Character Letter

I beleive in the power of letter writing.  Writing to a specific person is about trying to say something specifically to that person: an audience is given, a purpose for writing is given, and a common conversation is created. 

So, this week, I want you to write a letter to a character in Crime and Punishment.  In your letter, I want you to give them advice.  Explain to them what they have done and what you think they should do to fix the problem.  Be sure to examine not just the short term effects of the solution, but also the long term effects.  Look at the novel as a whole. 

Let’s talk about Power

This week we will explore power and how it is created, used, and the effects of power.  There are many different philosophies about power and how it is created.  Some take it, some earn it, some weasel their way into it, and some are asked to take it because they understand it.  

Some people abuse their power by working to oppress those under them, some use it to serve those  those under their command, some fail and are usurped by those who want to take it.  With the creation of power and the use of power come many different results. 

I want you to watch this clip from the movie, The Last Castle. This the basic storyline from IMDB: “Robert Redford stars in this action drama as General Irwin, a respected three-star tactician whose career ends in disgrace when he's court-martialed and sent to The Castle, a maximum security military prison. Irwin quickly butts heads with the facility's autocratic warden, Colonel Winter (James Gandolfini), who runs his command with an iron fist, even killing prisoners when he deems it necessary. Irwin rallies his fellow convicts into a rag-tag army and leads them in a revolt against Winter, an action that the warden is ready to repel by violent means.”      

Analyze the scene. Look at voice, behavior, body language, actual language, and the like to determine how the power dynamic between these two men works.  

Then, I want you to pick a scene from Crime and Punishment that you think illustrates a similiar rendition of power and explain how the film and the novel both establish commentary on power. You must have specific evidence from both pieces to support your answer.