Let Your Heart Hold Fast Reading Log

Let Your Heart Hold Fast Reading Log
By Sarah McKenzie

A slightly different reading log based on the lyrics of a song and their relationship with an episode of a TV show.

Song written and performed by Fort Atlantic and featured in How I Met Your Mother (2012) in the USA. Listened to on 22/4/16 and log written on 1/5/16.

Main Summary
Let Your Heart Hold Fast is a song about someone who feels lost and trapped in his world and in himself and eventually survives. The song tells us to 'hold fast' and 'never fear' and that all will soon be OK.

Personal Response A- A Verse that Stood Out
The final verse (and altered chorus): 'So let your heart hold fast / For this soon shall pass / There's another hill ahead' confused me at first. I understood the first two lines because they are reoccurring and they are the main message of the song - hold on and stay put because everything bad will eventually pass; however I was puzzled by 'there's another hill ahead'. I thought it may mean that yet another bad thing will come soon, but that did not make sense in terms of the message of the song. I then noticed the relationship between the depth sung in verse 2 (oceans deep / canyons steep) and the height referred to in this line, and how those differences relate to life. To me, the final line means that life still goes on after depression and you might encounter 'hills' in the form of hardships, but that will always be better than being stuck in the bottom of the ocean - meaning being trapped or depressed.

Personal Response B- The Text in Correspondence with an Episode of TV
I first heard this song in the Season 8 episode of How I Met Your Mother. The song plays at the end of The Final Page after two main characters get engaged. This leaves Ted (The I in HIMYM) without whom he believes is 'The One'. This song conveys the message of his emotions, in his unhappiness but also that it will soon pass and that he should believe in himself and hold on. It is a turning point in the series and is shortly before Ted meets the titular Mother. 'To believe I walk alone / Is a lie that I've been told' is a very meaningful line and shows us that everything will soon be alright and there are people around who can support him, no matter what.

Personal Response C- The Lyrics' Meaning and Relation to Real Life
In entirety, the lyrics tell a story of a man who feels like his life is lost and that he is completely alone and desolate, then his final journey for a sense of safety comes to an end and he survives and pulls himself out of his hole with the help of others. The chorus and specific lines such as 'Never fear! No! Never fear!' are aimed towards listeners and convince us that our story will not end up being bad. I think that these lyrics would really help somebody who feels like they might be surrounded by 'oceans deep' or 'canyons steep' and would help them realise that they don't 'walk alone' and can ask for help.

I would recommend this song to anyone who wants some deeper meaning to the music they listen to, or anyone (like I mentioned above) who feels sad or depressed. The song does sound quite melancholy but does have a positive message.


Complete Lyrics:
All my days are spent
All my cards are dealt
Oh, the desolation grows!
Every inch revealed
As my heart is pierced
Oh, my soul is now exposed!

In the oceans deep;
In the canyons steep
Walls of granite here I stand
All my desperate calls
Echo off the walls
Back and forth; then back again

To believe I walk alone
Is a lie that I've been told

So let your heart hold fast
For this soon shall pass
Like the high tide takes the sand

Oh, oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh!

Oh, oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh!

At the bitter end
Salt and liquid blend
From the corner of my eyes
All the miles wrecked
Every broken step
Always searching, always blind

Never fear! No! Never fear!
Never fear! No! Never fear!

So let your heart hold fast
For this soon shall pass
There's another hill ahead

The Blue Umbrella Reading Log

The Blue Umbrella Reading Log

By Sarah McKenzie

Short Film written and directed by Sanchez Unseld (2013) in the USA. Watched on Thursday 3rd March and log written Friday 4 March- Thursday 17 March.

Plot Summary

A blue umbrella with feelings is brought out on a rainy New York day. Falls for a red umbrella but then gets blown away from his owner. Gets hit by a truck but owner finds him. Ends with red and blue umbrella in La Parapluie (The Umbrella) cafe.

Personal Response A- Sounds and Music

The sounds and soundtrack in the Blue Umbrella are very dynamic. The diagetic sounds of footsteps, rain and general bustle builds to the start of a soundtrack that is very fitting for the film. These sounds set up the mood of the whole video and I think that the type of instruments and tone of he music helps to guide the video through the Blue Umbrella's journey. The absence of dialogue throughout the whole film almost forces us to watch the character's actions and feelings than we would if they were talking. For example: instead of the Blue Umbrella announcing to everyone that he is happy at the start of the film, we infer his hopefulness and happiness through colour, facial expression and the mood of the music.

Person Response B- Characterisation
The characters in The Blue Umbrella and the makers' personification of them is very effective and clever. In particular, the colours and style of the animation rally gives life to the umbrellas as well as the other objects with faces (traffic lights, post box etc.). The blue represents the main umbrella's masculinity as well as his hopefulness in comparison to the red umbrella's femininity and attractiveness; and all of the black and darker-toned umbrellas show dullness and the gloominess of the setting. The cute animation and style of the film helps to give expressions to the characters, the simply made city objects with just two eyes and a mouth make them likeable yet still realistic and the absence of humans helps us to focus on the personified features of the characters and the realism of the story.

Personal Response C- Editing and Cinematography
I think that the way that the film has been put together, with long, romantic shots in the lovey-dovey scenes and fast-pasted choppy shots in the action scenes is very fitting. The fast cuts and varied angles at the start of the movie show the busyness and bustle of the city. Slow scenes and lots of two shots convey love and romance. The editors also use features such as fade to black for specific purposes- e.g. to show when the umbrella is unconscious. The shots and angles used by the animators are effective, and despite the fact that the film is not acted by real people, the cinematography still plays a part in the film.

In conclusion, I would definitely recommend The Blue Umbrella to students my age because it has a great soundtrack and sound effects and the characterisation of inanimate objects makes the movie interesting and easy to imagine in real life. The film is cute and I could recommend it to any lovers of a fun, romantic story.