Movies for Macbeth

What movies would be recommended for Macbeth?

Frozen: In this movie, there are two princesses, Elsa and Anna. Elsa is older and becomes queen, and all Anna wants is to find someone to love her. She meets a man, Prince Hans, who seems to really love Anna. However, we later find out that he is the youngest of his family and will never be able to become king. All he wants to do is be king, so he plans to marry Anna, kill Elsa and Anna, and that way he will be the only ruler. See Hans’ betrayal here! This movie would be recommended to Macbeth because he seems nice in the beginning of the play and everyone loves him. However, as the play progresses we learn that he is power hungry and will do anything, which includes killing people, to become and maintain his kingship. 

Shutter Island: This movie is about a U.S. Marshal, named Teddy Daniels, who goes to Shutter Island Ashecliffe Hospital (a mental institution) to investigate the disappearance of a patient. The patient is in the institution because she drowned all three of her children and then pretended like it never happened and believes her children are still alive. As the movie continues, we find out that Teddy has another motive for going to Shutter Island. A maintenance worker named Laeddis killed Teddy’s wife by setting their apartment building on fire, and he was apparently sent to Shutter Island and Teddy wants to talk to Laeddis. Teddy cannot find any paperwork on Laeddis, but he hopes to find something out about it while he is there. While investigating the disappearance of the woman patient, Teddy has creepy dreams that feel very real to him where people die. Teddy begins to become paranoid. Eventually we find out that Teddy is actually the patient named Laeddis, and he is the one who killed his own wife, the woman who drowned their three children. He created a character named “Teddy Daniels” to try to escape what he did. See when he figures out the truth here! This movie would be recommended to Macbeth because there are many similarities between him and Teddy/Laeddis. First, in the beginning of the play Macbeth seems like a good man as does Teddy Daniels, but by the end of each story, we know each man is corrupt. Each character sees some sort of vision that causes paranoia and reveals their true feelings about the murders they have committed: they feel very guilty for it. Another obvious connection between the two men is that both characters killed someone very close to them. Teddy/Laeddis kills his wife and Macbeth kills Banquo, his good friend. 

The Proposal: In this movie, a Canadian woman named Margaret Tate is the top editor of a publishing company in New York City. She finds out that her American visa has expired and she has to be deported to Canada. However, since she does not want to lose her job, she says that she is going to marry her secretary Andrew Paxton (even though they actually hate each other). Andrew agrees to marry her if he gets to be promoted to editor. Watch it here! This movie would be recommended to Macbeth because it parallels his relationship with his wife, and how his wife is the more powerful one. Macbeth and Andrew are both convinced by a woman to do something they do not want to do because they will get a reward of power. Andrew is convinced by a woman to marry her even though he hates her, and his reward is that he moves up in his office by getting a better job. Macbeth is convinced by a woman to kill King Duncan, and his reward is also gaining power because he becomes king. 

A Christmas Carol: In this movie, a man named Ebenezer Scrooge lives by himself as a miserable old man who hates pretty much everything. Throughout the movie, he is visited by four ghosts. Each one shows him a different part of his life. The ghosts freak him out a little, but eventually they convince him to be a better person in the end. Watch Scrooge’s first encounter with a ghost here! This movie ends very differently than Macbeth, but there are still important parallels. First, of course, is that both Scrooge and Macbeth see ghosts, and that the ghosts are very important in both of these characters’ stories. The next is that the ghosts make the characters rethink what they have done. The ghosts in A Christmas Carol cause Scrooge to look back on his life and realize he made some bad choices. The ghost in Macbeth does the same thing. The ghost makes Macbeth really think about the murders he has committed, and his feelings of guilt are exposed.

Destiny = Choice + Chance

I do not think that the events in my life have been guided by fate. I think my life is guided by chance and the decisions that I make. Some people may believe that when things work out perfectly for them that it is fate, but then they forget about the bad things that happen, the ones that happen for no real reason at all. People cannot call the good things fate and the bad things chance. It has to be either one or the other, and I think it is chance. For example, an event in my life that happened by chance was when I was in a car accident because somebody ran into me while I was sitting at a red light. It was not fate that put my car in the exact place for the other car to run into it, because there was no reason for it.

The events in my life have also been guided by my decisions. Each person’s life is undetermined and each decision that someone makes puts him or her in a direction that can be changed by the next decision.  For example, when I get accepted into colleges, I believe it is because of my decision to work hard in school and get good grades, as well as my decision to do many extracurricular activities. I do not believe that it was my fate to go to college, because I would not have gotten in if I did not decide to do the things I had to do in order to be accepted.

Based on the text of Macbeth, I think that Shakespeare’s attitude towards fate was not exactly the same as my attitude; however, I do think that he believed decisions also played a part in someone’s future. Shakespeare includes predictions in the story that correctly prophesize Macbeth’s future. For example, in Act 1 Scene 3, the Third Witch says “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” This is told to Macbeth very early on in the story, and he wonders how he will become king as there is already a king, however, he ends up killing the king so that he takes the king’s place. It is hard to know if Macbeth would have become king without doing anything to promote it. Honestly, I do not think he would have. I think the prophecy caused him to want to become king so bad that he made it happen. He even starts to make excuses to continue achieving the prophecy, for example at one point in Act 3 Scene 4 he says, “I am in blood stepped so far that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er.” If he had just stopped (or not even started) killing people that were going to get in the way of him becoming king, he may not have become king, but also he would not have done anything bad. I think that Shakespeare believed somewhat in fate (since the prophecy did end up being correct), however, I think he also believed that Macbeth’s decisions played a role in fulfilling the prophecy.

Understanding Art

               I do not usually like contemporary art, as I typically appreciate art more if it has more of a realistic aspect instead of an abstract one. However, visiting CAM Raleigh was still a very interesting experience, and I am glad that I had the opportunity to go and learn from it. Here is a picture of the interior of the museum:

The artists of the work I have chosen to analyze are Jennifer Allora and Guillermo Calzadilla. They have titled their piece Shape Shifter. It was done in 2013 with used sandpaper on canvas mounted on aluminum and is 253 X 187.3 centimeters.

The picture of Shape Shifter that I took at CAM Raleigh and my drawing of it

This work of art consists of 220 pieces of red sandpaper put together in a way that is characteristic of an abstract piece of art. The pieces of sandpaper are lined up in rows of 20 and columns of 11 so that it forms a rectangle. The sandpaper also gives the work an interesting rough texture which makes the art more stimulating to the viewer. The pieces of sandpaper that were used were from various construction sites around the world. They have all been used by different people on different structures. The pieces are not labeled, making the viewer wonder from where the pieces originated and who used them. Since the pieces of sandpaper are from various sites, they have all been worn according to their unique uses, and some even have the color of paint that was on the structure that was being sanded. The small pieces of paint serve as a memory of its past. However, those memories, only a small part of the larger picture, are easily forgotten and overlooked. 

This piece of art represents absence because it is missing a very important aspect of sandpaper: the workers who used it and the labor required for the job. Each piece of sandpaper was used by a person who is not named nor described in this work of art. The viewer is drawn in and obligated to fill in backstory of each piece of sandpaper. This artwork poses the question: Is the worker and the work he or she put into creating something overlooked once the structure is completed? Does a society care more about the end result than the effort that was put in to get there? Do we even care more about this piece of art than we do about the artists that created it? (I bet you can remember a lot about what I have said about this piece of art, but can you tell me the names of the artists that made it?)

This piece of art reminds us that every object has a backstory and people behind it. Remember to appreciate all aspects of something, not just what the eye can see.

What is really going on in an advertisement?

2011 Advertisement for Dolce & Gabbana: photo by Giampaolo Sgura

Upon first glance at this advertisement, one sees a pretty woman with a simple black shirt, heavy eye makeup, and gold earrings and a bracelet. There is a simple blurred background and the words “Dolce & Gabbana Jewellery” in black letters.

Upon further examination, one realizes that the elements in the advertisement have purpose. This advertisement is for jewelry from Dolce & Gabbana, however it seems that the jewelry is not the main component in the picture, the woman is, because she is in the majority of the picture. The woman has a lot of skin exposed, she is looking away with an expression of longing and desire, and she is in a soft, relaxed position. These elements of the advertisement indicate that the advertisement expresses the deadly sin of lust. This sin is used as a persuasive device because it influences the intended audience, men, to buy the jewelry for their girlfriends or wives because they are attracted to the woman. They are deliberately manipulated; since they are attracted to the woman, it makes them more attracted to the jewelry. However, the intended audience could also include women because women may be envious (another deadly sin) of the woman in the advertisement which would make them desire the jewelry even more. They may think that if they owned the jewelry then they would be more similar to the woman in the advertisement.

This advertisement also displays the deadly sin of avarice. The reason is because the advertisement is for Dolce & Gabbana which is an extremely expensive and well-known brand. The words “Dolce & Gabbana” in the advertisement are in black capital letters and they stand out against the white background to bring attention to the brand name. The words are placed directly next to the bracelet so that it is clear what is being advertised. However, the word “jewellery” is also in black, but it is smaller and underneath the words “Dolce & Gabbana.” This presents the fact that it seems like the brand name is more important than the actual jewelry itself. This means that another aspect of the intended audience is that the intended audience must be wealthy enough to know they can afford Dolce & Gabbana and live in the “high-class” culture where brand names are very important. 

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Freebie

No, My Last Name is Not Gilligan.

My grandfather’s middle name was Alexander and my grandmother’s maiden name was Oliver. So I bet you can guess what my name would have been, had I been born a boy--yes, Alexander Oliver. However, I am a girl, the second daughter of my parents. Apparently there was a lot of creativity used in coming up with a girl’s name upon my birth, because I am Olivia Alexandra instead of Alexander Oliver. I do feel like my name defines me because it is part of my identity. It is part of what makes me who I am.

I do have a nickname which is “Livvy.” However, really only my family calls me by my nickname, but so do all the people who knew me in elementary school because they heard my parents call me by it. It is funny that I can tell who knew me when by what they call me, “Olivia” or “Livvy."

My last name is a struggle. It’s “Gilleland.” It is Irish and comes from my father’s side. This name causes problems for me because it is hard for everyone to spell and to say. First let’s talk about how to spell it. My mom always tells people that they just have to remember that the vowels are in reverse alphabetical order, but really, all you have to do is put an “e” in the middle of “gill” and “land.” It is always hard whenever anyone asks my last name and then has to write it. I don’t even let them try; I just start spelling it right after I say it. Even when I am doing something normal like shopping, and the cashier asks for my email address (which has my last name in it), I am met with a blank stare after I say it.

There is also the struggle of people attempting to pronounce my last name. The correct ways to say it are “Gil-uh-land” or “Gil-ih-land,” and those are basically the same thing, and so both are acceptable. I do not know why it is so hard for people to pronounce.  It isn’t like my last name is spelled really differently than it’s said, like “Quinoa” is. In case you are thinking, “Isn’t Quinoa pronounced ‘kin-oh-uh’?”  The answer is no; here is a picture for some help: 

Sometimes the attempts of people trying to say my name are actually pretty funny. One of the worst tries I’ve ever heard is “Gilligan” (and I’ve heard it more than once). What happened? Did they just give up after the first four letters? Once when I was at a track meet, the announcer said: “In second place, in the pole vault, Oh-liv-eye-uh Gill-yard.” Apparently the anxiety caused by thinking about saying my last name, made the announcer incapable of pronouncing “Olivia” as well…but the absolute worst I’ve ever heard is “Galileo.” Really? Galileo? That isn’t even remotely close.

Even with the struggles of my last name, I feel like my last name also is part of my identity. I like my unusual name, and I’ve only met one other person with it: a cashier in a store in Virginia who noticed my name when I paid. We’re probably related since nobody else has this name spelled with an “e” in the middle. I have met more than one “Gilliland” though, but not many. I like having a unique last name, because I feel it helps make me be unique as well. However, even with that said, I think I will change my name when I am married (unless, of course, my husband has an extremely strange name) because my last name will no longer define just me, it will define my family. Also it would be nice if he has an easier name to spell and pronounce.

My name is important to me as an individual; however, it is less important when I am part of a team. The time when I am an individual and a part of a whole at the same time is when I am competing in gymnastics. Gymnastics is thought of as an individual sport, and in a way it is. Each gymnast competes separately instead of with a team working together as in football or soccer. So, when I am competing, I am an individual. I compete by myself and receive an individual score and place on the podium. However, gymnastics is also a team sport. Each gymnast’s scores go to a team total which means that the team does actually have to work together, just not in the typical way. When my team wins a competition, it is not about me, it is about the work everyone. However, sometimes this can pose a problem. In gymnastics, there is an individual competition as well as a team competition. Each individual can earn gold, silver, or bronze in an event, and also the team can earn gold, silver, or bronze. So, do you get excited when a teammate does better? It will put you at a disadvantage for the individual competition, but at an advantage for the team competition. This is the dilemma everyone has to face. Which is more important? Look at the benefits of team sports here. 

The Others

Wing Young Huie 

From the University Avenue Project 2007-2010 on University Avenue in St. Paul

At first glance, if one were to be stereotypical, this picture looks like an image of five people who may be up to no good. They are not smiling, the boys are all wearing baggy jeans and shirts, and two are wearing skull caps. The one in the middle is even sitting on the table instead of in a chair. Many people may actually feel threatened walking up to this group of people.

Upon further examination, it can be seen that not only are they not up to no good, they are actually attempting to convey a positive message. The sign in the lap of the oldest person says:

“I’m not a good bank robber, but I’m a great big brother.”

The sign changes the picture completely. It gives an inside look into the lives of the subjects. It suggests that first of all, they are not the type of people to steal or commit crimes, and goes even further to show that the man in the middle even tries his best to care for and positively influence his siblings (or younger kids who he treats as his siblings). The four others circled around him suggests that the one in the middle is the oldest, and they all count on him. This picture is actually a very effective tool to use to show people that what they first see or think about people may not actually be the truth.

Both Wing Young Huie and Margaret Atwood present the concept of “othering” in similar ways. In our society, “others” are generally the poorer, disenfranchised people who commit crimes like stealing or vandalizing. The stereotype is that those people wear clothes and expressions as shown in Huie’s picture. So Huie depicts “others” by presenting people in that type of clothing and with those expressions in his image.  Similarly, Margaret Atwood presents the concept of “othering” in The Handmaid’s Tale through her descriptions of the clothing and expressions of her characters. She describes how Handmaids must wear red dresses, and Marthas have to wear green dresses. In addition, the Handmaids must wear conservative and serious expressions. These images of clothing and expressions display how “others” are presented in the society of Gilead: if someone is wearing red or green or has a serious expression, she is different, less important, an “other.”