As the narrator becomes more immersed in the Indian culture her viewpoint changes, the composer indicates this to the responder by contrasting the imagery. This is first seen during leelavati’s death. The narrator’s surroundings are described as: “The water in the reservoir was pure as the sky, disturbed only by the reflections of skimming kingfishers or of trees momentarily nodding their leaves into its surface. At the far end some buffaloes were bathing, immersed so deeply that only their heads were visible above the water.” The narrator’s process of discovery is extremely detailed and visible throughout the novel, however the ultimate discovery is unclear the novel ends with the narrator climbing higher up a mountain. In this case the process of discovery is clearly more important then the discovery itself.
The other main character in the novel “heat and dust” was Olivia. Like the narrator Olivia’s process of discovery was by far more important then the discovery itself. Her discoveries were of both a positive and negative nature. They were positive in that they gave her an insight into herself and were negative in that they tore her between two men and cultures.
Olivia discovered that she did not want to be like one of the British in India. The process began when Olivia was accompanied by Mrs. Crawford to visit the begum. Olivia’s description of Mrs. Crawford was: “She sat bolt upright in her chair.” The composer emphasized Olivia’s feeling of being “out of place” by comparing the “get together” to a scene in a play, with everyone stiff and having a role to play. We find out the she has ultimately made this discovery during a conversation with the Nawab where she says: “Please don’t lump me in with that lot.” Here the process is a gradual one and occurs slowly throughout the course of the novel. The discovery itself is practically an anti climax and is not given any significance by the composer.
The novel is very rich in symbolism. Symbols of sensuality, such as flowers and fertility such as the husbands wedding day all prepared us for the affairs that were to take place. The parallels between the stories also emphasize their differences and similarities. An example is that they both fall pregnant however Olivia has an abortion and the narrator keeps the baby. This clearly shows the strength that the narrator possesses and Olivia lacks. These techniques are all tools that immerse the responder in the process of discovery of the characters. The composer is putting an emphasis on the process and not the discoveries.
In the movie “The matrix” the process of discovery that is undertaken by neo is important but is overshadowed by the discovery itself. Neo discovered that the matrix existed. The process of this discovery wasn’t shown in the movie, because it was irrelevant. Neo also goes through the process that he is the one. In this case the process is important, it requires Neo to face his doubts and come to understand the true nature of the matrix. However the discovery that he is the “one” ultimately overshadowed the process of the discovery. This is because of the significance of the discovery to the story line.
Trinity also discovered that she was in love with neo, this process was shown throughout the film and is even pointed out by cipher who says: “You never bought me breakfast.” This process is also overshadowed by the discovery. This is because it does not matter how trinity came to love neo but that she ultimately is in love with him.
A technique the director used in the movie the matrix in order to convey discoveries was “bullet” time. This is where everything takes place in slow motion; the viewer is able to see everything that is taken place. An example of a scene where bullet time is used is when neo is dodging bullets. The responder can see time slow down as neo slowly falls backwards and the vibrations of the bullets in the air as they pass by Neo’s arm. The director is putting emphasis on the discoveries as apposed to the process of the discovery. This is due to the fact that the discoveries in the matrix are the climax of the storyline.
Another way, which we were able to distinguish the moments of discovery for ordinary moments, is through the actor’s facial expressions and by reading their body language. For example at the beginning of the movie neo always seems anxious however at the end of the movie he walks straight with his head held high. This confidence boost shows the important nature of the discovery.
In the novel “The day after forever” the process of discovery is virtually non-existent for most of the discoveries made. An example is that there was no distinct “process” of discovery for the discovery that Courtie was being physically abused. The discovery was made when Toni and Eddie saw a bruise on her arm.
When Courtie found out that Jeff had leukemia, the process was Jeff telling her that he was dying. It wasn’t significant however the discovery that Jeff was dying was extremely important because it showed how close Jeff and Courtie had become as well as how devastating it was for her to discover he was dying. So in this case the discovery was by far more important then the process of discovery.
In conclusion whether or not the discovery or the process of discovery is more important depends on the context and type of the discovery made. It is true to say that at times the process is more important then the discovery itself but this is not always the case. Whether or not the discovery is more important then the process of discovery depends on the significance of the discovery to the storyline and the composer’s emphasis on it.
