Sci-Fi sparks a renewed interest

This weeks readings were the Minority Report and Paycheck by Phillip Dick, both short science fiction stories.

The readings for this week have entirely renewed my interest in science fiction writing! I forgot all of the mystery and enjoyment I used to feel when I had time to read for pleasure (which was back before college). My favorite theme from science fiction novels is the essence of time. The future, the past, time-travel, time loops, precognition, interwoven destinies, potential outcomes/paths are the diversities of time which exist in many sci-fi novels/short stories.

The Minority Report is an awesome story. I love the elements of time which are woven into everything which occurs within the plot. Anderton's destiny changes with each bit of new information he receives. Unlike Jennings, from Paycheck, everything that he (the Jennings of the future) sees using the time scoop happens even when the current time Jennings discovers the path which was set forth by the time scoop. Although Jennings doesn't always know what is going to happen exactly as he predicted it to, he is still able to surmise the plan set forth using the trinkets he received from the company when he was set free.

One of the best parts about Sci-fi novels is the futuristic setting. In Paycheck we see the use of rockets as a mode of transportation, and in Minority Report the whole Pre-Crime set-up is based solely on the knowledge of the future. One of my favorite Sci-fi novels is Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card, in it a young boy is trained to be a great fighter pilot, although he believes he is just playing games at what would be considered a space age boarding school. The elements of time which take place in this novel, the futuristic setting, as well as the planning for the future through by training from a young age is just one of the few positions of time in this novel. Although the movie is not actually in production, many Youtube videos exist creating a trailer for the movie (most are actually school projects). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AIz0UrxMtQ&feature=related (Ender's Game trailer) : D

Mercy, Justice, and Gotham as an Alternate Reality

Act 4 of The Crucible and "The Garden of Forking Paths" by Jorge Luis Borges

Mercifully the end of Act 4 of The Crucible finally came. The culmination of the work by Arthur Miller is one of the most depressing endings in which the common fairytale ending of some many works is left unachieved. The only justice which is finally served in the end is that Abigail is rumored to have become a prostitute, which seems fitting (and well deserved) for her promiscuous character. Our hero, John Proctor, is hung right along with the other well intentioned folks accused of witchcraft. The justice exacted by the so called "lawmaker" Danforth, is not carried out because of the guilt of the prisoners, but merely as a way to hoist his reputation from basement floor boards and back into the skylight.

"The Garden of Forking Paths" is a piece much more worthy of attention. Although the piece is a bit confusing I enjoyed it much more than the simplicity and thoughtlessness which was begged of my attention from The Crucible. The piece requires some semblance of coherent thought and not all of the information received is spoon-fed to our minds.

The idea of alternate realities is one of my favorite topics of philosophical discussion, which is one of the underlying notions in the story. It is a topic I have not been able to discuss in a philosophy course at the University, but one that I hope to. Many comic books use the theme of alternate realities or universes, and what I enjoy most about this is that comic books themselves could be considered alternate realities.

For instance, Batman's Gotham is considered an allegory for New York City and one can imagine, although the city of Gotham does not exist on any known map we have, it exists within the same time frame as New York. Gotham could be an alternate reality of New York, one where a masked vigilante runs around in a bat suit, putting away villains and saving lives of damsels in distress. Wouldn't that be exciting?

The Irony of Faith

Make-up blog post for the week of 4/15 on Act 2 and 3 of The Crucible.

Act 2 is an important Act for many characters. The scene which takes place in the Proctor's home is the main development of the plot for this play.

An interesting theme in this play is faithfulness, to another person and to God. John's initial adultery with Abigail and the promise which she believes he made to her is the guiding sin which sparks a lot of the trouble to be found in Salem. Abigail, in the hopes of procuring John for herself, turns from God and she in the other girls practice witchcraft in a field where they hope to receive help in disposing of Elizabeth Proctor. Though this plan fails, and they are caught in the act, they all claim to return to God's good graces and to accuse those which they saw while they were in service to the Devil. The initial accused are brought to court in the subsequent acts and are tried and convicted based on the theatrics which the girls are able to muster up. Each claiming the spirit of the accused would leave that body and attack their own.

When in Act 2 they come to John's home because Elizabeth is accused, he knows he must own up to his indiscretion with Abigail and remove her from the good graces of the court, the action which he attempts to carry out in Act 3. Instead when he finally confesses his infidelity they do not believe him, and call Elizabeth from her cell to beg from her the question of her husband's faithfulness.

Not knowing John had confessed and in a effort to save his good name to the court she lies, and they are both condemned for witches and sentenced to hang. The question of innocence is again and again revisited in hopes that those condemned for witchcraft will say they have participated in it and return to God's graces. Although those who are condemned will not give the court the lies it would take to set them free. If they did so they would be committing a sin against God with their lies, and so many of the residents of Salem accused of witchery are hung, because of their faithfulness to God. Ironic?

The Crucible - The fall of the good at the hands of evil.

Act two of the Crucible is the Act when John Proctor and his wife Elizabeth are in their home discussing all the events of the past few weeks and a less recent transgression on John's behalf.

Our classes underlying subject is satire, but I'm not exactly sure where it is to be found in this play. It is either too subtle to be able to speak on it, or as it seems to me, nonexistent at all. The only place where I hope to find satire is in the indulgence of the little girls by the court. I find it hard to believe, that a bunch of men, who call themselves justice, are able to so wholly convict people on the charades of the girls.

John Proctor seems to be the only man able to see through their guise. Although he is not the best example of a Christian, due to his adultery with Abigail, he is still the most upright and honest man we are confronted with from the whole of the Salem village. Arthur Miller even goes so far as to write it into many of the stage directions and in the dialog of his characters, excluding those who seem mischievous (Putnam who is in constant search of more land for himself, or Abigail who is a trollop).

Another example of those that are good but are convicted at the hands of the unrighteous is Rebecca Nurse. She is called out a witch by Mrs. Putnam who has lost six children at birth and blames her for sending her soul out on them. This claim is seem as completely absurd, no one would dare call witch on Rebecca Nurse because she is always so good hearted to everyone. It is just another instance of the Putnam's trying to blame someone else for retribution of God on their bad souls.

It seems that the satire of The Crucible lies in the good being punished by the wicked. But also in the show of the little girls being brought to the level of saints, when in fact, it was their wrong-doing (in the woods) that lead to the rise of the situation to begin with. The vengeance of Abigail on those who seemed to have wronged her is the cause of her wreaking havoc on Salem, and can be seen as the fall of the good at the hands of evil which the people of Salem were so hoping to alleviate with her.

The Crucible - Believing little