So why am I so excited?
Everyone, it seems, has a Star Wars story, or even a few of them. My journey into loving Star Wars begins in the third or fourth grade. My mom and I rented all three of the films (yes, only three then) from our local video store and watched them back-to-back. I spent that summer writing a screenplay for "Episode VII" on something like 10 legal pads. The plot, as I recall, revolves around Luke training his sister to be a Jedi. (Maybe I should send it to JJ Abrams?) Star Wars introduced me to fan culture and fanfiction long before I knew either of those things even existed.
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| O Captain my Captain! |
A bit of a free spirit, she taught us the rhythms of poetry by teaching us to waltz. And she taught us about archetypes and mythology by showing us Star Wars.
Ladies and gentlemen, my eyes were opened.
I had never thought about the ways that all of the books and films that I loved were part of something larger, something connecting me to all of the people who ever have, or ever will, tell stories.
Even though I hope I have achieved a more sophisticated theoretical approach to texts than I had when I was 14, that lessons sticks with me. It's a formative moment in my education and my life, and it couldn't have happened without Star Wars.
Before I sign off for today, I wanted to share a link to a helpful article on Screened discussing how the Hero's Journey structure plays out in the film. I think you'll find it useful for our discussion next week. Click on the helpful diagram below to see it full size - you may want to consult it before, during, or after watching the movie for Tuesday's class.
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| from the Screened article linked above |
I saw through Star Wars' shenanigans the moment I was first told about it as a small child. My first response was literally, "So, wait... Space wizards?" No one ever forced me to watch it.
ReplyDeleteEven though I didn't watch Star Wars until my freshman year of college (in my dorm, alone, with a girl!) I knew everything that I needed to about the plot. I honestly think that's why it wasn't until then that I watched it. I knew that Vader was Luke's father when I was eight. The rest of it didn't seem exciting, once the twist was ruined.
I'm cautiously optimistic about the upcoming series. Sure, it's Disney, but Disney bought Marvel, and they've done pretty well so far. We'll have to wait and see.
Although my first reaction was also "Space Wizards" it eventually turned into "Why are Space Wizards so anal retentive and repressed?" The whole idea is cool except for the sacrifice of emotion. Clearly, the Jedi were too goddamn afraid to go into the Dark Side of the Force, strange since their belief is that the Force (and therefore all sides of it) permeates all of existence/reality.
ReplyDeleteI was satisfied with the explanation though. A concrete and weird reason for their ability to manipulate the Force.