The nineties were a strange time, at least in America. We’d awoken from the nightmare that was Reaganomics, and gone from a nation that produced a nation that outsourced. Yuppies were beating back what had begun in the late sixties, flourished in the seventies, and had been all but crushed in the eighties. But in the nineties, the children of people who embraced a largely mainstream counterculture were finally grown enough to start shaping the world around them. It was a renaissance of sorts, and two brothers named Ethan and Joel Coen were among them. They made a few movies during the late eighties that have since achieved cult status such as Blood Simple, Crime Wave, and Raising Arizona. Through the rest of the nineties, they had many established classics such as Barton Fink, The Hudsucker Proxy, and Fargo. But nothing comes close to their absolute masterpiece, The Big Lebowski. Compared to their other works, The Big Lebowski is the most ambitious, a highly stylized walk along the fine line between comedy and deep thought. It begins with the introduction of the (debatably) titular character, Jeff Lebowski, who is for all intents and purposes, a professional bum. In the production notes of the film, he is said by the the brothers Coen to have been a man in whom “casualness runs deep.” Jeff Bridges does this with ease, as if the character is actually a manifestation of himself. Sam Elliott, who plays a narrating cowboy known simply as “The Stranger,” describes him as “quite possibly the laziest (man) in Los Angeles County, which would place him high in the running’ for laziest worldwide,” in a voiceover, as Jeff (who calls himself “The Dude”) writes a check for seventy-nine cents to buy a carton of half-and-half and nothing else. Elliott’s smooth drawl is iconic, known from movies such as the for mentioned movie, Saving Private Ryan, and in video games such as the Call of Duty series. It gives the listener a sense of comfort, like he might sound like God, or any other important figure being capable of belying comfort to those who are listening. The story that follows, however, is anything but comforting to the listeners. Directly following the introduction, The Dude arrives home to a rather unpleasant scene. A man grabs him by his hair and runs him into the bathroom, driving his head into the toilet, demanding to know where “the money” is. Off-screen until now, a large Asian man unzips his trousers, and begins to urinate on the rug in his living room, The Dude’s pride and joy of his home unbeknownst to the Asian, as he bellows, “Ever thus to deadbeats, Lebowski.” Quick to retort, The Dude tells him, “At least I’m housebroken.” He collects himself, and explains to the henchmen how they’ve obviously made a mistake, because the person they are looking for is supposedly a very rich married man, and The Dude lives in digs that are more bachelor-appropriate. Dejected, they realize their mistake and exit. At this point, the movie breaks and the focus is finally honed in on. His mission is tracking down the person who the would-be burglars intended to find a replacement for his rug. His rug “really tied the room together” and though The Dude lives a simple life, this was a bright spot for him. He’d done nothing wrong, but was punished due to the transgressions of people he didn’t even know. This point is also where The Dude’s two best friends, Walter and Donny (played by John Goodman and Steve Buscemi, respectively) are introduced. This is where the movie’s real charm shows through. For all its action, this movie is really about dialogue, the conversations that we find mundane when we’re participating in them, but endlessly fascinating when observing them. Most would dismiss this as minutia, a celebration of hubris, but because this film takes the time to look for more where most would assume there’s less (like a bowling alley), it comes off as
experience.Through this class i aspire to improve my composition skills to prepare myself for an environment that requires much more of me than i am currently capable,and as well to create a plethora of bonds with those i meet on my journey through Comp 1. The current level of the composition skills i posses , as seen in this essay,rest somewhere between an ignorant writer and an overconfident high school student..Through this class i'll endeavor to participate in and research thoroughly the assignments…
Kay King Professor inEnc1101-Essay May 28, 2013 Summer school anyone…..No Way! When school is out, summer is here. Every grade school kid is over joy with excitement for the next 2 months. Planning their summer day by day, making sure they don’t miss anything or going somewhere. Many parents are looking for summer camps, vacations spots or even talking their kids into go to summer school. What kid wants to go to summer school, only thing on their minds is no school and fun. An adventurous summer…
Procedures Before You Begin the Lesson 1. If you are using letters that are not magnetic, cut a piece of the magnetic strip and glue it to the back of each letter. 2. Choose a magnetic surface that can be easily seen by the entire class. 3. Choose the target letter for the lesson (e.g., the letter “a”). Use the marker and index card to create a sign that reads, “Does Not Belong.” Attach the sign to the basket or bag. Introduction (Whole Group) 1. Hold the target letter up and say its name…
Jade Johnson En1010 Composition February 16, 2015 Single Parent Homes Recent studies show that most children are raised in a home where one parent is absent. In addition, the father is most likely the parent that is absent from the home. Most children face self esteem problems in a single parent home. This could lead to poor performance in school sometimes even behavioral problems. Also most children have hygiene issues because they cannot afford health care service…
Heather Mcginnis Shannon Smith English 111 4-2-14 The War on Nouns However our country came to declare wars on broad undefined concepts without real solutions is a mystery to me, but no matter which one you come up with (terrorism, drugs, poverty) we’ve massively failed to find the success our military largely enjoys in our real physical wars. My guess would be that the government, new and media use “war” because it’s something the rest of the world perceives that we’re good at, seeing that we’ve…
Michael Kelly English comp 1 5/13/15 Final Paper In this English compensation class I really enjoyed two specific poems that I will be discussing here. My Papa’s Waltz by Theodore Roethke and also Those Winter Sundays by Robert Hayden. These two poems really stuck out while reading because I can relate to both poems in the same but also in different ways. I think both poems are similar but My Papa’s Waltz has a different identity than Those Winter Sundays. Those Winter Sundays by Robert Hayden…
My Photojournalism Journey Brandi Alvey Comp 1/ Mrs. Pitlik A great photo happens when a photographer sees a situation unfolding in front of them that evokes an emotion that the photographer feels deep down in the middle of their chest. Within a split second, they make a conscience choice of exposure, lens, depth of field, lighting, body language, composition, and then release the shutter. The film is then processed, scanned, laid out…
who do not have access to food or not enough food on the weekends.” The program works by giving out their bags of food each Friday to those children who receive free or reduced cost school lunches. It operates within Laramie County School Districts 1 and 2, and in one school year, gives away more than 12,000 bags to children who need them most. Friday Food Bag is entirely volunteer-run, which ensures all the costs are kept down and means that all the donations they receive go straight to providing…
English Comp I Mr. Armstrong 7 April 2015 “Jake and Brett” In the novel The Sun Also Rises, the narrator Jake Barnes and his lover Lady Brett Ashley are two very interesting characters. The two lovers find themselves in turmoil like in the lost generation as Gertrude Stein stated. Jake and Brett are both two characters in the novel whose relationship just gets more complicated throughout the story. They are two misunderstood people in the lost generation who cling to another for support. Jake and…
Competency 1 To establish and maintain a safe, healthy learning environment I model safety practices and healthy routines in an environment that supports development and growth in these areas. My goal is to provide a clean healthy environment that meets each Childs physical need. Making sure the class room and playground are clean and safe at all times; To accomplish this goal I complete daily safety checklists that include ensuring exits and hallways are open, electrical cords are out of reach…