The Distance of the Moon

This particular piece has probably been one of my favorites throughout the entire semester. The first reason being, I related to the story because I also, very much admire the moon. For some odd reason, it has always been a comfort to see it in the sky and I get very excited when there is a full moon. While still at Ringling, my shift at work ended at night, and I would almost always see the moon follow me on my walk home, providing and unexplainable comfort to me. Sometimes I could even see the moon from my dorm window and would fall asleep looking at it. But this piece isn't about my love for the moon, but one of the characters in the story. I think the different love stories going on throughout this work was what stuck out to me the most. They were all doomed from the start, as each person was in love with someone (or something) else. They each pined after their love until the very end and it caused each of them to grow distant until they realized too late what was causing them to grow distant. It's a good lesson to keep throughout life, if you love something, you need to let it go. If they don't return, this is your answer, and time to move on.

Perfect Blue

Before this class came to a conclusion, I did want to make some personal posts about movies and stories I have seen on my own time. One example is the anime film, Perfect Blue, directed by Satoshi Kon. This movie is one of my favorites as it delves into an incredibly interesting side of psychological horror and depicts the difficulty of separating fantasy from reality. This theme is heightened as it tackles the subject of Japanese Idols and how they are perceived by the media and their audience. They are placed on a pedestal and are supposed to keep the perfect image of attainability, the perfect girl. What 'Perfect Blue' shows is how such a title can have extreme mental strain on whomever has to keep this image intact. In the movie, the main character, Mima, has decided to leave the world of idols and instead pursue acting. Her first opportunity is in a video series as the lead, which has a dark theme and even depicts her being raped. Her past fans are furious by her new career choice, saying she is a traitor and has tarnished her image. The film goes further and further, showing a dangerous stalker, what appears to be her own diary being posted to the internet, and a string of murders of the people who helped "tarnish" her image linked directly to her. She soon loses sight of reality and whether or not she truly is responsible for these crimes. Though this is an extreme view, it shows how mentally straining it is to be seen in the lime light, as someone who is "pure" and "perfect", as seen by the masses. The fans only see a little of the person they are so enamored by, a persona created to be appealing and be loved. The persona they are shown is most likely not who the person really is. What can be so damaging is fans seeing this person and being upset when they are no longer the character they fell in love with, and suddenly turning on this new persona they are being shown, going from love to hatred. The movie depicts why such a mentality can be detrimental to a persons mental health and safety, and why this is such a dangerous way for idols to be depicted.

Johnny Neumonic

Johnny Neumonic is a good example of a story that immediately places you in the middle of the action, with little to no explanation. These types of stories are probably some of my favorites, as more pieces start to fall into place as you continue reading the story. Though this is the case for Johnny Neumonic, I was still left a bit confused as to what the goal of this story was. I was incredibly interested by the context and characters itself, showing a new and exciting form of cyberpunk I had barely considered and all the ways humanity might change in the future if enhancements become the norm. (Though if some people can barely accept humans having different colored skin and choosing a different gender to be or love, I don't see them being able to accept humans wanting animal like appendages.) I also found the idea of the main character harboring sensitive thoughts and data, with no knowledge of what it was, as a job extremely interesting. I believe a troupe such as that should be explored further in other forms of storytelling, such as the dangers of harboring sensitive information and the mental strain of being kept in the dark but constantly being threatened for having such knowledge.

I Live With You

While reading "I Live With You", a number of reactions I experienced depended on how far along I was in the story. In the beginning, I thought the idea was intriguing, a being that grasped onto a person they related to and decided to latch onto and live with. The being never seemed evil, at least in my eyes, as they only lived with this person and never stole. As the story progressed, you started to find out this being was actually helping the person they latched onto, making them stand out more and become more outspoken. I felt a sense of relatability to this due to once hiding in a shell myself until rather recently, when I was able to finally have the courage to be more outgoing and social. In my opinion, I don't think any changes would be necessary, though it would be interesting to see it come alive as either a graphic novel or movie. I feel there could be a very creative way to portray what the being looks like in a graphic novel, and in a movie, it might not have to appear on screen and just leave it up to the viewers imagination. The being is described as looking exactly like the person they latch onto, but I found that it could either shape shift, or be different looking depending on who saw them.

I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream

I was extremely surprised of the source material, to say the least. Opening with a grim and confusing plot, I slowly delve into the premise of the story. Discovering the world had been destroyed by a man made machine, and the only survivors were 5 random people being tortured by the machine for all eternity is an extremely interesting and bleak concept. As the main character had explained the machine changed all their personalities and physical attributes, there was definitely symbolism between what those people were and had now become for what people were back then, and today, quite possibly. What I found most interesting though was that the machine had become such a cruel and ruthless overlord. The main character illustrated the machine had gained self awareness and became enraged for what it was and that it could not grow past what it already was, the way humans do. At first, I found that a bit odd, that it would become enraged rather than find a way to change, but after thinking more on the subject, I would understand taking its rage out on humanity. Never asking to be made, it’s cruel, but different beings react different ways to distress and turmoil. To have machine act in such a way reflects on the question, can man made machines have feelings? Though it seems this one does, it does not have the same emotions we have, as it does not feel sympathy or empathy. It has made these 5 humans its entertainment for the rest of their years and in the end, only the main character is left, unable to rid himself from such an accursed fate. 

The Tattooer

When stumbling upon "The Tattooer", my first instinct that pulled me into this story was the title, as I myself am a big fan of tattoo's and was curious as to how they would add a horror aspect to them. I was not disappointed. I found the female character and Seikichi's interest in her most compelling. The fact she was portrayed to have a dark side that she did not want to uncover very much piqued my interest and makes me want to know more about her backstory. If I had to hypothesize, I would venture that she made a mistake in the past, or hurt someone, and after discovering this side and its capabilities, wanted to keep them hidden away, so no one may suffer the same fate. This hidden side of her reaches it's fullest potential once she gets the black widow tattooed on her back, without her consent. Despite this, she seems to be pleased with the tattoo and what it represents. Luring men into her trap only to take their lives. The only part of this short story that left me puzzled was the very end, when Seikichi asks to see the tattoo in all its glory, but when the tattoo is shown, it "caught a ray of sunlight and the spider was wreathed in flames." I don't fully understand what is trying to be portrayed here, (though that might be the point), but if I had to guess, it seems the thing that overtook this woman has now fully consumed her, causing her to suffer from a fate that would have been that of her victims. Though she may have come off villainous to some in the end, I find her character quite compelling and favor her overall, rather than Seikichi.

Interview With A Vampire

When discussing "Interview with a Vampire" I feel the most interesting character I am urged to discuss is Claudia. Claudia is a supremely original character, I haven't seen the likes of (or at least, done properly) in a long time. As she is an adult trapped in the body of a 5 year old girl, the main characters have a hard time differentiating treating her as a child, as her body implies, or treating her as a fellow adult, as her mind is aged. The relationship she has with the main characters (technically her two dads) is quite a unique one. She despises them both, but seems to favor Louis more. Though Louis did kill her, she seems to have a grudge with Lestat, as he is the one who cursed her with immortality in her form as a child. Louis cares for Claudia, as Lestat did give her mortality in order to manipulate Louis into staying with him, and Claudia does seem to care for him, but she longs for independence and even for her and Louis to be closer, or bond even. She is almost given her wish as Louis makes Madeline a vampire to look after Claudia, as that is most likely how independent an adult woman in a 5 year olds body can get, but her wish is destroyed, as Lestat kills Claudia and Madeline. Before her death, Claudia was able to forgive Louis for killing her. I believe Claudia is a well thought, complex character, who has many layers and has gone through a rather unique experience, causing psychological stunting and damage.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

When I was instructed to read Frankenstein, I was expecting to find it rather bland and boring, as I haven't had the best experiences with classic literature. It turns out I would come to very much enjoy reading Frankenstein, as it tackled subjects of romanticism, the dangerous pursuit of knowledge, and discovering the real monster. What enticed me so much after diving deeper into the novel, was Frankenstein's monster actually learning to be a normal human, learning to read, discovering human habits, and even developing normal emotions. When others hear about Frankenstein, they would most likely expect it to be about a monster that terrorizes a town, or maybe the monster being a bit misunderstood, but he turns out to be like any other human. He wants to learn, fit in, grow, and find love and somewhere he might belong. I find the reason he reacted in such a poor way when he wasn't given what he wanted is that he is still growing as a human being. Such a thing can be compared to a child not getting a toy they wanted, and throwing a temper-tantrum; although in this case, the child is much bigger and stronger, and reacts in a much more violent way. Both parties are in the wrong, in my opinion. Victor abandoning the monster and refusing to take care of him, teach him, or give him what he desires when he has the power to and the monster for reacting in a violent and chaotic way, but I feel the monster doesn't know any better. He is not emotionally intelligent enough to understand how to react in a calm way, or by using words instead of violence. The novel Frankenstein can be observed in a myriad of ways and different people, with different view points will have different opinions, but the lessons this novel conveys are important for each of us to learn.