Testament (film)
Testament is a 1983 drama film based on a three page long story titled "The Last Testament" by Carol Amen (1934-1987), directed by Lynne Littman and written by John Sacret Young. The film tells the story of how one small suburban town near the San Francisco Bay Area slowly falls apart after a nuclear war destroys outside civilization.
Originally produced for the PBS series American Playhouse, it was given a theatrical release instead by Paramount Pictures (although PBS did subsequently air it a year later). The cast includes Jane Alexander, William Devane, Leon Ames, Lukas Haas, Roxana Zal and, in small roles shortly before a rise in their stardom, Kevin Costner and Rebecca De Mornay. Alexander was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance.
Plot
The Wetherly family—husband Tom (William Devane), wife Carol (Jane Alexander), and children Brad (Ross Harris), Mary Liz (Roxana Zal), and Scottie (Lukas Haas) -- live in the fictional suburb of Hamelin, California, within a 90-minute drive of San Francisco, where Tom works.
Testament (Matt Fishel song)
"Testament" is a song written and performed by British recording artist Matt Fishel. It is a fast punk rock song that also incorporates elements of the more melodic pop punk. The song was released as a single on 28 May 2012, and appears on Fishel's 2013 debut album Not Thinking Straight.
Style and lyrics
"Testament" was written by Matt Fishel, is a fast-paced, melodic punk rock song. Lyrically, it deals with themes of authority, tradition, repression, religion, education and sexuality. When discussing the song's lyrics in an interview with JD Doyle of Queer Music Heritage in April 2013, Fishel said: ""Testament" is about all the influences that can shape who you are as a person, and make you confused or question your place in the world...all these voices that are constantly coming at you from everywhere as you're growing up, whether it's your parents or your school, or religious teachers telling you who you can be, who you should be, what you [ought to] do with your life. I wanted to write a song that's about finding your place, and how you fit into the world." In the same interview Fishel, who is openly gay, said that "ultimately, "Testament" is a celebration of liberation and personal and sexual freedom and saying...I'm going to find my own path, and I'm going to celebrate that." He also described "Testament" as "probably my angriest song on the album".
Le Testament
Le Testament is a collection of poetry composed in 1461 by François Villon. Le Testament, comprising over twenty essentially independent poems in octosyllabic verse, consists of a series of fixed-form poems, namely 16 ballades and three rondeaux, and is recognized as a gem of medieval literature.
Analysis
The 2,023 verses of the Testament are marked by the immediate prospect of death by hanging and frequently describe other forms of misery and death. It mixes reflections on the passing of time, bitter derision, invective, and religious fervor. This mixed tone of tragic sincerity stands in contrast to the other poets of the time.
In one of these poems Ballade des dames du temps jadis ("Ballad of the Ladies of Times Past"), each stanza and the concluding envoi asks after the fate of various celebrated women, including Héloise and Joan of Arc, and ends with the same semi-ironic question:
Tell me where, in which country
Is Flora, the beautiful Roman;
Archipiada (Alcibiades?), and Thaïs
Who was her cousin;
Echo, speaking when one makes noise
Over river or on pond,
Who had a beauty too much more than human?
Oh, where are the snows of yesteryear!
Instinct
Instinct or innate behavior is the inherent inclination of a living organism towards a particular complex behavior. The simplest example of an instinctive behavior is a fixed action pattern (FAP), in which a very short to medium length sequence of actions, without variation, are carried out in response to a clearly defined stimulus.
Any behavior is instinctive if it is performed without being based upon prior experience (that is, in the absence of learning), and is therefore an expression of innate biological factors. Sea turtles, newly hatched on a beach, will automatically move toward the ocean. A kangaroo climbs into its mother's pouch upon being born. Honeybees communicate by dancing in the direction of a food source without formal instruction. Other examples include animal fighting, animal courtship behavior, internal escape functions, and the building of nests.
Instincts are inborn complex patterns of behavior that exist in most members of the species, and should be distinguished from reflexes, which are simple responses of an organism to a specific stimulus, such as the contraction of the pupil in response to bright light or the spasmodic movement of the lower leg when the knee is tapped. The absence of volitional capacity must not be confused with an inability to modify fixed action patterns. For example, people may be able to modify a stimulated fixed action pattern by consciously recognizing the point of its activation and simply stop doing it, whereas animals without a sufficiently strong volitional capacity may not be able to disengage from their fixed action patterns, once activated.
Instinct (Kavana album)
Instinct is the second album by British singer Kavana. The album was recorded in Italy during the summer of 1998 and was produced by production team Absolute. The album spawned the singles "Special Kind of Something", "Funky Love" and "Will You Wait for Me". The album was released on 5 October 1998 by Virgin Records, released in Europe, Australia and Taiwan. The British release was postponed by the record label and was ultimately rescheduled for April 1999, however, Kavana was subsequently dropped from his label following poor sales of the three singles and the album was ultimately never released in the UK. The album was released digitally in the UK more than four years later on 1 March 2003.
Singles
Instinct (Dollhouse)
"Instinct" is the second episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series Dollhouse and the show's 15th episode overall. The episode was written by Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters and directed by Marita Grabiak, the first in the series she has directed. It aired in the United States on Fox on October 2, 2009.
In this episode, Echo has been imprinted as a mother of a child. However Topher has managed to change Echo on a glandular level, giving Echo strong maternal instincts. This unfortunately causes Echo to be paranoid causing her to kidnap the child. Ballard not only has to find Echo, but is forced to face his past as Madeline Costley, known to Ballard as Mellie, comes back into the Dollhouse for a diagnostic.
Plot
The episode starts with Ballard walking into Topher's office inspecting the chair. Topher walks in and they discuss Echo's current engagement. Topher notes that he has just opened up a new world to imprinting. By making changes to the brain, he can theoretically program it to fight cancer or even be telekinetic.
