Preview

Children of Men

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2379 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Children of Men
Essay Question: Analyse how verbal and visual features of a text (or texts) you have studied are used to give audiences a strong idea

The idea of Existentialism is a modern philosophical idea that is portrayed in the film Children of Men directed by Alfonso Cuaron. The director uses verbal and visual features such as allusion, character action and tracker shots to leave the audience with a strong impression of existentialism

21st century Existentialism is a modern philosophy that is an attempt to make meaning in a chaotic world, putting an emphasis on individual existence, freedom and choice. This has developed as literature that is unique and creative, with strong main characters who are trying to make the world they live in a better place. I have decided to examine this philosophy in dystopian films and novels from the 21st century in hopes that these futuristic films can help to make sense of the chaotic world we live in. From these texts I have gained a larger understanding of ideas such as the importance of being an individual and making an attempt to change things for the better. These books are also used to convey a warning of the future, because despite the fact that they are of a fictional nature, many of them use historical events and predictions we have today to create the dystopian societies. Of course not all of the proposed societies are so far-fetched; the rate at which technology is advancing means the possibility of these dystopian societies being a reality in our near future is extremely high. At first I thought modern society and these dystopian societies were completely different, but upon closer inspection it becomes clear that they have many parallels. A repetitive parallel with modern existentialism ideals that occurred across the texts were religious themes. It is by examining texts such as these that we are able to discover a little bit more about life’s value.

Existentialism theories that humans are individuals and as individuals

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Existentialism is a term applied to the work of certain late 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual.…

    • 361 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    They will have to employ what they have learnt about visual language and the way it used to communicate addressing outcomes EN51A by exploring real and imagined words and responding to the aesthetic qualities and the power of language (English K-10 Syllabus.2003.32) EN5-2A by evaluating their process of composition and considering how texts invoke a range of responses (English K-10 Syllabus 2003. 33) and ENG3B by analysing and explaining how text structures and visual features of texts may influence the audience response and evaluating techniques used in visual texts to achieve particular purposes and effects (English K-10 Syllabus 2003.34) The presentation and question’s section is the second half of the activity and will direct students to explain why they choose to use the language features they did and evaluate their own understanding of language and will touch on out comes EN55C by encouraging the students to reflect on or refute others responses to literature(English K-10 Syllabus 2003.36) and EN52A by prompting students to review and refine one another’s work.(English K-10 Syllabus…

    • 2274 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In what ways does the distinctively visual influence your understanding of people and events within texts?…

    • 1013 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The movie Donnie Darko by Richard Kelly shows how existential life really is. Donnie Darko was a young boy who was living in a tangent universe. He was reliving his life over and over again until he finally dies the way that was predetermined for him. Frank the rabbit was sent to make sure that he chose the right decision instead of having to repeat in a whole other universe. Donnie experienced the tragedy that happened because he chose not to follow the pre decided path. In the end he made the right choice in order to save the lives of everyone around him. Donnie Darko is an existential movie because it addresses the idea of a tangent universe and how life is predetermined.…

    • 786 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Twelve Angry Men

    • 1445 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Twelve Angry Men is a classic movie depicting how one determined leader can alter an entire crowd. Through dedication, curiosity, and the pursuit for the truth he is able to persuade a group of twelve to second guess even themselves. Within this heterogynous group are a dozen different personalities - some of which were leaders and most of which were not.…

    • 1445 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    No Country for Old Men

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages

    I completely disagree with Keats and his idea that the movie, No Country for Old Men, ends happily as Sheriff Bell tells the story of his dream to his wife. Keats calls it a story of Bell’s “self forgiveness” as he realizes that the goals he had were way too great for him to handle. The viewers can obviously tell that Sheriff Bell looks completely defeated and extremely old in the last scene of the movie. His wife antagonizes his daily plans as a retired man but eventually lets him tell his sad stories of the dreams he had that night. As Bell tells her of his dreams, he becomes well aware that he will never meet the heroic stature of his Dad and he will probably never find his way to Heaven to meet his Dad because he is certain that God will never make His way into Tom Bell’s life.…

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Twelve Angry Men

    • 2099 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The movie Twelve Angry Men provided an example of a work group and a service group, because they had the goal of finding the man innocent or guilty on behalf of the organization of the court system and assisted a worthy cause that helped people outside the group. The judge said, “One man is dead. The life of another is at stake. If there is a reasonable doubt in your minds as to the guilt of the accused . . . then you must declare him not guilty. If, however, there is no reasonable doubt, then he must be found guilty. Whichever way you decide, the verdict must be unanimous. I urge you to deliberate honestly and thoughtfully.” This is the goal that the men are striving to achieve and what makes them a working group and the man they are helping makes them an example of a service group.…

    • 2099 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Twelve Angry Men

    • 1230 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Democracy and the right to serve as a juror are a great privilege and responsibility which is not to be taken lightly, as see n…

    • 1230 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    12 Angry Men

    • 563 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the play Twelve Angry Men by Reginad Rose the twelve jurors have to decide if a young boy is guilty or not guilty. The boy is accused of the murder of his father. His fate lies in the hands of the twelve jurors. Will he get the death penalty? Will they prove that the young boy is not guilty? Will he get to live the rest of his life? There are many different versions of this story including William Friedkins film version produced in 1997. Friedkins film version is easier to comprehend because it includes more detail than Rose’s original play version of Twelve Angry Men. Friedkin goes more in depth in his version of the story unlike Rose. Its more effective to the reader because of the message its telling us.…

    • 563 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Twelve Angry Men

    • 379 Words
    • 2 Pages

    This was a meeting of 12 jurors to deliberate the fate of an eighteen year old boy. The meeting was more of a verbal structure. The jury foreman was the team leader of the meeting. I feel as though the beginning of the meeting started strong with his decision of voting for guilty or innocence that lead to a hung jury. There was no planning really or discussing the trial at the beginning, and the jurors did not work together in a timely manner. The presentation of evidence was to convince the jury beyond a reasonable doubt that the teen was either guilty or innocent. A closer look at the evidence presented brought good points as to why the boy was innocent. The example in which the knife was used, the question being brought up about if the teen really lost the knife used to kill his father before going to the movies was even possible, or did he really even go to movies were all valid points that needed to be revisited. Also the demonstration of the elderly man being able to make it to the door in fifteen seconds to see if the person going down the stairs the man’s son or someone else clearly helped to head the meeting in a different direction. Along with the demonstration it was discovered that the elderly man would not have been able to hear clearly with the noise from noise from the L train. Most important of all was the question of the lady across the railroad tracks in another apartment really sees the murder take place while the L train was passing in ten seconds without her eyeglasses. All these points helped to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the boy was innocent. Finally all the jurors agreed on a not guilty plea and presented it to the judge.…

    • 379 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Twelve Angry Men

    • 595 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The American jury system, wherein citizens are judged by their peers, is one of the most democratic in the world. Nonetheless our system is far from perfect. There are many dangers in a system in which humans are asked to make decisions that could mean life or death for another person. Bias ranks amongst these dangers for it can affect the way jurors interpret testimonies and facts. Indifference is another factor; it too, can heavily affect a juror’s thinking. Personal feelings and experiences can stand in between a juror and the attainment of truth. The American jury system is intrinsically flawed in that it relies on intrinsically flawed humans to make life or death decisions…

    • 595 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Mice of Men

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In Mice of Men there were literary analysis use to describe problems,how things looked. Such as personification ,simile and hyperbole and many more. Steinback uses a lot of describing words to explain ,he will spent about a whole page explaining one thing. Just how he explains George “The first man was small and quick ,dark of face ,with restless eyes and sharp strong features”(Steinback 2). He use describing words and simile to explain how George's face looks and how it is shaped.Steinbeck does this throughout the book to give a more impacting feeling on people and it makes the book emotional using words to make you feel that you're in the book and experiencing it .…

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mice of Men

    • 361 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The loneliest character in Of Mice and Men is Crooks. Crooks is the loneliest character because he lives all alone and has no one to give him company. He is not allowed in the bunk house because he is black. In the depression era, blacks were segregated, keeping Crooks isolated and friendless.…

    • 361 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Examine the style of the text - think about *tone and *irony. Describe the effect on the reader.…

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays

Related Topics