Abstract This paper examines how, through technical style and the happenstance of amateur discovery, two Victorian women, Clementina Hawarden and Julia Margaret Cameron, placed their own expression into the portraits and tableaux of women. The paper specifically discusses how Cameron and Hawarden were equally, if unknowingly, seeking a release through photography and how, in projecting part of themselves, part of a fantastic desire onto reality, they found an outlet to express themselves.
From the Paper "In Hawarden's photographic studies it is less clear what part of herself the artist has put into her images, what inner urge is being projected; there are no hints given by titles as the images are uncaptioned. There is a sparsity of surviving writings from her own hand; unlike Cameron, she did not make even a fragmentary autobiography. In an obituary for Hawarden, Oscar Rejlander commented that she "worked honestly, in a good, comprehensible style...She also was in her manner and conversation- fair, straightforward, nay manly, with a feminine grace." While her style may have been perceived as comprehensible, the meaning of her images seems less so. There is a sense of an obscure erotic drama which utilizes "vaguely melancholic poses that hint at familiar but not quite identifiable narratives" (Armstrong)."
Abstract The paper introduces, discusses and analyzes the lighting in the film "Titanic," directed by James Cameron. Specifically, it discusses the director of photography, Russell Carpenter and analyzes how his lighting helps represent the story and characters throughout the movie.
From the Paper "Russell Carpenter won an Academy Award for his work on "Titanic," as well as Best Cinematography awards from the American Society of Cinematographers and the Chicago Film Critics. He has also worked on the films "True Lies," "Terminator 2 3-D," "The Lawnmower Man," "Hard Target," "The Indian in the Cupboard," and "Money Talks," which he worked on with Robert Primes, ASC."
Abstract An evaluation of children's literature is made more difficult by the misconception that there exists a difference between good multicultural literature for children and good literature for children or, in other words, between those books that promote interracial respect and lack racial bias and those children's books which possess superior literary qualities. However, this paper will argue that this view of children's literature is a myth. It will be seen, through an examination of the literature of Anne Cameron, that quality multicultural books for children are also, almost always, works of exceptional literary quality as well.
Abstract Complete historical accuracy is often difficult to achieve. That is why most works of literature and movies about historical occurrences take some degree of fiction for granted and try to work and provide the best and most historically agreed-upon viewpoint possible. This search for historical accuracy in movies and works of literature about events in history is also shown in Cameron's 1997 movie, "Titanic," which uses the fiction of a love story between the film's lead characters, Jack and Rose, and sets this fictional love story during an historical occurrence, the sinking of the Titanic ocean-liner, the supposedly unsinkable ship. This report examines the movie in reference to historical material to gauge its accuracy and also looks at what might be considered to be the movie's overriding purpose. The viewpoint of the movie is also analyzed before the report concludes.
From the Paper "One can see by looking at this movie in terms of actual history, therefore, that the movie has its own fictional plot that is transported or grafted onto an historical event. The director plays up historical accuracy and detail in reference to the event, but not to the main characters. Although some of the people in first class with whom Jack and Rose interact are based on real historical characters who were on board, these people are not the focus of the movie's plot direction. In terms of plot as well as character, the movie shows a mix of history and fiction, but the director does their best to stay true to the actual events of the sinking chronologically."
Abstract In this paper, the writer notes that most literature, especially short stories and novels by women who lived during the Victorian era, depicted that era in the basest of terms. With this normal background about women kept in mind, the writer points out that it is interesting to read the two books, 'Radicals of the Worst Sort' and 'City of Women', which show a very different side of these Victorian-era women. The writer discusses that apparently, according to these two books, there were a number of women who led the way for a much more liberated female. The writer concludes that according to Stansell and Cameron, the women who strived for recognition and equality in the late 1800s and early 1900s must also be appreciated today for changing history.
From the Paper "In her preface to City of Women, Stensell explains that her book entailed the misfortunes that women laborers suffered in New York City. She argues that working-class women introduced a separate way of life based on their particular role in society and at the mercy of bourgeoisie norms and values. In order to survive on their own, they found another way, albeit nontraditional, to make a living. This was the establishment of the first large population of female workers in the United States, which had an impact not only on them but the society as a whole that would continue into the rest of the 20the century for all women."
Abstract This paper takes a look at the block-busting move "Titanic" by James Cameron. It acknowledges that the movie was predominantly a love story, but it also had very strong socio-economic under currents. The paper provides an analysis of these dynamics.
From the paper:
"In 1997, Titanic set sail again, this time into movie theaters under the command of writer and director James Cameron. With the exception of a few small poetic licenses, Cameron accurately depicts the historical events leading up to the sinking of Titanic. The main plot of his movie, though, is not about the sinking of the ship per se. Rather, it is about the doomed love affair between two fictional characters, first-class passenger Rose DeWitt Bukater and steerage passenger Jack Dawson. Complicating the story is Rose's jealous fiance?, millionaire Caledon ("Cal") Hockley, and Rose's genteelly impoverished mother, Ruth. Aside from any dramatic appeal, Cameron's Titanic is interesting from a number of sociological perspectives. It illustrates social classes, status inconsistencies, and social structures. It presents a vivid "conflict"-based view of the way the different classes relate to one another. And finally, it offers a look at bureaucracy and at the dangers of groupthink."
Abstract This paper discusses the effectiveness of Abraham Lincoln's presidency and his interactions with Congress during the Civil War. The author explores how Lincoln steered the nation rather moderately over the conflict and presents his views on the South's secession and slavery.
From the Paper "The Republican Party emerged from the ashes of the Whig Party and the confused flurry of new political parties attempting to fill the void of an alternative political party to the Democrats during the 1850s. In its formation the Republican Party absorbed many former members of other political parties, especially Whigs, Free-Soilers, Know-Nothings, and Northern Democrats, which resulted in the creation of a broad party platform."
Abstract The paper argues the fact that the movie "The Birth of a Nation" - made in 1915 to give the American audience a new perspective to racial issues - left a deep impact on the American society long after its production and encouraged audiences as well as filmmakers to take a different view of cinematography. The essay first identifies the culture prevalent in American society at the time and then argues how the film guided cinematography from entertainment to a narrative portrayal of history.
From the Paper "Griffith's portrayal of a parallel social theme made a deep impact, as Hollywood had not yet been institutionalized and such a realistic representation of the American governance and U.S. imperialism only magnified the social ramifications of racism. Later, movies tried to follow the same path as Griffith but were incomparable in their technique. Filmmakers could not recreate the depth of the concepts as portrayed by Griffith. For example, "The Birth of a Race" was an attempt to counteract the implications as presented in "The Birth of a Nation". The production of the film directed by an African American manages to only depict what had already been realized in Griffith picture."
From the Paper "The Genre of Horror Film as Typified by Frankenstein and Terminator
Both James Whale's 1931 film Frankenstein and James Cameron's 1984 film, Terminator were relatively low cost films that were major box-office hits, and both films surprised most people by their success. But when one sees that each film has many of the key elements of the horror genre that date back for more than a century before films began, one sees that their success shouldn't have surprised people so much as what makes both films such classics of the horror genre is the way in which they use these key primal elements of the genre to emotionally effect audiences.
In Cinema of the Fantastic, the author observes that "This theme of the scientists who creates forces he cannot control was..."
Abstract This paper explores film "Vanilla Sky", making evaluations through personal opinion as well as through scholarly film criticism. The writer considers actor Tom Cruise's personal philosophy of Scientology, which the paper suggests is at the center of the work, along with other possible psychological and philosophical constructions that appear be a combination of waking and dreaming or conscious and unconscious realities.
From the Paper "The film opens with a voice saying "Abre los ojos." Abre Los Ojos is the name of the 1997 Spanish film of which Vanilla Sky is a remake. The voice which speaks these words, recorded on David Aames, played by Tom Cruise, alarm clock, is that of Sophia, played by Penelope Cruz. Thus, the movie begins with the hero awakening from sleep, possibly a dream, into what seems to be reality. But is it? The first voice, saying open your eyes in Spanish and then in English, is not that of the woman who is in bed with Cruise. It is a woman, if we are expecting a linear plot, who Aames has not yet met. When the alarm speaks again, it does so with the voice of Julie, played by Cameron Diaz, the one currently sharing his bed. The viewer has moments when he's fairly sure he's watching the current reality, but as the film progresses he becomes less and less certain. As Roger Ebert says: "This is the kind of movie you don't want to analyze until you've seen it two times" (Ebert unpaged). For many viewers it will require uncountable screenings."
Abstract As she declares clearly in the beginning of her book, "Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life", Anne Lamott's mission is not to fulfill her readers' dreams of getting published. Rather, her purpose is to pass on the knowledge she has acquired from direct experience and learning from other great writers to the readers to inspire them in their journey of writing. The paper discusses Lamott's book, including her unique style of writing, her use of analogies and images and the sense of intimacy she projects through the book.
From the Paper "Especially in the first section, Lamott presents a tremendous number of techniques to stimulate the writing process, such as creating a routine for writing and writing short assignments (4, 18). Instead of simply doling out the techniques, she enlivens her passages with humorous descriptions of the difficulties involved in the writing process: "The obsessing may keep you awake, or the self-loathing may cause you to fall into a narcoleptic coma before dinner" (Lamott 8). Therefore, she succeeds in tapping into the feelings of her readers who are probably aspiring writers. The readers know that they are in the hands of a truthful writer who understands and empathizes with their frustrations during the writing process."
An analysis of the theme of responsibility in "Complicity" by Iain Banks, "Waiting for the Barbarians" by J.M. Coetzee and "Le Mur" by Jean-Paul Sartre.
Abstract This paper deals with the theme of responsibility in three works of world fiction; Iain Bank's "Complicity" (Scottish), Coetzee's "Waiting for the Barbarians" (South-African) and Sartre's story "Le Mur" ("The Wall") (French). It analyzes whether the characters in these different works are responsible for their own fate and whether they can also be held responsible for the fate of others. It attempts to show through the literature how our actions or even the lack of them bring forth ethical questions on our responsibilities towards the consequences of our actions and on the degree of responsibility we have in this regard towards others.
From the Paper "Sartre makes the question of responsibility even more complicated. In his story le Mur he asks the question if an individual is responsible for something he caused but could not expect to cause. The protagonist of the story is Pablo, as a member of the resistance captured by soldiers he is given two choices by his captors. Or Pablo gives away the hiding place of the leader of the resistance or he is executed. At the beginning of the story he refuses to give his leader away and is put in prison. In the room where he is held prisoner Pablo goes trough many different stages of fear, and at the end his (regular) life now seems precious, but far away: ??C"est un sacr" mensonge.?"
Abstract This paper reviews the topic of polymorphous sexuality and gender confusion. It explores the character and its story in "Hedwig and the Angry Inch", commenting on the famous song "The Origins of Love". The author also contrasts and compares the philosophy of the play with Greek, Viking and Egyptian mythology on androgynous man.
From the Paper "The beginning of the song "When the earth was still flat, and the clouds made of fire, and mountains stretched up to the sky, sometimes higher..." (Trask) is clearly meant to send us back in thought to those elements of the creation myth which are nearly universally shared. Though by the time of Plato many philosophers had already discovered that the earth was round and even theorized its tilt and rotation (Psigate), the myths of the era still spoke of the flat earth and the mountains which upheld the sky. Most cultures speak of something--be it a mountain, a tree, or a god--which holds the sky and earth apart. The shape of the earth (square), and the separation of earth and sky by a pillar/mountain/tree, were both spiritual metaphors refering to the state of the soul. Myths, in ancient Greece and most likely in most other ancient cultures, were understood by the wise to be allegorical and spiritual in nature. By starting with myths such as the earth being flat, Hedwig acknowledges that the story he/she is about to tell is also metaphorical, but that it should be taken as presenting some kind of real truth about our souls."
Abstract This is a comparison of four articles: Wendy Cameron's "Selecting Peter Robinson's Irish Emigrants"; an excerpt from Helen Cowan's "British Emigration to British North America: The First Hundred Years"; an excerpt from Hugh Johnston's "British Emigration Policy, 1815-1830: Shovelling out Paupers"; and an excerpt from Norman Macdonald's "Canada 1763-1841: Immigration and Settlement: The Administration of the Imperial Land Regulations". It looks at how all of these are reputable authors commenting on the assisted emigration of Irish emigrants to Upper Canada in 1823 and 1825.
