#konchalovsky

[psikonauti]

Pyotr Konchalovsky (Russian,1876-1956)

Window, 1936

Oil on canvas

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Poetry

Poetry

A type of literature that conveys a thought, describes a scene or tells a story in a concentrated, lyrical arrangement of words.

Poems can be structured, with rhyming lines and meter, the rhythm and emphasis of a line based on syllabic beats.

Poems can also be freeform, which follows no formal structure.

The basic building block of a poem is a verse known as a stanza.

A stanza is a grouping of lines related to the same thought or topic, similar to a paragraph in prose.

A stanza can be subdivided based on the number of lines it contains.

For example, a couplet is a stanza with two lines.

On the page, poetry is visibly unique: a narrow column of words with recurring breaks between stanzas. Lines of a poem may be indented or lengthened with extra spacing between words. The white space that frames a poem is an aesthetic guide for how a poem is read.

Meter

A poem can contain many elements to give it structure.

Rhyme is perhaps the most common of these elements: countless poetic works, from limericks to epic poems to pop lyrics, contain rhymes.

But equally important is meter, which imposes specific length and emphasis on a given line of poetry.

Stanza

In poetry, a stanza is used to describe the main building block of a poem.

It is a unit of poetry composed of lines that relate to a similar thought or topic—like a paragraph in prose or a verse in a song.

Every stanza in a poem has its own concept and serves a unique purpose.

A stanza may be arranged according to rhyming patterns and meters—the syllabic beats of a line.

It can also be a free-flowing verse that has no formal structure.

Rhyme Scheme

There are many different types of rhymes that poets use in their work: internal rhymes, slant rhymes, eye rhymes, identical rhymes, and more.

One of the most common ways to write a rhyming poem is to use a rhyme scheme composed of shared vowel sounds or consonants.

Types of Poetic Forms

Some of literature’s most enduring types of poems.

Blank verse. Blank verse is poetry written with a precise meter—almost always iambic pentameter—that does not rhyme.

Rhymed poetry. In contrast to blank verse, rhymed poems rhyme by definition, although their scheme varies.

Free verse. Free verse poetry is poetry that lacks a consistent rhyme scheme, metrical pattern, or musical form.

Epics. An epic poem is a lengthy, narrative work of poetry; typically detail extraordinary feats and adventures of characters from a distant past.

Narrative poetry. Similar to an epic, a narrative poem tells a story. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere” and Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” exemplify this form.

Haiku. A 3-line poetic form originating in Japan. The first line has five syllables, the second line has seven syllables, and the third line again has five syllables.

Pastoral poetry. A pastoral poem is one that concerns the natural world, rural life, and landscapes. These poems have persevered from Ancient Greece (in the poetry of Hesiod) to Ancient Rome (Virgil) to the present day (Gary Snyder).

Sonnet. A sonnet is a 14 line poem, typically (but not exclusively) concerning the topic of love. Sonnets contain internal rhymes within their 14 lines; the exact rhyme scheme depends on the style of a sonnet.

Elegies. An elegy is a poem that reflects upon death or loss. Traditionally, it contains themes of mourning, loss, and reflection. However, it can also explore themes of redemption and consolation.

Ode. A tribute to its subject, although the subject need not be dead—or even sentient, as in John Keats’ “Ode on a Grecian Urn”.

Limerick. A 5-line poem that consists of a single stanza, an AABBA rhyme scheme, and whose subject is a short, pithy tale or description.

Lyric poetry. The broad category of poetry that concerns feelings and emotion. This distinguishes it from two other poetic categories: epic and dramatic.

Ballad. A form of narrative verse that can be either poetic or musical. It typically follows a pattern of rhymed quatrains. From John Keats to Samuel Taylor Coleridge to Bob Dylan, it represents a melodious form of storytelling.

Soliloquy. A soliloquy is a monologue in which a character speaks to him or herself, expressing inner thoughts that an audience might not otherwise know. Soliloquies are not definitionally poems, although they often can be—most famously in the plays of William Shakespeare.

Villanelle. A nineteen-line poem consisting of five tercets and a quatrain, with a highly specified internal rhyme scheme. Originally a variation on a pastoral, the villanelle has evolved to describe obsessions and other intense subject matters, as exemplified by Dylan Thomas, author of villanelles like “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.”

Imagery

In poetry and literature, imagery is the use of figurative language to evoke a sensory experience in the reader.

When a poet uses descriptive language well, they play to the reader’s senses, providing them with sights, tastes, smells, sounds, internal and external feelings, and even internal emotion.

Blank Verse & Free Verse Poetry

Free verse poetry has been popular from the 19th century onward and is not bound by rules regarding rhyme or meter.

Blank verse poetry came of age in the sixteenth century and has been famously employed by the likes of William Shakespeare, John Milton, William Wordsworth, and countless others.

Unlike free verse, it adheres to a strong metrical pattern.

Mimesis

Copying is something writers usually strive to avoid.

And yet, the literary theory of mimesis says that artists copy constantly, as a matter of necessity.

Does this make their art bad?

Centuries of thinkers from Plato and Aristotle onwards have attempted to answer this question by debating the nature of mimesis.

Onomatopoeia

Usually, how words sound bears no relationship to what they mean.

That’s not true in the case of onomatopoeia, where words sound like what they are. The English language is littered with these mimicking words, from meowing cats to babbling brooks.

In poetry and literature, the onomatopoeic effect is something writers can harness to create vivid imagery without verbosity.

Enjambment

Poetry is a structured literary form, with patterns and rhythms that dictate the flow of verses.

Lineation in poetry is how lines are divided and where they end in relation to a clause or thought. Having a line break at the end of a phrase or complete thought is a regular and expected pattern in poetry.

Poets subvert this expectation by using a technique called enjambment.

Dissonance

The human brain instinctively looks for harmony.

When it is denied harmony, it can create a powerful moment—whether that’s for the purposes of creating tension, capturing inner turmoil, or bringing a bit of levity.

Injects discomfort into text through inharmonious sounds and uneven rhythms.

Consonance

In poetry, rhyme isn’t the only way to introduce memorability and musicality.

Consonance presents poets with the possibility of playing around with the repetition of consonant sounds.

Assonance

Assonance, the repetition of vowel sounds, is distinct from consonance, which refers to the repetition of consonant sounds.

Along with rhyme and alliteration, it is a powerful poetic device that writers can use to make their words stand out.

Alliteration

Sometimes called initial rhyme or head rhyme, alliteration is one poetic device that’s unmissable in our everyday world.

Poets, advertisers and headline writers all regularly take this approach of repeating initial letter sounds to grab people’s attention.

In poetry, it also injects focus, harmony, and rhythm. 

Source ⚜ More: Notes ⚜ References for Poets ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[arinewman7]

First Snow. Blue Cottage.

Pyotr Konchalovsky

1938

[princesspierpaolo]

the lion in winter (2003) dir. andrei konchalovsky

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

[ratatoskryggdrasil]

Pyotr Konchalovsky, Sitter, 1928

[burningexeter]

I'm working on something - a 2D adult-animated action/horror/urban fantasy/noir/crime/drama series - that will retroactively put all ten of these movies and more in the same shared universe as each other for world-building.

— THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION

— THE GREEN MILE

— SAVING PRIVATE RYAN

— SINNERS

— GANGS OF NEW YORK

— CRIMSON PEAK

— YEAR OF THE DRAGON

— RUNAWAY TRAIN

— HEAT (1995)

&

— THE INVISIBLE MAN (2020)

Yet that's just to name ten and ten only so far.

[philiponmycracker]

A study in expressions Tom Hulce edition: Some more gifs to celebrate my king the wonderful Mr Hulce as Ivan, from The Inner Circle (dir. Andrei Konchalovsky, 1991) because just his face I swear to god

[grrl-beetle]

Runaway Train

[huariqueje]

Moscow. Pharmacy in Sadovaya  -  Pyotr Konchalovsky , 1931.

Russian , 1876 - 1956

Oil, 54 x 71 cm

[artved]

— Oak Grove by Pyotr Konchalovsky, 1920

[psikonauti]

Pyotr Konchalovsky (Russian,1876-1956)

Apples and a dog-keeper, 1939

Oil on canvas

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Analysis: Of Mice and Men (Key Terms & Concepts)

AMERICAN DREAM

In Of Mice and Men the American Dream is symbolized by George and Lennie's desire for their own piece of land.

They momentarily believe if they work hard and save their money, they can afford to buy a home and work only for their own upkeep rather than someone else's.

Lennie and George's dream is eventually thwarted by the accidental killing of Curley's wife, demonstrating that no matter how hard one works, there are strong forces outside of one's control that ultimately determine one's success or failure.

DIFFERENCES

Steinbeck has an eclectic cast of characters in the story that have noticeable differences, like mental or physical disabilities, that set them apart and influence how they are treated by others in society.

Most specifically are Lennie, Candy, and Crooks, though Curley's wife can also be included because she is a woman, and therefore vastly different from the men around her.

ECONOMIC CLASS

In Of Mice and Men Steinbeck shows that hard-working Americans like George, Lennie, and the rest of their co-workers are unable to rise to a desirable middle-class lifestyle due to social and natural forces outside of their control.

They are doomed to wander from place to place in search of better work, better pay, and a place to call home.

FEMININITY

Curley's wife is the only female character physically present in the story.

Her femininity is both feared and resented by the males that surround her on the ranch.

Steinbeck uses Curley's wife to demonstrate how women are lonely and out of place in the masculine world of the ranch.

LONELINESS

There is an ever-present sense of loneliness in the text. Crooks, Candy, and Curley's wife all express their deep desire for companionship.

George and Lennie have managed to temporarily escape loneliness through their friendship, which makes others curious as well as a little jealous.

George eventually ends up alone like the others after he is forced to kill Lennie at the end of the story.

RABBITS

Rabbits take on a significant role in the story, representing George and Lennie's vision of the American Dream.

Before George kills Lennie, he tells Lennie about the rabbits that they plan to have.

When George kills Lennie, he also kills the idea of the rabbits and their dream of having a life of freedom.

RACE

Crooks, the African-American stable hand, is the main example of how race is incorporated into the story.

Steinbeck portrays Crooks as bitter and lonely because of the way he is ostracized from the rest of society.

Steinbeck shows that despite African-Americans being free they are still enslaved by terrible racism in the United States.

Curley's wife most poignantly reminds Crooks of his position when she threatens to have him lynched for crossing her.

Source ⚜ Writing Notes & References

[lexisbethrothed]

The Greatest Film Adaptation of The Odyssey by Homer is The Odyssey (1997)

I Will Not Accept Any Other, Seriously.

One of the best memories I have with watching movies is me and my dad watching this movie over and over. Actually, I watched it a lot, and he was loving enough to be there. Other than that, it was one of my best introductions to the lore of ancient mythologies and ancient classical literature. I have no idea if I had said this in one of my essays, but I am very much in love with classical stories , I mean ANCIENT. That's also why I still dream of playing the God of War series, even when I can not play Mobile Legends to save my life.

Now, this movie is perfection to me. I had just watched it again because of a subject in my college course, also because the song "Suffering" of Epic: The Musical had been blasting in playlist. I really love this movie for a good amount of reasons that I will be listing down below.

To those who love ancient mythology stories, I encourage you to watch this version of The Odyssey of Homer.

For these reasons:

The Authentic Feel

I think a lot of us were cringing at the fact how blockbuster heavy the "Gods of Egypts" was. I know I was. I don't even remember the plot, I just remember how cgi just dominated that movie. Just animate it, it would have probably been more watchable without that kind of visual assault. It's way too jarring.

High budget was this TV miniseries and they made it WORTHWHILE.

With the 1997 teleplay "The Odyssey," it felt so authentic. Just starting with introducing culture, I have no idea if it was truly authentic to real life, but IT FELT LIKE IT. The soldiers chanting before going to war, Odysseus' maid's way of praying, the clothes looking worn out, the custom of having music played, and Penelope making olive oil or wine(?). It feels like an actual culture being introduced to us. No one explains anything. They just show it like a way of life.

That is how a lot of blockbuster movies differentiate from indie films or television movies. Blockbuster relies on explaining things to you and uses visuals and sounds to give impact to stimulate you to watch it more. Why do you think it's always in theatres? Why drama is more dramatic or action is more action in those kinds of movies. In teleplays, they don't have that kind of budget, so a lot of the times they rely on what they have, which is what I think they did in The Odyssey.

Remember, this is a made for tv miniseries. Despite its high budget ($32 million), they really had to make this worthwhile for whatever they had and whatever they could do. In the making of the Odyssey, I learned that they had a sort of time quota and TONS OF CREW AND CAST. Those people had to fly places with so many people. A lot were literally sick, and they were working over time. I truly think they made something so good out of it. Props to the whole cast and crew for working that hard.

The buildings, shacks, and other structures look like actual ancient things because they probably were, or they were made to look like it. The ships were my favorite, it was small yes, I understand that it would have been bigger and even more ships to really fit the tale and history, but again, they were on a budget that went to special effects, flights (the crew plus cast was 100+) and it was 1997, the technology available to them were probably limited. Also they built that boat, no way are they going to build such a grandiose army boat when people built those for who knows how long JUST BACK IN THE DAY. No way.

The Odyssey just looks so very authentic. It felt wondrous and also quaint. The Cyclops was believable, as well as his home. I applaud the work they did with special effects, practical and cgi. Most worked well, but some lacked, yet I still love it.

Also, is the beggar look of Odysseus? I am so glad they really made him look like an actual old man, with prosthetics and matching worn-out clothes. Beautiful attention to detail and trying so hard to really make it look authentic as possible.

The FABRIC. Excuse me, the linens, the ship's sail was weaved FOR SURE (and they had to tear it for the later scenes, I can just imagine how hurt the props department would have felt), honestly the weaved tapestries were bomb (this is how authenticity really hit home for me, actual crafting like how people did before), by the way if you are wondering why I am praising this specific thing, that's because these natural fabrics are EXPENSIVE, hand crafted stuff like these are HARD WORK AND SUPER EXPENSIVE (for good reason), and outsourcing these for a movie? The industry that doesn't give crap about nuances like these unless they were actually creative and served a purpose? Konchalovsky and his team did that.

The Cast was RIGHT (MOST, including the side characters and background actors too)

The cast was WELL DIVERSE. Now, here is the thing that I need everyone to know about diversity. It's not just casting people of different race and color, also ETHNICITY. That cast was a mix of American, Italian, Greek, and English.

I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE THINKING, and I will explain.

Why was Vanessa Williams the only black person to be casted there? Because of a number of reasons, I will not be tackling today, but I do know that the Goddess Calypso was suppose to look ageless, and it is a noticeable trait in melanin rich skin colored people, (not everyone, I know that because in any race, not everyone ages gracefully, I am Filipino, rumored to look young, I have been told I look mature for my ages, been told I look 27 and I am fucking 22 so yeah). She had the right look for an adaptation of Calypso, a sea goddess in an island. Casting a person who looks ageless and has the aura of royalty and ancientness, you are going to cast anyone who had that perfect look, no matter the RACE.

Just look at the casting for Circe: Bernadette Peters, AMERICAN. Why was she casted as Circe? Probably because they were looking for a seductive feel who looks ageless. Bernadette looks ageless, fine lines and all.

Armand Assante? You kidding me? He looks like he was meant to be casted as any ancient royalty, and Odysseus was just so perfect for him. The King of Ithaca, the witty trickster. That's basically describing Armand.

And my favorite casting of this movie (irregardless of race, I just hate that people nit pick with that kind of thing, especially with older movies), Isabella Rosellini as Athena. I was so in love with her as a kid, SHE LOOKS LIKE WHAT IMAGINE ATHENA WOULD. Vanessa Williams as Calypso blew me away in the movie yes, and so did Isabella. Her accent (she's Italian), her EYES, her wise aura. She is GODDESS, PERIODT.

Now, let met also praise the side and background characters, the kings and their beards. Those beards are perfect, and I want to say, I was introduced to the appeal of good beards in this movie. They look what you would expect people of that time would, and with a beard like that, they better BE KINGS. Those beards were groomed to perfection. The maid of Anticlea (the mother of Odysseus) and Anticlea herself (the actress is Greek) unknowingly carried the authenticity of this film, as well as the soldiers, the other maids, the citizens and even the shepherd who raised Thelemachus in Odysseus' absence played a role in that too. They made me feel Ithaca was a beautiful kingdom rich with culture. Oh how can I forget the casting of Penelope, Greta Scacchi. That woman played Penelope well, a wife missing her husband, a queen who also participates in the daily life of making olive oil or wine, a wonderful and sensitive mother and daughter in law, I understood how Odysseus would long for her in his 10 year journey.

The acting was TOP TIER for me, Armand especially. He blew me away with every scene. My favourite was when he got home. He sat down, slowly sobbed and took in the reality that he was finally in Ithaca as he ate the cheese and wine of his home, his kingdom. You just knew how grateful and just how homesick he was, that he wasnt just missing Penelope and his son, it was his HOME as a WHOLE. Another favourite was when he and Penelope reunite, but him as a beggar. He gawked at her, his eyes just screaming "I love you". He loves her so much, even after Circe and Calypso who are literal goddesses (haha no I do not condone cheating either, this is a story after all and well, he is a man lost at sea for years), she was the only one he could think about and the only one who could take his breathe away.

I Appreciate The Comical Errors and Comedy

Unpopular opinion, I love the funny parts of the movies. Look, mythological or even just epic stories aren't always that serious, okay? The reason why these stories exist because they do have a seriousness to them, but it also included light hearted moments. Shakespeare made Romeo and Juliet a tragic drama, and the comical thing in it was the love of Romeo and Juliet, how absurd and crazy it was that it led to killings exiles. The Epic of Gilgamesh is, in fact, a serious epic, but the ending was comical, as Gilgamesh's pursuit of immortality failed after a long and gruelling journey. In the making of the Odyssey video, Isabella comments how the tale is serious but also comical. The Odyssey achieved that, where at times it can be serious and times just comical.

That's where a lot of mythological adaptations just fail imo. It takes itself way too seriously, of course, that still depends on what the story is too. This is the Odyssey after all, where it was meant to have a lot of comical errors as well as seriousness. If this was the Illiad , adapted in full, it might work JUST on the comedic stuff and not the seriousness of it.

Directors and writers have to remember that these stories are also introducing more than just a story, it's also introducing another society, with a culture, a way of living and that it has jokes too. The God of War Ragnarok succeeded in that and it's a video game. Details people, details.

The Usage of the Shots (The closer shots,the Zooms and the wide ones)

TV movies and dramas can really suck with their use of shots, particularly how close and how far it is. I like how close the shots were here, actually. Yes, I have seen TV shows and movies where they either get too "creative" or are just not trying at all. They use wide shots for specific ones, like the scenes at sea. Closer shots made it feel like I was there, like a ghost just watching what was happening.

The Tale Was Cut But Was Done Justice

I know creative freedom is done here a lot, cutting the tale shorter like leaving out some of important stories and connecting it differently, it's there. It's pretty okay by me, it's an ADAPTATION after all. The essence was much more important and they did that very well.

I especially appreciate that even when they did cut spme of the stories, they made an effort to connect loose ends so that it would still look like a full tale. Adaptations are supposed to be like that.

Conclusion: Watch it.

What makes a hero's journey isn't all glory. It deals with sacrifice, hindrance, learning, wisdom, and cruelty. It took Odysseus 20 years to go home, with the journey of losing men at war, at sea, challenges by goddesses, gods, errors, choices, beings and the challenges of his own ego and humanity. This Hallmark made for tv miniseries gave me that essence of an actual epic. It was sad, happy, comedic, complicated, and worthwhile.

Yes, I love this movie so much but this post is meant to introduce another post I am going to make in the future, which is an in depth review of the original Odyssey tale.

Also because I would also love to introduce many more beautiful, forgotten films that are worth watching.

This movie miniseries is made for TV, got an award at the Emmy's. Yet, suprisingly, it is underrated.

I think you can tell just from my previous essays that I like underrated or cult following movies, whether it be popular or not. Now, I will be continuing that, along with more stuff I really am interested in, like mythological stories, video games (I still don't play those), therapy, musicals and more.

Do watch the movie if you are interested, it is available in YouTube and Archive.org, it has two parts.

[princesspierpaolo]

the lion in winter (2003) dir. andrei konchalovsky

[oldsardens]

Petr Konchalovsky - Ponte Rialto, Venice