I am particularly enjoying the format he employs--alternating the chunks of textual discussion with wider views of the theological topics the book touches.
Fred Clark's analysis of Left Behind is masterful, and in general I find his blog riveting. Far from being anti-religious, Clark comes from an evangelical background and is still, as I understand it, a devout Christian. To someone removed from that culture by both religious background and geographical location, he provides a fascinating insight into the aspects of evangelical culture and thinking that tend to get drowned out by the fanatics
( ... )
I hadn't read the blog before, though I had seen the name around; thanks for the background on Fred Clark. One of the things I've found so compelling about his treatment of the book is his outrage at what he feels they make out of Christianity, and the way he comes at that outrage from a very knowledgeable viewpoint.
The Lilith House girls weren't trying to shut down the frat because they perceived it as a greater evil than the rapist. They piggy-backed on the rapes as a way of getting revenge for the brutalization of their friend, and while this hardly makes them good people (or, for that matter, good feminists), it is in keeping with the noir mindset. It also mitigates against their stereotypical depiction by replacing a political motivation with a personal, and slightly humanizing, one.I would find this more persuasive if the Lilith House girls were also trying to do something to shut down the sororities, because last week's episode made clear that Patrice's own sorority was the location of the secret room, and her sorority
( ... )
I would find this more persuasive if the Lilith House girls were also trying to do something to shut down the sororities
Wasn't this Nish's objective in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"? I think the girls did blame the entire greek system for Patrice's breakdown, and although Pi Sig bore the brunt of their wrath, from day one they were calling for the abolishment of all the fraternities and sororities.
I would have found the whole thing a lot easier to swallow if instead of being the Lilith House, a group of regular female friends had carried out the anti-frat plot and had enlisted the unknowing help of women's rights activists
Yeah, I think I would have liked this a bit more myself, but I think we're at the point where our political affiliations are bumping up against Rob Thomas's noir credo. Everyone has to be guilty of something - a group of innocent, earnest feminists doesn't work within that framework (although Parker does become an individual earnest feminist).
Wasn't this Nish's objective in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"?
Actually, yeah, I hadn't quite put Nish's crusade against Theta Beta (I think it was) together with the fake rapes, though I don't think the overall crusade was against sororities in general; rather it seems like they saw an opportunity to take the one sorority out because they knew about the pot garden, but they used fake rapes to take out the entire fraternity system.
Yeah, I think I would have liked this a bit more myself, but I think we're at the point where our political affiliations are bumping up against Rob Thomas's noir credo.I certainly won't deny that the portrayal of the feminists got my back up for political reasons, but I also appreciate credible motivation, and even with the Patrice angle, I felt that the Lilith House women's motivations were just very shakily written. It's possible that if we and Veronica had seen Patrice's story instead of hearing about it firsthand, it would give their motivation the urgency it needed to counterbalance what we did see,
( ... )
I am dismayed that the BSG writers are holding Chris Carter up as a good example for showrunning. I wouldn't be too attached to Lee/Kara, that being the case.
Amusingly, the writer seems to single out Chris Carter as someone who maintained a long-running story arc, with the implication that he did have a plan, but then touches base with reality again by evincing skepticism of JJ Abrams having a plan for Lost.
*chokes* Oh, geez, I look at Carter as someone who either a) lost track of his plan, or b) never had a plan and pretended he did. Which I believe depends on how cynical I'm being that day. Oh, Ron, do you have any idea how many former X-files fans can now barely stand to look at the episodes?
Thank you for the link to the Left Behind article. As someone who knows a lot of people who believe in the Great Tribulation and so forth, it makes for very interesting reading.
I am, in retrospect, extremely glad that I was never more than a casual X-Files viewer. I remember catching a couple of episodes from the Doggett/Reyes years and thinking that Doggett was doing the best with what he had, Reyes was annoying, and I had no idea why Scully was being such a whiny crybaby, but that's the extent of my trauma. Don't get me started about JJ Abrams and Alias, though.
What always struck me about the Left Behind books, from reading the first two pages of one in a bookstore once, is that they're just extraordinarily poorly written. It's interesting to see the way the agenda driving them dictates particular forms of bad writing, although I suspect that for the intended audience, the agenda is the point and the writing is a peripheral concern (Slacktivist harps on a number of implausible major worldwide developments laid out in the book that the reader is asked to swallow wholesale without explanation; a reader approaching from a place of belief and uncritical thinking probably doesn't have those issues or even
( ... )
Wow. I have nothing to add on your VM episode commentary, because I agree with every single thing you said. Especially about how much seeing Veronica fighting for herself and saving herself with Parker's help mollified me re. this story arc. I still have a huge amount of problems with it (oy, the feminists), but at least this resolution had me willing to give the show another chance. (I was honestly thisclose to giving up.) The fact that the second mystery turned out to be something I'm genuinely invested in was a surprising bonus. I particularly look forward to seeing more of Weevil.
I love Toby. Also, I was rewatching the episode just now, and Steve Carrell, damn his face, actually made me feel sorry for Michael again despite his awful behavior, just with the expression on his face when Toby told him that they were teasing him. He looked so pathetically grateful and relieved. Gah.
at least this resolution had me willing to give the show another chance. (I was honestly thisclose to giving up.) The fact that the second mystery turned out to be something I'm genuinely invested in was a surprising bonus. I particularly look forward to seeing more of Weevil.
I was actively watching this episode with an eye toward whether or not I'd delete my season pass. If there's anything I learned from Season 3 of Alias, it's that a show can indeed go off the rails because the creator forgets what made it compelling to begin with, and when that happens, there's no point in continuing to watch and bitch. (Only, obviously, to remain bitter for years afterward. Heh.) It wasn't perfect, but this episode returned to a lot of the elements I love about the show, so I'll take it. I hope we get to see a lot more of both Weevil and Mac.
He looked so pathetically grateful and relieved. Gah.Sometimes I think even Michael, in the tiny dim corner of his brain that houses his self-awareness (which is powered by an asthmatic hamster
( ... )
Comments 16
Reply
Reply
Reply
The Lilith House girls weren't trying to shut down the frat because they perceived it as a greater evil than the rapist. They piggy-backed on the rapes as a way of getting revenge for the brutalization of their friend, and while this hardly makes them good people (or, for that matter, good feminists), it is in keeping with the noir mindset. It also mitigates against their stereotypical depiction by replacing a political motivation with a personal, and slightly humanizing, one.I would find this more persuasive if the Lilith House girls were also trying to do something to shut down the sororities, because last week's episode made clear that Patrice's own sorority was the location of the secret room, and her sorority ( ... )
Reply
Wasn't this Nish's objective in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"? I think the girls did blame the entire greek system for Patrice's breakdown, and although Pi Sig bore the brunt of their wrath, from day one they were calling for the abolishment of all the fraternities and sororities.
I would have found the whole thing a lot easier to swallow if instead of being the Lilith House, a group of regular female friends had carried out the anti-frat plot and had enlisted the unknowing help of women's rights activists
Yeah, I think I would have liked this a bit more myself, but I think we're at the point where our political affiliations are bumping up against Rob Thomas's noir credo. Everyone has to be guilty of something - a group of innocent, earnest feminists doesn't work within that framework (although Parker does become an individual earnest feminist).
Reply
Actually, yeah, I hadn't quite put Nish's crusade against Theta Beta (I think it was) together with the fake rapes, though I don't think the overall crusade was against sororities in general; rather it seems like they saw an opportunity to take the one sorority out because they knew about the pot garden, but they used fake rapes to take out the entire fraternity system.
Yeah, I think I would have liked this a bit more myself, but I think we're at the point where our political affiliations are bumping up against Rob Thomas's noir credo.I certainly won't deny that the portrayal of the feminists got my back up for political reasons, but I also appreciate credible motivation, and even with the Patrice angle, I felt that the Lilith House women's motivations were just very shakily written. It's possible that if we and Veronica had seen Patrice's story instead of hearing about it firsthand, it would give their motivation the urgency it needed to counterbalance what we did see, ( ... )
Reply
I am dismayed that the BSG writers are holding Chris Carter up as a good example for showrunning. I wouldn't be too attached to Lee/Kara, that being the case.
Reply
Fortunately, I think it was the Slate writer who held Chris Carter up as an example, not the BSG writers.
Reply
*chokes* Oh, geez, I look at Carter as someone who either a) lost track of his plan, or b) never had a plan and pretended he did. Which I believe depends on how cynical I'm being that day. Oh, Ron, do you have any idea how many former X-files fans can now barely stand to look at the episodes?
Thank you for the link to the Left Behind article. As someone who knows a lot of people who believe in the Great Tribulation and so forth, it makes for very interesting reading.
Reply
Reply
Reply
What always struck me about the Left Behind books, from reading the first two pages of one in a bookstore once, is that they're just extraordinarily poorly written. It's interesting to see the way the agenda driving them dictates particular forms of bad writing, although I suspect that for the intended audience, the agenda is the point and the writing is a peripheral concern (Slacktivist harps on a number of implausible major worldwide developments laid out in the book that the reader is asked to swallow wholesale without explanation; a reader approaching from a place of belief and uncritical thinking probably doesn't have those issues or even ( ... )
Reply
I love Toby. Also, I was rewatching the episode just now, and Steve Carrell, damn his face, actually made me feel sorry for Michael again despite his awful behavior, just with the expression on his face when Toby told him that they were teasing him. He looked so pathetically grateful and relieved. Gah.
Reply
I was actively watching this episode with an eye toward whether or not I'd delete my season pass. If there's anything I learned from Season 3 of Alias, it's that a show can indeed go off the rails because the creator forgets what made it compelling to begin with, and when that happens, there's no point in continuing to watch and bitch. (Only, obviously, to remain bitter for years afterward. Heh.) It wasn't perfect, but this episode returned to a lot of the elements I love about the show, so I'll take it. I hope we get to see a lot more of both Weevil and Mac.
He looked so pathetically grateful and relieved. Gah.Sometimes I think even Michael, in the tiny dim corner of his brain that houses his self-awareness (which is powered by an asthmatic hamster ( ... )
Reply
Leave a comment