Week 14- Not Necessarily the Future.

When prompted to write about how I envision the future, both in my lifetime and beyond, I was first sucked in to thinking about all of the negatives that exist in the word today. Disease, war, famine, natural disasters, the melting polar ice caps, global warming, water wars, food shortages, food excess, depression, anxiety, bigotry, hatred, violence, murder- you get the point this could go on forever.

HOWEVER. I am also happy at the thought that at this very moment, somewhere in the world someone is coming up with a solution to these things. I don't mean to say that all these things can be solved. Certainly there will always be violence and murder as well as love and kindness and newborn puppies as that is the human experience. But what I mean to say is that more that the innumerable bad things that plague the universe I am excited to see how people solve these problems. Just yesterday there was an article floating around the vastness of the internet that stated that a major car company had figured out how to fuel a car using carbonated water. If thats true, THATS AWESOME.

When I was 11 I saw the Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM) Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century. In it Zenon lives on a space station with artificial gravity, has a communicator where she can see and be seen by whoever she is talking to and is well traveled throughout the galaxy. At this time cell phones were just about to hit the Razr- mania stage where a motorola razr was the coolest phone to have next to a sidekick (it flipped open and had a keyboard and was the coolest shit on the BLOCK).

But anyways, now in 2015 I can take out my apple 6 phone and video chat my sisters in Cleveland while I'm on the beach ordering jimmy johns using free wifi and applying for jobs. THATS AMAZING. In the short amount of years since cell phones became a part of the mainstream they have advanced so much. Computers are now about the same size and weight at a small notebook when they used to take up entire rooms.

Also we have those coke machines now where you can choose your flavor (cherry coke, always)- these are truly amazing times whether we choose to see them as such or not. And the advancements in soda dispensaries aside, I believe that human beings want what is best for the planet and the people on it. I believe we are capable of creating solutions to the issues that plague us and that new ingenuity can lead to a better quality of living. One that I am excited to see.

Also, if there are not flying cars and lightsabers  by the time I die I feel I will have wasted my time on Earth.

Week 12- Diverse Position Science Fiction

Ok, I have to start this post by saying that I really enjoyed Attack the Block, about a poor apartment block in London and how they deal with a sudden alien invasion. I think what I liked most was its' very British sense of humor and that while it dealt with alien attacks it wasn't overly flashy with special effects which to me made it all the scarier. The aliens were vague looking but definitely terrifying.

I liked that this movie not only took the alien invasion out of a prime location like the white house (or Buckingham Palace or the House of Lords etc in England) and put it in a low income neighborhood in inner city London. And that the heroes were really more anti-heroes. These were young, rough, kids who mugged people, stole, and did drugs and they ended up saving the whole planet, which to me is an interesting and different story to tell.

Another thing I found oddly enjoyable was not that characters died but that the film allowed for deaths to happen and not as plot lines but simply because THATS WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IN AN ALIEN INVASION. People would probably die and not everyone gets away (although I still got a little sad when the dog died :/ 

Week Ten- The Fiction of Ideas

This week I explored Ursula Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness, I found this story to be incredibly interesting because like most fiction its commentary is about the nature of humanity and in this case the ideas of masculine, feminine, androgyny, peace and war. When a Terran man named Genly is sent to a planet called "Winter" (spoiler its always cold there) he encounters a race of people who are primarily androgynous and "ambisexual" only taking on sexual characteristics of either gender once a month. Coincidentally, or more likely not, Winter has never experienced war and is being asked to join an interplanetary alliance by Genly.

I think this book is interesting because it really makes the case that ideas about gender identity, fluidity, sexuality, masculinity, femininity, reproduction and their affects on society are ANYTHING but new. While I believe they are coming more and more to the forefront of the world's discussion table people have had thoughts and opinions that have changed throughout time as long as there have been people.

This book also touches on the ideas of government and society's role in the policing of people's bodies and sexuality, when sterilization is intended to be used as a form of punishment after committing an offense. While it is illegal these days to force someone to be sterilized it was not long ago at all that it was common practice along with lobotomy and chemical castration.

I think this book does a good job on commenting on these things as well as telling an interesting story set in a science fiction world of alien races and far away galaxies.

Week Nine: Space Opera

The thing I like most about this week was the fact that while they are all innovative the term "space opera" literally makes me realize that these are operas/westerns dropped into space. I grew up on films like star wars (pre JarJar Binks), the fifth element,  flash gordon and more recently Guardians of the Galaxy. These films, comics, and novels while set in galaxies far far away, are really about the human experience, emotions, and relationships.

Watching The Forbidden Planet was very enjoyable to me, the whole aesthetic of the film is one that I enjoy as well as the "long arm of the law" impeding on an outlying homestead that lies outside the town (or outside the galaxy in this case). Ann Francis makes  a wonderful naive young woman who encounters a group of foreign men, foreign ideas and grew up completely outside of human contact, human morality, and human customs. 

The Time period is very much present in this film in a very wonderful way- the idea of what could be possible in the future with advancements in technology are still ones we hope for today- and ones emerging at this time.

Week Seven: The Novel of Spiritual Education

         For this week I've read both The Night Circus and am in the process of reading The Golden Compass. I have to say that The Night Circus is possibly one of my favorite books I've ever read. I feel like the this book combines many ideas and thoughts without giving a final commentary and leaving it to the readers choice. In this book magic is something that can be learned by anyone (although some are naturals or better apt to pick it up) with two opposing schools of thought: one relies on the power within the individual magic is generated and controlled through physical means. Celia has her hand crushed and is made to heal it. She is able to make objects move with a simple thought and is a master of making her actual magic seem like illusions. Marco works with symbols, glyphs, spells and charms- while both are capable of working both ways their primary instruction differs.

The idea of a spiritual journey comes in with the idea of soul mates. Celia and Marco, for much of the book, do not know that they are each other's opponent in the grand competition- but end up falling in love with one another's magic and their attractions built into the circus.

In The Golden Compass the spiritual journey of the characters is definitely more on the surface. With the ideas of religion, technology, magic and the human soul in a world where every human's soul exists outside their body in the form of an animal called a daemon. Children's daemons are fluid and can change forms at will, and upon maturity the daemon settles into an animal form that reflects it's humans traits, personality, and soul. For example many servants' daemons take the forms of dogs, while Lord Azrial's daemon is a beautiful snow leopard.

Unsurprisingly my favorite characters within the book was was Serafina Pekkala a witch. Witch's daemons exist in bird form and unlike regular people they can separate indefinitely from their humans (witches).  I like the idea of traveling separately from ones soul.

The idea of a human soul taking a physical form indicative of a person's inner being that you can talk and interact with is intriguing and comforting.

Aquatic Uncle

1. Are there any prominent symbols in the story? If so, what are they and how are they used?

Transformation and evolution/metamorphosis are the biggest symbols in the story that I can think of. Also the idea of the earth as an every changing/evolving thing, and the idea of choosing how you move through those changes. Qfwfq talkes about crocodiles choosing to stay where they were in history much like his Great-Uncle, and Lll chooses to go backward in her evolution and become a fish again while Qfwfq and the rest of his family choose to move forward to live on land. The idea of the unknown as well as the vastness of undiscovered places like the sea and land were also discussed.

2. What connections did you make with the story you read? Discuss the elements of thew work with which you were able to connect.

 I think the biggest connection I made was with the idea of choosing how you move forward and the fact that there are options and choices to how you do so. While I probably am not going to sprout a tail and gills, all people can choose to either evolve as they get older or choose to remain as they are. I also connected with the idea that sometimes the next new big thing is not always better than what was, and sometimes its ok to look to the past or to the older generation for ideas about what could work. Choosing how you evolve and how you want to move forward with your life.

3. What changes would you  make to adapt this story into another medium? What medium would you use? What changes would you make?

If I were to make this story into a visual representation I think I would choose an animated story or a childrens book. Because I would gear it towards children I think the great uncle would have to be changed to a brother or a friend because having someones fiance run off with their great uncle might be a little harder to understand. I would want to make it animated or drawn because I think there would be a lot of opportunities to visually represent the differences between land and sea animals and the different ways that creatures choose to evolve. I would also maybe make it clearer what kind of animals they all are and also the different ways that animals were adaptable at that time in history.

Week 6- The Hero's Journey- Equal Rites

Terry Pratchet's Equal Rites was my first introduction to both his writing and to Discworld. I have to say I was pretty reluctant to read it at first, although honestly after reading it I can't figure out why. I found it to be inventive, interesting, and funny. As far as following the hero's journey, Eskarina is an interesting protagonist. The rules and differences surrounding the magic of witches vs. the magic of wizards was interesting in that it didn't matter the sex of the individual (although all wizards are men and all witches are women) but the way the person accessed their powers and also the way they went about learning magic. Also- Granny Weatherwax is awesome and I wish she was my grandma.

The hero's journey trope is very present in Equal Rites, Esk's call to adventure comes when her powers become unmanageable and Granny Weatherwax takes her to the Unseen University.

Her supernatural aide is clearly Granny Weatherwax as the only way she is allowed at the university is as a servant. This could be seen as her initial breakthrough and crossing the first threshold into the world of wizards.

Her attempt to help Simon and ending up in the other dimension could be seen as the belly of the beast. And her return to the University and continuation to discover a new kind of magic is her victorious return. Pratchett's Discworld gave me an entirely new universe to explore and allowed for me to dive right in without having to have read his many other books in this universe.

Week 5- Witches!

Ahhhh finally, the week I have been waiting for. I admit that out of all my horror, fantasy, and sci-fi favorites, that witches are at the top of the list (werewolves are cool too, but i mean theres just something way cooler about witches- maybe just the word? Not sure). I think there is a lot to be said about witches, women, magic, and the idea of harnessing nature and natural energy that the archetype of the witch can bring up. Not only that, but the different way that witches are depicted has changed over time and is a lasting figure in many stories.

I personally like to look at the way witches and magic are depicted in different books and movies, with different rules and sources of power etc. For example in Bewitched, witches are both female and male (sometimes called warlocks) who possess immense powers, able to alter the world at the flick of a wrist (or twitch of the nose) and a few silly words. Looking at the way female power is represented by Samantha Stevens, we see that it also clearly reflects the issues of the times (late 1950's-1960's). Samantha, a witch of a few hundred years of age, marries Darren, a mortal man who works in advertising. She is seen willingly giving up her powers in order to make Darren happy but also using them in every episode in order get out of a jam. Here we see the issues of women giving up their power to a man and also Darren being played by two completely different people.

Endora provides an interesting voice throughout the show, often scolding Samantha for not using her natural gifts and making fun of Darren for wanted to live a life free of magic. In the show she is also a "separated" woman from her warlock husband and lives a free life doing as she pleases.

Similarly in Bell, Book and Candle we see a witch Gillian, played by Kim Novak, living a free (barefoot) life, reveling in her powers, creating storms and generally doing as she pleases with her witch brother and aunt as supporting characters. The only rule seems to be that if a witch ever truly falls in love they will lose their powers. After a multitude of different mishaps and a cancelled wedding- Gillian realizes she loves Shep and ends up losing her powers and reuniting with him in the end (only after she has lost her powers of course as he spends the entire movie unaware or completely terrified of her). A common theme I've seen in many movies centering on witches is the idea of witches as husband stealers (Bell, Book and Candle, So I Married a Witch, Practical Magic)

(I sit on my couch like this all the time- dont you?)

Looking at Practical Magic, the witches here take on a more quaint and old school feel. Set in a small seaside town (possibly in upstate NY) the Owens witches are more natural, with plants and gardens, and herbs abounding in their victorian home. Even their powers come about in a very natural way (Sally's coffee stirs itself, the aunts turn on appliances just by looking at them), although they do end up raising a zombie back from the dead and releasing a powerful spirit (the protagonist of the story) But also a deeper understanding of nature and magic and also Sally's acceptance of her power is needed in order to save the day, as well as the banding together of a group of women. 

Practical Magic does differ from some in that the women in this family are definitely the dominant ones- any man who falls in love with them meets an untimely death due to a long standing family curse (if I had a nickel). 

Week 4- THE OLD WEIRD AND THE NEW WEIRD

I think what separates "weird" purely from fiction or fantasy is the base setting of a real world that it does not let go of. In fantasy books the reader is either dropped into a completely different world (Tolkein) or perhaps starts out in the normal world and then quickly escapes into a wild fantasy world (Harry Potter, Narnia). I feel that what keeps the weird, weird is that it is based in the real world and no matter how many fantastical, supernatural, or scary elements it brings it it still keeps a tight hold on reality or at least the every day realities that take place within the story, nothing is glossed over and the nothing is glamorized. This, I feel, keeps the reader/viewer grounded in the story and allows the fantastical elements to become more believable and can sometimes make them seem almost commonplace.

In Troll Hunter- yes the students find out that trolls exist and that they can be killed by sunlight (fantastical!) they also discover that there is not only a man who's sole job is to hunt dangerous trolls but that there is also an entire government  department dedicated to keeping the troll population in check. This includes the bureaucracy, paperwork, forms, low pay and some of the dirty work involved in regular everyday, regular jobs. This, accompanied by the fact that the troll hunter must routinely cover himself in troll excrement in order to mask his scent to the trolls, makes for an unappealing job description. Not to mention the dark ending including a government cover up of students discovering trolls exist.

While Cabin in the Woods takes the fantastical and horror elements to a higher level, it still keeps the film grounded in the monotony and heirarchy of a large multinational business. The ancient rituals meant to keep these monsters at bay gave rise to a business meant to keep humanity safe by sacrificing 5 youths every year (whore, athlete, scholar, fool, virgin)- the archetype thing I found interesting and weird at the same time but again, making the sort of every day archetypes we see and making them supernatural.

Week 3- Asian Horror

When I first began to delve into "Asian Horror" I'll admit I did not know what to expect. I had seen the American remake of The Grudge when it originally came out in theaters but to put it lightly, I was a novice in the genre. Beginning with film version of Kwaidon I was first taken with the look and overall feel of the movie. Having been made in the 60's and entirely on a sound stage it really had a look that I responded to. It was theatrical and a little bit too perfect, which made it feel dated but also, in my opinion, added to the otherworldly quality of the story. 

I think the thing that I picked up most on throughout all the films and stories is that there is not necessarily a BIG BAD to be defeated or afraid of. These supernatural elements, spirits, ghosts, nature spirits, etc, all seems to simply exist in nature and more than anything seek to restore something that was sent out of balance. Going along with the lack of sinister evil would be the lack of a morality tale told by the protagonist. Nothing irks me more in a horror film than the only couple to be seen getting frisky gets murdered within the next 30 minutes. It was refreshing that not only is there no punishment for a "immoral act"- instead, these spirits exist and are simply trying to put nature back the way it should be and to be left alone. 

Another aspect I enjoyed about the stories and films discussed was the contrast in action from the characters- either they are completely contained and docile, or exploding into action with energy. The snow spirit in Kwaidon for example, is completely calm and walks slowly through the snow- and then suddenly uses her ice breath to freeze that poor old man to death. Not to mention Asami's character in Audition.  I'm going to be totally real with you- I COULD NOT FINISH THIS MOVIE. Too gruesome for me, and frankly nothing creeps me out more that needless gross violence (like in Saw or Hostel) I did however see that same contrast in action in all the stories read in one way or another and while Audition might not be my kind of movie I can definitely see how it fits into the Asian Horror genre. (The man in the bean bag did it for me, NOPE NOPE NOEP NOEP NOPE NOPE NOPE). 

Vampires

When I think about vampires portrayed in modern fiction I am given a multitude of options to choose from. Do I want sparkling, broody teens trapped in a forever chaste high school romance? (the answer is no by the way), do i want true bloods hyper sexual, red and black clad muscle boys with a taste for fairy blood? (honestly sometime yes). Or maybe the dark, creepy, victorian era egyptian style nosferatue looking vampires of penny dreadful? (hell yes). My point being that modern fiction both in literature and film/television has given us a wide variety of vampiric characters each given their own mythology, rules, aesthetic etc. But I think one of my favorite is still the characters found in Ann Rice's universe in Interview with a Vampire. 

Rice's characters are essentially the prototypes for which many vampire characters of modern fiction will be based on. They have lived, stuck in time, on the fringes of society, hidden in the shadows and blending into the night around them. The thing I enjoyed most about Interview was the way Ann Rice treats her characters and their relationships with one another. They are anything but one dimensional and given the fact that vampires usually live hundreds of years, she gives their relationships nuance by describing the way they change throughout the different decades and eras. Claudia in particular was an interesting character to me- stuck in a childs body while her mind and tastes mature, Rice does not glamorize the lives these creatures lead but rather describes how many of them have to deal with their own issues in their own ways.

It seems that in many pieces of vampire fiction the main good character (if there is one) is more often that not tortured by their state of existence. In Interview with a Vampire  Louis is often tortured by the fact that he must survive of the blood of others and hates killing, many times surviving off of animals. In Twilight  Edward too is tortured by his vampiric nature and won't have sex with his girlfriend for 4 books (sorry I just really dislike those books). In Buffy the Vampire Slayer Buffy's first and only love is Angel- a vampire cursed with a soul.

Conversely there is often a vampire in these books who fully embraces their nature and sees themselves as a higher form of being, above mortals and almost god like. While the vampire story may be a bit played out in many ways, it does make those creating vampires stories put new and inventive twists on them, or go back to the classics.

Something interesting about the relationships in Interview as well as many of the other vampires stories is the fluid sexuality given to many of the vampiric characters. While it is sometimes implied rather than boldly stated, there is definitely some sexual tension between Louis and Lestat and indeed many of the characters in other vampire fiction are at least shown to be no stranger to same sex relationships.

What I think is so great about vampires in fiction is the way they can be described as these genteel, all knowing creatures evolved past social standards, and also as base, monsterous creatures who feast on blood. This to me is what makes both vampire fiction and the relationships within so interesting and fun.

Week 1- Frankenstein and the Gothic

I'll admit that when I first saw that we had to read Frankenstein before the first class I was less than excited. Having read it last in high school I had only vague memories of a boring class with a book that I wasn't very excited to read. However, I was happy to find that not only had my taste changed but it was like reading an entirely new book.

Having gotten much more interested in horror and fantasy novels since my early days in high school I have also developed an interest in the regency and victorian era due to it being a huge time of change throughout the western world ( as well as being aesthetically awesome, I strongly vote that we bring back ascots and pocket watches, and canes with swords in them). This was also the beginnings of gothic horror/ gothic literature- which gave rise to many different sub-genres of horror and fantasy writing. 

Looking for examples of the gothic in the modern day my thoughts immediately went to the Showtime series Penny Dreadful. Set in Victorian London in 1891 she show combines some of gothic horrors most famous characters like Victor Frankenstein, his monster, Sir Malcom Murray (Father of Dracula's Mina Harker), Dorain Grey, as well as the ultimate Victorian Gothic Heroine Vanessa Ives ( a psychic medium with a habit for getting possessed). 

Penny Dreadful  weaves together the famous stories of Gothic literature in a way that unites all of them without feeling forced. While the show itself is visually appealing- it definitely deals more with the "sublime" we discussed in class- not necessarily pretty but powerful and emotionally engaging. 

The show also deals with many of the themes present in gothic literature like that of life and death- in dealing with characters like Victor Frankenstein (very accurately depicted as a young medical student with a lot of overconfidence) he literally brings a character back from the dead only to watch his former creation Caliban tear his new monster in half. 

The show also deals with altered and different states of perception experienced by the characters- specifically Vanessa Ives. Vanessa Ives is majorly featured on the show but is one of the few characters who is not present in gothic literature and was created for the show. She is a modern Victorian woman with a dark past and strange psychic abilities that sometimes cause her to become overtaken by dark forces (she may or may not be the reincarnation of a dark Egyptian Goddess). It is through Vanessa that the viewer experiences much of the show and the world in which it is set.