The Path & Cave

It takes a long time for Phil to make the full transaction. The most obvious observation of this path, is how long, and time consuming it can be. Even when Phil knows what will happen on that one day it still takes him quite a few tries before he really gets it right (and only after he starts paying attention of other people around him). I feel that his path to enlightenment is a lot shorter in the movie, than it would be in reality. Part of what speeds up the process is the knowledge he has of the day. Whereas for most people, we have to get things right the first time since there is no chance for people to try again. The path of enlightenment is really similar to Plato’s cave and a lot can be used when looking at the two analogies.

Taking a step back, the path of enlightenment is filled with little dead ends, or smaller caves that trap people until they realize they are going in the wrong direction, and head by over to the correct path. When Phil first finds out that he is living the same day over and over again; at first he is in denial, that the day is happening again. That seems to be the point where he starts to realize that he is stuck in a cave. After thinking that he knows, he starts acting reckless before realizing that it is not what he really wants to do, then starts to work on his relationships with women. When he tries a few different approaches (with varying results) he seems to realize that it is not what he really wants, and changes his actions the next day. The reckless actions and his attempts to work on relationships are the side caves and dead ends people encounter when working to the path of enlightenment.

By the end of the movie, when he works on improving himself, and taking note of the needs of others on that day, he reaches the end of the path. Working to improve himself as a person is like reaching the mouth of the cave, and observing the world in a new perspective. Using the knowledge he has on the happenings of the day, Phil goes around town to help people, and that is the final and ultimate step when on the path of enlightenment.

Groundhog's Day

As a whole, I really like watching Phil's character develop through out the movie. He goes from a shallow character who is focused on himself, to someone who actually looks around, and cares for other people. My favorite scene in the movie, is towards the end; when he starts to help the people in the city. Since he knows so much, it was nice of him to go through and help who he can. I really liked that scene, because it is what sets every thing up for the end of the play. While it does not really say what he did to get the day to stop repeating, and the auction was a funny switch from the beginning.

Of Heights and Floating Stairs

When growing up, certain types of stairs and heights really scared me. Most stairs are more solid, and have something covering the distance between steps, but those are not the ones that terrified me. The ‘floating steps’ seemed as if they would move apart or closer to each other at any time. Combine that with the fear that the gaps between the steps would allow people’s hands to get through and drag me under the step, where I would fall and roll down the stairs. My fear of heights probably steamed from that fear. With heights, I was alright when standing on high solid ground. The fear only comes out when I am high off the ground, and can see what is under me. While I know where my fear of heights came from, I still don’t know why a specific type of stairs would scare me so much when I was younger.

Both fears stayed with me for a long time. Over time, I made attempts to overcome the fear and it took a lot longer for me to finally break free. That did not happen until high school; I really started breaking through the fear because I was really interested in the theater (the plays, dance ensembles, and musicals). While I did not like being on stage, I found that being on the technical crew for the performances were really fun and enjoyable. In the second performance of the school year, they needed a person to run the spotlight. The teacher who was running the show (and did not know about my fears) asked me if I was interested in working more with the lights, so I agreed (not knowing what I was getting myself into). Going up the first time, and walking over the catwalk (where the stage lights and spot light are placed), while being able to see all the chairs under me the first time was really nerve wrecking. I treated it more as a ‘if she can do it, then I can do it too’ moment since there was someone there to show me what is up there, and what I have to do. The first few times going up by myself felt like it took a lot longer than I expected. Climbing up really steep ‘floating stairs’ that you can see through, then passing through furnace room to get to the roof of the building before getting to the squeaky catwalk. After a while (I got to spend a lot of time after school there for a month or two), I started to really enjoy the catwalk. Looking down at the stage gave me an unblocked view of the stage, and because I was so isolated up there, I was given a headset to stay in contact with the stage manager. After running the spotlight that time, I found that I can go up the ‘floating stairs’ and heights were not a problem with me anymore.

I had so much fun that time that I volunteered to run the spotlights when ever needed. Thinking back to it, if the teacher did not ask me to go up there, I would have been missing out on a really interesting learning experience. Going up there taught me a lot about the different lights that are used in a performance, and to challenge myself when possible. After getting that little nudge to face my fears, I was able to find how much I liked working the lights, and got a glimpse into what I was missing because of my fears. Looking back, I am glad that I did not step down from the offer.