Up to the Imagination

Eastwood chooses to leave out the events that occur between the time Dave leaves the bar and the time he gets home. This intentional exclusion leaves it up to the  audience's imagination to determine the true events that unfold during this time, which gives the movie a murder mystery feel. The audience must rely on direct and indirect characterization to infer what really happened. When Dave goes home he is covered in blood, which sends his wife into a state of panic, and when he tries to recall the events that happened that night he changes the story suggesting that his account of what happened can not be trusted. Not only is his story inconsistent, but he also admits to going off and essentially blacking out; therefore, the validity of his account comes into question because his memory of his actions may not exactly line up with the reality of his actions. Dave’s original story consists of a mugger who threatens him for his wallet. He fights back and leaves the mugger to die in a parking lot somewhere, but he never says that he moved the body. When the audience finds out there is blood in the car, part of the evidence lines up with his story but the other half does not. The fact that there was a significant amount of blood in the driver’s seat lines up with his story because he drove home with a significant wound, but the fact that there is blood in the trunk makes the audience suspect that the story Dave tells is not accurate. Not only is there blood in the trunk, the blood is type O which is the same blood type Katy has. Dave's inconsistency and unsettling aura leads the audience to believe that he is Katy's murderer. 

Let's Go Greek! Oedipus

What do we blog about?

Well, we're all reading the same play, so we don't want to summarize (as always).  Instead, you can provide brief context for what part of the play you're discussing & use examples from the play, but your main purpose is to have an analytical focus for each post.  For your first blog post, you'll choose one question about Mystic River.  For the remaining blog posts, you can choose from the general questions about Greek drama or write about one of the options below:

• Literary elements you see in the play (think apostrophes, invocations, allusions, metaphors)
• Conflicts (how they arise, how they define characters, etc.)
• Characterization:  
• actions, dialogue, or lines that define a character
• character's motivations
• Relationship between plot line and structure of a Greek play
• Close reading of stage directions where you're looking for clarification
• Events in the plot that serve as a major turning point
• How unique traditions, values, or practices function within the Greek culture and reflect Greek values
• Themes developed in the play and morals reinforced by characters' fates
• How literary elements serve a theme (revenge, regret, fluctuation of power, gender relations, loyalty/betrayal, tradition)...if you can accomplish this, you've made it to the big leagues.

Blog Post #1 on Mystic River (select from the following):

1. Mystic River shows the power of sin, the force of consequences, and the folly/proliferation of unchecked anger—even into otherwise uninvolved lives and the expense of innocents. Consider: who among these characters can claim innocence? Who is deserving of genuine forgiveness? And: why?
2. One of the most well-known Greek dramatic conventions is the use of implied violence in place of staging actual graphic violence. Eastwood asserted (as director of the film) that “just because something is real doesn’t mean it has to be seen.” Choose an incidence of violence that is suggested rather than seen, and evaluate the impact of the event. What is gained / lost by the choice to leave such images up to the imagination?
3. A German proverb says: Revenge converts a little right into a great wrong.  Examine one such instance from the film where you find this to be the case. Explore the extent of the “wrong” and the implications of the character’s actions.
4. Greek tragedy always depicts a fall from fortune. Identify a character in the film who experiences such a fall. Evaluate to what degree the character’s “fall” is the result of his/her actions.
5. The Greeks believed that is was impossible for a man to escape from his fate. Examine a character/event from the film that reinforces and upholds this belief. Be sure to identify the actions the character takes to “avoid” his/her fate, and explore the repercussions of those actions, and to what degree they fail/succeed?

General Questions for all plays:

1. In what ways does (Jocasta, Medea, Antigone, Lysistrata) define for the Chorus-and the Athenian audience-a concept of heroism for women, comparable to conventional ideals Greek cultural traditions applied to men? Draw one major comparison and identify points of similarity/difference.
2. Reflection on the past is a dominant motif in Greek drama…choose a character from the play you are reading who evaluates his/her past. How does he/she evaluate past actions; what does he/she think is important about what has been done? Explore the relationship between these past actions and the present-time events in this character’s life.
3. Identify a specific passage(s) in the play you are studying that illustrates the Greek playwright’s attitude toward traditional Greek gods and religion, and explain the nuances of this attitude displayed by the passage(s). What is remarkable (or unsettling) about the portrayal of gods / ethics?
4. The Greeks were very much concerned with the responsibilities to family (oikos) versus the state (polis). Examine an element of your play (an incident, a character conflict) that differentiates the concerns of the oikos and the concerns of the polis.  How/why does the playwright connect the two? Is it possible to uphold a loyalty to both equally?
5. Mythology/Fate/Prophecy all are concepts highly regarded and of considerable importance to the Greeks. Examine any one (or more) of these topics as it functions in the play you are reading. In what ways does the concept impact the plot/characters/theme of the piece?
6. In Greek drama, the Chorus is often said to function as a character. Consider the role of the Chorus in the play you are reading: identify the Chorus’ personality traits. Is the Chorus loyal/sympathetic/judgmental of any single character or event? How would you characterize the Chorus based upon their collective words/actions/thoughts?
7. Betrayal is perhaps one of the most prominent injuries inflicted upon Greek characters. Choose an event from your play that represents a significant betrayal. Be sure to examine the impact of the betrayal as well as the lesson that can be learned from this experience.
8. The Greeks valued Honor, Loyalty and Sacrifice. Choose any one of these that you see playing a prevalent role in the play you are reading. Explore why this value is so important to the character(s) in the play and identify an event that you feel best illustrates the depths to which the character(s) will go to uphold their value.
9. Explore how women in a patriarchal society respond to the limitations placed upon them.  What is the nature of the conflicts that arise (romantic, political, domestic)?
10. Choose a selection from the play and explain how that passage helps to explain how the Greeks understood and practiced the concept of justice 
11. Greek plays are filled with invocations to muses, apostrophes, and allusions.  Identify a specific instance of invocation, apostrophe, or allusion and examine how it functions and relates to the plot.  How does it establish the beliefs of a character?  How does it clarify characters’ motivations or intentions?
12. Identify an ironic moment.  What does the ironic moment reveal?  How does that moment of irony impact the overall plot?  Impact individual characters?

Things to keep in mind for this type of assignment:

• You're writing online, but this isn't social media, which means no text-speak or slang.  Write in an academic language.
• Use this space as practice for properly writing literary analysis (writing in present tense, avoiding 1st/2nd person pronouns, using active voice, being succinct)
• Don't let your work disappear forever somewhere in the land of lost internet posts.  Be smart & save your work.  Some people like to work in Google Docs, MS Word, or Apple Pages first.  Then, just copy & paste all you've typed into Blogger & add some bells & whistles (i.e. pictures, links, videos)

Timeline for posting & commenting:

• 3/7:  1st blog post due on Mystic River
• 3/10:  comment on 2 posts
• 3/11:  2nd blog post due
• 3/14:  comment on 2 posts
• 3/18:  3rd blog post due
• 3/21:  comment on 2 posts
• 3/28:  4th blog post due
• 3/31:  comment on 2 posts
• TOTALS:  4 blog posts & 8 comments
• NOTE:  posts & comments are due on stated due date by 11:59 p.m.  
• DON'T PROCRASTINATE!

Other requirements:

• 250-300 word count
• Over the course of the entire blog you must include one related political cartoon and one related philosophical quotation (include as pictures on chosen posts)
• Comments should be at least 3 sentences that add or extend the post.  Be sure to ADD and EXTEND instead of just agreeing with the writer.
• Quote evidence from the play & use proper MLA format for embedded citations (MUST USE LINE NUMBERS!)