Stephen King Why We Crave Horror Movies Essay Example For Students

Stephen King Why We Crave Horror Movies Essay The Master Of MaliceIt starts with this: put your desk in the corner, and every time you sit down there to write, remind yourself why it isnt in the middle of the room. Life isnt a support system for art. Its the other way around states Stephen King in his book On Writing (94). Stephen King is a world-renowned author for his works in horror fiction, fiction, cinema and television. He has published more than forty novels and written nine screenplays (Adams 1). Stephen King draws a great deal of his inspiration from his surroundings, his job and his life experiences. Stephen Edwin King was born in Portland, Maine in 1947. Stephen came as a surprise to his parents, Nellie Ruth and Pillsbury King. Mrs. King was told she would never conceive. The couple had adopted a son, David, Stephens older brother. When Stephen was just a toddler his parents divorced. Nellie moved Stephen and David to Indiana for a short time then to Connecticut. At the age of twelve, Stephens small family moved back to Maine (Stephen King.com 1-2). Stephen showed an interest in writing at a young age. When he was growing up his brother would allow Stephen to write articles for Daves Rag, his brothers independently published newspaper (Full Biography 2). Throughout his childhood he would read articles from horror comics and become inspired. He began to write short stories and sell them to his mothers friends for a nickel (King On Writing 15). Stephen graduated from Lisbon Falls High School where he was sought after to be on the newspaper staff. Stephen sold his first professional story to Starting Mystery Stories in 1967 (Stephen King.com 1-2). We will write a custom essay on Stephen King Why We Crave Horror Movies specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Stephen King met his wife, Tabitha, while attending the University of Maine at Orono. Tabitha and Stephen were married in January of 1971. The couple lived in a small apartment; their only source of income was Stephens salary as a laborer at an industrial laundry. In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching sophomore English in Hampden Maine and working on short stories on the evenings and weekends. In 1973, his first novel Carrie was published. Not long after that his second novel Salams Lot was published. With the money made from the two novels Stephen and Tabitha moved to Colorado on the fall of 1974. While there Stephen wrote The Shining, which is set in Colorado. This novel cemented Stephens place as a popular horror fiction novelist. Stephen and Tabitha moved back to Maine to start a family. They currently have three children: Naomi, Joe and Owen (Stephen King.com 1-2 ). In 1976, Stephen realized he had a problem. He was an alcoholic. He was also addicted to cocaine. The problem only got progressively worse over the course of eight years (Adams 6). The problem began to surface in his characters. I began to scream for help in the only way I knew how, through my fiction and through my monsters. (King On Writing 91-92). Today, King is clean and sober. His only problems are his fears of insects, dark, death, closed-in places, rats, snakes and deformity. Also Stephen King has a slight case of paranoia. (Full Biography 1)In 1977, King began to write novels under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. King made a whole life story for Bachman and told nearly no one that they were one in the same. Bachman died of cancer in 1985. When asked why he did it King replied, I wanted to know what was in a name (Full Biography 10). At the time of his death, Bachman had published five novels: Rage, The Long Walk, Roadwork, The Running Man and Thinner (9). Rage was actually wri tten when King was 18. He drew the inspiration for the book from his teen years (Adams 5). On Saturday June 19 1999, at the age of 51 Stephen King was involved in an almost fatal accident. He was on his daily four-mile walk when he was hit by a car. The man who hit him was distracted by his dog and lost control of his car. King had to endure ten hours of surgery to be repaired enough to be able to someday walk. At the present time, King is well and able to walk (Full Biography 7). The accident gave King, if nothing else new topics to write about. You have to put your experiences to use for you (Adams 7). Kings negative experiences help to shape his writing carrier. The settings within Stephen Kings writings are very similar to the places he lives and works everyday. Although many of the towns names in his stories are fictional the towns themselves are modeled after towns he knows. Some of the settings are based off trips Stephen has taken. Many of these are set in Maine, but not all of them. The Shining was based on a weekend trip to a hotel. While staying there, King found himself experiencing odd feelings of fear. Many of the characters from the book are based on real life such as Grady, the hotel bartender. The hotel in the novel is eerily similar to the one the Kings stayed in that weekend (Full Biography 5) The settings within King novels seem so real they are often referred to by name in other Stephen King books. .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 , .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .postImageUrl , .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 , .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5:hover , .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5:visited , .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5:active { border:0!important; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5:active , .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5 .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ub5bd8140803c9825fa8fd42d99770fe5:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Go to Your Room EssayThe town knew about darkness. It knew about the darkness that comes on the land when rotation hides the land from the sun and about the darkness of the human soul (King Salems Lot 180). The town mentioned is Jerusalems Lot, the town that Salems Lot takes place in. Jerusalems Lot is a small town in Maine, which is not a real town. Although, within the story, real surrounding towns are named. This gives the reader an idea of where the town would be if it existed. The novel, like many others written by King, is set in present time. The book was published in 1976, while the story ends in 1975 (King Salems Lot 22). Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption is another of Kings novels that has the setting in a familiar place. The novel takes place in a prison in Maine (King Rita Hayworth 15). Also before the main character was sentenced to prison he lived in a small Maine town, much like the one the King family currently resides in. Even though it Iis only one small fact, it is undeniable that King is most comfortable writing about what he knows best. The Breathing Method is another story by King. The story does not take place in Maine but King could not go an entire story without mentioning his beloved state even just once. The novella is actually about a man in New York listening to another man tell a story. In this story, a little boy is adopted into a family that lives in Maine (King The Breathing Method 496). Stephen Kings The Body was popularized when it was made into the film Stand By Me, which also has references to Maine towns. The story takes place in Castle Rock Maine. Castle Rock is a small working class town that exists along a long river and has a train that runs through it (King The Body 324). Throughout the novella, there are many references to past King novels. The boys come in counter with the evil trash mans dog named Cujo (336) King had previously written a novel entitled Cujo about a rabid dog. Another instance of past King novels being referenced is when the boys are discussing stupid names for towns and they bring up Jerusalems Lot (366). Another reference is stated when the boys are taking about being arrested. One boy states how he will not be thrown into Shawshank (402). Although none of these places exist in real life they are very real within Stephen Kings world. Within Kings writing incidences occur where his characters are themselves writers or hold jobs Stephen had previously held. The Shining just happens to be about an alcoholic writer and ex-school teacher (King On Writing 84). Within his stories there are a few examples of Mr. King using his profession as inspiration. Salems Lot has an exquisite example of King writing what he knows best. The main character, Ben Mears is a struggling author. He returned to the town in which he grew up in search of inspiration for his next book (King Salems Lot 27). Mears had only written three books Conways Daughter, Air Dance and Billy Said Keep Going so he was a fairly new writer (27-9). Salems Lot was only Stephens second published book so it is obvious that the feelings of pressure to write another hit book expressed by Mears come directly from Stephen Kings own head. Small examples of King using writing as a profession for his characters exist throughout his writing. Red, one of the inmates, is telling the story of Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. He is telling the story to the reader as if it is a journal entry (King Rita Hayworth 4). Also within the story another character, which is only briefly mentioned, is a writer. It was obvious this one guard was only interesting in one thing, compiling information for a book he was writing on prison life. (29) Although this is only mentioned briefly it is easy to tell that he is a part of King as much as the main characters are. Another example of the writing profession used in King writing is in The Body. Much like in Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption the person who had the experience first hand is telling this story. The protagonist Gordie wrote man y short stories as a youth, which were very popular among his friends. As an adult he became a professional writer and is reflecting back on a particular adventure he had as an adolescent (King The Body 326). Fictional characters are not drawn directly from life on a one-to-one basis. Characters are mostly drawn from life. If the reader focuses on whom a certain character is based on, the stories tend to be unsatisfying with shadowbox celebrities who quickly fade from the readers mind (King On Writing 188-9). The most prevalent aspect of Kings life that is reflected through his writing is his life experiences. Many of the characters and situations found through out his novels parallel his life. An incident such as falling down a hill behind a gas station sparked the idea for his novel called From a Buick Eight. (231-2) At times King will write about himself subconsciously. I was after all, the guy who had written The Shining without even realizing that it was written about myself. ( 88) Some of his characters only share a few key events with his actual life. Dreamcatchers main character is related to King in two ways. The character had been hit by a car and is recuperating and is hypnotized by the pain (Adams 17). Charlie Decker (from Rage) was me. All my characters are. But the characters are more then me they are real people only within the story states King in his Observer interview (16). Even though King uses himself in his characters they are still independent of him entirely. In some instances there are only minor characters that mirror King himself. In Salems Lot, there is one character who does not last long in the plot but seems to be influenced by Kings own life. Father Callahan, the town priest, is a drunk. He hides in the shadows and tries to hide his problem from the towns people, but it is no use. .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 , .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .postImageUrl , .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 , .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857:hover , .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857:visited , .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857:active { border:0!important; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857:active , .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857 .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ufe0e0ae97373da250fc5995ffb8a0857:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Japanese in America EssayEveryone can easily see that Callahan has a drinking problem (King, 142). At the time this book was written King had realized he had a drinking problem but did not want to admit it to his friends and family. King once said But I do think that if you have things that bother you, things that are unresolved, the more that you talk-about them, write about them, the less serious they become (Adams 2). King uses his writing as a type of therapy. When you ask yourself what a certain character will do given a certain set of circumstances, youre making the decision based on what you yourself would do (or, in the case of a bad guy, wouldnt) do (King On Writi ng 190-1). At times, Kings characters share personality quirks with him. In The Breathing Method the main character, David is a self described book worm. He spent many hours in the club library searching through new books (King Breathing Method 445). King spent a year of his childhood bed ridden due to chronic ear infections and admits to reading anything he could. To this day. King will read around 50 books per year. Also throughout the story David, (who shares his name with Kings older brother) continually had thoughts that the members of the club were out to get him. In one instance he declares, Im just being paranoid (449). Stephen King has self-declared paranoia. In some instances, there is more than one character that is similar to Stephen King himself. In The Body the storyteller is a writer, like King is. There is one boy in the group of children the story revolves around that seems to be quite similar to King as a child. This character is Teddy. Teddy is an odd looking chil d who had to wear thick set glasses, wasnt the bravest juvenile in the group and had ear problems through his childhood (King The Body 295). The interesting part about The Body is that it is set in Kings lifeline time frame. The novella takes place in 1960. The children in the story are around twelve and thirteen. In 1960, King would have been thirteen. (291) There is a strong possibility that the gang of hoodlums that star in this book are modeled directly after Kings childhood friends. One of Kings philosophies is, the way a person writes and the topics that person writes about come natural to him or her. There are some events in life that influence ones writing. There are places in some peoples lives where they start to recognize what they want to do. King Believes that writing talent is something one is born with. It is undeniable and it is extremely difficult to become a great writer if one does not possess the natural talent (Adams 2-3). King believes that a strong desire to write is what fuelsbrilliant story telling. Write what you like, then imbue it with life and make it unique by blending in your own personal knowledge of life, friendship, relationships, sex and work (King On Writing 157). Stephen King is the 2003 recipient of The National Book Foundation Medal For Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He is also the worlds best selling novelist (Stephen King.com 2). When Stephen is not writing he spends his time playing guitar in a rock band called Rock Bottom Remainders (Full Biography 5). The way King parallels his life with his writing without making it seem like every story is a biography is amazing. His stories are compelling and inspiring. These are just interests which have grown out of my life and thoughts, out of my experiences as a boy and a man, out of my roles as a husband, a father, a writer and a lover (King 208). Stephen King is a phenomenal author who has written many classics of the twenty-first century. He has cleverly told the world about himself and his life thro ugh his immortal words.

How Insects Find Their Food Plants

How Insects Find Their Food Plants Many insects, like caterpillars and leaf beetles, feed on plants. We call these insects phytophagous. Some phytophagous insects eat a variety of plant species, while others specialize in eating only one, or just a few. If the larvae or nymphs feed on plants, the insect mother usually lays her eggs on a host plant. So how do insects find the right plant? Insects Use Chemical Cues to Find Their Food Plants We dont have all the answers to this question yet, but heres what we do know. Scientists believe that insects use chemical smell and taste cues to help them recognize host plants. Insects differentiate plants based on their odors and tastes. The chemistry of the plant determines its appeal to an insect. Plants in the mustard family, for example, contain mustard oil, which has a unique smell and taste to a foraging insect. An insect that munches on cabbage will probably also munch on broccoli since both plants belong to the mustard family and broadcast the mustard oil cue. That same insect would probably not, however, feed on squash. The squash tastes and smells completely foreign to a mustard-loving insect. Do Insects Use Visual Cues, Too? Heres where it gets a little tricky. Do insects just fly around, sniffing the air and following odors to find the right host plant? That might be part of the answer, but some scientists think theres more to it. One theory suggests that insects first use visual cues to find plants. Studies of insect behavior demonstrate that phytophagous insects will land on green things, like plants, but not brown things such as soil.  Only after landing on a plant will the insect use those chemical cues to confirm whether or not it has located its host plant. The smells and tastes dont actually help the insect find the plant, but they do keep the insect on the plant if it happens to land on the right one. This theory, if proved correct, would have implications for agriculture. Plants in the wild tend to be surrounded by a diversity of other plants. An insect looking for a host plant in its native habitat will invest a good deal of time landing on the wrong plants. On the other hand, our monoculture farms offer pest insects a nearly error-free landing strip. Once a pest insect finds a field of its host plant, it will be rewarded with the right chemical cue almost every time it lands on something green. That insect is going to lay eggs and feed until the crop is overrun with pests. Can Insects Learn to Recognize Certain Plants? Insect learning may also play a role in how insects find and choose food plants. Some evidence suggests that an insect develops a preference for its first food plant- the one where its mother laid the egg from which it hatched. Once the larva or nymph consumes the original host plant, it must go in search of a new food source. If it happens to be in a field of the same plant, it will quickly encounter another meal. More time spent eating, and less time spent wandering around looking for food, yields healthier, stronger insects. Could the adult insect learn to lay her eggs on plants that grow in abundance, and thus give her offspring a higher chance to thrive? Yes, according to some researchers. The bottom line? Insects probably use all of these strategies- chemical cues, visual cues, and learning- in combination to find their food plants. Resources and Further Reading The Handy Bug Answer Book. Gilbert Waldbauer.Host selection in phytophagous insects: a new explanation for learning in adults. J. P. Cunningham, S. A. West, and M. P. Zalucki.Host-Plant Selection by Insects. Rosemary H. Collier and Stan Finch.Insects and Plants. Pierre Jolivet.

Prompts are at the attachment document below Essay

Prompts are at the attachment document below - Essay Example There is no doubt that the concept of zombie apocalypse is quite popular at the present moment. As it was mentioned by the scholars â€Å"these days, however, catastrophic events not only threaten friends, family, and neighbors; they also become the stuff of endless repetitions and dramatizations on radio, television, and Internet† (Borg, 2003, p. 57). That is why one might see numerous television series about vampires or werewolves. However, the two series in question feature dramatically different approaches towards depiction of the event. Thus, The Walking Dead is largely considered to be a serious work of art. The characters tend to face difficult ethical choices and often make actions that are controversial. On the other hand, Z Nation represents a different approach: it is more focused on actions rather than ethical choices. Of course, there is space for character development; however, the time that shooting occupies in it is significantly bigger if compared to its counterpart. This shows that people like watching television series about zombies not to see the characters fight their own demons, but actually fight the real demons. In other words, there are two different approaches one of which uses zombie apocalypse as a background for exploring the real nature of the human beings and the other that strictly focuses on the post apocalyptic life. It is rather surprising that the above mentioned television series are not classified as horror movies, though they have all the attributes: the monsters, the blood and the gore. Nevertheless, they are perceived by the public as something than that. This can be explained by the fact that â€Å"very little about the underlying structure of horror images really changes over time† (Mathias Clasen, 2010, p. 313). In other words, the primary purpose of these television series is to explore the eternal questions about this world

Mid term Questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Mid term Questions - Assignment Example The barrage of rumors in March, 2012 of an impending coup d’etat which flooded China’s blogosphere and convincingly reported gunshots and tanks in the streets of Beijing aptly exemplifies the extent of this cyber threat. According to Batchelor, Bobrowicz, Mackenzie and Milne (2012), the development can be dangerous and panic-inspiring when such information is created and disseminated by an individual of high social standing. In like manner, the extent of this danger is underscored by the fact that social networks are the very tools which were used for coordinating the Arab Spring. It is clear that some of the organizers of the Arab Spring may have been stationed outside target countries, but instead used the cyberspace to manipulate the conscience of the masses. Q. 2: The Future of P2P From a casual glance, the future of P2P file sharing program appears bleak, considering the fact that it is receiving tremendous levels of resistance from governments, international trade agreements and lobby groups. This resistance may call for the need to annul the use of P2P file sharing program and replace it with another one (Pankaj, Hyde and Rodger, 2012). However, P2P file sharing program may be compelled to exist in another format, without being faced out as a whole. There is veracity to the standpoint above because, totally facing out of P2P file sharing calls for the introduction of more and stronger restriction laws which may further bring constitutional problems (such as the contravention of the First Amendment to the US Constitution) which exceed piracy. Abdul-Rahman, Weiss and Santoro (2010) are poignant that it is inappropriate to use Napster’s failure to forecast P2P’s. This is because, unlike P2P file sharing system, Napster failed because of it had a centralized system which bundled unfiltered search engines with software which uploaded and downloaded data. Q. 3: Reasons for Facebook’s large User Base According to Robert Metcal f (born April 7, 1946), the value of a telecommunication network is proportional to the square of the number of users who are connected into that network. This is known as the Metcalf’s Law. DeJong (2012) links the widespread use of Facebook and the notoriety which Facebook enjoys, to Metcalf’s law. Herein, DeJong (2012) is categorical that the number of Facebook users increases, just as the value of a fax machine increases with the total number of machines in a network. Thus, Facebook enjoys an increasingly large and expansive population, simply because it has a greater number of users in the world of online social networks. Q. 4: On Second Life Being the Future It is clear that the future of Internet use and connections hold nothing promising for Second Life, due to a number of reasons. According to Mayer-Schonberger and Crowley (2006), some of these reasons include poor quality assurance, congestion and moral problems. As for quality assurance, it is known that Lind en Lab focused too much on the introduction of newer features to the production environment, in lieu of fixing long-term bugs which cause financial losses for Second Life users. It is against this backdrop that on April 30th, 2007, 700 frustrated Second Life users sent an open letter of protest to Linden Lab, highlighting their concerns over Second Life’s quality assurance. In another wavelength, it is widely known that Second Life has had serious setbacks stemming from congestion. This is because a single region hosted on a single CPU accommodates a limited

Dialectial Journal Essay Example for Free

Dialectial Journal Essay Dialectical Journals But today he saw one of the rivers secrets, one that gripped his soul. He saw that the water continually flowed and flowed and yet it was always there; It was always the same and yet every moment it was new. pg. 102 C)Slddhartha ponders about a secret of the river. It Is one that he never realized before. The water flows continuously and remains constant. It Is the same, and yet It Is new. Life seems to be like this. Everyone of us has life, and we live It. The world eems to continuously move and go on, despite the changes that happen. People die and people are born: people succeed and people fall. Every moment Is new, yet the world keeps going, time Is constant and does not stand still for anyone. The river teaches Siddhartha a lesson that he does not fully comprehend at that moment, yet remains an Important lesson to learn. But today he saw one of the rivers secrets, one that gripped his soul. He saw that the water continually flowed and flowed and yet it was always there; it was always the C)Siddhartha ponders about a secret of the river. It is one that he never realized before. The water flows continuously and remains constant. It is the same, and yet it is new. Life seems to be like this. Everyone of us has life, and we live it. The world and people are born: people succeed and people fail

A Comparison of Satire in Catch-22 and Good as Gold :: comparison compare contrast essays

Satire in Catch-22 and Good as Gold    Joseph Heller who is perhaps one of the most famous writers of the 20th century writes on some emotional issues such as war. He does not deal with these issues in the normal fashion instead he criticizes them and the institutions that help carry these things out. Heller in fact goes beyond criticizing he satirizes. Throughout his two major novels Catch-22 and Good as Gold he satirizes almost all of America's respectful institutions.    Catch-22 is a satire on World War II. This novel takes place on the small island of Pianosa in the Mediterranean sea late in the war when Germany is no longer a threat. It is the struggle of one man, Yossarian, to survive the war. Throughout this novel Yossarian is trying to escape the war, and in order to do so he does many improper things. Good as Gold is about a Jewish man named Gold. It is about Gold's experiences with the government while being employed in the White House. It also deals in detail with Gold's family problems and Gold's struggle to write a book on the contemporary Jewish society. Throughout these two novels, Catch-22 and Good as Gold, Heller criticizes many institutions. In Good as Gold it is the White House and government as a whole, and in Catch-22 it is the military and medical institutions.    In Catch-22 the military is heavily satirized. Heller does this by criticizing it. Karl agrees with this statement by offering an example of the satire of both the military and civilian institutions in Catch-22:    The influence of mail clerk Wintergreen, the computer foul-up that promotes Major Major, and the petty rivalries among officers satirizes the communication failures and the cut-throat competition Heller saw within both the civilian and military bureaucracies of the 1950's. Even the Civil Rights movement, not yet widespread in the 1950's, is satirized in Colonel Cathcart attitudes toward enlisted men. (23)    Karl summarizes the satirazation of the military with this:    The enemy in Heller's book is not simply the chaos of war, but also the deadly inhuman bureaucracy of the military-economic establishment which clams to be a stay against chaos while it threatens human life more insidiously then battle itself.    Heller also questions the need for the death and carnage throughout the novel asking if it is really necessary.

Critical thinking is basically composed of three parts

1.Critical thinking is basically composed of three parts that are very important. When a person is listening to a speaker or reading a publication such as a book, a journal or an article in a magazine or even watching a play or a certain soap or drama, it is important for him or her to have a set of questions that are interrelated.These questions should emerge from the information being conveyed by the speaker or   writer or the actor. The critical thinker who is part of the audience should be asking him self or herself critical questions and he should consciously be aware of what of he or she is doing as she read or listen to the message. He should at the same time be trying to answer or at least trying to generate his or her own suggestions to the questions raised.The process of critical thinking should also   comprise the reader's or listener's desire to actively utilize the critical questions to stimulate or generate more understanding of the message or the points the author or speaker is trying to put across and what he wants the audience to believe as the truth.Critical thinking also comprises of a prior decision or choice on how one needs to react to what he/she see or hear. Identification and choice of the best decision to make is part of critical thinking especially when the information you are getting is from different speakers or publications by different authors.2.Most people in the world has severally confused the concept of critical thinking. Most lay people understand critical thinking as the ability to think very much and in details about an issue. The concept of critical thinking is completely a different thing and such people are advised to understand this concept right.The word critical in simple English may mean very important for a given purpose. For example, oxygen is a critical requirement for life to continue. Thinking on the other hand is the ability to reflect upon any thing or to conceive some idea in a persons mind. Therefore, cr itical thinking is usually misunderstood to mean conceiving a key or major idea, critically as it is usually understood.Critical thinking may at one point bring this kind of meaning. But in decision making and analysis of what a speaker or an author is trying to inform his/ or her audience, critical thinking is used to mean the best practices in trying to understand the message being passed, and whether it is true or false according to the ideas the audience has already formed in their mind.3.Critical thinking and emotions are directly interrelated to one another. Emotions may influence critical thinking by influencing the various aspects of critical thinking separately or jointly. To have the ability to think of an issue does not require somebody who is emotionally over reactive.One needs to be patient and posses the ability to wait until the speaker or author is through so that s/he may have a better basis of relating his/her ideas to those of the author or speaker. If a person is impatient and does not wait for the speaker to give his opinions about an issue, an interruption may cause the speaker to stop and therefore this person would not have acquired enough information to on which he can base his counter- argument.4.Critical thinking involve use of certain tools as concepts for effective thinking. Peoples way of thinking is determined by their lifestyles and place of living. These two do interfere with the decisions people make. Ideas obtained from mass media such as TV or newspapers may not be real and usual. Most happenings that are reported in the media are sensational. However, these news lead people to forming opinions that are biased on the issues and facts being claimed in the broadcasts.To avoid these biases, thorough and wide reading to obtain as much information as possible concerning this issue is recommended. After getting this kind of information, one has to critically think about it so as to determine whether it is accurate or not.The graph ics appearing in billboards and posters pass messages that make people form opinions that the world is perfect when in real sense, things are imperfect. Such billboards makes a person start having associative ideas and starts wanting to be associated with what the images are about. At this stage,the person has already formed a biased opinion about what is being communicated.This biasness is an impediment to critical thinking. The other concept is about extremes such as all versus nothing, me versus him/her, them vs us and thinking that is based on stereotypes. Critical thinking involves avoiding stereotyping, assumptions and simplifications that are associated with this form of thinking.Pints of views that are not supportive to one another should be avoided where possible. The fourth factor that impedes critical thinking is having fear. One may fear trying new things, making of mistakes and making any comment that will make him appear foolish. These fears lead one to accepting the f allacies that are contained in the ideas they are currently having. Finally, some ideologies influence people to think in a pre-determined way.For example in the case of outlined curriculum that give outlined and rigid instructions on the way assignment formats should be. When students use their teachers as the only source of knowledge, they form bias to his opinions and are in most cases unable to think out of box when they adopt this form of non critical way of thinking.5. A sponge is a thing that is well known for its ability to absorb a lot of water. The more water a sponge absorbs, the more it becomes complicated to handle and when the water is too much, the sponge becomes delicate to handle and is basically avoided because it has a potential to cause a mess.This analogue is used in critical thinking not because of its ability to cause mess when water exceeds but because of its ability to absorb too much water. The way a person thinks about an issue is greatly determined by the amount and kind of information that the person has about a particular issue.The information here is likened to the water while the brain is likened to a sponge. People who have obtained so much information about the world have also got so much understanding of how actually the world is complicated. The less information one has about the world, the simpler the world appears to be to this person.There are some benefits associated with the ‘sponge' approach to critical thinking. If a person obtains so much information from publications, media and from speeches or conferences now, this person shall have a higher capacity to critically think about issues in the future.This is a great treasure especially in the current situation in the world where everything is changing and very complicated ideas are coming up every day, thus posing a danger of confusion for people who do not invest in much knowledge in the earlier years of their lives (Laura, 2008, p.176).The approach is passive t owards getting a correct opinion for ideas that are being passed by other people in publications and in mass media or directly during meetings. Use of this approach is not strenuous to the mind since information is accumulated gradually over a long period of time.It is easy and quick to think while the key requirements are just concentration when obtaining information and a memory to store the information obtained this way. It does not involve any form of evaluation of information, therefore whether the information is true or not does not matter.The only drawback associated with this approach is that there is no method for determining what to choose and what to fail to choose. One's thoughts are gained by the latest version of information he came across about an issue and decision making can become an accident of association.The concept of ‘panning for gold' on the other hand is analogue to critical thinking in the sense that from a bulk of material- which here represents the bulk of information-, the gold component -which here represents the important, little but useful information- is extracted with a lot of keenness. A person chooses what to absorb in his mind as useful and what to reject as useless information.To achieve this, a person reads through a publication or listens to the speaker carefully with an asking attitude. Since it is like the presenter of the information is trying to talk and persuade you about his or her ideas and you are trying to ask yourself questions concerning the information you are getting, this makes the process to be interactive, although the audience and the writer or speaker are not seeing one another.The reader or listener is able through this approach to determine what is worth. As opposed to the sponge concept, this approach is very challenging, is very tedious but the rewards are enormous.To be able to evaluate a speaker's or writer's opinion, the audience need to have a dependable opinions about the issue under scru tiny. This approach is mainly aimed at acquiring new information and knowledge because he already has some ideas and opinions (Fairburn and Kelly, 2005, pp. 156-159).6. Weak sense critical thinking involve the use critical thinking process to defend one's current beliefs and when he or she acquires enough information to be convinced otherwise, this becomes the current belief that he or she will be defending when compelled with another set of information, until this person is fully convinced other wise.The approach is least concerned with moving towards the truth and what is virtuous. It is out for a purpose of resisting and annihilating opinions and reasons which appear to be differing from the ideas a person is currently holding as the truth.It has a great potential of ruining the progressive aspects that are associated with critical thinking. This approach to critical thinking is most exhibited in people who hold certain ideas about religion or about holy scriptures.Anything again st what they belief is readily rebelled mentally until a credible authority asserts the new claims, which they now take as the truth and they defend it by all means (Peter, 2001, p.249).