Children of the Screen

Hannah Baylon talks about how we are children of the screen which means that we adapt to all the media that surrounds us. When I really think about it, I am definitely a child of the screen, although not as much of one as some are. I have been affected by media in negative ways but I can also see good things about the amount of media that is available to us.

I don’t watch much T.V., but I do watch quite a few movies and am on my computer a lot. This influences me and changes my thinking without me even realizing it. For example, little girls (including myself) get ideas from Disney movies and other media that are not healthy and simply not true. I thought for a long time that everything in my life would be perfect when I got married. Disney movies show helpless princesses in trouble who then get married and everything in their lives is fixed. Many girls buy into this idea and make it their entire goal to get married. Some women are even surprised when they find out that marriage is not perfect and easy and doesn’t fix everything in their life.

People often get desensitized to violence and other things in the media. I am not like this; I get upset when I see disturbing and sad things on T.V. or in movies. I think this is partly because of who I am, but also because of my parents’ views on T.V. When I was little, I did not watch much T.V. We only got cable when the Olympics were happening and then we would get rid of it as soon as they were over. This not only kept me from seeing things on T.V. that little kids shouldn’t, but my siblings and I were forced to find other ways to amuse ourselves. We played board games, read books, and used our imagination to have fun. I really think that this helped develop my mind and creativity.

Although there are obviously many detriments to the media that we are surrounded with, there are some benefits. We are aware of things that go on in the world that we would have no knowledge of without the media. It is also really nice to be able to communicate so easily with people far away. I like being able to talk to my family and friends on my cell phone or with the web cam on my computer. It is much easier to stay in touch with people than before there was so many “screens.”

It is impossible to argue that media does not have an influence on us, but I think that some people are more influenced by it than others. While there are many negative things about the media, there are also some positive results, too. Media is very prevalent in our society so it is great to analyze how it affects us personally and as a society.

Dorian Gray

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a film that tells the story of Dorian Gray, a man whose portrait reveals all his sins while he never seems to age. In the beginning of the film, Gray’s friend paints a portrait of him and he wishes that he could always look the same while the portrait changed. This is precisely what happens in the rest of the film. Gray does some horrible things which show up on the portrait, especially on the face, whereas in most people, it would have shown up in their actual face. The portrait ends up looking hideous and extremely disturbing while Gray still looks like he is about twenty years old. I think that the message is that people should not just live for pleasure like Gray and Lord Henry Wotton but that they should try to live purely and do good things.

One of the scenes that I really like and that I think is very important to the movie is the scene when Dorian Gray first takes the painting to his old schoolroom to hide it from other people. This takes place near the middle of the movie. One of the most interesting things in this scene is the contrast between the innocence of the schoolroom and the horrible sins that the portrait shows. All around the room are things that belonged to Gray’s innocent childhood such as toys and books, but in the middle of the room is the ugly painting. The narrator talks about the “stainless purity” of his youth, shown by the schoolroom, which will now change into the very stained and sinful life, revealed by the portrait, that he leads from this point on.

Also, on the wall is a mask that is grimacing. All the masks and sculptures around the house have these same types of expressions which I think help reveal Gray’s horrible soul. Another small detail that has significance is how Dorian Gray kicks over a toy horse and rider as he walks across the room to the painting. This shows how Gray is completely leaving his pure childhood behind and becoming someone horrendous. This horse stays on the ground for years until Gray comes back to stab the painting and start doing good things. He picks the horse up which shows his desire to try to make things right in his life.

One more thing that is really important in this scene is the knife on the table. By the end of the movie, this knife goes through four hearts. Gray stabs it in the heart on the table and later uses it to kill Basil Hallward. Eventually, he puts it through the heart on the painting which also goes through his own heart and kills him. All of these details make this scene one that is very important to the message of the film because it shows that people should be good and pure like a child rather than sinful and self-serving like Dorian Gray.

Who is that Person?

The portrait that I am writing about is number four. The woman’s face, details in the painting and the colors of the portrait tell us about her personality and her life. First, the subject’s face reveals a lot about her. Her face shows us that she is an elderly woman and her mouth, eyebrows and eyes show that she is afraid of something. I wonder if she is afraid of death or if maybe she has just been told that she is going to be put in a nursing home. Also, her hair is very unkempt and it looks like she doesn’t take very good care of herself. I get the feeling that her life is rather sad and lonely. However, she seems to have smile lines around her mouth so I don’t think that she has always been that way.

Second, the details in the painting bring more understanding to the interpretation of the subject. The woman is wearing a bathrobe which shows that she can’t get dressed or that she is just too depressed to start the day. There is also something that looks like a wedding ring on her finger. I wonder if she had a husband and he has died and now she feels extremely lonely. It also looks like she is in a rocking chair which I have always thought is a good place to be if you want comfort. There is something about rocking back and forth that makes you feel better. Maybe this woman feels the same way and has come to the rocking chair to deal with her husband’s death. A different interpretation of this has to do with the tie around her waist. This was the first thing that I noticed when I looked at this portrait. I thought that it was a rope tying her to the rocking chair but then I realized that it is her bathrobe tie. I wonder if the artist wanted us to think at first that it is a rope to get the idea that the woman feels imprisoned. Maybe she feels trapped by her older body and the fact that she can’t do as much as when she was younger or maybe she feels that way because her family has taken over making decisions for her such as putting her in a nursing home.

Third, the colors in the portrait add more details to the interpretation. Most of the colors in this painting are dark- the dark blue dresser, dark colored walls and floor. I think this dark color may show how this woman’s life is dark and that she is depressed. The only bright color in the painting is the yellow of the lemons. I wonder why the artist wanted the lemons to stand out so much. Maybe it is because the artist is comparing the subject to the lemons. Maybe she is bitter about something like how lemons are sour.

Overall, the subject’s face, the details and the colors in the painting all give us clues about who the woman is. I think that she is sad, lonely, afraid, bitter, and she feels hopeless and trapped.