Sacrifice In The Film The Bridges Of Madison County

Paul Newman once said, “People stay married because they want to, not because the doors are locked” (74). There is no such thing as the perfect relationship, however, being involved in a healthy relationship is essential for a person to feel valued, safe, and happy. Unfortunately, in the situation of Kelly Sundberg’s personal essay “It Will Look Like a Sunset,” and Kate Chopin’s short story “The Story of An Hour,” include extreme examples of unhealthy relationships. The essay “It Will Look Like a Sunset,” shares painful experiences of Sundberg’s physical and emotional abusive relationship with her husband Caleb, while “The Story of an Hour,” shares a rare reaction of a married woman, Louise Mallard, who explores her emotions cautiously when hearing about the death of her husband. Each woman faces their own prison created by their husbands. The two marriages represent the figurative meaning of doors being locked in a marriage. Both pieces of literature convey the theme of confinement by using the literary devices of foreshadowing, imagery, and conflict.

The main theme of the a lesson before dying is sacrifice and how it can lead to better outcomes. A lesson before dying is a novel by Ernest Gaines that takes place in a fictional town in Louisiana in the 1940’s or pre-civil rights. One of the characters, Jefferson, is going to be put to death for a crime he did not commit, and the main character Grant is being forced by Jefferson’s godmother to teach him to be a man before he dies. Sacrifice is the act of giving up or surrendering a person or value for a better object but does it mean more than that in “A Lesson Before Dying”?

In his 2001 film entitled Lantana, director Ray Lawrence provides a dramatic look into the consequences of jealousy and infidelity in relationships. The film focuses primarily on two couples, Leon and Sonja, and John and Valerie, whose relationships are both seemingly in the midst of their own downward spirals. As the story unfolds and the issues affecting each of these relationships are uncovered, the film paints a vivid picture of the different ways that such themes can quickly bring ruin to relationships, and, in the case of some of the film’s characters, lives.

Sacrifice is “an act of giving up something valued for the sake of something else.” -Anonymous. The Outsiders, by H.E Hinton is a book where Ponyboy and friends live life in a gang. You can see sacrifices being made in order for them to better the lives of each other. One theme evident in the novel is people make sacrifices for the things they care about.

Even though some sacrafices are not neccesary, they hardest ones are made for those who you love. Sacrifice plays a major role as one of the main themes in the Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. Sacrifices were made for the mothers and daughters which were fueled by love and honor, such as when An-Mei sacrificed her own flesh and blood for her dying mother, Suyuan giving up her children so they could live a happy life, and An-Mei risking her life and sacrificing a sapphire ring from her mother. These were all made for the sake of somebody else's good and for love of somebody else.

In the reading it talks about the mother's thoughts about his schooling choices in New York. Most people would say if they went through it, it's okay for their kids. However Joy stepped up and knew that the New York public schools were extremely sketchy and unsafe for her son and rather work harder and have her kids go to a private school. His mother also would not let the sadness of their father's death interrupt the time she had them. She would put on a happy face and encourage her kids to take advantage of all the opportunities there are out there. In the reading it shows Wes Moore’s realization of the amount of effort his mother put in to make the family happy,“But no matter how much the world around us seemed ready to crumble, my mother was determined to see us though it.(47)”

Spanning and providing passage over rivers, chasms, and roads, bridges are much more than just structures.They can be the attempt to save something precious into what could turn out as divorce. Marie Arana,  a distinguished author for writing “Two Worlds, One Childhood”, shares how she was the link between her two obverse parents, whose marriage was almost doomed from the beginning. Marie even takes note of when she notices her reflection through a little girl, and claims that every marriage has a “moment.”

In the melodramatic novel, A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens, the author uses the theme sacrifice. He shows that sacrifice is important in his story because some of his characters must give up their lives for another. Miss Pross dedicates herself to Lucie because she wants Lucie to have a brighter future than she did. Then, out of his love and devotion for Lucie Manette, Sydney Carton sacrifices his life to save a life she loves. The sacrifices Miss Pross and Sydney Carton make express that mankind will give everything for what they love and believe in.

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is a story of great sacrifices being made for the sake of principle. There are many examples of this throughout the book made by many of the characters but some or more evident than others. In Book The First, entitled “Recalled to Life,” the most obvious sacrifice for the sake of principle was made by Dr. Manette. He is imprisoned for eighteen years in the Bastille, for no apparent reason. Another noticeable sacrifice made for the sake of principle was made in Book The Second, entitled “The Golden Thread,” also by Dr. Manette. Charles Darnay reveals the truth about himself and about his family history. He tells Dr. Manette his real identity and that he is heir to the Marquis

In truth, it is a metaphor for a better tomorrow with the lingering theme of the hope and promise of children. This theme further emphasized in the final scene of Rome Open City with the children walking out of frame. With the city of Rome as the backdrop for this final scene, it offered a sense of renewed hope for the future.

In Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris’ 2006 movie Little Miss Sunshine, they depict the tribulations of a dysfunctional family trying to get their daughter to a beauty pageant, while encompassing strong portrayals of common issues in the United States today. It communicates the individual’s struggle to be perfect, as well as the difficulties of the average middle class family in society. In this paper I will analyze three characters; Olive, Dwayne, and Richard Hoover, identifying their life stages, psychosocial development, role in the family and their resiliency through the stories challenging circumstances.

These constant beatings in Maggie Johnson’s home, furniture thrown from parent to parent, and every aspect of her family life as being negative, her family situation is not an extremly healthy one. But, despite her hardships, Maggie grows up to become a beautiful young lady whose romantic hopes for a more desirable life remain untarnished.

Focused and driven to create a life made of dreams, Cole Thornton succeeded only to be left feeling empty and alone. Ten years later, a chance encounter brings him together with the one person he’s ever felt connected to – an angry, disconnected and broken woman.

One of my personal all-time-favorite movies, The Proposal¸ directed by Anne Fletcher, is a drama/romance that illustrates “two people who weren’t meant to fall in love” (Lieberman, 2009). The following movie trailer assists in outlining the storyline of the movie and how a series of unforeseen events can change animosity into romantic love.

When I first read the description for the movie Attenberg before watching it, I was taken aback at the fact that the main character, Marina, shared the same name as me, and was roughly the same age. I was intrigued by the description of her life, and pondered whether watching it would remind me of my own life. In short, we are vastly different, but her inexperience and feelings of questioning who she is fascinated me. Watching the movie reminded me of another film I saw last year, called Other People, in which a 29-year-old openly-gay comedy writer, named David, moves closer to home after a bad breakup to take care of his mother, who is dying of cancer. Though it is more of a dark comedy, rather than a pure drama, I think the main character of the film shares many of the same internal conflicts as Marina in Attenberg, as he attempts to navigate his way through one of the most heartbreaking experiences imaginable: losing a parent. Both Attenberg and Other People navigate the lives of two young adults and their struggle to find themselves in the wake of enormous tragedy, grappling with concepts such as identity, sexuality, and loss.