I really thought I was set for my thesis ,But guess what ? Comcast put the srew to me again , night before last  I had proofread my whole paper and wrote what I thought was an excellant conclusion ,while I was doing this our television went out and internet. I thought I would be O.K. because I was in wordpress and it was still up and running ,so I continued to finish and only when I went to save draft did the whole screen go down . I had already pushed the save draft request so I thought I may have been able to save all my changes ,but I couldn’t get back on until after school on Wednsday.Come to find out all the work I had done on the paper was lost and my two hours of time down the tube.So thanks again Comcast for your multi-integregated hi-speed load of crap you propagate the market with ,for I would much rather have a reliable steady system that works at my speed when I need it .At of course a low cost of 5.99 a month ,but I know I’m just dreaming ! Well you did say to talk about the thesis so here goes ,I think I’m in pretty good shape on my draft .I have a lot of material to draw from and use as sources .Today I had planned to go into the computer room at Pierce and set up the outline ,paragraphs endented ,double spacing , times new roman ,all the finishing touches . If I get this blog done soon maybe I will have enough time before I have to leave for school today  to rewrite my conclusion and proofread the paper again . Anyway thats what I’m shooting for  wish me luck  and if you know anyone at Comcast  maybe you could put in a good word for me ?

Starting with a brief outline of the actual history of the Greeks and the prelude to the war  using  excerpts from the ClassicalLiterature in the war film  written by Martin Winkler,the  web site http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BattleofThermopylae. .The web site www.300spartanwarriors.com and  Creativecommons.”Sparta The City That Was better then Athens.”      online posting 7 www.scribd.com/doc/3270144SpartaTheCityThatWasBetterthanAthens. 

Then I will go into the producers (Zack Snyder) version of the war  using the movie 300 , 2009  from how the battle was fought and what led to this short battle in the war to be remembered and using  a review from online source called  About.com Hollywood Movies  I will counter some of their thoughts regarding the movie version.Also using Greek mythology I will enter some ideas as to why the film used  some of the characters  in the movie .I will show some of the reasons this film was made to begin with as well as other films such as Patton, Go Tell The spartans etc.I forgot to just make a list ,I’ll start again.

I will use my journal entries as a research tool to supplement  my writing . The questions that were brought up in class that are part of my journal.The web site entries and comments  on the blog site are another source I will be drawing some info from.

My own two page papers will be a major source of information  and idea’s that I have already put on paper.

One of my major sources for the inspirational idea’s that came from this battle will be Homer’s Illiad .The epitath on the stone  erected by the pass of Thermopyl;ae will be another source of the reasons this battle was remembered .

Another source will be the greek mythology also from Wikipedia ,the free encylcopedia.There is an article on this same site about the movie Go Tell The Spartans, the Veitnam war mavie which I will be using .

My source is a movie review by a Website called About .com.This review is quite favorable towards the production the “300″, in fact there is nothing but praise on all aspects of the film.With high marks given to all involved from the actor’s to the artist’s to the producer’s .

 ”Ther’s a little something for action film freaks as well as those more into drama and romance.” I would have to agree with this thought , for it seems the producer’s have gone out of their way to appeal to a broad viewing audience. Such as the scene with the rhinocerous in the middle of the battle scene  charging the Spartan soldiers made up in war dress. It would seem this is aimed at a younger age viewer , most older people would know that the rhinocerous  is an untamed beast and could not be used in this purpose. Another is the man with the  pincherlike arms that is used to behead the Persian General that does not please Xerxes.

 The author states at another point in his review that “Leonidas’  refusal to bow down to Xerxes sets the events in motion”,talking about the battle at the pass of Thermopylae.This is not the reason behind the battle  just another point that serves to infuriate  King Xerxes,as he is held at bay in his attempt to further his mission  which is the complete subjugation  of Greece . The reason’s for this battle are much deeper , Darius’s invasion plan after his first attempt did not work, the Spartans ethic to protect Sparta at all cost , the prevention of the  Persian army to advance any further into Greece, all played in the events which set this battle into motion.

 All in all though it is a good review on a movie that in my opinion is a very good piece of artistic work combined with the visions of history as it were to make a very appealing story out of this piece of warfare.  They could have done without a few scenes that brought it to a “laugher”and still put together a respectable production

The Battle of Thermopylae is most commonly remembered for the courage and the valour of the famous 300 under their King Leonidas.The gallant fight they fought against overwhelming numbers and the certain death that lay ahead of them on that pass have been written of by many ,throughout history ,it is a story used as an example for all fighting men who would face the inevitable outcome on the battlefield.

This battle was then and still today remembered as well for the opposite in man .There was a man on that same ground,  as the famous 300,  that to this day his name is used to mean coward ,nightmare, traitor, or worse depending on the interpretation you choose to agree with.

This is the story of Ephialities,the traitor. By some accounts given ,not all agree, Ephialities was  born in Trachis ,Greece .As a younger man he was turned away by the army ,which he wanted to join, because he was undisirable.Others say he was nothing more than a local shepherd .For most though, can agree , that he went to the encampment where the Spartan soldiers were at the pass of Thermopylae to ask for a reward of some kind, for furnishing them the information about the path over the pass .By some accounts he was treated rudely and told to leave without recieving anything .Thus ,giving him the reason to go to the Persians ,for the reward.So Ephialitias delivers this information to the Persians and recieves a small reward for his trouble .

The Persians use this path through the pass to encircle Leonidas and his men ,surrounding them, they make short work of the famous 300and their King Leonidas.The gateway has been opened by a lowly goatherder .

Ephialitias flees the area and soon there is a reward on his head by the “deputies of the Greeks “the Pylagorae.The reward is paid not long after to Athenades ,who has killed Ephialitias ,but for another reason,not for his treasonous act.

So in this short battle at this pass of Thermopylae , there is both the best in man , and the worst of man,  for  mankind to remember for all time!

The Battle of Thermopylae was a short  battle in the war between the Greeks and their allies against the invading Persian forces .This was a significant battle for several reasons .The first was the numbers of  the defending army that totaled by some accounts up to between five and seven thousand.Led by King Leonidas the 1st.,they were engaged by somewhere between one hundred thousand to upwards of one million oppposing soldiers of  the Persian Army with King Xerxes as their leader. The Greeks knew the invading Persians were coming and concieved a battle plan that put these opposing armies at the pass of Thermopylae.This was a narrow corridor which the Persian army would have to pass through in order to continue on to their conquest of Greece.So the second reason this was an important battle was to stop the Persian Army from advancing . This battle site was a strategic  geographic  location picked out by the commanders of the Greek Army because of  the physical features  of the landscape.They assumed they would have the best chance to obtain their objective there. The warriors of the Greeks would hold the Persians from passing for up to seven days ,but they were betrayed  by someone to the Persians ,who managed to outflank them .The main fighting force was sent back to join the allied Greek Army and King Leonidas stayed to fight at the Pass with the three hundred chosen Spartan soldiers and by some accounts there may have been another eight hundred or more allied soldiers who stayed with him to guard the rear of  the retreating force. They fought until death .This was another reason why this battle is regarded as important is the way the soldiers persivered in battle.

       Does the film “ Oh Brother Were  Art thou ”  lend itself toward  a tale of morality, or is it just  to be taken at face value  and  be considered a comedy  with a racial undertone  to the plot. We can’t be sure what the Coen brothers  have attempted to say with this production .  From the beginning of this film  , it plays out on the screen as another light humored  spoof ,  of the like that was played out  in the early days of film ,  when slapstick comedy was the king of comedy .  We can’t be sure if there was a method  to the madness  that the Coen brothers have brought to the screen ,  for us to sort through ,  but it would look like they have done the same sort of  subtle work in this madcap tale of misadventure , as they have  done in other works they  have brought to the screen.  For the Coen brothers to say they are not trying to send a moral statement ,  or for that matter a political one , would be to say they are oblivious of  how  their works are percieved by the population at large  ,  to paraphrase Spiro .This is a statement which cannot be easily reconciled  if  you take full measure  of the  underlining of these  tales . In  t he story of  H.I. ,  Raising Arizona , the Coen brothers want us to believe that their intent is not  of morality or anything to do with a statement as a whole , but merely a whimsical story of a man with a dream of how life should be . So the question is do you believe that statement , I find myself not inclined to.  The Coen brothers have a perfectly good story line to do just that, in fact . With H.I. a  man who has wasted his life in the pursuit on the wrong side ,  only has the ability to achieve his dreams, so to speak ,in his dreams ! They again choose not to step up to the podium and recieve the prize , rather they enjoy the rhetoric .

Yes . By definition; a graphic representation or chart of the personality traits of an individual or group. 

  The use of R.D.E.{retrospective dream effect][Andrew Moss].  This is the same effect the Coen brothers used in the movie Blood Simple [Andrew Moss]  . A dream sequence where viewers see the scene played out, and then see Abby come  awake.   Also the use of time/space unity[Andrew Moss]. The Coen brothers take for granted , the audience buys into the fact the character has just awakened from a dream, by showing the person in bed ,sitting up ,startled ,awake.[Andrew Moss] The use of the subversion ,of this R.D.E.,plays out when the viewer is not shown the character wakening from the dream.[Andrew Moss]  The Coen brothers employ an unreal space/time continuum to create not coherence but incoherence.[Andrew Moss]                                                      H.I. as Joel Coen describes him “is caught in an internal struggle”[Andrew Moss].On one side is his desire to settle down and be a family man ,with a wife and kids ,a little house to call his own . On the other side is  “ this inclination to the call of the wild “[Andrew Moss].  H.I.’s character  is shown as a repeat criminal and through the film is portrayed as a moral person with  the hope of attaining the goals in his life. This is shown with his reaction to Ed ,when she tells him about her boyfriend . Also in the way he reacts to the child Nathan . His dreams are used as a tool by the Coen brothers to weave  a tale of  how H.I.’s  going to achieve that goal in his life. Whether they are attainable , or not , they present  an image of his personality and his ambitions. His remorse over the kidnap of the child Nathan Arizona only gives us another aspect of  his psyche , and when he accepts the blame  for the takeing of the baby to Mr. Arizona , this shows us , yet still , another side of his character. If this is just a dream of H.I.’s, then this film would be based on his own quirks and personality traits, and would lend credence to the psychographic nature of this work  .          Leonard Smalls ; the bounty hunter is portrayed as the  epitomy of evil.[Raising Arizona] He is shown riding across the desert and everywhere he goes the brush is  started on fire by his very presence , the earth is scourged ,death is present . When he is talking to Mr. Arizona he  is “a mean man”[Raising Arizona].                                                                                                                                               Gayle and Evelle are given the not so intelligent roles in the movie and are seen as a pair of bumbling idiots . The scene were they come to H.I.’s house, after they breakout of jail , and smell of the sewer  that they had inadvertly dug through on their way out .When they left the baby on the top of the car after the robberies ,not once ,but twice.                                                                                                 . Ed ,as an officer of the law ,twice decorated.[Raising Arizona] She is seen as the wholesome , good person , with fine upstanding morals . Then she is confronted with her own ambitions to be a mother along with her inability to  concieve ,which pushes her over the edge and creates the scenario of the kidnap. After the return of the baby to the Arizona’s home , Ed reverts back to herself.                                                                                                                                                                                      In conclusion; There is ample evidence that this is a psychographic film  with the characters alone , not withstanding the fact ,  the Coen brothers themselves , have a habit of using certain methods to construct a film of uncertainty .[Andrew Moss]

                       My question is: Do the main characters have morals and do they change  through the movie?The main character in the movie Raising Arizona,Hi, is shown in the beginning as a repeat offender with a preference toward robbing conveniance stores.As he faces the parole board  he “says what they want to hear” without any hesitation.This allows him to get what he wants .His freedom.While he is being booked into the jail Hi professes his indignation over the way the boyfriend of the booking officer has been treating her ,which shows his moral side ,towards relationships with woman.Skip ahead to after Hi and Ed are together and she finds out she is “barren”.Ed convinces Hi that they need a family unit so they can be whole. After seeing the story of the Arizonas quints together they conceive to kidnap the child on the premise” that the couple have more than they can handle”,this is how they justify what they are about to do. Even after agreeing with Ed to kidnap the child Hi cant find it in him to do the act and goes back to the car the first time emptyhanded only to be told by Ed to go back and get one .Hi then relents to Eds demand and goes back and takes Nathen Jr..So there is a line there where Hi considers this immoral .When the Boys break out of jail and  come  to their home Hi struggles with Eds request to live by the rules of the house. Hi has a nightmare of the apocalyptic bike rider as he fights with his own morality.Ed sings a lullaby to the child in were she sings about  a murder of a little girl [ammoral]yet she tells Hi not to cuss around the boy.After the boys convince Hi that he is no good to his family Hi writes a note to Ed saying that he has decided to leave with the boys ,claiming he would never have what Ed wants,referring to his moral character.   When the Bounty Hunter shakes down Mr. Arizona he says he will return the baby only for the amount he wants or he will find someone who will pay that amount.This is what I think is another example of an ammoral act.Glen,after finding out who the baby is comes to Hi and tells him ,he will turn him in to the law if they dont turn the baby over to him and wife[ammoral].The two buddies find out who the baby is and then take him for themselves to ransom him back to the Arizona,s.During the bank robbery one says to the other that they cant leave him in the car “because they might get killed and it may be hours before anyone would find him”. Ed declares at the return of the baby” that they didnt do it for the reward”.They had no problems taking the baby yet at the end they both came to the realization they were wrong in what they had done and came to terms with their own morality.They seem to be visibly changed by their experiance.

I am fifty four years old and was born in a small town called West Poland in the state of Maine.Which by birth means I am a western Polish,Mainiac by the name of Almond.LOL. I have been living in Washington State for the last fiftytwo years. I have raised four children, all boys, two of my own and two step. I have been what most people would consider lucky, for I have had the opportunity to have traveled quite a lot . I have driven thru every state in the United States . Except for  Hawaii and Alaska they were all visited  during trips to the East coast. I  drove up the Alkan highway in the late 1970s. That was an interesting trip . Lots of wildlife and the scenery was exceptional all the way up. My brother was stationed at Elmendorf  Airfield   thru-out his career and I was invited to stay with him and his family for three months . During my visit  I had the chance to go flying with his brother in law in a small four seat plane and got to see a lot more of the area from that viewpoint.The last state I had to visit was Hawaii which I was able to fly into in 1992. My family is from the east coast and while growing up here in Washington we would take trips across the lower forty , as they are called in Alaska , and we would take different routes every time. So I have been able to see quite a lot of the popular sites along the way.I find a diversity of movies,books ,events to be  more interesting  then seeing or doing the same thing over and over.My hobbies include photography,hiking,archery,hunting,fishing,4wheeling and exploring new areas. I find myself lacking for work at this time in my life and with my children raised I found the time was right to enroll myself back in the school scene again. I have been in the construction field  for most of my life and would like to remain in this field. So I am enrolled in the Construction Management course here at  Pierce College to achieve my Associates.Looking forward to getting to know all of you.

Hi welcome to my world