Punctuating Interjections and Lists

Melroes0914 has kindly contributed a paragraph that has some hard-to-punctuate lists and interjections. I have edited it a little so the class can re-solve some of the issues. Everyone should have a look at this for next week:

During the Vietnam War, some of the many men, and women faced emotional, mental, and or physical concerns. The movie, Apocalypse Now (directed by Francis Ford Coppola) portrays a sense of lunacy in certain of the scenes, and characters throughout the film. The main character, Willard, (Martin Sheen)), and the boat crew members, Chef, Chief, Lance, and Clean, help guild Willard up the river to complete his classified mission. In search of Colonel Kurtz, a former Green Beret, Willard; Chief; Chef; and Lance are always alert, as they travel through the Vietnamese jungle up the Nung River to let Willard complete his mission, execute Kurtz.

Apocalypse Now & Heart of Darkness themes

There are many themes one might pick out of Heart of Darkness or Apocalypse Now. The following suggestions by no means cover everything. It's also possible to start with a topic or theme you find interesting and work backward -- if you want to write about race, murder, dying, class distinctions, US foreign policy, disabilities in veterans, covert operations, insanity, or many other things, you can probably find scenes and characters to illustrate whatever points you want to make. Otherwise, you might begin by picking a particularly interesting passage or scene, and analyzing it closely to unfold its rich message and to make a particular point. Or you could write about the busines of filmaking, writing, acting, or editing that went into this movie or into Heart of Darkness: why does Willard keep explaining what's happening? How does the movie relate to the book? Why does Coppola decide to show such horrible scenes and keep them in the background, like Willard casually complaining about having to track down Air Cavalry while bloody families pass by the camara, and the camara doesn't even bother to focus on them. Or you might do something similar by following a particular character or concentrate on a particular type of activity, like killing or loyalty or relations between men and women. The key in all cases is to find the point you want to make, and to pick a moment, character, or other focus that gives you the information to properly illustrate and discuss what you want to say.

As an example of a moment that one might write about, in class we returned several times to the moment when Willard slaughters the wounded vietnamese woman in the sampan. Our discussion involved various impressions of the relative value of a military objective and military discipline, and the moral injunctions against murder. Even though that scene only lasted a few moments in the film, one could write many pages about it because the characters' reactions relate to complex factors that drive important personal and political decisions. By making an observation about some general principle in the scene, one gets focus and relevance, and also gives oneself enough latitude to write a whole essay, or even more. If one just describes the scene, there might not be much to write about. But if one starts to discuss the issues of morals in a wartime situation, things get tough, and one has a chance to make a real statement. At that point, it's possible also to use historical examples or current events that relate to the point as well.

Here are a few other key moments that occur to me:

1. Williard in the hotel, the evidence of his problems, and his relation to his wife and to his mission.

2. Intelligence at Na Trang, the layers of secrecy and the motivations for the mission. Murder charges during wartime, like, say, the My Lai Massacre under Lt. Calley in Vietnam.

3. Air Cav, Kilgore's obsession with surfing, the destruction of the two Vietnamese villages, the use of Wagner and of airstrikes.

4. The USO show and bargaining the fuel for the women.

5. The bridge and the edge of actual combat.

6. The photojournalist and the reception at Kurtz's compound. What's involved in being a follower?

7. Kurtz himself -- his theories; his appraisal of war; his sanity or insanity as opposed to the sanity or insanity of Willard, Kilgore, or the folks at Na Trang.

And there are others. One might start with a current event and look for connections too.

Next Essay

After our dicussion in class, I wondered what I could write about. I thought about taking a scene from the movie, focus on a character,the symbolisims,tones, etc. We didn't get a chance to talk about some themes...so does anybody have any thoughts on any themes? Since I came in a little late, what did Mr. Crandall mention about the essay format? I know it has to be I think 4-6 pgs. I can't remember, so if anybody knows can you let me know...Thank you!

Apocalypse Now

I agree with most people in class about rather writing about Apocalypse Now than to write about Heart of Darkness. They are both very similar but because of Apocalypse Now, I can better understand the story since the reading was quite rough. The problem I have though, is that I can only focus on the military side to it. So, I guess I will write about how I feel about this mission. Is that ok? or do I still have to compare them both? is just hard to think of Heart of Darkness since I got lost in the reading at times, and dozed off a couple of times. Any better ideas?

Apocaypse Now

I watched the movie today, since I wasn't there Saturday. I thought it was interesting how one man said, to the Captian while eating Roast Beef,that good does not always triumph over evil. If you think about it, its really sad.Knowing that there is evil in the world,but there is also a balance of good which gives me hope. That statement that he said just made me ponder about today's standards. I also think, that Kurtz started to become crazy over the years; he became like a savage just as the people who worshiped him in the movie. In the movie, I didn't mention ivory though...did it?

Apocalypse Now

It was interesting how the movie "Apocalypse Now" was made from the novel "Heart of Darkness". As I watched the movie I saw everything that was in the story of "Heart of Darkness". The only difference from the book to the movie was the ending of the story in the book and that the movie was set in Vietnam. Watching the movie brought the book to life for me. It gave me a broader picture of all that was going on in the book. Did it help all of you get a better picture of the story in the book?

Apocalypse Now

I was told that Apocalypse now is a very good movie. Im thinking of writting my 3rd essay on the movie.