ellauri111.html on line 263: As Fyodor Mikhailovich spoke, he became quite agitated. His face narrowed and his eyes flashed. At first he had just tapped his fingers intermittently on the arms of his chair but as he went on he started to wave his hands around with increasing energy. Whatever he had seen in the world he now inhabited, it was clear that he was still unreconciled to the outrages that adult human beings inflict on children, who, as he had said in The Brothers Karamazov, hadn’t eaten that fatal apple. I didn’t know the details of the cases he was talking about, but I couldn’t help thinking about a particularly horrifying case that had recently happened here in Scotland. I’ll spare you the details.
ellauri132.html on line 202: Yet Vonnegut also punctuates his dystopia with humor. Even the most horrifying scenes are underlined by jokes or absurdity. When the news announcer is supposed to read a news bulletin he has to hand it to a nearby ballerina because of his speech impediment, and the ballerina then alters her voice to a "grackle squawk" because it would be "unfair" to use her natural voice, described as a "warm, luminous, timeless melody". This absurdity highlights the madness of the world of "Harrison Bergeron".
ellauri156.html on line 705: Some of you cannot even imagine what this is like. It is a horrifying thought to you. How could anyone treat an animal that way? I have only one response: Obviously you haven't been to our house lately to be greeted by two cats (who, to the dismay of my wife, can be found around -- and sometimes on -- the table) and four dogs (none of them are ours, technically). I say nothing about my petlamb, even Jennifer doesn't quite approve.
ellauri161.html on line 631: I’ve seen some people criticise Don’t Look Up for lacking subtlety. I’m not bothered by this. I don’t necessarily need or want the communications about climate change to be subtle. The issue itself certainly is not subtle. We are heading towards—and, again, already are in the midst of—unprecedented death and destruction. Our systems and rulers are not just woefully ill-equipped to deal with this or to prevent the worst of it, they are actively complicit in bringing it about. Those communities around the world that are the most vulnerable and that have had the least part to play in causing the crisis will be the ones to suffer the first and the worst. This isn’t subtle sh*t! This is horrifying, grotesque, psychologically debilitating stuff to ponder—if you even have the privilege to ponder in the first place! I don’t necessarily need subtlety here. Sometimes, to fight propaganda, you need to go loud and bold. But you still have to be effective. We are fighting an almightily powerful enemy. Competence is a necessary minimum. Regrettably, Don’t Look Up does not meet those standards. Its central metaphor doesn’t even make sense! Yes, capitalism is responding as dreadfully to climate change in real life as it does to the comet in the film—the key difference is that capitalism didn’t cause that comet to come hurtling out of the sky in the first place.
ellauri171.html on line 615: The story is horrifying. Perhaps worst is the fact that similar stories have recently come out everywhere. This barbarity continues.
ellauri270.html on line 373: Mr. Summer’s casual language and camaraderie with the villagers contrast with what is at stake. Tessie’s reaction is the first explicit sign of something horrifying at the heart of the lottery. She is as outspoken in her anger as she was in her humor—although rather too late, and it’s assumed she wouldn’t argue if someone else had been chosen. Bill resignedly accepts the power of the tradition.
ellauri270.html on line 399: The use of stones also connects the ritual to Biblical punishments of “stoning” people for various sins, which then brings up the idea of the lottery’s victim as a sacrifice. The idea behind most primitive human sacrifices was that something (or someone) must die in order for the crops to grow that year. This village has been established as a farming community, so it seems likely that this was the origin of the lottery. The horrifying part of the story is that the murderous tradition continues even in a seemingly modern, “normal” society. In actual fact, the point is to reduce the number of mouths to feed in times of shortage.
ellauri364.html on line 79: horrifying-medical-treatments-from-the-19th-century-6.jpg.webp" />
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