When Benjamin has an affair with Mrs. Robinson, an older, married woman, the film shows a montage of activities of the two of them together, rather than a linear sequence of events. The fact that the sexual relationship is occurring is what is significant to the narrative, more so than what the two characters do together. This is in contrast to "Rashomon" where what occurred, and in what order, is significant, as it gives clues as to what the character's motivation and participation in the events recounted may have been. The Graduate" makes particularly innovative use of temporal duration in the famous final sequence, where Benjamin interrupts Katherine's wedding. In terms of scenic pacing, although both actions occur at the same time, the wedding seems to be evolving in a slow and stately fashion, quietly taking place, while Benjamin runs down the street, frantically trying to prevent the love of his life from making a terrible mistake. One sequence feels very fast and excited, like Benjamin's nervous energy and movement, the other is slow and plodding, what Katherine's life will be if she marries the conventional man selected by her parents. Transposing both sequences that occur during the same period of time creates more of a...
"The Graduate" has a clear narrative perspective and directorial intent, to satirize the plastic environment of the suburbs and ideals of American capitalist achievement, and to champion the anti-establishment ethos of the future generation. Kurosawa's "Rashomon' takes a deeper philosophical perspective and questions if there is any truth at all, if there is any way of knowing anything for certain about what happened in the past and present. Versus the objective truth about the older generation's boorishness in "The Graduate," there is no objective truth in "Rashomon," one reason that this older film feels more 'postmodern' to 21st century eyes.
Postmodern Literature Final In terms of the use of experimental techniques in the assigned readings this semester, I think I would judge Vonnegut to be the best and Ishmael Reed to be the worst. The simple criterion here is accessibility. There is no reason why experimental writing should be difficult or a chore to read. The constant emphasis on a surface level of linguistic novelty in Ishmael Reed makes the actual
The second half, entitled "Airborne Toxic Event, however, serves the role of criticizing the reality of American society and the result of its obsession with consumerism. In the second half, a chemical spill releases a mysterious airborne toxic event over Jack's home area, requiring everyone to evacuate. This event forces Jack to confront his own mortality and society's general fear of death and how it attempts to prevent death
" (Hendricks) Truth and culture are therefore seen to be created and destroyed by others for their own ends. In conclusion, the three literary works discussed above are in many respects very different but also indicate certain continuities of intention and discourse between romanticism, modernism and postmodernism. What links them all is the search for reality and truth that exists beneath the facade of everyday life and reality. As we progress
Postmodern Lit. An Analysis of the Postmodern Short Story Robert Coover's "Going for a Beer" passes like a dream: the faint perceptions of a man who does not know if he is coming or going -- or as Coover puts it, whether he has achieved an "orgasm" or not -- in the midst of various connections and misconnections to an assortment of characters. At the end, his life is over and all
Postmodern Book: Proposal Colson Whitehead's John Henry Days explores the relationship between fact and fiction with a postmodern narrative structure. One of the characteristics of postmodernism is the way in which it destabilizes what constitutes 'the known.' John Henry, according to American legend, was an African-American man who challenged a steel engine in a contest of who could work the hardest. Henry won, but died in the attempt. The saga of
In terms of sexuality, the film explores the different avenues by which teenagers are exposed to sexual content, which includes musical lyrics as demonstrated through the recitation of lyrics to "Papa Don't Preach" by Madonna, a pop culture music icon who has continuously infused her music with sexual themes. The film also makes reference to "The Gift of the Magi," a short story by O. Henry, which throws a
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