What is Romeo and Juliet about?

(Frederic Leighton)

One of the constant themes in Romeo and Juliet is that of teen angst.  This, perhaps just as much as the romance in the play, is a feeling to which readers of any era are able to relate.  On more than one occasion (and with a variety of levels of snark), I've heard this play described as being about teen rebellion more so than love.  This argument may hold some truth.  From Juliet describing her situation as "past hope, past care, past help" (4.1. 46), to Romeo unleashing an anti capitalist tirade on an innocent apothecary (5.2. 84-91), the text is certainly ripe with teen angst and knowitallness.  But does this attitude take away from the love story built around it?  Which aspect of the text has led to its constant retelling and re-imagining? 

Assigning Value in Le Morte d'Arthur

In the third excerpt of Le Morte d’Arthur, I noticed a difference between what the Knights of the Round Table valued and what we may value today.  King Arthur and company tend to focus on the big picture while I’m stuck losing the forest for the trees.  Most of the characters involved easily overlook Lancelot and Gwynevere’s transgressions, only to focus their attention on maintaining their group dynamic.  Arthur even goes on to say, “I regret less the loss of my queen … than of our fellowship, which was surely without equal in all Christendom” (502). From a modern perspective, this points to a lack of humanity on the part of all those involved, but perhaps Malory’s contemporary readers were more interested the ideas that Arthur’s Round Table represented than any person-to-person dealings within the story.  This is echoed in the Armstrong article, which includes the argument that women in literature can gain power by being portrayed as helpless victims.  Gwynevere, in this excerpt, is constantly at risk of execution and hardly gets any dialogue, but ultimately, through almost every other character’s indifference, sets into motion the downfall of Arthur’s boys club.

King Arthur - Religious and Mythical Parallels

Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britannie draws several parallels between King Arthur and Jesus Christ, from his "natural goodness" (64) to his downfall being set into action by someone close to him (86).  An important difference, however comes though Arthur's origin.  In stark contrast to Christ's immaculate conception, Arthur is conceived through through deception, disguise, and a serious lack of consent (63). Is this "dark spot" on Arthur's history necessary for him to be seen as a powerful ruler instead of a peaceful savior? Is this a parallel to Hercules' conception, which involves Zeus disguising himself as Alcmene's husband?

Star Wars Revisions and Ownership

[image source: Star Wars: A New Hope Visual Comparison (HD Branch)]

As a relative outsider to Star Wars culture, it may be easy to dismiss superfans who put so much importance on the integrity of the original cut of the films.  It is, however, important to understand the impact of the originals with which these fans have grown so fond.  Media that we attach ourselves to will always hold an important place in our hearts. And when someone, no matter who, makes revisions to that media, we are left questioning how that revision affects the zeitgeist. When a piece of intellectual property is released, it can change hands multiple times from the creator, to the production company, to any number of conglomerates.  This ownership provides guidelines as to reproduction, licensing, and continuation.  But fans can have as much ownership, albeit less claim to profit, as those who spent billions on a property.  As soon as a film, an album, or a television show debuts, it belongs partly to whoever holds the license, and partly to the world, the fandom, or the culture as a whole.  So get mad, nerds! In revising Star Wars, George Lucas is changing something that belongs just as much to you as it does him.

The Hero's Journey For Normies

The structure and idea of The Hero's Journey, is great for us all to enjoy as we live our normal day to day lives. It gives us an insight on worlds unimaginable, of problems and scenarios only in our dreams that we can experience in a sense. We can't contribute to the story ourselves but it gives us a sense of vacation from the norm. In Star Wars, we are in the distant past in a galaxy not like ours. We follow the story of a young white man and his journey. As a black woman myself I couldn't fully immerse myself but the challenges Luke faces, his mentor and other characters who help and join him along the way we can see through his eyes and ride along with him as we too are experiencing this other world together. Luke's right of passage in a way is also our own that lead into the other movies following. The structure may be reused and done over and over but it has a purpose, and what isn't broken shouldn't need to be fixed, only tweaked.

Welcome!

Chucks & Welcome Mat from Diffuse Radio Network.
I love my chucks, so this seemed like a friendly way to start our blog! 

Welcome to the class blog for ENGL 401 & 501: Pop Culture Theory & Practice @ Hood College! I look forward to sharing thoughts and conversation with you all over the course of the semester, both here and in class. We'll consider a wide variety of texts. We'll learn from each other. And we'll examine and expand our own thinking about culture, commodities, and community.

Allons-y!

Cheers,
Dr MB