Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Fishbowl #6: The Truman Show

Good morning!

Today, we are discussing The Truman Show.  Keep in mind the purposes for which we watched this film:  working on our reading of visual text & practicing that reading strategy of synthesizing information to draw bigger picture conclusions.

Accordingly,  in addition to questions about content, consider questions and ideas that connect these texts as well as get use thinking about director choices; remember that directors, just like authors, make the choices they do for a reason.  Think about the small pieces in addition to bigger picture ideas.

As a reminder, to earn full credit for discussion, here are some qualities I'm looking for in your posts and questions:

1.  Demonstration of understanding and critical thinking about the text(s)
2.  Well-written, proofread writing.
3.  Developed ideas that make it clear why you think what you do, supporting your thinking with evidence from the text.
4.  Participation throughout the course of discussion, give or take 5 minutes or so.

Happy posting!

112 comments:

  1. Why do you think there is a staircase on the wall instead of just the door, why do you think that it is painted to match the "sky" around it?

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    1. I think the stairs and the door are painted the same as the rest of the walls because they wouldn't want Truman to look at the "sky" and see the stairs and the door and then try and escape.

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    2. They painted the wall to match the rest of the "sky" so Truman couldn't tell that it existed. If he saw the stairs, he would know that the sky wasn't real, revealing to him that the entire world he lives in was a lie.

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    3. I think it is painted to match the "sky" there because they want it to match through from far away because Truman is scared of the water so they don't think he will go into it because he doesn't have enough confidence to go back since he believes that is how his dad died. I think there is a staircase because it's more of a dramatic way for Truman to exit. Also, maybe they thought that if Truman sees the stairs he will just walk away because he doesn't have much confidence and he is so used to this lifestyle.

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    4. I think that the reason there is a staircase and not just a door is because they don't want Truman to see the door and automatically think his life is a lie. I think they want him to walk up the stairs and kind of process what's going on and what his life is about. I also think they made the stairs blend in with the "sky" because they didn't want it to be too obvious that the world he has been living in his whole life is fake.

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    5. The wall was a painting of the sky because it was there to trick Truman in thinking it is just the open ocean. I think the staircase symbolizes Truman climbing his way up and out of the world. It symbolizes progress to freedom.

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  2. Why would the creator of the show not want Truman to leave? What is there if Truman stays?

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    2. Yeah it doesn't make sense because if he stayed he would have known it was all fake and it wouldn't be a very good show anymore. And the creator is just selfish for wanting him to stay because it was so successful for a long time.

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    3. If Truman stays then the show goes on, but if he stays then the creator will get payed.

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    4. I just think that it was his job to control his life and if he leaves there is no job. He enjoys the thrill of controlling him at all times. I also feel as though he doesn't want him to leave because he has been with Truman his whole life as he said "I have been here since you were born."

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    5. I think that the director has become a little emotionally attached to Truman because he's seen him grow up and watched him for his whole life. I think that the show itself would have to stop though because once Truman knows that he's in a TV show and the illusion has been broken the show can't really go on.

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    6. The creator probably didn't want Truman to leave because there were tons of viewers, which means that he would make a lot of money. Also the movie stated that the creator had been watching Truman his whole life, which meant that the creator could start to develop feelings for Truman. When someone spends much of their time with someone else, they start to develop feelings for one another.

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    7. I think the creator just wanted the show to go on. He has put his whole life to this show and fears loosing it. The creator tries to make Truman believe that life would be better in this society, he tries to convince Truman the "real world" would have nothing for him.

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    8. I think the creator didn't want Truman to leave because he didn't want the show to end and in a way he grew attached to him because he watched him grow up. He said "I know you better than you know yourself" to Truman before he leaves and I think he did because he knew everything that was going to happen to Truman and he controlled what went on in his life.

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    9. I feel like the creator is Truman's real dad and that's why he doesn't want Truman to leave. They totally could have picked any baby and they picked him. In the scene where Truman is sleeping and on camera, the creator strokes the screen as if trying to comfort and show compassion towards him and he also does it in the scene when Truman is about to leave. I think it makes sense that the creator would be his dad because he could be a protective parents that wanted to keep his son safe from the outside world and by making it a television show makes it okay for the creator to have 5000 cameras to watch him.

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  3. I feel as if the symbol of the water was freedom because its a way to escape the dystopian city. Also it surrounds them and allows them to have the opportunity to escape.

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  4. Do you think that Truman would turn back from the storm, if he had not seen his father?

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  5. What was so entertaining about Truman's life in the first place?

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    1. I think what was so entertaining was seeing a man live his life exactly how we would without knowing he was on tv. Plus, Truman was a very likeable person with a good personality.

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    2. I think his life was entertaining because it allows people to forget about their own problems. They invest in someone else life to forget about their own.

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    3. Nothing in particular but, the people on the show could alter his life like when his dad comes back. But what drew in the viewers mostly was that he didn't know he was on tv so it made it interesting.

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    4. I think it was so interesting for the viewers because Truman did not know his life was a tv show. He thought everything was real and everyone else knew it wasn't so that catches the viewers eyes.

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    1. It wasn't against the law he just couldn't do because he was afraid of water

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    2. I don't think that it is against the law I think that he was scared to drive over the water because of his fear of drowning.

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    3. Because, going over bridge leads them to the outside world

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    4. I felt as if it was against the law to do so because that's where the main entrance was to the dome, where Truman lived. If Truman were to cross, he would have a high possibility of realizing that he lives in a fake world and would ruin the whole TV show.

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  7. Thinking back to when Truman's friend was trying to convince Truman that he wasn't a part of a plot, why was it so important for the director to show that people were telling Truman's friend what to say?

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    1. I think it showed how nothing around Truman is real, no matter how real it might seem. It shows how manipulative the director and the show really is and puts the audience on Truman's side

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  8. I think the importance of the water is that Truman fears it. It keeps Truman from leaving this society, it's the creators way of keeping Truman isolated from the real world.

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  9. Do you think that there was ever a true friendship between Truman and Louis?

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    1. I think Truman thought there was a true friendship with Louis but Louis was just doing his job and didn't really consider Truman a best friend

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  10. I think fire in F451 and water in Truman show are both symbols of control because the fire stops people from reading and thinking for themselves and water stops Truman from trying to leave and finding out he's in a fake society.

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    1. I agree with you. I think in F451 water shows control because water is part of getting rid of the books so the people won't try to do anything they're not supposed to do. In The Truman Show, Truman is afraid of water so that is a way that they control him. If they don't want him somewhere, they make it rain or when he is in the boat towards the end they make a really bad storm to try to get Truman to stop and go back. In both F451 and The Truman Show they rebel against it and go for what they believe.

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    2. I agree with you because these are two elements that drove the characters actions and had control over their lives. The fire in F451 drives Montag and his society because of fear which is the same aspect that drives Truman. But we see both of them conquer their fears by Montag standing up for the books and Truman sailed across the water to the end of the little world he was in.

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  12. Do you think the director has taken Truman to be his own son because he's been there his whole life?

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    1. I think that he has because he basically fathered Truman ever since he was born and he made all the events in his life possible. Also a couple times the director was seen trying to hold or pet him on the tv.

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    2. I think Truman is a his own child to him because he watched Truman be born and then continued to watch his entire life. The whole world watched it too but the director had more of a relationship because he controlled more of Truman's life. Also, I think he believes that he is protecting Truman so to him that builds a stronger bond too.

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    3. I do believe that the producer thought of Truman as his own son because he created his life and watched him grow up. Is also think the producer did not comprehend that this show could be wrong. At the same time I think the producer did not care for Truman so much because he would rather see Truman die then escape the show.

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  13. Why do you think they included the father in Truman's life and why did they pretend that he drowned? What impact did this have in Truman's life?

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    1. They were probably trying to make Truman afraid of the water so that he would never try to escape like he did

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    2. I feel as if they had his father "drowned" because water is one of the main ways to leave the dome and if Truman is afraid of water, then its a higher possibility that Truman won't realize that his whole life was a lie.

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  14. Do you think that Christof (the producer of the show) was happy with the way it ended or more upset that it ended and not in the way he planned for it to?

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    1. I think that Christof was more upset the way it ended because he spent a good part of his life creating this world for Truman.

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    3. I think the producer was upset because his whole world revolved around the Truman show. He had put so much time and dedication into creating Truman's life.

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  15. Do you think that Truman ever noticed the hints that he was being spied on before now but just couldn't do anything about it?

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    1. I think that he just didn't think much of it. I think when odd things happened he just kind of brushed it off and went on with his life without a hunch. But then at a point when odd things kept happening and happening then Truman was suspicious and started to question life more.

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    2. I think Truman was slowly figuring out something wasn't right because when he acted like he was asleep in the basement but really escaped, he knew someone was watching him.

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  16. I thought the director said that every thing was for sale so they get payed for what they do but they can't spend it anywhere else.

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  17. Do you think that the relationship between Truman and his best friend is real, or is it fake?

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  19. In what ways do you think Sylvia and Clarisse are similar?

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    1. They both convinced the main character that they were being brainwashed. And they both couldn't stop thinking about the girls. And also they might of both loved the girls.

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  20. When we think about Montag and Truman, and how at a point in their lives they started to question things and wonder if they were a part of something bigger and that the life they thought they led isn't what they thought. What makes us question life?

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    1. I believe that when we can;t have what we want (books or Fiji) then we start to wonder why we can't have those things. From there it is just a snowball effect until they come to the fact that the life they are living is just not right.

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    2. I think our friends are the ones who make us question life at times, because they are the ones you talk too about everything. When they give you advice it will often make you stop and think about things. In this case both men finally stop and realize that they don't really have true love which will make them question a lot of things in their life.

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  21. Do you think Marlon really cared about Truman? They were best friends for their entire lives and if you spend that much time with someone especially since childhood, wouldn't you have to care about them?

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    1. I agree, I think Marlon did care about him deep down but that couldn't overcome how brainwashed he was to create a "fake life" for Truman.

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  22. Why do you think Truman bought the women's magazine to cut out facial features and rearrange them?

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    1. Because he wanted to make a face that looked like the love of his life, Lauren. I believe that that also tells us that he was never happy with Meryl which also relates to Montag and his relationship with his wife.

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    2. I think he bought the magazines to recreate his image of Silvia. Because he really cared for her so he was trying to bring the memory of her alive.

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    3. Because he was trying to create a picture of Silvia to keep the picture of her face fresh in his mind, he also loves and misses her.

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    4. I think he bought the magazine because he was trying to recreate her face. He wanted to trigger those memories because she was the love of his life.

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  23. I believe that Truman symbolizes the people in the society of F451. He is totally unaware of the world that is evolving around him and he never questions why his life is the way that it is. When he does start to question his society I believe then that he starts to represent Montag because he starts to question his life.

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    1. I think he was just trying to stop him from leaving and just turn back and not see the truth of his world. He probably also got really mad at Truman when Truman threatened him and asked him "is that all you can do?"

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    2. I think Chrisof tried to kill him because he knew that it would make a dramatic scene in the show. I also think he wasn't trying to kill him he was just trying to scare him into not leaving.

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    3. I agree with Amara. I think Christof did it this way because it was not part of his plan for the show. He either wanted to stop Truman so that he could continue the show or kill Truman for a dramatic ending. Then, when he realized that Truman really was going to continue on and not stop he told Truman the truth because he deserved it and there wasn't really another choice for him.

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  25. When Truman finally exits Seahaven, what do you think it is that he expects to find on the other side of the door?

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    1. I think Truman just expects to be in a "real world" where his life isn't a tv show and where he can live with "real people".

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    2. He probably wouldn't care what he would find, he just wanted to be free from his life where he's spied on 24/7

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    3. I feel as if Truman doesn't know what to expect because what he thought was a normal life, was a dystopian city on a television show. If i knew I had lived my whole life as a lie, I would have no idea on what to expect going to a new world.

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    4. I think he expects it to be somewhat the same as Seahaven because that is all he knows but also he is completely blind to what the real world will actually be like because he has never experienced it.

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  26. What's the biggest difference between Fahrenheit 451 and The Truman Show?

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    1. I feel as if the main difference between Fahrenheit 451 and The Truman Show was love. In Fahrenheit 451, it seemed as if people didn't love each other and would only tattle on people for having books. In The Truman Show, although the directors contained Truman, they developed feelings for him and the director loved him. One example of how the director loved Truman was that on his I-Pad he would almost pet Truman like he was his child.

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  27. Why would the producer of the show try and kill Truman on the boat if he really cares about him?

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    1. I think the producer did what he did to Truman to see how strong and unafraid Truman is and how badly he wants to get out of the fake world he had been living in.

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    2. I feel like it goes with the idea of "if I can't have it, no one can"

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  28. In what ways does Truman’s relationship with his perceived world differ from that of a normal human being?

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    1. It simply isn't real. But the harsh reality of our world is most people will pretend to like you even though they don't and that is why the Creator of the show says "you won't find any more truth out there than you will here."

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  29. Water plays a large part in this story, I think that the water has multiple motifs and represents different things throughout the story. Near the beginning it was shown that Trumans dad drowned and due to that Truman has been terrified of water sense, I think the motif of that is to show how fear can hold you back, but I think that the motif of that changes at the end to represent facing your fears.

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  30. Christof stated that there is a line between "fake" and "controlled". Where does that line lie? Is it more a matter of opinion between fake and controlled? Or is there an actual line?

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  31. Do you think the producer will try and do the same thing he did to Truman to another person? What do you think Truman would do if he did?

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    1. I do not think that the producer would try and do it if another person. Because he already did it once and there would not be the same fascination with the show as there was with Truman.

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    2. I agree with Zoe. I also think that the producer realized how wrong it was to do this to someone just for entertainment to other people. He knows how awful it was to do this to someones life.

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  32. Why do you think the creator of the MOVIE gave Truman his quote? What was its purpose of him saying it?

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    1. I think Truman was given this quote because it resembles him as being very friendly and having everything he says to people be "perfect" in the "perfect world" he lived in.

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    2. Probably to add personality to the character and a comical, uplifting ending quote.

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  33. Do you think there was a deeper reason as to picking Truman to watch his life? Or was he just randomly chosen like they said he was?

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  34. What is the biggest sacrifice Truman makes in this film? Love? Fear?

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    1. I don't think Truman ever really knew anything about sacrifice since everything in his life was a fabrication

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    2. I think that Truman leaving is a sacrifice in itself because that's all he's ever known and he's leaving it all behind

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  35. I found it interesting that there was a chip in the concrete wall that Truman ran his boat into. I thought this was interesting because the director obviously wanted it to be there, right next to Truman’s hand to symbolize that Truman knew, ever since he began questioning things in his society, that he wasn’t in the real world. He knew the whole time since he realized people were acting. He knew when he crashed the boat, he knew when he saw the chip in the concrete wall, yet he still reached out to touch it. Why would he reach out to touch the wall if he knows it’s there?

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  36. Would Truman be able to live a normal life outside of his created world since he's been on TV since he was born?

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    1. I don't think he could live a normal life after this and I'm not so sure he would even know the difference between what he lived in and a "normal" life.

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    2. I think he would lead a better life, simply because he was on the most popular t.v. show ever, so everyone would know who he is. Almost anyone would hire him simply because of who he is. He's a celebrity and all celebrities have above average lifestyles.

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  37. Why is there this pattern that occurs in both F451 and Truman show where family and loved ones betray both characters?

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    1. I think both of the stories show fake worlds and no one is truly happy they are just trying to get by so when someone wants to go off and not follow what they are supposed to, their loved ones just betray them because they don't want to be apart of that and they just want to continue their routine that they are already used to.

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  38. If Truman hadn't planned to escape, would the producer of the actual show keep the show going on t.v just to bring people entertainment or would he tell Truman the truth one day?

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    1. I think he would have just kept the show going until Truman died.

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    2. I think he would let the show go on if Truman had not planned his escape because the producer has tried so hard from Truman finding out about the world he lives in. Like having the nuclear plant problem so Truman couldn't leave or the bus break down and not having a flight to Fiji for over a month. He planned all these things so he wouldn't leave. So I don't think that he would tell Truman one day.

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    3. I think he would have kept it going until he died because he almost killed Truman when he was in the boat because he didn't want him to figure out his life was a lie. The creator also said "He was born in front of the whole world, he can die in front of them too." Or something like that.

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  39. What would the show be like if Truman lived in the real world for a little while, then came back to the island? How would Truman act differently?

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  40. Was Truman's life supposed to be an example for people watching it like a doctrine or was it strictly entertainment?

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  41. Do you think that the director would have another 'truman' to keep it running again?

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    1. I don't think so because everyone already knows that Truman is leaving because the show is live. Also the director tried to bring Truman back and not leave but Truman didn't want to.

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  42. The population of this fake town that Truman is stuck in seems pretty big, it seems strange to me that nobody feels guilty about keeping such a big secret from Truman. Out of everyone living in this fake society its odd that there's no good Samaritans.

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  43. Now that Truman is gone will the show continue? Will Truman ever go visit is old world again?

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  44. When Sylvia took Truman to the beach and her "dad" showed up to take her away he said they were moving to Fiji. This inspired Truman to want to go to Fiji which was a huge conflict for Christof. Had the "dad" not said that would things have gone smoother?
    Can this movie be considered a love movie?

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