connormonologues

[connormonologues]

Referencing:

Batista, A., 2018. People Lighting Up Candles In The Church. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/people-lighting-up-candles-in-the-church-1575770/>. CrackDigital, 2020. Wild Fire in the Forest. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/wild-fire-in-the-forest-4825783/>. Danilyuk, P., 2021. Pastor Giving Sermon at a Funeral. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/pastor-giving-sermon-at-a-funeral-7266284/>. Eulo, J., 2020. Back View of BLM Protestors Marching on City Streets. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/back-view-of-blm-protestors-marching-on-city-streets-5286363/>. Fowler, P., 2018. Water crashing over the rocks. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/water-crashing-over-the-rocks-1093662/>. GamOl, 2019. Blazing Fire. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/blazing-fire-2715412/>. MART PRODUCTION, 2021. Woman Kneeling at the Altar. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/woman-kneeling-at-the-altar-7218972/>. Nuea-on, S., 2021. A Group of People Giving Supplies to Children. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/a-group-of-people-giving-supplies-to-children-6740283/>. Pixabay, 2017. Deforestation. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/deforestation-856035/>. Pressmaster, 2019. Group Of People Picking Up Trash In A Park. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/group-of-people-picking-up-trash-in-a-park-3209571/>. Quintero, L., 2019. People In A Prayer Meeting. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/people-in-a-prayer-meeting-2014793/>. Will, Z., 2021. A Bible Opened To A Specific Page. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/book-bible-bible-reading-4407798/>. Creativ Medium, 2020. With Clouds in the Blue Sky. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/with-clouds-in-the-blue-sky-5667054/>. Fisk, T., 2019. A Herd Of Cattle Feeding On The Pasture Grass. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/a-herd-of-cattle-feeding-on-the-pasture-grass-2766950/>. Fisk, T., 2019. Person Collecting Trash From A Dump Site. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/person-collecting-trash-from-a-dump-site-3174410/>. Fisk, T., 2020. Drone Shot of Smoke Coming from Smokestack of an Industrial Building. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/drone-shot-of-smoke-coming-from-smokestack-of-an-industrial-building-4884642/>. Free Creative Stuff, 2019. Harmful Chemicals Float On A Water Surface. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/harmful-chemicals-float-on-a-water-surface-3024287/>. Kumar, A., 2020. Wet Trees Brought By Rainfall. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/wet-trees-brought-by-rainfall-3603737/>. Lacy, K., 2019. A River Flowing Through A Bed Of Rocks. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/a-river-flowing-through-a-bed-of-rocks-2536758/>. Lacy, K., 2019. Low Lying Clouds Covers The Mountain Side. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/low-lying-clouds-covers-the-mountain-side-2888383/>. Lacy, K., 2020. Drone Footage of an Industrial Plants. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/drone-footage-of-an-industrial-plants-4686755/>. Pixabay, 2016. Caterpillars eating. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/caterpillars-eating-854728/>. Pixabay, 2016. Horses Eating Grass. [image] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/horses-eating-grass-854524/>. Pixabay, 2016. Solar System. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/solar-system-854278/>. Pixabay, 2017. View Of Mars. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/view-of-mars-856359/>. Space Space, 2019. The Sun Illuminating Earth's Surface. [image] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/the-sun-illuminating-earth-s-surface-1851190/>. Vimeo, 2016. Time Lapse Video Of Night Sky. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/time-lapse-video-of-night-sky-857195/>. Dias, R., 2018. Trees Being Cut Down. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/trees-being-cut-down-1710311/>.Fisk, T., 2021. Land Clearing For Farming On Top Of A Thick Mountain Forest. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/land-clearing-for-farming-on-top-of-a-thick-mountain-forest-3110386/>. Grabowska, K., 2019. A Person Cutting A Tree With A Chainsaw. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/tree-deforestation-chainsaw-4383262/>. Inspiredimages_s6, 2019. A Brown Monkey Eating Bread. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/a-brown-monkey-eating-bread-2436088/>. Nilov, M., 2021. A Cockatoo on a Tree Branch. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/a-cockatoo-on-a-tree-branch-7722578/>. Pixabay, 2017. Video Of Deforestation. [image] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/video-of-deforestation-856150/>. Pixabay, 2021. Creatures Underwater. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/creatures-underwater-855436/>. Sunshine Design, 2020. Worm's Eye View of a Tropical Rainforest. [video] Available at: <https://www.pexels.com/video/worm-s-eye-view-of-a-tropical-rainforest-5281003/>.

[connormonologues]

Filming and Editing Process

Filming

The filming for this was quite simple. I sat at my desk with an LED light pointed at me. I had to film using zoom, which left me with footage at a lower quality than I'd liked. However, I couldn't find an alternative for the virtual background with what I had available. The sound quality is a bit low because I was using the built in microphone on my laptop. If I was able to film again, I’d book out a professional mic for the project. I’d also look into getting a green screen studio, so I would be able to use a film camera.

I performed the speech, reading the script using an auto cue website. In hindsight, I should’ve given myself more rehearsal time, so when it came to editing I didn't have to do as many jump cuts to make it flow. However, I think there is more authenticity in my delivery than if it was over-rehearsed. I’ve never read from a prompter before, so it was a good experience to learn where to look  and the reading style. I watched a BBC training video for guidance, which helped me grasp the basics. The video can be found here: 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/academy/en/articles/art20141219110636688

I also filmed some b-roll for the climate change sequence. This wasn't planned, just when I’d see something pretty or to do with climate change. Like littering or other pollution. I didn't end up using much of the clips as they didn't fit within the final edit alongside the rest of the footage. One clip I did use was of a mountainous area in Bristol:

Editing

I had a clear vision of how I wanted it to look and sound from when I was writing. This helped me out immensely when I came to the editing process. I wanted it to be YouTube vlog style, parody speech. Utilising interesting audio and visuals to compliment the spoken words. Making it easier to digest the message of the piece. 

I utilised stock footage when I couldn’t film something myself, for example drone shots of a landfill. Primarily using the website ‘https://www.pexels.com/’ to ensure the footage was royalty free and easy to reference. The stock footage, in my opinion, ties the piece together and is very visually engaging. Instead of it just being me talking to a camera.

The audio used ranges from background music, to nature sounds. I found it harder to find audio compared to visual footage. I would like to look into getting licences with sites like ‘Universal Production Music’ to make this process easier for future projects. An example of how I used the audio is when talking about the meat industry. In the background I have a fast paced, documentary style piece of background music. There is a tone of urgency in the music, which adds to the message that time is running out on climate change.

Overall, I think the final edit turned out how I wanted it to. While it’s not perfect, it gets the message I wanted to express across. This project pushed me to my limits creatively, with the lack of equipment and resources available to me. Luckily, I'm proud of the outcome and have learned a lot when it comes to what does and doesn't. 

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Writing Process

I had the idea for my monologue after creating my character. This was a bit backwards for me as I usually come up with the story first. My idea is to expand on the public statement I created during character development. It will be around 5 minutes long, warning humanity of what will happen if they don't stop damaging the world and causing issues for each other. I want it to have a comedic side, but still have a serious message. Potentially leaning towards parody in some moments, to make it a more entertaining viewing experience. I think this is a better way for an audience to receiving hard hitting information and prevent the information becoming overwhelming.

I took the issues that I listed in the written statement and created a spider diagram. Exploring the thoughts and ideas that I'd like my character to address.

I decided to cut Covid-19 out of this monologue to focus on issues that I have not yet addressed in my work. Which left me with what I believe are the biggest issues we face today:

Climate Change

Religion

Discrimination

I separated them into different sections of the speech, allotting about 1.5 mins to each topic. Writing the from the perspective of the character, trying to convince humans that they need to change. I wanted it to come across as an announcement from a politician or public official. So I kept the language formal, with informalities sprinkled in for the comedic effect. I have never written anything comedic before so this was a bit trial and error. The writing process was a good way of out-letting my own frustrations with the world. I’m glad I was able to incorporate the theories about religion that I discussed in my preliminary research/inspiration.

Here is the script:

Hello Earth, for those that do not know, I am Umbra, ruler of the stars. In light of recent events. I’ve had to think deeply about exterminating your planet. I came close to doing this before, but you were taking steps in the right direction and more importantly David bowie wrote that song about me. Unfortunately in recent years your kind has been regressing and… David died.. why did nobody tell me!?

I’m willing to give you all one last chance to be a functional society. You’ve got 10 years to get it together before I have no choice, to protect the universe with more drastic measures. Please take my advice.

Let’s start off with climate change… Look at your planet… Isn’t it so beautiful? All of this life. Fresh air. Clean water. Beautiful mountains, rich rainforests. Nature is working in perfect balance…

Now Look at what you’re doing to it!

Death, destruction, greed. Your plastic has explored more of the oceans than your species has. And now you’re trying to branch out and spread your nastiness elsewhere?! Leave mars alone.

Even though you’re herbivores, your meat industry contributes to 14.5% of greenhouse gas emissions. And is the leading cause for deforestation, biodiversity loss and water pollution. Bacon is not worth it!

You have advanced beyond the need for fossil fuels, yet you’re still burning them as if you don’t know it’s killing the world.

Convenience now isn’t worth destroying everything in the future.

You all must act now. Otherwise, Earth will end up like it’s sister.

Discrimination. Why do so many of you think it’s okay to judge others for something that 1. Does not affect you and 2. Does no harm.

You are all human, stop hating each other.

Whether it’s race, sexuality, nationality or gender. One’s existence doesn’t invalidate the other. You can all coexist.

Don’t let diversity divide. You are stronger together. Leave Adam and Steve alone, they’re better parents than you’d ever be.

Which brings us to religion. I know it’s a touchy subject, however I have to be honest... Let’s open up your mind a bit. Think about what religion means to you. Why are you here? What happens after death? Will you go to some sort of heaven if you follow a set of rules? What god created you?

Now scrap all of that and come back to reality.

There is no god. There is no heaven. And you’re here because of luck and evolution. The Earth is your creator, why don’t you worship it like you worship church and gods?

Stop using fictional books as an excuse to be discriminatory and hateful.

The large majority of Muslims are not terrorists, just as not all Christians are members of the KKK.

By all means love thy neighbour and don’t kill people but don’t do it in fear of a god.

Rather than aligning your morals with what your religion tells you, think about just being a morally nice person. Not because you’ll go to hell if you don’t, but because you’re bringing hell to earth being a bad person.

Thank you for watching, I know I only scratched the surface, but im hoping it will be enough to get the ball rolling.

The intergalactic community is watching intently. Don’t let me down.

This message was paid for and distributed by the Office of the Star Lord.

[connormonologues]

Character Building

During our workshops we looked at creating a character using outside attributes and building it in from there. This was my favourite task as it led me to creating the character I’m using for my piece. 

Week 1

We started off being instructed to create two costumes and a background. One costume should blend with the back ground and one should stand out. We were not informed at this point that this was a character building exercise. Which helped me be a bit more creative when picking my idea.

I decided to do a night sky, so I used a virtual space background. 

This was easy to do as teams, our online lecture service, has this built in.

Then I started on the costumes, working with what I had available to me.

I hole punched some scrap paper for the little white circles, to use as stars. 

I wanted to cut little star shapes, however I had no way of doing this at the small size and large amount needed.

Next, I glued each individual piece onto a black t-shirt, using hot glue. 

This process took about 2 hours and using hot glue wasn’t the best idea. It was difficult to be precise with were the glue was going and for about half of it I was gluing the shirt to my ironing board. If I was able to do it again with different resources, I’d use fabric glue, sequins and small rhinestones. 

This was the final result. 

I think it looks better on the green screen camera than it in real life. It blends well with the background. For my standing out costume, I had a white t-shirt to change into.

After showing our creations to each other, we were asked to think of characters that could be made from them. I decided to focus on my star costume, and came up with ‘Umbra, Ruler of the Stars’. A powerful being with the ability to create and destroy stars. Umbra translates to shadow in Latin. He is a preacher of climate change and has an obsession with David Bowie. 

After this session, week by week, we were tasked with character building exercises. Slowly creating a character starting with superficial things, going down to deep thoughts they have. In the end I had a clear idea for a character and monologue I wanted to create. 

Here’s the tasks I was set and the work I created over time:

Week 2

3 lines to describe your character

The story of the most amazing/terrible/ exciting event that happened to your character 

They’re a form of life beyond human understanding. They only appear as human to humans.

Their favourite song is Star Man by David Bowie.

They want to stop climate change.

The best thing that happened to him was when he was when David Bowie wrote Star Man about him. He had just discovered Earth on his routine inspection of the universe. Disgusted by the hate and lack of care for the world, he was going to kill the sun. However, he met Bowie and became best friends.

Week 3

1. Develop your costumes and accessories for your character. Add props, scenery – anything that will add to who you are and to help you create the world around you.  2. Develop your character further in terms of their opinions and views.  

I added a star covered hat to my costume, to cover my hair. This helps the virtual background look crisper, as it doesn't have to mask around each curl. I also decided to put stars on my face. I still only had hot glue, so I had to come up with another way to stick them on, not wanting to ruin my hat or face. In the end for both I just licked and pressed them on. Hoping they would stick, luckily the majority did.

I think that I can incorporate my own views on social issues for this character. Using it as a creative outlet for things I want to scream from the roof tops. It makes sense for my character to have unbiased, black and white opinions on things. As they don't have human ignorance or experience. 

They see Burning fossil fuels = Climate change = Shouldn't burn fossil fuels

They're disappointed that humans can't stop harming everything around them. Worried that if they leave humans to do what they want they'll destroy more than themselves.

I was also given feedback and asked some questions:

The Ruler of the stars – 

What does this mean?

They are not a god, but an entity that controls the stars. 

Do you have a lot of responsibility?

Yes, they have to keep the universe in balance. Their primary goal is to stop everything from collapsing. Ensuring the right stars are destroyed, moved, cooled down etc. 

Is your life full of decisions to be made for humanity? 

In rare circumstances they get involved with lifeforms if they are a risk to the wider universe. This only happens in dire situations, otherwise they like to keep out of it.

How powerful are you? What does the power do for you and to you?

Extremely powerful. They could destroy the universe if they wanted to. However, the power gives them a sense of responsibility and care. 

Week 4

1. Write 150 words describing your character – can be in any form: a letter to a friend, a piece of promotional material, a social media post, or just a plain description!  2. Research a historic or contemporary character that is similar to your character

I had the idea to write a formal statement from Umbra. Expressing his displeasure with humans and continuing the David Bowie story line:

Within Greek mythology there are many star and sky gods. There’s Astraeus, “Titan god of stars and planets and of the art of astrology” (Atsma, n.d.) His name translates from Latin to “Of the Stars”. From what I’ve read he too would have the power to destroy earth. 

Creating the character this way was a fun exercise. Usually I start with a story and create a character from that. However, this helped me think more deeply about the character as an individual. Instead of having a character that only has attributes related to the story they're written into. It’s definitely a technique I will utilise in future.

Referencing:

Atsma, A., n.d. ASTRAIOS. [online] Available at: <https://www.theoi.com/Titan/TitanAstraios.html>.

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Initial Research & Inspiration

During our weekly workshops, I gained a lot creatively from the tasks we were set. We experimented with storytelling techniques. Exploring social issues and binaries; how they are portrayed in media and how they relate to characters. We worked on character building techniques that I will discuss in a future blog post. There was also a movement element, creating and improvising short movement pieces in break out groups based on different audio and visual stimuli. This work helped me break out of my comfort zone and become comfortable with experimentation. It was good to work in the abstract and not worry about things being polished before sharing them. Focusing on the idea and exploration, rather than perfection.

For this assignment I’m planning to do something different from my last monologue, but I want it to still have a moral message. Reading ‘Sophie’s World’ (Gaarder, 1991), at the start of the academic year, inspired me to think differently about world issues. It explores the theory that religion is what humans create when they don't have the answer for something. We write stories of gods that ‘created’ us because we don't know what or who actually did. My view on spirituality changed recently, as a life long atheist that has dabbled in Mormonism and Witchcraft. While walking through a forest, I had an epiphany “The Earth is our Creator”. For me this highlighted the hypocrisy of us as humans. With so many of us going to church every Sunday, to worship something that doesn't exist. While Earth, the ‘entity’ that supports our life and evolution, is dying around us because of the lack of worship for it. I’ve always been inspired by song lyrics and music. 

Referencing:

Gaarder, J., 1991. Sophies World. Oslo: H. Aschehoug & Co, pp.1-111.

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I wanted the editing to be seamless and natural, for an easy viewing experience. I messed up a few takes, forgetting lines or accidentally walking into someone’s driveway rather than the alley. However, I still utilised the best parts of some of those takes; reflecting back on advice from our editing lessons in the Media Technologies module, not to delete takes with accidents. This was extremely helpful when dealing with continuity issues, such as walking too fast or forgetting to put on my mask. I regret the final shot transition, as it was caused by a continuity mistake. I wanted to go back and film a better take, but I was unable to due to time constraints and weather conditions.

I edited the scene with the character far away in a long shot, and as it progresses the shots become closer and tighter. With the intention of it feeling more personal in conjunction with the story. I was going to use scenery shots, however, they took attention away from the monologue.  

The feedback I received was that the style was engaging, however, at some parts it was difficult to keep up. I think that could be rectified by extending the piece to allow more free time between lines, or I could cut a few lines out.

Sound editing

The sound editing for this project was quite difficult. As referenced in my filming post, I used my phone. It was a windy day and I couldn’t be too loud due to the area. I boosted the audio in premier pro and tried to filter out the distracting sound of wind. I kept some background noise for atmosphere. I think that it blended together well at the end. For some shot changes, I was able to keep the ambient sound and dialogue from the previous shot; to make it sound more natural and seamless.

I recorded the voiceover on my laptop, just before editing. I struggled to get the levels right, and some parts sound too quiet when watching back. I edited with bluetooth earphones at full volume; so reflecting back I should edit on middle volume, with either the laptop speakers or wired headphones.

[connormonologues]

Admittedly, I didn't do much preparation for filming as I had a clear image of what I wanted it to look like. In practice, this didn’t help me much. I had to change things a lot on the spot, however I did overcome most obstacles and discovered ways that I'd do things differently in future.

I originally set the scene in a house, sitting on the sofa. I did a rough edit and realised it was too static. I knew at that point, I needed to rethink the shots and location. I ended up deciding to film in the location seen in the final piece; a housing estate that was nearby to where I was staying. Covid safety was in mind when choosing this location, picking a quieter area and doing it in the evening when there were less people around. I got my fiancé to film using my phone; doing static, tracking and over shoulder shots for more movement. I did a lot of takes and angles to have options when editing.

The thought process behind the location character-wise, was that he is outside flaunting the lockdown rules. Planning on meeting multiple friends, including one with Covid-19 symptoms. Once his mind changes, after receiving the news his mum has died, he walks back the way he came to go home; showing his change of opinion has stopped him in his tracks. 

Sound & Lighting

I should have thought more about sound and lighting, however I wanted to focus all of my attention on the substance and delivery of the monologue. Near the end my face isn’t very visible, it was intentional that the scenery would get darker as the story progresses, however in hindsight it would have been better to have had more light, so the audience could see my facial expressions. The sound in some takes is barely audible or affected by wind, I did my best to rectify that in the editing stage. I would use external microphones in the future,  such as a lapel mic or a boom.

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The process of writing has always been difficult for me. I struggle to put my ideas down on paper. With this script, I made it easier for myself by doing an abundance of character research beforehand, shown in my previous post, and keeping the story simple. Sharing my work with my fiancé during the writing process and receiving feedback was very helpful. If I were to change anything about my script, it would be making the thoughts and lines more succinct. I think if there was more space between lines it would be easier for the audience to understand whats going on.

Most of the conspiracy theories I researched, were represented by internal thoughts on voiceover. From feedback, I believe this was an impactful way of delivery. The feel of the piece is more intimate and engaging, than if the character was saying it aloud. 

I wanted to show that every time he was being ignorant, consequences would come. Starting from indirect, his friend getting symptoms; to extremely personal, his mum dying.

[connormonologues]

(www.youtube.com, CNBC n.d.)

Character Development

This video stood out to me, while researching Covid conspiracies for character development. It features key language, such as:

Deep state - “an alleged secret network of especially nonelected government officials ... operating extralegally to influence and enact government policy” (Merriam-webster.com, 2019) While the first mention of ‘Deep state’ was in 2000, many Covid-19 conspiracy theorists believe that the ‘organisation’ are either faking the pandemic, creating it or using it to cover something worse up.

Plandemic - Planned pandemic. Linking to ‘Deep state’ or other theories where a secret group of world leaders created the virus.

Scamdemic - Scam pandemic. Belief that the pandemic isn’t real/serious and is being used to scam public out of money, liberties, freedom etc.

News media - Widely used term by theorists. Suggests that they believe news organisations have an ulterior motive; for example, to scare us and feed us misinformation.

I adapted some of those terms into my script. I based the character on direct quotes from real people online. As it was a monologue, I incorporated the quotes as his internal thought monologue. I used the most extreme views in the part where he's posting a comment on Facebook. I think this was an effective way of representing the theories, as the majority of people with these views feel more confident sharing them online.

Unconscious Bias

I enjoy experimenting with a character that’s the opposite of me. It helps me reflect on other people’s viewpoints and learn to be more diplomatic in debate, coming from a more understanding perspective. When creating the character, I wanted to portray someone who doesn't challenge their confirmation bias, until they’re forced to. I intended to force those who can relate to the character, to question their bias belief. 

“Confirmation bias: The tendency to process information by looking for, or interpreting, information that is consistent with one’s existing beliefs. This biased approach to decision making is largely unintentional and often results in ignoring inconsistent information ... People are especially likely to process information to support their own beliefs when the issue is highly important or self-relevant.” (Casad, 2016)

Writing the monologue, in a way, humanised the people who hold similar views to the character. Before, it was incomprehensible to me how people can care so little with the clear information that is out there. However, putting myself in their shoes, it became apparent that if you’re sheltered from the effects of Covid-19 and/or exposed to the conspiracies; it is quite easy for the baseless to look similar to fact. 

Casad, B.J. (2016). confirmation bias | Definition, Background, History, & Facts. In: Encyclopædia Britannica. [online] Available at: https://www.britannica.com/science/confirmation-bias.

www.youtube.com. (n.d.). Why People Believe Covid-19 Conspiracies - YouTube. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaYfoGwH33I&t=43s [Accessed 13 Jan. 2021].

Merriam-webster.com. (2019). Merriam-Webster Dictionary. [online] Available at: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deep%20state.‌

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(Denik, n.d.)

What inspires me? What do I want to achieve?

While brainstorming ideas for my monologue, I reflected on what I want to achieve and what inspires me. I identified that at the core, I want my work to change the world for the better. I enjoy consuming and creating media that has a moral message.

Throughout the pandemic, I haven’t been able to turn a blind eye on people not taking it seriously or spreading misinformation. Every day, I see conspiracies on social media or have to deal with a maskless customer coughing all over the place. I have found that in most cases, confrontation only makes them go deeper into their confirmation bias. People either learn for themselves, making their own mistakes, or they listen to someone they can relate to. Thinking about this, I decided I’d write my monologue about a typical Covid-19 conspiracy theorist; that’s forced to change his behaviour after it causes harm. In hopes that someone could relate to the character and take the moral message, before they make the same mistake.

"We change our behavior when the pain of staying the same becomes greater than the pain of changing. Consequences give us the pain that motivates us to change."

(Dr H Cloud, www.goodreads.com, n.d.)

I took the theme of ‘changing behaviours’ and Covid-19 quite literally as my character changes his behaviour as a result of the consequences of his actions in during pandemic. It was discussed in a lecture early on in the process, that people are most susceptible to change in times of stress or trauma. This idea is recurrent in my life and even in world history. Take this pandemic for example: the world has adapted to working from home, we’re creating vaccines at a record speed and masses of people have changed their hand-washing behaviours (CDC, et al., 2020) Or we can look at the world wars, where in a time of rationing and tragedy there was also ground-breaking technological achievements and cultural changes. (The National WWII Museum | New Orleans, n.d.)

www.goodreads.com. (n.d.). A quote by Henry Cloud. [online] Available at: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/163723-we-change-our-behavior-when-the-pain-of-staying-the [Accessed 13 Jan. 2021].‌CDC, J. C. H. M. G. F. M. P. et al., 2020. Characteristics Associated with Adults Remembering to Wash Hands in Multiple Situations Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, October 2019 and June 2020. [Online] "Studies have reported moderate to high levels of self-reported handwashing among adults worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, little is known about how handwashing behavior among U.S. adults has changed since the start of the pandemic. For this study, survey data from October 2019 (prepandemic) and June 2020 (during pandemic) were compared to assess changes in adults’ remembering to wash their hands in six situations. Statistically significant increases in reported handwashing were seen in June 2020 compared with October 2019" Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6940a2.htm

The National WWII Museum | New Orleans. (n.d.). The Scientific and Technological Advances of World War II. [online] “The war effort demanded developments in the field of science and technology, developments that forever changed life in America and made present-day technology possible.” Available at: https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/scientific-and-technological-advances-world-war-ii.‌

n.d. Denik. Art can change the world sticker [Online] Available at: https://denik.com/products/art-can-change-the-world-sticker

[connormonologues]