How Can We Feel For Something That Does Not Exist? Essay

This happens due to the high imaginative activity while empathizing to fiction. Thus, after reading and analyzing all three parts of this paper it becomes clear that Neill does not research the issue of the empathetic relation to fiction in order to prove the empathy being prior to sympathy; however he wants to show us the veritable value of empathetic responses to the film fiction, which is our emotional education.

Although not often enough, sometimes the Hollywood industry successfully produces a masterful work of film that persuades us to reflect upon our lives in the society. These introspective films shine a revealing spotlight on the outside forces such as the media, which seek to manipulate our lives. One such film is The Truman Show (1998), a satirical social science motion picture, brilliantly conceived by writer Andrew Niccol, directed by Peter Weir, and perfectly executed by Hollywood actor, Jim Carrey. The film, although highly cathartic serves a nobler purpose of edifying on some philosophical concepts such as truth, reality, and freedom. The themes and settings explored in The Truman Show are an effective precursor to highlight and explain some of the cultural practices that have pervaded the contemporary society. In an era of advanced technology, social media, and popular reality television shows, it is difficult to discern what is genuine and what is crafted for audience consumption. This paper seeks to explore the philosophical depths of this fascinating film and how its titular character challenges, and ultimately escapes the contrived world of absurdity and falsehood.

To support this idea, Bordwell illustrates how art cinema motivates its narratives differently, through two principles: realism and authorial expressivity. Firstly he proposes the notion that art films reflect realism in their characters, space, and time. Psychologically complex characters are present in real worlds dealing with true-to-life situations. Art cinema is concerned with the characters ‘reaction’ to these situations, rather than their ‘action’. Thus it bares an element of psychological subjectivity as the characters survey the world they are in, which aids the realisation of the distress of

Reality and Fiction: the True View 1 Reality and Fiction: the True View Americans rely a great deal on their entertainment to educate them about life. In many ways Americans live vicariously through the experiences of fictional characters and believe themselves to learn many things from fictional characters. For example, many persons have said they learned CPR by watching medical shows on television or believe they can assist in a medical emergency because they have seen “experts” on television handle similar situations.

Readers have to look at characters and their actions in order to reach the true heart of

Without fiction our imaginations will never be achieved, everything will be boring and too real.

In the chapter “Good Form,” Tim O’Brien explains the difference between the “story truth” and the “happening truth,” (O’Brien 179) The “happening truth” is a historically accurate summary and told without feeling, while the “story truth” is told with details and is a dramatization. The “happening truth” tells while the “story truth” shows. This example of metafiction shows that sometimes the truth cannot be told by facts, it has to be demonstrated through a series of exaggerations to get the real

When one thinks of a novel, a word that usually will come to mind is fiction. In fact, other meanings for the word novel are new and unique. Although an author may use real places, real time, or base their story on real events in part, their outcome is essentially a creation. We, as readers, are in a sense captive to the writer's imagination and must conform to the rules of the worlds they create.

Like, Genres of discourse and the definition of literature, written by Gerard Steen, which suggests that literature “… is characterized by the domain value ‘artistic,’ the content value ‘fictional,’ and the functional value ‘positively affective,’ or simply ‘divertive’” (115). Describing literature as fictional work is the only fitting part of the definition because everything else simply does not work. For example, having the domain value be one of the arts needs to be excluded because defining literature is a task in itself. Adding another controversial term, like art, weakens the definition. Furthermore, needing literature to be positively affective, or in other words, elicit a positive emotional reaction from the reader, is not appropriate. This is due to the fact that, on occasion, a book does not draw a positive reaction in the reader. In some instances, a book is simply read to entertain the audience, without them experiencing happiness, joy, or amusement. For example, many people would agree that upon reading through the famous “To be or not to be” soliloquy in Hamlet, one did not experience happiness nor pleasure, yet this does not lessen the fact that the play is considered literature. Finally, reading through Their Eyes Were Watching God and the life full of heartache and obstacles the protagonist, Janie, lived through, one also does not experience any remote feeling of delight nor enjoyment. People did not finish the book feeling pleased knowing Janie ended up killing the love of her life, and then, return to the same town she ran away from, which most likely reminds her of the hell she lived with her first husband. As a consequence, the definition proposed by Steen would fail to describe with accuracy what literature

A long time ago the difference between perception and reality was defined as the act of understanding in contrast to the act of being real. Reality could be tricky; most of us including myself depending on scenarios of our lives tend to give in to ideas which are not applicable to reality as a whole. The best example of this is written in the short story “All Over” by Guy de Maupassant. In which his main character Lormerin is very self conscious and narcissistic also Lise de Vance, a former old love plays a big role in hurting Lormerin ego and opening his eyes by showing him, his real self. Many would say that when reality knocks it could be harsh and confusing. In the next couple of

Throughout literary history, different themes have proven to be consistently popular for audiences. The desire to present an accurate reflection of reality has proven to be a major source of inspiration for both authors and readers alike. Reality as a theme is prevalent in literature, and the numerous ways that reality and illusion intertwine. In William Shakespeare’s play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the illusory world which the characters inhabit is enhanced by the supernatural. The relationship between Oberon and Titania contributes to the development of the play’s theme of reality and illusion; they are the catalyst by which the play’s action occurs, and their spontaneous natures are countered with human flaws, further

, the characters in the story often show emotions whether it be externally or internally. The

    Film and literature are two media forms that are so closely related, that we often forget there is a distinction between them. We often just view the movie as an extension of the book because most movies are based on novels or short stories. Because we are accustomed to this sequence of production, first the novel, then the motion picture, we often find ourselves making value judgments about a movie, based upon our feelings on the novel. It is this overlapping of the creative processes that prevents us from seeing movies as distinct and separate art forms from the novels they are based on.

In service of this argument, the essay unfolds in three parts. The first section sketches an appropriate framework for understanding how cinema marshals and moves viewers by engaging them in a fully embodied experience.4 The second section offers a brief overview of the film's plot before turning to an analysis of its triptych narrative and affective development. The third and final section considers the methodological, critical, and theoretical implications suggested by the preceding analysis.

Magic realism is a literary genre or style that encompases mythical elements into otherwise realistic fiction. It is an important element that plays into imagery and makes the reader question if certain situations actually happened. Often times realism is found in fiction or drama; however, it can also be seen in some poetry. In this paper, I will be discussing how realism directly affects the complete works of Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Song of Solomon, and “As I Walked out One Evening”.