Hills Like White Elephants Essay Example for Free

Hills Like White Elephants Essay Ernest Hemingway’s short story â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† touches on an issue people have faced in the past and continues today: communication problems in a relationship. The ability to communicate your feelings to another person during complicated times reveals the true strength in a relationship. Hemingway tells his story through conversations between the two main characters, the American and the girl, named Jig. The characters face the harsh reality of an unexpected pregnancy and conflict is created through their dialogue. Their obstacle is complicated by their inability to deliver their differing opinions to each other. The couple’s failure to communicate their opinions straightforward turns the conversation into a tactic of manipulation. On the surface, it seems the American is the one doing the manipulation and trying to persuade the girl to have the abortion, but when Jig’s dialogue is looked closer, it’s clear that she participates in attempting to control the conversation, as well. Regardless of who is more successful, their relationship is damaged forever. To begin, the man does not want to be forced to deal with the complications of starting a family and giving up his lifestyle of travelling. He wants the girl to have an abortion, but he wants her to feel like the decision she makes is that of her own. The truth is he believes and knows his words will play a huge influence on her decision. After a few drinks, the man brings up the sensitive issue to the girl by choosing his words carefully: â€Å"It’s really an awfully simple operation† (Hemingway 133). The man tries pushing the issue further by inserting his own judgment and assuring her that â€Å"they just let the air in and then it’s all perfectly natural (133). His manipulation can be seen clearly when he suggests â€Å"[The baby’s] the only thing that bothers us† (133). It is clear that their relationship has not been the same since hearing news about the baby. I think she begins to realize that she is left with the choice between having the baby or being with him, which could be depicted when she â€Å"put her hand out and took hold of two of the strings beads, â€Å"referring to only two people being able to be together: her and the baby or her and the man. The man is also planting the idea into the girls mind that he wants her to have a say in the matter and to soften its impact. You’ve got to realize†¦ that I don’t want you to do it if you don’t want to. I’m perfectly willing to go through with it if it means anything to you (134). Yet, when asked if the baby means anything to him, the man replies, â€Å"I don’t want anyone else†. In this line the American is referring to the baby in the girls womb and is saying that he wants only her. While its implications are insensitive, the man believes he is appealing to the girls desire for a man devoted to her. Instead of telling Jig that he does not want a baby to complicate their lives, the man tries to make it seem like an abortion is the best thing for the couple through his careful manipulation. The man’s manipulation is very noticeable, but he is not the only one who can play that game. On the surface, the girl appears helpless and dependent, but if viewed from a different perspective she could be seen as manipulative. Hemingway names her â€Å"the girl† to portray her as somebody who is naive and immature. She appears to be dependent on the man by asking him questions such as, â€Å"What should we drink?† (132) or â€Å"What does it say?† (132). However, she is much smarter than she may seem and communicates her feelings through indirect ways without being offensive to the older man. During their conversation about the drinks tasting like licorice, the girl comments, â€Å"Everything tastes of licorice. Especially all the things you’ve waited so long for, like absinthe† (132). She is trying to show her frustration towards the man in a subtle way. Her frustration is built on the fact that, despite always wishing for a baby, she might not have that chance anymore if she decides to have the abortion. The girl also makes it aware that her frustration runs deeper into their relationship. Upon trying a new drink, Jig questions their life, â€Å"That’s all we do, isn’t it — look at things and try new drinks?† She uses â€Å"all† in a desperate attempt to show the man that she is bored of her life and their relationship, which Bauer suggests â€Å"does not seem to be moving into any kind of commitment† (Bauer), that she deeply wants. As the man suggests that everything will be better after the abortion, The girl reacts, â€Å"And you think then that we’ll be alright and be happy† (133). Without the man even realizing, the girl, to me, has gone from uncertainty to certainty because she did not have to ask the question, already knowing that, as Bauer suggests, â€Å"Whatever they do about the baby, they will not go back to where they were† (Bauer). The girl seems to be in control of the conversation and in response to the man’s claim â€Å"I’ve known lots of people that have done it† (133), she offers sarcasm, â€Å"And afterwards they were all so happy.† The girl realizes that the man is clueless and will never understand. She realizes that she does not have a real decision in her abortion, feeling that the man has already made the decision for her. To compensate for her lack of autonomy, she wants to make the man feel guilty for making her have the abortion, so she tells him, â€Å"then I’ll do it. Because I don’t care about me† (134). Jill grows more explicit to her refusal, as she repeats several times â€Å"No we can’t† (134), ironically refuting his agreement of her own sarcastic statement, â€Å"We can have everything† (134). The man fails to understand her point of view and when Jill points out that â€Å"once they take it away, you never get it back† (134), the man thinks she is talking about their world of travelling, proving his ignorance and selfish desire to hang on to that. Yet if the girl carries the baby to term, the steady sex life that the American has enjoyed will come to an end: Not only will he have to forego sex during her pregnancy, but he will also have to fight for time to have sex with the girl once the babofy is born. Regardless of how seriously the American would take his responsibilities as a father, simply having the baby living with the girl at home would remind the American that he can no longer enjoy the fairly carefree lifestyle that he and the girl led prior to the babys birth. In a sense, he would be entering adult life a second time. Another aspect of youth that the American relives is traveling. In looking at the bags with labels from all the hotels where they had spent nights (Hemingway 76), he is not only thinking of their lovemaking but also of the different places they have been to. Not only is the American sleeping with a young woman but he is also taking her to countless different cities. The man and the girl are vagrants with money, seeing the world as if there were nothing else for them to do. This vagrancy also serves the purpose of masking the fact that the American is not moving quickly from one woman to another—indeed, that he cannot do so. Instead of moving between partners, he is moving between cities and countries. Were the girl to give birth to the baby, though, this traveling would likely be forced to stop—and even if the couple could still go to different places, they would either have to take the baby with them or find someone to leave it with. In observing the girls willingness to carry their baby to term, he sees that she is ready to grow up, to take on responsibility, to settle down.

Use of Cellular Phones While Driving Essay -- Telephones Communication

Use of Cellular Phones While Driving Cellular phone is a wireless and hand-held device that is well known to the public. It is very common to have a cellular phone now a day since cell phone was introduced to the United States in 1983. According to the wireless industryfs trade association, Cellular Communications & Internet Association, there are over 135 million subscribers in the United States at the time of this writing. It estimates that there will be over 200 million cellular phone subscribers in world wide by the year of 2005. The use of cellular phone has skyrocketed since low-price phones and services plans became widely available to the general public in the recent years. As cellular phone is getting more and more popular among us, the way of how people communicate has been changed quite a bit. This increase of cell phone users has been accompanied by an increase in the number of people talking on the phone concurrently with driving. For instance, according to David Strayer and William Johnston, recent surveys indicate that 85% of cell phone owners use their phone at least occasionally while driving, and 27% report using their phones on half of their trips. Is it dangerous to talk on a cellular phone when someone is driving? This issue is still being debated all over the world. We all have seen people talking on their cell phone and driving at the same time. Can they really do that talking in the phone and being concentrated on driving? Can a phone conversation be dangerous while driving? There are some governments looking at this safety problem and some of governments even have set some restrictions to use cell phone as driving. According to Tenisha Mercer, Brooklyn Heights, Ohio, was the fi... ... his/her hands widely, s/he is not drunk but talking on a cell phone. l You never take your eyes off the road to dial or answer your cellular phone when driving. l Donft talk on your cellular phone when you are on the road unless there is an emergency occurred. Turn off your phone when you are in your car if it is possible. References: David L. Strayer and William A. Johnston (2001). Driven to Distraction: Dual-Task Studies of Simulated Driving and Conversing on a Cellular Telephone Psychological Science, Nov2001, Vol. 12 Issue 6, p462 http://www.womanmotorist.com/ftrs/tm-cell-phones-and-driving-2k1-01.shtml 2/19/2003 http://www.mrtraffic.com/cellular.htm 2/19/2003 http://www.wave-guide.org/archives/emf-l/Jul2000/Use-of-cellular-phone-while-driving-- a-columnist--eats-crow--.html Use of Cellular Phones While Driving Essay -- Telephones Communication Use of Cellular Phones While Driving Cellular phone is a wireless and hand-held device that is well known to the public. It is very common to have a cellular phone now a day since cell phone was introduced to the United States in 1983. According to the wireless industryfs trade association, Cellular Communications & Internet Association, there are over 135 million subscribers in the United States at the time of this writing. It estimates that there will be over 200 million cellular phone subscribers in world wide by the year of 2005. The use of cellular phone has skyrocketed since low-price phones and services plans became widely available to the general public in the recent years. As cellular phone is getting more and more popular among us, the way of how people communicate has been changed quite a bit. This increase of cell phone users has been accompanied by an increase in the number of people talking on the phone concurrently with driving. For instance, according to David Strayer and William Johnston, recent surveys indicate that 85% of cell phone owners use their phone at least occasionally while driving, and 27% report using their phones on half of their trips. Is it dangerous to talk on a cellular phone when someone is driving? This issue is still being debated all over the world. We all have seen people talking on their cell phone and driving at the same time. Can they really do that talking in the phone and being concentrated on driving? Can a phone conversation be dangerous while driving? There are some governments looking at this safety problem and some of governments even have set some restrictions to use cell phone as driving. According to Tenisha Mercer, Brooklyn Heights, Ohio, was the fi... ... his/her hands widely, s/he is not drunk but talking on a cell phone. l You never take your eyes off the road to dial or answer your cellular phone when driving. l Donft talk on your cellular phone when you are on the road unless there is an emergency occurred. Turn off your phone when you are in your car if it is possible. References: David L. Strayer and William A. Johnston (2001). Driven to Distraction: Dual-Task Studies of Simulated Driving and Conversing on a Cellular Telephone Psychological Science, Nov2001, Vol. 12 Issue 6, p462 http://www.womanmotorist.com/ftrs/tm-cell-phones-and-driving-2k1-01.shtml 2/19/2003 http://www.mrtraffic.com/cellular.htm 2/19/2003 http://www.wave-guide.org/archives/emf-l/Jul2000/Use-of-cellular-phone-while-driving-- a-columnist--eats-crow--.html

8 1/2 Federico Fellini

8 ? Federico Fellini Film 8 ? by Italian director Federico Fellini was one of the most influential film of the post-war 1960? s. Nevertheless, this film is an Italian comedy which was based on Guido Anselmi a famous Italian film director. Guido Anselmi has a mental block when it comes to his film, (â€Å"director‘s block†) and struggles with his flash backs, dreams, and reality. Guido desperately tries to find an inspiration to help him finish his film. However, with the wife, mistress, and friend’s pressure it becomes much harder for Guido to focus on his film production.This film was shot in black and white and yet of the depletion of technology and the un-discovery of color, Fellini still as a filmmaking director portrays the amusing and perplexing shots and scenes from the film in an engrossing way. Federico Fellini who directed the film gave the audience a new perspective of filmmaking and techniques. Fellini used several film techniques, but these two techni ques stood out. Mise-en-scene and camerawork which both helped make this film one of the best of its time.On the other hand, Fellini was also one of the many film directors who used reflexivity, which means he created awareness of itself as a process as well as a process. This gave the film and audience an impression of what and how Federico Fellini works on his films. The audience can in a way get into Fellini’s mind and try to understand what it is that he is thinking or struggling with. Federico Fellini made 8 ? in a non-chronological way, which means that the film has no shot order. Guido’s dreams and reality intertwined throughout the entire film.This throws the audience off track but Guido’s on and off dream, memory and reality shot’s in the end come to making sense. Fellini used mise-en-scene for 8 ?. Mise-en-scene is a French term which means â€Å"what is put into the scene/frame†. Fellini knows the importance of lighting, background, and location. This is what makes the audience more aware and also helps understand what is happening throughout the film. For example, in one of the scenes, Fellini shows Guido speaking to his father and the camera angles shows his father standing in the foreground. This makes Guido’s father look smaller in the background.This is a very good example of mise-en-scene because it’s defined as the articulation of cinematic space. In this film Fellini took very good advantage of the frame. His way of placing characters is quite fascinating he almost places them like if they’d been on a stage while filmmaking. Camerawork was the second of many techniques that Federico Fellini used for the production of 8 ?. The way Fellini used the camera to show close ups, long shots, images, frame within a frame, and montage were very eye catching to the audience. One example would be, the scene where Guido remembers when he was younger and how he was wrapped with sheets.Then suddenly h e starts to fantasize that all the women who live in the house with him, where carrying him. Fellini focused on that specific scene where Guido? s face is far beyond noticeable on the camera and the viewer can clearly see his face expressions. The audience can almost feel as if they where there with Guido in that same house. Another good example of Fellini’s great camerawork would be the scene where Guido is in some sort of sauna with many men and women, and the audience can clearly see Guido’s facial expressions when he sees the woman in some sort of bath robe walking to her side of the women? sauna. Guido rapidly, gets distracted and the viewers are able to see the close up on Guido’s face. Following the scene where Guido is called to speak to his eminence, the camera deep focus on the window that is opening and vapor is coming out. Guido’s eminence is being bathed by his helpers. Fellini really embraced the fact that Guido is very religious since he wa s very young. Despite his crazy fantasies, and memories, he still seeks for his eminence to obtain permission to do his film. However, the camera work is not the only technique that makes this film special.The shadows, dark lighting and the use of location are also, very important in 8 ?. Federico Fellini made the audience more aware of what was happening throughout the film. Location is where the moviegoers can connect with the film. To conclude Federico Fellini’s film 8 ? was very amusing despite the confusion it caused through the film. The audience struggles to see if it’s reality that is happening in Guido’s life or if it’s just another of his dreams. Now, Guido would dream and fantasize because that was a way for him to cope with his lost inspiration. ? was not only the greatest film during the post- war era, but it also influenced the making of a play, and musical named â€Å"Nine† (1980) which was a revival of the Fellini’s film 8 ?. Nevertheless, film director Federico Fellini and this film itself have made me understand much more of the various types of cinematography and filmmaking techniques there is. However, the film was confusing the surrealism of the film and Guido? s flashbacks, fantasies, and reality made Fellini? s film 8 ? quite an adventure to have seen.

King Leopold and the Belgian Congo Essay - 610 Words

King Leopold and the Belgian Congo It is widely debated why exactly King Leopold decided to conquer the Congo, but the general consensus seems to be that it was out of the belief that â€Å"the highlands of the Congo may be as rich in gold as the mountains of the western slope of the American Continent† (Stead). In the mid-1870s, the King hired Henry Stanley, who was familiar with many parts of Africa, to help him go about conquering. During the following years Stanley stayed in Africa, talking various tribes into signing over their lands and rights. After this was completed the King officially took over the Congo, renaming it the Congo Free State. This was especially ironic because all natives of the country were either forced to give up†¦show more content†¦Eventually, word started to spread about what was going on. The public had strongly believed that the natives were benefiting from being â€Å"civilized† through their forced labor. However, between disgusted Belgian officials and authors s uch as Joseph Conrad and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the truth was becoming clearer. In 1904, the Congo Reform Association was founded. Four years later, King Leopold was made to turn over the Belgian Congo to the Belgian government. Much of the collected evidence against him was in the form of photographs. The king had managed to successfully bribe almost every single person who might otherwise have made a witness against the goings-on in the Belgian Congo, as it was renamed after being handed over to the Belgian government. This did very little good for the people of the Congo; they were still being overworked, repressed, and denied basic human rights. The situation was more than a little embarrassing for the king, who disliked his authority being overshadowed. Still, his profit from the matter was no cause for complaint. Leopold’s original investment was said to be somewhere in the neighborhood of six and a half million dollars; the financial gain was that number, multiplied m any times over. Compared to Belgium’s profit, during its time of colonization the population of the Congo was decreased byShow MoreRelatedImperialism And The Congo : Imperialism1413 Words   |  6 Pagesthe Congo What is imperialism? According to Britannica, imperialism is a state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas. Belgium taking over the Congo is an example of this. The Congo was a peaceful country, located in the heart of Africa, consisting of warm sunny days and beautiful Lake Malebo. The people were free, and happy. This was before the hell started†¦ King Là ©opoldRead MoreKing Leopold II and the Congo Free State655 Words   |  3 Pages King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909) was the reigning king of Belgium from 1865 until his death in 1909. He managed the throne after the death of his father, Leopold I. He was born under the original name of Louis Philippe Marie Victor in Brussels. He joined the Belgium armed forces at a relatively early age and, in 1853, he took as his wife the Archduke of Austria’s daughter, Maria Henrietta. He became widely noted as a philanthropist, his work earning him worldwide fame. UponRead MoreKing Leopold II Of Belgium1473 Words   |  6 PagesCharacterized by ambition and restlessness from an early age, King Leopold II of Belgium utilized his desire to make a name for himself, while increasing his personal wealth and power, and deftly harnessed subterfuge in order to convince the Belgian government that his interests in Africa were philanthropic, all the while exploiting and deceiving the native peoples of the Congo. However, it was this same relentless ambition which would eventually lead to Leopold’s being forced to sell his colonialRead MoreKing Leopold s Ghost Response Paper1444 Words   |  6 PagesChakravartty 4/16/15 King Leopold’s Ghost Response Paper With an estimated death toll of ten million people, King Leopold’s conquest of the Congo is recognized as one of the bloodiest holocausts in human history. The sheer brutality of this gruesome process triggered the world’s first international human rights movement. 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The indigenous immigrants to the Congo, who were most likely Pygmies, had migrated from the northern area to the savannah regions in the south now called DROC, or Democratic Republic of the Congo (ClarkeRead MoreThe Scramble For African Colonization Of Africa1733 Words   |  7 Pagesgetting a chunk of Africa. While at the conference, King Leopold became the sole owner of this now Congo Free State. He claimed that he was going to improve the lives of the natives that lived there. He committed to the IAC stating he wanted to end the east African slave trade not only that, but also pledge that the Congo would be open to free trade. Shortly after he gained power, he discarded the IAC and set up a private colony which is known as the Congo Free state that he used for his own wealth. HeRead More Belgian Colonializm in the Congo Free State Essay1042 Words   |  5 Pages The violent and forced rule of the Congo is a horrific time i n African history. The time period beginning with Henry Morton Stanleys first exploration to the Congo, and King Leopolds desire of this area, had been a nightmare for the people of the Congo. The civilizing mission to the Congo not only resulted in the killing of thousands of people but also the destruction of a culture. The two articles, Belgian Colonialism in the Congo, and the letter by George Washington Williams, are just twoRead MoreThe Congo Free State Of The Zaire1169 Words   |  5 PagesThe Congo Free State was a former state in Africa which is now entitled The Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was created in the 1880s as the private holding of European investors. The Congo was led by Leopold II, who was the king of the Belgians. The members of the Congo Free State military intentionally maimed, murdered, tortured and raped millions of Congolese people. Leopold believed oversea colonies were the key to a country’s greatest, so he worked to obtain colonial territory for Belgium