significant works of the post-Stalin, pre-glasnost era. The paper discusses the plot and the major themes of the book.
From the Paper "Live and Remember may appear to some as a visionary text. Indeed the author's convictions have been portrayed with such strength that it is easy to believe Valentin Rasputin is outlining a sequence of developments that is not inevitable. Thus, this book is not a theory of history or of world war. It is however, an analysis of the sort of institutions that might develop in an environment where the individual is bound to give priorities and values to those that he does not wish to or as free to choose and thus, demonstrating tendencies, not immutable consequences."
Tags: Siberia, The, Last, Deadline, Andrei, Guskov
Abstract This paper discusses the novel "Mila 18" by Leon Uris which depicts the struggles of the Jewish residents of the Warsaw Ghetto, who in an effort to counter continued deportations to death camps, rose up against their German occupiers. It gives a brief biography of the life of the author and the research undertaken for the book. It provides a synopsis of the plot, an analysis of the protagonist Andrei and a comparison of the fiction in the book to real life fact. It concludes with various critiques of the book by the media.
From the Paper "The main characters of Mila 18 (the address for one of the resistance fighters) are Jewish residents of Warsaw, Poland, a city with the largest Jewish community in Europe (300,000 estimate). The book starts just before the invasion of Poland and the characters, mostly well-educated individuals, agonize over the events going on in Germany and the likelihood of war. The war started September 1, 1939 and Poland capitulated for all practical purposes before the month was over. The persecution of Poland's Jews began immediately. Even before the fighting had ceased SS Commanders were told to confine all of Poland's Jews to special areas."
A look at the insight offered about social conditions prior to and after the Communist era in Emile Zola's book, "Germinal", and the film, "The Inner Circle".
Abstract This paper analyzes Emile Zola's book, "Germinal", and Andrei Konchalovsky's movie, "The Inner Circle", and the message that both deliver regarding the social conditions before and after the Communist era. The paper shows how both the novel and the film reveal that conditions for the common man were oppressive, both prior to the establishment of Communism and after its establishment.
From the Paper "Emile Zola's book, "Germinal", depicts a society that existed before and during the time that the influence of communism was felt in Europe and the Soviet Union. "Germinal" depicts labor problems among coal miners in late nineteenth century France. Told through the eyes of a newcomer to the mines, Etienne Lantier, Zola's book depicts the lead character's struggles to improve working conditions by organizing worker resistance. Etienne organizes a strike that has an unpredictable and tragic outcome (Zola)."
Tags: europe, soviet, union, coal, miners, france, etienne, lantier, france, stalin, projectionist
