Introduction
There are many differences and similarities to be extracted from the events in “All summer in a day” a short story and “I am a legend” the movie. This paper will evaluate the stylist devices and how the writers use the characters in each plot. It will further analyze the artistic work from each story to determine their effectiveness.
The theme of struggle is evident in both stories. Nevil in ‘I am a legend’ struggles with isolation while staying alone almost all the time. The character also struggles to cope with the loneliness by watching pornography. In the other case, Margot and the other children stay lonely in the darkness for long. They struggle to cope with the situation by imagination of the warmness of the sun.
There is symbolism in the stories too. The butterfly in the movie symbolizes a change and transformation. It changes from the egg to pupa and finally a butterfly which is a powerful message and a symbol of life change. In the short story, Margot and the children are anxious to see the light from the sun (Bradbury et al., 24). Light symbolizes a new life full of hope. However, during the hours of light, Margot was unlucky to enjoy like the children did.
The use of imagery is also evident in both stories. The movie uses imagery at the end to bring the spiritual message which is very vital to character motivation. Imagery is seen in the short story when the children imaginations of the warmth of the sun and yet they never had a chance to enjoy it before.
Differences
Despite the similarities stated above, there is a varied character ways of life between the two stories. For instance, Nevil interacts freely with the lonely environment in the NYC apartments. However, at some time Nevil experiences major emotional breakdown to the extent of attempting to commit suicide. The characters in the short story cope with a darkness situation all through. This shows a difference in personality in the two texts.
Nevil gets to interact with a dog while looking for friendship and social support. Thereafter, nevil compares life to that of Bob Marley and stresses the importance to fight hatred and racism. On the other hand, the children abandon Margot and intentionally refuse to open the closet for him to see the light. This creates a clear distinction between the social aspects of the characters in the movie compared to the short story.
In terms of the effectiveness with coping to the new world environments and experiences, the film events are more effective compared to the short story. This is because, although all characters in both contexts are subjected to a strange environment, Nevil uses all available resources to survive. At some point, Nevil even goes further to watch pornography, befriend a dog and takes courage and hope through inspiration of Bob Marley’s life. This shows strong personality and confidence in dealing with life issues. The characters in the short story also take a lot hope for future life together. However, their social relationships show a lack of unity and cohesion that’s why the children fail to set Margot free to have the test of the eagerly, long-awaited sun light. The visual aspect of the film also emphasizes its effectiveness as compared to the short story.
Works Cited
Bradbury, Ray, JoAnne Sherry, and Anne M. Matsuzaki. All Summer in a Day. Honolulu, HI N.p., n.d. Print.
I Am Legend. Dir. Francis Lawrence . Perf. Will Smith,. 2007. Film.
