The Pedestrian free essay sample

This short story is an example of Dystopian fiction – dealing with a society that embodies a flawed perfection – achieved at a cost. In the story, Ray Bradbury attacks a society which is, in effect, a police state – a totalitarian regime. The sole representative of the regime is, appropriately, the police car. Mead is a non-conformist whose ‘crime’ is to walk for pleasure – a most simple and natural activity. The oppressive nature of the regime is emphasised by the fact that such a basic human activity is prohibited and has been eradicated – as indicated by the disused sidewalks. The nature of this soulless society is emphasised again and again by numerous images connected with death: â€Å"dark windows† â€Å"not unlike walking through a graveyard† â€Å"tomb-like buildings† and â€Å"grey phantoms† By contrast the vivid sensory description of Mead’s walk is conveyed through crisp natural images which evoke the senses and show his delight in simple pleasures and sensations: breathing in the cold November air and its â€Å"crystal frost† makes his â€Å"lungs blaze like a Christmas tree inside† the â€Å"branches filled with invisible snow†. We will write a custom essay sample on The Pedestrian or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This is a society which (it is implied) is kept docile and uninformed by a diet of poor quality TV programmes (which, we assume from the Police Car’s incredulity when Mead explains that he has no TV, are controlled by the State). The minds of the population have been dulled by the TV they are incessantly and acceptingly fed. Only Mead can see through the banality and predictability of the programmes: †Where are the cowboys rushing? † †A dozen assorted murders† †A comedian falling off the stage† There is nothing to stimulate the intellect of the population here. Despite the (large) number of channels, there is a complete absence of any political programme which might challenge the government. Possibly suggesting brain-washing. If not, it is clear from the way that the population is described that they are not capable intellectually of challenging the government – they are portrayed as automatons – unthinking, unchallenging, uninformed. The suggestion is that the minds of this population are chained and dulled by the government’s actions. Informed, intelligent, alert people would pose a threat and ask awkward questions. Mead is the last of such people and his nightly covert walks are, we presume a way to find like-minded people. His rebellion, if we can call it that, is hardly the most active – he seems to have accepted or resigned himself to the fact that he can no longer pursue his career and seems a broken man at the end of the story. Setting In contrast to the rest of the population, the individuality and free-thinking nature of Mead’s mind is emphasised by natural images. The simile â€Å"only his shadow moving like the shadow of a hawk† conveys both an impression of a hunter and an image of soaring freedom. The fact that â€Å"he could imagine himself upon the centre of a plain, a wintry, windless Arizona desert† highlights his individuality and the sense of emptiness that he feels in a society that is, effectively, dead. The rest of the population and the city itself are portrayed as being dead. The buildings and city are architecturally dead – the â€Å"buckling concrete walk† suggesting decay and â€Å"tomb-like buildings† suggesting that those inside are dead. Even Nature itself seemed outraged by the setting and tried, it seemed, to bury it â€Å"like cement was vanishing under flowers and grass† The Police Car The imagery associated with the police car is harsh, cold, threatening, oppressive, that of hunter and its paralysed prey â€Å"flashed a fierce white cone of light upon him† â€Å"It smelled of riveted steel. It smelled of harsh antiseptic† Images which mirror the nature of the regime which is personified and represented by the car. Frequent use of word-choice linked to metallic, robotic, mechanical ideas. The voice of the police car also sounds robotic: short, sharp peremptory commands contrast with Mead’s fuller more warm and personal replies. The clearest indication of the nature of the regime comes in the interrogation: The lack of recognition of Mead’s profession and the incredulity that he does not have a TV set hint strongly at state control. In this dystopian society, anything connected with the arts: creativity, beauty, the senses†¦ is not recognised. Only that which is manufactured is recognised. Books and writing have no place in this regime. In a similar manner, the police car is unable to comprehend that Mead was simply walking for its own pleasurable sake. â€Å"Walking, just walking, walking? The repetition of walking gives the impression of the car’s brain malfunction. It cannot grasp that anyone would do something simply for the pleasure of it, not without a reason. Only Mead is capable of wry humour (a human quality) Are you married, Mr Mead No Nobody wanted me, said Leonard Mead with a Smile. Irony Mead is to be taken to an asylum – â€Å"To the Psychiatric Centre for Research o n Regressive Tendencies†. Note the use of official sounding language – a euphemism designed to hide the true purpose of such a place – echoing Soviet Asylums in which those who actively opposed the state’s political ideals were sent to an ‘asylum’ to be ‘re-educated’ – brain-washed until they did accept what the state wanted them to believe. The great irony here is that Mead – the only sane man in this insane society is being sent to an asylum. Symbolism. On their way to the asylum through, they pass Mead’s house. It is ablaze with lights in contrast to the dark city. â€Å"electric light brilliantly lit, every window a loud yellow illumination. It is a symbol of hope of vibrant life – light is a universal symbol of hope, but the car is swallowed up once more into the darkness (literally and figuratively). â€Å"The car moved down the empty river-bed streets† natural images of decay and life-lessness. Structure Mead’s capture is represented in stages. Contrast the positive, empowering image of him as a hawk – conveying a sense of freedom with his re action to the car †not unlike a night moth, stunned by the illumination† The short story remains fairly uneventful throughout, therefore the structure reflects this. However, the featurelessness of structure (which in turn reflects the bleakness of the landscape) is broken by the tension created by the interrogation of the police car. The apparent tedium of the walk through the grey town is transformed into a gripping tense episode. Near the end, the short story bursts into another high point of hope with the wonderful climactic symbol of the house ablaze with light – a symbol of hope. Nevertheless, we are again plunged into dark anti-climax as we realise that the house is only one lone point of hope, soon to be submerged within the blanket of darkness everywhere.

Suzy Bishops Books in Wes Andersons Moonrise Kingdom

Suzy Bishop's Books in Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom Wes Andersons  Moonrise Kingdom  is a story about young love that was written by Anderson and Roman Coppola. Filmed in Rhode Island in 2011, the film was released in 2012 to critical acclaim and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, as well as for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy.    In the movie, Sam, a Khaki Scout at camp on the island of New Penzance, runs away with a local girl, 12-year-old Suzy Bishop, who shows up at their appointed meeting place with her kitten, her brothers portable record player and a suitcase filled with books. While the books are a creative film prop, they are essential to understanding Suzys character and its fantastic that she reads them to Sam throughout their adventure. Suzy Bishops Books The six fictitious  books that Suzy packed in her suitcase were stolen from her public library and included  Shelly and the Secret Universe, The Francine Odysseys, The Girl from Jupiter, Disappearance of the 6th Grade, The Light of Seven Matchsticks and The Return of Auntie Lorraine. You can learn more about them and listen to Suzy reading from them in this animated short. According to the producer of the film, the animated shorts were originally going to be part of the movie. Artists were hired to design the covers of the books as well, which are prominently displayed in the film. After giving it further thought, Anderson decided to shoot the characters faces as they read excerpts from the  books rather than show the animated shorts. The end result displays more of the character development and leaves some interpretation to the viewers imagination while allowing for snippets of a story within a story.   Although the books are quite charming - both in their creative conception and in the film - they are not real. Anderson wrote only the excerpts that are read aloud in the film. Pertaining to Suzys character development, the titles of the books loosely adhere to the overall plotline of the movie. From Suzy and Sams secret universe that theyve built for themselves, their odysseys, Suzys dark internal world, to returning back home, Suzys books offer an imaginative outlet for their summer adventure. Books in Wes Anderson Movies Books have played a key role in many of Wes Andersons movies. Take for example  The Royal Tenenbaums, which itself was entirely framed as a book. The viewer sees the book checked out of the library at the movies beginning and shots of the chapter pages throughout the movie. No fewer than four characters in The Royal Tenenbaums are professional writers.   Anderson takes great care to create and establish realistic details in his movies, whether it be books, maps or cities. This thorough attention to detail is a key element of the movie-goers experience, allowing viewers to feel as if theyve just stumbled upon an entirely new universe.

Marketing Concepts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Marketing Concepts - Essay Example In the UK, 28% of consumers own a smartphone and by 2015 iPhones will make up 11% of all total devices used in the UK.† (Mintel, 2010) The trend in sales has proved that customers are now looking at mobile phone as a device beyond a small instrument that helps to make phone calls. In fact, making calls have become just small of the many functions of mobile phones. Mobile phones are now a total communication and mobility solution. This trend in the industry was driven by the smart phone of iPhone, Nokia, Samsung, Blackberry and other players. This report will discuss the macro and micro environmental changes in the industry and its impacts on the marketing activities of smart phone companies. The report will be discussed with particular reference to Apple iPhone and RIM Blackberry. Mobile phone industry is one of the fastest growing and fastest changing industries in the world. The products become outdated very quickly than in any other domain. Innovation in products, services a nd marketing activities are most common in the industry. Smart phones are the power houses of mobile phone market. Globally, â€Å"Feature phones still represent the majority of mobile phone shipments, even though they are under increasing pressure from smartphones.† (Wauters, 2011) IPhone and Blackberry are among the leading smart phone makers of the world though Blackberry’s market share is slowly being taken over by Samsung. This report will deal primarily with the environmental factors affecting the smart phone industry. The report will also deal with the importance of market segmentation, targeting and positioning in the industry. The later part of the report will discuss the importance of adopting a right marketing mix for the smart phone industry. Environmental Factors and their Impact The major macro environmental factors that affect marketing in the mobile phone market are technology, economic factors, education and employment levels and social factors. (Zain Books, 2011) Technology is the primary factor that drives the handset industry. Recent developments in the market have shown that Apple has come up with the software called ‘siri’ which is expected to take the market by storm. Such developments will force Blackberry to introduce similar technology or any other differentiating factor on its further models and marketing. Economic condition is the next major factor that impacts the marketing. A slowing economy will usually dent the demand for handsets in the market. A slow economy is usually followed by low disposable income in the hands of the consumers. Therefore, the companies will mostly reduce their marketing spending in order to reduce cost and improve margin. Education and employment levels determine whether the consumers will have enough knowledge and disposable income to purchase mobile phones. Companies like Apple and Blackberry will have to decide on the pricing and product features based on the educational and employment level of the customers. The next macro environmental factor that has an impact on the marketing decisions of handset companies are social factors. The social set up and reference groups create a huge impact on the purchasing decisions of consumers. (Tutor2u, 2011) Therefore, the marketing activities of a company in one region are entirely different from that of the other region. For instance, the theme of iPhone advertisement in United States will be different from what it is in India. The main reason is the difference between social