Pool Scenes in The Graduate
At first glance it may seem that the swimming pool in Ben?s backyard is no more than an insignificant setting-choice for the movie. After close examination, however, the pool fills a critical role as the symbol of the recent college-graduate?s internal struggle with decisions regarding his future. Key scenes involving the swimming pool and the related aquarium in Ben?s room chronicle the evolution of his transition from adolescents into adulthood.
The opening scene of the movie in which Ben?s face is visible through the glass of his aquarium tank demonstrates his role as an adolescent upon arriving home from college. This is, however, only recognizable in a later scene taking place at the party his
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Robinson?a friend of his parents. This woman, the same age as his mother, becomes the catalyst for Ben?s eventual transition into adulthood. The first evidence of this is after Mrs. Robinson requests a ride home from Ben; she tosses her car keys to him but instead of landing in Ben?s hands, the keys fall into his fish aquarium. The emphasis of this action in the movie by a zoom-in and pause on the tank demonstrates its importance as Ben?s childhood life, signified by the aquarium, has just been contaminated. The encounter foreshadows the loss of innocence that Ben experiences with his sexual relationship with Mrs. Robinson after she seduces him. At first, however, Ben does not give into her advances---rejecting the idea of adult behaviors like an affair with a married woman.
Resistance to growing up is further evident in his 21st birthday party at his parent?s home. This age has long had social significance in our culture?with the age comes freedom to drink, the end of childhood, and most significantly for Ben, the official and very public entrance into the adult world. After receiving a wet suit and scuba gear for his birthday, Ben?s parents ask him to take a swim in the pool to show off his new gift in front of the party guests. Objecting heavily, his father coerces him until he makes the walk from the house and enters the pool in his gear, obliging the crowd of his parents? friends. Eager to watch Ben find direction and become
Ben and Ellie take refuge in an abandoned apartment block. When Ben has second thoughts about realising the zoo animals into the wild, Ellie reassures him that it was necessary for a new beginning. As they both make plans to leave the city and head for the bush, Raja makes a final appearance. Ben is convinced that Raja is going to kill him, but instead he pats him affectionately on the
As Benjamin transition out of adolescent, he constantly struggles with the decision regarding his future and to find the best way of becoming a man. Ironically, it is his relationship with Mrs. Robinson that helps Benjamin transformation
He initially had no interest at all in nature, but after some adjustments he changed his mind and gained a “relationship” with nature and, he even learned some survival skills along the way. In the beginning of the text, Ben preferred to be indoors making videos, or being a detective or even just watching television rather than being outside like his younger sister Olive. This meant that unlike his sister Ben did not develop any survival skills. This became a problem, when the Silver family were suddenly on the run from the cops and found themselves in a life or death situation. The novel mentions that, ‘wilderness was his enemy”. This was one way of showing that Ben did not like to be outside in nature. Eventually, Ben changes views and he now appreciates and enjoys being outdoors in nature. He even finds peace within the wilderness. The novels says Ben had “missed this placed”. This shows that he has changed tremendously. He has gone from Ben, the being indoors lover, to Ben the Nature loving boy. This was a significant change for the
In one’s life, a person goes through a certain processes to mature into an adult. In the book, Crabbe, by William Bell, a teen boy named Franklin Crabbe runs away from his old life which was preventing him from maturing the way he wanted to. Firstly, Franklin Crabbe experiences personal growth while staying in the wilderness. Secondly, Crabbe learns a various number of new life skills which he can use later in the future. Thirdly, Crabbe while being in the wilderness, he developed his independence. The experiences the main character Franklin Crabbe has while in wilderness contributes to his maturity into adulthood.
Ben’s Purpose in the Drama (Consider how his appearances give meaning to the drama as a foil* to Willy.)
Begins with a comforting scene of Ben with his parents. The dreamy filter the scene is given makes it seem like a dream and/or a flashback. Initially, Ben was excited to have a sister and pleased as he says to his Mum, "I can't wait for the baby to come then we're gonna be best friends, aren't we?" However this is quickly changed when Ben drifts in and out of sleep, his first view being of his Mum singing to him and the third one of his Mother’s hair turning white and the desperation he
Coming of age is a recurring theme that is universally known throughout many different pieces of literature. Whether it’s influenced on true experiences, childhood memories, or even based on one’s current juvenile reality, many of theses works have a correlation between them that include many similar ordeals and struggles that the character goes through in order to metamorphosize into taking their first step out of childhood. One prominent theme that often appears is how one experiences and faces a time of tribulation and other walls that stand in one’s path. In effect, hardships mature and enlighten one, causing the loss of something such as childhood innocence. Lastly, these three combined points finally lead to one’s metamorphosis out of childhood. All in all, these three factors take one out of childhood, and slowly allows one step out into the reality of this world.
In coming of age stories, the protagonists often experience a pensive and dramatic moment where either they break through to adulthood or retreat to childhood - it is this moment that unveils the magnitude of growing up for the reader.
When the audience first encounters Ben (Miller 44), he represents the success that Willy is striving for. Before the audience learns of the success that Ben encountered in Africa, they see him on the stage accompanied by an idyllic musical motif
Ben exemplified compassion in many cases, were he would sacrifice himself or his personal trails for someone else troubles. In reality this scene can compare with real life cases in the world today how compassion can be shared with people to impact others. In the movie Ben finds himself falling in love with a girl name Emily, who has an enlarged heart that he later gave his life for her to survive. Ben shared compassion with 6 other people, but given the most compassion to Emily.
Identity typically changes with age, however he changes very little because he does not have full awareness of his identity. “Age identity refers to the inner most experience of a person’s age and aging process” (Jose 2017). Fitzgerald emphasizes Benjamin’s loss of consciousness more in the novel than Fincher does in the film. At a certain point, Benjamin stops struggling to determine who he is and just essentially waits for time to run out. He would play simply games with his grandson when they are both around the age of children beginning kindergarten. Benjamin and his grandson would continue this until he passed away. In contrast, it seems that Benjamin and his wife fight further to the end in the film, and he passes away with her by his side. The relationship between Benjamin and Daisy was stronger in the film than in the novel. His identity is very important to him in the middle of his life when he wants to go to college and enroll in the war, but towards the end he loses awareness of any self-perception he had built and slips into
Now in the literary story Benjamin has a grandfather who at the start was antagonized, became to enjoy his grandson’s company. It is a brief account of his grandfather but a meaningful one as this was the first one who gave him a sense of acceptance. The film version gave him acceptance through Queenie and we never get to know a grandfather; though one could say the patrons at the old folk’s home could have been grandparent surrogates for Benjamin. The patrons at the old folks home taught him many things but his experience living there taught him not to fear death and what loss was about which, in a sense, desensitized the character so that when Queenie passes he is not visibly upset.
The purpose of this essay is to analyze the short story “The Swimmer” by Jon Cheever and it’s film adaptation. Overall, the film and the short story use different dialogue, different characterization, and different visual effects and imagery to provide the reader and the viewer with the allegory of Ned Merrill’s life. While both works focus on the fanciful nature of moving across an entire neighborhood using swimming pools, there are more differences between the film and short story than similarities. Firstly, I will begin by describing the usage of visual effects in the film and imagery in the short story. Secondly, I will describe the differences in dialogue. Finally, I will conclude by describing the ways in which both pieces leverage their characters.
Gradually, Ben overall becomes sensitive to the environment. The sadness has overwhelmed him and left him a primitive form. He becomes impaired in the way that he relies on a caretaker and is unable to recapture the memories of himself after he’s gone. Once Ben becomes missing, people don’t search for him but instead call to ask where he has been. After about a week everyone in his life ceases to call or look. Annie is the only one to evoke the memories of Ben, the disabled man who became primitive
As he grows older, his style changes and he sees the real world as it really is as opposed to his fantasies he had when he was younger. A major development in the story is the actual act of becoming a man. Boys his age have a festival for many days that lead up to their circumcision, after which they become men. After this accomplishment, he still writes about his fears and his thoughts but he is much more wary to keep them to himself. And as he grows even older he moves away from home to attend Technical College for four years. These years change him very much and when he returns home he is much more of an adult and conducts himself in such a manner.