Extract is taken form the scenes at the Open Air Cinema
Grade - B/B+
How does Ballard bring to life Jim’s quest for survival in this extract?
In this extract of Empire of the sun, Ballard uses detailed description of how Jim has changed since his parent’s last saw him. He makes Jim sound painfully thin, describing his face as “long with its deep eye-sockets and bony forehead.” This gives the impression that Jim is very unwell, however he is eager to survive.
Another way in which Ballard presents Jim to be eager of survival in the detention centre is how he thinks of his parents, and seeing them again. His wishes of seeing them again is keeping him going, “He knew ... that his parents may fail to recognize him.” This gives the impression that he will do whatever it takes to see his parents again.
From this idea of looking ahead, and into the future, I can also understand that Jim is eager of staying alive. He is thinking about seeing his parents “when he was missing his parents he often thought about aircraft.” This quote also helps us to understand throughout the novel when he is thinking about his parents. It also particularly indicates that the planes he thinks of are American Bombers. This could have something to do with thinking of survival. Basie, an American man, who Jim aspires to, as a replacement father-figure, is a strong character, and in Jim’s eyes, he will do anything to survive. Ballard could be using this as a representation of Jim’s admiration of Basie, and of survival.
Jim also is learning to become obsessed with food. This could be something that he uses to keep his mind from boredom. He is “hungry all the time,” and in this extract, it focuses a lot on Jim thinking about food. He was frustrated when he lost out at meal time when he had gone to sleep. “When he had felt feverish, he had missed his ration.” He is learning to become tougher from this, and more aware of routine. He is learning how the Japanese guards serve the food at meal times. They deliver to the mess-tins, and not to the people. This makes him think that he can survive if he keeps a mess-tin with him when food is served. However, in this extract, Jim is still feeling guilty and uneasy at trying to be ruthless with the other prisoners. “He had found himself eating (Mr. Partridge’s) watery gruel. Jim had felt uneasy.” This gives an insight into how Ballard is showing that he is still learning about how to attempt surviving over all the other prisoners.
Overall, I think from this extract Ballard presents Jim starting to establish his desperation for survival, by keeping his mind of thoughts of negativity. Jim, at the moment, is surviving on hopes and dreams alone. He is visibly sick and the only thought of looking to the future, being so sure of what will eventually happen to him, is keeping him motivated to live. This is also the introduction to where he begins learning about survival in these situations.
Showing posts with label Sample Essay. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sample Essay. Show all posts
Sunday, 28 March 2010
Empire of the Sun Sample Essay
Extract for the question taken from the scenes at the Open Air Cinema
Grade A+
How does Ballard bring to life Jim’s quest for survival in this extract?
Jim’s quest for survival is something which can be noticed throughout the entire book, the fact that he never gives up and always wants to continue to search for his parents. Ballard uses different techniques to bring Jim’s quest for survival to life and therefore make it more interesting for the reader.
One of the ways that Ballard brings Jims quest for survival to life is by using graphic description. ‘Once, without realising it, he had found himself eating the watery gruel. Jim had felt uneasy, and stared at his guilty hands. Parts of his mind and body frequently separated themselves from each other.’ This quote brings it to life by using graphic description by making Jim describe himself with words such as ‘uneasy’ and ‘guilty’. It is so good because it is not normal to hear a boy of Jims’ age talking about themselves in that way; it’s not good to hear them undermining themselves like that.
Jims’ age is something in itself that brings Jims quest for survival to life in the book. ‘Sometimes they mimicked his voice during his fevers. Jim smiled at them and returned to his seat.’ Here Jims’ age can be shown because he is almost unaffected by the aggression and hostility shown by the Eurasian women, and even smiles at them. I think this brings Jims quest for survival to life because his inability to understand why people are angry with him highlights the fact that he is so young and still trying to get through the war and find his parents, which leads into my next point which is also about Jims parents.
Jims’ constant referring to his parents is also a good method of bringing his quest for survival to life. ‘He knew that he was thinner than he had been before the war, and that his parents might fail to recognise him.’ By Jim constantly talking about his parents and what will happen when he finds them after the war, he is reminding the reader of how young he is by still being optimistic that he will find them still despite everything that has happened so far. This is a good way of making Jims’ quest for survival come to life because it makes the reader see Jim as the young child that he is.
Another thing that Jim is constantly referring to is his obsession with the Japanese. ‘After months of roving the streets of Shanghai Jim had finally managed to give himself up to the Japanese forces.’ Jim always talking about the Japanese, not only in this extract but throughout the entire book highlights his obsession with the Japanese. This brings Jim’s quest for survival to life because it shows how Jim doesn’t really full understand how dangerous the Japanese are.
Another thing that is good at bringing Jims’ quest for survival to life is Ballard’s use of Irony; we see it throughout the entire book, as well as in this extract. ‘Although he was hungry all the time, he was happy to be in the detention centre.’ The use of irony is interesting because it makes the reader think about exactly what Ballard is saying, and makes them realise that at the time the people there may have had to use irony at the time to help them to survive.
One of the most interesting of Ballard’s techniques, not only in this extract but throughout the entire book is his use of Juxtaposition. I think that this quote from the extract is a good example of his use of Juxtaposition, ‘He watched a Kawanishi flying boat cross the river. The drone of its engines was comforting, and reminded him of all his dreams of flying.’ I think that this is a good way of bringing Jims quest for survival to life because, like irony, it makes the reader think about the images that Jim is seeing and what he is going through, and understand how he still sees the nicer thing in a scene which is actually filled with sadness or anger.
In conclusion, I think that although Ballard uses many different techniques to bring Jims’ quest for survival to life, I think that the most effective one is by making Jim constantly remind the reader about certain things like his parents and his obsession with the Japanese. I think this because it reminds the reader of just how young Jim is, and that despite the fact that there is still a war going on around him he is still worrying about the smaller things.
Grade A+
How does Ballard bring to life Jim’s quest for survival in this extract?
Jim’s quest for survival is something which can be noticed throughout the entire book, the fact that he never gives up and always wants to continue to search for his parents. Ballard uses different techniques to bring Jim’s quest for survival to life and therefore make it more interesting for the reader.
One of the ways that Ballard brings Jims quest for survival to life is by using graphic description. ‘Once, without realising it, he had found himself eating the watery gruel. Jim had felt uneasy, and stared at his guilty hands. Parts of his mind and body frequently separated themselves from each other.’ This quote brings it to life by using graphic description by making Jim describe himself with words such as ‘uneasy’ and ‘guilty’. It is so good because it is not normal to hear a boy of Jims’ age talking about themselves in that way; it’s not good to hear them undermining themselves like that.
Jims’ age is something in itself that brings Jims quest for survival to life in the book. ‘Sometimes they mimicked his voice during his fevers. Jim smiled at them and returned to his seat.’ Here Jims’ age can be shown because he is almost unaffected by the aggression and hostility shown by the Eurasian women, and even smiles at them. I think this brings Jims quest for survival to life because his inability to understand why people are angry with him highlights the fact that he is so young and still trying to get through the war and find his parents, which leads into my next point which is also about Jims parents.
Jims’ constant referring to his parents is also a good method of bringing his quest for survival to life. ‘He knew that he was thinner than he had been before the war, and that his parents might fail to recognise him.’ By Jim constantly talking about his parents and what will happen when he finds them after the war, he is reminding the reader of how young he is by still being optimistic that he will find them still despite everything that has happened so far. This is a good way of making Jims’ quest for survival come to life because it makes the reader see Jim as the young child that he is.
Another thing that Jim is constantly referring to is his obsession with the Japanese. ‘After months of roving the streets of Shanghai Jim had finally managed to give himself up to the Japanese forces.’ Jim always talking about the Japanese, not only in this extract but throughout the entire book highlights his obsession with the Japanese. This brings Jim’s quest for survival to life because it shows how Jim doesn’t really full understand how dangerous the Japanese are.
Another thing that is good at bringing Jims’ quest for survival to life is Ballard’s use of Irony; we see it throughout the entire book, as well as in this extract. ‘Although he was hungry all the time, he was happy to be in the detention centre.’ The use of irony is interesting because it makes the reader think about exactly what Ballard is saying, and makes them realise that at the time the people there may have had to use irony at the time to help them to survive.
One of the most interesting of Ballard’s techniques, not only in this extract but throughout the entire book is his use of Juxtaposition. I think that this quote from the extract is a good example of his use of Juxtaposition, ‘He watched a Kawanishi flying boat cross the river. The drone of its engines was comforting, and reminded him of all his dreams of flying.’ I think that this is a good way of bringing Jims quest for survival to life because, like irony, it makes the reader think about the images that Jim is seeing and what he is going through, and understand how he still sees the nicer thing in a scene which is actually filled with sadness or anger.
In conclusion, I think that although Ballard uses many different techniques to bring Jims’ quest for survival to life, I think that the most effective one is by making Jim constantly remind the reader about certain things like his parents and his obsession with the Japanese. I think this because it reminds the reader of just how young Jim is, and that despite the fact that there is still a war going on around him he is still worrying about the smaller things.
Tuesday, 10 November 2009
Death of a Salesman - Sample Essay
What impressions do we get of Willy in Act One?
Within Act One we are introduced to Willy Loman as the protagonist of the play Death of a Salesman. He is given several roles within the act such as father, husband, brother, salesman and – from the flashbacks he has to the past – how Willy was in the past.
Willy’s role as a father is one of the most prominent in the play. Miller initially presents him as a disappointed father who is unhappy with the lack of achievement in his son. Willy states: “Biff is a lazy bum!” however he soon retracts this later in the act saying “He’ll come good”. This constant changing of opinion is significant to both Willy’s other actions and Miller’s own view of American society at the time; namely the ever-changing opinion of the American Dream.
The American Dream is something that Miller examines throughout and uses irony to emphasises his criticism of it. As a salesman, Willy is hard-working, often driving thousands of miles each day to sell items which are unnamed in the play. However, he is regularly failing as his job and reveals that he is working on purely on commission and is forced to make excuses for his failings. He says “Three stores were half closed for inventory in Boston. Otherwise I woulda broke records”. The use of the word “otherwise” shows Willy’s constant excuses for his failings.
Willy’s obsession with success is not just in the present. Miller uses a series of flashbacks to show this, introducing Willy’s brother, Ben, in flashbacks. Ben is used as a contrast to Willy: being a successful businessman who left America to find opportunities in diamond mining in Africa. Within the flashbacks; Willy is determined to gain Ben’s approval, especially with his sons: “Ben, how should I teach them?”. The distinct child-like tone of Willy’s dialogue towards his brother gives the audience the view that he is unsure of his own identity.
In Willy’s marriage, Miller uses Willy’s wife Linda as his main grip of reality, but also keeping him in his fantasy world. She indulges Willy’s assertions of success: “But you’re doing wonderful dear”. However in her use of the word “but”, she is also is his constant reminder of his failings in that within the flashbacks she details their debts and their bills on the items they bought through hire purchase.
Within act one, Miller portrays Willy as an extreme character and uses contrast to this effect. Willy’s moods fluctuate throughout and he incorporates his flashbacks into reality. This causes the play to feel disjointed and mirrors Willy’s own mental state. However his roles as father, brother, husband and salesman, both present and present appear to revolve around success and Willy’s failure at attaining this.
Within Act One we are introduced to Willy Loman as the protagonist of the play Death of a Salesman. He is given several roles within the act such as father, husband, brother, salesman and – from the flashbacks he has to the past – how Willy was in the past.
Willy’s role as a father is one of the most prominent in the play. Miller initially presents him as a disappointed father who is unhappy with the lack of achievement in his son. Willy states: “Biff is a lazy bum!” however he soon retracts this later in the act saying “He’ll come good”. This constant changing of opinion is significant to both Willy’s other actions and Miller’s own view of American society at the time; namely the ever-changing opinion of the American Dream.
The American Dream is something that Miller examines throughout and uses irony to emphasises his criticism of it. As a salesman, Willy is hard-working, often driving thousands of miles each day to sell items which are unnamed in the play. However, he is regularly failing as his job and reveals that he is working on purely on commission and is forced to make excuses for his failings. He says “Three stores were half closed for inventory in Boston. Otherwise I woulda broke records”. The use of the word “otherwise” shows Willy’s constant excuses for his failings.
Willy’s obsession with success is not just in the present. Miller uses a series of flashbacks to show this, introducing Willy’s brother, Ben, in flashbacks. Ben is used as a contrast to Willy: being a successful businessman who left America to find opportunities in diamond mining in Africa. Within the flashbacks; Willy is determined to gain Ben’s approval, especially with his sons: “Ben, how should I teach them?”. The distinct child-like tone of Willy’s dialogue towards his brother gives the audience the view that he is unsure of his own identity.
In Willy’s marriage, Miller uses Willy’s wife Linda as his main grip of reality, but also keeping him in his fantasy world. She indulges Willy’s assertions of success: “But you’re doing wonderful dear”. However in her use of the word “but”, she is also is his constant reminder of his failings in that within the flashbacks she details their debts and their bills on the items they bought through hire purchase.
Within act one, Miller portrays Willy as an extreme character and uses contrast to this effect. Willy’s moods fluctuate throughout and he incorporates his flashbacks into reality. This causes the play to feel disjointed and mirrors Willy’s own mental state. However his roles as father, brother, husband and salesman, both present and present appear to revolve around success and Willy’s failure at attaining this.
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