November
8
The Current War – extra credit
The Current War brings us a movie about the clash between electrical power systems and who will wire America with the greatest invention at that time (and some might say of all time), the electric light bulb. Thomas Edison wants to use direct current (DC) while George Westinghouse and Nicola Tesla want to use alternating current (AC). Edison goes about ways trying to discredit AC, primarily by showing how deadly it is on large animals.
I have several questions for you (answer at least 3 in your response):
- Who do you think is supposed to be the hero of the film, the protagonist that we’re rooting for – Edison or Westinghouse? What does the filmmaker do to make him seem likeable?
- Were you shocked at Edison’s portrayal in the film (think especially of his relationship with his wife)? Is this a commentary by the filmmaker on the price of genius? Why or why not?
- After the AC / DC controversy, other systems have competed against each other for supremacy of a market like with VCR types (Beta or VHS) and high resolution DVDs (HD or Blu-Ray) or even cell phones (iPhone or Samsung or Pixel). Why is it important, in your opinion, to have competition in business?
- How does Edison use the media to manipulate public opinion concerning AC as a power source?
- What is the film’s greatest strength in educating its viewers about the history of this period? Explain. What is the film’s greatest weakness in that regards? Explain.
Due November 30. 350 words minimum for all three of your answers.
In my opinion, the hero of the film would be Westinghouse. Westinghouse was made to look as if he was very innocent and wasn’t doing anything wrong towards Edison. Edison on the other hand was very competitive and was seen doing many things to sabotage Westinghouse’s successes. Westinghouse was always very silent during arguments and didn’t say or do many controversial things during the film. While Edison created a public comment on Westinghouse’s creation and even told the public that it will kill you if you use it. He also used it on a horse and the horse died in the experiment making people want his product and go against Westinghouse’s.
During the film Edison was very competitive and would do many things to persuade the audience and make it seem as though Westinghouse’s creation was bad and would kill you(like previously stated). He made a public announcement and experiment were he used a horse and the horse died when it was around Westinghouse’s product. Using the horse was a way to show the public that his invention was better and told the people not to trust what Westinghouse created. This was a way of Edison using the public to better himself and put down others creations.
I think that the film did an amazing job at presenting the information and the view on what happened during the time period. It showed the audience the challenges that many of the characters faced and it should the success as well. It did a good job at presenting the information and allowed the viewer to get a feel for what happened during the time period. On the other hand, I think that it was made in Westinghouse’s favor and did not represent an unbiased opinion. It made, like previously stated, Westinghosue look like the hero while Edioson look like the bad guy. I think it was also very confusing at times and was difficult to follow with there being so many characters that were not introduced to a full extent. I think they could have done a better job but it was a decent film overall.
1. In the film “The Current War”, the protagonist that we are rooting for is Edison. The filmmaker makes him seem likable by showing his life at home, which establishes him as a person with a real life and other struggles going on at home. They do show Westinghouse’s life at home, but to a lesser extent and without any tragedies occurring. It makes him more likable when he is portrayed like this and can make viewers sympathize with him more when his wife dies. Additionally, throughout the movie, he is shown using Westinghouse’s light bulbs in the form of an electric chair and to kill animals, specifically horses. This makes viewers feel as though Westinghouse is evil and makes things to kill humans and animals. In contrast, we see Edison, who is trying to expose him, which makes him seem like a hero for trying to save people from the dangers of Westinghouse’s bulbs.
3. In my opinion, it is extremely important to have competition in business. Competition forces the brands to try to be better than the others. They will try to lower prices, increase the quality, and invent new products that appeal to a wider audience. Without the pressure of another brand, there really wouldn’t be a need for improvement because no one would know any other way to make things or have anything to compare a product to so they would just keep buying that brand of products. With competition, companies feel the need to constantly improve so that they are not replaced by another competing business, which leads to better products for the consumers.
4. Edison uses the media to manipulate public opinion about AC as a power source. First, he uses it to kill animals in front of an audience. When someone reaches out to him and asks him to create an electric chair, he is very manipulative about it. Edison makes sure that no one knows that he is involved in it, and sends secret letters to him that contain instructions on how to create it. Edison thinks that when people see that AC power can be used to kill people, it will make them see that DC power is the better option, and they will buy his light bulbs instead. He also makes himself seem likable as shown at the scene at the world fair when people are asking for his autograph and not Westinghouse’s. Unfortunately for him, his methods were not entirely successful in this case and Westinghouse ended up being chosen as the bulb used in the fair.
1. I feel as there was no protagonist in the movie, but Westinghouse was easily the lesser of two evils. He was portrayed as a killer of innocent people by Edison, because the AC Currents sent high voltage electrical currents surging through the body. He even indirectly called the AC Currents a death machine, even incorporating them into a form of execution, the Electric Chair. This made the public see Westinghouse as the supporter of a deadly form of electricity, while Edison had the safe, reliable, but extremely expensive current. Edison yearned for supporters, and did everything he could to get them, including expanding the truth into a grand exaggeration of the truth. Westinghouse did not step too far into public slamming, instead he slammed Edison on a more private level. He hired Tesla, one of Edison’s former employees, and raided the building where the first electric chair was being constructed.
3. The AC/DC rivalry was very big in the late 19th century, but this rivalry doesn’t even hold a candle to those of HD DVD/ Blu-Ray and VCR/Beta, not only because these rivalries are much newer, but they were both instrumental to how we live now. Obviously, these couldn’t happen without Electricity, but after a while, most accepted AC was superior to DC, even before the World’s Fair, but no one gave up on either VHS or DVD option until the other didn’t exist. We still use DC current, too, in smaller items that require batteries, and AC for much larger items, like a house. The VCR stomped on Betamax until it was dead and gone. HD DVD stayed alive in video game consoles, the XBOX 360 choosing the HD DVD over Blu-Ray, which Sony took. The 360 didn’t play HD DVDs out of the box either, it needed a $250 add-on, which was as much as the console, while the PlayStation 3 played Blu-Ray out of the box. Sony’s console dominated, and XBOX 360 solidified the demise of the HD DVD.
4. Edison manipulates the public by slamming Westinghouse’s AC system in big public events. He famously slammed it for the potential to kill a man, due to the current flowing both ways allowing it to enter the body. In a public demonstration, he killed many animals using the current, and it was adapted into a form of execution, the Electric Chair. He sent letters to the manufacturer of the first electric chair, but they were discovered by Westinghouse. His final act of true slander of calling it a death trap was the execution of William Kemmler, who killed his wife with a hatchet and turned himself in to the police, was the first man executed by Electric Chair. People said it was a horrible death, and the smell of singed hair was horrible, even though it was perfectly quick and effective on the animals.
(1) In my opinion, the hero is supposed to be Edison, even though Westinghouse eventually won the war. For the most part Edison was the favored inventor during the war, gradually creating save electricity for people. While Westinghouse was give people electricity quicker and faster, they argued that his was fatal and more dangerous. During the movie I was rooting for Edison because personally I would rather have a less fatal device, than one that is constantly dangerous for me and others. The filmmaker makes Edison seem more likable because of this constant reference to the flaws of Westington design, along with the dream of Westington taking the life of another man. In the dream Westington shot another man with a gun, this shows that lack of care that he has for another man’s life, which shows that he doesn’t care that his electricity is fatal and people could lose their lives over it. While on the other hand, Edison is shown as an innocent man. He is perceived as this when his wife died and he needed to be vulnerable and be there for his family. In the end, the author shows Edison as the man with the better electrical design. Where as he shows Westinghouse as an evil, careless man who doesn’t care about others’ lives. Even though this is shown, the opposite happens when Edison losses the war and Westinghouse wins.
(2) I was surprised on how Edison was portrayed in the film, with him constantly choosing his work over his wife and kids. This was later shown as karma when his wife got sick and eventually passed away. I think that they were trying to show how hard Edison workers to get where he was, and how he needed to make choices daily (even if they were wrong). Although, I do not think that they were trying to portray the price of genius, I think they were showing the stress and complications of being one of the leading inventors in the time period, and competing for your name and dignity. Overall, I think that Edison valued his family over his work, but this wasn’t shown because he took advantage of his wife and kids for always being there, until they weren’t anymore. This put him in a bad place in his life, which forced him to rethink the way he valued things in this life.
(5) I think that the film did a really good job showing the intensity and rush to light cities with electricity, and being their competitorsI in as many ways possible. The authors and directors showed every step that Edison and Westinghouse took to become the main company sourcing electricity of the time period. This was useful because it helped understand the struggles and stress that the opponent got after the other made a breakthrough. But, with the complexity of the information comes a weakness. Although showing every step the men went through was valued for educational purposes, this made the film hard to follow, and made it confusing for the viewers. Overall, I enjoyed the movie trying to understand each hidden symbol and what it represented.
1) I think the protagonist is Edison, however he isn’t necessarily the one we are supposed to root for. The filmmakers present us with a man; whose priorities aren’t where they should be, and will do whatever it takes to come out on top. Edison is the protagonist because it follows his story more so than anyone else. He puts his work before anyone else. The audience watched as his wife’s health failed, and only when it was too late, did he finally return to her side. He refused to listen to anyone who opposed his ideas, even when he knew what he was doing was wrong. As the movie goes on we see how far he will truly go to come out on top. He lies about alternating current killing people, and even goes so far as to set up Westinghouse for creating the electric chair. After his wife died we see his more villainous side come out, but the story still focuses on him. We see how hard he works to try and win, the determination we see in him makes us root for him, even if we shouldn’t. In the end he loses the world fair to Westinghouse, but we see in the credits that a metal was named after him. The IEEE metal is the highest achievement that an electrical engineer can receive. And personally, I felt like that was a win for Edison, maybe not 2) the one he wanted, but definantaily the one he needed.
I was a little shocked to see how ruthless Edison could be, not only to his competition but his family. He always puts his work first, and had a hard time listening to his family. They needed him, especially after his wife died. But it seemed that after she died, he work harder. In fact after the wife died the children were only shown two or three times, this could have been just how the movie portrayed the events, or it could have been the filmmakers telling us just how little Edison was a part of his own children’s lives. The film shows us the to be as successful as he was, he had to give something up, and in this case it was his family.
4) Edison used the media to ruin his competition. Edison already had a good reputation in the media because of his use of direct current. He had already proved to the media that he was a smart and innovative. He used his success in the media to lie about alternating current killing people, and because he had such a good reputation the people believed him. To prove his point, Edison electrocuted a horse, saying that he used alternating current. He used his power over the media to lie and make himself look better, until he was exposed for his lies.
The hero portrayed in the film is Thomas Edison. Even though his system of electricity, the Direct Current system, isn’t as effective or efficient as George Westinghouse’s Alternative Current system, we see Edison as the underdog because his ideas were “stolen” by Westinghouse. Edison also worked hard to sick with his idea and try to sell it. When Nicola Tesla worked for Edison, he proposed the idea of taking energy in more of a manner like Westinghouse’s, and using water as a source of energy. Edison disagreed, and stuck with his original plan. My viewpoint on the hero of the story changed when Edison started to use propaganda to manipulate opinions on Westinghouse electric. Since Westinghouse didn’t retaliate to Edison’s immature and unfair behavior to gain support after people left the support of Westinghouse, I saw him as the hero around the middle of the movie.
Building off of why I see Edison as the villain, Edison used the media to spread rumors and data that convinced people that Westinghouse electricity was being and could be used to kill animals and possibly people. Edison took advantage of the fears of citizens of their own deaths to draw them towards his product. Edison also used a man who wanted to make a more painless way to execute the death penalty, and saw Edison as a way to sabotage Westinghouse by promoting the electric chair with his “dangerous” electricity. Westinghouse electric didn’t even end up killing the murderer until three or four rounds of electricity.
The greatest weakness of the movie in terms of education of the audience was the fact that they did not explain the benefits, disadvantages, and how each system worked. The movie did explain the Westinghouse electric could reach a farther radius and range, which was beneficial in cities and large towns, whereas Edison’s electricity was mostly beneficial in small towns. But I didn’t fully understand how electricity and how it worked varied from the direct current and alternative current. I think one of the strengths of the education aspect of the movie was their addition of subtitles and pictures at the end of the movie. These few captions help to explain many of the questions I had about who won the Chicago Fair, and what developments Tesla made with Westinghouse after the fair.
I believe that Edison was portrayed as the protagonist of The Current War. The director uses personal details from Edison’s personal life to make him seem likable. For example, we see many scenes of Edison and his wife, showing their relationship and how she slowly got more and more sick until she died. We also see the relationship between Edison and his son through short clips of humorous Morse code. On the other hand, Westinghouse loses his assistant and good friend Franklin Pope in an electrical accident. This event is shown in the film, but there was not as much lead up to the death as there was with Edison’s wife’s death, which is why I believe that the director wanted us to sympathize more with Edison. The director also shows that Westinghouse “stole” Edison’s light bulbs which further pushes Edison to be viewed as the protagonist. Because the director uses personal experiences from Edison’s life, such as the death of his wife, to help us sympathize with him, I believe that the director wanted to portray Edison as the protagonist of the film.
3) I believe that it is good to have competition in business because it allows the consumer to choose from a variety of options instead of just one. Consumers have different wants, and some situations call for different products. If only one company created cars, they may not make a model that you want, and then you’d be stuck with a car that you didn’t even want to buy. In addition, competition can sometimes lead to an advancement in technology and the creation of a better functioning product. If multiple companies compete to make phones, there is a greater urgency to innovate, which leads to better and more interesting features.
4) Even though I viewed Edison as the protagonist for the majority of the film, Edison used the media to spread true but also misleading information in order to hurt his competitor. Edison told the press that Westinghouse’s alternating currents were dangerous and that people who use it to power their homes could be killed by the currents. While this is true, as electricity can be deadly, Edison made it sound like his direct current electricity was not dangerous, which is false. When Edison found out that alternating currents would be used for the electric chair, he promoted it, and argued for its use on a man who murdered his wife. It was ironic that although Edison argues that Westinghouse electricity was deadly, when it was used for the first time with the electric chair, it took 3 tries before the murderer died.
1). I think in the film, The Current War, we’re supposed to be rooting for the protagonist, Thomas Edison. The filmmaker makes Edison more human and personal because he showcases the death of Edison’s wife and how he copes with it, as well as showing personal moments with his kids. He also refuses to start designing the electric chair, to make Westinghouse seem more morally “evil”. Moments in the middle of the film progress with Westinghouse and a horse in the rain, and as the scene wraps up, he shoots the officer he was bickering with as he tricks him into pointing the gun up into the rain. This shapes Westinghouse into an inhuman character because he takes the life of another man in addition to making a faster electricity that is very fatal. Personally while watching the film, I grew to dislike Westinghouse because I felt grief for Edison with the losses in his life, and if I was alive during the time period, I would fear Westinghouse because his methods were dangerous to the population, even if they were faster.
2). I was surprised because Thomas Edison is remembered as a genius inventor, and his personal life often is not commented on. I assumed he would be deeply involved in his work because of all his accomplishments, but he also found time in his life for the people he cared about. This portrayal is genius by the filmmaker because Edison after his wife dies, a scene is shown of Thomas and his two children playing the piano together, symbolizing the resolution of his grief and how he can be vulnerable. The race to electrify the city may have consumed Edison’s life at times, but he always knew his family was there.
5). I think the film’s greatest strength was displaying how Westinghouse, Tesla, and Edison lived behind their mask of intelligence, and how their morals shaped them. The competition is dirtier and more targeting than I imagined, so as a viewer, it hooked me in to know the personal politics between them, and not just their contributions to society. I believe the film’s greatest weakness was how Nicolas Tesla was added to the mix of inventions. I had a hard time just following what was going on because the film was so hard to follow with all the facts packed in, so adding Tesla for me made it harder to understand. I think he was a good addition to show he wasn’t the only one in the race, but he needed to be included more to balance the three scientists out, or not be in there at all so the film could just revolve around Westinghouse and Edison. However, I did enjoy learning about him.
1. I think that Edison is supposed to be the protagonist because the movie follows his life closely and portrays him as a more successful inventor than Westinghouse. The filmmaker chose to elaborate on the numerous problems with Westinghouse electricity and made it seem like his company was extremely dangerous and inhumane. While watching the movie, I perceived Westinghouse as careless compared to Edison because his system was dangerous and there were many more risks involved. Another reason I think Edison is the protagonist is because the movie shows scenes where Edison is vulnerable. For example, when his wife died. Scenes like this caused me to feel more connected to Edison, opposed to Westinghouse who seemed cold and not emotional. Also, there are scenes in the movie where Westinghouse’s dreams are being shown. The dreams are of him killing an officer which made him seem like he didn’t care about the lives of others. I feel like this is also shown in his company because his electricity designs are unsafe.
2. I was somewhat shocked when I learned that Edison constantly chose work over his family. Although it seemed like he had a good relationship with his wife, he was almost always choosing to work instead of spending time with them. To me, it seemed like Edison had a hard time showing his family that he loved them because he was usually working. I don’t think that this is a commentary by the filmmaker on the price of genius because it was Edison’s choice to spend the majority of his time working. I think that it was possible for Edison to balance his work and family in a better way. It was clear that his work was time consuming and stressful and I think these complications with his work caused him to not be as present as he could’ve been. When his wife died, Edison experienced an immense amount of grief and I definitely think most of this grief was caused because he felt guilty for not showing presence in her life. Also, after her death, Edison was shown spending more time with his kids. He seemed to value them more after her death.
5. The film’s greatest strength in educating viewers about the history of this period was showing the competition between both Edison and Westinghouse. I was able to clearly understand why the two men were so competitive and how they wanted cities to choose their company. I also grasped a good understanding of what it took for the two companies to become popular and how both men took extreme measures to make their system look like the better one. I liked how the film showed the many ways in which the companies were competitive. I think that because there was so much information given, I became confused. It took me a long time to understand Westinghouse’s dreams, and the importance of Nikola Tesla. These two things made me confused because while watching, I did not understand where these two aspects fit in. After reflecting on the movie, I get why they were added in, but while I was watching it was difficult for me to make those connections.
The protagonist that the audience is rooting for in the movie The Current War, is Westinghouse. The reasoning for this is that throughout the movie, Westinghouse is seen as an innocent businessman who regularly takes abuse from Edison and his company. Right from the start, Edison snubs Westinghouse by intentionally missing their dinner engagement, leaving Westinghouse and his wife waiting for his arrival after preparing for his visit. Also, Edison launched a vicious publicity war against the alternating current by providing a false theory that it will kill people, which leads to poor opinions about Westinghouse’s company and George himself. That is why Westinghouse is the character the viewer is rooting for.
In my opinion, having competition in business is pivotal because each company will want to continue to grow and improve its product to outdo the opposing company. This competition promotes the variety and quality of products in the marketplace, making more options for the consumer. For example, the competition between cellular phone carriers created the demand for the best smartphone programs. By offering their customers unlimited data at a cheap price, family and office plans, and international roaming these companies are raising the bar for their competition, thus creating a better more advanced product for the consumer as they move to as they improve their networks. Without the improvement that competition inspires, we may never have had Iphones for mobility, navigate systems, four-wheel drive in our cars, or microwave ovens in our kitchens. We would have just settled for the payphones, maps, and wood-burning stoves.
Edison’s portrayal in the movie illustrates a determined, stubborn, and devoted inventor who will sacrifice his family dynamic for his science. Edison’s relationship with his wife is often put at stake for his company; he finds himself so wrapped up in his explorations that he rarely has time for his family. For example, Edison passes up chances to spend quality time with his family exploring Menlo Park, which then leads to the discovery of his wife’s illness when she collapses alone in the field with only her young children to help. Another big sacrifice Edison makes occurs when Thomas leaves his wife on her deathbed to attend a business meeting, which Edison believes to be a minor action, but unfortunately, she died in his absence. The filmmaker is making a statement on the price of genius by showing Edisons inability to focus on anything but his pursuits as his genius trumps his ability to focus on anything else.
3.) I think it’s important to have competition in business because it improves the cost and quality. If a company has no one to compete with, they can create a monopoly and charge as much as they want for their product. Competition stops this because people don’t want to spend a lot of money and will go with the cheaper option. An example of this is gas stations, when two gas stations are in close proximity their prices they compete with their prices. Another reason competition is good, is that it forces companies to make improvements and ensure consumers are getting the best product possible. An example of this is Disney, they created their own streaming service to compete with Netflix.
4.) Edison used the media to manipulate the public’s view of AC as a power source by portraying it as deadly. He claimed that the voltages it used were dangerous, that DC was the safer alternative. There was no factual evidence claiming that AC was a hazard, so Edison created his own. He invited several journalists to come to a presentation. In this presentation he used AC to kill a horse, he repeated this tactic several times using different animals, such as cats and dogs. It wasn’t included in the movie, but a New York linemen was killed after touching a wire carrying high voltage AC current. After this happened, Edison announced that his company would never use AC because it would always pose a threat to people. Throughout the movie, he made claims to the press that AC would kill people. Edison knew that AC was superior, as was George Westinghouse’s system of putting the wires above ground. However, he was too proud to admit that, so he tried to appeal to the public’s emotions and create a frenzy based off no scientific evidence. He also hoped that he could use his reputable name to destroy Westinghouse and Tesla’s reputations.
5.) I think that the film’s greatest strength when it came to educating the audience about the time period was when it would introduce the characters. Everytime a new person appeared they would the name of that person, and why they are significant to the story. I found this very helpful because in many historical movies either, have to already know who the characters are or you have to quickly figure out the characters. The brief introductions allowed me to focus on the events and important content taking place in the movie without constantly wondering who everyone is. The Current Wars greatest weakness was that it jumped around a lot and that made it difficult to see why certain scenes were relevant to the plot. For example, it took a long time to see why William Kemmler was relevant.
1.) I don’t believe that either were supposed to be the hero per say, but instead, I think that the film’s goal was to attempt to portray both Edison and Westinghouse as accurate as possible. Despite this, Westinghouse does come off as more likeable. Throughout the film, we see how Westinghouse is reluctant to stoop down to Edison’s level, though he eventually falls through with it. We also see how Westinghouse is falsely portrayed as a killer by Edison, whom was originally just friendly competition. However we also see through Edison’s point of view. Edison was way more willing to throw Westinghouse under the bus to succeed, but I don’t believe Edison was completely unlikable. Edison feels as if he has been wronged, and that his ideas were stolen, thus Westinghouse is the evil he must stand up against. The movie portrays both of these men’s struggles and accomplishments through the movie. We witness both of them lose someone very close to them, Edison losing his wife and Westinghouse losing his friend. Thus I believe that neither was a protagonist because they were both portrayed as men trying their best to succeed despite their hardships, even if one of them was more disliked.
2.) I was a bit shocked at how low Edison was willing to stoop in order to win the “Current War”, and how much he was focused on work. We see that Edison clearly cares about his family, but continues to neglect spending time with them. As he continues to work, we see his wife grow ill. She confronts him about spending time, and later on Edison talks about how after the war, he is going to make up the lost time. However, Edison is too late. I wouldn’t call this the price of genius, but rather the price of an obsession. While Edison is obsessed with working so hard for success, he begins to lose things. He loses quality time with his family, and especially his wife. His obsession drives him to win the war and in return he loses things he can’t get back. This obsession also leads him to making morally frowned upon decisions, such as slandering Westinghouse in the name of his own success.
4.) We see Edison manipulate the public’s opinion through media during the entire movie. He makes statements that display Westinghouse’s AC as dangerous to make his own invention look better. The strongest example is when Edison uses Westinghouse’s current as a way to invent the electric chair so that Westinghouse’s current would be displayed as something evil that killed other people. Edison uses fear to control and influence people, and the media is the strongest way he exerts this power.
1. I believe that the filmmaker of The Current War wanted its viewers to root for Westinghouse. In the movie there are instances of poor character on both Westinghouse and Edison’s part. However, Edison’s mistakes far outweigh Westinghouse’s. While the light bulb itself was of Edison’s mind and throughout the movie it is made known that Edison had distress over Westinghouse stealing the light bulb, It was Edison who led him to do so. Before Westinghouse even began to compete with Edison, he invited him to a dinner party. The filmmaker makes special note to the importance of this dinner party by emphasizing the importance to the Westinghouse household. This takes away from Edison’s character while demanding sympathy from the viewer for Westinghouse. Edison’s involvement with AC in the press and the electric chair in order to antagonize Westinghouse, only antagonizes himself. Lastly, when Westinghouse hired Tesla while using humor, it emphasized the likability and the relatable aspect of him.
2. When I walked into The Current War, I expected to learn more about the amazing things Edison had done. Out of Westinghouse, Tesla, and Edison, he was the only name I recognized. I had never expected him to be involved with the electric chair, or using tactics not far from the use of press in early American elections. The neglect of his wife in her last moments was purposely played up. I assume the filmmaker did this to further antagonize Edison. I’m sure I was not the only one to walk in with only positive thoughts on Edison, and I am confident of the filmmaker’s knowledge of this. I believe it was genius to include evidence of poor character in none business settings like his wife, and possibly the dinner party. If he had not added these moments, the protagonist may have been less clear, and Edison’s actions may have been excused.
3. It is important to have competition in all markets because it encourages the companies that are competing to strive for better. Without competition there would be no need for higher quality, lower prices, and general safety. Competition makes people like Westinghouse develop cheaper and more efficient ways, and people like Edison develop a system he deems most safe. It would be very easy for a company to create a desired device that is unsafe if they had no competition because consumers would buy from them regardless if they needed said device. Apart from safety and quality, consumers generally enjoy having a choice. For example, the colonists were upset when they were only given the option of tea from the British East And Company partially because they preferred tea from other countries. Competition creates that choice that is valued by consumers.
The protagonist of current war in my opinion was thomas edison. I believe that edison was the protagonist because the ways in which he was portrayed made him seem like a better guy. Edison was the first person to come up with the ideas but westinghouse kind of stole it from him. The movie also shows that edison was a more innocent person on westinghouse is a bad guy. Something the director did is he showed that edison was trying to make a safer form of electricity. This was different from westinghouse because all he wanted to do was create electricity that was better as opposed to safer.
I think a big reason competition between two products is so important is because without competition companies would not try as hard to make their product the best.the reason companies care about being the best is because it will help them sell more of their product as well. For instance, if Apple did not have samsung to compete with they would probably not work as hard to innovate their product. Another reason is that when a company has no competition and has a monopoly on their product they can charge as much as they want. This can be an issue because people may not be able to buy the things they need with rising prices. Competition between the two companies, products, or people is what helps them to try their hardest and make sure everything is their best work.
Throughout the movie edison used the press to try and negatively affect his competitor edison. He would spew misleading info about westinghouse’s product to the media to try and defaminize him. Through the media He makes the public think that westinhouses form of ac energy is not as safe for people as his own form of energy is. Edison made many demonstrations of how the ac system of energy is bad. He showed that the current flow going both ways had the potential to kill animals and even humans. This made people feel worried about using this form of electricity and promoted them to use his own form of energy.
3. It is super important to have companies compete to be the best and most wanted. It is super beneficial for us, the consumers. If companies did not compete there would not be improvements to products. The company that invented the mobile phone would still be on top. The company that invented the mobile phone would have a monopoly on over that market. Like I said earlier, we wouldn’t be where we are, there would not be any advancements to that product. We wouldn’t have any smart phone like the Iphone or any Samsung product line of smart phones. Competition is needed to develop new technologies. We wouldn’t have any advances in anything. Therefore we wouldn’t have any advancements in society. If you think about it, our society is built on competition. Without competition we wouldn’t develop anything new. We would still have stone-age technologies and tools.
4. Edison use the media a couple ways. The main way he uses the media to manipulate the public’s opinion on AC current is by saying it is deadly. In the movie Edison is being interviewed and an extra comment at the end of the interview stating that Westinghouse’s current, AC, is deadly. To prove it he does an experiment. The experiment is killing a bunch of animals with AC current. In the movie, it shows Edison kill a horse. What is funny is that DC current, Edison’s current, is more deadly. It’s pretty ironic.
5. The movie’s greatest strength in educating it’s audience about the history of this period is that it shows the development of electricity. It does a great job of showing how everything started out with the lightbulb. The lightbulb got the ball rolling, inventors of the time period, Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, and George Westinghouse made huge advancements in technology. The movie did a great job showing those advancements. For example on how Edison was losing in the race of powering all the cities in the United States. He resorted in trying to slander the Westinghouse current, DC current. In trying, Edison made a more humane way to kill prisoners on death row. Its main weakness is that it didn’t show Nikola Tesla a lot. I believe he was a big contributor in the process of making electrical advancements. He got little recognition throughout the movie. He was also had very few scenes in the movie.
1. I feel Westinghouse is the main hero of the movie. Westinghouse is portrayed as a respectful, considerate person, while Edison is shown as a bit arrogant, selfish, and angry. Edison is also shown trying to slander Westinghouse with lies about AC current. While Edison seems to be the main character of the story, it is Westinghouse that takes the cake when it comes to being a good-nature, matured person.
4. To prove that AC is very dangerous, Thomas Edison shows that AC can electrocute and kill. His subject is a horse, and when hooked up to AC, the horse is killed. This makes the media fear the use of AC, and some people discontinue work with Westinghouse. Edison is asked if they can use AC current to kill people on Death Row. Edison does not want this to happen, but the person asking Edison realizes that the electric execution would be the most humane (even though later proven false), and decides to use AC anyways. So, when a man kills his wife and is destined for execution, he is to be the first person to undergo electrical execution. This is the first time the electric chair is used. However, when the man is about to be killed, the AC current fails to immediately kill him, and AC is used two more times until the man is finally killed. This shows that the media believed Edison, but later realized that while AC is still dangerous, it is not as dangerous as they had thought, and was proven ineffective for execution.
5. The movie does a good job at informing the viewer through acting. All the characters felt believable, and emotional scenes were well constructed. The director made sure that the movie was engaging, and this allowed for even people who dislike history to enjoy the movie. Big name actors really helped seal the deal, and while I am normally for movies with lesser known actors (i.e. literally every A24 movie), I feel the tone of the movie really helped show their acting talents. A major weakness though, is the pacing. I found it very hard to understand some of the parts of the movie, as there were many cuts in scenes that disrupted the flow of the movie. I found this to be a problem mainly at the beginning of the movie, but later, the movie began to run more smoothly. Some transitions didn’t make sense as well. So, the editing of the movie kind of hurt everyone participating in the movie as well.
1.In my opinion, the protagonist in The Current War is Westinghouse. He is portrayed as the protagonist because he has a nicer personality and was considerate compared to Edison. He also didn’t try to slander Edison’s name like Edison did to Westinghouse. Edison attacked every point that Westinghouse made, unlike Westinghouse who was innocent in the debates and the questions from the papers. Eddison also used animals as an example to prove that Westinghouse’s light bulb is
dangerous instead of staying quiet and being respectful like Westinghouse was. Eddison launched a verbal war with Westinghouse creating a feud that would last a long time. Another reason why Edison is not the protagonist is because he helped create the electric chair and gave the steps on how to create the chair to a cop who wanted the death penalty to be less painful and have a quicker death.
4. Edison uses the media to manipulate his idea about AC and how it can kill people. In the movie, Edison is interviewed on AC. He responds to the question that the AC would kill people if they used it. He proves his idea by killing a horse in front of the media. He killed a bunch of other animals as well, for example he killed an elephant and a lemur. Edison’s current ends up killing as well. He used DC and it killed other people which is quite ironic.
5. The greatest strength in the movie in educating the audience is how they teach the time period and what was thriving during the time period, which is electricity. It explains who were the frontrunners and who were the brightest minds at the time. It explains the Edison was behind and powering the country with light, so he had to attack Westinghouse to try to sell more of his power. The movie explains the creation of the electric chair and why it was created. It was created to have killed people quicker and less painlessly. Sense Edison was losing, he told the media that the AC was dangerous and would kill people. He told the creators of the electric chair that they had to use this to perfect the chair.
3. Competition is essential in any business category. Monopolies are rarely a viable economic solution for long durations of time. Looking first at the mobile phone market, we see two main sub categories, the iOS devices and Android OS devices. The participating companies in the Android market are Samsung, Google, Nokia, Motorola Mobility (previously an Alphabet company), and many more internationally such as Huawei (partially) and Xiaomi. Android running devices are creating new features with every generation such as face unlock, in screen fingerprint reading technology, and battery efficiency. The only company with iOS devices, however, is Apple, Inc. While originally innovative, they have fallen behind many Android based companies’ technology, such as the several year delay to introduce a face based unlocking system. The lack of competition within the iOS category versus the strong competition within the Android category, shows the great progress that strong competition can help achieve. In addition, there are many affordable Android based devices, while iOS devices are known for being quite the opposite. Apple was originally a very innovative company until they gained their large stake in the overall smartphone market. Another example of the doomfall caused by a monopoly is in progress today. Amazon, with it’s vast cash reserves from its ultra profitable businesses such as AWS, allow them to move into practically any market quickly and cause destruction even faster. Amazon is famous for moving into new markets such as was done through their acquisition of Whole Foods. News of this acquisition instantly forced most grocery chain stock prices to fall. Once Amazon becomes the majority of a market, there is little stopping it from raising prices, limiting innovation, or many other possible monopolistic actions. Strong competition in particular is essential for the innovation in our economy and for the well being of consumers.
4. I think that Thomas Edison’s use of the media was a good effort. Although, as it would later prove to be overall ineffective, his attempt to defame AC was partially successful. Edison, on television, attempted to show the ‘downsides’ of AC technology. By killing the animals, Edison was trying to persuade others that the technology could be used to kill people. The electric chair was the best example of this.
5. In my opinion, the movie did a great job at showing just how much competition there was between Edison and Westinghouse (and Tesla). Prior to the movie, I had no idea that there was that much competition happening for mainstreaming their respective technologies such as how Edison would kill animals just to prove a point. One weakness, in my opinion was how relatively little of the movie discussed the specific sciences of how their technologies worked.
In the Movie the Current war the protagonist that you are rooting for is Thomas Edison. The filmmakers did a great job of portraying Jefferson as a really likable inventor. They also dove deep into Edisons personal and family life, including the tragic passing of his wife, by doing this they humanized Edison and made the audience feel bad for him, therefore persuading viewers to root for Edison. The filmmakers also portrayed Jefferson as the far superior and successful inventor, especially by at the end of the film text showed on the screen stated that Westinghouse won the highest honor in the electrical engineering community the Edison award. This was put in to show that Edison is always superior to his competition. Another example of competition in business for good is Nike and Adidas. They try to best each other by making a cooler and comfier product than each other. They always succeed in doing so, and all of that success goes to our benefit
I believe that rivalry in business like the AC/DC current war is very important. This competition is very important because it drives each side to better their product to keep up with their rival product, all for the consumers benefit. Competition in business is such a good thing because it advances us, and helps us deliver a better product to their consumer. Competition inspires companies to make their experience better, for example AT&T and Verizon have vied for the title of best network for cellular device, the rivalry has only caused for them to both take improvements constantly on their network to this day, which only gives the consumer a better expierience.
Edison used the media to severely manipulate the publics opinion of the AC currents safety. Edison dis so by issuing press statements saying that the AC current kills, and that if the AC current is sponsored nationally people could start dropping dead. Edison tried to convince the public that the AC current killed by going on tours and killing animals with the AC current. Edisons attempts were very successful as he swayed significant public opinion agains the AC current.
3) It is very important to have competition in business because everybody has their own preference on the products they want and which business they think is better for them and their lifestyle. Everybody’s situation is different so the variety in businesses help suit the needs of everyone. In the movie we saw these for each city that was picking which electrical system they wanted to use in their city. Edison’s system suited big cities better because the buildings needed to be close together and it did not work for spread out cities. Rural cities picked westinghouse’s business because the alternating current could span over much land which was needed for these agricultural cities with much more land then people and houses. If there was not this competition in the business, everyone would have the same product but have different needs for the use of the product. Competition is good because it gives consumers more choices.
4) Thomas Edison uses the media for his advantage by discrediting Westinghouse’s AC system. Edison told the press that the AC system kills people. He even demonstrated this theory in front of the media by killing animals with Westinghouse’s system. Edison helped the invention of the electric chair for execution of humans and tried to put the blame on the name of Westinghouse’s company because it was the technology that the AC system used. He eventually was caught for this, but since he was so famous he was found innocent despite all of the evidence against him. Thomas Edison was a very popular and powerful man. The media believed his lies because of his reputation.
1) I think that the filmmaker wanted to show George Westinghouse to be more likeable. The movie portrayed Westinghouse as quiet, caring, and innocent. Edison tried to change the public’s opinion on Westinghouse’s image by calling him a thief. The movie showed a scene of Westinghouse talking to an acquaintance about how he did not want to steal Edison’s ideas, he just wanted to expand the potential of electricity. This showed how he cared about the future of the country more than his self image. The movie also emphasized the characters roles with their wifes. Edison cared more about his work than his wife. Westinghouse cared about his wife and her opinions. In one of the final scenes at the fair when Edison and Westinghouse converse, it shows Westinghouse’s maturity and the underappreciated of his work. George was very nice to Thomas in this conversation, but was not noticed by any of the fans of Edison and was left alone while Edison went off with a crowd following him.
I think it is important to have competition between businesses because it creates the will to go past one’s limits and try new things which can lead to better creations. I think competition is good as long as it stays friendly. Once it relates to the election of 1828 it isn’t beneficial anymore since the focus turns from the ideas to then taking their energy out on destroying the opponent. I believe competition is helpful for companies producing the same products with different characteristics because it furthers the mind and ideas and can be beneficial to the companies and the customers. It also drives competition among customers which creates greater publicity when a new product is released. Competition between businesses is important, because it’s the customers who have the choice of product. Due to this, owners know that the people are buying their products based on quality.
Edison uses the media to his advantage by inviting the press to his demonstration of how AC as a power source is lethal to bigger animals, which would make it lethal to humans. He spreads rumors about Westinghouse. To try and persuade customers and the people of choosing Edison’s invention over that of Westington, Edison spoke his opinions very publicly. Edison not only spoke out against Westinghouse, he also sent out letters, and addressed anyone planning to buy Westinghouse’s product.
The protagonist of this movie, in my opinion, is Westinghouse. He tried to partner up with Edison, however Edison declined the offer and blows Westinghouse off. Westinghouse doesn’t make it his mission to tear down the opposing business and even takes NIkola Tesla under his wing, after Ediso didn’t allow him to try out his invention. I believe, Westinghouse is the hero of this movie, because he didn’t go after Edison and played fairly. He also had the better power source but due to his competition and the rumors Edison suggested, Westinghouse didn’t get the recognition and appreciation for his work.
I was a little shocked at how much work and the competition between businesses changed Edison as much as it did. He was loving around his wife and cared endlessly for his children, but that wasn’t the image he showed the people. Edison focused more on tearing down Westinghouse, making his own invention work and publicly ripping down the other companies, than what mattered most to him. Which was his family. His family were one of the few exceptions who saw Edison for the man he truly was, and not just the man who was going after other companies to benefit his own.
1. In the film “The Current War”, the protagonist that we are in favor of is Edison. The film follows his life closely and it really portrays him as a good guy. It shows his life at home and the problems that he faces in his household. They do show Westinghouse’s life at home, but to a lesser extent and it didn’t show they many tragedies that we saw with Edison. It makes him more likable when he is portrayed like this and can make viewers sympathize with him more when his wife dies. They do make the viewers sympathize more for Westinghouse but Edison is still the main character. Also, throughout the movie, we see Westinghouse using light bulbs in the form of an electric chair and to kill animals, not something a hero would really do. This portrays Westinghouse as evil and uses his creations to kill animals. The movie shows Edison trying to expose him, he is a hero because he is exposing Westinghouse.
2.When I first saw the trailer of The Current War, I expected to learn more about the amazing things Edison had done. Edison is one of the main names you hear that’s related to the light bulb, before the film I hadn’t heard about Tesla and Westinghouse. I had never expected him to be involved with the electric chair and his other inventions. The neglect toward his wife in her last moments was made up to make Edison sound worse. I assume the filmmaker did this to further antagonize Edison. I thought Edison was the protagonist throughout the story but some of his ideals altered my thinking, and I am confident in the filmmaker’s knowledge of this. Using his wife brought out the real character in Edison. If he had not added these moments, the protagonist may have been less clear, and Edison’s actions may have been excused.
4. Edison uses the media to manipulate public opinion about AC as a power source. He slams Westinghouse for saying that it has the ability to kill a man. The AC power was used as a form of execution with the electric chair, Edison used this as leverage. First, he uses it to kill animals in front of an audience. Edison thinks that when people see that AC power can be used to kill people, it will make them see that DC power is the better option. He wants his business to grow on the failure of the AC, he wants people to buy his bulbs.
1.
The Hero of The Current War film was Westinghouse. Westinghouse’s invention of Alternating Current was intended to distribute power that was more widespread than Edison’s, Direct Current invention. Westinghouse was trying to sell his Alternating Current to cities because it was more convenient and long range in distributing power. Edison was getting furious that Westinghouse, his competitor, put out the better product of the two. Edison in anger decided to invent the electric chair using Alternating Current to show how it is inhumane and that current is used to kill someone. Edison was hoping he wasn’t known as the inventor of this machine, because Edison was portrayed not to invent any weapons that harm people, which he stated. Therefore, Edison was harming people as he was trying to show how Westinghouse’s product is dangerous. Even though Westinghouse’s invention of Alternating Current was inhumane, he intended to make a more convenient product to the cities, not to harm anyone. Edison was the one harming citizens.
4.
Edison uses the media to manipulate people’s opinions in Alternating Current by expressing all the negatives in Alternating Current. Edison killed a horse using Westinghouse’s Alternating Current and had it published in the Newspaper. This showed the country that Alternating Current has the potential to kill someone. No state would want a Current that has the danger to kill a human. After this, many states decided to stick with the safer option, Edison’s invention of Direct Current.
5.
The greatest strength that educates the viewers in this film is showing the competition between products back then and how it is similar in today’s world. In history, business men competed to give out the best product. They used different techniques to sell their product, especially trying to knock down each other by spotting out the flaws of their competitors product. These same techniques happen in the world today between competitor companies. The weakness in the film is that they did not show much of the process on how these inventors came up with these inventions. One improvement would be to show how these inventions came to be and how they grew bigger and bigger.
I think Westinghouse is portrayed as the hero of the film, and we can see this in how he is shown in the film in contrast to Edison. First of all, in the film, Edison is portrayed as a person that is widely known for being a genius and one of the most brilliant inventors of his time. As a result, he is very arrogant and believes that his capabilities can solve any problem. This causes Edison to ignore Tesla for example, when he points out that Edison’s electricity system has flaws in the fact that it was not as efficient and cheap as it could be. This arrogance is also shown during Edison’s negotiations with Westinghouse for money loans, and the fact that he refused to stop the train to see Westinghouse and his wife. On the other hand, Westinghouse acknowledged that he was not an inventor himself nor a genius, and therefore had no reason to be arrogant due to his own capabilities. Edison’s arrogance ultimately lead to his willingness to do anything in order for his electricity to “win” the war. We saw that he spread false accusations that Westinghouse’s electricity was dangerous, and then the invention of the electric chair using Westinghouse’s electricity. Edison is further portrayed as a villain when execution by electric chair was proved to be a very gruesome and painful. In contrast, Westinghouse never engaged in spreading rumors about Edison. Additionally, we saw that he was very devastated when an accident caused his electrician (who created the Westinghouse Electricity) and dear friend to die. This proves that Westinghouse never wished for anyone to die because of his electricity. In the end, the film displays him as a man whose hard, honest, work caused him to “win” the Current War.
Competition in business is crucial to improve the products, services, and prices that each competing company are offering. Without competition, companies would not have as much incentive to improve their products/services for customers. An example from the movie of how competition in business is important is the fact that without Westinghouse to compete against Edison, many would have to invest more in a far less effective electricity system.
Edison used the media to manipulate the public opinion by spreading false accusations about Westinghouse’s electricity system. Due to the lack of public knowledge about electricity (which was a new technological advancement), Edison could use his credibility and fame as a well known inventor to feed the public lies. He even went as far as conducting and publicizing experiments on horses to “prove” that Westinghouse’s electricity was deadly. This further convinced the public that electricity could be used to not only kill, but execute prisoners humanely. However, this all backfired when Edison tried to invent an electric chair with Westinghouse’s electricity as a humane tool of execution and ended up creating a very painful death for the prisoner. The development and testing of the electric chair in the film also proved that what Edison claimed to media sources might have not been correct.
1.I think the hero of the film is supposed to be Edison. At some points in the movie he is portrayed in a negative light, like when he works late and can’t be with his wife and kids and when he reports bad press on his competitor , Westinghouse. But I think, in the end, Edison is there for his kids when his wife (their mom) dies, and repeatedly says that he would never hurt someone with his inventions. Both Edison and Westinghouse have flaws but, the filmmaker makes Edison seem more likeable because of the presence of his kids throughout the movie and by showing his struggles at home, outside of his work life.
3. Many/ most companies and businesses have at least one competitor. Competitors can help businesses to better themselves in order to beat out, or do better than their competitors. Without competition there is really no need to better the products because the customers will have to continue to buy it. Competition results in the constant changing and bettering of products, which will benefit the consumers. In the case of the movie, the fierce competition between Edison and Westinghouse motivates both men to work harder to get their lightbulb on top, and results in both men continuing to work to beat each other out by trying to make their lightbulb safer, better made, less expensive, etc.
4. Edison uses the media to work against Westinghouse regarding AC as a power source by showing people how dangerous it is. Edison shows the public the dangers of AC by exemplifying that at even the slightest touch it could kill someone. He demonstrates this with a wire in which there is an AC and he shows the reporters that when a horse touches it, the horse immediately dies. Edison thinks that by demonstrating to the public that an AC can kill people they will see DC as a better source, and buy his lightbulb. Although this doesn’t work in the end, throughout the “Current War” Edison does try to be manipulative and show the negatives of AC through the media.
3)
As we know in this day an age, many name brand companies are in competition with each other and announcing it all over and everywhere you see it. This helps bring in more customers to check out and even use their products. For a business, you generally want competition. This is because if you have no one else to compete against, there is no way for you or your products to get better. With the movie, Edison and Westinghouse went at it, trying to sell and perfect the light bulb to sell to the world and with the competition, they were able to promote the bulb and make it better. Even though sometimes competition can be cutthroat and cruel, companies have to be superior to the competition and have to stand out.
4)
In the movie, The Current War, 2 inventors are trying to sell their light bulbs to light the world with electricity. With their own ways, Edison and Westinghouse try to downgrade the other to make their bulbs to stand out. Edison does a tactic and calls in the media to show the deadly power of Westinghouse’s electrical current. He does this by killing a horse using the current in Westinghouse’s light bulb. Many new sources do a story on this and publish it, showing Westinghouse’s light bulb could kill someone while Edison’s bulb is the safer alternative and the people should buy his instead.
5)
While watching the movie, it wasn’t really entertaining and hard and confusing to understand at first. With all the different cut scenes of random characters and random time periods, it made watching the movie and understanding very difficult at the same time. Some of the connections clicked at the end when revealing what some of it meant but some scenes are still unclear to me. Although there were a lot of weaknesses with this movie and wasn’t the most entertaining, the film helped explain a lot about the time period. The film did so by showing all of the historical people involved and how life was back then before the light bulb. With these visuals about how different and much harder it was and how the family was structured, connections and visual helped me understand and learn a lot from it.