Rosy retrospection

Rosy retrospection refers to the finding that subjects later rate past events more positively than they had actually rated them when the event occurred, reminiscent of the Latin phrase memoria praeteritorum bonorum ("The memory of the good pasts").

The effect appears to be stronger with moderately pleasant events and is usually explained as a result of minor annoyances and dislikes "fading" from memory dramatically faster than positive situations.

A related idiom, to "see through rose-tinted glasses", means a perception of a situation or a past event in an over-positive way, not noticing or recalling undesirable or negative aspects.

Experiments

In one group of experiments, three groups going on different vacations were interviewed before, during and after their journeys. Most followed the pattern of initial anticipation, followed by mild disappointment. Generally, most subjects some time later reviewed the events more favorably than they actually did while experiencing them.

The Caretaker

The Caretaker is a play in three acts by Harold Pinter. Although it was the sixth of his major works for stage and television, this psychological study of the confluence of power, allegiance, innocence, and corruption among two brothers and a tramp, became Pinter's first significant commercial success. It premiered at the Arts Theatre Club in London's West End on 27 April 1960 and transferred to the Duchess Theatre the following month, where it ran for 444 performances before departing London for Broadway. In 1964, a film version of the play based on Pinter's unpublished screenplay was directed by Clive Donner. The movie starred Alan Bates as Mick and Donald Pleasence as Davies in their original stage roles, while Robert Shaw replaced Peter Woodthorpe as Aston. First published by both Encore Publishing and Eyre Methuen in 1960, The Caretaker remains one of Pinter's most celebrated and oft-performed plays.

Plot summary

Act I

A night in winter

Aston has invited Davies, a homeless man, into his flat after rescuing him from a bar fight (7–9). Davies comments on the flat and criticises the fact that it is cluttered and badly kept. Aston attempts to find a pair of shoes for Davies but Davies rejects all the offers. Once he turns down a pair that doesn't fit well enough and another that has the wrong colour laces. Early on, Davies reveals to Aston that his real name is not "Bernard Jenkins", his "assumed name", but really "Mac Davies" (19–20, 25). He claims that his papers validating this fact are in Sidcup and that he must and will return there to retrieve them just as soon as he has a good pair of shoes. Aston and Davies discuss where he will sleep and the problem of the "bucket" attached to the ceiling to catch dripping rain water from the leaky roof (20–21) and Davies "gets into bed" while "ASTON sits, poking his [electrical] plug (21).

The Caretaker (Doctor Who)

"The Caretaker" is the sixth episode of the eighth series of the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who, written by Gareth Roberts and Steven Moffat, and directed by Paul Murphy. The episode stars Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, and Samuel Anderson.

Plot

Clara Oswald is struggling to maintain two separate lives: one as the Doctor's companion and the other as a school teacher at Coal Hill School, while also having a relationship with fellow teacher Danny Pink. Preparing for his next outing, the Doctor informs Clara that she cannot join him as he is going under "deep cover". The next morning in the school staffroom, the head teacher presents a temporary caretaker: the Doctor, under the alias John Smith. Clara eventually learns the Doctor's actual purpose is the presence of a murderous robot called the Skovox Blitzer located near the school, which contains enough firepower to destroy the planet. Clara tells the Doctor to leave it alone, but the Doctor explains that if he does not act, someone will attack it and it will begin to destroy Earth. He intends to draw it to the school at night when it is empty and use a time displacement vortex to displace it a billion years into the future where it can't harm anyone. He is in the process of planting devices around the school to generate the vortex. He also demonstrates an invisibility watch, which he will use to avoid detection by the Skovox.

The Caretaker (film)

The Caretaker (also known as The Guest ) is a 1963 British drama film directed by Clive Donner and based on the Harold Pinter play of the same name. It was entered into the 13th Berlin International Film Festival where it won the Silver Bear Extraordinary Jury Prize.

Cast

Production

The movie was made by a partnership of six people, none of whom took payment: Clive Donner, Alan Bates, Robert Shaw, Harold Pinter and Michael Birkett.

No distributor expressed interest in funding the film, which meant it was unable to attract investment from the National Film Finance Corporation, because it was unable to give money to projects without a reasonable chance of a commercial screening. The budget was eventually raised with the support of a consortium, which included such figures as Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Noël Coward and Peter Sellers, each member giving £1,000.

Reception

The film was unable to obtain a release in London until it first screened in New York. According to Janet Moat, "the film is striking. Donner deploys a non-musical soundtrack, close-ups and two-shots to unsettling and menacing effect."