style crime thriller. Peter Weir presents a number of themes that are based around the contrasting aspects between two conflicting cultures; the Amish and the “English‚” contradicting between the mainstream American society and the Amish community in regional Pennsylvania. American society is seen as a violent and arrogant group of people‚ whereas the Amish are seen to be a peaceful and religious group of people. This raises many moral issues with the unlikely relationship between John Book and Rachel
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angles and camera shots and the narrative structure of the film. The clash between Amish pacifism and modern American society’s attitude towards violence also affects their bond. These components have affected Rachel and John’s ability to have a long-lasting relationship. The audience is oriented through three key scenes. The opening scene orientates the audience about the Amish the scene also establishes the peaceful Amish culture. Book arrives at the Lapp farm is the second scene which represents the
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‘activities that break the law and are subject to official punishment (Holborn and Haralambos‚ 2000‚ pg. 330) All social norms are accompanied by sanctions that promote conformity and protect against non-conformity. A sanction is any reaction from others to the behaviour of an individual or group that is meant to ensure compliance to a given norm. Sanctions may be positive (the offering of reward for conformity) or negative (punishment for behaviour that does not conform. (Haralambos and Holborn 2000
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America is so fascinated about is the Amish. They entered the U.S. between 1730 and 1770; where around 100 Amish families‚ from Switzerland‚ settled in Pennsylvania. The Anabaptists were ferociously persecuted in their home country because of their religion. The effect of this was an encouragement of “simplicity and piety; which the Anabaptist already saw in the Bible” (Nolt 11). Today‚ there are over 250‚000 Amish people living in over 28 states. The “Amish come from Jakob Amman‚ who taught his
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idealised representation of Amish people‚ and their dissimilar values and morals are powerfully shown visually. Linking Sentence from the intro Weir speculates the attitudinal divide of the values and morals of the two worlds. He focuses in the conflict of cultures and social values that they represent. In Book’s world there is only individuality; we see this in Book’s relationship with his sister and his sister’s dysfunctional family‚ on the other hand‚ the Amish are portrayed as tight-knit‚
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Wisconsin v. Yoder‚ 406 U.S. 205 (1972)‚ is the case in which the United States Supreme Court found that Amish children could not be placed under compulsory education past 8th grade‚ as it violated their fundamental right to freedom of religion. Three Amish students from three different families stopped attending New Glarus High School in the New Glarus‚ Wisconsin school district at the end of the eighth grade‚ all due to their religious beliefs. The three families were represented by Jonas
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“Happy Valley” scene and the “Barn-Raising” scene. Weir attempts to emphasise the moral of the film which is that the mainstream western society has lost its way as it results to violence and “unclean” values in order to bring peace compared to the Amish‚ who believe there is no such thing as violence used for good and that there is always another way to protect the good. Weir emphasises the moral by demonstrating this distinct idea of the collision of the two cultures and‚ furthermore‚ through the
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a young Amish boy named Samuel (Lukas Haas) who was traveling by train with his mother (Kelly McGillis) to
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thriller‚ which was directed by Peter Weir and released in 1985. The film centres around the Amish community who live in Pennsylvania‚ and a young Amish boy‚ Samuel‚ and his widowed mother‚ Rachel‚ who are caught up in the clash between two very different worlds. One world is the modern‚ American‚ consumerist world‚ focused on money‚ property and individual success‚ and the other is the contrasting world of the Amish which is focused on serving their community. This clash between the two worlds is represented
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definitely still existing to the audience of today due solely to the fact that the Amish still remain in present society. The Amish are a community where modern technology does not exist. The film establishes a culture clash between the Amish and the ‘English’ which still occurs today. The idea of a culture clash in the film ‘Witness’ is played on by Weir as he establishes a clear difference in the ‘English’ and Amish communities. The scene where a long shot is used to show a horse and carriage and
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