Dry Slot

M'aidez!

Posted by: Bogon, 1:58 PM GMT on April 26, 2012

The rising and setting sun shines on the north wall of the house now. There are no dark corners left in the world.

It is the time of one of the cross-quarter days, the one that ends spring and begins summer. Half a year from Halloween, it has been named Beltane or Walpurgis Night or May Day. It lies midway between spring equinox and summer solstice. Astronomers reckon that (in the northern hemisphere) it falls near the end of the first week of May, but most of those who celebrate the tradition do so by the first of the month.

Halloween is all about death and deformity. May Day lies on the opposite side of the year, and its emphasis is just the opposite. May Day affirms life and fertility. Maybe it's just me, but those things seem much more worth celebrating than Halloween weirdness. I'll always wonder why we, here in America, send our children out in grotesque costumes each fall, while Walpurgis Night passes unremarked. That choice betokens a curious kind of negativism in our culture. I invite you to reconsider how that should work.

Categories: Spring

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51. BriarCraft 12:42 AM GMT on May 08, 2012
Thanks for the movie review. Your "two thumbs up" criteria matches mine. I don't particularly want a movie to require analysis; I want to be entertained. That usually means some combination of action, adventure, an understandable plot, laughter, suspense, special effects, and/or just plain fun. And last but not least, a satisfying or happy ending -- no heartbreak or cliffhangers for me. Member Since: June 21, 2004 Posts: 49 Comments: 2424

52. Bogon 2:53 PM GMT on May 08, 2012
Hi, BC. (I know, I said I wouldn't call you that, but now I've seen you refer to yourself by your initials. I'm relying on that precedent.) People go to movies for different reasons. Mostly, I guess, it depends on the flick. If I went to a screening of a Shakespearean tragedy I would have different expectations than I would for this product of Marvel Comics. My college English lit professor might claim that the same rules of analysis could be applied to either. Even the comics have something to say about archetypes and human nature. In general one would not expect the comic book to be uplifting or for the analysis to require a lot of thought. In academic circles Shakespeare has a stellar reputation, whereas comic books are regarded askance. I'm more open-minded than that. If the comic book tale were four hundred years old, and Shakespeare were the Johnny-come-lately, would the verdict still be the same? Member Since: June 26, 2008 Posts: 72 Comments: 2765

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