A Black Cloud Essay Example for Free

A Black Cloud Essay The heart is an organ of fire, filled with intense love and intense hatred. Yet it is the hatred which entwines the lives of people causing them to display acts of violence and cruelty. Hatred is displayed through forms which include: prejudices towards large groups of people, crimes of hatred being committed, and indirect hatred which involves hurting others as an act of rebellion against someone or something. Throughout history, the world has been afflicted by the prejudices of powerful leaders who in turn took their animosity out on large masses of people. Adolf Hitler, the leader of Germany during World War II, is a prime example of this. He took his hatred out on the Jews, forcing them into concentration camps. Another group that is a target of hatred are the blacks. The Ku Klux Klan, otherwise known as the KKK, possess intense hatred for the black race. Their hatred is demonstrated by marching in white cloaks in protest and also by burning the churches and neighborhoods of blacks. Just as Hitler and the KKK express hatred, the Skinheads are yet another group which have strong prejudices. See more: Basic Economic problem of Scarcity Essay These so called Skinheads abominate most races other than their own. White hooded silhouettes, German Soldiers echoing Hail Hitler! , and the infamous Skinheads are harsh reminders of hatred which exists throughout the world. In the same way that prejudices of large groups of people are expressed, hate crimes are committed to demonstrate acts of hatred. Most recent are the burning of black churches across the South. A crime of this sort shows hatred against the black race. Sometimes leading to manslaughter, racial tensions are abundant. Furthermore, the burning of crosses or flags are offensive crimes that are committed to show a persons hatred for religion or the government. Spousal abuse, child abuse, homicide, and wars between races can only be acts of one thing: hatred. Newspapers are filled with page after page of stories revealing the immense amount of hatred that our society possesses. Although crimes are committed to show hatred directly, there are other crimes which can also show hatred but in ways that are indirect. Think back to the Oklahoma City Bombing; it is a perfect example of indirect hatred. This is true because the motive of the bombers was to attempt to take revenge on the government, but instead the bombers took the lives of innocent people who were in the building. Moreover, the Empire State Building gunmans plan was to take revenge on his bitter enemies, who he blamed for making Palestinians homeless , according to a handwritten note he carried. Instead, one tourist was killed and five others were hospitalized in this attempt. Innocent bystanders, who are at the wrong place at the wrong time, are the ones who suffer most from acts of indirect hatred. A black cloud stifles society, suffocating the lives of people, causing pain and suffering. The eyes of mankind are blinded: unable to see passed prejudices. Generations carry the preconceptions of the ones before. Society needs to see the light and learn to accept.

The Flea by John Donne and To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell Essay

The Flea by John Donne and To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell "The Flea" by John Donne is written in the 17th century as is "To his coy mistress" by Andrew Marvell. This we can see by the language used which was typical of that period in time "apt to kill me" and "yea" which are taken from the flea. Both poems also speak of virginity being very important, especially before marriage because if a woman had lost her "maidenhead" before, the husband would have the right to leave her without the need for a divorce. Both poems have the same theme of seduction. In "The flea" this is put across in each in three regular stanzas where as "To His Coy Mistress" is written in to sections. This is to convey that each stanza is still about the same subject because they are of similar lengths and writing style. The first stanza of "The Flea" conveys the message of how the flea has taken blood from both of their bodies and has combine it in the body of the flea, and so making them united as one "And in this flea, our two bloods mingled be". Donne's argument is based on this flea throughout the three stanza's and goes on to start his persuasion that the flea has had its pleasure in the form of food, and so why can they not enjoy in a sexual relationship and experience pleasure similar to what the flea has had, but without the trouble of wooing her leading on to marrying her. In the second stanza he then goes on to further push his argument (which at this time seems to be going quite well) that in the flea's "living wall of jet" they have been put together even though her parents have doubts "Though parents grudge" and are almost married (since their bloods have been combined and become one which, in that period of ... ... with her. However the type of love most people would like to feel is that in "Shall I Compare Thee" which displays a staggering amount of compliments for the lady in the poem. Overall these poems are very different in their portrayal of love, but each manage to convey it to the reader exceedingly well through use of structure (such as the dramatic monologue form of "My Last Duchess" that shows his self centeredness and control), language (such as the complementary language used in "Shall I Compare Thee"). Imagery is also used effectively (as in "First Love" when Clare describes himself as "winter" and girls as "flowers" to show that he does not comply with them). The actual content used is also very effective as in "To His Coy Mistress", where the syllogism and the tactics of complements and frightening are used to, what is in my opinion, good effect.

Analysis of the Unforgiven

Analysis of Unforgiven Brenda J. Thompson ENG 225: Introduction to Film Nathaniel Millard October 5, 2009 Summary While the movie Unforgiven (1992) directed and starring Clint Eastwood, as William Munny, is in the genre of a western in the late 1800’s. It has a basic theme that we are still making movies about today, justice and what is acceptable and what is not acceptable in our search for it. It is a story of a journey that one man has to make in order for him to care for his children but it ends up being so much more of a journey than he anticipates. This movie is the ultimate of good versus evil on a couple of different levels. It is good guy versus bad guy and it is the evil within fighting the good within and the constant battles that both of these different levels bring to the main character and the other characters of this film. Does justice prevail in this film? Level of Ambition This movie’s level of ambition was that of a typical Clint Eastwood film, straightforward, deep and controversial. Clint Eastwood is known through his characters as the hard, smart talking, no nonsense, afraid of nothing type casted actor and so his films that are directed by him bring a whole new level to that type of character. He brings the softer side to these characters that we do not expect to see. He reveals the inner dilemma within his character to show that just because someone has done some really horrible things in their lives that does not mean that they do not have internal struggles between what is right and what is wrong. The consciousness of the guilt, the validation, and the justification of what he is doing, eats at him and his inner struggles that come with knowing what he has done but seems to diminish over the length of the movie. It seems to get easier for him to accept what needs to be done and just does it even though he no longer wants to do it. Thematic Elements The central idea of this film is injustice and what can happen when an injustice is made right in the eye of the beholder. This movie had hit on several different perspectives regarding its focus and was dependent upon which character it was highlighting at the time. One of those perspectives being from that of the main character William and his constant battle within himself to stay true to his goodness and not to allow the old evil side out. Another perspective is that of the working women who just want to be respected and not feel as though they are personal property. The Sheriff, Little Bill, who was played by Gene Hackman had of course another perspective on the whole situation which was to play off the entire ordeal by fining the two culprits instead of arresting them. With that being said, this film covered several categories regarding a central idea and subordinate ideas. Although I found injustice to be the central idea, I also felt that there were other categories that were touched on. Truth of human nature (Boggs & Petrie, 2008, pg. 26) and how even though this took place in 1880 you could still feel the injustice today and feel those feelings that were portrayed by the characters wanting to make this right although not all the characters wanted to make it right for the same reasons. The social problems that were in this film, which were the crimes against women, social acceptance and the draw that money has always and forever will have on us as a society are still prevalent today therefore we can understand and appreciate what is happening. We know now as a society that we cannot take the law into our own hands but in 1880 it was prevalent and more acceptable therefore we can relate as maybe we wish he could sometimes take the law into our own hands and make an injustice right when one has been wronged. Setting and Set Design The filming took place in the wilderness of Alberta, Canada and one scene (the train scene) in California. The majority of the scenes were either out in the wilderness or within the small town of Big Whiskey’s saloon and the adjacent main street during the fall and winter season of 1880. The buildings were dark, small and gloomy on the inside and due to the fact that the majority of the movie took place in the nighttime hours and it was stormy more than not, the outside was just as gloomy as the inside. The lighting was minimal as it would have been back then bringing mood with it. The foreshadowing of the stormy weather worked in making this movie what it was, the rain seemed to let you know when something was coming. As much as the wilderness scenery was beautiful, I found it downplayed by the drab colors of the costumes and the non use of color throughout the entire film. It seemed as though the only time color was used was determined by what that particular scene was about. For instance, as English Bob came into town the only item of color was the drab red of the stagecoach, so we knew whoever was in that stagecoach was going to become an important character to a scene coming up, everything else was a muted earth tone of tan, brown, green and blue. As stated in our text a director may simply let their settings just be a backdrop and let the action of that scene take over. (Boggs & Petrie, 2008, pg. 74) This was exactly how this movie was told; it focused on the story instead of glamorizing it with colorful costumes and scenery. We needed to see the drabness of the subject in the muted colors of the movie. Another scene that showed a pop of color was that of William (Eastwood) and Ned (Freeman) were having a conversation where William was trying to make himself and his friend believe that he was no longer an evil person, he no longer drank and no long er killed and at that point their horses walked past some very bright yellow colored trees which just brought a sense of hopefulness to that section of the movie. As if by justifying his goodness it truly made him a good man, the validation from his friend was needed by him as a reminder that he really was a good man, that this couldn’t make him a bad man again because he had been good for so long. Sound and Score The first scene of the movie was that of William Munny in the distance tending to his farming as the sun set on the other side of him. The only sound at that time was that of a very soft playing guitar that had the feeling of a ballad, soft and gentle. For the remainder of the movie the sound and scores were very minimal. Natural outdoor sounds, animals, the breeze, rain were the sounds heard most of the time. Music was minimal and was used for dramatic pauses when no words were necessary and the message needed to sink in or to build up to an upcoming scene. The softness of the music was calming and not too overbearing especially in the action parts of the movie when some directors scream music. Clint Eastwood in this movie chose to use music to â€Å"reinforce the rhythms of the action† (Boggs & Petrie, 2008, pg. 375) instead of making it a priority. He used music the same way he used his colors. I found that during the soft reflective moments of the movie that the music was that of a sole guitar or very soft music and when it involved a little more action an orchestra was involved. The most profound sound of all was that of the rain. Depending upon the message coming through made the difference between how hard it was raining and how loud it was heard. Not only was the rain foreshadowing but also the sound of the thunder and lightning that was used. It was letting us know that something was coming, something was going to happen and it was an integral part of the film. Casting and Acting Performances As it is explained in (Boggs & Petrie, 2008, Introduction to Film) â€Å"In the choice of actors, one director may take the safe, sure way by casting established stars in roles very similar to roles they have played before. † Clint Eastwood is well known for his hardened characters and his experience in westerns. I could not imagine any other actor portraying William Munny. Clint Eastwood brings to the table a hardened character that transforms himself from an uncaring murderer to a loving husband and father back to his hardened man that has to make justice where there was none. Little Bill (Hackman) was a typical sheriff of the time where he laid that law with an iron fist and was going to lay that law any way that he could. In the film you want to believe that Little Bill is one of the good guys but in the end he is no better than the men he was trying to run off. In one scene Hackman was explaining that he did not like men of no character or assassins but in true life really was no better than them but justified it to himself with his badge. Morgan Freeman played Ned, William Munny’s old partner in crime. He had also retired from the killing fields and was now a farmer married to his Indian wife, Sally Two Trees. Ned truly believed he could help his old partner but by the end of the film had realized that he could no longer kill someone and chose to return to his wife but not before being captured by Little Bill’s crew and ultimately killed. Freeman brings a sense of calmness, stability and outright warmth to the film and breaks up the stark harshness of William Munny’s character and the haracter of Scolfield Kid, played by Jaimz Woolvett, a young man looking to make some money but has no experience with that of a paid assassin or of life experiences in general. He was a simple character but one that grew throughout the film to make a realization that his view point on a glorified act has sharply turned and took another route. As the characters seem to complement each other and all of the actors seemed to fit each character to a tee, there are not too many actors in my m ind that could have lived up to the actors that were chosen for these roles. I found one character flat but only because she was written that way, I do not blame the actress as I think she did a great job, it was the character as a whole. Screenplay and Narrative Structure Clint Eastwood, as the director, chose to tell this story very simply by filling the audience in with a written narrative in the first scene. It tells you about the main character prior to this time in his life without taking up more time than was needed. It was straightforward and simple. It was not told through any one character but you could feel the story through each of the characters it was focusing on in that scene. As there is no way of knowing how the screenplay was written it is hard to tell if Eastwood followed what the screenwriter had envisioned or what he envisioned but for what it is worth, Eastwood brought himself to this film in a way that shows not only the hard side of a prior life of killing but the softer side of a man that chose the good of a woman and wanting to please her. There is also a narrative at the end of the film that lets us know that William Munny chose in the end, his children and his wife’s goodness. He chose to leave and moved himself and children to Los Angeles and works productively in dry goods. We know that not only did he make it through that darkness but came full circle twice. He started out killing, bettered himself with the help of his late wife, killed again when his friend was killed because of the act that he committed and then went back to the goodness when he felt as though justice had been served. Once his friend was killed and he took a drink of the alcohol, he lost himself in his old ways as the anger and guilt came bubbling out. Once he felt as though he had righted a wrong, he took his children away from all of the bad and started anew. Objective Evaluation Overall this film was successful in bringing to an audience a western drama with compassion, with ignorance, with greed, with honesty. It showed the softer side of a killer, one side we don’t normally see in a film, we saw the journey of a man trying to find who he is without being defined as an assassin and the struggles within that journey. By suppressing the colors and tones of the film and leaving the lighting at a minimal it really focuses on the feelings and the story as a whole. It wasn’t about the actions but about how people react to certain situations (especially when information is misconstrued) for an example, this all started by a whore getting cut in the face but by the time the information was received by William Munny, the crime had more than doubled in severity. If the story of the cutting had stayed true would this story ever had happened? Would the characters have wanted to kill those men if they had known she still had her fingers and such? Maybe that was what William Munny’s inner struggle was about once he had met the cut woman. The story was easy to follow and William Munny’s character was easy to like, he had been trying to live right for 11 years but when he realized he couldn’t provide for his children because the pigs were getting sick, he had to resort to what he knew he was good at. Only problem was that he found that he was extremely rusty at it, from his shooting skills to his eyesight, he wasn’t the same at it and it didn’t feel good to do. The emotions in this film were portrayed wonderfully from Alice the fiery working girl to the laid back calm character of Ned. You could feel their emotions and understand them and connect with them as people. Final Analysis In closing, the movie Unforgiven was a great movie filled with emotion and heroism. Although this movie was about injustice and human nature, it was also about healing, renewing and hope. As gloomy as the subject matter was, it was also about hope and realizing that no matter what you have done in the past you can make a choice or choices and make a new life that doesn’t have to involve criminal behavior. People like to think that justice always prevails so this movie provides that. It provides justice for the girls but at the same time caused a ripple effect and they got more than what they had bargained for, not expecting as much bloodshed as this one incident had caused. Clint Eastwood and the other cast members made this story a believable one. Not only is Munny (Eastwood) a somewhat cold type of character you end up seeing sides to him that make you like him as a person. Not only are we willing to forgive his past, we want to see him succeed whereas Little Bill (Hackman) was in a position of superiority and used it to intimidate and manipulate his way of running things. I found this character to be arrogant which showed when in building his home, asked no one to help him. Clearly it was needed. The only character I found to be flat was that of Delilah (Anna Levine), victim of the cutting. I can understand that her character might be a little timid after the ordeal but found her to be flat throughout the rest of the film and wish she had more of an impact. Overall this movie was a nice movie to watch. Not only was it easy to follow it made you want to continue watching to see what happens. The characters are believable and the storyline tells an entire story. The use of muted colors and natural sounds lent to the mood and tone of the entire movie. The focus is of the story neither the scenery nor the costumes but was strong enough to stand on its own without going over the top. Not only was this film a western but a drama as well, great for men and women as it touches emotions and evokes emotions on both sides of the gender box. References Boggs, J. , & Petrie, D. (2008). The Art of Watching Films (7th Ed. ) with tutorial CD-ROM. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield. ISBN: 9780077282301   Peoples, D. W. & Eastwood, C. (Writer/Director). (1992). Unforgiven [Motion Picture]. Hollywood: Warner Bros. Pictures

Dna And The Criminal Justice System - 872 Words

Deoxyribonucleic Acid, otherwise known as DNA has played a crucial part in many investigations both past and present. It can be used to identify criminals when there is evidence left behind with incredible accuracy. DNA evidence is taken seriously enough that it can exonerate, or bring about a conviction. In Today’s society DNA evidence and technology is vital to the criminal justice system by ensuring accuracy and fairness. In 1984, Alec Jeffreys of the University of Leicester discovered a new marker in the human genome. DNA is generally the same in all human beings with an exception to the â€Å"junk code† that is unique to every person. Junk DNA in investigations can usually be found in saliva, blood, skin tissues, semen, skin tissue, and hair. Jeffreys proved that even small fragments of DNA molecules were unique to an individual with the exception of monozygotic twins. Due to his discovery, many older and unsolved cases from the pre-DNA era are being re-opened and subjected to DNA testing with the hope of solving them. (Nelson, M. (2011) Due to the uniqueness of DNA it has become a powerful tool in criminal investigations as it can involve, or exempt a suspect. It can also be used to identify the remains of dead bodies through comparison with the DNA database. It can also be compared to other crime scene evidence so as to connect the crimes to a particular perpetrator whether it be local, countrywide, orShow MoreRelatedDna Profiling And The Criminal Justice System1372 Words   |  6 Pagesto use DNA profiling to match the semen to a suspect. Colin Pitchfork became the first person to be caught based on mass DNA screening, and the first to be convicted based on DNA profiling. The use of Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) in the criminal justice system has greatly tipped the scales in favor of law enforcement, and changed the world that we live in. Court cases that in the past relied heavily on eye witness testimony and circumstantial evidence now have science to back them up. DNA analysisRead MoreDna Testing And The Criminal Justice System716 Words   |  3 PagesConvictions prior to the advancement of DNA testing in the criminal justice system were commonly found to be later wrongful and due to eyewitness misidentification (Scheck Neufeld, 2001). Hence, there has been increasing research by psychologists in eyewitness memory and particularly in line up practices. In criminal identific ation, a simultaneous line up (SIM) is typically used and involves presenting the witness with all line-up suspects at once with the offender (target) placed amongst otherRead MoreJustice Systems And The Justice System Of Other Nations1732 Words   |  7 Pagesbeen and will be discussed concerning our justice system and the justice system of other nations. Contrarily there are varying types of courts all throughout these other nations as well. Similarly, all nations have criminal sanctions, sentencing practices, and types of punishment, death penalties, and imprisonments. The question I present is what about all those who have been unlawfully convicted, sentenced and then later on exonerated centered upon DNA or whatsoever evidence available? What aboutRead MoreEffectiveness of the Criminal Trial Process as a Means of Achieving Justice977 Words   |  4 PagesThe effectiveness of the criminal trial process as a means of achieving justice The criminal trial process aims to provide justice for all those involved, while it succeeds in the majority of cases, it effectiveness is influenced and reduced by certain factors. These include the legal representation involved in a case and the availability of legal aid, the capacity of the jury assessing the trial, the credibility of scientific evidence and the impact of social media on the trial process. Due toRead MoreCriminal Justice Trends Evnaluatio1253 Words   |  6 PagesCriminal Justice Trends Evaluation 1 Criminal Justice Trends Evaluation December 10, 2012 CJA/394 Troy Hokanson Criminal Justice Trends Evaluation 2 Introduction The criminal justice system is very important to American society. The reason for laws are to defend society from harm, makeRead MoreDna Evidence And The Justice System1224 Words   |  5 Pagesin many criminal cases in DNA evidence. Since the 1980s, DNA analysis has continued to make steady progress as an adjunct to police investigations. DNA can be collected from blood, hair, skin cells, and other bodily substances. Similar to fingerprints, each individual has a unique DNA profile, but unlike that of fingerprints, only a miniscule amount of genetic material is needed to identify or eliminate suspects. However, the reliability and accuracy of the use of DNA evidence in criminal trials inRead MoreForensic Databases Have Grown With Our Advancements In869 Words   |  4 Pagesenforcement uses a forensic DNA database that uses a method called, familial matching. Familial DNA searching looks for partial matches that can not only match the suspect’s DNA, but the suspect’s family line. This is unlike the typical DNA database that law enforcement has used for years. For that DNA database makes an exact match between the suspect of the crime and his or her DNA sample. Familial DNA searches have been found to be beneficial to Police and Criminal Investigators, and Crime AnalysistsRead MoreWrongfully Convicted And The Criminal Justice System890 Words   |  4 Pagesdifferent crimes that has taken place. In today’s society, we depend upon the justice system. Criminal Justice is a big deal. The Criminal Justice system was put in place by the agencies and established by the governments to help control the crimes and apply penalties to those that violate the law. Many people feel that the criminal justice system is there to protect and serve while others feel that the criminal justice system fails them daily. Over 30 years ago Alan Newton was convicted of a crimeRead MoreThe Crime Of The Criminal Justice System963 Words   |  4 Pagesdepend highly upon the justice system. Criminal Justice is a major concern. Criminal Justice consists of three areas: our police, courts and corrections department. The Criminal Justice system was put in place by these agencies, and established by the governments to help control the crimes and applies penalties to those that violate the law. Many people feel that the criminal justice system is there to protect and serve while others feel that the criminal justice system fails them daily. OverRead MoreTechnology And The Field Of Criminal Justice Essay1321 Words   |  6 Pagesfield of criminal justice has not been an exception to this technological advances. These advances in technology has taken the criminal justice field a long way from riding a horse bareback to driving armored cars. These advances along with many others have almost completely changed how things are handled in all aspects of the law. Technology is the persistent application of information in the design, production and use of goods and services, and in the organization of human activities. Criminal Justice