Violence IS the Answer

Chase Weddington

Violence IS the Answer

            You are sitting in the cafeteria, quietly working on an assignment that you have due later in the afternoon. As you are working, your attention is captured by the person whom you stumbled across at a party the previous night. You and the person engaged in an altercation in which they purposely tripped you in front of the large crowd. Thoughts begin to race in your mind, igniting a fierce anger and thirst for revenge. In modern day society, people preach to each other that it is better to just “turn the other cheek”. In other words, it is best not to physically retaliate against the person who offended you. It would do nothing but cause an infinite cycle of retaliation between the two parties. It is taught in today’s society that if a person wants to settle a difference, it should be done verbally with the absence of any offensive language or actions. This is not the same method that was portrayed in the movie Unforgiven. The movie, which takes place in old western era, teaches that conversation is not the most effective approach to take when attempting to settle a difference. This movie illustrates that violence is the first method to take to get even with someone or to solve a problem.

We first notice the use of violence at the beginning of the movie. A man is viciously assaulting a woman by stabbing at her face with a knife. The reason for this violence was because the man had become infuriated after the woman laughed at his physical condition. Modern day society teaches us that the man’s overly violent attack was the most inappropriate method to take. To settle his anger with the woman, the man should have approached it in two different ways. His first option was to be passive about the situation and ignore her actions. It would have been more appropriate if he had coped with his embarrassment in order to prevent any further conflicts. Another method that today’s society would have suggested was for the man to share his anger in a verbal conversation with the woman. This way, he could express his disapproval of the woman’s action without igniting retaliation. The violent attack that the man engaged in would have received a far more intense consequence than the one he was given in the movie. He and his companion would have been arrested and convicted versus being forced to donate horses. This shows that violent actions were tolerated more in the society of the old west than they are today. Violence was seen as a mechanism to express anger when the women threw mud at the companion of the man that violently attacked the lady. These examples show that violence was a prompt method to take since society does not show disapproval against its practices.

There were several more instances in which violence was chose as a first resort. A person would draw their gun as quickly as they could in order to express their anger. English Bob illustrated this action in a scene in which he stumbled into a town with his apprentice W. W. Beauchamp. As they walked into the local barbershop, a deputy approached them and notified them that they were not allowed to carry their firearms. English Bob resisted this demand by lying and saying that he was unarmed. The deputy quickly responded by gathering his fellow deputies and taking up arms. English Bob walked into a group of men arranged in a crescent with their guns drawn at his head. Instead of engaging in an aggressive verbal demand, the man found it more efficient to threaten English Bob with lethal weapons. The commotion caused a crowd to develop. This scene illustrates how accepting society was to violence during this time period. They remained calm and collective, not expressing any anxiety concerning the deadly situation that had erupted. Had the same situation occurred in today’s society, the crowd would have been absent or frenzied out of fear of the possible results. This shows how society has become more accepting to violence over the course of history.

The youth were sometimes more gun-prone than the older generation during the period of the old west. This was illustrated when Ned Logan and Schofield first encountered. After Schofield Kid opened fire upon Ned and Willy, Ned questioned Schofield Kid’s shooting ability. This caused Schofield Kid to become offended and as a response, he quickly pointed his gun to Ned’s face threatening to open fire. Even the most subtle acts would initiate an intense confrontation. In today’s society, guns are not drawn this quickly over such minor conflicts. This also shows the easier access to weapons individuals had during this period. Many of the youth resorted to gun violence first because there was always a gun within reach. Because it is more difficult to acquire weapons in today’s society, gun violence is not seen as much.

In summation, the tolerance of gun violence and weapons was higher in the period of the old west versus today’s society. It is mainly due to the accessibility that people had to them in the past. The process of obtaining a handgun is simpler than it is today. As a result, it was common to find a person with their finger on the trigger in the old west.

Silence and Suspense

 

            Can you imagine a speeding ambulance weaving through traffic to deliver a sick patient to the hospital without siren? Or better yet, a high speed police chase where the police car also does not have a siren? Furthermore, what if you were sleeping in a building that suddenly caught on fire and the fire alarm failed to make any noise? As you can see, sounds are essential to the way things are carried out in the world. Upon hearing a certain sound, a person can expect what is happening or what is going to happen next. When a person hears a siren from an ambulance or a police car, he or she knows that an emergency is taking place or has taken place, and that they must get out of the way if necessary. When you take sounds and alerts out of society, you hinder people from being able to predict future occurrences. One writer/director found that he could enhance an audience’s movie experience by reducing the amount of dialogue. In the 1968 western film Once Upon A Time in the West, Sergio Leone increases the suspense of the movie by decreasing the dialogue/monologue between the characters.

            The movie begins with a gang of bandits raiding a local train station. Upon entering the salon, the bandits run into an elderly station agent and a mid-aged lady. They wander the station with slow movements refraining from saying anything to either of the two individuals—even as the elderly station agent addresses them. The writer ignites suspense within the audience because he does not clearly show the intentions of the bandits. By omitting dialogue, he leaves it up to the audience to guess what will be the bandits’ next action. Leone now makes the audience become the bandits and make decisions such as: should we leave salon peacefully, or should we ignite chaos? Another mechanism that Leone used to increase the suspense in the movie was foreshadowing. The bandits waited at the station for the arrival of a man who carried a harmonica. When his train arrived, the bandits and the man with the harmonica stood on opposite sides of the track and addressed each other. The man with the harmonica asked the bandits “Did you bring a horse for me?” One of the bandits laughed and answered “Looks like we’re shy one horse”. The man with the harmonica then responded “You brought two too many”. At this point, the audience then is given a signal that someone will not make it out of this scene alive. The director enhances the suspense by silencing the characters for a brief period. The audience is left to decide which character(s) will meet their fate. The author ends the suspense once the man with the harmonica eliminates the three bandits.

 

                              Picture #1: The bandits meet the man with the harmonica (time stamp: (0:11::01))

            Another instance in which the director uses silence and foreshadowing to enhance suspense occurs at the abode of the McBain’s. Mr. McBain and his son were preparing to leave to the train station to pick up his new wife, Mrs. McBain. His son asked him “How will we know what she looks like?” Mr. McBain then pulls out his letter from her which says that she will be arriving in a black dress. In society, the color black is usually associated with death. This was a method that the director used to foreshadow the death of McBain. Shortly after reading the letter, the family grew quiet as Maureen McBain watched as birds flew off in a hurry. The camera focuses on Maureen as she stares in awe of the birds. This was a form of foreshadowing her death because birds are associated with death and being free from the bondage of the world. Silence then strikes the characters as they try to figure out what startled the birds. The audience also is left to figure out where the disturbance is coming from and what will happen to the characters. The silence is suddenly broken with the firing of a gun to Maureen and then to Mr. McBain and his son. The youngest son walks out the house and stumbles into Frank, the notorious gangster who led the massacre. Silence again occurred as the audience is left to figure out what will happen to the young lad. One of Frank’s handymen asks him “What should we do with this one, Frank?” Frank then answers “Well since you’ve said my name…” Frank does not finish his sentence and instead becomes silent. The audience at this point is suspenseful, trying to decipher the fate of the young lad. The scene ends with Frank killing the young boy along with his parents.

 

        Picture #2: Frank approaches the young McBain (time stamp: (0:21::46))

            In summation, the author found favor in this technique because it was a method of keeping the audience engaged in the film. For the remainder of the movie, the director continues to use the method of silence and subtle foreshadowing. By doing so, the audience is able to imagine the story in their point of view for a brief moment. Increasing the silence of the characters will keep enhance the suspense of the film.