Wow! It's been quite a year. It's gone by so fast! I look back to the first page of my commonplace book and I see our starting question: What's the point of representing revenge? I think throughout course of this year I finally have not just one, but a variety of possible answers to this questions. Perhaps, revenge is something we inherently crave because violence is part of human nature and we need some way to satisfy that. Or maybe we see revenge as a form of entertainment, and/or we are addicted to it. Maybe revenge shows us who we are. It's a tool we as the audience can use for self-refelction.
I remember receiving the packet containing parts of Ovid's Metamorphoses and thinking it was going to be boring. However, it was really quite entertaining and was a great to start delving into the meaning, character tropes, and themes of revenge. From this reading learned about revenge vs. punishment. Where is the line? I started to ponder whether or not revenge could be a form of justice. My mind began to open up to the deeper meaning of revenge. For the first time, I considered the ethics of revenge. Before this class I thought revenge was purely emotional, but after exploring this question with texts like Metamorphoses and V for Vendetta, I see that there are indeed rules for the renege whether the author or the characters within the story create them. After first semester we began to shift direction, looking at texts like The Prince, The Courtier, and Greenblatt. At first, I was really confused on how these texts could apply to revenge. However, after some intense class discussion, I realized that these texts were acutely very applicable to revenge stories. Whereas the first semester texts focused on the revenge story, the second semester texts focused on the revenger. I really enjoyed this part of the year, because I got learn a lot about what goes on behind the mask (ha. See what I did there @VforVendetta). For the first time, I started contemplating how a revenger blends into society and other roles they play. The most fun I had with a text in this class was reading V for Vendetta. My initial impression was that it would be very violent, with not a lot of deeper meaning. This impression was due to the fact that many people cite V for Vendetta as an example of revenge, and most people (like myself at the beginning of this year) only view revenge as bloody vengeance. To my great delight, V was actually quite entertaining. I loved how it was a graphic novel. Being able to see what V looked like and and world he lived in made the story that much more impactful. By reading V, I was able to apply all of the skills I’ve learned this year. I questioned whether or not V’s actions were revenge or justice. I pondered if there were any ethic to V’s plans. I dug into the man behind the mask. What drove him to do all of those things? Was he working for himself or larger group? My time with V did not end after I close the back cover, as I had to watch the movie adaptation for homework. I was a little nervous to see the movie because I was not looking forward to some specific scenes, like the dolls at Larkhill or Evey’s torture. However, much to my surprise, the movie was quite enjoyable. I think the directors did an amazing job encapsulating the spirit of V. I liked how they took out some of V’s long speeches because I found those parts a little boring in the book. The ending scene where V faces off against all those men was a little overdone. I don’t think book V would have been so theatrical. It made V seem more like a superhero than a common person fighting for good. Although I loved reading V for Vendetta, my favorite part was working on the Medea project. It was so much to work with my peers again. I think we took a lot of what we learned from last year’s Hamlet project, what worked and what didn’t, and applied to this project. I’m actually proud of the film we produced, and the website looks pretty awesome. *If you want to read more about the Medea project, click the Medea button at the end of this post. Overall, I would say that I enjoyed this class. At some points it was frustrating because I didn’t know what direction we were moving in, but looking back, that was a good learning experience on how to go with the flow. The texts we read helped open my mind to the genres and facets of a revenge character. Throughout the year, I have learned how to collaborate with my peers, share and debate ideas in group discussion, and design websites. I will definitely be using these skills in college and (possibly) beyond.
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May 2017
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