Part I
Chapter I
And so he’s dead, hmm?
Thought David, a 16 year old who just entered his sophomore year of high school. His aunt, the sister of his father was on the other end of phone. David held it in his hands albeit rather loosely. He felt numb. Not sad nor angry, just simply numb. Did that explain his bout of apathy? The lackluster thought he’d just had?
His aunt, now breaking down continued. “I’m sorry to tell you first David. I’d meant to get your mother or father - your father especially – but you picked up the phone and…. Oh my god your grandfather is dead…” Her voice trailed off, the stream of tears blocking any coherent thought.
“Auntie Judy,” David started. “I know, I know. I’ll get my dad for you, please just give me a moment.”
He put the phone down slowly, as if a sound would disrupt her. As he moved further away from the living room, he could still hear her wails of sorrow for her lost father. For this, he began to feel horrible. He began to understand what this would put his family through, and he had no choice but to inform the others.
He found his father in the back yard. He looked at his dad for a moment before calling for his attention.
“Hey, I just heard the phone ring. Who was it?”
“Auntie Judy,” he replied. “Dad it’s really important. Granddad - something happened.”
He watched the look on his father’s face. It went from it’s usual bright-eyed self to a look that epitomized worry and confusion.
They both hurried back silently to the phone where Judy had been waiting, all the while David was still in a state of detachment. He saw as his father picked up the phone, asked a few questions, and fell into the same distress as his sister.
He kept watching and watching, wondering why he could not do more. Why he couldn’t feel anything. But then, it happened. The corners of his vision started to blacken. The darkness ate away at the light until the only thing he could see was what fell within a circle. He began to blink in an futile attempt to fix whatever has happening but it didn’t work. Next everything around him started to break down. He could not see what should have been around him – instead the image that replaced it was quite mesmerizing. It was of what looked to be a stream of luminous treads. The treads were just floating in front of him, moving like wavelengths on a chart. He then simply forgot about everything. He forgot about his grandfather, his dad, even his almost apathetic behavior towards the horrible news. All that mattered now were the thread-like objects here. So close he could almost touch them. So close in fact that….
The jerk came suddenly, harsh and unforgiving. Reality came swirling back into view, giving him whiplash in the process. His breathing became shot, coming in at uneven paces and he felt frantic.
“Hey, hey David. Get up! Get up!”
He was hearing his father’s voice, faint like a whisper. As he inched closer and closer to proper consciousness, he found himself on the floor with his father kneeling over him.
“Look, I know today has been very stressful and all.” His father looked at him, desperately trying to keep himself calm for what he thought to be the sake of his son. “ Go to bed. I’ll take care of very thing else and wait for you mom to get home.”
He then helped David up and helped him to his room. After his father had left the room with one more worried glance, David began to ponder.
What was that? He asked himself. That – whatever it was – has never happened before. Maybe that's why I didn’t feel anything about the news of his death. Maybe it took its toll on me mentally…
He laid back on his bed, eyes struck on the ceiling. He really did not like this, any of it. But somehow he could not get that feeling out of his head. The feeling that he had a fleeting glimpse of something more. Something that had to be explained.
For some time he went on like this, flipping the day’s event over and over in his mind. As sleep finally drew closer, he fell into it with one thought and one thought only:
I’m going to find out what it was. No matter what.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Modern Day Prophet 5/4/08
In class, we have been discussion the revelation troupe and its prophets in terms of literature, film, and music. From all of that work, we see how the troupe and its accompanying elements play out in a realm of the authors’ creation. But what about living, breathing prophets? Where in our world today can we find such individuals? Well, after looking hi and low, I have found one I believe is worthy of being discussed. His name is George Soros, one of the world’s most successful investors. But he is not only interested in matters of finances, he is also interested in leaving the world with a brand new way of thinking – he wants to reconnect the dots that we all have so obediently fastened together to show us just how our old methods just aren't cutting it.
Before actually getting into George and his revelation(s), it’s important to go over his past. He was born in Hungary in 1930 into a Jewish family and was able to escape the Nazi’s advancement into his country. He then moved to England, and soon afterwards moved to America, all the while gaining more and more experience as an investor.
One of his main theories is the theory of reflexivity. As described in a nutshell in a New York Times article gave this explanation of it, in relation to the economy:
The premise behind reflexivity appears similar to deconstruction. Deconstruction aims to take two binary oppositions and show that they are in fact not binary at all. They are both interconnected. Reflexivity seems to be doing the same general idea with causation. Cause and effect, while not exactly holding a binary opposition to them are still tried as two fairly separate objects. Because A happens B will then also happen as a result. But with reflexivity, B does indeed happen because of A but A within itself is also affected by the end result of B. The degrees of separation are broken down to show how it is a circle of influence between the two or more occurrences. A is dependent on B as much as B is dependent on A.
Soros has also demonstrated a completely faithful following to his own message. He has repeatedly stated that through the use of reflexivity, he has been able to become the mogul that is he. He has also spent a lot of time advocating spreading out the message, like a proper prophet should. Here is an excerpt from a speech of his:
I myself do think that there is some truth to reflexivity. I can see how it applies to the situations that I’ve tested it on, but I do feel that there may be some holes in the theory. One question I have is just what makes an event lead into another event, while it would have gone into any number of other perfectly reasonable actions (why does A lead into B, when it could have gone to C, D, or even E)? Does reflexivity take this into consideration or does it just deal with what did in fact happen and not the possibility of other outcomes? Also when you draw the lines of influence from the result to the cause, can you look beyond the point of the event itself to see how the cause and the result perpetuate themselves in later incidents? Even though I have these questions, I think that reflexivity is worth continuing to explore, if for nothing more than finding answers to my questions.
Before actually getting into George and his revelation(s), it’s important to go over his past. He was born in Hungary in 1930 into a Jewish family and was able to escape the Nazi’s advancement into his country. He then moved to England, and soon afterwards moved to America, all the while gaining more and more experience as an investor.
One of his main theories is the theory of reflexivity. As described in a nutshell in a New York Times article gave this explanation of it, in relation to the economy:
[Reflexivity is] The idea is that people’s biases and actions can affect the direction of the underlying economy, undermining the conventional theory that markets tend toward some sort of equilibrium.
To recap, trading markets and the like are influenced by people’s actions and likes and dislikes. When you take the basics of reflexivity without applying it to anything, you end up with the explanation of it being how the cause and effect of something is in fact circular and not linear, as is what is popularly thought. The normally labeled “causes” and “effects” then end up begin closely tied together, influencing each other’s state of existence.The premise behind reflexivity appears similar to deconstruction. Deconstruction aims to take two binary oppositions and show that they are in fact not binary at all. They are both interconnected. Reflexivity seems to be doing the same general idea with causation. Cause and effect, while not exactly holding a binary opposition to them are still tried as two fairly separate objects. Because A happens B will then also happen as a result. But with reflexivity, B does indeed happen because of A but A within itself is also affected by the end result of B. The degrees of separation are broken down to show how it is a circle of influence between the two or more occurrences. A is dependent on B as much as B is dependent on A.
Soros has also demonstrated a completely faithful following to his own message. He has repeatedly stated that through the use of reflexivity, he has been able to become the mogul that is he. He has also spent a lot of time advocating spreading out the message, like a proper prophet should. Here is an excerpt from a speech of his:
When Rudi Dornbusch invited me to speak at this conference, he gave me a totally free hand in deciding what I wanted to talk about. Well, I want to discuss a subject which fascinates me but doesn’t seem to interest others very much. That is my theory of reflexivity, which has guided me both in making money and in giving money away, but has received very little serious consideration from anybody else… It has been out of print for the last several years but demand has been building up as a result of my increased visibility, not to say notoriety, and now the book is being re-issued. I think this is a good time to get the theory seriously considered.
As he himself states, he has not been taken seriously with the theory, but he still continues to preach its ideals in his writings. In addition to this, he also utilizes it in his actions. When one looks into what he has been able to accomplish, it is difficult not to say that maybe he knows what he saying. I believe that a prophet living in accordance to his own message is a vital part of conveying whatever it may be to the masses – It gives evidence to their target audience of how things can turn out if they listen and follow.I myself do think that there is some truth to reflexivity. I can see how it applies to the situations that I’ve tested it on, but I do feel that there may be some holes in the theory. One question I have is just what makes an event lead into another event, while it would have gone into any number of other perfectly reasonable actions (why does A lead into B, when it could have gone to C, D, or even E)? Does reflexivity take this into consideration or does it just deal with what did in fact happen and not the possibility of other outcomes? Also when you draw the lines of influence from the result to the cause, can you look beyond the point of the event itself to see how the cause and the result perpetuate themselves in later incidents? Even though I have these questions, I think that reflexivity is worth continuing to explore, if for nothing more than finding answers to my questions.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Start of Modern Day Prophet paper
In class, we have been discussion the revelation troupe and its prophets in terms of literature, film, and music. From all of that work, we see how the troupe and its accompanying elements play out in a realm of the authors’ creation. But what about living, breathing prophets? Where in our world today can we find such individuals? Well, after looking hi and low, I have found one I believe is worthy of being discussed. His name is George Soros, one of the world’s most successful investors. But he is not only interested in matters of finances, he is also interested in leaving the world with a brand new way of thinking – he wants to reconnect the dots that we all have so obediently fastened together to show us just how our old methods just aren't cutting it.
Before actually getting into George and his revelation(s), it’s important to go over his past. He was born in Hungary in 1930 into a Jewish family and was able to escape the Nazi’s advancement into his country. He then moved to England, and soon afterwards moved to America, all the while gaining more and more experience as an investor.
One of his main theories is the theory of reflexivity. As described in a nutshell in a New York Times article gave this explanation of it:
Mr. Soros sad all aspects of his life – finance, philanthropy, even politics – are driven by reflexivity, whish has to do with the feedback loop between people’s understanding of reality and their own actions. Society as a while could learn from his theory he said.
To recap, the
Before actually getting into George and his revelation(s), it’s important to go over his past. He was born in Hungary in 1930 into a Jewish family and was able to escape the Nazi’s advancement into his country. He then moved to England, and soon afterwards moved to America, all the while gaining more and more experience as an investor.
One of his main theories is the theory of reflexivity. As described in a nutshell in a New York Times article gave this explanation of it:
Mr. Soros sad all aspects of his life – finance, philanthropy, even politics – are driven by reflexivity, whish has to do with the feedback loop between people’s understanding of reality and their own actions. Society as a while could learn from his theory he said.
To recap, the
Sunday, April 27, 2008
hannah's essay
My modern day prophet is my mother. She may not be a prophet for everyone, but prophets usually aren’t. Sometime only specific people get the revelation. My mom is a prophet because she is trying to open my eyes, and help me through life and show me that I can do anything I want to if I try hard enough. Obviously I am the ignorant mass, just me, I argue with her, ignore her, and sometimes will flat out tell her she is wrong and do the opposite of what she has asked of me, which causes an unacceptable situation where there is lots of yelling and door slamming. I think though, that the message my mother is trying to show me is an ongoing message, that changes as I grow up. After I make the revelation that my work at school, should take precedence over soccer or hanging out with my friends, it is up to me to follow through and actually try to use the revelation to my advantage. And since the revelation is ongoing, there will be a new message that she has to share with me once I make progress with the one before.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
uupdate - revelation
four pages now. (yay.....)
Revelation Paper for history
Revelations – these play such an important role. They’ve served as recurring external and internal factors in shaping the world around us, manifesting within the trends of history, literature, and art. It is because of this why coming to a vivid understanding of their existence wields a clearer more lucid view of how things around us work.
There are two dictionary meanings of a revelation, both of which are worthy of being properly explored. They are as follows: “the divine or supernatural disclosure to humans of something relating to human existence or the world”; “a surprising and previously unknown fact, esp. one that is made known in a dramatic way”. As one can see the first one holds religious connotation that most have associated with the word while the second one is less divine and can be more easily adapted for everyday things.
As stated before, the realm of literature is filled with revelations and its tropes. Tropes are critical parts of stories that continue to reappear throughout the plot. Thus they are what express the revelation for the audience. Example of such tropes are the activist/prophet that goes around spreading their message (the revelation), the dumb masses that the prophet is attempting to wake up, and the opposition that stands in the way of the message striving to stop the prophet’s words before they reach the masses. Most stories have all of these tropes and more. It allows for the most basic of connects to be made between the piece of work and audience.
In the play An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, one can see the revelation tropes in actions. The play follows a small town doctor who tries to explain to the masses that their public bathes are infested with germs that can and has made visiting people sick. At first he was able to enlist the help of a few of his friends in the town’s newspaper, but once he came out with the information the vast majority of the towns folk turned against him, including his friends and the mayor, which just so happens to be his own brother. Those who would greatly benefit from the end results reject the doctor’s offer of redemption.
The book Feed by M.T. Anderson also plays with the normal, basic tropes, but in a more sublet manner. The story is told from the point of view of Titus, a teenager growing up in a futuristic world in which many people have little chips placed in their heads called feeds. The feeds are to them are what computers are to us, only more advance; they can shop, communicate with each other, share each other memoires, surf the web, go to school – all on the feed. That little device became one of the most pivotal aspects of their lives and therefore culture. Because nearly everyone is hooked up to the feed and the feed is so well controled by the big companines in the world the wielding result is that of a consumer culture – eerie to what our own may become one day. So Titus and a group of his friends decided to go up to a resort on the moon where they meet Violet. Titus and her eventually end up dating and it is her who is revealed to be the prophet of the story as it continues to unfold.
As with what seems to be a common theme with all of this stories, out of all of those that Titus hangs out with, he is the one that seems to notice things that the others can’t, but still decides to go along with the masses. As Violet pointed out when they were at a hospital after their feeds were hacked into;
“
Revelations do not always carry the “for the greater good” cogitation that most people have tagged to them, as seen in the Star Wars series. Throughout the movies, both father and son go through their own personal revelations, of which, ends up being apart of a larger, over arching cast of revelations. However, they end up going to opposing sides of the spectrum of good and evil. As I watched this take place, I was wondering why this was allowed to happen – why aren’t all revelations things that change people for the better. As a result, my reasoning is as follows: The outcome of going through a revelation depends on the person that is faced with it.
The idea of the ‘false prophet’ verses the ‘true prophet’ carries back into literature. In the Chocolate War by Robert Cormier, the story takes place in an all-boys private school controlled not only by the teachers and administration but also by an all student underground group called the Virigls.
When you apply the ideals behind revelations that we just explored to real life, we see that it does not really work as well as what was hoped. Just like in the novels and movies, people fight against revelation for a number of different reasons. These can include being afraid of the change that the revelation will bring – the uncomfortable shift that will occur. They are already use to the current way things are around them, so they can’t think about anything past their situation.
I know that I personally fight against revelations when they do not go in sync with what I wanted / already believe. When it contradicts my own internal plans. I also tend to resist when the revelation masks itself into something that just seems to be wrong and does not fit my own needs. But I noticed that just like in movies and books, the revelation keeps starting you in the face until you choose to deal with it.
(Matrix part) I think that I would take the red pill.
Revelation Paper for history
Revelations – these play such an important role. They’ve served as recurring external and internal factors in shaping the world around us, manifesting within the trends of history, literature, and art. It is because of this why coming to a vivid understanding of their existence wields a clearer more lucid view of how things around us work.
There are two dictionary meanings of a revelation, both of which are worthy of being properly explored. They are as follows: “the divine or supernatural disclosure to humans of something relating to human existence or the world”; “a surprising and previously unknown fact, esp. one that is made known in a dramatic way”. As one can see the first one holds religious connotation that most have associated with the word while the second one is less divine and can be more easily adapted for everyday things.
As stated before, the realm of literature is filled with revelations and its tropes. Tropes are critical parts of stories that continue to reappear throughout the plot. Thus they are what express the revelation for the audience. Example of such tropes are the activist/prophet that goes around spreading their message (the revelation), the dumb masses that the prophet is attempting to wake up, and the opposition that stands in the way of the message striving to stop the prophet’s words before they reach the masses. Most stories have all of these tropes and more. It allows for the most basic of connects to be made between the piece of work and audience.
In the play An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, one can see the revelation tropes in actions. The play follows a small town doctor who tries to explain to the masses that their public bathes are infested with germs that can and has made visiting people sick. At first he was able to enlist the help of a few of his friends in the town’s newspaper, but once he came out with the information the vast majority of the towns folk turned against him, including his friends and the mayor, which just so happens to be his own brother. Those who would greatly benefit from the end results reject the doctor’s offer of redemption.
The book Feed by M.T. Anderson also plays with the normal, basic tropes, but in a more sublet manner. The story is told from the point of view of Titus, a teenager growing up in a futuristic world in which many people have little chips placed in their heads called feeds. The feeds are to them are what computers are to us, only more advance; they can shop, communicate with each other, share each other memoires, surf the web, go to school – all on the feed. That little device became one of the most pivotal aspects of their lives and therefore culture. Because nearly everyone is hooked up to the feed and the feed is so well controled by the big companines in the world the wielding result is that of a consumer culture – eerie to what our own may become one day. So Titus and a group of his friends decided to go up to a resort on the moon where they meet Violet. Titus and her eventually end up dating and it is her who is revealed to be the prophet of the story as it continues to unfold.
As with what seems to be a common theme with all of this stories, out of all of those that Titus hangs out with, he is the one that seems to notice things that the others can’t, but still decides to go along with the masses. As Violet pointed out when they were at a hospital after their feeds were hacked into;
“
Revelations do not always carry the “for the greater good” cogitation that most people have tagged to them, as seen in the Star Wars series. Throughout the movies, both father and son go through their own personal revelations, of which, ends up being apart of a larger, over arching cast of revelations. However, they end up going to opposing sides of the spectrum of good and evil. As I watched this take place, I was wondering why this was allowed to happen – why aren’t all revelations things that change people for the better. As a result, my reasoning is as follows: The outcome of going through a revelation depends on the person that is faced with it.
The idea of the ‘false prophet’ verses the ‘true prophet’ carries back into literature. In the Chocolate War by Robert Cormier, the story takes place in an all-boys private school controlled not only by the teachers and administration but also by an all student underground group called the Virigls.
When you apply the ideals behind revelations that we just explored to real life, we see that it does not really work as well as what was hoped. Just like in the novels and movies, people fight against revelation for a number of different reasons. These can include being afraid of the change that the revelation will bring – the uncomfortable shift that will occur. They are already use to the current way things are around them, so they can’t think about anything past their situation.
I know that I personally fight against revelations when they do not go in sync with what I wanted / already believe. When it contradicts my own internal plans. I also tend to resist when the revelation masks itself into something that just seems to be wrong and does not fit my own needs. But I noticed that just like in movies and books, the revelation keeps starting you in the face until you choose to deal with it.
(Matrix part) I think that I would take the red pill.
another draft
Revelation Paper for history
Revelations – these play such an important role. They’ve served as recurring external and internal factors in shaping the world around us, manifesting within the trends of history, literature, and art. It is because of this why coming to a vivid understanding of their existence wields a clearer more lucid view of how things around us work.
There are two dictionary meanings of a revelation, both of which are worthy of being properly explored. They are as follows: “the divine or supernatural disclosure to humans of something relating to human existence or the world”; “a surprising and previously unknown fact, esp. one that is made known in a dramatic way”. As one can see the first one holds religious connotation that most have associated with the word while the second one is less divine and can be more easily adapted for everyday things.
As stated before, the realm of literature is filled with revelations and its tropes. Tropes are critical parts of stories that continue to reappear throughout the plot. Thus they are what express the revelation for the audience. Example of such tropes are the activist/prophet that goes around spreading their message (the revelation), the dumb masses that the prophet is attempting to wake up, and the opposition that stands in the way of the message striving to stop the prophet’s words before they reach the masses. Most stories have all of these tropes and more. It allows for the most basic of connects to be made between the piece of work and audience.
In the play An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, one can see the revelation tropes in actions. The play follows a small town doctor who tries to explain to the masses that their public bathes are infested with germs that can and has made visiting people sick. At first he was able to enlist the help of a few of his friends in the town’s newspaper, but once he came out with the information the vast majority of the towns folk turned against him, including his friends and the mayor, which just so happens to be his own brother. Those who would greatly benefit from the end results reject the doctor’s offer of redemption.
(Matrix part) I think that I would take the red pill.
Revelations do not always carry the “for the greater good” cogitation that most people have tagged to them, as seen in the Star Wars series. Throughout the movies, both father and son go through their own personal revelations, of which, ends up being apart of a larger, over arching cast of revelations. However, they end up going to opposing sides of the spectrum of good and evil. As I watched this take place, I was wondering why this was allowed to happen – why aren’t all revelations things that change people for the better. As a result, my reasoning is as follows: The outcome of going through a revelation depends on the person that is faced with it.
The idea of the ‘false prophet’ verses the ‘true prophet’ carries back into literature. In the Chocolate War by Robert Cormier, the story takes place in an all-boys private school controlled not only by the teachers and administration but also by an all student underground group called the Virigls.
When you apply the ideals behind revelations that we just explored to real life, we see that it does not really work as well as what was hoped. Just like in the novels and movies, people fight against revelation for a number of different reasons. These can include being afraid of the change that the revelation will bring – the uncomfortable shift that will occur. They are already use to the current way things are around them, so they can’t think about anything past their situation.
I know that I personally fight against revelations when they do not go in sync with what I wanted / already believe. When it contradicts my own internal plans. I also tend to resist when the revelation masks itself into something that just seems to be wrong and does not fit my own needs. But I noticed that just like in movies and books, the revelation keeps starting you in the face until you choose to deal with it.
Revelations – these play such an important role. They’ve served as recurring external and internal factors in shaping the world around us, manifesting within the trends of history, literature, and art. It is because of this why coming to a vivid understanding of their existence wields a clearer more lucid view of how things around us work.
There are two dictionary meanings of a revelation, both of which are worthy of being properly explored. They are as follows: “the divine or supernatural disclosure to humans of something relating to human existence or the world”; “a surprising and previously unknown fact, esp. one that is made known in a dramatic way”. As one can see the first one holds religious connotation that most have associated with the word while the second one is less divine and can be more easily adapted for everyday things.
As stated before, the realm of literature is filled with revelations and its tropes. Tropes are critical parts of stories that continue to reappear throughout the plot. Thus they are what express the revelation for the audience. Example of such tropes are the activist/prophet that goes around spreading their message (the revelation), the dumb masses that the prophet is attempting to wake up, and the opposition that stands in the way of the message striving to stop the prophet’s words before they reach the masses. Most stories have all of these tropes and more. It allows for the most basic of connects to be made between the piece of work and audience.
In the play An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, one can see the revelation tropes in actions. The play follows a small town doctor who tries to explain to the masses that their public bathes are infested with germs that can and has made visiting people sick. At first he was able to enlist the help of a few of his friends in the town’s newspaper, but once he came out with the information the vast majority of the towns folk turned against him, including his friends and the mayor, which just so happens to be his own brother. Those who would greatly benefit from the end results reject the doctor’s offer of redemption.
(Matrix part) I think that I would take the red pill.
Revelations do not always carry the “for the greater good” cogitation that most people have tagged to them, as seen in the Star Wars series. Throughout the movies, both father and son go through their own personal revelations, of which, ends up being apart of a larger, over arching cast of revelations. However, they end up going to opposing sides of the spectrum of good and evil. As I watched this take place, I was wondering why this was allowed to happen – why aren’t all revelations things that change people for the better. As a result, my reasoning is as follows: The outcome of going through a revelation depends on the person that is faced with it.
The idea of the ‘false prophet’ verses the ‘true prophet’ carries back into literature. In the Chocolate War by Robert Cormier, the story takes place in an all-boys private school controlled not only by the teachers and administration but also by an all student underground group called the Virigls.
When you apply the ideals behind revelations that we just explored to real life, we see that it does not really work as well as what was hoped. Just like in the novels and movies, people fight against revelation for a number of different reasons. These can include being afraid of the change that the revelation will bring – the uncomfortable shift that will occur. They are already use to the current way things are around them, so they can’t think about anything past their situation.
I know that I personally fight against revelations when they do not go in sync with what I wanted / already believe. When it contradicts my own internal plans. I also tend to resist when the revelation masks itself into something that just seems to be wrong and does not fit my own needs. But I noticed that just like in movies and books, the revelation keeps starting you in the face until you choose to deal with it.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
2nd draft of Revelation Paper
Revelation Paper for history
Revelations – these played such an important role. They’ve served as recurring external and internal factors in shaping the world around us, manifesting within the trends of history, literature, and art. It is because of this why coming to a vivid understanding of their existence wields a clearer more lucid view of how things around us work.
There are two dictionary meaning of a revelation both of which are worthy of being properly explored. They are as follows: “the divine or supernatural disclosure to humans of something relating to human existence or the world”; “a surprising and previously unknown fact, esp. one that is made known in a dramatic way”. As one can see the first one holds religious connotation that most have associated with the word while the second one is less divine and can be more easily adapted for everyday things.
As stated before, the realm of literature is filled with revelations and its tropes. Tropes are critical parts of stories that continue to reappear throughout the plot. Thus they are what express the revelation for the audience. Example of such tropes are the activist/prophet that goes around spreading their message (the revelation), the dumb masses that the prophet is attempting to wake up, and the opposition that stands in the way of the message striving to stop the prophet’s words before they reach the masses. Most stories have all of these tropes and more. It allows for the most basic of connects to be made between the piece of work and audience.
In the play An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, one can see the revelation tropes in actions. The play follows a small town doctor who tries to explain to the masses that their public bathes are infested with germs that can and has made visiting people sick. At first he was able to enlist the help of a few of his friends in the town’s newspaper, but once he came out with the information the vast majority of the towns folk turned against him, including his friends and the mayor, which just so happens to be his own brother. Those around and who would greatly benefit from the results in the end reject the doctor’s offer of redemption.
Revelations do not always carry the “for the greater good” cogitation that most people have tagged to them, as seen in the Star Wars series. Throughout the moives, both father and son go through their own personal revelations, of which, ends up being apart of a larger, over arching cast of revelations. However, they end up going to opposing sides of the spectrum of good and evil. As I watched this take place, I was wondering why this was allowed to happen – why aren’t all revelations things that change people for the better. As a result, my reasoning is as follows: The outcome of going through a revelation depends on the person that faced with it.
Revelations – these played such an important role. They’ve served as recurring external and internal factors in shaping the world around us, manifesting within the trends of history, literature, and art. It is because of this why coming to a vivid understanding of their existence wields a clearer more lucid view of how things around us work.
There are two dictionary meaning of a revelation both of which are worthy of being properly explored. They are as follows: “the divine or supernatural disclosure to humans of something relating to human existence or the world”; “a surprising and previously unknown fact, esp. one that is made known in a dramatic way”. As one can see the first one holds religious connotation that most have associated with the word while the second one is less divine and can be more easily adapted for everyday things.
As stated before, the realm of literature is filled with revelations and its tropes. Tropes are critical parts of stories that continue to reappear throughout the plot. Thus they are what express the revelation for the audience. Example of such tropes are the activist/prophet that goes around spreading their message (the revelation), the dumb masses that the prophet is attempting to wake up, and the opposition that stands in the way of the message striving to stop the prophet’s words before they reach the masses. Most stories have all of these tropes and more. It allows for the most basic of connects to be made between the piece of work and audience.
In the play An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, one can see the revelation tropes in actions. The play follows a small town doctor who tries to explain to the masses that their public bathes are infested with germs that can and has made visiting people sick. At first he was able to enlist the help of a few of his friends in the town’s newspaper, but once he came out with the information the vast majority of the towns folk turned against him, including his friends and the mayor, which just so happens to be his own brother. Those around and who would greatly benefit from the results in the end reject the doctor’s offer of redemption.
Revelations do not always carry the “for the greater good” cogitation that most people have tagged to them, as seen in the Star Wars series. Throughout the moives, both father and son go through their own personal revelations, of which, ends up being apart of a larger, over arching cast of revelations. However, they end up going to opposing sides of the spectrum of good and evil. As I watched this take place, I was wondering why this was allowed to happen – why aren’t all revelations things that change people for the better. As a result, my reasoning is as follows: The outcome of going through a revelation depends on the person that faced with it.
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