Question Soup

So, it’s Thursday and I have a boatload of reading to do, but I’d much rather do other things. That has kind of been this whole week for me. Monday, I was supposed to get things done and I ended up making paper snowflakes. Tuesday, I ended up doing some work, but it was mostly cartooning my way through Greek mythology (my way of memorizing), yesterday I had the Greek quiz and then decided to call people and watch the premiere episode of V.

• Speaking of V, apparently, from what I’ve read about it, people are annoyed that it corresponds (somewhat roughly) with the universal health-care debate going on in DC at the moment and there’s been a suggestion that it’s somewhat anti-Obama. I can see the parallels, but I don’t think it’s a) intentional (the creator did acknowledge it wasn’t intentional, plus someone involved with the production bizarrely noted that it’s “just a show on at 8 about aliens,” which I find is slightly disheartening because it’s so unintellectual and unconceptual) and b) I’m not sure that the interpretation stands up when you consider that the main black guy is not only one of the aliens (promoting the world-wide health care) but is so far the only alien that’s helping humanity discover the truth about the aliens. I’m liking the fact that Firefly actors are in this show (Wash! Inara! Joss Whedon, I forever hate your decision to kill off Wash…) and that the premise is sort of BSGish, but faux-cylons and actors from other reputable sci-fi shows do not a good sci fi show make. I’ll have to see more of the show before I completely dismiss it, but so far, there are very few characters that really interest me, and I have not been impressed with the storytelling. Ironically, a lot of reviewers have been saying things like “This show has great action sequences! It’s thrilling! OMG! What a great premiere!” but to me, it sort of looks like a BSG rip-off and I’m not sure how the action is all that great in comparison to say, other action shows like 24 or even the more science-fictiony action sequences in some of Joss Whedon’s shows, like Firefly, Dollhouse and Buffy. I have to agree with the NY Times review that said ” ‘Galactica’ could be a grind, but it had complex characters who made surprising (yet believable) choices.” Not so much with V as of yet. I am still waiting for tv to get over 1. the reality show and 2. the storyline premise “THE WORLD IS ENDING, OMG!” I’m just waiting for Peter Jackson to break into TV with his Temeraire miniseries. It sounds super. But still, I want a happy, humorous sci-fi show. Is that too much to ask?!
• More theatre questions for today as well… What is the least needed/necessary to still have theatre?
• Why is introspection not allowed in the sciences, yet it appears to be all that English literature study consists of?
• When is post-modernism going to end? I hate to be grouchy, but I’m getting a bit sick of pastiche everything. I like being able to mix and match and free to do anything from any time in any style, but I’m starting to miss standards. I guess I’m still struggling with that Barthes idea that all interpretations are equally valid. I just…I can’t find a way out of that assumption, because any way that I do, I inherently exclude some kind of group or expression…but aren’t limits helpful some way? I’m not saying art has to be all about laws, but what kind of art are people really going to remember from the post-modernist period? What will be our famous works of literature and art and theatre? I think there’s got to be some kind of validity to coming up with standards. (Even if that answer is just like “Standards! Giving you challenges to work around creatively”)
• Are focus and learning mutually dependent on or exclusive from each other?
• If gender is performed, like Judith Butler points out, when is one ever not performing? (Personally I’m starting to think the answer is never/only when we are alone by ourselves?) Is there some kind of interior, essential identity to human beings? I suppose I would argue that this inner is our thoughts, while our outer/performances are actions. Is it possible to act without being encoded in some way? I’m not sure it is. How do we break free from the performance (false) vs. nonperformance (true) dichotomy?
• Why can’t I find Skittles in this province? Just saying.

Well, that’s all for now…I’m a bit tired and sort of in a disgruntled place (for no particular reason), but I’ve (as usual) got a million things to do, so I should probably do them, before I get anymore behind than I am…

Over 500 pages behind (in only a week and a half!),

Mishy