“I could’ve been a contender.” Those famous words are spoken by Marlon Brando as Terry Malloy in On the Waterfront. Terry could have become a boxing champion. Instead, his family and friends in the mob influence him to lose a critical fight in order to benefit the mob; a mob that all of Terry’s family and friends are closely tied to. A similar decision is made in Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, where Joe Keller makes a decision that will benefit his family and put others in danger, all for the prosperity of the family business. The purpose of our watching this film in class was to have a basis for comparison between All My Sons and another literary work, and being that there are multiple similarities, I feel that this film was effective. In addition, On the Waterfront has a good moral message about standing up for your rights, which we discussed in class, making the film even more effective.
Literature shares certain aspects with film, including setting, point-of-view, and theme. In On the Waterfront, the setting is on the docks of the waterfront in a time and place where workers had very few rights to getting a job. This sets the scene for the main conflict, the little guys standing up to the big men for their rights to work. The heavy machinery and crashing waves on the docks add to the feeling that employment is hard to get and unsafe when it is available. A man who does not have to fight for a steady pay is Terry Malloy, who has friends fighting on both sides of the struggle. By seeing the story from Terry’s relationships with the mob and with Edie Doyle, the plot unfolds from Terry’s broad point-of-view and the conflict is set. As in all novels, films have themes. In On the Waterfront, the theme of standing up for what you believe in is portrayed through the various characters of Dugan, Father Barry, and Edie.
The dramatic aspects of film are what make a film a film; including the actors and the way that they act, and the set’s design and lighting. The casting of Marlon Brando as Terry Malloy, Eva Marie Saint as Edie Doyle, and Rod Steiger as Charley Malloy are all smart casting decisions because each actor has a quality about him or her that contributes to the personality of their character in the movie. Marlon Brando plays the role of a dim-witted boxer perfectly, with his slurred speech and indecisive tone of voice that he uses. When Edie asks him why he continues to hang around with Johnny, all that Brando does is shrug his shoulders, mutter “I dunno,” and play dumb. Despite his lack of brains he is loveable, and that is what makes the movie work. The audience will always be on the side of Terry because of Brando’s cute, “I don’t know any better” demeanor. Another actor that makes this film’s message so powerful is Eva Marie Saint’s innocent portrayal of Edie Doyle. It is important for Edie to act tough and stubborn to convey the message that all people can stand up for what they believe in, and Saint shows this by jumping into the scuffle for a work ticket. Her body language is true to character when Eva pounces for a ticket and wrestles it out of the other men’s fingers. However, at the same time Edie needs to be sensitive and naïve to the dangers around her. Saint shows Edie’s adolescence through her quiet and upset tone of voice when Terry gets mad at her for questioning his involvement with the mob. The final smart casting decision by Elia Kazan is casting Rod Steiger as Charley Malloy. Rod portrays Charley as a big shot who was cool around his buddies, good with numbers, and a man who everybody liked. But what made the character work was the fact that he was helpless when it came to the mob’s affairs, and like Terry, his hands are tied behind his back. Steiger shows this in the back of the cab when he gives Terry the ultimatum. Steiger, who had been acting very cool, is now at the mercy of Johnny Friendly; the look on his face and solemn tone of voice convey the fact that he, Charley, is a pigeon as well, being told when to fly and when to stay.
The other dramatic aspect that really shows the different moods of this film are the various lighting effects. Edie Doyle has bright blonde hair that seems to catch the light in each scene. Her hair is light while the rest of the characters’ is dark, making her stand out in every shot. It is perfect for her character that she stand out, because it shows the audience even more how out of place she is at the docks, making her struggle to validate Joey’s death seem greater and more of a challenge. Another way that Edie’s light hair is significant to her character is that it makes her seem more innocent like an angel, and not a woman who should spend her time with dock workers and mobsters. The second lighting effect is the lightness and darkness of each shot. In the beginning, it is night-time when Terry yells to Joey on the roof, and the set’s lighting is dark. It creates a mystery so that it is hard to see what is going on. Again at night-time, towards the end of the film, Terry and Edie find Charlie dead in the alleyway. The set is much more lit up because the criminals are about to be exposed, and the energy level is higher.
The third aspect of films has to do with cinematics, namely photography and duration of shots. There is a variety of shot photography throughout On the Waterfront, notably with the camera angles. An example of a high angle shot is when Edie is on the roof with Terry, looking down at him with all of his pigeons. This type of shot is foreshadowing for the future. It portrays Edie as being bigger and greater than Terry, with more sense of self. It also shows that she has power over Terry, which she later uses on him to get him to testify against Johnny Friendly. An example of the opposite shot, a low angle, is the shot from in the hatch, when Father Barry is with Dugan’s dead body, and preaching that he will testify along with Dugan against all the unfairness happening to all of the dock workers. Something is seen flying in the foreground and the camera looks up to find that many men are throwing beer bottles and food into the hatch at Father. From the perspective of being in the hatch, the audience feels helpless, and as if the battle they are about to fight will be difficult and endless, with nobody to turn to for help. These feelings of despair and helplessness are drowned by the next shot, one of Father Barry being raised up. Suddenly, the camera is looking up at him in a high angled shot, and he looks in control and standing strong; ready for the combat ahead. The duration of shots also adds to the feelings being shown in each scene. When Terry and Edie are fighting in the bar, the camera moves quickly, it has already cut to the next person, filming their response before the first person is finished with their sentence, building up feelings of fury. The camera cuts much slower and hardly at all when Terry is in the bar after finding Charley dead, and Father Barry is trying to gently ease him into not shooting Johnny and his mob. Any sudden movements would make the mood suspenseful, where Elia Kazan wants the audience beginning to calm down after the climax of the film.
Both in On the Waterfront and All My Sons, the protagonist is faced with a choice that will potentially benefit or jeopardize their family. The choice that Terry Malloy, of On the Waterfront, faces is whether or not to testify against Johnny Friendly and his mob monopolizing the work pool; a mob that Charley Malloy, Terry’s brother, is a member of. If Terry withholds testimony, everyone will be happy and his brother will live, but the workers will continue to be treated unfairly. If Terry does testify, he will be helping the rightless dock men, but Friendly and his men will kill Charley. Joe Keller faces a similar dilemma when it comes to the decision of issuing faulty cylinder heads to the army, cylinder heads that will likely fail and cause problems for the planes they are to be installed in. If Joe acts as if he does not notice the problem and issues the parts with the hope that the will be fixed, his business will not lose money or halt production. If Joe does speak up, his business and reputation will be shattered to pieces. It is important to Joe that the business succeeds so that he can pass it along to his sons, providing them with a steady source of income in their adult lives. Joe puts his family first and issues the pieces, while Terry does not and testifies against Johnny Friendly, which is what makes these two men different. Although the decision of community versus family presents itself in both situations, family is not always chosen and neither is community.
On the Waterfront is a film that I recommend watching for the message it conveys and the way the actors contribute to the message. The message is seen through the theme of standing up for your rights, as many of the characters did. The characters were able to strongly portray this theme because of the thoughtful and meaningful performances the actors gave, all down to the smallest body movements. The look in the eyes of these actors were so passionate, making the audience feel passionate for the worthy cause of standing up for what is rightfully yours.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Outside Reading - Week 3, Post B
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
"I peeled the eggs and arranged them on a plate beside the seven stalks of the asparagus (which were so slim and snappy they didn't need to be cooked at all). I put some olives on the plate, too, and the four knobs of goat cheese I'd picked up yesterday from the formaggeria down the street, and two slices of pink, oily salmon. For dessert-a lovely peach, which the woman at the market had given me for free and which was still warm from the Roman sunlight. For the longest time I couldn't even touch this food because it was such a masterpiece of lunch, a true expression of the art of making something out of nothing. Finally, when I had absorbed the prettiness of my meal, I went and sat in a patch of sunbeam on my clean wooden floor and ate every bite of it[...] (64)." This quote from the book has been my favorite so far. As I reflect on what I have read so far, there are parts that I can vividly recall because they have stuck in my memory, but none like this one. When I read it, I immediately re-read it once, then one more time because of how beautiful it sounded. The way she describes her fresh food from the Italian market, and then how she takes the time to just sit in the sun and enjoy it. Those sorts of things make me happy-good food and sunbeams- so I felt a personal connection to her as she was doing this. It also sticks out to me because it fulfills her reasons to go to Italy, to treat herself to something that she deserves for the heck of it.
"I peeled the eggs and arranged them on a plate beside the seven stalks of the asparagus (which were so slim and snappy they didn't need to be cooked at all). I put some olives on the plate, too, and the four knobs of goat cheese I'd picked up yesterday from the formaggeria down the street, and two slices of pink, oily salmon. For dessert-a lovely peach, which the woman at the market had given me for free and which was still warm from the Roman sunlight. For the longest time I couldn't even touch this food because it was such a masterpiece of lunch, a true expression of the art of making something out of nothing. Finally, when I had absorbed the prettiness of my meal, I went and sat in a patch of sunbeam on my clean wooden floor and ate every bite of it[...] (64)." This quote from the book has been my favorite so far. As I reflect on what I have read so far, there are parts that I can vividly recall because they have stuck in my memory, but none like this one. When I read it, I immediately re-read it once, then one more time because of how beautiful it sounded. The way she describes her fresh food from the Italian market, and then how she takes the time to just sit in the sun and enjoy it. Those sorts of things make me happy-good food and sunbeams- so I felt a personal connection to her as she was doing this. It also sticks out to me because it fulfills her reasons to go to Italy, to treat herself to something that she deserves for the heck of it.
Outside Reading - Week 3, Post A
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
VOCAB
-paradigm(60)- a standard or typical example
-dilettante(73)- a person who takes up an art, activity, or subject merely for amusement, esp. in a desultory or superficial way; dabbler; a lover of an art or science, esp. of a fine art
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
1. "[...]Eccola, eccola, eccola, mio bravo ragazzo, caro mio, eccola, eccola, ecco-AAAHHHHHHHHH!!! VAFFANCULO!!! [...] Which I can attempt to translate as: [...] There it is, there it is, there it is, my brilliant boy, my dear, there it is, there it is, there-AHHH! GO FUCK YOURSELF!(69)[...]." This is figurative language as imagery. The capitalized words show the emotion and the Italian to English translation is a way of showing how intense the words are. This was spoken by an Italian man at a soccer game who treated the players as if he was their coach, father, and best friend.
2. "Depression and Lonliness track me down after about ten days in Italy (46)." Gilbert is personifying depression and lonliness as men that have a mission to follow her wherever she goes. She later describes Depression as sitting on the couch and lighting a smoky cigar whil Lonliness climbs into her bed without even taking his shoes off.
3. "I peeled the eggs and arranged them on a plate beside the seven stalks of the asparagus (which were so slim and snappy they didn't need to be cooked at all). I put some olives on the plate, too, and the four knobs of goat cheese I'd picked up yesterday from the formaggeria down the street, and two slices of pink, oily salmon. For dessert-a lovely peach, which the woman at the market had given me for free and which was still warm from the Roman sunlight(64)." This figurative language is imagery. The reader can envision what all of the food looked like and how it must have tasted.
QUOTE
"I think maybe you always look like your men (65)." This was said to Elizabeth by one of her gut friends at a party. He was saying that dog owners look like their dogs and Elizabeth looks like her men. This makes her realize that when she is in a realtionship she gives everything to the man she is with. By traveling abroad for a year, Elizabeth is trying to get away from all that has been depressing her, including her troubles with men. She is exhausted from sacfrificing everything she has to her lovers, so Italy is a way for her to relieve stress, and abandon bad habits.
THEME
The theme that I see emerging is to enjoy yourself, and it is okay to relax, have fun, and do something without a purpose.
VOCAB
-paradigm(60)- a standard or typical example
-dilettante(73)- a person who takes up an art, activity, or subject merely for amusement, esp. in a desultory or superficial way; dabbler; a lover of an art or science, esp. of a fine art
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
1. "[...]Eccola, eccola, eccola, mio bravo ragazzo, caro mio, eccola, eccola, ecco-AAAHHHHHHHHH!!! VAFFANCULO!!! [...] Which I can attempt to translate as: [...] There it is, there it is, there it is, my brilliant boy, my dear, there it is, there it is, there-AHHH! GO FUCK YOURSELF!(69)[...]." This is figurative language as imagery. The capitalized words show the emotion and the Italian to English translation is a way of showing how intense the words are. This was spoken by an Italian man at a soccer game who treated the players as if he was their coach, father, and best friend.
2. "Depression and Lonliness track me down after about ten days in Italy (46)." Gilbert is personifying depression and lonliness as men that have a mission to follow her wherever she goes. She later describes Depression as sitting on the couch and lighting a smoky cigar whil Lonliness climbs into her bed without even taking his shoes off.
3. "I peeled the eggs and arranged them on a plate beside the seven stalks of the asparagus (which were so slim and snappy they didn't need to be cooked at all). I put some olives on the plate, too, and the four knobs of goat cheese I'd picked up yesterday from the formaggeria down the street, and two slices of pink, oily salmon. For dessert-a lovely peach, which the woman at the market had given me for free and which was still warm from the Roman sunlight(64)." This figurative language is imagery. The reader can envision what all of the food looked like and how it must have tasted.
QUOTE
"I think maybe you always look like your men (65)." This was said to Elizabeth by one of her gut friends at a party. He was saying that dog owners look like their dogs and Elizabeth looks like her men. This makes her realize that when she is in a realtionship she gives everything to the man she is with. By traveling abroad for a year, Elizabeth is trying to get away from all that has been depressing her, including her troubles with men. She is exhausted from sacfrificing everything she has to her lovers, so Italy is a way for her to relieve stress, and abandon bad habits.
THEME
The theme that I see emerging is to enjoy yourself, and it is okay to relax, have fun, and do something without a purpose.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Outside Reading - Week 2, Post B
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
THE FIRST IMPRESSION
I chose this book because it was the first available book that fit the criteria for second quarter outside reading. I then figured out that my mom had started to read and really liked what she had read thus far. I later found out that it was a memoir on the list of suggested memoirs for quarter one’s outside reading. Some friends of mine had read it and from their blogs and my conversations with them it was a fantastic book. Finally, the first day that I brought it to school, Mrs. Burgess said that it was one of her favorite books. After all these great things I was hearing, I felt that this could be a great read, and I was excited to begin reading it. I don’t like books that get off to a bad, boring, or confusing start. This novel fit none of the above appalling standards. Within the first few pages, the otherwise confusing format was explained. The book is structured like a japa mala, or prayer beads, into three sections of 36 chapters each. Already I was interested and ready to get on with the book, to finalize my first impression. What I found was a good plot line that got right into the story, and I was immediately enthralled with the memoir. Some stories just inspire you, and this one did before I was fished reading the first ten pages. I practice my religion regularly, and I was inspired to increase my praying and devotion to God twice as much as usual, simply by hearing the story that Elizabeth was telling of her experiences with God. In conclusion, this memoir has given me a wonderful first impression and has lived up to all of the expectations placed upon it by others.
Outside Reading - Week 2, Post A
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
VOCAB
-Balinese(26)- Of or pertaining to Bali, its people, or their language
-divinity(26)- The quality of being divine; divine nature
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
1. "Just when I was feeling particularly sorry for myself for being broke and lonely and caged up in Divorce Internment Camp, [...]"(26). The figurative language in this quote is the capitalization of Divorce Internment Camp, a symbolism. This is not just a casual term that the author made up, it is serious and truly feels like an internment camp to her, and the capitals emphasize that.
2. "Because God never slams the door in your face without opening up a box Girl Scout cookies [...]"(22). This is a metaphor. In reality God does not open a box of cookies and set them on the table in front of you, rather he allows something special or pleasing to happen to you. In this case, Elizabeth Gilbert is comparing a kind act of God to Girl Scout cookies.
3. "It all begins when the object of your adoration bestows upon you a heady, hallucinogenic dose of something you never even dared to admit that you wanted-an emotional speedball, perhaps, of thunderous love and roiling excitement"(20). This is another metaphor. Gilbert is comparing the happiness you feel when you are in a relationship to the high you experience from drugs. She never did drugs, but she feels high and hallucinogenical as if she had.
QUOTE
"So that's it. You have now reached infatuation's final destination-the complete and merciless devaluation of self"(21). This quote is significant because it has a deeper meaning than it appears. The term "reached the final destination" implies that you were on a transportation device of some sort, in this case, a roller coaster. The relationship that she was in was comparable to a roller coaster, with ups and downs, exciting and scary, and the feeling of never knowing what will come next. Because infatuation doesn't have destinations, the phrase "final destination" jumps out and triggers her comparing her relationship to a roller coaster, which she did do in the memoir.
THEME
The theme that I am seeing to emerge is, You never know what will come next, life is the definition of unpredictable.
VOCAB
-Balinese(26)- Of or pertaining to Bali, its people, or their language
-divinity(26)- The quality of being divine; divine nature
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
1. "Just when I was feeling particularly sorry for myself for being broke and lonely and caged up in Divorce Internment Camp, [...]"(26). The figurative language in this quote is the capitalization of Divorce Internment Camp, a symbolism. This is not just a casual term that the author made up, it is serious and truly feels like an internment camp to her, and the capitals emphasize that.
2. "Because God never slams the door in your face without opening up a box Girl Scout cookies [...]"(22). This is a metaphor. In reality God does not open a box of cookies and set them on the table in front of you, rather he allows something special or pleasing to happen to you. In this case, Elizabeth Gilbert is comparing a kind act of God to Girl Scout cookies.
3. "It all begins when the object of your adoration bestows upon you a heady, hallucinogenic dose of something you never even dared to admit that you wanted-an emotional speedball, perhaps, of thunderous love and roiling excitement"(20). This is another metaphor. Gilbert is comparing the happiness you feel when you are in a relationship to the high you experience from drugs. She never did drugs, but she feels high and hallucinogenical as if she had.
QUOTE
"So that's it. You have now reached infatuation's final destination-the complete and merciless devaluation of self"(21). This quote is significant because it has a deeper meaning than it appears. The term "reached the final destination" implies that you were on a transportation device of some sort, in this case, a roller coaster. The relationship that she was in was comparable to a roller coaster, with ups and downs, exciting and scary, and the feeling of never knowing what will come next. Because infatuation doesn't have destinations, the phrase "final destination" jumps out and triggers her comparing her relationship to a roller coaster, which she did do in the memoir.
THEME
The theme that I am seeing to emerge is, You never know what will come next, life is the definition of unpredictable.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Outside Reading - Week 1, Post B
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
I identified the emerging theme as “You can never make a decision until you are forced to do so.” The protagonist, Elizabeth Gilbert, describes the difficult decisions that she had to make in this particular part of her life. The first one that she is faced with is whether or not to have a baby. Her husband and she agreed on having a baby, but Elizabeth does not want to start a family yet. She tells herself that all mothers feel that way and it is natural to be glad that she is not pregnant month after month. When she has the opportunity to do a report in New Zealand, Elizabeth is ecstatic. It was then that she was able to admit to herself not wanting to have a baby. Also, she had feelings of uncertainty about her marriage, and convinced her that they too were only temporary. It was not until her and her husband had a fight that she knew “I don’t want to be married anymore” (9). The final decision in this time of her despair was believing in God, and believing in the practice of a religion. Elizabeth had never actually prayed to God before throughout her life, and it was when she needed someone the most that she finally turned to God and recognized that He was there to help her. Nothing in her life had persuaded her to need religion, and now she is a committed advocate of God.
Outside Reading - Week 1, Post A
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
VOCAB
-Jehovah(13)- God, especially in Christian translations of the Hebrew Scriptures
-oblong(12)- (of a leaf shape) having a somewhat elongated form with approximately parallel sides deviating from a square or circle or sphere by being elongated in one direction
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
1. "[...] through the back streets of Rome, which meander organically around the ancient buildings like bayou streams snaking around shadowy clumps of cypress groves" (9). This is a simile because she is comparing the streets of Rome to bayou streams.
2. "Giovanni is my Tandem Exchange Partner. That sounds like an innuendo, but unfortunately it's not" (7). This is what appears to be Elizabeth's metaphor for her hook-up, but she goes on to explain that unfortunately she is not doing that with him and he simply teaches her Italian.
3. "('Ambivalent' was the word I used, avoiding the much more accurate description: 'utterly consumed with dread')" (8). This is an example of the imagery behind the word ambivalent, and her description of how she uses it.
QUOTE
"What happened was that I started to pray" (12). This was the time in Elizabeth's life when she was at her lowest, she didn't know what she wanted and if she was doing the right thing. She felt like she had nobody to turn to, especially because she had never had a connection with God before. When she was at her breaking point she turned to God, and prayed, for the first time. It was the instance that triggered her relationship with God.
THEME
You can never make a decision until you are forced to do so.
VOCAB
-Jehovah(13)- God, especially in Christian translations of the Hebrew Scriptures
-oblong(12)- (of a leaf shape) having a somewhat elongated form with approximately parallel sides deviating from a square or circle or sphere by being elongated in one direction
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
1. "[...] through the back streets of Rome, which meander organically around the ancient buildings like bayou streams snaking around shadowy clumps of cypress groves" (9). This is a simile because she is comparing the streets of Rome to bayou streams.
2. "Giovanni is my Tandem Exchange Partner. That sounds like an innuendo, but unfortunately it's not" (7). This is what appears to be Elizabeth's metaphor for her hook-up, but she goes on to explain that unfortunately she is not doing that with him and he simply teaches her Italian.
3. "('Ambivalent' was the word I used, avoiding the much more accurate description: 'utterly consumed with dread')" (8). This is an example of the imagery behind the word ambivalent, and her description of how she uses it.
QUOTE
"What happened was that I started to pray" (12). This was the time in Elizabeth's life when she was at her lowest, she didn't know what she wanted and if she was doing the right thing. She felt like she had nobody to turn to, especially because she had never had a connection with God before. When she was at her breaking point she turned to God, and prayed, for the first time. It was the instance that triggered her relationship with God.
THEME
You can never make a decision until you are forced to do so.
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