Combines have been used by farmers for decades to harvest grain from their fields. Combines were designed to mow down the tall grain stalks, remove the grains, and finally to eject the leftover straw back out onto the field. In the mental ward, the patients are stripped of their personalities one by one. Their "grains", or the important parts of who they are, are torn from them. After facing the combine, the ward patients are all the same; useless and unwanted straw, left out in the field to rot.
McMurphy enters the ward, full of energy and spirit; a tall stalk of wheat in the path of the combine. Despite his defiance towards the system run by Big Nurse, he's still just a small blade of grass before the might of the combine. The system and the machinery that continually appears in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest extends much farther than McMurphy realizes. The establishment now has complete control of his fate now that he's been admitted, and they can use whatever force is necessary to bring him under control. In this way, McMurphy is no less vulnerable than anyone else, because even someone as iron-willed as he is doesn't stand a chance.
Other institutions are almost intended to work as two combines, the second running in reverse. An institution such as school runs a combine over the miscreants who seek to disrupt the class, but then the second combine works the other way. Through school and work we are encouraged to learn and develop into new and better people. Another simple example is when people attempting to lengthen their hair apparently have to first cut off the split ends before the hair can grow back longer, establishments attempt to strip us of our differences in order to allow us to remake ourselves anew. The Big Nurse seems to have forgotten the second step.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
School? An asylum? Are you crazy?!!!
I suppose the connection between the mental ward in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Framingham High School is valid point to make. The problem is however, that most of the rules and regulations are not a unique trait of FHS any more so than they are characteristics of the mental ward. Many of the rules of the ward are there simply to maintain order. The true is same for government, for job schedules, and for any other organization that is expected to run efficiently. Without this predetermined order, there would be chaos. A reduction in rights is the price we pay for freedom from chaos.
With that said, I still have three parallels to discuss. I suppose one should be the lack of tolerance for disruption. The ward and FHS are intended to be well-oiled machines, so any misbehavior on the part of a ward patient or a student significantly disrupts things. That's why the teachers and ward nurses are expected to call off disruption immediately.
Next, the hours. The patients are kept to a very strict time frame. This includes getting up early and going to bed when the lights are shut down in the ward. We are required to get to school by 7am, which for some people means getting up before 6, and for almost everyone it entails a pre-dawn wakeup call. We have a very strict period schedule as the ward has circle meetings and so forth.
Thirdly, the lack of spontaneity. The Nurse grinds her teeth at the idea of a carnival in her preciously neat hospital ward, but it also seems to reflect the general policy at FHS. I find that classes rarely surprise me. We repetitiously do roughly the same things day after day, and I have to say it gets a little dull. Anyway, the current school system seems to share something of the same monotony as the mental ward.
With that said, I still have three parallels to discuss. I suppose one should be the lack of tolerance for disruption. The ward and FHS are intended to be well-oiled machines, so any misbehavior on the part of a ward patient or a student significantly disrupts things. That's why the teachers and ward nurses are expected to call off disruption immediately.
Next, the hours. The patients are kept to a very strict time frame. This includes getting up early and going to bed when the lights are shut down in the ward. We are required to get to school by 7am, which for some people means getting up before 6, and for almost everyone it entails a pre-dawn wakeup call. We have a very strict period schedule as the ward has circle meetings and so forth.
Thirdly, the lack of spontaneity. The Nurse grinds her teeth at the idea of a carnival in her preciously neat hospital ward, but it also seems to reflect the general policy at FHS. I find that classes rarely surprise me. We repetitiously do roughly the same things day after day, and I have to say it gets a little dull. Anyway, the current school system seems to share something of the same monotony as the mental ward.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: HW 1
I feel that the issues underlined by these prompts would be more controversial around the time period of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. These days if you were to ask anyone if it was acceptable to experiment on human beings, you would be hard pressed to find a positive response. In the modern context therefore, such a prompt as this is barely thought provoking. Further into the past however, when the patients in a mental hospital were virtually untreatable, It must have been a common and acceptable practice to experiment on patients. How else would a man such as Walter Freeman have developed his lobotomy procedure into mainstream practice? Mental illness was utterly misunderstood, and to a sane individual of the past, a mental patient probably would have been falsely deemed as less than human.
Another topic that is subject similarly to the time period is the distinction between mental illness and physical illness. In the past, mental illness was understood on a very small scale. It was most often incurable. As far as Doctors knew, mental illness was not due to any physical problems in the brain. In more modern medicine, mental illness seems to fall into two categories: trouble caused my a physical defect in the brain, or else psychological trouble. I think that in these terms, a physical defect such as Alzheimer's disease or a brain tumor is the same as any other physical illness. Psychological trouble such as post-traumatic stress, is more complicated. It may have an actual physical effect on the brain, but we are still limited in our ability to understand the brain, so treatment has to been done through psychotherapy. I think in this case, until we understand more, psychological illness (not mental illness in general) is different than physical illness.
Another topic that is subject similarly to the time period is the distinction between mental illness and physical illness. In the past, mental illness was understood on a very small scale. It was most often incurable. As far as Doctors knew, mental illness was not due to any physical problems in the brain. In more modern medicine, mental illness seems to fall into two categories: trouble caused my a physical defect in the brain, or else psychological trouble. I think that in these terms, a physical defect such as Alzheimer's disease or a brain tumor is the same as any other physical illness. Psychological trouble such as post-traumatic stress, is more complicated. It may have an actual physical effect on the brain, but we are still limited in our ability to understand the brain, so treatment has to been done through psychotherapy. I think in this case, until we understand more, psychological illness (not mental illness in general) is different than physical illness.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Top 10 Movies
I'm not sure whether we are supposed to list our favorite movies that we've already seen, or if we are listing movies that we want to see when they come out. Therefore, I'll list some of each.
Movies that I want to see
Movies that I want to see
- Tintin(2011) - I'm a fan of the graphic novels by Herge, and I'm interested to see Steven Spielberg's Interpretation. In 3D no less (no surprise).
- The Hobbit(2012?) - I thought the Lord of the Rings was well done, and I liked the animated version of old, but I think it could be vastly improved by live action. The old animated Lord of the Rings series was terrible compared to the new version, so I hope that they can pull off another big hit. I think they went and split it into parts 1 and 2 though.
- V for Vendetta - trailer I loved the plot and action of this movie, I have to say my favorite scene was the "domino" scene, but V's introductory speech isn't far off.
- The Dark Knight - trailer I though this was stunning, Heath Ledger's performance was amazing. I loved it, not because the superhero jargon, but because of the intricate layers of the joker's character and the the metaphor of the motif of Harvey Dent's coin for the themes of order and chaos (when Harvey is injured, the coin with a head on both sides becomes scorched too. The coin when flipped is now based on pure chance, the Joker's idea of true chaos).
- Titanic - This is truly becoming a classic film for it's beautiful portrayal of the disaster of the Titanic, and the true art comes from all the little things that went wrong, not the big events.
- *The Fellowship of the Ring - trailer
- *The Two Towers - trailer This trilogy is perhaps my favorite series of live action. The special effects, scenery, and costumes were not emphasized to the point where they detracted from the plot; they complimented the plot rather than being a detriment it.
- *The Return of the King - trailer
- Apollo 13 - obviously this is a classic. There's not much to it, it was just a terrific classic.
- Avatar - This was obviously a completely revolutionary movie in terms of visualization. Utterly beyond anything we have ever seen before.
- The Star Wars saga (episodes I through VI) - They aren't all old enough to be classics, but I have to say that I loved all the movies
- The Matrix - I don't watch this movie very often, but I have to say that it is a terrific plot. I didn't like movies 2 and 3 as much, that's why they aren't up here.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Themes of a salesman
Arthur Miller in particular, as a playwright, fills his plays with dramatic themes that are not only inspiring, but also all the more compelling for their accurate interpretation of the real world. One such theme is that "A man who blindly follows a dream is blind to its consequences". Willy Loman desperately wants to be a successful businessman, and he wants his sons to follow successfully in his footsteps. He devotes himself utterly to this dream, and won't accept that any of the shortcomings of the Loman household are consequences of his failure at achieving his dream. Willy blames Biff and Happy for the way that they turned out, and comments that it wasn't his own fault. Perhaps if he recognized that there were other ways to achieve success, he'd be more open to the consequences of his own path.
Another apparent theme in this play is that "When you fail to see your own failures, you cannot fix them". Willy's problem is that he is a failure in business, and his sons have sunk into his footsteps. Willy is so focused on being a successful businessman, that he doesn't realize, that at this point in life, he has already failed, and his failure to take corrective action is creating a stagnation that has spread to Biff and Happy. Willy has no idea why things are going wrong in his life, so he cannot fix them himself.
Yet another theme in Death of a Salesman is that "In order to inspire greatness in others, you must first become great yourself". This essentially is the idea of "put your money where your mouth is" or else not being a hypocrite. Willy tells his son's to achieve success and to be role models, but at the same time he encourages them to steal, and he has an affair which destroys his credibility in Biff's eyes. If Willy had not had the affair, Biff may have become a success after all.
Another apparent theme in this play is that "When you fail to see your own failures, you cannot fix them". Willy's problem is that he is a failure in business, and his sons have sunk into his footsteps. Willy is so focused on being a successful businessman, that he doesn't realize, that at this point in life, he has already failed, and his failure to take corrective action is creating a stagnation that has spread to Biff and Happy. Willy has no idea why things are going wrong in his life, so he cannot fix them himself.
Yet another theme in Death of a Salesman is that "In order to inspire greatness in others, you must first become great yourself". This essentially is the idea of "put your money where your mouth is" or else not being a hypocrite. Willy tells his son's to achieve success and to be role models, but at the same time he encourages them to steal, and he has an affair which destroys his credibility in Biff's eyes. If Willy had not had the affair, Biff may have become a success after all.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Death of a Salesman
Willy, as a father, tries to teach his son's the value of hard work. Happy and Biff have become accustomed to chores. They are immediately ready to carry things for their mother, hang the laundry, and there was also the time where they cut lumber to sell. He impresses upon them how other people such as Ben became successful and rich just through hard work.
It may do Happy and Biff some good to learn these values, as it makes them more helpful and prepared to work hard. It doesn't however, give them what they really need. Willy should instead, or at least additionally, be teaching them ways to enjoy life. He should be providing them with an outlook that will inspire them to work hard at something they enjoy, rather than something that makes money. By depriving them of this kind of childhood, he seems to have inadvertently caused Happy and Biff to try and hold on to childhood through parties and nights at the bar, when they should be beginning their lives.
Willy, as a character is very inconsistent in his perspectives. The contradictory statements may indicate that he's confused or stressed, but they also reveal that Willy doesn't seem to have to the full scope of his cognitive faculties. He doesn't seem to know what he believes anymore. His job has worn him down after all these years, and his warped perspective on what a person's life should be like has down ridden the quality of his own.
Linda, as it turns out, has a very interesting character throughout all of this. Though people rarely talk to her, provides the household with morals. She tries to stop the boxing match that Willy is egging on, and she tells Biff to return the stolen football. She, in a way, holds the household together while Willy is tossing around orders and contradictory statements. On the other hand however, she covers for Willy's failures and ineptitudes. She is aware that there is something going wrong with Willy, but she does not take action. This may cause him harm if he continues to deteriorate throughout the play.
It may do Happy and Biff some good to learn these values, as it makes them more helpful and prepared to work hard. It doesn't however, give them what they really need. Willy should instead, or at least additionally, be teaching them ways to enjoy life. He should be providing them with an outlook that will inspire them to work hard at something they enjoy, rather than something that makes money. By depriving them of this kind of childhood, he seems to have inadvertently caused Happy and Biff to try and hold on to childhood through parties and nights at the bar, when they should be beginning their lives.
Willy, as a character is very inconsistent in his perspectives. The contradictory statements may indicate that he's confused or stressed, but they also reveal that Willy doesn't seem to have to the full scope of his cognitive faculties. He doesn't seem to know what he believes anymore. His job has worn him down after all these years, and his warped perspective on what a person's life should be like has down ridden the quality of his own.
Linda, as it turns out, has a very interesting character throughout all of this. Though people rarely talk to her, provides the household with morals. She tries to stop the boxing match that Willy is egging on, and she tells Biff to return the stolen football. She, in a way, holds the household together while Willy is tossing around orders and contradictory statements. On the other hand however, she covers for Willy's failures and ineptitudes. She is aware that there is something going wrong with Willy, but she does not take action. This may cause him harm if he continues to deteriorate throughout the play.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Penance vs. Penitance - a quandry resolved at last.
In response to our in-class definition for the two terms, penance and penitence, used in The Scarlet Letter, I did a little research. After staring at the entries on dictionary.com and getting no clearer picture than we had already reached in class, I decided to take a more direct approach and google "penance vs. penitance" in the hope that someone had already written an article about the subject.
In the very first link, I found an article that suggests that we were interpreting the lines incorrectly:
"You have deeply and sorely repented. Your sin is left behind you, in the days long past. . . . Is there no reality in the penitence thus sealed and witnessed by good works? ... No, Hester, no! ... Of penance I have had enough! Of penitence there has been none!" (Hawthorn 188).
We interpreted it to mean that the two words were completely separate in their meaning, and indeed we finished the discussion in class asking how it even was possible to have one and not the other. On the other hand, the writer of the article says that Hester's use of the word penitence was incorrect, and she was confusing it with penance. Dimmesdale's response is intended to correct her. He's saying that what has happened is penance, not penitance.
Since John Parker, the writer of the article, seemed to have it right so far, I decided to trust his definitions of penance and penitence as well. Penance, he defines as "works one does as punishment for sin and in attempt to atone for sin". Penitence, as he goes on to explain, involves confessing to your crime and repenting for it. Applying this to the story, Hester mistakenly says that the good work he has done has achieved penitence. Dimmesdale corrects her and says that his self punishment and acts of good fall under the definition of penance. He has not yet confessed to the public or repented for it which would achieve penitence.
The article then goes on to say how god is forgiving and everything, you should follow god, and cleanse yourself of all unrighteousness; the usual religious nonsense. I'm an atheist for god's sake (lol, had to include that oxymoron). Anyway, the article is here: http://www.mtjuliet.org/sermons/archives2/002883.html
In the very first link, I found an article that suggests that we were interpreting the lines incorrectly:
"You have deeply and sorely repented. Your sin is left behind you, in the days long past. . . . Is there no reality in the penitence thus sealed and witnessed by good works? ... No, Hester, no! ... Of penance I have had enough! Of penitence there has been none!" (Hawthorn 188).
We interpreted it to mean that the two words were completely separate in their meaning, and indeed we finished the discussion in class asking how it even was possible to have one and not the other. On the other hand, the writer of the article says that Hester's use of the word penitence was incorrect, and she was confusing it with penance. Dimmesdale's response is intended to correct her. He's saying that what has happened is penance, not penitance.
Since John Parker, the writer of the article, seemed to have it right so far, I decided to trust his definitions of penance and penitence as well. Penance, he defines as "works one does as punishment for sin and in attempt to atone for sin". Penitence, as he goes on to explain, involves confessing to your crime and repenting for it. Applying this to the story, Hester mistakenly says that the good work he has done has achieved penitence. Dimmesdale corrects her and says that his self punishment and acts of good fall under the definition of penance. He has not yet confessed to the public or repented for it which would achieve penitence.
The article then goes on to say how god is forgiving and everything, you should follow god, and cleanse yourself of all unrighteousness; the usual religious nonsense. I'm an atheist for god's sake (lol, had to include that oxymoron). Anyway, the article is here: http://www.mtjuliet.org/sermons/archives2/002883.html
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