Biomes
Florence and Guilder
Florin City and Guilder are both located in the Temperate Forest biome since both cities reside in Europe. Europe contains temperate forest biomes as seen in the movie version of “The Princess Bride” that shot in Ireland, Great Britain, and New England.
When Buttercup was engaged to Prince Humperdinck, it was stated that one of her favorite hobbies was to ride out of the castle and all around Florin. Each time Buttercup rides, she rides into deciduous (temperate) forests. These biomes are found mainly in Europe, the eastern half of North America, and parts of Asia. Deciduous forests consist of 5 different zones and 4 seasons. I believe that Buttercup rides only through the first zone, which is the Tree Stratum zone. The Tree Stratum zone is composed of various types of trees (such as oak, maple, elm, and basswood) that all have heights of at least 60 feet in length, which are great for cover when three people kidnap a soon-to-be princess. The second zone is the Small Tree and Sapling zone which has shorter trees such as dogwood and shadbush. Azalea, huckleberry, mountain laurel and other types of shrubs make up the Shrub zone. The fourth zone is called the Herb zone and |
is composed of herbal plants and vegetation. The final zone is called the Ground zone and all it contains is club and true mosses. Some of the favorable scenes from the film are found to be in temperate forests during the season of autumn. Even the kidnapping of Buttercup was shot and filmed in a deciduous forest during the season of autumn.
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Deciduous forests are great places to live because these types of forests are much cooler than others because the numerous trees give off a lot of oxygen, so if it's hot in Florin city, a villager could just relax in the forest. Temperate forests also contain streams of fresh water, which is perfect since every kingdom needs water to satisfy its people. Since there are a vast majority of trees in these types of forests, the bark could be used to build many things that benefit people of both Florin and Guilder. Cities such as Florin and Guilder managed to survive and thrive with people mainly because of the resources provided by the very biome that they settled in, deciduous forests.
The Fire Swamp
The R.O.U.S (Rodents of unusual size), however, are hard to explain since large, carnivorous rodents like those do not exist. My guess is that a family of starving rats travelled through the ravine looking for a permanent home with plenty of water and areas for shelter. The rats were probably so hungry on their journey to the Fire Swamp, that they decided to feast on each other as they developed sharper teeth, claws, and a bigger body while probably fighting for generations to eat each other. Once the rodent family arrived in the Fire Swamp, they most likely ran off to hunt, scavenge, and steal food on their own.
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Both in the movie and in the original story, the Fire Swamp is described to have strange characteristics that you wouldn’t find in any other swamp. No matter how odd or peculiar the Fire Swamp is, it is still a swamp, therefore it is still considered a biome.
The Aquatic biome is the largest biome on earth and is separated into two regions, freshwater and marine. Swamps and marshes are classified to be in the freshwater region of aquatic biomes because they are flooded with water. The type of swamp Buttercup and Westley escaped in is mostly likely a freshwater cypress swamp due to the fact that a ravine led to the Fire Swamp and the ravine was probably a river long ago. The Fire Swamp most likely contains cypress trees since the fire that bursts from the ground probably goes on the trees, which need to be able to recover quickly when burnt. Other types of trees, water-resistant vegetation, and wildlife live and thrive in freshwater swamps. Cypress and tupelo trees grow in flooded places as spanish moss hangs from their branches. Different types of shrubs and bushes also sprout beneath the trees and in the water. As for the wildlife, the animals have adapted to the high water levels of the swamp. Alligators, amphibians, and different types of fish populate most parts of freshwater swamps. Tree roots, fallen logs, and tree roots provide shelter for animals of all sizes. Although swamps are filled with water, land animals still inhabit swamps and survive just fine on spongy land since they, too, have adapted to certain circumstances. |
The snow sand mentioned in the book and the movie was probably just based off of quick-sand, which is formed by loose, dry sand that has trapped water inside of it, making the sand unstable and unable to support any weight. Quicksand is usually just a foot or two deep, but in "The Princess Bride", the snow sand appeared to be miles deep.
Magazine Ad to Theme
This Nike advertisement may be about sports shoes, but I believe that it still relates to our theme, "Finding Love." As you may know, there are doers and there are dreamers. Buttercup and Westley are doers, which means that instead of dreaming about something they want to do, they just go ahead and do it with no hesitation. When Buttercup realized that she was in love with Westley, she didn't fantasize about telling him about her true feelings and never actually doing it, she just went ahead and confessed her heart out to him. Westley, on the other hand, had been through so much pain and trouble in rescuing Buttercup, that it's not hard to categorize him as a doer. Both Buttercup and Westley are experts in finding love, for time and time again they have found each other no matter what stood in their way. Some dreamers tend to just fantasize about something they want to do or want to have, but don't go out of their way to achieve it. In the story, Westley didn't think of rescuing Buttercup and never doing it, he risked his everything to save her. Westley found his love because he was a doer, not a dreamer. Our group didn't just pick a theme because we had to, we picked it because we wanted to send a message to everyone that if they have a dream such as being in love with someone and not confessing to them about it, then they should do their best to achieve their dreams and find love. To fulfill his dreams , which was finding Buttercup, Westley stopped dreaming and started working, which we urge you to do. In order to actually achieve your dreams and find love, whether it be doing something you love or finding a person you love, you should stop dreaming and start working.