Wednesday, May 11, 2011

"The enemy's gate is down."

Today I finished reading "Ender's Game," which was given to me as a Christmas present from Maureen and Ed. I was in the middle of reading it when I was given "A Game of Thrones," which I had to finish in its mammoth entirety by last month. So, now with the time to do so, I read it. It was a really fantastic book about a child soldier in the future. It was a sci-fi book, but deconstructed the genre and what it's like being a hero. Needless to say, the ending was depressing, but I won't dare give it away here.

This was a question Ashley and I had brought up before, and I bring it up again: why do we have depressing endings so often these days? In my film class, one guy blamed Shakespeare, but it goes all the way back to the Greeks. However, nowadays most stories end sadly, or, at their happiest, bittersweet. What's wrong with having a happy ending? Why do we need depressing endings? Isn't the real world sad enough?

Anyway, here's a video of Ahnold raving. Thanks, Internet!

7 comments:

  1. well your blog had a happy ending :) hehehe

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  2. As for the question, It's just how things are. I mean if we truly think about it isn't the best form of literature the one that really delves into human condition or makes a statement. There are so many because, when we get down to it, what we want is a core shaker or something that really makes us think or reflect our own lives. There can only be so many It's a wonderful style books or movies before we start complaining about non-originality. Thats all I could come up with right now. Of course I missing major focuses but I'm lazy ahaha.

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  3. All of that is precisely why I live in the Ghibli Hills - reality is not something I'm interested in when it comes to movies, because I don't enjoy seeing unhappy endings for characters that I come to appreciate, love, tolerate, etc!

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  4. I think there's an over-prominence of it in the media today that comes from thinking that a work won't be treated seriously unless it ends sadly. I'm all for the "Earn Your Happy Endings." The human condition is in a constant state of having to defend itself from adverse things in society, and yet can and mostly does persevere. I think we need more media that reflects that.

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  5. so you get your post back, but all the comments are missing :P U MAD, BRO?

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