Mirror :: essays research papers

The Mirror Steam rose from the water and filled the bathroom with ghostly, swirling eddies, and phantasms of white, transparent ribbons of vapor. Tracy basked in the water, relishing the prickly fingers of hot water as it soothed the muscles of her body. Her red hair lay in wet, matted strings over her shoulders and breasts. Her eyelids were closed, hiding her deep, emerald green eyes. Tears squeeze from her eyes as the memory of the phone call echoed through her mind. It had been a woman’s voice on the other end of the line, and she had asked for Justin, Tracy’s husband. Tracy was high strung with emotions and the sound of that woman’s voice sparked the thought that her husband was cheating on her. The hardest part of it all for her to believe was that when Justin got home that night, Tracy confronted him with her fears. Justin didn’t hesitate in telling her that, yes, he was having an affair. She was so distraught over the news that she had kicked him out of the ho use after a lengthy screaming match. Now, Tracy sat in the tub, water to her chin, and her right hand on the ledge of the tub, fumbling lightly with a single edge razor blade. She opened her eyes and delicately ran her finger over the shinning blade. She’d teach Justin. One swipe of the blade and he’d be regretting ever sleeping around on her. She lifted the blade and brought it over to the opposite wrist. As her hand lifted off the edge of the tub, she notices something odd in the mirror. The mirror was completely steamed over with a white, hazy mist, and on the surface of the mirror, written in the condensation, was a short statement that made Tracy’s breath catch in her throat. DON’T DO IT, TRACY! Tracy jerked out of the water, splashing a bunch onto the floor. The statement was written in a loose, looping, and broken script, almost as if it had been written by a child. Before her eyes, the mirror steamed over again and the words disappeared. The razor drops into the water, forgotten. â€Å"Who did that?† she asked the room, knowing that nobody could have done it, she was alone in the house. â€Å"Who’s there?† She carefully gets out of the tub and wraps herself in a large, blue towel.

Racism and White People Essay

According to Roscoe & Hight, parodies are engaging works, that present themselves as documentaries but are not, and contain non-factual text. They work on several levels creating humor, sparking anger and sometimes critical reflection in the viewers. Both parodies and satires rely on the sophistication of its audience and a general familiarity with its content. Their comic elements can only be appreciated if one recognizes the objects are being mocked. The mock-documentary can only develop inherent complexity as seen in parodies, if its viewers are familiar with the documentaries codes and conventions and it serious intent. The use of parody is well established in the film â€Å"Babakieueria†. The film begins with a group of Aboriginal people arriving by boat on the Australian foreshores and attempting to communicate with a group of white people. When the new arrivals manage to communicate an enquiry as to the name of this place, the white people respond with ‘Babakiueria’ (BBQ area). The humor highlights the patronising approach taken by white people to Aboriginal Australians over the centuries and captures many of the issues surrounding racial inequality and racism. Through humor, it invites viewers to participate in its reversal of events and to find humor in the insight into white Australian culture one gains by seeing it through the eyes of an audience. For example, the interviewer queries an Aboriginal man getting out of his car, â€Å"Excuse me sir. What do you think about white people? † The man answers: â€Å"White people? You’ve got to be joking. † The film thus employs a desire to know more about the other in a slightly different way (humor). It puts viewers momentarily into the position of the contemporary descendants of colonized people—minority, disempowered, misunderstood—and uses humor to perhaps make viewers more receptive to this increased self-knowledge. By the use of humor, It really encourages you to think about racial inequalities and the stereotypes, assumptions and opinions that are still prevalent in society and the media today. Moreover, it tests the viewer’s abilities to distinguish between truth and fiction by presenting them in a satire style that makes it difficult to decipher between the two. The audience is given the opportunity to decide whether they will accept what they are shown or ignore it as a joke. From the way I see it, the jokes are primarily aimed at particular public figures, sending the overall message that racial views are still rampant in our society today, and that there is not much we can do about it except feel superior. This type of humor is not ultimately about how useless it is to care about racial issues; rather it is premised on the feeling that there are racial issues out there that we should care deeply about.

The Themes Of Death And Death - 1282 Words

Cambridge Hinds Big Question Paper The Meaning of Death The themes of life and death are used frequently throughout many ancient and modern stories, and specifically, thoughts on death and what it means differ from author to author, time period to time period, and circumstance to circumstance. Many works of ancient literature address the meaning of death directly; examples include the drama Medea by ancient Greek playwright Euripides in 431 BCE, and the Decameron by Italian Giovanni Boccaccio in around 1353. As well as being popular themes in ancient literature, however, death is used for significant meaning in modern novels, movies, TV shows, and other forms of storytelling and entertainment. A good example of this is the movie The Book of Life, directed by Jorge R. Gutierrez. Dictionary.com defines death as: â€Å"...the total and permanent cessation of all the vital functions of an organism.† In many religions, death is a transition from this world to another, whether it be for better or worse. In our modern western society, death has many different views; it can be a bittersweet occasion as well as a tragic one, depending on circumstances. As seen in Medea, the Decameron, and The Book of Life, death always means an end to life, and an ultimate severance from the living. However, these texts provide very different views of death, as well. Respectively, it means tragic revenge, a feared end, and reconciliation as well as separation. In the tragedy Medea, death is central toShow MoreRelatedTheme Of Death In Death Of A Salesman1102 Words   |  5 PagesDeath is often seen as a frightening and dreadful reality that everybody must face. Many people believe that suicide is a selfish and cold-hearted action. What about somebody who commits suicide for the benefit of others? Arthur Miller depicts this harsh actuality in the play â€Å"Death of a Salesman†. Miller experienced and overcame loss and devastation throughout his life. By experiencing these hardships, he created a heartfelt collection of literature that became iconic over time. â€Å"Death of a Salesman†Read MoreThe Theme Of Death In Slaughterhouse Five And Death1656 Words   |  7 PagesSlaughterhouse-Five and Death There’s a recurring theme throughout Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut which permeates throughout the story from beginning to end. It’s the idea that death is just that. Death. One can argue that Vonnegut attempts to desensitize death through the Billy Pilgrim and the Sci-Fi story of the Tralfamadorians, but what if he is instead using these examples in order to justify the exact opposite idea? By planting us into Billy Pilgrim’s surreal and insane story filledRead MoreThe Theme Of Death And Death In Shakespeares Hamlet862 Words   |  4 Pagesleads to his death. The use of death in storytelling offers many pathways to character development and can also carry the theme of the story. Many stories can also be centered around death. In the story of Hamlet, the story begins with the young prince depressed about the death of his father. Prince Hamlet was ordinary boy just like any other. He was a smart and clever young man and was probably very kind to have many friends and a girlfriend, but after the news of his father’s death, he had changedRead MoreThemes in Poetry: Death761 Words   |  4 PagesThemes in Poetry: Death There are many frequently occurring ideas in poetry. The basic message of a poem is called a theme. All poems have a certain theme that they revolve around, such as love, nature, life, and confusion. In different poems by different poets, the same themes correlate with each other because they all revolve around the same subject matter. Although seen through different angles and viewpoints, the same message is present and intertwined within the poems. One of the mostRead MoreTheme Of Death In Beowulf1097 Words   |  5 Pagesthat the poem is bookended with two very meaningful deaths. At the beginning of the poem the death of Scyld Sheafson, founder of the Scyldings, and towards the end the death of our hero, Beowulf. However, it is quite ironic that this poem is very much a celebration of a heroic life, one that encompasses glory, strength, and bravery. This contrast of celebrating life and the prevalent nature of death in the poem begs me to ask a question: is death necessary in t his society, and is the narrative essentiallyRead MoreHamlet Theme Of Death1278 Words   |  6 PagesBeyond the Wall of Death (A analysis of the theme of death in Hamlet, Acts 3-5) â€Å"The undiscovered country, from whose bourn No traveller returns, puzzles the will,† (Shakespeare 144 Act 3 scene 1 lines 86-87). The question that still plagues humanity today. What is after death, where do we go? No one of this earth can answer this question. In the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the theme of death is one of the main themes of this famous play. The theme of death continues throughout the entireRead MoreThemes Of Death Of A Salesman1286 Words   |  6 PagesA Blanketed Illusion Death of a Salesman is a tragicomedy centered on the events that take place at the end of Willy Loman’s life. From the opening act, we learn that Willy and his family struggle to behave as a united front when they face financial pressures and strained familial bonds. This causes Willy to become desperate for success and validation. Death of a Salesman has commonly been interpreted as an analysis of the American dream. Within the ideal American society, citizens believe that theRead MoreTheme Of Death In Beowulf952 Words   |  4 PagesEvery man must expose himself to the reality that death is unescapable. There is no amount of human strength, shiny armor nor treasured sword that can always prevent the inevitable. Any character in literature that is being portrayed immortal is fiction. Beowulf as often as not regards himself as the one who can conquer all. Beowulf like others is ignorant towards his own mortality. Even though, Beowulf is successful in his earliest battles he still remains careless to the understanding that heRead MoreTheme Of Death In Eveline2012 Words   |  9 PagesDeath comes up in every good story one way or another. Every novel or story that is a well known classic has some type of death in it whether the main character’s parent dies, the main character dies, and so forth. So authors want to have a good selling book so they are going to incorporate death in the story. James Joyce, the author of â€Å"Eveline†, throws death into the story more than once. Eveline’s mother dies, Tizzie Dunn dies and Eveline’s love dies, therefore death plays a humongous part ofRead MoreThe Theme Of Death In Arthur Millers Death Of A Salesman1064 Words   |  5 PagesDeath is often seen as a scary and dreadful reality that everybody must face. Suicide is perceived as selfish and cold-hearted by many. What about somebody who commits suicide for the greater good? This harsh actuality is depicted in the play â€Å"Death of a Salesman† by Arthur Miller. Miller overcame loss and devastation and created a heartfelt collection of literature that became iconic. â€Å"Death of a Salesman† unveils the unfortunate reality that many households experience of chaos disrupting harmony