Castaway Symbolism

"Cast Away" is a fantastic film that has many hidden meanings beneath the surface. Before being analysed, it seems like it's simply about a man who experiences an adventurous journey after his plane crashes into the Pacific. After more thought was put into it, many symbolic meanings that demonstrated his human nature, mainly consisting his drive of survival, faith, hope, and morals, was revealed. I am able to arrive at the conclusion that yes, I do agree with the quote, "Cast Away delivers a strong message of fear, survival, faith and hope."

Cast Away was a movie about a man, Chuck Noland, who gets trapped in an island after the plane he was on crashed. He was on an assignment to go to malaysia for Fedex when the plane goes down during a storm. He started with nothing when he first got to the island except a raft and a couple fedex boxes. Throughout the movie he goes through a series of challenges and changes that demonstrate all five tiers of Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs pyramid.

Effective communication is not just about speaking and listening. It is also about watching and feeling. Our body language and tone of voice actually communicate more strongly than the words we use. So, listening effectively involves tuning in closely to the other person’s body language and tone of voice as well as their words.

     Symbolism is widely used to intellectually stimulate the reader or viewer. For example, flowers were symbolized in both versions. The flower he wears in his lapel looks to not belong there based on his personality and the clothes that he wears. Just as the flower should not belong there Paul feels that he does not belong in his life. However, sounds were also symbols in the movie. In the beginning of the movie, the viewer finds Paul waiting to meet with his professors, and a ticking clock heard over everything else. This illustrates the passing of time, or even that his time is going to be running to an end. At the firm, an adding machine, and this is telling the audience that money will be coming into play, and the train whistle at the end tells the viewer that he is thinking of his death or a way out. The director uses these to create a mood or as foreshadowing.

Many authors use symbolism to help their readers grasp the concepts they are trying to convey. They take concrete items or ideas to represent something abstract.

‘Castaway ‘, directed by Robert Zemeckis, is a 2001 film starring Tom Hanks. Hanks stars as Chuck Noland, a FedEx delivery man whose life is headed in the ‘right direction’, until his plane crashes and he is stranded on an island. He must adapt to his new life on the island; overcoming many obstacles in order to survive. ‘Castaway’ explores three different journeys; physical, inner and imaginative. Chuck Noland is a filmic representation of the philosophy of time equals money equals fulfilment. Zemeckis is deliberate in his obvious manipulation of the responder as he uses a multitude of filmic techniques to create a connection between the audience and Chuck.

Symbolism is an effective method authors can use to portray a deeper meaning beyond the surface of a story’s plotline. Different characters, settings, and objects can serve as a symbol that represents a bigger picture. Ralph Ellison does a great job using symbolism throughout the story “Battle Royal”. Ellison wrote “Battle Royal” in 1947 to show the different obstacles African Americans had to endure during this time period. Oppression and slavery were widespread during this time. Throughout the story the reader can identify situations that can be analyzed beyond the surface.

Talking and listening are essential life skills. The ability to talk in order to communicate and exchange ideas and information, to negotiate with others, to express feelings and emotions, allows human beings to function well in the world and to be full and active members of society. Communication, to be effective, requires the ability to listen, to understand and to make sense of what is heard. On the personal level, when we listen, we give attention to the other person in such a way as to allow them to feel heard, understood and therefore respected. In that way, listening is more than

This movie is about a man (Chuck) who is always kept up on time and how important it is to be and keep track on time. In the movie, Chuck gets stuck on an island and is challenged by nature to survive on the island and later get off the island. Once he finds a way to get the island he is reunited with the real world and has a feeling of gratefulness for everything that he has. He realizes he needs to live every moment like if it was your last. The theme of Cast Away is that there is always a way to survive the difficulties in life whether it may be physical, mental or emotional obstacles. The movie portrays this through symbols, settings and character development.

The ability to listen well is an important tool for understanding others. Sadly, very few people know how to listen well. In fact, most people can think of only one or two good listeners in their lives. Listening is not simply agreeing - it is much more. Good listeners are able to better understand and respond to others, complete assignments accurately, settle disagreements before they escalate, and establish rapport with difficult people.

Listening is a vital element of communication and it is very much different from hearing sense of human. A meaningful communication requires both a good listener and a speaker. However, the effect of a listening style may vary depending on the occasions and situations a listener is in. Sometimes, speaker exhibit ineffective style such as defensiveness, ambushing, pseudo-listening, stage hogging and selective listening in their communication tracks.

Listening is more complex, and it encourages one to analyze and think about an idea, rather than to simply accept it (or “hear” it). Hearing is a skill that is beneficial for every aspect of life. As long as we have our ability to hear, we will always perceive different sounds, music, and voices. Listening, however, is beneficial to us in specific instances. It is important for us to attain good listening skills in education, the work force, and in our relationships with others in order to succeed. Good listening in education will bring about confident participation in class discussions; good listening in the workplace will lead to cooperation and good teamwork among colleagues; good listening in relationships is healthy and positive, for it is important to hear what an individual has to say in order to know how they feel.

Listening is an important form of communication. Unfortunately, many people who do not know how to listen believe they can listen well. They often say "I have been doing this all of my life of course I can listen". Listening is not inherited, or a personality trait, it is a skill that must be worked on and practiced.

Listening is more than just hearing. The process of listening involves receiving and constructing meaning, and responding to verbal and/or nonverbal messages. In other words, listening is not always easy and being a good listener is all about developing listening skills. To receive messages appropriately we have to listen actively. Active listening can be broken down into three important skills; first of all you have to reflect the feelings that the person is communicating, secondly reflect the content that they are communicating and finally ask good, meaningful questions.

Developing better communication skills is more than talking to someone to get a point across. Listening and understanding the key components of the conversation is a part of having communication skills. By listening, issues would be processed better which would help establish a common ground between the people that are having a conversation.