Love is Close at Hand: The Age of Innocence Essay -- The Age of Innoce

Love is Close at Hand The Age of InnocenceNovember 1998, written for FILM 220 Aspects of Criticism. This is a 24-week rail for second-year students, examining methods of critical analysis, interpretation and evaluation. The final assignment was simply to write a 1000-word critical essay on a picture palace seen in sept during the final six-weeks of the course. Students were expected to draw on concepts they had studied over the length of the course. INSTRUCTORS COMMENT Brilliantly observed and beautifully written.The Age of Innocence is a film about confinement, restraint, and stoicism. Characters drift from tea, to the opera, and home again. They attend lavish parties, and observe the rigidity of English decorum marry, have children, and die. Emotion is mollified by these various diversions, and all of quality New York appears to be content being anaesthetized by the idle task of upholding wealth and reputation. Only Countess Ellen Olenska and Newland Archer, with their feveris h love for bingle another, test the bounds of this kill social structure. Newland and Countess Olenskas love is in strong contrast with the emotional vacuity of their peers, and it is this very contrast upon which the pathos of their story hinges. The lovers relish the moments they manage to steal with one another, absconding to a remote log cabin or savoring a clandestine carriage ride. The film is permeated by this sort of foreplay, teasing the viewer from radical to end with auspicious meetings between the two lovers. Each time, however, the promising moments are snuffed by the pressures of New York high-society. Conjugal constraints force Newland and Countess Olenska to repress their longings, and in the drudgery of day-after-day ... ...untess Olenskas hand slides off Newlands as she leaves the table, and disappears from his life. Newland is left with a sculpture of Mays hands, petrified and cold, sitting in his study to forever remind him of the Countesss delicate touch, a nd the ostensibly shallow and diametric wife who denied him his happiness. Referred to as his familys strong right hand, Newlands composure slips and shatters over the course of the film as he becomes increasingly obsessed with Countess Olenska and the allure of her veto touch. The camera plays close attention to hands, reinforcing the rigidity and frigid decorum that pervade the film, offering the notion of touch as an escape from the pedantic lifestyle of upper class New York. Ultimately, the simplicity of hands becomes the essence of life, love, and happiness, in a film saturated with customs, pageantry and pomp.

King Henry I :: essays papers

King Henry I The death of King Henry I in 1135 mold Henry II on the path to the throne of England. Henry II lavish youth kept him sheltered from society only allowing him to have a couple friends. One of his life long friends soon became a burden because of differences in opinions about religion. Henrys intelligence and persistency from birth led him to be enthrone King of England. The appointment of Thomas Becket to Archbishop by Henry II started the trend of conflict between the two over the separation of perform and state. Henry II, the front of the Plantagents was the son of Geoffrey Plantagent and Matilda, daughter of Henry I. In 1152 Henry married Eleanor of Aquitaine, the ex-wife of Louis VII of France. With this marriage, Henry gained considerable amounts of land in France. In 1153 Henry returned to England after his curb in France and forced Stephens to name him the heir of the throne. Henry immediately appointed his long-term friend Thomas Becket, English Chanc ellor, to be Archbishop of Canterbury. Becket accepted the job of Archbishop in 1162 but he did it with some reluctance. Beckets unkind heart soon became a thorn in Henrys side.(Hay 107) By 1163, Becket had already defied Henry in one of his decisions. He challenged his former friend in his vehement to dismantle the ecclesiastical courts. Becket became an ardent defender of the interests of the church. Beckets hard-nosed attitude towards defending the Church of England showed just how important the church was to England. The affairs between Henry and Becket became a highly colored by their personal relationships.(Henry II) Their life long friendship was the only function that kept the two on the same side. Another strong disagreement came between the two on the status of criminous clerics. These were members of the clergy who had committed civil crimes. The crimes ranged from theft to fill out and even murder. This became a total embarrassment to the church. Henry sought to have the members tried in the royal court, as would others who committed such crimes. Becket insisted that they only be tried in the clerical courts. The disagreement became a heated battle between the two. Becket stood firm on his belief that the matter should not be brought to a higher court.

Religious Ceremonies In Theatre :: essays research papers fc

Theatre as a Religious Ceremony The frolic in Greece was inextricably bound up with ghostly feeling and religious observance. (Cheney 33) The citizens of the Greek states were the first European communities to raise dramatic performances to the level of an art. Furthermore, the Greek playwrights still exercise a potent creative force, and many modern dramatists recuperate strong relationships between these legendary themes and modern conditions. The Greeks religion is wholly responsible for the creation of all facets of early Greek theatre whether it is the subject matter of the plays, or the immense size of the theaters required to accommodate the attendance of the citys men.Although much is speculated about the origins of early Greek theater, it may be express that the source of tragedy is to be found in choric dithyrambs sung in honor of the god Dionysus (Nicoll 9). The performance took place in an open-air theater. The discourse tragedy is derived from the term tragedia or goat-song, named for the goat skins the let out wore in the performance. Originally these songs were improvised and rhapsodical as time passed by they were poetized or rendered literary (Nicoll 9). The word chorus meant dance or dancing ground, which was how dance evolved into the drama. Members of the chorus were characters in the play that commented on the action. They drew the audience into the play and reflected the audiences reactions. The potpourri from freelance song to theatre was obtained at the hands of a Greek named Thespis. He turned what was originally a song leader, or priest, into an actor whose nomenclature were answered by a chanting chorus. Thespis also changed the subject matter of theatre events, expanding them to deal not solely on stories of Dionysus (Nicoll 9). In the sixth century B.C., drama had been born in Greece and with the introduction of a second actor and later a third, this art form was ready to mature at the hands of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.These festivals grew in size and complexity, especially in Athens, where the largest of these festivals were held and only the premier playwrights released their plays. These prestigious and elaborate plays were performed at dramatic festivals. The two main festivals were the Feast of the Winepress in January and the City drunken revelry at the end of March. The Proceeding began with the procession of choruses and actors of the three competing poets.

The Doryphoros :: Essays Papers

The DoryphorosDescriptionThis stone sculpture is a naked human-like figure standing six feet tall. The body is in chiasmos stance with the leftfield leg slightly bent and the left foot slightly behind the right. The head is turned slightly downward and to the right, and its size is approximately 1/6 of the body. The hair is cropped closely to the head with no part. The body has a defined musculature, however the forearms appear to be missing. There is an object behind and to the right of the right leg that is about 2 feet tall and 10 inches wide. Formal analysisThis sculpture seems to epitomize the ideal male human form. All of the body part seem perfectly proportioned and the muscles are beautifully defined as if the image were of an athlete. The image is youthful with a calm demeanor. The right missing forearm looks as if it used to be resting at his side, while the left elbow was probably at a 90 degree angle, with the hand holding something. The slight line in the left leg gives the impression of movement, as if the image was frozen while walking. The counterpoised stance adds an air of nobility to the man. Historical AnalysisThe sculpture is a Roman copy of the original Greek bronze made by artist Polykleitos in 450BC. It is recorded that he made the Doryphoros as an example of perfect proportion. He wrote a book to accompany the statue called, The Cannon of Proportion, and countless artists copied the statue because of its perfection. This regal figure was named Doryphoros (Greek for spearbearer) because it originally held a long spear in its left hand.

The Art Of Rock And Roll By Charles Brown :: essays research papers

The Art of Rock and Roll by Charles BrownThe book of account The Art of Rock and Roll by Charles T. Brown basicallyproposes methods for analyzing harmony and any angiotensin-converting enzyme who reads the books should beable to develop techniques for listening to music and making legitimatestatements astir(predicate) it. It treats rock and order as a serious maneuver form and tracesit cultural roots throughout the book.Chapter one discusses the elements of rock and makes four assumptions.Assumption one states that rock is a legitimate art form. An art form isdefined as a creative act that springs from the artists experience as itreflects or reacts against society. It therefore states that acculturation, a processby which a accredited people are influenced by a foreign culture, changed the Afro-Americans from their original culture to one that was a form of U.S.influences and African roots which played a large part in the way rock and rollsounds today. Brown proves rock is a legitimate art form by talking about itsaudience and its lasting power.Assumption two states that rocks roots are in folk, jazz, and popmusic. practice of medicineians who first started rock and roll must have had something to basetheir music on which turned out to be primarily folk, jazz, and pop. Theysimple changed the pattern and style of that music and started forming rock. Assumption trio states that it is just as binding to study rock androll as European classical music. Rock will prove to be a valid means ofproducing competent musicians and that it demands the same type of performanceas in any musical form. Since it is a valid way in which to study music ingeneral it is just as valid to start with rock as starting anywhere else. Assumption four states that simple musical abridgment of selectedcompositions is a primary tool for understanding musical evolution. Throughmusical analysis we are able to generalize and say that rock from a certain erahas common characteristics. By doing this we are able to see what influenceslead rock to where it is today.The chapter then goes on to discuss the elements of music which arenonverbal communication, melody, rhythm, harmony, lyrics, and performance.Music is nonverbal in that it communicates through organized sound and isdifficult to translate, the other elements are what make the sound organized andmeaningful. Melody is an organized set of notes consisting of various pitches.It is basically the up and down motion of the lead singer. Rhythm is thosebeat of patterns that underlie most forms of communications.

The Art Of Rock And Roll By Charles Brown :: essays research papers

The Art of Rock and Roll by Charles BrownThe halt The Art of Rock and Roll by Charles T. Brown basicallyproposes methods for analyzing melody and anyvirtuoso who reads the books should beable to develop techniques for listening to music and making legitimatestatements nigh it. It treats rock and purge as a serious subterfuge form and tracesit cultural roots throughout the book.Chapter one discusses the elements of rock and makes four assumptions.Assumption one states that rock is a legitimate art form. An art form isdefined as a creative act that springs from the artists experience as itreflects or reacts against society. It so states that acculturation, a processby which a genuine people are influenced by a foreign culture, changed the Afro-Americans from their original culture to one that was a potpourri of U.S.influences and African roots which played a large part in the way rock and rollsounds today. Brown proves rock is a legitimate art form by talking about itsaudience and its lasting power.Assumption two states that rocks roots are in folk, jazz, and popmusic. euphonyians who first started rock and roll must have had something to basetheir music on which turned out to be primarily folk, jazz, and pop. Theysimple changed the pattern and style of that music and started forming rock. Assumption leash states that it is just as legitimate to study rock androll as European classical music. Rock will prove to be a valid means ofproducing competent musicians and that it demands the same type of performanceas in any musical form. Since it is a valid way in which to study music ingeneral it is just as valid to start with rock as starting anywhere else. Assumption four states that simple musical compendium of selectedcompositions is a primary tool for understanding musical evolution. Throughmusical analysis we are able to generalize and say that rock from a certain erahas common characteristics. By doing this we are able to see what influenceslead rock to where it is today.The chapter then goes on to discuss the elements of music which arenonverbal communication, melody, rhythm, harmony, lyrics, and performance.Music is nonverbal in that it communicates through organized sound and isdifficult to translate, the other elements are what make the sound organized andmeaningful. Melody is an organized set of notes consisting of diametrical pitches.It is basically the up and down motion of the lead singer. Rhythm is thosebeat of patterns that underlie most forms of communications.