Joseph Henry Essay -- essays research papers fc

Joseph Henry   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Joseph Henry lived from 1797 to 1878. Of Scottish decent, Henry was a son of a day laborer in Albany, New York. He was sent to live with his grandmother as a small boy in a village about 40 miles from Albany. At the age of thirteen, be became apprenticed to a watchmaker. He then became interested in theatre and was offered employment as a professional actor, but instead he attended Albany Academy where he was provided with free tuition. He has always been interested in science and by 1823 his education was very far advanced that he was assisting the teaching of science courses. By 1826, after a shift as a district schoolteacher and as a private tutor, he was appointed Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy at Albany Academy. With all these titles and positions eh received, Joseph Henry still managed to do important scientific experiments.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Joseph Henry became specifically interested in terrestrial magnetism. His interest in this led him to experiment with electromagnetism. His apprenticeship as a watchmaker stood him in a good stead in the construction of batteries and other contraptions. Although there had been other physicists who had observed the magnetic effects from electrical currents, Henry was the first to wind insulated wires around an iron core to obtain powerful electromagnets. Before he left Albany, he built one for Yale that would lift 2,300 pounds, which was the largest in the wor...

To what extent do the novels Nineteen Eighty Four and the Road support or refute this view?

The dystopian novels The Road and Nineteen Eighty Four demonstrate the push and pull between the utopian and dystopian societies in their narratives. Dystopian literature often seems to be a deterrent to the reader the nightmarish lifestyles presented to us by each individual protagonist characters dehumanized due to the desolate and barren lifestyles presented in each text. However, despite this, the bleak settings seem to send messages of optimism, and to some extent hope, through the interactions of characters in each novel. In The Road the boy and the father are seen to be two people left who are not dehumanized by the new apocalyptic society. They do not conform to cannibalism, rape or murder; however their humanity is tested through the desolate landscapes and their lack of human contact and refusal to help those they do meet in this new society. Although the father only has the boy his humanity is clear as they are â€Å"each other worlds entire† showing he only lives for his son. We can also see the boy knows that without his father he would not be able to defend for himself and would be lonely. When the father asks him â€Å"what would you do if I died† the son replies â€Å"if you died I would want to die too/†¦. so I could be with you† This love between the boy and the father allows us to over look the apparent loneliness the boy has, with the humanity between the two characters shining through. Conflict does exist between the father and the son, when they have different opinions on whether to help fellow survivors or not, yet the conflict itself is not destructive as they always come to a joint decision. Jon Wilkins. Theoretical evolutionary biologist and professor at Santa Fe Institute believe the son and the father â€Å"are two individuals with separate wills but their paths and fates are inseparable†. McCarthy makes use of graphology, or rather a lack of it, to show how desolate and dehumanized life has become, or perhaps draws attention to the things in life that really matter when characters are travelling a dystopian landscape. The setting is said to be sublime. To expand the point, the author's use of declarative sentences makes his prose bleak, and certainly positions the reader in such a way as to be able to empathise with the stark sense of grim reality that the man and boy are confronted with. McCarthy's own remark that he sees no need to â€Å"blot up the page with weird little marks† using as little punctuation as possible, enables him to present a narrative whose prose is as scarce and unwelcoming as the actual highway itself. These sorts of structural decisions on the writer's part add to the sense of inhumanity in The Road but ironically also contribute to the closeness of the relationship between the father and son – although the narrative may appear to lack conventional direction the relationship between the two characters certainly does not. Another way in which the human spirit seems to be alive in McCarthy's dystopian landscape lies in the absurd nature of the world that is presented. The father and son must â€Å"keep walking to survive†, despite the fact that where they are walking to or from is not always clear. As a result their efforts often seem pointless given the inevitability of their death at the hands of roaming bands of cannibals. However, what is clear is that they repeat the same routine every day, drawing parallels to the absurdity of life – this alludes to thee Greek Mythology figure Sisyphus whose existence consisted of rolling a boulder up a hill only for it to fall down on a daily basis. Mundane as it is like a nightmare, it is repetitive nonetheless it is through this repetition that the two characters manage to develop their close bond. It may be the case that the absurd of their journey is dehumanising yet it is through this cyclical process that McCarthy allows their humanity to shine through. In terms of ‘The Road' the man and boy must walk, just as Sisyphus had to roll, however the absurdity of their existence is somewhat lesser than that of Winston from Nineteen Eighty Four. Winston's life is also presented as absurd. Orwell creates a world capable of inducing suicide. The narrative is filled with a nihilistic and soulless atmosphere, where there is no ‘God' present, making the world seem like there is no meaning and no essence to life dehumanising the protagonist. This continues to the portrayal of the dangers of living in a totalitarianism society when has the main objective of control over its subjects to any extent emphasising the absurdity of life. Through oppression and stripping away basic human rights through extreme restriction making, Big Brother himself seems like an absurdist. Although there is no official law about it, it seems to be common knowledge what it is expected for them to do so they are not punished and placed in room 101. Orwell's London becomes more absurd when there is no official rule to punish Winston, and therefore more dehumanising as it is difficult to tell what justice is if individuals can not be truthful on what you know is wrong and right, blurring the lines in terms of what the public know Big Brother is doing. Through the allusions to Everyman, where the Father in The Road, and Winston in Nineteen Eighty= four play as characters they also play a part of the Christian from the Pilgrims Progress, this is allude to the journeys and challenges presented to both of the men bringing another sense of optimism to themselves and to the reader. While this journey tends to out way the dangers and hardships they are going face on their way. McCarthy's journey is a pilgrimage, the father and boy are searching for a place of hope, and it is a contrast with Winston. He is searching for truth in a society that is created through lies, and manufactured stories of the past. Religion seems to be absent in The Road there is no god, but a slight biblical reference â€Å"There is no God, we're his prophets† suggesting that he and the boy are meant to spread the knowledge of the last society. He said â€Å"if he is not the word of God, God never spoke†. McCarthy seems to use â€Å"taken them from this world†. So that we would think the prophets were taken from this world, and suggest a Religious war may have destroyed civilisation. Contrasted within Nineteen Eighty Four where religion is apparent and focused on the antagonist Big Brother as a god like figure although there is no formal religion. He seemingly has omnipotent and omniscient qualities that dehumanise those around him into fear of him as a substitute of patriotic feeling, as they know that â€Å"Big brother is watching you†. We see his use of power through the denial of the past and ever changing present that Winston has to work to keep the system working the way Big Brother wants it to. Thus creating a society with no memory framework, they can not be truly counted as real if they have no recollection events as they continue to change, they just go along with the next story because they have no way of thinking otherwise. This is familiar to how God can see everything and how it seems that they are continuously scrutinized this could dehumanise them as there is no sense of privacy, but in this society there is no way to avoid neither him nor can they get away from his followers. He also seems to be in a god like place as there is no way to tell where he is, or even if he exists at all. Although this could confuse the protagonists as they have their right to choose their own religion taken, so their individuality has been demolished and decided for them. Nevertheless it seems to give the impression of a very primitive religion based around human sacrifice, although the sacrifices themselves seem to be presented as punishment for those who are deemed evil under the acts of a powerful of the â€Å"saviour† represented furthermore dehumanising the protagonists as they have to choice but to be part of the sacrifice. Echoes of atravism behaviour are present in The Road with to us with the flashbacks the father has, each provoking a different feeling like with the Coca Cola he remembers a time when he was happy and then tries to hand over these memories to his son. It provokes a nostalgic feeling in the father. He also recalls the time where he was close to his wife, he wanted to save her scent although remembering this is dangerous as it distracts him from the grim battle between life and death against the bands of cannibals. However the son doesn't appreciate this as he was born into the post apocalyptic world and does not share the feelings of his father. It is also evident when they enter houses the son is cautious of the house when the father seems to assume that the one from his past is safe like in the memories, and how to the father it brings a sense of home, in spite of this it is still dehumanising as he is estranging himself from the new world it also dehumanised him to knows it is impossible for him to get back to these times. The soulless nature in Nineteen Eighty Four suggests there is a lack of aspiration their lives are laid out for them; they have no spirit to do anything in a different way. Yet in spite of this experience Winston Smith offers hope to the reader through his actions, many of which present humanity in an optimistic light. For instance, there is â€Å"hope within the proles† as there are no restrictions as they are seen no better then animals, but they are free. Winston seems to be jealous when he watches the prole woman singing freely a song which was manufactured by the totalitarian world, making him have an ironic feel to it. In The Art of Fiction David Lodge suggests that Orwell's novel should be read as prophetic as it was written for the future. This view adds weight to the argument that it is not just a book about stripping away humanity; if the reader sees it as prophetic then it would seem that Orwell is suggesting that the future might too hold hope, as well as the threat of inhumanity. Lodge remarks that â€Å"Orwell draws on many recognizable features of life in â€Å"austerity† post-war Britain, as well as on reports of life in Eastern Europe, to create a depressing atmosphere of London†. Orwell's vision is bleak is beyond question, but to suggest that there is no hint of humanity and decency in the text would be missing one of Orwell's key themes that he apposes alongside the cautionary nature of the book. Eventually, the worlds which Orwell and McCarthy create dehumanise the individuals from their societies in the protagonists eyes, therefore making them outcasts from their societies, the lack of justice present backs this, as they both have lost legal systems and punishments are not officially known, although in the Road justice as the new post apocalyptic society seems to be chaos. Winston is an outcast but no one else seems to care or even notices and therefore he is dehumanised although he does conform in the end, it is forced on him whereas the father and the son are outcasts within the Road as two of the few people left who are not dehumanized by the new apocalyptic society. They do not conform making them different as they try to hold on to the fathers past giving them aspects of atavism, and an outcast for it, these characters usually can not survive in the new society, Neither society is allowed privacy, someone is always looking into their lives whether they are a controlling leader or a cannibal

Fight Club Film Analysis - 1551 Words

Postmodernism is a concept that has monopolized contemporary theory since the 1960s. It has been widely applied to film theory to review and analyse perspective. Postmodernism is most commonly thought of as a ‘departure from modernism’. It relies heavily on the increased speed of communication and the sharing of ideas; its codes are made up by self-conscious uses of pre-existing artistic styles and media conventions. It also depends on modern society being defined by media culture. In this essay, I will be examining Fight Club (David Fincher, 1999) and how it can be categorised as postmodern. I will be defining what a postmodern film is and review the term using historical examples referenced in the text. â€Å"Lyotard famously defines the†¦show more content†¦This can sometimes create chaos as it becomes so fragmented that the film doesn’t send a clear message. Intertextuality is the referencing of other cultural text, either visually within the content and context of the text. It’s the idea that nothing exists in a vacuum. Colonel Kurtz attempts to reveal the hypocrisy of war, ‘what do you call it when the assassins accuse the assassin? A lie.’ This paradox is also referenced similarly in Fight club. Tyler Durden tries to destroy authority but ultimately becomes an authority. Fincher analogizes Kurtz and Tyler with scenes that have similar composition, low key lighting and diegetic sound of water droplets, although Fincher adds the non-diegetic sound of radio and jungle noises which could be hinting at Tyler’s mental state. During these scenes both characters discuss their visions for the future. Simulation is when a director creates a lack of any sense of reality to the real world. The use of real branded items, like a Starbucks cup adds verisimilitude to the film’s world to make a point about pervasiveness of big corporations. Then breaking the forth wall for the narrator to deliver exposition and having Tyler reach up and point out the film reel cue mark confirms to the audience that this is in fact simulation. Another type of simulation is pastiche. Pastiche is an artistic work in a style thatShow MoreRelatedFight Club Film Analysis1168 Words   |  5 PagesPostmodernism In Film â€Å"Life has no meaning a priori†¦ It is up to you to give it a meaning, and value is nothing but the meaning that you choose†(Jean-Paul Satre). As is began in the mid to late 20th century, Postmodernism has become a literary movement that has greatly influenced writers, poets, music, film, culture, art, etc. While modernist theory is rational and scientific in reasoning, Postmodernism departs away from that focusing primarily on an innovative way of thought that is avant-gardeRead MoreFilm Analysis Of Fight Club2081 Words   |  9 PagesFight Club is the opposite of Watchmen, the style of David Fincher and his faded green aesthetic fit perfectly in the world of Fight Club and help to give the Film a sense of identity that wouldn t exist if the film was created by a lesser director. The way this Film is shot, the editing, the score, it all combines to help tell the story in a new way that feels entirely separate from the book. Additionally, Fincher works to bring the c oncepts of the book to life through adaptation not translationRead MoreEssay on Fight Club: Analysis of Novel and Film1561 Words   |  7 PagesFight Club: Analysis of Novel and film Fight Club is a potent, diabolically sharp, and nerve chafing satire that was beautifully written by Chuck Palahniuk and adapted to the silver screen by David Fincher. A story masterfully brought together by mischief, mayhem, and ironically, soap. Fight Club is the definition of a cult classic because the issues dealt within the novel touched so close to home to the generation this novel was intended for, generation X. The novel was written in 1996 and quicklyRead MoreMischief, Mayhem, in Tyler We Trust: a Textual Analysis of Personality Disorders as Depicted in the Film Fight Club2758 Words   |  12 PagesPsychological disorders are widely represented in films, as well as in other media texts such as novels, television shows, etc. One film that portrays more than one example of a psychological disorder is Fight Club, a Twentieth Century Fox movie released with an R rating in 1999. Directed by David Fincher; and produced by Art Linson, Cean Chaffin, and Ross Grayson Bell, the mov ie mainly introduces Dissociative Identity Disorders (also known as Multiple Personality Disorders), but also hints atRead More Mischief, Mayhem, In Tyler We Trust: A Textual Analysis of Personality Disorders as Depicted in the Film Fight Club2621 Words   |  11 Pages Psychological disorders are widely represented in films, as well as in other media texts such as novels, television shows, etc. One film that portrays more than one example of a psychological disorder is Fight Club, a Twentieth Century Fox movie released with an R rating in 1999. Directed by David Fincher; and produced by Art Linson, Cean Chaffin, and Ross Grayson Bell, the movie mainly introduces Dissociative Identity Disorders (also known as Multiple Personality Disorders), but also hints at insomniaRead MoreEssay on Criticisms of Consumerism and Materialism in Fight Club1134 Words   |  5 Pagespresented in Fincher’s Fight Club (1999), one of â€Å"the rawest, most hot-blooded, provocatively audacious, dangerous movies to come of out Hollywood† (Morris, 1999). Through the diverging personalities of the films central characters, Fincher provides a satirical analysis and powerful criticism of consumerism, â€Å"echoing countless social critics who bemoan the emasculating effects of consumer culture on once self-defined and autonomous individuals† (Robinson, 2011). The film is focuses primarily onRead More Analysis of â€Å"Fight Club† Essay1239 Words   |  5 PagesAnalysis of â€Å"Fight Club† For years David Fincher has directed some of the most stylish and creative thrillers in American movies. His works include: Aliens 3, Seven, The Game and Fight Club. Each of these films has been not only pleasing and fun to watch but each has commented on society, making the viewers think outside the normal and analyze their world. Fight Club is no exception, it is a multi-layered film with many subplots and themes, but primarily it is a surrealistic description of theRead MoreFight Club: A Narrative Analysis1556 Words   |  7 Pagesis selected and arranged in a cause-and-effect sequence of events occurring over time† (553). David Fincher’s Fight Club uses a very unique narrative mode in that the whole film is self-narrated by the unnamed main character and has one of the best surprise endings in this writer’s opinion. This makes the film a prime specimen to be broken apart for further narrative analysis. The film starts out with the nameless narrator played by Edward Norton in a nameless city. The narrator, stuck in a dead-endRead MoreTextual Analysis Essay on Fight Club1250 Words   |  5 PagesGina Ferrari Eric Netterlund Fall 2011 Textual Analysis Essay The classic 1996 film Fight Club is a social commentary about our generation, which is in many ways devoid of spirit and marked by consumerism. It is the story of a mans spiritual journey towards enlightenment in modern society and his attempt to find his place in the world. It stresses a post-modern consumer society, reveals the loss of masculine identity amongst gray-collar workers, and examines the social stratification markedRead MoreMovie Analysis : Fight Club 1423 Words   |  6 PagesFight Club (1999. Fincher. D), is a film about the alienation and search for self of the character known only as the narrator. The males featured within the film all partake in fighting each other in order to assert their masculinity and in turn find that sense of self. The narrator begins the film as an insomniac, but as the film runs on we actually come to see his personality has been fractured by the alienation that he experiences. It becomes evident that the narrator and the majority of male s