DawnPapuga.com — Reality 101

It took me quite a bit longer to gather my responses for this week than usual, mostly because I’ve been passed out in pain.  But illness can’t stop the Friday Five for long!  This week is about metaphors and connecting them to your everyday life.  Here goes!

1.  When you go to the beach, lake, or pool, are you more likely to lower yourself gradually into cold water or to take a determined plunge and get it over with?

I take my time whether it’s hot water or cold.  I’m not a big fan of shocks to my system.

2.  How is this like (or unlike) your approach to other tasks or ordeals?

It’s exactly like my approach to everything else in life.  I’m careful, calculated, and I make sure I take my time and assess the outcomes (both positive and negative) before I take the final plunge into anything.  Once all of the foreseeable outcomes are in mind, and the possible outcomes leading from those choices are evaluated, I make my decision only after I accept the possible results of my choices.  I’ve “jumped in” without looking only a handful of times, and they never ended well.

3.  When someone gives you flowers, are you more likely to let them turn completely brown and gross before throwing them out, or to discard them the moment they take on that sick-flower look?

I’m more in between in my flower maintenance.  When someone gives me flowers I’m more likely to try and keep them alive for as long as possible–by trimming off dead blooms, giving them more light, removing suffocating foliage, etc.–than to just toss them the minute they look like they’re dying.  If certain blooms are healthier than others then it’s not uncommon for me to remove those blooms and keep them healthy for as long as possible in a separate vase.  If they’re roses, though, I’ll let them dry and either make potpourri or tea from them.  (Because my cats love to eat roses, I don’t get to do this very often anymore)

4.  How is this like (or unlike) your approach to other gifts, purchases, or relationships?

I treat any gift someone gives me with the same care.  In my mind when someone takes the time to give me something it means something to both them and me, and I like to try and keep that as precious as possible.  In terms of relationships, I treat them the same way as well.  They’re delicate and need to be treated with affection and care just like flowers do.  If you throw them (flowers or relationships) away at the first sign of them dying or wilting, then they mustn’t have meant that much to begin with.  On the other hand, you can notice things starting to wilt and ignore them. Just like a relationship, without attention and care, flowers will die.  The longer you leave them unattended, the faster they die (both relationships and flowers).  Both have a point of no return as well.  Once the flowers are brown and curled up, there’s no bringing them back to their former beauty.  They’re dead, and done is done.  Relationships, too, can be so far gone that no amount of emergency attention will help them.  In terms of purchases I make for myself… I don’t think I pay nearly as much attention to those as things other people give me. 

5.  Think of your favorite movie (or a movie you really like, if you can’t think of a favorite). Some people say that the reasons you love your favorite movie are related to what you value in romantic relationships. How is this true or untrue in your case?

Usually I would say The Godfather, but I don’t think it applies here, so I’m going to go with my number 2 favorite film, Casablanca.  I’d say Casablanca features most of what I value in romantic relationships:  passion, deep connections, sacrifice, and even tragedy.  I’m not so much a fan of the tragedy part, but loving someone enough to let them go for the greater good (or their own good), resonates powerfully with me.  Rick was haunted by Ilsa’s memory, and given the chance to be together he opted to send her off with Victor.  She loved two men for two different reasons, but ultimately had to make a choice.  She put the greater good ahead of her own happiness, and so did Rick.  It’s sad, but will forever connect Rick and Ilsa.  I suppose it’s the idea of giving everything to someone else and knowing they’re doing the same that attracts me so much to Casablanca.  It doesn’t always work out that way, but it certainly is something to aspire to.

I can’t decide why this bothers me so much, so please forgive the rambling that follows.

I’ve been working on an article documenting the plagiarism use of one of Shakespeare’s most famous speeches in pop culture–particularly in modern media–for some time now, and while finding it in film doesn’t surprise me, finding it a video game commercial does.  Recently a Sony PS3 commercial hacked and slashed the St. Crispin’s Day speech and used it to promote some of their fighting based video games. Actually, it irks me quite a bit.  This may be the academic snob in me, but I just don’t understand the thought process behind using the St. Crispin’s day speech from Henry V to promote video games, even if they are “war games.”  How many viewers know where that speech even originates?  Does that even matter?  I’m torn.

Watch the video above and then, if you’re curious, go watch Aragorn’s speech at the Black gate in Lord of the Rings, Benitez in the rain in Renaissance Man, William Wallace’s speech from Braveheart, Dilios’ final speech at the end of 300, or Mr. Fabian’s performance of the speech in Tombstone.  I could spend the rest of the night listing allusions to the St. Crispin’s Day speech (notably from multiple episodes of Buffy) and adaptations of it, but I’m pretty sure you can recognize the elements of this speech when you hear it.  Take any motion picture with a major battle scene and I’m willing to bet this speech will appear in one form or another.  In fact, it’s hard to find a modern motion picture featuring a battle scene that doesn’t feature it in one form or another. 

It’s a rousing speech, to be sure.  One might argue that it’s the single greatest “locker room” speech ever written.  But the use of that speech in a commercial for video games rubs me the wrong way.  The fact that Sony used it speaks to the notion of Shakespeare’s place as a cultural icon (I have a list of books and articles about this phenomenon that you can read if interested), and while I could bore you to tears with why this is important, and why using his image and half understood lines from plays to try and bridge a chasm between generations, classes, and intellectual hierarchies (perceived or actual) is problematic, I’ll save that for the article.  When it’s finished, you can read it if you so choose and comment away.  I just don’t know which side of the line I fall on.  I can see the logic of using Shakespeare (and this speech in particular) to garner interest and connect to people.  In one respect, it’s marketing genius.  Companies have used Shakespeare in this way for ages.  On the other hand, I find it trite and almost insulting.  To be fair, I have the same response when I’m watching a film and I see a thinly veiled version of that speech rendered, as I did with the second and third Lord of the Rings films.  I have nothing against using effective material, but I do have a problem with using that material without giving the origins proper credit.  I have actually had people who watched Braveheart first, and then Henry V, say to me, “Shakespeare totally stole that from Mel Gibson’s movie.”  Aside from the temporal impossibility of that statement, the problem is clear.  If you don’t know where something comes from, how can you truly appreciate it?  And who says you have to know where it comes from to be able to appreciate it anyway? 

My trouble is in figuring out why it bothers me so.  When I see something like this, I have to fight the urge to tell everyone I see, “You know that is an adaptation of X” or “You know that’s from Shakespeare, right?” Most often, the response is, “uhm, okay.  So?”  And every fiber of my being becomes frayed.  Maybe it’s my need to see past the surface in everything and wanting others to do the same.  Maybe it’s rooted in my habitual criticism of art.  It bothers me greatly when an artist creates something based on someone else’s work and takes credit as though they were divinely inspired and developed those ideas on their own.  It feels false.  It feels like they’re trying to pull one over on the public, and when people applaud those creations without understanding the influences and origins, it bothers me even more.

It just upsets me to know that somewhere there are people who will hear that PS3 commercial and forever think that Sony created those words.  They may never know that it was one of Shakespeare’s greatest speeches, and they may never care.  I think it goes beyond my mere passion for literature, too.  There’s something… else.  So why does it bother me so much?  Excellent question.  If you figure that out, let me know.

Write Well,

Dawn

Last night something amazing happened.  

Because of a random act of Twittering by @JesseHambley last week a somewhat impromptu gathering of Pittsburgh New Media, Tech, Bloggers, and random friends got together at the CreativeTreehouse and screened not only Ghostbusters, but Ghostbusters II!  (Sorry y’all, I wish I could post the entire day’s Ghostbuster insanity here, but most of you were part of it.  Just tap in to that delicious well of memories.)

Initially I anticipated it being only a gathering of maybe 15 or 20 people, but there were easily over 30 people who showed, brought food, drink, and amazing conversation.  We had our very own Ghosts show up, toys, and even Magic made a late appearance.  And we gave out the first ever Burgie award!

Since I’m lame and I don’t have a digital camera or camera with video capability as of now, I’m going to just direct you to Norm’s rockin’ post about the evening, complete with the Carman Ghost, The Burgie presentation to Rachel, and the Round Table of Magic.  I’ll also direct you to Jim’s photos of the evening! He and Jesse made the whole night happen, so kudos to them!  (BTW, I know there are more of you that had cameras out there… where are these secret photos?  Hmm?)

The Pittsburgh New Media community is unique, and I heard multiple times last night just how much everyone appreciates being a part of it.  I know I do.  “Them’s good people.”

“The blue duck…. err… Dove… yellow moon…. flies at midnight”

Dawn