Benjamin Button Research Articles

SYMBOLISM IN “A CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON” (1922) BY F. SCOTT FITZGERALD

This paper analyzes the use of symbolism in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (1922), focusing on its employment of allegory, archetypes, and symbols. The study seeks to throw further light on the manner in which Fitzgerald uses literary symbolism as a means to explore the modernist consciousness of the protagonist, Benjamin Button, who serves as an archetype for the alienation experienced by modern man in the Jazz Age. By examining both personal and conventional symbols, the paper not only reveals how the protagonist embodies the tensions of his era, but also highlights how he exemplifies the human representatives of the period. Special attention is given to several underexplored symbols within the story, including: Benjamin's dress suit, the cigars he smokes as an infant, his hair dye, fake whiskers, and the colored paper in kindergarten. These symbols illustrate Fitzgerald's craftsmanship in conveying complex themes such as identity, aging, and societal expectations. Through the juxtaposition of these symbols with Benjamin's unusual aging process, the paper argues that the protagonist becomes a symbolic figure for the disorientation and alienation experienced by individuals in the modernist era. Ultimately, the research provides fresh insights into how Fitzgerald’s symbolism deepens the narrative’s engagement with modernist themes, offering a richer understanding of both the text and its cultural significance.

The (Im)Possibility of Self-Realisation in Fitzgerald's “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and Its Film Adaptation

The (Im)Possibility of Self-Realisation in Fitzgerald's “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and Its Film Adaptation

The quest for the Benjamin Button effect in Silicon Valley: Bioethical and ecological issues posed by the longevity and immortality industry

The attainment of longevity and immortality, long a theme of fairy tales and myths, has now become a real-world quest. Scientists, innovators, and elite Silicon Valley entrepreneurs are engaged in an epic mission to transcend mortal limits and defeat death using innovative biomedical technologies. From cryonics and plasma infusion to genetic editing and mind uploading, the development of such technologies has been gaining momentum in recent years. Such biomedical advances in longevity and immortality, if successful, will have implications not only for individuals but also for society. Given their exponential growth as a target of commercial investment, it is crucial to address the potential bioethical and ecological issues these technologies pose within the ecosystem.

The Benjamin Button effect on stem cells: Reversing the clock on aging immunity.

Antibody-based therapy depletes myeloid-biased hematopoietic stem cells (my-HSCs) to rejuvenate the immune system and improve immune responses in aged mice.

Benjamin Button Jellyfish

As called immortal jellyfish species, the Benjamin Button of the deep, which can age backward and silently fall into the world's oceans, swarm by swarm. This jellyfish can transform from an adult into a baby, but unlike Benjamin Button, the jellyfish can do it repeatedly. In the Mediterranean Sea, this immortal jellyfish (Turritopsis dohrnii) was discovered in 1883. Its unique ability was discovered in the 1990s. It regularly reverts into a sexually immature stage after reproduction and when injured or starved. The only way it can die is to be eaten, removed from the water, or infected.

Adventures and Advances in Time Travel With Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells and Automated Patch Clamp.

In the Hollywood blockbuster “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” a fantastical fable unfolds of a man’s life that travels through time reversing the aging process; as the tale progresses, the frail old man becomes a vigorous, vivacious young man, then man becomes boy and boy becomes baby. The reality of cellular time travel, however, is far more wondrous: we now have the ability to both reverse and then forward time on mature cells. Four proteins were found to rewind the molecular clock of adult cells back to their embryonic, “blank canvas” pluripotent stem cell state, allowing these pluripotent stem cells to then be differentiated to fast forward their molecular clocks to the desired adult specialist cell types. These four proteins – the “Yamanaka factors” – form critical elements of this cellular time travel, which deservedly won Shinya Yamanaka the Nobel Prize for his lab’s work discovering them. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) hold much promise in our understanding of physiology and medicine. They encapsulate the signaling pathways of the desired cell types, such as cardiomyocytes or neurons, and thus act as model cells for defining the critical ion channel activity in healthy and disease states. Since hiPSCs can be derived from any patient, highly specific, personalized (or stratified) physiology, and/or pathophysiology can be defined, leading to exciting developments in personalized medicines and interventions. As such, hiPSC married with high throughput automated patch clamp (APC) ion channel recording platforms provide a foundation for significant physiological, medical and drug discovery advances. This review aims to summarize the current state of affairs of hiPSC and APC: the background and recent advances made; and the pros, cons and challenges of these technologies. Whilst the authors have yet to finalize a fully functional time traveling machine, they will endeavor to provide plausible future projections on where hiPSC and APC are likely to carry us. One future projection the authors are confident in making is the increasing necessity and adoption of these technologies in the discovery of the next blockbuster, this time a life-enhancing ion channel drug, not a fantastical movie.

On the Conceptualisation of LIFE in the melodrama “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (2008)

According to Conceptual Metaphor Theory (hereafter: CMT), conceived by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (1980), metaphors are not merely rarely occurring poetic or stylistic features of language. On the contrary, as the scholars point out, conceptual metaphors have their origins in our bodily experiences of the world around us. Hence, they are ubiquitous and have a consequently profound influence on our thoughts and actions. This paper aims to show that people, life, love, romance, birth, life stages, life goals, progress made, obstacles along the way, successes and failures, emotions experienced, as well as time, death and the afterlife are conceptualized in modalities of a SOURCE-PATH-GOAL schema, JOURNEY and MOTION IN SPACE domains in accordance with CMT. This is achieved by analysing a monomodal discourse using the Pragglejaz Group (2007) method and an online Cambridge English Dictionary. For the study, I have used a selection of monologues and dialogues of Benjamin Button, the protagonist, together with the characters who have the greatest impact on his life in the Eric Roth screenplay of a melodrama entitled: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, directed by D. Fincher and based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald, featuring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett.

PROBLEMATIZING BLACK FEMALE CHARACTER AS MOTHER FIGURE IN ADAPTATION OF “THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON”

<p>This research examines how the movie “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” constructs the character of Queenie as mammy stereotype and the accounts of her presence in this adaptation. By applying the semiotic theory of Roland Barthes, this research analyzes mise-en-scene examination to find the mammy stereotype constructed in the character Queenie by looking at the history of slavery in America. Then, in order to find the account of Queenie’s presence, this research uses the adaptation theory of Linda Hutcheon. Thus, this research finds that the movie constructs mammy stereotype, that has been ingrained in the history of slavery in America, in the character Queenie through mise-en-scene, specifically in the figure behavior of Queenie. Moreover, the presence of Queenie in the movie challenges the stereotype by showing the significant role of mammy in a parent's abandonment of a white child. The presence of Queenie makes this movie as a process and a product based on Hutcheon’s adaptation theory. As her presence telling the story in variation and paying tribute to the short story, the movie represents Queenie to contest the short story point of view towards black, especially a black woman.</p>

It’s About Time――クィア・エイジング の理論へ向けて、または映画『ベンジャ ミン・バトンの数奇な人生』とポジティヴ・ エイジングのイデオロギー

It’s About Time――クィア・エイジング の理論へ向けて、または映画『ベンジャ ミン・バトンの数奇な人生』とポジティヴ・ エイジングのイデオロギー

Representation of women in the literary and medical discourse of the U.S. prose

The purpose of the study is to develop a typology of female images in American literary works on medical topics. Research methods: narratological, theory of receptive aesthetics, feminist literary criticism. The object of research is the prose works of American writers of the late XIX - early XXI centuries. Scientific novelty. The article analyzes for the first time the narrative configuration, the author’s artistic intentions and the role of the reader’s reception in the medical literary discourse through the prism of the historical role of women in American society. Conclusions. During the study, it was found that female images within the analyzed material are divided into several categories. We examined the role of a female doctor in the novels “Doctor Zey” (1882) by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, “Under the Glass Dome” (1963) by Sylvia Plath, “Doctors” (1988) Eric Seagal, “Operation Wandering Soul” (1993) by Richard Powers , “Nothing Lasts Forever” (1994) Sidney Sheldon and “Harvest” (1996) Tess Gerritsen. In addition, we found features of the image of women as nurses in the works “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (1922) by Francis Scott Fitzgerald, “Arrowsmith” (1925) Sinclair Lewis, “Johnny Got a Rifle” (1938) Dalton Trumbo, “Snake Pit” (1946) Mary Jane Ward, “Flying Over the Cuckoo's Nest” (1962) Ken Kesey, “MASH: A Novel About Three Army Physicians” (1968) Richard Hooker, “House of God” (1978) Samuel Shem, “Critical Condition” (2002 ) Peter Clement. Finally, we examined the narrative role of patients in the novels “The Snake Pit” (1946) by Mary Jane Ward, “Under the Glass Dome” (1963) by Sylvia Plath, “Interrupted Life” (1993) by Susanne Keysen and “Prozac Nation” (1994) Elizabeth Würzel . The theoretical significance of the study is to reveal the features of the image of women in the American literary and medical discourse in the diachronic aspect

Mastering of Fancy Meeting Reality: A Critical Exploration of Magical Realism with Reference to “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” Directed by David Fincher

Apart from other art forms, cinema has an unquestionable potential to install new concepts and believes among the society. It has spread around the world, crossed the barriers of languages and communities and has traversed into the depths of social arena. The tool which caused an impact in the ethos, throughout the history is nothing but the new notions portrayed by the filmmakers. Cinema has overpowered the restrictions of the cultural borders and showed its power towards internationalism, which caught the mind of the viewers worldwide. The plot of a cinema often reminds us of things we perhaps already know, but may often forget, that is the beauty of storytelling. The world we see through a lens, is lot clearer than the real one, it takes people to other dimensions of perspective. This approach may be unfathomable to our sceptical minds, which always has an inclination towards disbelieves, but it is still worth the time to question our preconceived dogmas. Magical realism managed to touch the everyday life of the ordinary people through cinema, even though it appears in many fields of art and literature; there is not a single thing that is missing in Magical Realism. When a viewer look at an art work, if they could see beyond the picture of an inanimate object and grasp the depth of the concept which is hidden, through a unique vantage point, then that is the moment you appreciate Magical Realism.

Rapunzel, Benjamin Button and Little Red Riding Hood in This and Any Other Possible World: Philosophical, Rhetorical and Textual Semiotic Excursions in Inter-Textual Formations Amongst Advertising, Literary and Filmic Texts

The theory of counterfactuals has been widely applied in economic and management sciences, including marketing. Among the various facets of the counterfactuals literature that have been addressed by branches of philosophy and linguistics, such as philosophy of language, logical semantics, linguistic semantics, modal fictionalism, pragmatics, I am focusing on the specific topic of possible worlds. In particular, by drawing on semantics, textual semiotics and rhetoric, I am addressing how fictive elements, embedded in a fabular world and once conceived of as counterfactual attain to be actualized in advertising discourse as part of our cultural world. By adopting Eco’s fundamental premise that our world is first and foremost culturally constituted, and by recruiting rhetoric as an essential complement of a hybrid semantic/textual semiotic approach, I venture into the fantasy island of cinematic and literary fiction, only to show that this and other possible worlds are not that far apart. The managerial applications for brand genealogists, but also in terms of developing advertising texts by drawing on a combinatorial logic of properties and individuals from fictive worlds are highlighted as an addendum to the practical implications of philosophical and semiotic theory.

LEARNING LIFE COURSE CONCEPTS THROUGH FILM

This paper explains how students learned foundational concepts through viewing a commercial film. The students (mostly social, behavioral, and biomedical sciences majors) were enrolled in a survey course for the gerontology major in a Program of Merit-certified Bachelor of Science program. Elements of the life course (transitions, counter-transitions, trajectory, age norms and timetables, sequence, duration, and social clock), and types of aging (biological, psychological, social, chronological, functional and subjective) are evident in the 2008 fictional film, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. An adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story by the same name, the film chronicles a man’s life who was born physiologically old and dies as an infant with dementia. A multi-phased, active learning approach was used in which students (1) read about the abstract concepts from a textbook, (2) viewed the film while simultaneously identifying and applying concepts through notetaking, reflective writing prompts, and class discussion, (3) defined concepts and critically analyzed the contents in a written assessment, and (4) recalled definitions of concepts, eight weeks later, in a multiple choice final exam. Over three-quarters of students scored 80% or higher on the written assessment. Students under the active learning approach demonstrated higher recall on the final exam compared to students who were under the previous approach of standard lecture. Though these findings indicate that active learning through film is effective, they were realized retrospectively while attempting to improve a course’s learning outcomes. A planned, cross-sectional study could better account for variability and yield more conclusive results.

The Eloquence of the Sound in the Production of Mental Image in the Feature Film

The ideas and information obtained by the viewer in the cinema have always been the source of the visual image, but that doesn’t negate the fact that the mental image can produce a lot of the information and ideas in the cinematic art and the most important means to achieve this mental image in the film is the eloquent cinematic sound. This research is conducted to show this important and effective contribution of the sound in the production of the mental image. Hence the importance of this research is in that it addresses an important issue which is the eloquent performance of the sound and its role in the production of the mental image inside the space of the feature film. This research concerns those working the field of cinema and it also provides the art library with a new study related to the audio aspect, which is an integral part of the film world. The objective of the research is to reveal the ways that the eloquence of sound and mental image in the novel are achieved by. The chosen research sample is (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), and the main focus of the research will be (rhetoric, concept and tools), (mental image) and (the eloquent Sound performance in cinematography). The most important results of the research are as follows: The mental image is produced based on the use of non-identical function of the sound with the meaning of the image. The mental image is useful in producing a conceptual level that supports the general meaning of the film. The research ends with a set of conclusions based on the theoretical framework and the analysis of the sample, in addition to a list of sources, references, annexes and an abstract in the language English

Fantastic reversals of time: Representations of ageing in the fantastic mode

AbstractThe focus of the essay is the question how the genre of fantasy affects age narratives in terms of the representation of old age. Analyzing George McDonald’s “Little Daylight” (1864), Mary Elizabeth Braddon’s “Good Lady Ducayne” (1896) and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The curious case of Benjamin Button” (1921), I will argue that the mode of the fantastic serves to open up alternative visions of time and ageing. These age fantasies serve different cultural functions, both by reinforcing contemporary age stereotypes and by envisioning possible counter-narratives of old age. On a discursive level, I will compare the problems with representing old age, its contradictions and ambiguities, to the internal oppositions of the fantastic genre.

地中から作家を突き動かすもの : F. Scott Fitzgerald "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"と父親殺し(東北英文学研究)

地中から作家を突き動かすもの : F. Scott Fitzgerald "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"と父親殺し(東北英文学研究)

Fitzgerald and Hemingway on Film: A Critical Study of the Adaptations, 1924–2013

Fitzgerald and Hemingway on Film: A Critical Study of the Adaptations, 1924–2013

Fitzgerald and Hemingway on Film: A Critical Study of the Adaptations, 1924–2013

Fitzgerald and Hemingway on Film: A Critical Study of the Adaptations, 1924–2013

Fitzgerald and France, Or “The Course Of True Love Never Did Run Smooth” A Review Essay

Fitzgerald and France, Or “The Course Of True Love Never Did Run Smooth” <i>A Review Essay</i>

TRANSFORMING THE NARRATIVE ELEMENTS FROM THE FITZGERALD INTO FINCHER’S THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON

&lt;p&gt;Adaptation is the process of transforming one form of art into another one. Many decent films are adapted from great literary work. In the adaptation process, some changes occur in film. It is because film is produced in different way from novel. This study focuses on the transformation of the narrative elements from the short story into the film entitled &lt;em&gt;The Curious Case of Benjamin Button&lt;/em&gt;. This study uses the theory of adaptation by Linda Seger to explain the adaptation process from the short story into the film as the sources of data. There are three processes of adaptation: condensing and expanding the material, the process of making the film commercial, and varied changing. The narrative elements theory is also used to explain the structure that builds the literary work.&lt;/p&gt;