Summary Of No Sympathy For The Devil By Heather Havrilesky

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.

This presents a problem in anti-hero stories, where, according to them, moral judgment plays an “insignificant role in antihero liking” (1037). Therefore, ADT, while effective in measuring likeability of heroic protagonists, fails to measure that of antiheroes. To try to measure the enjoyment of antiheroic stories, Shafer and Raney conducted two studies. In the first one, a group of students was split into two groups. One watched and antihero movie and the other a movie with a classical hero protagonist. Through various points in the film, the viewers were asked to rate the protagonist likeliness on a scale from 0 to 50, with 25 being neutral. Here are the results from the study (fig. 1):

Our eyes unconsciously record thousands upon thousands of bits of information every second. Our brain then acts as a filter to sort out what it thinks is useful and what is not. By doing this, the brain guides us into seeing only what is important. We never see the full picture; just what our brain guides us to see. Metaphors act in the same way in that they guide how people view certain topics and issues. A specific metaphor that becomes accepted by a large enough population of community will determine how most people in the community view that issue. In a way the metaphor skews the perception of those who hear it. This was the case for the metaphors of cancer in the late 20th century which we can see through Susan Sontag’s piece, “Illness as Metaphor”. We can also see this manifested in metaphors associated with people diagnosed with Morgellons’ disease in Leslie Johnson’s narrative, “The Devil’s Bait”. Both pieces deal with how metaphors have shaped the outlook of patients of their respective diseases. Metaphors obscure and shift our understanding of disease and pain away from the full truth into a smaller and less understanding perspective. The similarities between the metaphor of cancer as death and Morgellons as a farce prove that metaphors of disease isolate patients diagnosed with those diseases.

Carol Karlsen 's "The Devil in the Shape of a Woman” was written to provide the reader with an understanding of the role of the “witch” in colonial New England. During the early colonial period, pilgrims lived in a male-dominated society and the classical witch hunts were conducted in an attempt to maintain this societal structure. Since these hunts were placed under a religious guise, it was simple for these individuals to act as if they were maintaining the safety and justice of society. Karlsen explains that in many instances, women who were labelled as witches were often females that had managed to acquire great economic and social status and society. In fear of these women, the neighborhood targeted them and called them witches to weaken their power. Independent of guilt, women who were accused of witchcraft could not possibly recovered. If they claimed their innocence, they would be stoned or burned to death because the counsel would decide that they were not being truthful. If they admitted to their guilt, their place in society would be marred and they would be embarrassed for partaking in these evil acts. Through this violence, men have been able to maintain their place in Puritan society. In her book, Karlsen aims to provide the reader new insight into the witch trials, demonstrating the societal, rather than religious causes for this well-known historic tragedy.

Superman, Wonder Woman, Spiderman—what do all these characters have in common? They are all products of the human aspiration to be saved. The word hero is passed around too much these days. A hero is not a football player that scores the game-winning touchdown or the goaltender who saves his team from a loss. A hero is usually an ordinary person that did extraordinary things. A true hero is really never a hero at all; at least not in their own mind. However, there are various cases today in which we see the exact opposites of these characters, the anti-heroes. The anti-hero is one who cannot be classified as a hero, for that said character lacks natural heroic qualities. However, the anti-hero cannot be described as a villain either.

There are many types of evil and perhaps the worst case is moral evil. Moral evil is when “A person does something deliberately to another person to cause pain and torment” (Erdrich 253). European colonizers have tormented Native Americans continually in the past, and their actions are still affecting Native Americans today. The Round House by Louise Erdrich demonstrates how the actions of whites in the past have continued to affect modern day Native Americans, specifically leading to alcoholism and abuse.

There are many novels wherein the main character in an anti-hero. Anti-heroes are the twisted versions of wholesome protagonists; protagonists have pure ideals and motives, while an anti-hero’s end motives usually justify the morally grey means that he or she achieved them by. The readers of such novels usually root for the seemingly villainous protagonist, this “anti-hero”. The anti-heros in Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood are Perry Smith and Dick Hickock. These two men are reported to be cold blooded killers in this nonfiction novel, and yet many readers root for these anti-heroes, thanks to Capote’s retelling of events. Truman Capote attempts to humanizes these killers by sharing their pasts with the reader, which trigger sympathy or hatred, depending on how Capote portrays them

Without darkness, there is no light. Without cold, there is no hot. Without villain, there is no hero. Who and what dictates a hero? People try not to fathom whom they consider a villain, a hero in someone else’s perspective.

I read 260 pages of Johanna Michaelsen’s book, The Beautiful Side of Evil. This novel is a documentary on Michaelsen’s real life experiences with supernatural, yoga, and The Silvia Mind Control. The first half of the book discusses the details of the experiences she faced, while the last half plays as a warning to those who have been persuaded or influenced to explore the supernatural side in today’s society. The themes of both halves come together perfectly to display one central theme relating to how deceptive the supernatural side can be. Other themes can be how important it is to stand firm in the faith of Christ and the Bible. This is so that readers would be encouraged to know the Word and use it as their resource for inspiration and guidance in their faith.

The Devil Take Tomorrow by Gretchen Jeannette, is historical fiction set in Philadelphia during the American Revolutionary War. Gretchen Jeannette did an exceptional job creating dynamic engaging characters that brought the uncertainty and intensity of the time period to life. I must admit that I am not an expert in the time period, but the detail given about the war, lifestyles, clothing, and culture seemed well researched to me. Most of the time, the historical elements were woven into the story, but there were moments where the reader would be temporarily transported outside of the story to be given historical context. This typically happened when background about a place or event that had been important earlier in the war was necessary for context for the reader who is not especially well versed in their knowledge of the Revolutionary War.

In the reading, “Why We Love TV’s Anti-heroes” by Stephen Garrett, he points out that anti-heroes are becoming more popular than the traditional hero. Garrett states, “the word hero is abused in the news, the sports reports, and even in conversation” (318). For example tabloids recognize someone who battles a drug addiction and overcomes it or a substitute kicker for the football game kick the winning field goal (318). You see he argues that traditional heroes are “boring” and that there are no longer any more real heroes (318-321). Anti-heroes are characters or people who are just evil but still get the viewers to like

Anti-heroes do not solely exist in the fictional world. There are people in the real world, everyday who fit the anti-hero description. They are… the Mob. In ancient times loyalty was purest form of respect. It was a way of life. One was loyal to his or her family, govern, king, and God. Hand in hand with loyalty, comes the right to revenge. The Mob is one of the few “societies” that has reserved that tradition. For example: when a family member is assassinated, it is not only the right, but also the duty of the surviving family to avenge that death. This loyalty to one’s own, coupled with the fierce determination to protect them, are incredibly heroic qualities. Organized crime families are oohed and ahhed by the press and pop culture, and have their own fans. While these people are not ideal role models, they possess heroic qualities worthy of aspiration.

The antihero phenomenon in television is one that has proven to spark a successful movement, confirming it has the potential for a large, loyal audience base. Aristotle and philosopher, David Hume, have been proven wrong, stating their belief that the antihero model would never succeed. David Hume claimed these antiheros or in his terms, “rough heroes” would be unsuccessful because “we are displeased to find the limits of vice and virtue so much confounded” and we are not able to “bear an affection” for characters “we plainly discover to be blameable.” So why do so many serial narratives centered on antiheros exist and why are audiences so attached to these types of characters?

Throughout history, comic book heroes like Superman, Spiderman and Batman have captured the imaginations of children and adults alike. These strong-willed and brave individuals who perform courageous acts, overcome great odds and defeat the forces of evil have always been prevalent in English literary texts. However, in The Messenger by Markus Zusak, the author positions the reader to view heroes that deviate from the normal black and white archetype. Through the use of themes such as deceptive appearances, small things can be big and morality, Zusak effectively constructs Ed as a reluctant hero and shows that people don’t have to sport spandex and flashy capes to be known as heroes but instead can be someone who performs small kind acts.

Any hero, in any novel, poses many charitable traits often making the hero a “perfect” being with little to no flaws. However, the noir novel presents the “hero” in manner directly opposite to the stereotypical hero. Characteristics of an anti-hero consist of easily identified imperfections, rebelliousness, and unorthodox modes of accomplishing his task. In addition, the anti-hero will break the law if it is