Outline of First Term Paper: Law of Physics in the Universe of Howl’s Moving Castle

Outline: Law of Physics in the Universe of Howl’s Moving Castle

I.                    Introduction

a.       Summary: A meek young woman named Sophie is cursed and transformed into an old lady by the wicked Witch of the Waste after encountering the handsome, yet childish, wizard Howl.

b.      Present hypotheses:

                                                               i.      Bending of gravity

                                                             ii.      Unbalanced effects of force

                                                            iii.      Acknowledgement of inertia, but exaggerated follow-throughs (drag)

c.       Thesis

II.                  Body

a.       Bending of gravity to create a feeling of magic and weightlessness as well as to emphasize actions

                                                               i.      The moving castle is seemingly heavy, as it is composed of mixed industrial materials, and yet it is supported by four thin legs

                                                             ii.      Witch of the Waste is a large woman, yet is carried almost effortlessly throughout the film by two human-shaped globs (which are proven to be quite light and weak when attacked)

                                                            iii.      When Howl reads the cursed spell on the dining table, a sinister air surrounds him and his hair magically floats upward on its own, without any noticeable force acting upon it

                                                           iv.      Whenever Howl and Sophie jump into the air, their hang time is too long and the spacing of their fall is off, which allows them to fall gently back to the ground

                                                             v.      In the scene where Sophie and the dog fall in mid-air as they switch dimensions, the dog falls faster than Sophie, even though he fell after her and weighs less (defying air resistance)

b.      Unbalanced reactions to force

                                                               i.      In the scene where Sophie first meets turnip head in the Wastelands, the wind blowing them (the force) is great, as Sophie struggles to move against it; however, turnip head stands beside her seemingly unaffected even though he his significantly lighter

                                                             ii.      The Witch of the Waste flies through Sophie at a high speed, and although Sophie reacts to the force by moving backwards, she should have actually accelerated back much further considering the witch’s heavy weight and the speed at which she flew

c.       Inertia and exaggerated follow-throughs for emphasis

                                                               i.      When Howl turns his head around to face Sophie, his hair’s follow-through is slow and long, as if his hair was floating

                                                             ii.      Soldier from Kingsbury’s cape follows through as he turns away from Markel, but it is slow and continues to float around him

                                                            iii.      Sophie’s dress follows through after she exists the door back into the present, but it is somewhat delayed and drags considerably far for the speed at which she was moving

III.                Conclusion

a.       Restate thesis

b.      Summarize main points

c.       Last thoughts