One my husband’s favorite TV shows of all times is The Highlander. As I’m heading to bed, he pulls out the DVDs and watches Duncan McCloud nobly behead other immortals in cheesy, low-production-values fight scenes. There’s one song they play over and over in multiple episodes that often gets stuck in my head - “Who wants to live forever?” by Queen. And it totally encapsulates my pet peeve about the way immortality is often represented in TV and movies.
Duncan McCloud, like many other fictional immortals, is dark and broody about his immortality. Immortality is portrayed as a burden he would gladly get rid of if he could. He has to watch friends and lovers grow old and die while he stays young and handsome until the end of the world (or until he gets be-headed by another immortal). Many episodes are about a moody Duncan reminiscing over friends or girlfriends that are long gone.
Well boo-frakking-hoo. Poor baby. Too bad the fact that YOU GET TO LIVE FOREVER doesn’t make up for it. Oh wait. It does! Sure it sucks to see people die and it’s hard making new friends every few decades, but let me remind you that YOU GET TO LIVE FOREVER!!! Let’s just pretend, Duncan, that you get turned back into a mortal. You settle down, have a few young-uns, work a respectable job, and retire to Florida. As death approaches after a rousing game of bridge, is the last thought on your mind going to be “Gee, I’m sure glad now that I’m staring into the abyss that I gave up that pesky immortality thing”? I think not.
This phenomenon of immortals hating their immortality extends well beyond Duncan McCloud (and his cousin Connor). Other fictional immortal protagonists whining about wanting to become human again are:
Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer and his eponymous show Angel) – Poor Angel. He can’t have sex with his true love, Buffy, because of his vampire-with-a-soul-curse. Now don’t get me wrong. I love sex with someone you deeply love as much as anyone else, but I would gladly trade it for immortality. (Sorry, David.) He was offered a possibility of a future Shanshu (Buffy-verse speak for mystical reward that will turn Angel human), but thankfully signed it away by the end of the series. So now he’s free to be a vampire detective for another few centuries. Angel’s guilty of muttering the horrible pun “Immortality? I’m dying to get rid of that.”
Nick Knight (Forever Knight) – another vampire detective who desperately wanted to be mortal again. He was all morose about all the bad things he did – blood sucking, pillaging, killings – that he used his well-hones vampire instincts to fight crime in Toronto and atone for his sins. In the end, he gets his vampire mentor to kill him and so that he doesn’t have to turn his dying human girlfriend into a vampire. Wow. He must have really loved her to want them both dead and rotting in the ground.
Mick St. John (Moonlight) – the most recent in a time-honored tradition of vampire dectective heroes wishing they were mortal again. Mick wants to be mortal so badly that he takes a “temporary” cure, and then proceeds to get beat to a pulp by sensible I-like-being-immortal-and powerful vampires.
John Amsterdam (New Amsterdam) – I didn’t watch this “blink and you miss it” show from last season. However, the main plot is that John Amsterdam will become mortal when he finds true love. Isn’t that sweet? Then they can be dead together . . . forever.
Arwen (Lord of the Rings) – The elf who gives up immortality for to be with her human love, Aragorn. While the elves say they viewed the mortality of humans as a gift, how many of them besides Arwen actually stayed behind in Middle Earth instead sailing to Valinor (where they would stay immortal)? I believe the answer is none.
So why do we have these fictional immortals who are so willing to give up their immortality? While short-sightedness is the first thing that comes to mind, there is clearly something deeper going on here. We have to remember that these stories are created for human consumption. As mortal beings who are typically obsessed with death, there is clearly an allure to the idea of immortality. However, a narrative about a happy, go-lucky immortal who loves his/her life and has no problem living forever would not make an exciting story (These kinds of characters are often sidekicks, mentors, roguish friends, etc. – Methos in Highlander, Spike in Buffy/Angel, Josef in Moonlight.) We the viewers need conflict, inner turmoil, something for to propel the narrative forward. And while we can fantasize about being immortal ourselves, we ultimately come to feel good about our own mortality when the protagonist we secretly envy actually envies our mortality and normalness.
Except for me. I totally want to be immortal and think these characters are being silly. That’s why I’m investing in cryogenics. You may think I’m joking . . .
There’s an academic paper in here somewhere.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Liberal guilt and the "n" word
A recent controversy in the Chicago suburb of Wilmette, IL caught my attention. A planned outdoor production of "Ragtime" has been steeped in controversy over the play's use of the infamous "n" word in reference to African-American characters. While it was eventually decided that the play will run (although indoors and for a more limited engagement), some members of the mostly white, middle and upper class community were upset by the public expression of these words in a public forum.
This article quotes Ty Perry, the African-American director of the play, who explains the context of the use of the "n" word in "Ragtime":
Mr. Perry then goes on to give what I think is one of the best comments I've recently read about the use of this word in contemporary American culture.
I like the idea of a common bond between African-Americans (who have been victims of this label) and whites (who feel guilty over the way whites have used this word to denigrate African-Americans) through the recognition of our lack of being able to completely understand what it's like to be in the other position. Unfortunately, it's rare to hear an idea that actually could help race relations in the U.S. move forward.
This article quotes Ty Perry, the African-American director of the play, who explains the context of the use of the "n" word in "Ragtime":
"If you don't want people to use the word," he said, "this is the perfect opportunity to show them why they shouldn't." Setting aside euphemism, he quoted examples of its use in the musical. "There is a song in which Coalhouse Walker [the black protagonist] sings the line, 'I'm not their nigger,'" he says. "And at another point when Willie Conklin [the racist villain] demands a toll, Coalhouse asks, 'Since when?' And Conklin says, 'Since some high falutin' nigger and his whore could drive that car of theirs any place they please. That's since when.'"
Mr. Perry then goes on to give what I think is one of the best comments I've recently read about the use of this word in contemporary American culture.
"I understand it makes white people nervous, but to take that word out of 'Ragtime' would be to invalidate my heritage as an African-American man. I was talking to my partner about this and he said, 'I can't understand what you feel when you hear that word.' And I said, 'I can never understand the guilt you feel when you hear that word.' We both have a common bond with that word. So let's deal with that."
I like the idea of a common bond between African-Americans (who have been victims of this label) and whites (who feel guilty over the way whites have used this word to denigrate African-Americans) through the recognition of our lack of being able to completely understand what it's like to be in the other position. Unfortunately, it's rare to hear an idea that actually could help race relations in the U.S. move forward.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
"Coded prejudice is cloaked dagger"
Came across this article from the Trib on coded prejudice. Since openly using racial slurs is no longer cultural acceptable (at least in most places) people use code words to refer to minority groups. Well, duh! How many times have white people talked about going to the "urban" (i.e. black) part of town or about a neighborhood that is "gentrifying" (i.e. kicking out all the poor, black people). What's interesting about the article is the implication for federal discrimination law.
Coded prejudice is cloaked dagger -- chicagotribune.com
Coded prejudice is cloaked dagger -- chicagotribune.com
Sex & Gender Part II - Sissy boys and Buffy girls
I am of the opinion that the next big step our culture needs to make towards gender equality is the acceptance of femininity for men. We are now at the point where it's becoming increasingly tolerated for women to exhibit masculine characteristics and behaviors - full-time careers, competitive behavior, engaging in physical violence. In some areas it's even expected. For example, women who choose not to have a career and be "traditional" stay at home moms are looked down on by some. (I admit I've been guilty of this.) Of course we still a long way to go. Women who are assertive in their careers are still often labeled "bitchy" while assertiveness in men is seen as an asset. And let's not forget the myriad of sexist comments made about Hilary (including the infamous "nagging wife" comment) that play on stereotypes about femininity and masculinity.
That being said, it's still a lot easier in our current society for a girl to be a tomboy that a boy to be a sissy. Girls can now play with trucks, excel at sports, read comic books, etc. and not be seen as deviant. But most parents would discourage their boys from having dolls, learning to cook, playing dress up, crying when they get hurt, etc. (Many would think this means their son was gay –oh the horror!). Women can now be Buffy. They can kick ass and look great doing it. In fact, one could argue the butt-kicking, hot woman has become a pretty standard straight male sexual fantasy. So while it's certainly not acceptable for women to exhibit characteristics from the full range of masculine behaviors and attributes, things have certainly come a long was in the past few decades. However, an effeminate man is still a negative stereotype.
There are a few small signs that this is changing, though. First, obviously, are the tremendous strides the gay rights movement has made in recent years, and the increased visibility of individuals who do not conform to gender stereotypes. Also, there is a small but growing number of men in the U.S. who are choosing to be stay-at-home dads. I read an interesting article in the Washington Post a while back that claimed in 2007 there were 159,000 stay-at-home dads, which is around 2.7 percent of the total stay-at-home parents in the U.S. While this sounds low, the article said that number almost tripled in the past 10 years. On the flipside, even though we may see the men in this article as being egalitarian, they all make it clear that they still work at least part-time from home. None of them are true house-husbands. That probably would have been way too feminine to be acceptable.
Finally, there is the phenomenon of men taking their wife's last names when they get married. I couldn't find any statistics on this, but I was able to find quite a few anecdotal journalistic accounts. David actually told me he was willing to do this when we got married. My immediate reaction was to think he was joking, which shows how ingrained some of these traditions are in our society. I thought about the potential reaction to David changing his name, the teasing and ribbing he would get from his friends and colleagues (esp. men) who would make jokes about his masculinity.
Along those lines, this article about a man who took his wife’s name describes the chuckles he got at his wedding and the flak he took from his friends. The same article talks about another man who had people tell him to turn in his “man card” and ask what “sissy juice” he was drinking. Lovely. Compare that to the relatively mundane reaction I got when I didn’t change my name, as well as the total unquestioning acceptance from people if I would have changed my last name to David's.
There are legal aspects to gender discrimination of name changing as well. This article talks about a California man who had to jump through two years of fees, paperwork and bureaucratic red tape to change his surname to his wife’s. He finally took his case to the California ACLU who helped get the law changed in that state. The article goes on to say, however, that in over 40 states there is still no place on marriage license applications for a man to change his last name.
So my question is when do we get the Buffy for men? When will there be a male pop culture icon that can be a stay at home dad, do all the cooking and cleaning, take his wife’s name, but still also watch sports, love cars, be competitive, etc.? When will the stereotype of the “sissy” go away? Only then can we really achieve true gender equality IMHO.
That being said, it's still a lot easier in our current society for a girl to be a tomboy that a boy to be a sissy. Girls can now play with trucks, excel at sports, read comic books, etc. and not be seen as deviant. But most parents would discourage their boys from having dolls, learning to cook, playing dress up, crying when they get hurt, etc. (Many would think this means their son was gay –oh the horror!). Women can now be Buffy. They can kick ass and look great doing it. In fact, one could argue the butt-kicking, hot woman has become a pretty standard straight male sexual fantasy. So while it's certainly not acceptable for women to exhibit characteristics from the full range of masculine behaviors and attributes, things have certainly come a long was in the past few decades. However, an effeminate man is still a negative stereotype.
There are a few small signs that this is changing, though. First, obviously, are the tremendous strides the gay rights movement has made in recent years, and the increased visibility of individuals who do not conform to gender stereotypes. Also, there is a small but growing number of men in the U.S. who are choosing to be stay-at-home dads. I read an interesting article in the Washington Post a while back that claimed in 2007 there were 159,000 stay-at-home dads, which is around 2.7 percent of the total stay-at-home parents in the U.S. While this sounds low, the article said that number almost tripled in the past 10 years. On the flipside, even though we may see the men in this article as being egalitarian, they all make it clear that they still work at least part-time from home. None of them are true house-husbands. That probably would have been way too feminine to be acceptable.
Finally, there is the phenomenon of men taking their wife's last names when they get married. I couldn't find any statistics on this, but I was able to find quite a few anecdotal journalistic accounts. David actually told me he was willing to do this when we got married. My immediate reaction was to think he was joking, which shows how ingrained some of these traditions are in our society. I thought about the potential reaction to David changing his name, the teasing and ribbing he would get from his friends and colleagues (esp. men) who would make jokes about his masculinity.
Along those lines, this article about a man who took his wife’s name describes the chuckles he got at his wedding and the flak he took from his friends. The same article talks about another man who had people tell him to turn in his “man card” and ask what “sissy juice” he was drinking. Lovely. Compare that to the relatively mundane reaction I got when I didn’t change my name, as well as the total unquestioning acceptance from people if I would have changed my last name to David's.
There are legal aspects to gender discrimination of name changing as well. This article talks about a California man who had to jump through two years of fees, paperwork and bureaucratic red tape to change his surname to his wife’s. He finally took his case to the California ACLU who helped get the law changed in that state. The article goes on to say, however, that in over 40 states there is still no place on marriage license applications for a man to change his last name.
So my question is when do we get the Buffy for men? When will there be a male pop culture icon that can be a stay at home dad, do all the cooking and cleaning, take his wife’s name, but still also watch sports, love cars, be competitive, etc.? When will the stereotype of the “sissy” go away? Only then can we really achieve true gender equality IMHO.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Watch out Spanlish . . . here comes Chinglish
Interesting article from Wired about the emergence of a particular English dialect among native Chinese speakers. With the globalization of English as the lingua franca, I would be surprised if thus phenomenon isn't already happening in many other places around the world. I'm personally not worried about this, though. I see language as a constantly evolving process, and holding on to some "proper" form of English is a bit archaic and elitist IMHO. Also, I enjoy the idea of being able to travel all over the world and people being able to have some common language to speak to one another with - even if we all have our different dialects.
How English Is Evolving Into a Language We May Not Even Understand
How English Is Evolving Into a Language We May Not Even Understand
Saturday, July 5, 2008
The Google Defense
Ran across this interesting article in the Post:
The Google Ogle Defense: A Search for America's Psyche - washingtonpost.com
It's about a recent court case in Pensacola, Florida where a man was charged with violating obscenity laws by creating & selling internet porn. His lawyer was planning on using google metrics from the Pensacola area to show that people searched for purportedly obscene topics like "orgy" significantly more than more mundane topics like "apple pie" and "boating." Therefore, the community standard definition of obscene should be a lot narrower than the prosecution was arguing. The case was eventually settled out of court, so the defense was never presented in court. However, I'm sure it's not long before we see the google defense used actively in a similar court case.
The Google Ogle Defense: A Search for America's Psyche - washingtonpost.com
It's about a recent court case in Pensacola, Florida where a man was charged with violating obscenity laws by creating & selling internet porn. His lawyer was planning on using google metrics from the Pensacola area to show that people searched for purportedly obscene topics like "orgy" significantly more than more mundane topics like "apple pie" and "boating." Therefore, the community standard definition of obscene should be a lot narrower than the prosecution was arguing. The case was eventually settled out of court, so the defense was never presented in court. However, I'm sure it's not long before we see the google defense used actively in a similar court case.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Dr. Horrible is my new lover
I am a whore for all things Joss Whedon. That means I would metaphorically have sex with anything Joss Whedon produces for money. Hell, not even for money. I would copulate with any TV show, movie, comic, book, webisode, email, grocery list, or doodle he produced. So you can imagine how worked up I am over the new trailer for his web musical "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog".
I'm sure it will be brilliant. (My typical reliance on skepticism and objectivity disappears whenever Mr. Whedon is involved.) And who can't love the pairing of Neil Patrick Harris and Nathan Fillon as arch-nemeses. This will be even better than the Fringe pilot!
I'm sure it will be brilliant. (My typical reliance on skepticism and objectivity disappears whenever Mr. Whedon is involved.) And who can't love the pairing of Neil Patrick Harris and Nathan Fillon as arch-nemeses. This will be even better than the Fringe pilot!
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