Emma Cheung Blog #1 - 9/19/19 Period 2

Project Presentations Day 1

1) The Mineshaft

    -argument over name: decided on Road Work Ahead (Wall-E reference I think)

    -greyscale except boy and father: everything grim and bleak, reflects setting of book

    -simple to be able to show what is going on but not enough to give the feeling of wholeness --> emptiness and hopelessness

    -plot: company (Biolarge? I am uncertain of the spelling) tries to trash earth, literally. They tried to ship ppl out to space, and a spaceship crashes. The man and the father were on it.

   -well done overall, interesting plot idea / interpretation of data and lots of textual evidence. Personally not big on the cover, but it does the job.

2) The Roadkill

    -lots of symbolism in the imagery (city, meteorite looks like smiling face in the sky, house is isolation)

    -good textual evidence to back up their claims

    -plot not as interesting as the Mineshaft's, but the idea of zealous arsonists worshiping the the meteor and its fire is realistic and adds and interesting edge to their story... (plus cannibalistic cults).

   -bit long, went over 10 min

   -I really, really love how they went into how the fires came to be and the role religion plays in a post-apocalyptic world. It expands on what little McCarthy has given us in a way that so seamlessly connects points I didn't think could be related. Great job.

3) Going South

    -simple, concise cover. Not much symbolism, references the book closely with the stopped clock. 

    -asteroids, parallels to extinction of dinosaurs. no flora or fauna, dust and debris (potentially why the father is coughing), darkness, colder climate

   -great elaboration on the selfishness and cruelty of desperate people and how utilitarian everything has become

    -feels a tad bit boring compared to the other two, but it's still quite good on its own. It doesn't have that creative flare the other two did, but the seriousness and the stress on human values in such a situation I think closes off the presentations nicely. After the more wild and fantastical ideas the Mineshaft and the Roadkill gave us, this felt like it was bringing us back to the more philosophical core of the book.