Maddy's Online Journal

Creates a much deeper level of connection and brings your reader closer to you/your characters. It creates empathy and invests the reader.

Allows the reader to feel what the character is feeling. So your reader feels and sees the thing you want them to see. Rather than just stating facts.

Describing the senses makes it more real as anyone can connect to it.

TELL: the boy was sad

SHOW: His chest tightened as his eyes formed salty rivers draining off his face. Sniffing repeatedly through his scrunched nose uncontrollably dripping with emotion. Clouded thoughts provoking a fearful tremor, shaking the tears off his chin.

TELL: the dog wanted to go for a walk

SHOW: Rushing back and forth, accelerated by excited panting as slobber flew out the corners of her hinged open jaw. Staining my floor with a pungent meaty stench from last nights dinner. Paws millimetres from the door as she urges to escape the barrier in which we call the front door. Eyes bewildered by vast outdoors with endless running around space.

TELL: When they embraced she could tell he had been smoking and was scared.

SHOW: Immediately deterring me from him as the piercing ashy smell of cigarettes seeped into my own lungs. A stench so thick that if I were to get any closer it could invade my tastebuds with a horrible flavour. Twitching tremor filled my hands which I disclosed from him quickly to hide my fear.

TELL: The temperature fell and the ice reflected the sun.

SHOW: Chills felt my body up and down, triggering shivery bumps everywhere the cold touched.

Important tools for creating a variety and meaning in the description. They are words sued to describe a relationship between 2 or more things.

Can be a spatial relationship, time relationship, a manner in which something is done.

Allow the reader to navigate your scene, build connections between things in the scenes, develop a 3D impression of your scene in the reader’s mind.

in the exact middle, opened on to, without, with, on and on, into the side, opened out of it, on one side and then on another, were all on the same floor, all on the left-hand side, windows looking over his garden, beyond, sloping down,

https://examples.yourdictionary.com/preposition-examples.html

THINK OF YOURSELF AS A CAMERA LENSE, slowly but surely zooming in on what’s important.

In front of the horizon lay thousands of books. Over the shelves pages float up, they are wisped by the wind like birds migrating south. Beyond the girl were books stacked so high they touched the clouds.

The purpose is to enhance for effect

Overexaggerating you can apply the importance and significance of a certain thing 

pungent, tasteless, exquisite, captivating

I was unbelievably tired. I could sleep for a decade with no interruption. My eyelids were heavier than rocks and my legs so tired they were gonna fall off.

The mirrored surface of lake so reflective you could not tell which side was real. Colours so clearly reflected there were two of everything and the sky became trapped on earth in a circular jail.

The rocks smoother than a babies bottom, stiff clinging onto the ground. Heavier than the earth itself, immovable from where they lie.

The flowers soaked in colour, dripping in purple and green. Like a dripping shirt recently tidied.

This is the art of applying a human trait or characteristic to a non-human thing.

Able to give personality or and element of humanity to something that would otherwise lack one.

Provides the reader with the ability to connect and understand the thing on a deeper level.

When used for setting provides greater detail of the atmosphere.

Things to consider – positive or negative. what personality,feelings or thoughts

The tree stands still. It waves its arms in the wind as the children run underneath. Moving nowhere but up as it grows stronger and stronger.

The grass wriggled but stayed stuck rooted down as darkness crawled over it.

The mountain stood tall looking down at the lake and admired its beauty in the reflective sheen of the lake.

LIFE

• breath, flowers, happiness, love, movement, fresh,

DEATH

• Darkness, sadness, hurt, broken, pain,

Life is like a snowflake. There are no two lives the same.

Life is a flying fox. The destination is inevitable but the journey is beautiful.

Death is like a window. Once it’s shattered there’s no coming back from it.

Death is like a bomb. It hurts the things around it more.

My house is like a zoo. You never know what animal will run at you when you enter the door.

My house is a construction site. There always something being fixed.

To my brother, my house is like a drive-through. He comes home to eat then goes out again.

Who is your character and where is it happening? Phillip Lombard – Limbo between heaven and hell

What is your inciting incident and how do you get there? Lombard meets another fellow limboian – they say there’s a gate there and a gate there one leads to heaven one leads to hell. You must make your decision on which path you take. but beware if you take the wrong path you

Where do you cross the threshold? He goes on his journey to find heaven with a risk of actually belonging hell

How does the action rise? he starts getting hunted down by heaven hunters

when does your main character get knocked down? The heaven hunters start appearing as all the people he has killed and this guilt overwhelms him and he ends up in heaven jail.

Why does your character get back up?

STATEMENT OF INTENT – I am writing an essay based on the film ‘Fargo’ directed by the Coen brothers. Within this essay, I hope to explore the idea of greed and outline how the film shows it through film techniques. From this, I wish to convey to the audience the many aspects of greed the film teaches us and what can be learnt or further understood from this. I do this by writing a 3 point essay which contains 3 different ideas relating to greed which will give an overall message that greed is an unwanted trait within someone’s personality.

An addiction. An overwhelming sense of want. A powerful yet deceiving part of ourselves, that few can control. Otherwise known as greed. ‘Fargo’ directed by the Coen brothers, repetitively displays the theme of greed within characters through film techniques. How the Coen brothers present a character through different film techniques gives a greater understanding of who in this world is greedy and what drives it. Jerry Lundegard is frequently shown through the technique of one-shot mid shot. Marge and Norm, when together, are always viewed together in a two-shot and finally the film technique of low-angle is particularly used to exhibit the greedy characters in the film. These film techniques all individually depict different viewpoints of greed and overall teach us the corrupting reality of greed and how it is possible to stop it from controlling your actions but once it gets to your head it is much harder to get rid of than it was to welcome it.

Specific one-shot mid shots throughout the film outline the theme of greed to be a corrupting and overpowering want that leads to nothing good. This is shown through the use of one shot, mid shots of Jerry. A midshot is a shot that shows a person from the waist up, it can be helpful to see facial and somebody expressions but also to help the audience understand the relationships between characters. Majority of the time when Jerry is seen, the Coen brothers frame him alone from the waist up. Even though Jerry has a family and is believed to have a connection with them he is never shown as an equal in a shot with them. The conversations switch from frame to frame between Jerry and others with Jerry consistently shown alone on his own side, therefore, making the shot a one shot. This is a purposeful action taken by the Coen brothers as it allows us to see the more greedy Jerry gets the more paranoid and nervous expressions he gains and the more separated he becomes from the people around him. A repeated scene of Jerry shown in midshot one-shot is his office scene. Jerry is seen behind his desk from the waist up looking concerned and as if he is stressed and overthinking. This enforces the idea that he is trapped by his greed, his lower body is often unseen so we hardly ever see him moving out from behind his desk. His desk acts as this wall of being unable to break free from his crazed want for money and he will be inevitably trapped under all his fraud and illegal schemes. Through the use of one-shot midshot, the corrupting reality of greed and how it always plays on your mind is shown as Jerry is seen to be stressed out and constantly at the demands of his failing attempts to get money. The stress we see through the use of midshot then develops the use of one shot as it shows how greed pushes away everyone around you and the person will live and act only on what is best for them. Yet all the stress it causes still does not convince a person to stop being greedy.  Through this shot, greed is portrayed to be an addiction that when it doesn’t go in your favour your world around you starts to fall apart. Someone who is greedy has sacrificed everything around them for a sense of power, wealth or to typically possess more than they need end up being left with only themselves because of the obvious selfish traits of greed which result in a person making decisions that push everyone around them away. Jerry is trapped alone in his world filled with greed. This concept can be seen in comparison to Paul K. Piff’s TEDx talk on “the science of greed”. This depicts how as a persons wealth and therefore greed increases so does their “ideology of self-interest” and “their feelings of compassion and empathy go down”. Ultimately stating that this greed makes a person’s beliefs and morals become focused on only themselves and not the matters of anyone else. The film technique of one-shot midshot clearly portrays that Jerry has become imprisoned by his own greed and in doing so his selfish actions to replenish his greed have pushed away his loved ones and lead to nothing but a disaster when everything goes wrong. Although the tempting aspects of greed can seem all fine and dandy we learn the risk of being obsessively greedy has a much higher chance of pulling your life apart and leaving you with less than you started with or even nothing.

The Coen brothers present the theme of greed through the film technique of two-shot to be a selfish act that will never give you satisfaction or happiness through the contrast of Marge and Norm. Throughout the film, Marge and Norm are consistently seen together in the same frame. In all scenes in which both characters are in neither one will leave the frame, portraying that they are inseparable and share everything. This concept that through their marriage and their love for each other that both Marge and Norm will always be by each other’s side happy as equals unaffected by greed, reveals greed to be an act of selfishness to obtain a feeling of satisfaction through wealth at whatever cost. The use of a two-shot proves that Marge and Norm need nothing but each other to be both happy and satisfied in life, physically they share a frame but mentally they share a connection which is seen to be unhindered by the overpowering desire for money or power.  This connection between Marge and Norm is particularly shown in the breakfast scene in Marge and Norms kitchen. A two-shot is used as the characters of Marge and Norm are not separated from the frame even when Marge is outside and Norm is at the table, both characters are seen together in the shot. Through this example the Coen brothers convey greed to be non-existent in a scene in which two characters are shown to interact as equals in a two-shot. It is the people in this world who see themselves as only individuals and treat the surrounding people as irrelevant unless needed to fuel their hunger for greed. This is the purpose of the two shot, as it contrasts against the characters in the film which are only shot by themselves which are the characters who show greed the most. These characters who take up a frame with only themselves are portrayed as lonely which causes the feeling of unhappiness. Further contrasting the two-shots of Marge and Norm always create a happy atmosphere. People who let greed dictate their lives are never seen as happy people. Greed prevents a person from feeling happy because they always want more. Happiness comes from learning to be content with what you have in life. Seen in parallel, this example can be compared to the phrase: “money can’t buy you happiness”. Money is what is typically associated with greed, the extreme want for money which can give you power in life. People in society are often lead to believe that having a large amount of money will make you happy particularly through the way it is falsely advertised in social media as the best thing ever. Yet, if you were to examine it closely much of the advertising is individually focused, of one person being really happy with their new watch rather than two people shown equally happy through an ad. This leaves people feeling nothing but upset or empty because their mindset has become that they will never be okay until they have this wealth or power for themselves. Which by believing this reality people are taught to act selfishly which pushes them away from others who are the real ways they could be happy in life. Fargo teaches us that is is possible to be happy but to do so our mindset must be one that is pleased by what you are given such as the people around you. Marge is grateful for such a caring husband by her side and finds the value in that rather than looking for it through money or power. A two-shot represents the absence of greed because it is displayed through the character of Marge, it is clear to see that if you want to be truly happy in life it must be done through the people around you, through sharing, love and caring. In life, you must take worth in the things you are given and be grateful. It is obvious that the Coen brothers show this through the two-shots of Marge and Norm as it is proof that you can be fulfilled in life if you chose to be uninterested in the tempting obsessions of greed.

The utilisation of characters seen from a low-angle portrays them to be more dominantly greedy. Greed is displayed through dominance and power and as the characters of Carl, Gaear and Jerry who all shows obvious signs of greed in their actions are all seen from a low angle creating the appearance of them looking bigger than they really are. The only common theme between characters shown through a low-angle is their greed in life outlining that the application of a low-angle comes from the Coen brothers want for the audience to see them as greedy. They are consistently all viewed to have such a hunger for money or power and when they get a little bit of it, it massively and quickly boosts their ego making them believe they are doing amazing. Low-angle is used as it enforces the idea that these characters start to believe they are better off than everyone else so they are shown in this way but in reality, if you were to look properly they are just the same, if not worse. An example of this is the development of the character Carl. As the idea of getting 40,000 dollars becomes realistic to Carl he starts to believe he perceptually has power as if he already had this money. This is when we start to see him from a low-angle as he acts with powerful dominance throughout the film. This power is particularly shown in the scene where Wade takes the money to Carl and Carl is seen from a low-angle kicking Wade after shooting him. In the scene, Wade loses all dominance against Carl as he is shot, and to the audience, we fall with Wade so that we then see Carl from this frightening low-angle that makes Carl look oversized and scary. The Coen brothers want us to understand through their use of low-angles which character should be acknowledged as more dominant and that the most dominant character will be the most greedy one. The that the power we see in Carl comes from his greed for money. He is uncontrollable because he would do anything for money and this crazed power is shown through the use of a low-angle. This scene is almost threatening to Carl as he thought the money was basically his because it all seemed so simple but the second this power could have been taken from him he explodes with aggressive emotion and kills Wade all just to obtain the money from him. This shows us how greed can distort our reality of what is happening. Carls greed took over his actions he fully acted on emotion triggered by greed such as anger and hate which lead to him killing more than one person. Greed causes these incontrollable actions which are terrifying to encounter which is why many evil characters in a film are portrayed from a low-angle. The low-angle is a fear-provoking technique because now all of a sudden this character has the advantage of height over you making them seem all mighty and powerful. The Coen brothers want us to fear greed, to fear its deceiving ways and to understand that it can change who you are and make you irrational so you should never be a victim to greed. This low-angle clearly teaches us how the power of greed is a frightening hunger that leads to out of control dominance within a person because they see themselves as better than everyone.

‘Fargo’ directed by the Coen brothers presents the idea of greed through film techniques in the film. The techniques of one-shot, two-shot midshot and low-angle all illustrate the concept of greed. One-shots depict greeds corrupting outcomes and how by being a greedy person you separate yourself from others as your idea of self-worth increases. Two-shot mid shots of Marge and Norm in the film teach us that greed will never give any happiness because you will always be unsatisfied. Finally, the technique of low-angle portrays dominance throughout the film helping us to understand that characters influenced by greed are often believed to be more powerful. Overall this essay teaches us the dangers of greed and that no matter how tempting the sensation of it might be we must never let it consume our mind as it never ends well.

BY MADDY

I found Fahrenheit 451 a very eye-opening novel into what could come into our future.  I was shocked by the reality that it presented to me about how technology has advanced to the point where we no longer need to use our brains.  I felt saddened to read how numbingly blind people had become and this reality the author presents in which books are illegal, is disheartening and painful to imagine, but too easy to. 

We already have a modern world obsessed with technology and easy access to information online which is making us lazy. Lots of people don’t see the point in reading books, We prefer to go online to find information as it is quicker and easier. The days of the collections of encyclopedias are gone. Most modern-day households have electronic devices and access to the internet. We talk to each other using social media and post photos of our daily lives. We have photoshop to make things look better than they really are. It’s easy to create a fake life, to only share the nice things. In my own home, we have lots of books, but we rarely get them out to read anymore. If anyone wants to know something, they are quick to ‘google it’  or ‘ask Siri’. My parents used to be a reader of novels but now they watch Netflix or tv on demand instead. They tell me that when they were studying at university it was a race to get to the library to get the good books, but now it’s easy just to look it up on the internet. I can’t imagine living without the internet!

The story of burning books in Fahrenheit 451 starts with people only being allowed to write books without any bad characters, nothing to offend, but as people continue to complain, the government bans them altogether. Interestingly the book Fahrenheit 451 itself has been banned in some places due to the use of ‘problematic language” such as “god damn’ in the book and the burning of the bible. 

As in real life, we are increasingly being protected from things that could harm us. We live in far better conditions than we used to and have numerous rules to protect us from things we don’t like. In the end Fahrenheit 451 ends with war as the society is no longer able to live in such an artificial way anymore. 

In the book people become so shielded from things that upset them and have no experiences to teach them how to deal with things,  they start to lose the ability to cope with their emotions. 

The theme of justice presents itself throughout the book after Montag starts to be awakened to the truth about his society and what it’s become. After connecting with what Ray Bradbury was portraying of this society lost to brainwashing technology I understand how taking away knowledge, particularly through the form of books and turning it into something illegal, is in itself is a crime. Like in the book though people don’t see it until they can no longer cope with the life they are living. 

“But you can’t make people listen. They have to come round in their own time, wondering what happened and why the world blew up around them. It can’t last.”

For every crime, justice can be served if understood correctly. In the text, we learn how justice is a form of holding on and fighting for what is right even if they have to fight from within the shadows. Montag and the men he meets portray justice for the authors who spent their lives developing this knowledge and for the people who have lost any sense of individuality due to the deprivation of knowledge and opinion. They are the heroes of the future and use the power of remembering to hold onto what was taken away from them and to someday get justice for the burning of knowledge and give it back to the world. 

Granger states, ” All we want to do it keep the knowledge we think we will need, intact and safe… We’re remembering. That’s where we’ll win out in the long run. And someday we’ll remember so much that we’ll build the biggest goddam steam-shovel in history and dig the biggest grave of all time and shove war in and cover it up.” 

I see the justice in this as through everything that went wrong and all knowledge that was lost there are still these people out there doing their all to rebuild a society that has the information that was destroyed by a society corrupted by technology. I found it heartbreaking to understand how technology turned people into robots: all the same, opinionless and blind.  I believe the reason why I was so shocked by how characters such as Millie, Montag’s wife, was explained as I could see it easily becoming an outcome in our real future. An example of Millie’s attachment to technology is understood when the text states, “Will you turn the parlor off?” he asked. “That’s my family.” Montag has asked for no technology and Millie’s reply is no because she finds herself so close to the television she doesn’t know what she would do without it. 

From this, I see how in this future reality, technology has replaced real human connection and she finds no need to actually speak with her husband for she had the TV. Technology at current is viewed upon as a blessing as a new era of advancement into a greater future but in Fahrenheit 451 I learn how it can be just as destructive and dehumanising as helpful. From this book, I became aware of how glued to our phones we all are these days and how addicted to technology we all are. Walk into a home and every person has their own electronic device. Each person might be watching a different show or doing something different. Someone comes to stay and one of the first things they ask for is the wifi password. 

Already we believe so much of what we are told on the internet but don’t want to acknowledge the dark negative outcomes of it as already to this day it takes over our lives and affects our judgements. We are afraid to lose it.  I believe the author is trying to get us to understand exactly that, to use this book and this reality he created as a warning to not let anything make decisions for you. The importance of individuality and truly making choices, decisions and opinions on what you feel rather than what you are told or shown to feel. I felt encouraged to obtain and learn more information and I feel as if this book by it’s self is justice to humans. To create fairness and to help us understand not to let technology or society make choices for us. For everyone deserves to believe what they want and laws and government do not have the right to take this away from people.