tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61049991902141428622024-02-18T19:58:34.376-08:00Chronicles of the Geek GurrlsRuminations and imaginings of two gurrls about feminism, Star Trek, Sci Fi, Steampunk, Universal Monsters and other appropriately geeky topics.Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-66145533881553954632011-11-28T12:54:00.001-08:002011-11-28T13:09:13.791-08:00Literary Frontiers: Boneshaker<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">by Cat Connolly</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<i><b>Literary </b><b>Frontiers </b>is a series in the blog
which gives us the chance to offer our perspective on both new and
established science fiction and speculative fiction books. The series
will publish around twice a month, or whenever one of us can finish and
post one of our most recent reading projects. I guess that means once this November.</i><br />
<br />
<i>The selection this time is Cherie Priest's <u>Boneshaker</u>, nominated for a Hugo award and the winner of the Locus award for best science fiction novel. The piece is a masterpiece of Steampunk that did more than its part to breathe life into the genre. </i><br />
<br />
<i>The review follows after the (steam-powered) jump. </i></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjst79MiYxckVSZ1Oy5Yt17Ukekh-a3e7SmY0ZqDuOxhgYtWCfG9dZnryiEjwbubLH1yJBIGR9rwtpW5Y1RkmkRm0Pn92XIy2W3dJwp6mcG5_wDCs3ls3Yd1ceB6tvYf-1aOWcBqqMYpuY8/s1600/9780765318411.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjst79MiYxckVSZ1Oy5Yt17Ukekh-a3e7SmY0ZqDuOxhgYtWCfG9dZnryiEjwbubLH1yJBIGR9rwtpW5Y1RkmkRm0Pn92XIy2W3dJwp6mcG5_wDCs3ls3Yd1ceB6tvYf-1aOWcBqqMYpuY8/s200/9780765318411.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
<i>Boneshaker</i><br />
by Cherie Priest<br />
Tor Books, 2011<br />
ISBN: 978-0-7653-1841-1<br />
<br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">When
I would think of Seattle, Washington, I used to imagine drizzling rain,
indie coffee houses, and grunge rock. After reading Cherie Priest’s
"Boneshaker," my idealized view of the coastal city has been scratched,
gored, gnawed upon, and, in short, become more awesome. Here’s the story that changed
my mind... </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<br />
In
1860, the promise of Klondike gold lured many would-be millionaires to
the northwest corner of the continent. Eager to mine the deep veins of
gold running beneath the growing city of Seattle, the Russians offered a
hefty reward to any scientist capable of creating a device that could
drill through the rocky earth to retrieve said treasure (here’s the
alternative history). So, one Dr. Leviticus Blue invented the Incredible
Bone-Shaking Drill Engine, a brass and cog marvel of steam technology
(here’s the Steampunk). On its trial run, the Boneshaker destroyed half
of downtown Seattle, releasing a gaseous substance called “the Blight”
that turned anyone who inhaled it into shambling “Rotters” (and here
come the zombies). </div>
<span style="font-size: small;"></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The
main story begins sixteen years later; the city has been walled up to
keep the Blight and those it’s infected separated from everyone else,
and Dr. Blue’s widow, Briar Wilkes, is a social outcast, raising her
teenaged son, Zeke, on the edge of town. When Zeke takes it upon himself
to sneak into the damned city in an attempt to clear his father’s
tarnished name, Briar must face airship pirates, deadly Blight gas,
hordes of Rotters and her own cloudy past to bring him out alive. </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Now,
you might be wondering, “What the heck is this ‘Steampunk’ Cat keeps
talking about?” In short, Steampunk is science fiction set in the
Victorian era, where technology is composed of steam, clockwork, and a
nebulous substance called “aether.” Notable examples of Steampunk
fiction include Alan Moore’s “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” and the
works of Jules Verne. In writing Boneshaker, the first in her
“Clockwork Century” series, Cherie Priest set out to create the magnum
opus for the genre, and to great acclaim: the novel was a nominee for
both the Hugo and Nebula awards in the best novel category, and won the
Locus Award for “Best Science Fiction Novel” in 2010. </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">"Boneshaker"
took me on such a wild, exhilarating adventure that it spurred me to
start a book club here at Watermark to share it and other books of its
fantastic, eccentric ilk (coming this June – look out for it!). But if
the description of “insane, zombie-infested science fiction” turns you
off, fear not: this is not just another gratuitous pulp novel. Above
all, "Boneshaker" is a story about a mother’s love for her son, a son’s
misguided admiration for his father, and the tenacity of a people who
refuse to surrender their home to inevitable destruction. And Briar
Wilkes, braving undead fiends with only a gasmask and a shotgun, is one
tough mom you won’t soon forget. </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">If my mom wasn’t already the coolest, I’d have a new heroine. </span>
</div>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-21303015225804313692011-10-21T12:16:00.000-07:002011-11-28T12:51:42.325-08:00Literary Frontiers: Rosemary's Babyby Sara Crow<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE4lkl58cktANy7C4sKvS8Sxgi4uWynJG_z_kz4bawB8p-4FtSvR0dnfsxI51Q_AWunA0oxlcp_gqbxQq24pR0zNlDxHU3ZUGmzwBx_L3yUR8cIHg3dQbbF9PFgubByvNnw9gY3cIryzZF/s1600/Rosemary%2527s+Baby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
<i><b>Literary </b><b>Frontiers </b>is a series in the blog
which gives us the chance to offer our perspective on both new and
established science fiction and speculative fiction books. The series
will publish around twice a month, or whenever one of us can finish and
post one of our most recent reading projects. </i><br />
<br />
<i>The selection this time is, appropriately for the Halloween, Ira Levin's <u>Rosemary's Baby</u>. Not exactly sci-fi, but can certainly fit into the fantasy/speculative fiction arena, at least with a little wiggling. Horrific urban fantasy? Sure. Okay, so I bent the rules a little because of the season. So sue me.</i><br />
<br />
<i>The review follows after the jump. Just be careful what doors you open: you may not be able to close them again.</i><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE4lkl58cktANy7C4sKvS8Sxgi4uWynJG_z_kz4bawB8p-4FtSvR0dnfsxI51Q_AWunA0oxlcp_gqbxQq24pR0zNlDxHU3ZUGmzwBx_L3yUR8cIHg3dQbbF9PFgubByvNnw9gY3cIryzZF/s1600/Rosemary%2527s+Baby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE4lkl58cktANy7C4sKvS8Sxgi4uWynJG_z_kz4bawB8p-4FtSvR0dnfsxI51Q_AWunA0oxlcp_gqbxQq24pR0zNlDxHU3ZUGmzwBx_L3yUR8cIHg3dQbbF9PFgubByvNnw9gY3cIryzZF/s200/Rosemary%2527s+Baby.jpg" width="116" /></a><i>Rosemary's Baby</i><br />
by Ira Levin<br />
Dell Publishing Co., Inc., 1967 <br />
ISBN (modern edition): 1605981109 <br />
<br />
<i>Rosemary's Baby</i> is a great book, but I have to say that aside from a few pages'
worth of scenes and some small details, this book is almost perfectly
represented by the film. Even outfits and scene direction are
meticulously rendered in Polanski's adaptation. It was astonishing to see how
much he lifted straight from the text. Polanski managed to capture the
book flawlessly, a fact for which he's worthy of high praise, in my
opinion. If I'd read the book first, I would be delighted to see the
movie delivered so faithfully. However, as someone reading the book
after loving the film for so many years, reading the piece almost seemed
redundant. This isn't to say that I wouldn't encourage reading the
book, but any reader should be aware of the fact that reading the book
will give an almost identical vibe to watching the film.
<br />
<br />
That being said, I greatly enjoyed reading Levin's original work. It
took me almost no time at all to read it, and I'm not sure if
that was due to the fact that it was a compulsive read (which it
certainly felt like, as I was taking every spare opportunity to crack
open the book and read a few pages, and the narrative clipped along so
neatly that it was easy to do) or because I recognized it so completely.
Levin's style is tight (almost to the point of minimalism) and very
easy to read. His analogies were flawless and flowed seamlessly into the
story. He managed to capture a Gothic feeling in a very modern and
urban setting and did so with a masterful touch. Dialogue and
characterization is realistic, though I've always felt that Guy could be
developed a little more fully. Levin compensates for that by arguing
numerous times (straight from Guy's mouth, at a few points) that Guy is
exactly as shallow as he seems.
<br />
<br />
I've always loved Minnie and Roman. I know I'm not supposed to. I
know they're evil people who, just in the course of the book, fertilize a
woman with Satan's seed, drug her God knows how many times, kill at
least two people, and blind one man. But gosh, they come off as such
sweet people. Levin captures the sometimes annoying but grandparent-like
nature of both characters splendidly. They're so considerate and seem
so open and friendly. The make fantastic antagonists.
<br />
<br />
I don't know that I'll read this book again cover-to-cover, but only
due to the fact that doing so seems redundant. The book certainly holds
a quality that would allow for a second or third read, though it's
sparse enough to not need too much re-reading for depth's sake. It is
definitely a worthwhile read to consider and compare with early feminist
Gothic pieces, like Charlotte Perkins Gillman's "The Yellow Wall-Paper"
or Virginia Woolf's "The Mark on the Wall" (or any of her other Gothic
short stories) or even Edgar Allan Poe's "The Fall of the House of
Usher." There's definitely space for discussion of feminism and the
rights of the mother prior to and during the birth experience, as well
as obvious discussions of the treatment of women and the dismissive
nature of the diagnosis of "hysteria."
<br />
<br />
<i>Entertainment Weekly</i> rated Polanski's adaptation the tenth
scariest film of all time. I'd say that, as an autonomous woman, the
film might actually be tied with <i>The Stepford Wives</i> and <i>The Ring</i> for first place in my book.
<br />
<br />
I think I might have to move on to <i>The Stepford Wives</i> sooner than I'd intended.Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-50846670009067821232011-10-17T07:31:00.000-07:002011-10-17T14:15:28.535-07:00Wonder Woman's Origin: Here We Go Again!<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
by Sara Crow</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
According to a post on io9 last
week, <a href="http://io9.com/5848335/dc-comics-is-giving-wonder-woman-a-father--want-to-know-who-it-is">DC
Comics will be giving Wonder Woman a father</a> in their November issue, and he will be none
other than the head honcho of one of the most notoriously knotted family trees
in mythological history: Zeus.<br />
<br />
Dun, dun, duuuuun... More after the break!<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
Now, Wonder Woman has had a father
before. Hades was alluded to as a potential father in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hades_%28DC_Comics%29">prior incarnations</a> of the comic, but the idea was dropped rather quickly and she became the woman
birthed from her mother’s construction once again. So this idea, overall, is not new. But it still causes me some concern. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
My initial response to the news is
to wonder about the motivations for this move. The first issue of the reboot was
sold out when I hit my favorite comic shop a couple weeks ago, so I'm
unfortunately not versed in the new storyline yet. I'm stuck guessing, as a
lifetime fan of Wonder Woman, why a move like this would be necessary. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
As a character without a father,
Diana is the result of the epitome of "girl power"--given life
directly by her mother. Some have argued that her origin is a little <a href="http://www.comicvine.com/news/should-wonder-woman-have-a-father-figure/143702/">too
esoteric</a> to grasp, but I always felt there was an innate beauty to the idea
that Wonder Woman is art realized, a feminine power successfully launched from the same root as
Pygmalion’s failing. She was this splendid realization of the concept of art
given life. Literally.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
But with a mundane origin, Wonder
Woman loses that tight, powerful symbolism. She becomes a product of what is going to undoubtedly be a very poor pairing (and quite probably not entirely consensual--very few of Zeus's entanglements were). At best, she'll have a super-dysfunctional father who will not add anything positive to the storyline or to Wonder Woman's backstory. Zeus is not exactly the nurturing type, after all.<br />
<br />
In fact, to the contrary, Zeus is the epitome of all that is bad in the patriarchy (or in any power)--a blowhard autocrat out for his own selfish ends. He's the living embodiment of male entitlement and masculine power run amok. I can't think of a worse character to have as a father to someone as self-aware and strong as Wonder Woman. Did the writers feel they needed some source of testosterone to balance out the rampant feminism of the storyline?</div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Now, the "misbehaving father" angle could work. And it could work well. It could give women and girls from screwed-up families someone to ennoble their own struggle. They could see Wonder Woman as a hero who rose up from the dirt of a messy family situation to achieve a massive amount of power and success, and they could see her as a champion for that cause.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
Or, it could go very, very badly. Like Starfire.</div>
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</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
One of the initial reasons claimed
for the need for a reboot was to draw new comic readers to the medium,
particularly women. However, it seems that DC <a href="http://blog.newsarama.com/2011/09/21/two-comics-that-make-dc-become-wtf/">missed
the boat</a> in a significant way with their reboot of some characters and has
really screwed up their legacy. The backlash has been harsh for DC regarding their reboot of Starfire, a character who has been beloved by girls everywhere since Teen Titans premiered on the WB almost decade ago. While the show has stopped running new episodes, it's still alive in syndication and girls still love Starfire and clamor for new releases in which the character stars. But not only is the new comic "too adult" for a younger audience, but the girls who grew up with the "girl power"
Starfire from TV and are turning to the comic as adults are <a href="http://www.shortpacked.com/2011/comic/book-13/04-remedial-adulthood/math/">disillusioned,
too</a>. </div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
I understand that DC wants to maintain what it sees as its “core market”
by maintaining some of the T&A in their comics. Fifteen-year-old
boys do need something to fap to
on a regular basis: I get it. But it seems like a monumental failing, or
at
least ridiculously bad writing, to take a character that could appeal
women and
make her into a vapid sexpot. Especially considering comics have
actually managed to do both in past incarnations--there are a great
number of fantastic female characters who still managed to be fun to
look at. But somewhere along the line, DC seems to think that it was
important that comic readers, I duno, think that perhaps they have a
chance with the imaginary characters they've constructed? I don't quite
get it. </div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
I can see this Zeus-as-father thing trending toward something similarly ugly, like <a href="http://wonder-woman.wikia.com/wiki/Fictional_history_of_Wonder_Woman#The_Diana_Prince_era_and_the_Bronze_Age">powers-taken-away-to-increase-girl-power ugly</a>,
toward a Wonder Woman who could be weighed down by a personal history
more strongly influenced by a screwed-up male role model. To me, the entire nature of her as a powerful being is tarnished by Zeus and male intervention, simply because there was a distinct lack of male intervention in her story until she meets Steve Trevor. She was supremely powerful, not the byproduct of a greater power (the Amazons, including her mother, regularly return to her for aid). Will this new backstory make
her an "angry feminist?" (BIG MISTAKE) Will this make the story into "male power vs. female power?" (Another BIG MISTAKE--the original story did such a good job of showing how well men and women can do when they work together and respect one another!) Will this make her more
accessible? We'll have to wait to find out, but I can say that I'll be
very nervous until November.</div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
I hate to say it, but comics as we
know them are a dying market. DC is trying to breathe new life in them
by
re-vamping the entire line, but in doing so they seem to be falling into
misguided old paths that limit their readership to a select few. They
seem to fail to understand the market properly, or to understand that
perhaps they could embrace a waiting corner of their potential readers simply by writing more female characters that women want to read and possibly even pass down to their daughters. I would hate to see Wonder Woman become a woman falling victim to her parentage. I liked her when she was clay and spirit, and hope that Zeus doesn't cripple that drive. November may define Wonder Woman's legacy. Let's hope it draws it in the right direction. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
</div>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-30277734258067782042011-10-11T12:19:00.000-07:002011-10-11T12:19:52.165-07:00Literary Frontiers: 1000 Steampunk Creations<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
by Cat Connolly<br />
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<i><b> </b></i></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<i><b>Literary </b><b>Frontiers </b>is a brand new series in the blog
which gives us the chance to offer our perspective on both new and
established science fiction and speculative fiction books. The series
will publish around twice a month, or whenever one of us can finish and
post one of our most recent reading projects. </i></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<br />
<i>This week's book is <u>1000 Steampunk Creations: Neo-Victorian Fashion, Gear & Art</u> by Dr. Grymm. The review is available after the jump.</i></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<i></i></div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbFr3c5sL8cFqwZwajorYQzas7foz9eytqlRss9KiDeYaGznnrOftRCOYhmz8uEuuaFLmyz4tJyp3gb446G25fyDcmeDOPPU6vkgWh4N19PGPevh_gjzBH2DoAmedtDLJFNvnmI0psSzQS/s1600/1000+steampunk+creations.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbFr3c5sL8cFqwZwajorYQzas7foz9eytqlRss9KiDeYaGznnrOftRCOYhmz8uEuuaFLmyz4tJyp3gb446G25fyDcmeDOPPU6vkgWh4N19PGPevh_gjzBH2DoAmedtDLJFNvnmI0psSzQS/s200/1000+steampunk+creations.jpg" width="200" /></a><i><span style="font-size: small;">1000 Steampunk Creations: Neo-Victorian Fashion, Gear & Art</span></i></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">by Dr. Grymm </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">ISBN 9781592536917</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Quarry Books, 2011</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">“But you weren’t using it!” </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">My dad
heaved a sigh of annoyance as he beheld the Frankenstein-reject doll I
held in my gloved hands, its plush body covered in what used to be a
hose ring, blunted screw “claws”, and other household repair items.
Despite my father’s chagrin at my naiveté regarding the sanctity of
“dad’s tool box,” that first absurd creation launched a love affair with
knickknack monstrosities, all cobbled together from the bits and
caprices I would pick out of dusty cabinets or excavate from the
neighborhood park. Imagine my joy when I discovered a whole cultural
movement based on the concept that broken or discarded baubles are an
ideal medium for crafting works of art. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">What’s
the aforementioned cultural movement, you ask? Oh, just the coolest
thing since Tesla coils: Steampunk. If you’re a neophyte to the genre,
the back of this book puts it succinctly: “Steampunk is a burgeoning
counter-cultural movement: a genre, community, and artform. The
Steampunk movement seeks to recapture the spirit of invention,
adventure, and craftsmanship reminiscent of early-nineteenth-century
industrialization, in part to restore a sense of wonder to a
technology-jaded world.” </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Dr.
Grymm’s anthology of cog-and-brass artistry, “1000 Steampunk Creations:
Neo-Victorian Fashion, Gear & Art” is a splendid visual collection
of works by crafty people around the globe. The mediums explored in the
book, all beautifully photographed, include jewelry, costumes, modified
appliances, sculpture, and prop weaponry used by live-action role
players. Take a close look at the photos, and you will notice that
almost every component of the artwork is made from discarded bits of
metal, plastic, and leather—all things that are cheap and easy to find.
Add some shiny baubles, old watch parts and perhaps some antique
ephemera from granny’s button box and you can make your own Steampunk
artifact. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBQfWTrzE2zGeY5BVIje6L-l-qzZDFOeYTkeEZjWeWx-axHBpzI1bUADP2D6bOo4AdSndE1sW9Fz9bUWS_OO93HvIHAIP4-h8PzRt12AbmseWFNY0KZKHaf59glkaLJQL3KyIi6YA4zHiW/s1600/270352_1344963822877_1194690409_30944268_1601421_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBQfWTrzE2zGeY5BVIje6L-l-qzZDFOeYTkeEZjWeWx-axHBpzI1bUADP2D6bOo4AdSndE1sW9Fz9bUWS_OO93HvIHAIP4-h8PzRt12AbmseWFNY0KZKHaf59glkaLJQL3KyIi6YA4zHiW/s320/270352_1344963822877_1194690409_30944268_1601421_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Being a
Steampunk aficionado, I found this book to be an excellent reference
for my own inventions. There are objects employed in some of the art
that I would never have expected to see used, such as the dismembered
limbs of Kewpie dolls, old lamp bases, broken walkie-talkies and rusted
kitchen appliances. The people at the DAV probably thought I was crazy
when I bought all the brass items in their housewares section, but now I
can craft that kettle-powered ray gun that I’ve always wanted.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Oh,
the possibilities which await me! The cogs of my creative mind have
already begun to spin. Forgive me, Dad, but I’m going to have to raid
your tool shed once more... </span>
</div>
Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-86312461817804899262011-09-30T11:21:00.000-07:002011-09-30T12:35:31.371-07:00Literary Frontiers: Oryx and Crake<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449">by Sara Crow </span></span><br />
<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449">(</span></span>Find me on <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5953510-sara">Goodreads</a>!)<br />
<br />
<i><b>Literary </b><b>Frontiers </b>is a brand new series in the blog which gives us the chance to offer our perspective on both new and established science fiction and speculative fiction books. The series will publish around twice a month, or whenever one of us can finish and post one of our most recent reading projects. </i><br />
<i><br /></i><br />
<i>The selection for our inaugural post is <u>Oryx and Crake</u> by Margaret Atwood. I'll be making my way through <u>Year of the Flood</u> before the holiday season. Atwood is currently working on her final book in the series, which at this point will be entitled <u>MaddAddam</u>, and we'll be reviewing that title when it's released as well. </i><i></i><br />
<i><br /></i><br />
<i>The review is available, just for you, after the jump (to Warp?)! Make it so!</i><br />
<i></i><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf14m0pRCm9RIq2k_PyiZBokd_5eAN4xIi25Ai0NRVskQoy9OQ2ecubVOsogh6H6pC1AZO03wfld8LImSUBaaqFX4ugd2ZdqooXR4BtuiP0xPxhqqgmHp8ZAcMSejO5D_BohtSO1C0If0o/s1600/Oryx.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf14m0pRCm9RIq2k_PyiZBokd_5eAN4xIi25Ai0NRVskQoy9OQ2ecubVOsogh6H6pC1AZO03wfld8LImSUBaaqFX4ugd2ZdqooXR4BtuiP0xPxhqqgmHp8ZAcMSejO5D_BohtSO1C0If0o/s320/Oryx.jpg" width="215" /></a></div>
<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449"><i>Oryx and Crake </i>(MaddAddam Trilogy #1)</span></span><span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449"> </span></span><br />
<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449">by Margaret Atwood</span></span><br />
<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449">Anchor books, 2004</span></span><br />
ISBN-13: 978-0385721677<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449"> </span></span><br />
<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449"><i> </i> </span></span><br />
<span id="reviewTextContainer194055449"><span id="freeTextreview194055449">It's unmistakable that <i>Oryx and Crake</i>
is a unique and glorious work of literary science fiction (no matter
what Atwood herself whats to say about its genre assocations), a piece
of work that is inexorably linked to technology and the future. I can
understand Atwood's resistance to the classification, but she'd
positively keel over if she was ever qualified under the other possible
genre in which this book could fit: romance.
<br />
<br />Because this is, at its core, a multifoliate romance, in the love
triangle between Oryx, Crake and Snowman. But it's also the story of the
love that grew between Snowman and the Crakers. Snowman shows a depth
of love for Crake's creation that is only fully realized in the last few
pages of the book.
<br />
<br />Atwood has incredible skill at crafting characters with depth that
still retain incredible mystery about them. Crake's motivations, for
example, are thrown completely into question at the climax of the book.
We never really understand Oryx's motivations or desires--since we
understand the story only from Snowman's perspective, his other desires
tend to overshadow a drive to actually understand Oryx as she is at the
time he's with her rather than understanding her within the context of
her past.
<br />
<br />I haven't read many reviews of this book yet, but I'm sure that many
of them classify this as a "Mad Science" sci fi--a morality tale about
science and progress run amok. But the story isn't about "mad science"
in the traditional sense, with a megalomaniac bent on world domination
or scientists believing they can engineer everything in life taking
control and ruining society through their greed or arrogance (though
there is a little of that in the obvious global warming consequences
written in as a subtext and the already existent culture of genetic
modification established from the early pages of the novel). No, the
driving destructive obsession in this story is much more personal--the
exclusive possession of a woman. I'll restrict myself from saying too
much more, out of the fear that I'll end up divulging a spolier or two,
but suffice it to say that the end of the world comes, to paraphrase
T.S. Eliot, with BOTH a bang and a whimper, and while science is the
catalyst, the real source of downfall is much more ancient.
<br />
<br />Oryx both confounds and disturbs me. She's a fascinating character,
someone a product of her past, at least according to Snowman, though she
seems to hold no malice over it. Her characterization is so blank and
stoic as to be impressed on me as something of a statue, an object like
Pygmalion's statue, given life throughout her lifetime only by the male
gaze and obsession over her. Her desires otherwise seem to be inert. In
another context, I'd consider this to be a failure on the author's part,
but Atwood's intent seems to be to throw up a veil throughout this
story and show characters from a very limited viewpoint to draw out
particular points, so I can't help but see the same with Oryx.
<br />
<br />The story is, after all, told from Snowman's limited perspective,
and though he was at the epicenter of the events, he seems to be
simultaneously oblivious throughout the process. He sees Oryx's grace,
beauty, generosity and love, but he doesn't see her as a person. In his
obsession over his own moral indignation at what he perceives as the
travesty of her past, he neglects to see how he attempts to sculpt her
present, conforming her to his own parameters, trying to possess her
just as presciently (perhaps even more so) as the people who exploited
her beauty in the past.
<br />
<br />It was a fantastic point of storytelling to choose to narrate this
story in simultaneous flashbacks and present-moment impressions. Since
we're seeing this story from Snowman's perspective, it can be enraging
to be entombed within that one head, but the revelations are so much
more engrossing as a result. We see simultaneously the actions and their
consequences in a way that telling the story in a more linear way would
prevent. It's so difficult to actually handle flashback elegantly, and
Atwood achieves the balance of her flashbacks with marvelous care.
<br />
<br />This story is a tragedy on so many levels, and I ended up being
completely engrossed by the scale of each aspect of the unfolding events
and their simultaneous consequences as I read. I would highly recommend
this work to other readers, with the caveat that this story carries
horrifying weight. <i>Oryx and Crake</i> is a deep tragedy, for the
characters, the population and to the Earth itself. The reader must
enter this work aware of the challenges of reading such an emotionally
distraught narrative and be ready to watch every house of cards built
both by the author and by our own society fall around them. If the
reader's not ready for that trauma, it might be best to pursue another
novel. But to readers who've braved Atwood's other heavy works, most
particularly <i>A Handmaid's Tale,</i> which was an emotional trauma in itself, <i>Oryx and Crake</i> will be a highly recommended, albeit emotionally challenging, read.</span></span><br />
<br />Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-49934866565853308532011-09-08T08:34:00.000-07:002011-09-08T08:50:25.972-07:00Isabel Samaras: The Geeky Glory of the Classic Formby Sara Crow<br />
<br />
While wandering through my favorite quirky odds and ends shop a couple years ago, I glanced at a shelf and had to do a double-take. At first, I thought I'd glimpsed an image of classic art--a renaissance painting whose title dangled on the edges of my memory. It was an image of a lone woman in an outdoor scene, holding a silver platter, a fire dancing on its surface. A goldfinch looks on from a nearby branch. I looked again. This wasn't just <i>any</i> woman--this was the Bride of Frankenstein! At that moment, I fell entirely in love with Isabel Samaras's work and have been crazy about it ever since. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97ChOJN2UqQ-pOxEPEd7tATKe0pstWMjsNLiURykkaV7ahGCOyYZ9WfgtI038cbTaZ7xSrMWSrQlfnd4Jqh2JaTuqMyO8eiOETYtNAb62P0NVmLo_PryXpMmiZH3NFJjDp6EJqX9gV8as/s1600/song+of+the+goldfinch.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97ChOJN2UqQ-pOxEPEd7tATKe0pstWMjsNLiURykkaV7ahGCOyYZ9WfgtI038cbTaZ7xSrMWSrQlfnd4Jqh2JaTuqMyO8eiOETYtNAb62P0NVmLo_PryXpMmiZH3NFJjDp6EJqX9gV8as/s400/song+of+the+goldfinch.jpg" width="241" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is what I'd seen. <br />
<i>Song of the Goldfinch,</i> by Isabel Samaras</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Warning: "Adult" images after the break. You've been warned. So no bitching if you see boobies, 'kay?</b> <b>We're all big kids here. </b></div><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<a href="http://astrocat.com/samaras/">Isabel Samaras</a> is a name that every geek gurrl should know in order to be eligible for her geeky gurrl membership card. Isabel lives and works in San Fancisco, creating unique pieces that commonly meld the unlikely subjects of classic art and popular geek culture.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWZXC_yddAVweTGFPbOA6J3coH6r4q0khNsLxx8bLNnkKAdGTeH2dQtPSktBbuE1VKYmw7sMF6lhBJyc-GV4d_JTKS2WSDkPaIJjkHQBQwn_o55Xys_gOnWSihXVwNNdJ6TIvplhH2eQii/s1600/Secrets+of+the+Batcave.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWZXC_yddAVweTGFPbOA6J3coH6r4q0khNsLxx8bLNnkKAdGTeH2dQtPSktBbuE1VKYmw7sMF6lhBJyc-GV4d_JTKS2WSDkPaIJjkHQBQwn_o55Xys_gOnWSihXVwNNdJ6TIvplhH2eQii/s320/Secrets+of+the+Batcave.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Secrets of the Batcave</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>"Sci-fi showed me there were 'alternate realities,' places and times where things could be different. Fate and history weren't boring straight lines--they were flexible and alive. They could be changed," she comments in her book, <i>On Tender Hooks.</i> Isabel began to imagine some of her favorite shows in these "alternate realities:" What if Batman and Catwoman actually got together? What if Gomez & Morticia enjoyed a wild night with Herman & Lily? The possibilities seemed endless!<br />
<br />
Isabel started by creating her wonderful, kinky worlds on lunch boxes she discovered in Spanish Harlem in New York City. After moving to San Fancisco, a friend suggested she begin creating work on (appropriately enough) TV trays, launching a series of pieces that you probably wouldn't find sitting in the corner waiting to be used at Grandma's house (or maybe you would--I guess it depends on the coolness of your grandma!).<br />
<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhNNwUnAcn9nw9YHakr0z4mEh5kYFOmTwa44PRoDI1OB7LQjIHB30EosAwub2zl76diT2KBI1jt4mBb99AbNjyLi-WJ-QHZthDUUXaxnIyXTeu0Z4whGXBDhb_whYb5sgd4AYwIv33CPQ/s1600/Perpetua+%2528The+Bride%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhNNwUnAcn9nw9YHakr0z4mEh5kYFOmTwa44PRoDI1OB7LQjIHB30EosAwub2zl76diT2KBI1jt4mBb99AbNjyLi-WJ-QHZthDUUXaxnIyXTeu0Z4whGXBDhb_whYb5sgd4AYwIv33CPQ/s320/Perpetua+%2528The+Bride%2529.jpg" width="244" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Perpetua (The Bride)</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYBQ01-wESD3gl2l5CwSl6XEpswraYvPtUoG0emz9iWJ_rNsw60VTS9e97gnbljNJ-0c2YlU8-Il2gS-7PRjo2A_8Svc1rI5uEIHBipyruynA7s6Ym0JdlbShftTtTOnRsFMBOCn9Ly-k/s1600/vina-the-longing-i-samaras2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYBQ01-wESD3gl2l5CwSl6XEpswraYvPtUoG0emz9iWJ_rNsw60VTS9e97gnbljNJ-0c2YlU8-Il2gS-7PRjo2A_8Svc1rI5uEIHBipyruynA7s6Ym0JdlbShftTtTOnRsFMBOCn9Ly-k/s320/vina-the-longing-i-samaras2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Vina (The Longing)</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Eventually, Isabel began to be inspired not only by the potential for these "alternate realities," but also by the work of the great masters, and began to re-imagine her favorite TV characters in the style of these classic and beloved artists. She also began to widen her subject matter, moving from portraying TV characters to the classic characters of Universal monster films (as seen in my first experience with her work in <i>Song of the Goldfinch</i>). These pieces were, in many cases, her own take on some classic works, not with the recognizable characters of the Universal films, but by taking the idea--the Bride of Frankenstein, in the case of the image above--and making an original piece in a classic style with a subtle nod to the inspiration. <br />
<br />
This is where Samaras is at her best, in my opinion--when she subverts the expectations of an image, taking something we expect to be classic art and throws in subtle nods to horror and popular culture and more, implying depth to stories people are usually happier to ignore as "trite." These examinations of the characters and their stories create a real relevance that can cause her audience to re-think their initial dismissal of some of the stories that make up the mythologies of the twentieth century, putting them in conversation with history and elevating them in the process. <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBhjhXg-Ra4x7W2oVpJHpY4aTmgN205-UUpRyTyvSypxM5sDZ_6PoDnsuJhmAFpWnmok3HWdvaqxB6cm_oJhJftfLxLL04wKuvJ0ikkOUMuRYzRWr1Yvt9zkN42XiF3VOovxxc38YR_Mo6/s1600/thebluebirdofhappiness.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBhjhXg-Ra4x7W2oVpJHpY4aTmgN205-UUpRyTyvSypxM5sDZ_6PoDnsuJhmAFpWnmok3HWdvaqxB6cm_oJhJftfLxLL04wKuvJ0ikkOUMuRYzRWr1Yvt9zkN42XiF3VOovxxc38YR_Mo6/s320/thebluebirdofhappiness.jpg" width="272" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The Bluebird of Happiness</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>I also love when she manages to create an entirely unique work in a classic style that is gleefully subversive. As Samaras points out in <a href="http://isamaras.wordpress.com/2010/08/03/who-invented-porn/">her blog article</a> about creating "The Bluebird of Happiness," pictured in all its naughty glory to the right, porn has existed as long as the captured image itself (LOVE the goat/Pan porn in particular--oo that's fun to say!). I love this painting specifically because it celebrates female sexuality in the style of an era that was particularly repressed, and I love the fact that she illustrates this so splendidly by literally putting the sexuality of the image "undercover." This is one of those fantastic "double-take" paintings that she's so great at creating that also manages to express a subject that's still pretty taboo in our society--a woman's right to enjoy the sexual experience (ohmygod, women have ORGASMS!? Seriously!?).<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUI3gaWDiF_C7d6ejZ23s57JAM5_1Qj7IOgynjnDJKDBrnNgLU80yq8dCKRj46IjFMxh9RjhdIDJokbpcjjGHhWoWasrx_mOuTm-5HScO6hAMvpBcjU6HAz1mL9DyyJnnDnZ_S4_vj-Hsm/s1600/Mocking+Box.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUI3gaWDiF_C7d6ejZ23s57JAM5_1Qj7IOgynjnDJKDBrnNgLU80yq8dCKRj46IjFMxh9RjhdIDJokbpcjjGHhWoWasrx_mOuTm-5HScO6hAMvpBcjU6HAz1mL9DyyJnnDnZ_S4_vj-Hsm/s320/Mocking+Box.jpg" width="230" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Mocking Box: The Rap Wars</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div>Samaras's most recent work shows an emphasis on this conversation between what would be considered "classic" art and unexpected elements of popular culture. Her most recent show, "Heavy Gretel," displays this shift in interest from pop culture to the world of fairy tales that she's been making over the past year or so in art that depicts not only the Hansel and Gretel myth, but everything from Red Riding Hood to a naughty depiction of "The Tyger" by William Blake. Even the fairy tale creatures themselves have been "remixed." Check out her great article in the most recent issue of <a href="http://hifructose.com/">Hi-Fructose</a>, at pretty much every conceivable newsstand and Barnes & Noble that carries anything more than <i>People </i>and <i>TV Guide</i> for more about Isabel and her art, or find her all over the internet: <br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://astrocat.com/samaras/">Isabel on the Interwebs</a><br />
<a href="http://isamaras.wordpress.com/">Isabel's Blog, "i feel it too: Notes from the studio"</a><br />
<br />
And if you love what you see, you absolutely MUST pick up her book, <a href="http://www.chroniclebooks.com/on-tender-hooks.html"><i>On Tender Hooks</i></a>. Or, if you're lucky enough to be in the San Francisco area, do what I can't and look up her work and experience it personally. Art is ALWAYS better in person, and I will be jealous of you forever if you get to experience her work in person in all its geeky glory!Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-13488303907627995022011-08-12T12:23:00.000-07:002011-08-12T21:51:13.347-07:00Be a Woman.by Sara Crow<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">I found this poem while I was doing research for the section of my book that takes place in Topeka. While I was zipping through the microfiche of mid-19th-century newspapers at the <a href="http://www.kshs.org/">Kansas Historical Society</a>, I came across this awesome poem in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quindaro_Townsite">Quindaro Chindowan</a>, No. 52, Saturday, June 12, 1858. Yes, 1858. Feminism didn't start in the 20th Century, darlings! ;)</div><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG2shXDdMVHiX11rW8sSv6hI3Ql0Lm56yo028pFWexCGRf-NdxYUxsHx5Z3DlTWHhHDm2ov8FMdhEasjbBwzkHFNU1fuN-4T6hBAgE1DI2T89Y5k4eUnLYI8v6SxHuqNoMr0IqoJl06UhK/s1600/Clarina+Nichols.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG2shXDdMVHiX11rW8sSv6hI3Ql0Lm56yo028pFWexCGRf-NdxYUxsHx5Z3DlTWHhHDm2ov8FMdhEasjbBwzkHFNU1fuN-4T6hBAgE1DI2T89Y5k4eUnLYI8v6SxHuqNoMr0IqoJl06UhK/s320/Clarina+Nichols.jpg" width="219" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Clarina Nichols, Associate Editor of the <br />
<i>Quindaro Chindowan.</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table><i><b>Be a Woman.</b><br />
Oft I’ve heard a gentle mother,<br />
As the twilight hours began,<br />
Pleading with a son, of duty,<br />
Urging him to be a man.<br />
But unto her blue-eyed daughter,<br />
Though with love’s words quite as ready,<br />
Points she out this other duty,<br />
“Strive, my dear, to be a lady.” <br />
<br />
What’s a lady? Is it something<br />
Made of hoops, and silks, and airs,<br />
Used to decorate the parlor,<br />
Like the fancy rugs and chairs?<br />
Is it one who wastes on novels<br />
Every feeling that is human?<br />
If ‘tis this to be a lady,<br />
‘Tis not this to be a woman. <br />
<br />
Mother, then, unto your daughter,<br />
Speak of something higher, far,<br />
Than to be mere fashion’s lady –<br />
“Woman” is the brighter star.<br />
If ye, in your strong affection,<br />
Urge your son to be a true man,<br />
Urge your daughter no less strongly<br />
To arise and be a woman. <br />
<br />
Yes, a woman – brightest model<br />
Of that high and perfect beauty,<br />
Where the mind, and soul, and body,<br />
Blend to work out life’s great duty –<br />
Be a woman – nought is higher<br />
On the gilded list of fame,<br />
On the catalogue of virture,<br />
There’s no brighter, holier name. </i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>Be a woman – on to duty,<br />
Raise the world from all that’s low,<br />
Place high in the social heaven<br />
Virtue’s fair and radiant bow.<br />
Lend thy influence to each effort,<br />
That shall raise our nature’s human.<br />
Be not fashion’s gilded lady,<br />
Be a brave – whole souled – true woman.<br />
<br />
[ALPHEUS.</i>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-30174296250304932822011-08-12T11:40:00.000-07:002011-08-12T11:40:59.621-07:00Bitch did it Before I Could: Tribute to Wednesday AddamsBy Sara Crow<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZ_b3keGqzudT7NBiwK4tlM8LzskBYCqF6txcRb7st72zyLFaRRutZvcErdcHGU8gOAbBjUOyhLwsR1Ywib_Puf_iu0JkhuLZtLv66GjbUW4fVRUQwYg51ZHx2cRxt6sfd9PrmNflk3d8/s1600/Wednesday-Addams-addams-family-5682861-550-540.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZ_b3keGqzudT7NBiwK4tlM8LzskBYCqF6txcRb7st72zyLFaRRutZvcErdcHGU8gOAbBjUOyhLwsR1Ywib_Puf_iu0JkhuLZtLv66GjbUW4fVRUQwYg51ZHx2cRxt6sfd9PrmNflk3d8/s320/Wednesday-Addams-addams-family-5682861-550-540.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Bitch Magazine recently posted a <a href="http://bitchmagazine.org/post/pop-pedestal-wednesday-addams">tribute to Wednesday Addams</a> in the Pop Pedestal section of their website. They beat me to it! I'm sure I could come up with more to say, but we'll start with their great little tribute for the time being. <br />
<br />
Besides, I have a couple other articles in the works at the moment.<br />
<br />
I'd love to hear what everyone else loves about Wednesday Addams, too. Let us know in the comments!Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-40323381535581738902011-03-25T16:54:00.000-07:002011-08-11T17:19:05.614-07:00Speaking of the Wollstonecrafts...<a href="http://history.icanhascheezburger.com/2011/03/24/funny-pictures-history-vindication-of-the-rights-of-woman/?utm_source=embed&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=sharewidget"><img alt="A Vindication Of The Rights Of Woman" class="event-item-lol-image" height="400" src="http://chzhistoriclols.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/5d4e9a92-71ab-43ac-9385-8c3a4c06fab1.jpg" title="A Vindication Of The Rights Of Woman" width="252" /></a><br />
see more <a href="http://history.icanhascheezburger.com/?utm_source=embed&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=sharewidget">Historic LOL </a>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-32050433363704961522011-03-11T19:15:00.000-08:002011-08-11T17:21:59.286-07:00An Auspicious (Monstrous) Anniversaryby Sara Crow<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfLAlF2BOkjZkjzISSE5ea9WHSv8pywCM-XjeNg0jJs0IXeocWcBG9qXLI2IR8GrV8jLPYGz9FLPZJFWN05yJFTzKaxc777yCo0UPTHVpLROfKUyzyJl90FUlbU9z4k22s5FQn259mDpD/s1600/MaryShelley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQfLAlF2BOkjZkjzISSE5ea9WHSv8pywCM-XjeNg0jJs0IXeocWcBG9qXLI2IR8GrV8jLPYGz9FLPZJFWN05yJFTzKaxc777yCo0UPTHVpLROfKUyzyJl90FUlbU9z4k22s5FQn259mDpD/s320/MaryShelley.jpg" width="260" /></a></div>On this date in 1818, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley published her first edition of a novel that would rock the literary world to its core--a book about the monstrous, about being an alien in a human world, and about living a life beholden to an even more monstrous majority. <br />
<br />
During the dark and cold summer of 1816, known throughout Europe as "The Year Without a Summer" due to the ash spewed across the globe from the cataclysmic eruption of Mount Tambora halfway across the planet in Indonesia, Shelley and friends were stuck inside at a summer home rented from friends. Shelley's dark tale was written as a part of a contest between herself, her husband, her sister, and their mutual friends, John Polidori (author of "The Vampyre," a concept he actually lifted from Byron's tale that night), and Lord Byron, in an attempt to help them all write through the chill and the rain and avoid their own boredom-induced madness. <br />
<br />
<i>Frankenstein: A Modern Prometheus</i> recounts the story of Doctor Victor Frankenstein, who discovers the spark of life and uses it to "give birth" to a new form of life with body parts filched from the freshly-dead. Chaos and moral ambiguity ensues. <br />
<br />
And no, before you ask, Frankenstein is NOT the name of the monster. So stop calling the Monster Frankenstein, okay? Good. Moving on. <br />
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Shelley's first edition had an entirely different tone than subsequent editions. Published when she was 19, the first book was published in three volumes, completely lacking author attribution. The book was controversial for its moral ambiguity, but extremely popular, and caused an uproar when it was revealed that the author was, in fact, a woman.<br />
<br />
One of the first reviewers, a writer for the <i>British Critic,</i> managed to unmask the author as a woman (though her specific identity, at this point, was still unknown), and recounts his horror at the revelation:<br />
<blockquote>"If our authoress can forget the gentleness of her sex, it is no reason why we should, and we shall therefore dismiss the novel without further comment."</blockquote><blockquote><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Excerpted from <i>Frankenstein: A Cultural History</i>. See link below to pick it up from Amazon.</span>)</blockquote>A book of such scientific acumen, dark tone and philosophical consideration, by a woman!? Unthinkable. Not to mention the frightening undertones of feminism, authored by the daughter of one of the most notorious feminists of the French Revolution. <br />
<br />
Mary was a revolutionary, unabashed in her representation of her imagination and unafraid to follow a very un-feminine literary career. One on a very long list of my heroes. <br />
<br />
The original edition is available through <a href="http://openlibrary.org/books/OL6147070M/Frankenstein">WorldCat</a>. Open Library has a TON of editions of the book (perhaps all of them) listed, including the numerous revisions made during Mary's lifetime. <br />
<br />
A few other sources for study:<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZzEplgejZ6lRPf9ia3my8YXpVxioHpkSe75vYpBM8Gs_Ym2hMOHn3Zz8bOCPTRFjsD1arPQFIIioms2P09xw_DmjnGL5nq0Dwj_uvpNZmLutx8iEtHka4WHoHBI6waqEh4lp5iaAJYg1Q/s1600/1831edition.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZzEplgejZ6lRPf9ia3my8YXpVxioHpkSe75vYpBM8Gs_Ym2hMOHn3Zz8bOCPTRFjsD1arPQFIIioms2P09xw_DmjnGL5nq0Dwj_uvpNZmLutx8iEtHka4WHoHBI6waqEh4lp5iaAJYg1Q/s320/1831edition.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Illustration from the 1831 edition.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Frankenstein-Cultural-Susan-Tyler-Hitchcock/dp/0393061442/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299893990&sr=8-1"><i>Frankenstein: A Cultural History </i>by Susan Tyler Hitchcock</a><br />
This one isn't as good as it could be, but it's a pretty comprehensive look at Frankenstein's history. I really don't think it says enough about the feminist overtones or the roots, implications and symbols of the story itself, however--it just pretty much documents the instances of Frankenstein's appearances throughout history in a more-or-less cataloging method. Very useful for my writing, but I was disappointed with the analysis.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Monster-Show-Cultural-History-Afterword/dp/0571199968/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1299894168&sr=1-1"><i>The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror</i> by David J. Skal</a> <br />
Though it doesn't spend quite as much time on Frankenstein in particular, Skal is a master of horror analysis, and the chapter or two he does dedicate to the Frankenstein story (and the culture that sprung from the films in particular) is entirely worth the effort. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Screams-Reason-Science-Modern-Culture/dp/039304582X/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1299894168&sr=1-6"><i>Screams of Reason: Mad Science in Modern Culture </i>by David J. Skal</a><br />
Okay, so I haven't read this one by Mr. Skal, but the subject matter is appropriate for a Frankenstein-y discussion, and I can't imagine that it's bad. I've never been disappointed by his work. I discovered this title as I was looking for the other Skal book and have now resolved to pick this one up as well. Might be useful in my research for my own book about the man-made woman.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dread-Difference-Gender-Horror-Studies/dp/0292727941/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1299901266&sr=8-1"><i>The Dread of Difference: Gender and the Horror Film</i> edited by Barry Keith Grant</a><br />
This one analyzes a number of fantastic horror films, from <i>Carrie </i>to <i>The Cat People,</i> including an analysis of James Whale's <i>Bride of Frankenstein. </i>So, not an analysis of the original text, but it is in conversation with it, and entirely worth reading, especially for the analysis of the conversation between feminism and horror (which have been in conversation since the birth of the Gothic, when women used the genre to illustrate their own pain and marginalization). Probably my favorite collection of horror analysis essays.Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-35186927194822884592011-03-05T01:30:00.000-08:002011-08-11T17:20:33.871-07:00"Born This Way" Offers Sci Fi Geek Gurrl Love to all Little Monstersby Sara Crow<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/wV1FrqwZyKw?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal">Lady Gaga has been my “Mommy Monster” since I first saw her video for “Bad Romance,” loaded with enough horror, feminist and silent film references to give a geek like me a complete nerdgasm. Her music has its own fun and strength on its own, but she’s constantly raised the bar with her music videos, usually revealing layers of meaning to her lyrics by the drama playing out in glorious, sublime imagery. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Imagine my delight when I came across Gaga’s newest video, which implants a healthy dose of science fiction on top of her already established cinematic alchemy of classic film and horror/gothic imagery, enlivening the very straightforward message of “Born This Way” with a commentary on the problematic qualities of any utopia, alluding to science fiction masters such as Philip K. Dick and Ursula LeGuin in content and imagery. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjOa6SAKvY084hwqvZVEfbSWgccj-7O5AcYIugvBkDOhjOMmDdW7FuBZIhEUR2yl3aOePE_9m5P55r88NJeEy7zt7Z5T2shUKSmk7hLcB8WxkckgtK1ZS7247quvEvLNysUiUE-Sl6fNvP/s1600/Steeple.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjOa6SAKvY084hwqvZVEfbSWgccj-7O5AcYIugvBkDOhjOMmDdW7FuBZIhEUR2yl3aOePE_9m5P55r88NJeEy7zt7Z5T2shUKSmk7hLcB8WxkckgtK1ZS7247quvEvLNysUiUE-Sl6fNvP/s320/Steeple.png" width="320" /></a>The video starts with a monologue that sounds like something out of Herbert’s <i>Dune</i>, giving a backdrop to a fanciful utopia where an intergalactic Mother Monster gives birth to ultimate and immortal beauty in a cosmos loaded with yonic (feminine) imagery, including a uterine star system. But this utopia is not complete, because, as she notes, her other half is simultaneously giving birth to a phallic and dark evil that imposes a fascism which oppresses the people into subjection. Her images in the “dark side” call back one of her favorite silent film references as the dark mother sits atop a very <i>Metropolis</i>-like steeple in an atmosphere obviously influenced by Lang’s film and referencing Maria herself, the dark mother who attempts to lead astray the oppressed people doomed to work to make the Metropolis a comfortable place for the well-off. </div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_R7OuK6YqjG97Ulz8WBl8bLUu9NF2VjZ7gj-NuJgzUSuGKNHNXGbREWMq15j39z2Gc2LbcI5FQde7i9IUFx4xwB-MRcSQ8FOvleFqzZ8YOagXhR1aO2X7yvIr0-lTKyM_y5XB7P8xF4j5/s1600/Subjegation.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_R7OuK6YqjG97Ulz8WBl8bLUu9NF2VjZ7gj-NuJgzUSuGKNHNXGbREWMq15j39z2Gc2LbcI5FQde7i9IUFx4xwB-MRcSQ8FOvleFqzZ8YOagXhR1aO2X7yvIr0-lTKyM_y5XB7P8xF4j5/s320/Subjegation.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal">Gaga is quick to point out, however, that this darkness is as much her as the cosmic mother. In fact, she fears that this evil which she struggles against is almost inevitable as she wonders, “How can I protect something so perfect without evil?” She illustrates our tendency as a species to protect good ideas and ruin them by turning them into a form of fascism, forcing people to conform to the vision and thereby taking away the very freedom we aspire to achieve. Even the name of her imagined territory—G.O.A.T. (Government Owned Alien Territory)—alludes to this proclivity to turn people into commodities (livestock) and twist ideas into something oppressive rather than liberating. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj12JgadFcRKhgrNF5vqBxcXszoaninVbLVS-U22GQXWJqUSYNpXBhDZIvy26kL5k75-EzetWGwAceKkVE-RErNIivPnAAzGsB2fjkXYuWKdsn_zVFHvYfOqNXXzZRIQSRTrEZGNTC3EiwE/s1600/Genest.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj12JgadFcRKhgrNF5vqBxcXszoaninVbLVS-U22GQXWJqUSYNpXBhDZIvy26kL5k75-EzetWGwAceKkVE-RErNIivPnAAzGsB2fjkXYuWKdsn_zVFHvYfOqNXXzZRIQSRTrEZGNTC3EiwE/s320/Genest.png" width="320" /></a>The only path, she posits, is the middle way, as the Mother Monster gives birth to an infinite race of androgynous creatures. She addresses the universal nature of our condition—we’re all the same underneath—by donning makeup and dancing with <a href="http://www.rickgenest.com/">Rick Genest</a> in parts of the video. Of course, not only does this illustrate the way in which we’re the same beneath the skin, but it highlights the uniqueness of Genest’s choice to stand out and express himself by becoming an “illustrated man.” There are many ways in which we express the uniqueness beneath the skin that come out in the way we choose to express ourselves, from how we dress to what we do. Genest may not have been born with zombified tattoos, but he expresses his perspective and personality by choosing to make his skin into a canvas for artists to help him realize his inner perspective (literally!). </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs8pwc8K2HfCiigmn5RNJWkris_yJCLa1JKeQUO_PPZZPaRbiqAJD1Wd1CXoFV47dbJMEmNIxgmgMmRFMri0sKoAmMfcdixpYsygRqD4glv7BVKTJIvAKt1BJXX5DFgWJKEkxEgrVrdOiI/s1600/Third-E.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs8pwc8K2HfCiigmn5RNJWkris_yJCLa1JKeQUO_PPZZPaRbiqAJD1Wd1CXoFV47dbJMEmNIxgmgMmRFMri0sKoAmMfcdixpYsygRqD4glv7BVKTJIvAKt1BJXX5DFgWJKEkxEgrVrdOiI/s320/Third-E.png" width="320" /></a>There are a multitude of symbols that pop up throughout the video that reflect this “know thyself” theme. The cosmic mother, for example, wears a third eye, not in the standard place (in the space between the other two), but on her chin. The perspective of the third eye is that which sees beyond the physical and transcends the mundane. This is the eye with which we perceive the spiritual world and embrace the “paranormal.” I’m really not sure about her choice in placing it on her chin, other than perhaps for its shock value. We’re accustomed to seeing a third eye between the other two in the classic chakra location, but on the chin? That’s pretty radical. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw2jaEcGPec1Ug8Z88Gr53omC_hWy5P00TF0zSslB9WXCP1YO5sINw7SYdHY-70rUAVN-urtafpACTyd6I8hDDRgB0tAkvc4W3TTs_hTjGO-4vzCGhcdlU3sQ9liEh4O3UVKj_k4MrfPR3/s1600/Lotus.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw2jaEcGPec1Ug8Z88Gr53omC_hWy5P00TF0zSslB9WXCP1YO5sINw7SYdHY-70rUAVN-urtafpACTyd6I8hDDRgB0tAkvc4W3TTs_hTjGO-4vzCGhcdlU3sQ9liEh4O3UVKj_k4MrfPR3/s320/Lotus.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal">The lotus flowers in the opening monologue represent the feminine and purity. The lotus has been a sacred symbol in Egypt, India, and all over Asia, representing divinity and purity. In India, creation started with the lotus, as divine creation is initiated here in the same way. Another symbol layered with too much to write about in just a few lines—research all the layers of this one! An explosion of butterflies also accompanies the birth of the infinite creature, a symbol of metamorphosis—the hoped-for metamorphosis that the cosmic child represents. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The beginning and the end of the video are highlighted with pink triangles, symbols of the gay movement that have a rather dark past—Hitler forced gays to wear the pink triangle in World War II in the same way as the Jews were required to wear yellow six-pointed stars. And, of course, there’s the line, “Don’t be a drag, just be a queen,” harkening back to one of the communities that first accepted her—the drag queens!<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">The unicorn and rainbow from the first and last scenes can have a number of meanings, especially against an urban backdrop. We can look at it as the fantastic crossing over into the mundane, a hopeful message that the idyllic dreams of childhood can be realized and embraced in spite of the harsh reality of the modern world, but in all, it’s an optimistic image, a message of hope that things can change and be new again. The rainbow was, after all, a symbol of God’s promise to Noah of a brighter future and a reminder of God’s love for God’s people. The rainbow has always been a symbol of hope or, in some cases, even a symbol of a bridge to transcendence or the realm of the gods (as in Norse mythology).</div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6e_c5h-Vdior5gUHD_R52KxGgaMMY39Zhgi4P-kHBI4Rz3xIH-LGuIeQsfaAQtEg9rNWNVYgMGH0rnRgfY2FYjfU_4-Df-u3txm4HgvOuycZ_JeyTxe0E2BMhmy_Tnc47u-2umvWzrDMa/s1600/Rabbit-Teeth.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6e_c5h-Vdior5gUHD_R52KxGgaMMY39Zhgi4P-kHBI4Rz3xIH-LGuIeQsfaAQtEg9rNWNVYgMGH0rnRgfY2FYjfU_4-Df-u3txm4HgvOuycZ_JeyTxe0E2BMhmy_Tnc47u-2umvWzrDMa/s320/Rabbit-Teeth.png" width="320" /></a>If we weren’t certain that her Madonna references were intentional before, the closing scenes of the video prove it with her gap-toothed nod to her predecessor and a white-gloved tribute to Michael Jackson. This video illustrates the progression beyond the work of Madonna, however, because the song that influenced this one—“Express Yourself”—was all about a woman who couldn’t feel complete without a man. The words of Gaga’s song, coupled with the imagery of asexual birth, illustrate the ability of every individual to give birth to their own individuality. We have influences and people who we look to for inspiration, and we should acknowledge that fact (as Lady Gaga does constantly), but she points out that we also shouldn’t be afraid to step away and own our individuality. A woman can grasp her power without the need to lay around hoping for a man to do it for her!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">There’s so much to this seven minutes of footage that I really don’t think I can do it justice with a short commentary (besides, I want you to watch the video and figure SOME things out for yourself!). MTV actually managed to do a great article they called a “<a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1658903/lady-gaga-born-this-way.jhtml">Pop Culture Cheat Sheet</a>”(though some of the references she makes fall well beyond what most would define as “pop culture”) in which fans commented on the plethora of references in her few minutes of music. They caught a few things that I missed, and I was really impressed with some of the references that they gathered, from Michelangelo to H.R. Geiger (which a friend and I discussed, but I didn’t reference in this article). There were so many images caught after the publication of the first article, in fact, that MTV created a <a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1658986/lady-gaga-born-this-way.jhtml">second article</a>. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">In reading the MTV articles, for example, I found that a number of fans suggest that the gap-toothed image is actually a representation of her earlier struggles when she was called “rabbit teeth” as a child, which makes sense considering the fact that she sheds a tear as she sings with that makeup, and still works nicely within the framework of the entire concept of being “born this way” and owning not only your talents, but your faults as well (or those things that the mainstream sees as faults). </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjidetZdgP0B6qw8cK9vmQhjhSjdHbG8nNsJzGtdyoqsAw0q7gAV0K30aRz6PgocW4Y7Yb3_T0PjDQUc_6hWISBCbDGtOaZVyh_w3M_48AB0Pc8Fqp9SwcOdjV_aEKZBp5_KExqKbALZUT2/s1600/Androgyne.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjidetZdgP0B6qw8cK9vmQhjhSjdHbG8nNsJzGtdyoqsAw0q7gAV0K30aRz6PgocW4Y7Yb3_T0PjDQUc_6hWISBCbDGtOaZVyh_w3M_48AB0Pc8Fqp9SwcOdjV_aEKZBp5_KExqKbALZUT2/s320/Androgyne.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal">All in all, the message of “Born This Way” is quite straightforward, of course, but the beauty is in how Lady Gaga has expressed this seemingly simple and empowering message by layering on a mythology that references so many archetypes and raises more questions and thoughts with her imagery. She’s taken the art of the music video to new levels before, and this video continues the process, employing the power of the visual medium to add depth to a clear-cut theme, giving her the opportunity to visually represent the deeper questions that are innate in the expression of individuality. We’re torn, constantly, between hope for utopia and fear of its conformity, and she encompasses the fears and hopes that have been expressed in science fiction for the past couple centuries, opening the door to a dialogue where we can express ourselves again and embrace the wonder of the cosmos while examining our place within its vastness. </div>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-49023875393254281582011-01-25T21:13:00.001-08:002011-01-25T21:13:44.867-08:00What Stormtroopers Do on their Day Off<a href="http://wildammo.com/2009/08/09/what-stormtroopers-do-on-their-day-off/">In case you were wondering...</a>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-17690520762130899732011-01-16T19:12:00.000-08:002011-08-12T11:45:44.830-07:00And I thought it was a Philips' Head!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcfPTltOyI7vKFXjIHTcNBIaOI6XY2O8abnW81a1LbDrvhTRw1KMhOFvBEjDo2tu8mfpE-CO-Cd_j7XhbEO12-b90KH98k-dVLUusCnJRoou7PmFWdmf15nujjMVRO7RZfQ8epTBS0VvMH/s1600/it%2527s+sonic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcfPTltOyI7vKFXjIHTcNBIaOI6XY2O8abnW81a1LbDrvhTRw1KMhOFvBEjDo2tu8mfpE-CO-Cd_j7XhbEO12-b90KH98k-dVLUusCnJRoou7PmFWdmf15nujjMVRO7RZfQ8epTBS0VvMH/s320/it%2527s+sonic.jpg" width="241" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">By Cat Connolly</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-19074111187933640652011-01-15T13:15:00.000-08:002011-01-15T13:15:44.826-08:00An Introduction of the Feline Sort.Hello.<br />
<br />
I am Cat.<br />
<br />
Yes, the "meow" kind.<br />
<br />
And please don't pull my tail.<br />
<br />
Now that introductions are out of the way, let me tell you a bit about myoddself. In particular, my trans-temporal preoccupation with Victorian culture.<br />
<br />
My goal in life is to become a 19th century gentleman, sans the Oxfordian pasttimes (lest they involve David Tennant). In accordance with such proclivities, I have a bevy of fancy waistcoats at my disposal.<br />
<br />
All right, let me make this clear. I am not of the Sapphic sort, although I do adore poetry of the same name and can enjoy a light bout of shojo-ai from time to time. Despite my lingering affection for Emilie Autumn and her darling henchwomen, and the wishes of my more adventurous female friends, I remain ever-faithful to the tall, dark and smexy archetype. Alan Rickman, that means you. So, while I am enamoured of Queen Christina, I am not *enamoured* of her.<br />
<br />
Right ho, onward. Why not continue with a catalogue of my genteel artifacts? Be forewarned, they might cause an antiquarian to drool slightly.<br />
<br />
- A collection of four pocketwatches (my favorite being a piece from Cash's of Ireland)<br />
- Two smoking jackets<br />
- A tobacco pipe which, sadly, was in the pocket of my smoking jacket when I trod upon it....I suppose it should be crossed off the list....<br />
- Mother-of-pearl plated opera glasses, circa 1910<br />
- A variety of waistcoats, courtesy of the DAV<br />
- An etoile-style, black brocade corset, which I often wear (well-laced) beneath my day clothing<br />
- Monocle!<br />
- Walking sticks. One cannot be without a walking stick. And one *certainly* cannot be without a sword cane.<br />
- Various jars of poisonous herbs...though this may only gain precedent from Victorian gentlemen such as Sherlock Holmes and Cain Hargreaves.<br />
- Absinthe.<br />
- A full head of literary and historical facts, thought of as arcane by the masses, but quite useful when playing Pictionary.<br />
- Melancholy.<br />
- My own personal library. I hope it will one day rival that of <u>Inkheart's</u> Elinor Loredan.<br />
- A chamber dressed in scarlet, dark wood, and a good deal of garish gold trimmings. Ooh, the Aesthete in me is well-nourished!<br />
<br />
And I suppose it is rude of me to count out all of my shiny pennies in front of the poor, but heavens, how nice it is to realize how far I've come from being a simple little goth girl in cat ears.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL7cACcdvvKVA_Mn6kL08zuo-QUtdu2dqPkF0LYVsvaDJ7mKb7Xwj6Mg06hT5NWXn849B3LJ-kkcMFWyR5HphC_ley_r_Q6wVgeAUXV_4LPtiLbwve7JafHWwA7Kja4rGnH7zTLDG1Wxu4/s1600/gentlecat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL7cACcdvvKVA_Mn6kL08zuo-QUtdu2dqPkF0LYVsvaDJ7mKb7Xwj6Mg06hT5NWXn849B3LJ-kkcMFWyR5HphC_ley_r_Q6wVgeAUXV_4LPtiLbwve7JafHWwA7Kja4rGnH7zTLDG1Wxu4/s320/gentlecat.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>And what kind of toys do *you* play with?Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-69794305526759797972011-01-13T21:00:00.000-08:002011-08-11T17:18:34.265-07:00The Alien's Corruption<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">By Sara Crow<br />
<br />
<i>Slightly Behind and to the Left</i> by Claire Light</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><a href="http://www.aqueductpress.com/index.html">Aqueduct Press</a>, 2010</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDaOm-ydUXinfrEdPCeuW8d5J55oPWQuvHf6YQhLz_HIJbzKsWhDP74tv2-gAABfZc6POZxxn0a53G6iRkB_a-8fljsMK3sAip886Q0FYgVNmNbC_NT-kti_nsiGvjAKT1mhNRS4lJKBt/s1600/ClaireLight-small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDaOm-ydUXinfrEdPCeuW8d5J55oPWQuvHf6YQhLz_HIJbzKsWhDP74tv2-gAABfZc6POZxxn0a53G6iRkB_a-8fljsMK3sAip886Q0FYgVNmNbC_NT-kti_nsiGvjAKT1mhNRS4lJKBt/s200/ClaireLight-small.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Claire Light, from her bio at the <br />
<a href="http://www.aqueductpress.com/authors/ClaireLight.html">Aqueduct Press website</a></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table><i>Slightly behind and to the Left </i>is a collection of short fiction and “drabbles,” as Light calls them—one-paragraph to half-page installments of highly conceptual flash fiction. The book is from Aqueduct Press’s series, <i>Conversation Pieces, </i>which examines feminism with a focus on feminist science fiction. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">Light’s prose throughout this book is infused with an aura of menace and loss. She isn’t afraid to throw her characters into torturous scenarios like a mad scientist trying to see what sort of atrocity will emerge from the next diabolical experiment. She illustrates the feminist struggle for equality as a common conflict across not only gender lines, but across alien worlds as well, creating characters that struggle for much more than survival—they struggle to remain human when endowed with responsibilities of power that give them the opportunity to become monstrous. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">The universes Light weaves teem with abominations, mostly personified in her protagonists. “Vacation,” her first short story in the set, follows a woman who awakens one day to a world where all the men have suddenly disappeared, leaving only boys behind. The heinous result is amplified by the fact that the motivation of the characters is only obtusely referenced. Do the women take the steps they do out of a fear response to the events? A need to procreate? Or do they act the way they do out of a primal lust only?</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">The final story in the collection, “Abducted by Aliens!,” chronicles the journey of the character in the prior story, “Pinball Effect,” from the perspective of his little sister, relaying her brother’s stories years after the events took place. Clues in the text and the story of the Afterward reveal, however, that the events which took place were not quite as her brother recalled—his memories operated as a coping response to a different type of alien monstrosity. </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">One thread connects many of the protagonists in Light’s collection—each character faces a point at which they have the opportunity to fall from their humanity. Each character faces the opportunity to treat another with the contempt that victimizes the alien across the table into a category beneath the respect worthy of a fellow sentient creature. When the character gets to the point that she or he has the option to treat the Other (any marginalized sentient being, traditionally women and minorities in particular) as an object, how does she or he respond? What does she do? What choices does she make? </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">The core of science fiction throws a character into a world of extreme trauma and expects that character to adapt. Science fiction, at its best, reveals the truth of humanity in the midst of the tangled obscurity of aliens and technology. Light’s prose, in its aching lilt, brings the truth of the feminist conundrum to the forefront—the fight for women’s rights is a fight for the core of our humanity. Because to deny a fellow creature as somehow sub-human is to make oneself less than human as well.<br />
<br />
You can find Claire's work at <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Slightly-Behind-Left-Drabbles-Conversation/dp/1933500352/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1313108094&sr=8-1">Amazon.com</a> or at <a href="http://www.aqueductpress.com/index.html">Aqueduct Press</a>, one of my new favorite publishers. More of her writing can also be found at <a href="http://clairelight.typepad.com/seelight/">Claire's blog</a>. </div>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-12929632292559993392011-01-09T02:16:00.000-08:002011-01-15T00:02:08.657-08:00Dementia<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">by Sara <br />
<br />
I think it best to start with a shameless plug for my favorite "geek poet." Published prolifically and nominated for the Pulitzer at least twice, Bryan D. Dietrich is a fantastic poet who happens to spend his time delving into the darkness by way of our American mythologies--comics, Lovecraft, and Universal Monsters being among his subject matter.This one is among my many favorites. <br />
<br />
The poem, after the jump...<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><b>Dementia</b><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Bryan D. Dietrich</span><br />
<i><br />
"You can't kill the Boogeyman."<br />
-from Halloween</i><br />
<br />
You meet a woman, a worker of words<br />
who loves O'Connor and Hitchcock's Birds,<br />
all horror stories, the better for worse.<br />
She's blonde and Wiccan, a comely curse.<br />
<br />
Zombie, chainsaw, fetus, hook, <br />
athame, candle, bell, book.<br />
<br />
Her spell is modern, her interests, yours.<br />
She knows of triffids and cepheids and spoors.<br />
She, too, once sat in the glow of the screen<br />
while the monsters processed and summer grew green.<br />
<br />
Alien egg sac, mouthful of brains,<br />
priest on the sidewalk, count the stains.<br />
<br />
She takes you first by neck by eye,<br />
then takes you again with the gorgeous lie<br />
of language spun from the life she's not<br />
lived so much as faced and fought.<br />
<br />
Tooth, claw, razor, bone,<br />
Halloween, Twilight Zone.<br />
<br />
The monsters she has staked and boxed,<br />
buried out by the hollyhocks, <br />
outnumber yours by kith and kind.<br />
Hulk, brute.... Malign design.<br />
<br />
Rosemary's Baby, Eraserhead,<br />
Race With the Devil, Dawn of the Dead.<br />
<br />
You want her to know that you understand,<br />
that sometimes the thing in the dark, The Hand,<br />
is still attached to a heart that speaks.<br />
The first date comes. You rent her Freaks.<br />
<br />
Stalker, slaughter, barker, blight.<br />
We live and love in black and white.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">-from <i>Universal Monsters</i>, published by Word Press, 2007. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Universal-Monsters-Bryan-D-Dietrich/dp/1933456914/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1294598213&sr=1-2">Get it at Amazon.</a></span><br />
<br />
<br />
Bryan just did a reading in L.A. this week and is looking forward to publishing a book in the near future, <i>Prime Directive</i>, loaded with Star Trek themed haiku. Yes, you heard me right. He was crazy enough to do it. I'm sure you can look forward to a review here when the book becomes available.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.bryandietrich.com/">Bryan's Website</a> (though it seems to have been a bit neglected lately...)<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/#%21/pages/Bryan-D-Dietrich/130248327035779">Bryan on Facebook</a><br />
<a href="http://www.pw.org/content/bryan_d_dietrich">Bryan at Poems & Writers</a> </div>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6104999190214142862.post-85450886826842194702011-01-08T19:01:00.000-08:002011-01-08T19:10:59.173-08:00Geek and Gamer Girls<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Welcome to the first installment of <i>Chronicles of the Geek Gurrls</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yes, we do exist, and we are NOT the only ones. Geek gurrls unite!</span><br />
<br />
<iframe class="youtube-player" frameborder="0" height="300" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_eJmYKN_1QE?rel=0" title="YouTube video player" type="text/html" width="550"></iframe>Geek Gurrlshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05532628989720465310noreply@blogger.com0