The Sycamore Fall 2013

THE SYCAMORE WELLS COLLEGE’S STUDENT MAGAZINE / FALL 2013

s d n e g e L The

Issue

CONT features 12 50 THE OTHER SIDE Icons in their free time

OLD WIVES’ TALES

Superstitions from around the globe

24 52 THE UNOFFICIAL GHOST GUIDE A look into the haunting tales of Wells

EMBODYING LEGEND

The search for the perfect superhero in American film

27 56 AMORE ETERNO

The urban legend of locked love

WELLS LEGENDS

Confronting reputations with our beloved faculty

39 64 LEGENDARY SENTIMENTALISM Your favorite musician or much more?

MUSINGS

Shedding light on the Muses of ancient Greece

43 70 AFTER THE HAPPILY EVER

When fairytale meets Korean pop culture

URBAN MYTH PREVENTION

How to survive for six easy payments of $79.99

46 84 KILLING THE CAT

Infamy and obsession in a perpertrator-centric society

JACK OF ALL TRADES

The unexpected tales of our legendary track coach

2 COVER DESIGN BY JILLIAN FIELDS / COVER MODELING BY GIAVARNA FAISON

TENTS constants 6 81 EDITORS' NOTES A few opening remarks

NOT SO GRIMM

A study in Disneyfication

8 92 FILM REVIEWS

Legendary films you should probably watch

CREATIVE WRITING CONTEST

Joshua Brutscher’s “The First Band to Vomit on the Bar...”

10 89 BOOK REVIEWS

Page turners from the Wells family bookshelf

ACADEMIC PAPER CONTEST Molly Baillargeon’s “Auto-matic Cure All?”

20 96 SEX COLUMN

An adoring look at the greats of porn

DEAR MINERVA

Advice from Wells’s resident goddess

67 100 HUMANITIES

Revisiting legends we live by with our resident philosopher

VISUAL ARTS CONTEST

Marissa Burns’s “Misty Nights Leave Reflections”

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 3

THE SYCAMORE is Wells College’s student magazine.

This is our eleventh biannual issue.

This online copy is supported by issuu.com.

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staff JUDITH LAVELLE JULIE HUANG REBEKKAH McKALSEN JILLIAN FIELDS JES LYONS SHANE PUSKAR HILLARY O'GRADY MINERVA VALERIE PROVENZA PAIGE FRALICK MICHAEL LYNCH ATIYA JORDAN MICHELLE LEE ABENA POKU MISSY BREWER FAHAD RAHMAT KATIE LAMANNA KRISTEN RYAN PAMELA BADIAN-PESSOT KEEGAN EVANS GABRIELLE UHRIG MIA WILSON JESSICA STOLT CATHERINE BURROUGHS

Editor in Chief Assistant Editor in Chief Staff Photographer Staff Designer Chief Copy Editor Creative Writing Director Staff Designer Chief Design Editor History Editor Sex Columnist Humanities Editor Film Critic Staff Designer Advice Columnist Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Designer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Designer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Writer Staff Designer Staff Photographer Staff Designer Staff Photographer Staff Photographer Staff Designer Guest Contributor Advisor

contact E-MAIL

WellsSycamore@gmail.com

WEB

WellsSycamore.tumblr.com WellsSycamore.weebly.com

ADDRESS

Wells College 170 Main Street Mailbox Number 255 Aurora, NY 13026 THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 5

Copy & Design Editor's

NOTE

Originally inspired by an offhanded remark by our advisor, Catherine Burroughs, the theme of “legends” has been much more widely interpreted than we originally expected. From superheroes (pg 52) to Nietzsche (pg 67), this issue has it all.

These varied interpretations begin in an unlikely place. To start with, our new staff members this semester form a perfect paradox: on the one hand, we have Fahad, a senior writing about a personal legend (pg 39), and on the other, we have Mia, a first year taking photographs of some of Wells’s dearest professors (pg 56). These pieces each bring their own unique perspectives to this semester’s issue, blending seamlessly with both the theme and the work of the rest of the staff.

From Jes’s investigation of porn stars off-camera (pg 20) to Missy’s discussion of the Greek Muses throughout the ages (pg 64), our returning staff writers have delved into intriguing and sometimes unusual legends. This issue includes constants, such as Hillary’s film reviews (pg 8), but also contains new content, such as Paige’s collection of Wells’s ghost stories (pg 24) and Michelle’s analysis of “K-dramas” (pg 43).

Some of our staff members have paired up to tackle a topic in two mediums: text and image. Gabrielle and Atiya—both working from abroad—bring us a tale of an age-old tradition of love on an iconic Italian bridge (pg 27). Julie and Mike join forces to bring us a simultaneously humorous and chilling look into urban legends (pg 70).

This semester, there has been a significant increase in staff members who contributed to the design process. Some new members have joined solely for the purpose of design while others have taken on design in addition to their original positions.

Even those who did not actively participate in the design process came by to see the work in progress and help settle debates over colors, spacing, and fonts. It is the collective work of every staff member—whether they contribute writing, photography, editing, or design—that makes this publication what it is, and we can’t thank them enough.

When examining the quality of the publication, the role of our Editor in Chief cannot be underestimated. Since the three of us began on The Sycamore during our first semester at Wells, Judy’s contributions have consistently increased the quality of the publication. After assuming the role of Editor in Chief, she continued that trend. The three of us have grown together on our collective Sycamorean journey as writers, designers, editors, and people. Judy is a constant in our lives, and The Sycamore won’t be the same without her. Yet we know that she will continue to thrive and succeed in whatever avenue she pursues.

Though we are sad to see Judy leave us, we have great confidence in the abilities of our rising Editor in Chief, Julie Huang. Under her guidance, The Sycamore will continue to grow and flourish. For now, we hope that you enjoy this issue, and that you stay with us to see what the future holds.

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Editor's

NOTE

In my six previous semesters as a writer and editor, I’m afraid my experience with The Sycamore has done more to muddy my perception of legends than to clarify them. Is Minerva really the Roman goddess of wisdom, arts, and trade? I could have sworn she was an advice columnist (pg 96). Thankfully, this semester’s issue—boldly delving into all things legendary—has put me back on track.

Be it Abena’s investigation into odd superstitions from around the world (pg 50) or Katie’s profile of a legend among us here at Wells (pg 85), each article in our “Legends” issue seeks to expose a separate facet of our intricate theme. Not only has our creative and dedicated staff delivered exciting work we hope you’ll enjoy, but the Wells community also came out full force in response to our call for contest submissions. We are delighted to publish Molly’s well-researched take on the promise of the electric car as a somewhat mythical panacea (pg 89), as well as Josh’s charming account of bonding with his father over legendary rock stars (pg 95).

Both Molly’s reference to renewable energy and Josh’s echo of “long live rock” did remind me of that old cliché: Legends never die. Though decidedly more humble in scope, Alex Schloop ’12—our founder and first Editor in Chief—told me when he passed down the position to me over a year ago that he hoped our relatively young publication would enjoy an enduring legacy at Wells. Now, in my last semester at Wells, I find myself optimistically in the same position as I pass down the Editor in Chief role to Julie Huang ’15. Julie has been with The Sycamore as a staff photographer since her first semester at Wells, and I trust that her warmth and energy will lead a new generation of staff members to accomplish great things.

If I have accomplished anything at all in my time editing The Sycamore, I cannot emphasize enough how much I see this process as a group effort. I am so grateful for the contributions we receive from the Wells community, our brilliant advisor Catherine Burroughs, and this incredible staff. I must especially thank Chief Design Editor Jillian Fields and Chief Copy Editor Rebekkah McKalsen—two amazing editors and friends who do their jobs with indescribable dedication and who have made this journey so fun and worthwhile these past few semesters.

You, too, can help keep The Sycamore alive and relevant by liking us on Facebook, following our tumblog (wellssycamore. tumblr.com), and visiting our website (wellssycamore.weebly. com). Enjoy!

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 7

Movies (w it h “L eg en d ” in th e ti tl e)

O ’G ra dy Fi lm Re vi ew s by Hi lla ry La in e

If I can be honest here, I’ve tried to watch this movie several times, and I still don’t fully understand it; well, more that I don’t understand why someone gave this project the green light. With that said let’s dive in. We arrive in a magical world where owls can talk (and their coming of age story is something that makes for a good plot, but I digress). We meet our hero reenacting the legend of the owls of Ga’hoole, a race of massive warrior owls who many moons ago defeated the evil owls known as the Pure Ones. Although these Gaurdians are now merely legends, our hero Soren believes they are true. One day Soren is practicing flying with his brother Kludd, but being mere beginners at flying they fall out of their tree and end up getting kidnapped by agents of the Pure Ones and placed into slavery. Soren speaks out against this action and is banished to the lowest caste in the Pure Ones system known as the “Pickers.” Being strong of will, Soren avoids the brainwashing process and is able to escape with the help of one of the owls who kidnapped him and attempts to find the Guardians. Like all movies made for children, in the end good defeats evil and everyone lives happily ever after... until the sequel is released.

On the upside though, the mise-en-scene is fantastic. It is a brightly colored world full of cute owls, massive trees, and majestic skyscapes. I highly suggest this movie if you’ve just gotten a tooth pulled—or any other type of medical procedure that requires you to take heavy medication.

L egend

of the

G uardians O wls

G a ’ hoole (2010) Directed by: Zack Snyder

Distributed by: Warner Bros.

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of

Rating: 4.5/10

Physicist Lionell Barret is hired to investigate the possibility of life after death at none other than the “Mount Everest of Haunted Houses,” the Belasco House. Accompanied by his wife—a psychic medium—and a physical medium (who also conveniently was the last person to make it out of the house alive), the four must spend the next five days in the Belasco House to clear it of all negative energy. Throughout the movie, science and esoteric Christian ideologies battle each other to find the truth in unveiling the mysteries of the Hell House.

The first hour of this movie is mostly just quiet Brits walking around an old house

T he L egend

of

and sometimes talking to ghosts, or talking about sex. There are some humorous moments, though I’m not quite sure if they are intentional or not, and the characters are not exactly relatable or interesting. The last 30 minutes of the movie give a few spooky moments, but nothing that will result in nightmares... or years of therapy. The most outstanding performance of the movie, I believe, goes to the possessed cat. If you have an hour and a half to kill and are looking for something secular to watch this holiday season, check out The Legend of Hell House.

Rating: 6/10

H ell H ouse

(1973) Directed by: John Hough

Distributed by: 20th Century Fox

L egend (1985) Directed by: Ridley Scott Distributed by: Universal

Imagine yourself in a world where Tim Curry is the Lord of Darkness, and Tom Cruise and the love child of Frankie Muniz and Mr. Tumnus are the only forces who can stop him. Got all that? Then you’re ready to handle the 1985 masterpiece Legend. It is a world of bubbles, things that look like hobbits, and unicorns. You got that right—unicorns. These majestic beasts are the only thing that will make Tim Curry’s power unstoppable.

Now you’re probably asking yourself, why should I watch this movie? And I’ll

answer you with two words: Tim Curry.

This man is nearly perfect in everything that he’s in, and he makes this film watchable. Tim Curry, as far as I’m concerned, is the Lord of Darkness. The only thing that would make this movie better is if they cut out every scene with Tom Cruise and just had Tim Curry prancing around for two hours. But alas, you will have to sit through a knock-off Lord of the Rings with bubbles and unicorns to see what this god among men can do with a pair of two-foot devil horns.

Rating: 6/10 THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 9

The Wells Family Book Shelf

By Judith Lavelle & Jessica Stolt

Check Out These Soon-To-Be-Classics with Close Connections to Wells

What Longing Is by Janis Esch 35 pages. Wells College Press, 2013 “Now, with this ecstatic lastlight dying in my eyes and night galloping towards me from the cold border of the cosmos, I remember how to take this world by the teeth, how to become, myself, made up of braided strands of light.”

With these final lines, Janis Esch, a Wells College alumna from the class of 2010, concludes her chapbook of poetry titled What Longing Is. From beginning to end, Esch labored exquisitely on the emotional impact of two prominent physical landscapes in her life.

Dividing the book in two, she starts in California, her home state, and writes with the calm intensity of a storm waiting to happen.

Nature is represented as an unchecked power, pressing against the fences of civilization, and something she regards with a fearful reverence. Her experiences with the harsh landscapes are often quick, violent, and merciless, like a strike of lightning—but in these moments, a lesson is learned, a new facet of her personality is discovered.

The second half takes place in Aurora and marks a switch to calmer settings, though the poems are still wrought with emotion. The New York poems are thick with nostalgia, showing the deep, lasting impact of the Californian landscape and the power of Home. The reader finds herself sympathizing with Esch’s inability to stay present in the happenings of the Now as she yearns for something just out of reach, something we can all relate to.

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Her command of color throughout is to be especially applauded. Esch wields color like a skilled artist at a canvas, showing an acute attention to emotional detail as she uses color to manipulate feeling in her poems. California is painted with the subtle yet violent hues of a bruise—deep purples and yellows and reds— while New York is represented in the cool tones of deep blues and dusty whites. There is also an underlying theme of braid imagery that suggests a subtle connectivity of experience as everything is woven together.

Esch’s depictions of monumental settings and the deep effect they have on the way she views herself create a heightened awareness in the reader as he or she becomes quickly immersed in the intensity of a shared moment. She shows a deeper level of awareness not all of us have of our physical environment and how it can affect us. Her ability to wield color and imagery leaves us standing in her shoes, fearing the sublime yet yearning for it at the same time. And all the while we remain connected to one another in a series of intricate, infinite braids of experience.

Wells College: A History by Jane M. Dieckmann 385 pages. Wells College Press, 1995 Ever wonder how Wells became Wells?

Wells College: A History, the well-researched brainchild of historian and Wells woman Jane M. Dieckmann, provides some intriguing answers. And though it was written before the coed decision, the onset of Lisa Marsh Ryerson’s eighteen-year presidency, and before some current First Years were even born, Dieckmann’s comprehensive historical account will still prove relevant for any Wells student curious about the institution’s roots.

Our origin story—the realization of American Express mogul Henry Wells’s lifelong dream to establish a women’s college— is explored in the first chapters and poses a fascinating set of what-ifs. We were nearly the Henry Wells Women’s Institute of Cornell University, and—were a few fires avoided—might still be dining in the basement of Old Main. But Dieckmann goes beyond these tasty bits of trivia to unravel the founding principles of our college that still leave enduring legacies today, as well as revealing where we’ve clearly strayed from Henry’s original plans.

Dieckmann tells the story of how Wells swung from a seminary intent on producing good Christian women capable of intellectual dinner conversation to a nationally recognized women’s college producing bold leaders. But Dieckmann’s history is not a PR piece—the book relates the evolution of the institution’s longstanding financial struggles and judiciously describes the ill-received decisions of several controversial administrators.

If that doesn’t entice you, Wells College: A History is a Wells student must-read for two very important reasons. First, the pictures, most of which Dieckmann discovered in the Louis Jefferson Long Library Archives, are fascinating and inspiring—from late nineteenth century dirt road photos of Main Street to rowdy Evenliners circa 1956. Second, the book is an excellent reference for debunking the Wells myths and legends you’ll undoubtedly encounter in your time here. Ever believe that Mrs. Wells haunts Glen Park Bridge to spite her husband’s student-lover? This book clarifies that Henry’s spouse passed away several years before the school was ever established. Legends—zero. History—one.

Missing Mila, Finding Family by Margaret Ward 288 pages. University of Texas Press, 2011 What began as one woman’s project to relate the unlikely particulars of her son’s adoption to the rest of her family has become a captivating book receiving national attention—as well as the most recent work to forge an interesting new connection to Wells. The author is none other than Margaret Ward—Professor of German Emerita from Wellesley College and wife of Wells’s current interim president, Thomas de Witt.

This October, Wells students, faculty, staff, and community members from all over the region nearly filled Stratton Hall to capacity to hear selections from the nonfiction work. The book tells the story of the couple’s extraordinary discovery—fourteen years after the adoption—that their son was not a Honduran orphan as they were led to believe but, in fact, one of the “missing children” separated from their families during El Salvador’s 12year civil war. Ward and de Witt’s son, Nelson Ward de Witt, was also in attendance and treated the audience to a special preview of his upcoming documentary about his story.

Dividing the book into five parts to trace their shocking discovery to the joyful merging of the cross-continental families, Ward constructs a mosaic of narrative forms. From investigative literary journalism to poignant memoir to the inclusion of her children’s blog posts and poetry, Ward’s background in academia shines through to enrich rather than distract from the personal quality of the firsthand accounts and historical research she seamlessly combines. The resulting literary style is both truly engaging and appealingly stark.

The book’s subtitle—An International Adoption in the Shadow of the Salvadoran Civil War—only scratches the surface of its subject matter: the fascinating and surprisingly intimate intersections of one family’s heartwarming story of reunion with a nation’s devastating history of conflict and turmoil. As complicated as these intersections may be, Ward discusses them with enchanting skill.

Missing Mila, Finding Family will make a truly unique contribution to anyone’s bookshelf.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 11

the other side a photo series by keegan evans 12

MODELING BY KEEGAN EVANS / THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 13

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14 MODELING BY MIKE LYNCH

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KEEGAN PHOTO KEEGAN

18 MODELING BY TYLER GRECCO

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THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 19

the Legends of

PORN by jes lyons

porn stars are people too Amidst all the porn website browsing, there seems to be an endless amount of thumbnails to choose from. Once a video is chosen we may have a revelation—I’ve seen this person before.

While the cast members of porn films may seem endless, there are an elite few contracted actors who grace the camera as often as we attend classes.

Porn stars are celebrities in their own right. But people often forget that porn stars, just like celebrities, are regular people. They go to the grocery store, some have children, and others walk their dogs daily. Porn stars just happen to work naked for a living, and many people know who they are.

In fact, porn stars are becoming more well known now than ever before. Their crossovers into mainstream pop culture are accepted, and it’s always interesting when noticing the familiar faces in other forms of media, such as Sasha Gray in The Girlfriend Experience or Stormy Daniel’s cameos in Judd Apatow films.

A great deal of people have respect for the actors of adult films. Not everyone can do what they do, but most of them are busy outside of having cameramen take close-up shots of their genitals. Some standout performers make themselves legends; unforgettable people and brands that become a comfort and a treasure to their core audience.

To porn viewers, Jenna Jameson, James Deen, Stoya, and Katie Morgan are household names. These popular sex entertainers are among the most famous in the industry, so classified for their abundant sexual stamina and because they made names for themselves in their industry and beyond.

katie morgan Katie Morgan is an adorable blonde with a sweet high-pitched voice to match. In fact, she doesn’t even swear. But don’t let her innocent demeanor fool you. Her career in porn actually began because of her sizable debt after her arrest for smuggling 100 pounds of marijuana across the U.S. border. In a roundabout 20 SEX COLUMN

way, her career in porn saved her life—the money she made from joining the industry paid her bail money and other debts, allowing for a lucrative career and a happier life away from her drug-dealing ex-husband.

Katie, born Sarah Lyn Crowley, was raised with a strict Christian upbringing and was home-schooled. She had very little exposure to explicit content in her youth but was sixteen when she had her first sexual encounter with her Sunday school boyfriend.

Coming from such a closeted background, it’s no wonder she lets loose in her career the way she does. But don’t let her mom know!

In her documentary series with hbo, she admitted to having zero intention of letting her parents know about her career in the film industry. Whether they know now or not is a mystery, but it’s difficult to not know who Katie is if you have any experience viewing porn. (In fact, that’s how her brother found out.)

Since Katie’s debut in pornography in 2000, she has starred in 265 adult films to date. Her impressive resume lists a personal website, two feature documentaries with hbo Films, and several acclaimed awards: Unsung Siren Award from the X-Rated Critics Organization and The Jenna Jameson Crossover Star Of The Year at the 2009 Adult Video News (avn) awards.

This woman is not as flighty as her porn roles may depict her as. She has proven herself to be highly savvy in using her porn celebrity to her advantage.

Apart from her porn films, she has appeared in several episodes of the television show Entourage and even had a prominent character part in the bawdy 2008 comedy Zack and Miri Make a Porno, in which she plays the role of an amateur porn actress with a heart of gold. The porn industry is notorious for its “bad acting,” but Katie has some acting chops to back her up. In recent years she has actually retired from porn to give herself more to what she calls “mainstream” roles and jobs to keep her life exciting.

Since her retirement, Katie was inducted into the avn Hall of Fame in 2013, validating that Katie Morgan is indeed a porn legend.

stoya Born Jessica Stoyadinovich in Wilmington, North Carolina, Stoya breaks all the stereotypes of an average female porn star.

Tall, thin, real breasts, and lacking a layer of self-tanner, she has proven to have an unconventional physical appearance for porn, and her work has been diverse in subgenres. While relatively new to the porn industry with only 44 films under her belt, Stoya has made a name for herself in the industry and is incredibly well known. avn awarded her Best New Starlet back in 2010.

Her award was not surprising—but Stoya herself is: she’s an intellectual—and a feminist.

Stoya grew up rather conventionally. She took dance lessons and was a model student. Such a model student, in fact, that she graduated from school before the age of sixteen through home-schooling. Stoya’s entrance into pornography stemmed from her modeling career in New York City and her comfort with the camera. While the admittance was rather conventional, her straightforward approach to her career is very clever. She’s spoken about her career through her articles on vice.com and in her well-spoken interviews with big names in journalism, such as The Huffington Post.

Feminists come in all shapes, sizes, and genders, but one would not expect a porn star with a preference for bdsm and fetishes to self-identify as a feminist (not that there are any actual statistics on that sort of thing). In her writing for vice.com, Stoya has several articles voicing her opinions on her career in porn as an empowering experience for her but also understands the reality of her work. Her honesty is palpable; in her description of her job as “bluntly superficial entertainment that caters to one of the most basic human desires,” her eloquent wording and demand for

respect make her a name to remember in the porn industry despite being a newcomer. Her personal blog, stoya.tumblr.com, has numerous posts about her career and her personal experiences dealing with the sexism and bias in her daily life. Among several of her most memorable statements, this in particular stands out: “Let me remind you that in a room of pornography fans, who have actually seen me with a dick in my mouth and who can buy a replica of my vagina in a can or box, I am treated

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 21

j with far more respect than I am walking down the street.”

Stoya has used a fair amount of social media to advance herself in her career as both a model and a porn star. She has a blog, a Twitter account, a Facebook fan page, even a Myspace! Her Twitter describes her as, “Incendiary. Quixotic. Sassy. Occasional Porn Star, Columnist for Vice-dot-com.” She is much more than the sex she has on screen and is adamant that it is just her day-job that she enjoys—a lot. On the side, she has participated in projects such as Hysterical Literature, a YouTube series in which females (some of which are her porn cohorts) read obscure literature with a vibrator at work under the table. Such artistic ventures are something Stoya finds great interest in, which explains her diverse fan base.

Stoya’s artistic and scholarly address to her career make her a standout porn star, but she may also owe her fame to another porn star on my list, her partner, James Deen.

james deen

It is, unfortunately, quite commonplace in hetero-pornography for the males to be less than pleasing to the eye for many female viewers. This may simply be because people still think that women don’t watch porn. In case you were wondering: we do.

Luckily for us ladies, James Deen exists. This porn star looks like the boy next door, the handsome popular guy from high school, and the sexy man making eyes at you across the bar all rolled into a delectable sex god. Not to mention, he fulfills the required eight-inch minimum for male porn stars. It’s no wonder he rose to fame so quickly, even as young as 18. James has been nominated for avn’s Male Performer of the year every year since 2007 and has won in 2009 and in 2013. In his first year in the industry, he starred in approximately 500 films. He has been in (brace yourselves) 1,405 adult films in his career and has directed 11.

James (born Bryan Matthew Sevilla) was born and grew up in Pasadena, California. He didn’t choose the name James Deen because of porn but was actually given the name by his peers because of his smoking addiction. According to him, he had the desire to work in the porn industry since he was a child. With such ambitious motivations, his work has been unsurprisingly incredible. He manages to lift and throw and grab and... well, let’s just say he works for his money. He even calls himself “overpaid”—probably because he genuinely enjoys what he’s doing.

As many porn stars have a subgenre they stick with, James is notorious for many of his parody porn roles. He has starred in the Family Guy porno as Quagmire, the Scrubs porno as JD, and has even starred in the Scream porn parody. He has starred in many diverse porn films, even more realistic roles such as his part in the Farah Abraham sex tape, released earlier this year.

While many male porn stars gain their success on their looks just below the belt, James can attribute a huge amount of his success to his Oscar-winning-actor looks. Perhaps he may have been such an actor, but luckily for us, his life didn’t take that turn.

Not that he’d want to do anything else but porn. Literally. He has stated, “If I ever make a single complaint about this business, they should just beat my ass on sight, pretty much. I cannot imagine something I’d rather do than this.”

Along with his pornography acting and directing, James also runs a blog, jamesdeenblog.com. It’s an interesting read, full of

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j

typos and grammar mistakes and the like, but entertaining all the same. He personifies the goofy, carefree, and proud man who loves his job and loves to talk about it. No wonder he’s dating the lovely Stoya from this list. Despite his lax treatment of the English language, he has proven to be a respectable and wellspoken man. He doesn’t like to be away from his sex-job for very long, but he has given college lectures promoting safe sex practices, analyzing sexuality in the media, and giving sex-related advice to college students.

James very well may owe his career in porn to one woman in particular. A woman who said that, to be a male in the pornography industry, a man should be able to masturbate in a room with 20 people. He trusted the infamous Jenna Jameson.

jenna jameson

If you watch porn, you know who Jenna Jameson is. Inducted into the avn Hall of Fame in 2006, Jenna is one of the most successful porn stars of all time, and certainly one of the most well known.

Jenna Jameson, born Jenna Marie Massoli, is the blonde bombshell conventionally seen in pornography. She has lovely blue eyes, large bought breasts, and a pouty mouth. Jenna is also a genuinely friendly and personable figure. She was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada—a city of sin that certainly had its influence on her. She began stripping at a young age and was posing for Penthouse and starring in pictures by Wicked (an adult film company) by the time she was 19.

Jenna is known for more than her pornography, but is recognized as a pioneer for having made porn more mainstream and acceptable in society, for women and for all. Jenna was one of the first women in the porn industry to make royalties off of her movies and has spoken in over 50 episodes of Howard Stern’s radio show to promote pornography, among other things.

Jenna set the standard for professionalism in pornography. She is known on set to be all business, and people know to “not mess with Jenna.” She was in pornography since the 1990s, when porn still maintained a vaudevillian and funny aspect to it. As a porn star, Jenna did what was expected for her roles in more comedic and rowdy pictures and then adapted as pornography shifted to more realistic scenes. Jenna’s fame goes beyond her 164 adult films. She has written for porn, directed four films, and has even done voice work for gta (which was critically received and which she won awards for).

She has won countless awards for her work in adult films from the avn, fame, xbiz, and foxe, as well as having starred in her own series of “Jenna Loves...” in which she writes and performs in a scenes highlighting other porn stars in scenes with her. One of her most famous is “Jenna Loves Nikki,” which stars Nikki Tyler, one of Jenna’s former girlfriends. The video earned itself a billboard in New York City as one of its advertisements. You certainly don’t see those every day.

Jenna’s career has spanned over a decade and over several media outlets. Among her most successful endeavors are her website and the production company that she manages, ClubJenna. She uses the domain to produce pornography and sell sex products like toys, erotica, and her own videos. The revenue of the site ranged around $30 million in 2005. Her fame has allowed her to star in several mainstream arenas, such as Howard Stern’s Private Parts and Family Guy, in which she voiced an animated version of herself. Jenna’s crossover pursuits earned her the X-Rated Critics

Organization’s award for Mainstream Adult Media Favorite. Her personal memoir How to Make Love Like a Porn Star: A Cautionary Tale was on the New York Times bestseller list for six weeks.

Critically acclaimed, widely accepted and enjoyed, Jenna Jameson is a leading lady of the porn industry, a talented maverick of her genre and an icon.

a final word on these legends It’s not easy having a career in porn. It sounds cushy, but these porn stars are under intense scrutiny, and yet manage to live their lives with a sense of dignity and pride. Their careers have affected the world around them. Whether or not you agree with their career choices doesn’t matter. These reputable entertainers have proven themselves in their careers and beyond in their entrepreneurial pursuits and diverse talents.

Not many people can say that they participated in a debate at Oxford on the right to view pornography (and won!)—Jenna Jameson can... and did. Not many people can say that they have changed women’s outlooks on sex and pornography—Stoya and James Deen can. Not many can say that they went from porn to mainstream film—Katie Morgan can.

Porn stars are notable personalities that are important in looking at all things pop culture. Katie Morgan, James Deen, Stoya, Jenna Jameson—they have fans, people who look up to them, and people who aspire to be them one day. If that doesn’t make them legends, I don’t know what does. •

works consulted “Kate Morgan: a Porn Star Revealed.” hbo Documentary Films. hbo, 2005. Web. Oct. 2013.

“Katie Morgan.” avn. avn Media Network, 2013. Web. Oct. 2013.

“7 Questions With…Katie Morgan of Logo’s That Sex Show” The Channel Guide Magazine. The Channel Guide Magazine, 2013. Web. Oct. 2013.

“Interview: Katie Morgan.” RogReviews. RogReviews, 2003.

Web. Oct. 2013.

“Having Sex With Katie Morgan.” TheKatieMorgan.Com. “Biography for Stoya.” IMDb. IMDb.com. Inc., n.d. Web. Oct. 2013.

StoyaTM, Stoya. Tumblr. Web. Oct. 2013.

“Stoya: Feminism and Me.” Vice. Vice Media Inc., 2013. Web. Oct. 2013.

“Hysterical Literature: Session One: Stoya (Official).” YouTube.

Clayton Cubitt, 2012. Web. Oct. 2013.

“James Deen to Deliver Keynote for UW-Madison Sex Health Fest.” avn. avn Media Network, 2013. Web. Oct. 2013.

“Jenna Jameson Awards.” IMDb. IMDb.com Inc., n.d. Web. Oct. 2013.

“Jenna Jameson: Professional Heartbreaker.” Askmen. Askmen, n.d. Web. Oct. 2013.

“Stars Who Have Appeared In Adult Films and Mainstream Films.” Radar Online. Radar Online llc, n.d. Web. Oct. 2013.

“The (Porn) Player.” Forbes. Forbes.com llc, 2005. Web. Oct. 2013.

JamesDeen, James Deen. James Deen Blog. Web. Oct. 2013.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 23

The

UN

Official Wells

Ghost Guide

By Paige Fralick

A

ll Wells students seem to know the classic ghost stories from Zabriskie Hall and Main Building, but is there more to the classics? After all, it has been open since 1868, which is plenty of time to conjure up some fun spirits. It’s been rumored that the land we live on was once a burial ground for Native Americans who had been forced out of their homes. Whatever the reason, there are spirits here who have been provoked. I will reveal the legends and myths of past students as well as the personal experiences of the misfortunate on-campus students who are currently at Wells College.

Marshall Kaplan, Leach 2nd Me: So, I heard you had a ghostly experience?

Marshall: Yeah, you heard about it?

Me: Yeah, you woke up to someone breathing down your neck, right?

Marshall: No, I was changing and [someone was] breath[ing] down my neck at like 4 am.

Me: You were changing at 4 am?

Marshall: I was doing laundry at 3 am—like the start of every horror story—and my roommate wasn’t in the room.

Zabriskie Hall

Paul Hernon, Leach 2nd Me: Paul, what is your ghost story?

Paul: I was watching a movie with my friend and then the deodorant on Trevor’s [his roommate’s] desk fell out of nowhere onto the floor and there wasn’t a window open or anything—it was really creepy because this wasn’t the first time things moved or disappeared by themselves!

You might be thinking, “What is the story of Zabriskie?” If you are, then you’re in luck. There once was a student a long time ago who was a very bright scientist in the making. She had the full attention of her professor and she loved it; that is, until she found out he had been stealing her work. This enraged the student, and one night, she went to confront him. He panicked and refused to lose all of his (her) work and reputation, so he stabbed the girl with the scissors lying next to him. If you’re studying in Zabriskie late at night, you’d better watch your back because if a girl asks you to pull the knife out of her back, she’ll stab you with it.

Leach House Before Leach was a residence hall, it was a stable where carriage horses were kept. One night there was a fire (Wells seems to have a lot of those), and unfortunately, many of the horses perished.

If you are in the basement of Leach late at night, you might see the horses trotting, trying to escape. Other times during the day, when few people are around, you can hear them stampeding down the hallway.

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Glen Park Bridge Many students utilize the Glen Park Bridge during the day because it’s a nice shortcut when you are in a hurry, but many do not have the courage to do so at night. Most students are too afraid to encounter the ghost of Mrs. Wells, so they will purposefully avoid the bridge where her spirit is said to dwell. Henry Wells was having an alleged affair with Mrs. Pettibone and Mrs. Wells found out about it—one night, she lured the mistress over the bridge by flickering the light outside of Glen Park. Once the mistress arrived, she stabbed the woman to death with a knife she brought with her to complete the mission she was dead set upon.

While walking the bridge, be careful if the light flickers because she might mistake you for the mistress. You should also beware of her standing in the copula, watching your every move.

Dodge Building We all know that we have to complete our theses before we graduate (except for the science majors, but it is an option that looks great on your resume), but one unfortunate soul never got to finish her thesis and didn’t live long enough to graduate. She is known as “The Mad Typist” and once lived in the South Wing of Dodge. She received this nickname because she stayed up late every night working on her thesis, and everyone in her suite could hear her clack, clack, clack on the typewriter. She was so frantic to finish that she began to have mental breakdowns daily. Her friends were worried so they practically forced her to go to the Fargo with them to help her regain her sanity. She was finally herself again, having fun once more walking back and giggling to school with her friends when all of a sudden, a car careened off of Main Street hitting The Mad Typist and sending the entire Wells community into a state of mourning. If you are up late doing work in Dodge and feel like someone’s watching you, it’s probably because someone is. They say to this very day she looks over the shoulder of students to check their progress so they may finish their theses, unlike her.

Main Building Next on my list of goosebump-raising stories to share with you all are those of Main Building. You see, I was told by a Senior my Freshman year that the Main Building we see now isn’t the original structure. Parts of it burned down several times already, taking with it the lives of many. Just before one of the fires, there was a girl who was infected with cholera, which at that time they didn’t know was spread through contaminated water and wasn’t infectious. She was locked in her room and no one was allowed to visit. One day her fiancé came to visit her, but he climbed to the top of Morgan and waved to her because he was not allowed into her room. That was the day of the fire; it eventually got to her room and her soon-to-be husband had to watch his sweetheart burn. They say neither spirit has moved on.

According to the Globe page dedicated to ghost stories, during the influenza epidemic, Main Fourth was used an infirmary to quarantine the suffering students, and many nurses stayed with them to ease their pain. There was another fire and many of the nurses saved the lives of the students, sacrificing their own. That is why so many students on the fourth floor claim to have been nursed to good health while sick there. During a later influenza epidemic, the same infirmary floor was used to help the students, only this one was far worse. They lost many of the students, and since it was during the worst of winters, families couldn’t get to the students’ bodies immediately for a proper service. In response to this tragedy, the college set up a morgue to let those who had passed to rest in peace. They painted the door red and it was then referred to as “the red room” to make sure no one disrupted them.

Keegan Evans, Main 2nd Me: What was your first experience?

Keegan: A ghost, in the Main Second crossbar bathroom, touched me on the shoulder.

Me: Can you please elaborate?

Keegan: I was brushing my teeth around 10:30 at night during RA training, so the campus was really empty—that’s typically when activities are at their peak. So, out of the corner of my eye, I saw my tank top move and felt a hand wrap around. And when I looked back, no one was there, so I ran. I never used that bathroom again.

Now I say, “No, thank you,” before I go to bed. It’s supposed to help.

Courtney Fesko, Main 4th Me: Court, I know you have some ghost stories, so let’s hear them.

Courtney: Well, Freshman year I had this knocking in my closet on Main Fourth. I would hear it knock, and my friend would knock back. And then it would respond in knocks, and I was so scared that I locked my closet for a long time. Also, in the bathroom while I [was] in the stall [I]’d see something walk [past] the stalls but no one was there when [I] came out and that was super freaky. I hated the feeling and it was hard to go to the bathroom up there but you can’t not.

Alissa Toner, Main 3rd Me: So what was your ghostly experience?

Alissa: Well, when I lived on Main 3rd as an ra, I was essentially alone in the building for about two weeks. I was the first person in the building and I stayed there alone for one night due to my long drive. The first night, around 11 pm, the entire room shook. It was like the whole building shuddered. It didn’t last more than three seconds. I was decently freaked out but I figured it was nothing. The second night I was there, [the other RAs] had moved in. My downstairs neighbor and I were talking about me rearranging the room at some point during the day. That night, I sat quietly in my room—I didn’t move around and I went to bed fairly early. The next morning, she and another friend asked how moving my room went. I said I didn’t move it around because I was too tired. Both of them gave me a look and then told me that it sounded like I had been moving my furniture for an hour the previous night around 11 pm. I told them I was sitting at my desk on my computer the whole time. They insisted it sounded like I was moving heavy furniture, but I told them I wasn’t joking and that I had been quiet the whole night.

After that, I experienced [other] weird stuff. Every night, I would hear my dresser bang. It would freak me out, but I figured the wood was settling because of my clothes being in the drawers.

One night, I was on Skype with a friend, and my dresser banged really loudly. I asked him if he heard it, and he said yes. But he THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 25

insisted it was nothing. The dresser banged again about 15 minutes later, this time louder. Again, he insisted it was probably nothing.

About 15 minutes after that, the dresser banged very loudly three times, and then I watched it shift a half-inch forward. From that night on, I slept with the lights on. Other incidents occurred in that room; when I was on Skype with that friend, I would leave to go do something, and he would tease me for joking with him while I was gone by whispering into the microphone [even though] I would be gone the whole time. This happened several times.

Another time during training, I was returning to my room in the middle of the day. I grabbed my door handle to unlock it when I thought I heard a woman talking in my room. Without thinking, I said, “What?” out loud and leaned in closer. The voice repeated the same phrase. I did not even bother going in my room because I was too scared to see something inside. I came back with a couple of friends and had somebody open the door for me. Nothing was in my room, of course, but I swear I heard somebody talking in there.

On the night before move-in day, I was given a nametag and was told it was very important to wear the nametag for the next day. I put it on my dresser to make sure I wouldn’t forget it in the morning. I woke up the next day and to my dismay, I couldn’t find it anywhere. Exasperated, I asked my room to give it back because I had been experiencing so much activity. I came back later that afternoon and found nothing. I figured I misplaced it. A couple of days later, I did laundry. My laundry basket was under my bed on the other side of the room from the dresser. As I put the last of my clothes in the washing machine, I found my nametag laying dead center in the bottom of my laundry basket.

Most recently, I’ve been having problems with my door in Leach 1st. I spent the night in my boyfriend’s room because he was on duty for Disco Dodge and wanted company for the 2 am night. I closed and locked my door in Leach. To lock my door, it must be completely closed. The night passed and I went back to my room around 9:30 am Sunday morning. To my horror, my 26 FEATURES

door was wide open. I checked the handle but the handle was still locked and there was no feasible way for my door to open. I asked him about my door and he said at 1:15 am, my door was closed.

How did my door open but stay locked?

Another time, I was sitting in my room on my laptop when I heard my doorknob turning. I figured it was my friend getting out of Evenline practice and coming to say hi. I looked up but didn’t see the handle turning. I saw the door slowly push open. I said, “Hello?” But nobody responded. I said it again. One more time, there was no response. I got up and looked around, but there was nobody in sight.

Me: That is spooky; you’ve had a lot of experiences. Thank you so much for sharing them all!

Brittany Carpenter, Main 2nd Me: Do you have any stories?

Brittany: I have tons.

Me: Which one’s the scariest?

Brittany: When I lived in the quad, I had to go to the bathroom, and when I came back, I laid my head down for a few moments.

And after two seconds I heard my name being called, so I asked, ”Danielle? Erika? Are you awake?” There was no response [and it was] 3 am. I was too afraid to look away from the wall, and I stayed up the entire night. The next morning when my roommates woke up, I asked them if they had heard me the night before, and both of them said they didn’t even wake up.

Seeing is Believing Even though these are just stories that could easily be disproven, it is said that behind every rumor there’s a little bit of truth. Believe what you like, but either way, enjoy! •

Amore Eterno: The Urban Legends of Locked Love

by Atiya Jordan Photos by Gabrielle Uhrig THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013  27

I

n Florence, Italy, lovers soak in more than the beauty of the architecture, the exquisiteness of the Piazza del Duomo, the richness of the history, or Michelangelo’s original David in the Galleria dell’Accademia. Just picture the scenery. They come to Florence hand in hand to lock in their love for eternity as they watch the sunset reflect off the Arno River. Affixed to the railing of the Benvenuto Cellini statue in the center of the Ponte Vecchio Bridge are hundreds of padlocks with names and messages written on them to signify the couples’ commitment. When passing by, one can see the devotion written in all different types of ink on the stone surface. Not only couples wish to declare their love, but also mothers and daughters, best friends, and many, many more. It sure sounds like everyone is in on this one. Amore Eterno!

Isn’t that so romantic?

The real question is have you ever wondered where this tradition started? The origins date way back almost into the dinosaur ages, leaving no one certain about the truth. There are too many sides to too many different versions to the story.

It turns out that this specific tradition may have originated in China, resurfacing only a few years ago all around Europe and the rest of Asia. Legend has it that if two lovers attach a padlock to a bridge, a fence, or a gate and throw the key away into the river, their love will be locked to that bridge for all eternity. This devotion symbolizes their everlasting love. Ah, so cute!

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The tradition of love locks in ancient China sprang from a story of young couple’s sacrifice for everlasting love. The story was that a young girl fell in love with a boy whom her father disapproved of because the boy was poor. Her father did not want his daughter to spend her life in poverty so he arranged for her to get married to a rich man, whom she did not love. On the day of her wedding, the poor boy stole her away, and they went to the Huangshan Mountains. Standing on the edge, they held hands and jumped off, deep into the ravine. Today, in honor of the story, couples lock their padlocks onto the guarding chains surrounding Lotus Peak and throw their key into the mountainside below. Forever locked to the mountain, this tradition symbolizes different aspects of love, most importantly eternal commitment. Today, many couples have the option to follow this tradition of locked love as a part of their wedding ceremony. There are philosophies that are either against the symbolism of love locks or totally for it.

French philosopher Alain Badiou is a strong believer that people do not truly know love if they feel they must be bound by a lock. According to him, the idea of locking one’s love and tossing the key is just an immature fantasy.

In his book, In Praise of Love, he stated, “Love without risk is an impossibility, like war without death.” Badiou’s philosophy reminds us that love implies constant risk, without which it is impossible to last. Love is vulnerable because the other person always has the freedom to walk away from the relationship. However, there are many others who see locks as a symbol of faith, a declaration that this is a love with dreams of eternity. In that case, couples have the choice of keeping the Locked Love Legend alive.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 29

Millions of tourists from all over the world come to Florence, Italy each year. Known as the cradle of the Renaissance, the city is defined by its rich pieces of art, breathtaking views of emblematic architecture, and its distinctive history.

Besides those who come to see the art, there are lovers among the millions who come to participate in this tradition, embracing their love and hoping to keep it alive.

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These couples come to visit the Ponte Vecchio (“The Old Bridge”). This bridge, among one of the six oldest bridges in Florence, is also one of the most popular and romantic, spanning the Arno River and standing so proudly on its stone arches. Dating back to 1345, the bridge, originally made of wood, was built to replace another bridge that had been twice destroyed by a flood. What’s most intriguing is that the Ponte Vecchio was the only bridge in Italy to survive wwii.

It’s been said that the Locked Love Legend might’ve been started by a locksmith, who was the first person to attach a padlock onto the Ponte Vecchio, introducing this tradition of love and lovers. The locksmith kept a shop at the foot of the bridge to raise his revenue.

Locksmiths weren’t the only ones trying to make a living. Since the beginning of Roman times, the Ponte Vecchio Bridge has always been a bridge for the merchants and butchers. However, the butchers and fishmongers caused a terrible stench and were not allowed to work on the bridge any longer. In the 1900s, in the center of the bridge, the indigenous Florentine goldsmith and sculptor, Benevento Cellini’s statue was built. Today, the Ponte Vecchio is filled with different shops, mostly selling stunning jewelry. It’s a sight you can’t miss, especially during the day when couples are out choosing their perfect piece of jewelry—perhaps even a wedding ring. At night, when the jewelry shops are closed and all boarded up, the scenery is just as surreal as the shops when they turn into suitcases representing the medieval times. As beautiful as this scene may look, however, imagine the bridge after the millions of locks have rusted after a period of time.

The overabundance of the padlocks gives the gates of the Ponte Vecchio a real rough appearance. The negatives of tourism are their contribution to some of the damages on the bridge. Therefore, government officials had to resort to clipping off the locks. If caught attaching a padlock, a fine is strictly enforced which is highlighted on a sign put in front of the Benevento Cellini statue. In Florence, the fine is 160 Euros. Couples still come and simply touch the remaining locks, hoping that luck will be brought onto them.

Other cities in Italy also follow the tradition of the Locked Love Legend. Near Florence, Rome and Venice are also widely known to be romantic cities where the air is filled with undying love.

In Rome, when passing by the Ponte Milvio Bridge, couples may be seen putting their love in the sanctuary that the bridge has provided for them. It’s touching when you can see that many inscribed poetry, words such as “Marco loves Alexandra,” for instance, and even dates on the padlocks. Some sources say that this ritual, specifically in Rome, was attributed from the bestseller Ho Voglia di Te (I Want You) by Italian author Federico Moccia. There was a scene in the book, and later in the film, where two teenagers are writing their names on a padlock, affixing it to a Ponte Milvio lamppost, and throwing the key into the Tiber River as a sign of eternal love.

Thousands of people have decided to imitate the grand gestures of the protagonists. However, as romantic as the love locks may be, they can be the total opposite to many other people.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 31

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Controversy surrounding the placement of locks has existed for a long time. Here in Rome, the locks result in damages to the Ponte Milvio. Rome’s city council said no to the locks; despite losing the debate over these locks, supporters haven’t forgotten. In many other cities, the symbolism of these locks means much more than just a clutter of rusty metal—they are a declaration of love.

Connecting the two towns of Manarola and Riomaggiore in the Cinque Terre, the path of Via Dell’Amore holds a legend infamous throughout Italy. Legend has it that this path was a meeting place for lovers from the two towns. Today, this path is considered to be a favorite site for tourists to lock their love and throw the keys away into the sea. There are many other cities in Italy where the Locked Love Legend has and will perhaps eternally exist such as Bologna, Turin, and Bolzano.

The most famous cities of love participate in the tradition of love locks, including Paris! When you think of Paris, it’s the ultimate city of love for the most romantic proposals and everlasting memories. These memories include the tradition of locking their love on the many different bridges that cross the Seine. Les cadenas d’amour!

It sounds so romantic in French. It gets even more romantic as the tradition infiltrates more and more cities all across the world.

“The Bridge of Love” in Vrnjacka Banja, Serbia, is surrounded by no ordinary love legend. According to the legend, a school mistress named Nada would meet her lover, army officer Reljia, on the bridge where they pledged their love in the days before wwi. When the soldier went on to fight for the Germans in Greece, he found a new love and married her. Nada is said to have died of a broken heart. Nada’s tale inspired many couples not to abandon their loved ones by writing their names on padlocks and chaining them to the fence of the bridge where Nada and Reljia swore their commitment to one another. Today, Serbian couples seal their promises to “The Bridge of Love” and throw the keys away into the Vrnjacka River.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 33

The story in Russia, while not as unique as Serbia’s, is also intriguing. In downtown Moscow, most padlocks are affixed to the Luzkhov Bridge. Usually, it was newlyweds who most hoped for eternal love. Writing their names and wedding dates on the locks and attaching them to the rails on the side of the bridge was a perfect way to show devotion. Although this grand gesture is oh so romantic, it was rather a pain for the authorities who were responsible for keeping the bridge out of harm’s way. There are

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many other regions and cities in Europe that honor the legend, such as Croatia, Czech Republic, Prague, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Iceland—the list goes on for days. Almost anywhere, there is love so special that it only hopes to be special forever—not just in Europe, but also in Asia, where the legend originated from. To accomodate the lovers, the authorities resorted to erecting metal branched poles on the bridge, so the couples could continue the custom there.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 35

In Tokyo, Japan, the tradition of hanging the padlocks became popular as well. Most of the padlocks are hung at a lover’s point at the Nihonkai Fisherman’s Cape. There was a myth surrounding the Enishoma Island concerning a five headed dragon and a beautiful maiden. The dragon was known to be very cruel and made many of the villagers his meals. When he saw the beautiful maiden for the first time, he asked her to marry her, but she turned his proposal down because she knew what he had done. She would only reconsider if he devoted himself to protecting the villagers. She accepted, and soon after the dragon died. In honor of the myth, there was a bell put up on the cliffside of the island. From that point on, couples would ring the bell dedicated to the myth as a way of vowing their eternal love.

In Seoul, South Korea, thousands of sweethearts come out to the North Seoul Tower on Mt. Namsan, hoping they’ve found that perfect place to lock their vows to one another. After these locks are hung along the ground terrace, the keys are thrown over to assure that these couples’ loves never die. The town’s operator, however, posted warning signs due to the danger of thrown keys and also provided a disposal bin for the keys.

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Even North America has decided to pursue this trend.

For instance, in the capital city of Canada and all over the United States, bridges are filled with padlocks. Romance is everywhere! It’s as easy as purchasing your own lock.

If you’re looking for a custom made padlock with your and your lover’s names or for anything at all, love padlocks are popularly sold online for all occasions.

Love Locks Inc. specializes in double heart-shaped padlocks. Lovers have the option to get their own personal message engraved onto these padlocks as a perfect gift for weddings, anniversaries, or even to keep the Love Lock tradition of locking their love eternally to any surface of a bridge and throwing the key away.

Just ask Wellsians Lindsey Bush and Rebekkah McKalsen. They had the privilege of studying abroad, buying their own locks, and putting them on the lock bridge in Paris. This option isn’t limited to those who are experiencing a special love and hope that it lasts for all eternity, but for anyone looking to commit to an important relationship in their lives. •

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 37

Works Cited “Cautiously in Love.” In Praise of Love. WordPress: n.c.

Mar. 8, 2013. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

Christian, Charles. “Urban Legends – Love Locked Out.” Paraphilia Magazine. Paraphilia Magazine: n.c.

2013. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“Hearts Together Love Forever.” Love Locks. LoveLocks, Inc: n.c. 2012. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

Jovanovic, Dragana. “The Bridge of Love where the Romance of Padlocks Began.”abcNews. abcNews Internet Ventures: Feb. 13, 2013.Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

Kamishima, Tomoko. “Enoshima: An Attractive Island Brimming with Mythology.” Japan Tourist. Japan Partnership: Tokyo, Japan. Feb. 13, 2012. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

Mac, Anita. “From Paris with Love.” Travel Destination Bucket List. WordPress: July 26, 2013. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“Locks of Love – Symbols of Eternal Love Worldwide.”

Fun Guerilla. n.p. n.c. n.d. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“Love Legends – The Legend of Ponte Vecchio Padlocks.” Consorzio Firenze Albergo: Florence Italy. 2013.

Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“Ponte Vecchio.” Visit Florence. WebPromoter: 2013.

Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“Ponte Vecchio’s Lock Legend.” Il Salviatino. n.p. June 8, 2012. Firenze, Italy. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge).” A View on Cities: n.c.

2013. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge).” ComPart Media: n.c. n.d.

Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

“The Novel that has got Young Authors Declaring their Passion with Padlocks.” The Guardian: London, England. Aug. 24, 2011. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

Tricia. “Xian Jing – Heavenly Place.” Love Lock Stories. WordPress: Jan. 9, 2012. Web. Accessed Oct. 20, 2013.

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Legendary Sentimentalism

By Fahad Rahmat

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013  39

W

hat comes at the end of “legend”?

I’m going to talk about me for a little while; I’m sorry, but I am. I just want to affirm that legends can appear on even the smallest scale for us, and we should recognize them as such. Levon Helm passed away a couple of years ago, but that wasn’t the end of the legend to me. His name probably won’t come up alongside Neil Peart, or Questlove, when it comes to drummers, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a personal legend.

I’m sure you’ll pardon my pseudo-hagiography soon enough.

The people on that minute scale helped, in some way or other, to shape us into who we’ve become—be they family, friend, or fiction. The people that guide us through our lives are our own personal legends—one of mine just happens to be a farm boy from Arkansas who learned how to play the drums and sang in a little band called The Band.

For those of us who don’t know, first, shame. Second, The Band was a group of five who got their start behind Ronnie Hawkins, then got a gig backing a little known folk singer and professional rabble-rouser, Bob Dylan. After going solo, The Band released Music from Big Pink, their first album, with music co-written by Dylan, which included all time classics, like “The Weight” and “I Shall Be Released.” Years and success came and went, and eventually, in the spring of 2011, there was just Helm, Robbie Robertson (The Guitarist), and Garth Hudson (The Organist) left, and then Helm died. I could talk about albums sold and the people The Band influenced—you know, Eric Clapton, Zeppelin, Neil Young, but that’s not what this is about. Numbers and figures are irrelevant, not to mention tedious. This is where I get to come in.

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I guess it’s kind of clichéd to say that “his music keeps him alive,” and so I won’t say that. What I’ll say instead is that his music helped me a ton. I guess it’s not really his music: Robertson, Rick Danko (The Bassist) and Richard Manuel (The Pianist) wrote the lyrics. Even the singing was split into three—Danko, Manuel, and Helm—but for some reason it’s the last of the three that has really remained with me as a figure to whom I can look up. I won’t lie, Helm isn’t even my favourite Band member (that’s Rick Danko), but Levon Helm remains my personal legend— why?

It might have been his personality—I guess. It is tremendously charming to know that even at thirty-five, the album was “Big Pank,” not “Big Pink,” but part of that might have been because he smiled while he said it. It’s incredibly arresting to remember that Helm insisted that other musicians bring food and drink to his “Midnight Rambles”—little concerts he put on in his barn to raise money for throat surgery he needed after contracting cancer —and made potlucks out of nothing for anyone who showed up (it might have been his personality, sure—I guess—but I don’t think that was the whole reason).

It might have been his humility; that’s likely. Helm was never the tragic Greek hero that Elvis or Orson Wells became. He kept his head grounded and his drum sticks where he could see them.

When The Band broke up, it wasn’t because he wanted his cymbals to stand for the band, it was because he thought Garth Hudson and Richard Manuel didn’t show up enough in their movie, The Last Waltz. The film was directed by Martin Scorsese as a video recollection of their last concert, and was edited by him and

Robbie Robertson, the creative mind behind The Band. It might have been about money—Helm never saw a penny from sales or home videos or anything, but he extended his sense of injustice to include the rest of the guys as well. It was never him who suffered; it was the whole Band.

Another thing it might have been is that Helm was brilliant at what he did—he sang and drummed. The Last Waltz was guest musician after legendary guest musician trotting onto the stage, and Helm had the same reverence for all of them. From Ronnie Woods to Joni Mitchell, Helm sat at his drums gawking at them all, but through his gawk, he managed to keep his sticks going. When Van Morrison was performing “Caravan,” Morrison dropped the microphone and walked off stage before the song was over, and we get a shot of Helm’s face as the velvet-draped Irishman walked away. Helm hadn’t a clue what’s going on, but he drummed on. He kept going and pounded out the last beats of that song for all they were worth. His face was screwed up and it looks like he was laughing, but those beats came out on time and flavored a sweet crescendo that was made to be savored.

I mentioned that he didn’t necessarily write the songs he sang, but if anyone else warbled out “When I Paint my Masterpiece,” the lyrics, “You could almost think you’re seeing double / On a cold dark night on the Spanish stairs,” would have created a portrait much less romantic than the one into which Helm guides us. That’s what he did. He took our hand and helped us into The Band’s music. Separated by space, time, culture and speakers, I still feel for the Kane family from “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.” When Helm sings about his brother and his family

legacy—“You can’t raise a Kane back up / when he’s in defeat” — suddenly, the morale of a side defeated in the Civil War falls upon my ears. Sure, it’s a song set in the South during the Civil War, but ultimately, it’s about a family. It’s not a song about slavery or the economy or social justice; it’s about universality in the face of a house divided against itself.

I’ve often wondered why he sang the songs he did. Why did Levon Helm get most of “The Weight,” all of “Atlantic City,” and “Life is a Carnival”? I’ve chosen these three, because they’ve all done something for me in my life, and after all, this article is about an egoist. Each of these tunes has done something different for me, and central to whatever it was that these songs did for me was the common element: Levon Helm. “The Weight” is about our place in religion—I think. We’re in Nazareth, that’s for sure, but we end up going downtown with the devil, and not our friend, Carmen, who we invite to come with us. We run into whoever Luke is, and end up taking care of his dog, even when we say we can’t. Ultimately, I think the song comes into its own in the chorus, one that only Helm’s compassion could have captured.

He implores Fanny (I don’t know who that is either), “Take a load off Fanny / Take a load for free / Take a load off Fanny / And put the load right on me.” Between all the doctrinal uncertainty and the ambiguity of religion, there is one thing that comes away clearly: compassion. Compassion doesn’t translate through lyrics though, just ask Browning’s Last Mistress—it’s the tone through which it’s conveyed. You can see where this is going. The music sets up the tone, but intent comes straight from Helm’s microphone buoyed by Danko and Manuel’s harmonies.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 41

_

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It might have been his humility; that’s likely. Helm was never the tragic Greek hero that Elvis or Orson Wells became.

He kept his head grounded and his drum sticks where he could see them.

“Atlantic City” is the opposite side of the coin minted by “The Weight.” It’s about needing compassion when you’re the kind of man who “has the kind of debt that no honest man can pay.”

This one is originally a Bruce Springsteen song. No one else can articulate sticking it out through the worst quite like The Boss, and he’s in rare form with the lines, “Our luck may have died, / and our love may be cold / but with you, forever I’ll stay.” I’ve always heard Helm put a little bit more into those first two lines, maybe more than I’ve ever heard him put into any other lyric.

In this song, however, it isn’t just Helm that does it for me; in “Atlantic City” especially, the organ plays off the pathos created

by Helm’s timbre and develops a man in music down on his luck.

The loft of Sam Cooke in his “A Change is Gonna Come” rivals that same pathos; both songs reach out for the humanity in humans, but neither necessarily find it. I don’t mean to review these songs—I’m not saying any of these tunes are good or bad (they’re brilliant), but I’m attempting to put into words what they’ve done to me because after all, this article is about me.

These last two songs have helped shape my personal views on compassion and kindness. We owe it to one another to offer each other kindness whenever we can, for no other reason than, “Why would you not?” The universality that bleeds out of “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” reappears and frames the human condition as always needing a shoulder on which to support itself, and we all carry with us the capacity to lend that shoulder. You’ll forgive the preachy tone I’ve settled into, I hope, when I remind us that I’m not here to tell you about your life, but what a band, what one man’s voice in particular, did to mine. To alleviate the pressure I’ve no doubt created, let’s talk about something lighter, like the carnival!

Levon Helm’s voice does its most work in “Life is a Carnival.” Not that he puts any more in than he normally does into this particular song, but the marriage of the age which his voice carries and the fancy of being at a place of fun wreaks havoc with what a song about the “chance in life” is about. He always looked old, I guess, even on the cover of the “The Band;” for their self-titled sophomore album, he sported a full beard that made him seem severe but rustic. However, he was clean-shaven when they recorded “Carnival.” It’s a jaunty tune but I’ve found it to be the most philosophical of what I’ve heard by them. It’s difficult to divorce a song from its music, and it’s almost impossible 42 FEATURES

with The Band. “Carnival” is a tune in which the music and the singing are interlocked, flouting what Roger Daltrey said about singer and the song in “Join Together.” It’s a composition where the words build upon the music, which creates a tone for the audience. “Carnival” draws the band closer together, a novelty in the songs in which an idea is considered more than a story is told. Rick Danko dominates on “This Wheel’s on Fire,” probably a song about death and the enthrallingly fleeting nature of life, and it is all about Richard Manuel’s aching falsetto in “I Shall Be Released,” but in those songs about the big questions that every band has to ask if they’re taking themselves seriously, Levon Helm was the one who brought a smile and a sense of fun.

Rick brought frenetic energy and excitement, Richard sang with gravitas and meaning, but Levon brought joy.

Come on, there must be something wrong with this guy. No one person can intone to be as perfect as this punter seems now. I will concede, that Levon Helm was far, far, far from perfect. That’s not why I wrote this article though. I’m not saying that I look up to Levon Helm because of how perfect his life was or because he probably battled drug addiction. I wrote this to describe the affective quality that a single man with a microphone could have on me. The rest of The Band are right there with him, but Helm was different in this aspect—just as Manuel, Danko, and Hudson were different in their own ways.

This is where I come in—seriously this time. Levon Helm chose a poor time in my life to die. It was final exams, and I had just been dumped, but here we are, eighteen months on, and I still can’t sing along to “The Shape I’m In” without thinking about Physical Chem, and calling it “The State I’m In” (ugh). Eighteen months later, and hearing Levon Helm breathe, “Good evening,” into the microphone at the start of The Last Waltz still has me saying, “Good evening,” right back. Perhaps there really isn’t an end at the end of legend but rather a ledge on which we can peer into the unrealistic, rosy mist of memory and assign the status of “legend” to those who’ve helped us along in our lives, beat by beat.

Maybe this wasn’t really an article about me, but that doesn’t matter. What does matter is that the idea of a “legend” can be on as grand or as little a scale as we’d like—it’s up to us to assign meaning to them. Levon Helm probably didn’t put anything more into “Atlantic City” than he put into other songs, but he did to me… and I’m what matters in this article. •

After the Happily Ever

By Michelle Lee

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013  43

Z

The love affair America has with retelling this tale pales in comparison to South Korea's.

W

e all know the story. Evil stepmother. Hardworking girl. Prince. Happily ever after. True love prevails, etc.

Arguably, this applies to a ridiculous amount of Disney movies.

The one I’m talking about is Cinderella, first published in 1697

by Charles Perrault and then disneyfied in 1950, the story found almost everywhere and in any time. Tales told back in ancient Greece share common ground with the Cinderella we know today. With the tale being around since the dawn of time, it’s surprising that we haven’t gotten sick of it already. But it’s still going strong, and it doesn’t look like it will be leaving us anytime soon. The movie A Cinderella Story, featuring Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray, had two sequels follow, although with different protagonists. Literally the same basic plot line only with different actors... and they still decided to produce these movies.

Please don’t ask me why.

However, the love affair America has with retelling this tale pales in comparison to South Korea’s. The story of Cinderella in Korea dates back to the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897) and is known as Kongji and Patzzi (콩쥐 팥쥐). The story goes that the beautiful Kongji’s mother died when she was a baby, and her father soon remarried a widow, who had an ugly daughter named Patzzi.

Soon after, Kongji’s father died, and she was horribly mistreated by the new family. Her stepmother had her do seemingly simple tasks like filling a pot with water. Easy enough, until she realizes there is a hole at the bottom and despite bringing enormous amounts of water to fill the pot, it never happens. A turtle comes, blocks the hole, and helps Kongji fulfill her task (nothing like a healthy dose of magical realism to keep the story interesting). The King announces a dance in the hopes of finding a wife, and the stepmother gives Kongji a sack of rice to hull in order to prevent her from attending. This backfires when a flock of sparrows appears and hulls the rice for her, and a fairy comes and dresses her with a pair of beautiful and colorful shoes. From there, it’s the Cinderella standard. They dance and fall in love. She leaves and loses a shoe. He finds the shoe, which leads him to her. It’s all very dramatic.

But in the spirit of fairy tales and legends, no one can be happy for too long. Patzzi, jealous of the marriage that transpired, drowns Kongji, disguises herself as her now-dead stepsister, and lives with the King. The obvious question: why didn’t the King notice that his new bride was not actually his new bride? Remember that such logic isn’t applicable here. The ghost of Kongji haunts the river where she was drowned until a man confronts her, and 44 FEATURES

she tells him her tale. The man reports it to the King, who finds a golden lotus waiting for him at the river. He kisses it, and it turns back into Kongji. Huzzah. For many (especially for the children), the story ends there. But much like Grimm’s stories, there is a darker and “Grimmer” alternative ending. The King sentences Patzzi to death, has his servants make a sauce from her body, and sends it to the stepmother. The stepmother, thinking the sauce is a gift from her daughter, eats it. When she discovers the truth, she falls into a coma from which she never again awakens.

Due to the nature of oral traditions, there are numerous variations and subtle differences that vary from region to region, but the basis of the story remains, as does the moral. During the Joseon dynasty, Confucianism reigned supreme and called for rule by virtue and achieving virtue through constant study and rituals.

The tale is based on the traditional Korean belief of 권선징악 (kwon seon jing ak): the necessity of encouraging virtue and punishing vice. Kongji’s marriage to the King and the happiness that comes from the marriage (after her death and resurrection) is seen as deserved after the years of abuse she endured under her step family. The death of the stepmother and Pattzi are also seen as well-deserved after their years of tormenting Kongji. Arguably, the story takes it a bit too far with the punishment of feeding a mother her child, but Grimm’s done worse, so we’ll let it slide.

The influence of Kongji and Pattzi is evident in not only the story lines of modern Korean television, but also in the character archetypes they established. The main three are based on Kongji, the mother/Pattzi combo, and the King. The Kongji character is the female—hardworking, determined, kind-hearted, and usually poor. She has usually lost or ends up losing a parent or two, depending on how edgy the producers want to be. In order to prove her ever-enduring spirit, they make her as miserable as possible. She works three jobs! Her apartment is falling apart! She can afford nothing but ramen! But she perseveres. How admirable our protagonist is. The King is the wealthy male romantic interest (hereby referred to as wmri). He’s usually filthy rich and could buy out your family in a heartbeat, but there’s some sort of misguided angst that makes him the most disagreeable lad ever.

But again—filthy rich. He, predictably, falls in love with our feisty heroine which leads to the main conflict. His mother disapproves of the class difference. If there is a character archetype to bet on appearing in a K-drama, it’s the meddling mother of the wmri.

More times than not, she’s the main antagonist. The reincarnation of Pattzi is generally in the form of a competing woman whom

the meddling mother wholeheartedly approves of. Honestly, I can’t help but be impressed at the amount of K-dramas that have resulted from this plot line and character archetypes.

One K-drama that sticks particularly well to the original story is Stairway to Heaven (천국의 계단, Chunguk ui Gyehdan), released in 2003. All parties are present, from the virtuous protagonist (Han Jung Suh), the evil stepmother (Tae Mi Ra), the wmri (Cha Song Joo), and the evil stepsister (Han Yoo Ri).

In addition is a stepbrother (Han Tae Hwa) who also falls in love with our protagonist. The stepmother prevents her new stepdaughter to be with her childhood love by denying her the chance to study abroad with him. Her hope is that he will fall in love with her actual daughter. Not being able to study abroad.

Simple enough. Except now Han Yoo Ri is hell bent on getting the wmri. At one point, she intentionally hits her stepsister with her car and then fakes her death (remember that plot twist in the original Kongji and Patzzi? Look at that). And in the spirit of K-dramas, it only gets more ridiculous with amnesia and cancer and death. Recommended if you want to cry over the plot or the lack of logic in the plot.

It’s impossible to talk about ridiculous K-dramas following the Kongji and Patzzi storyline without talking about Boys Over Flowers (꽃보다 남자, Kkot Boda Namja), released in 2009, although, to be completely fair, the television series was based on of a Japanese manga with the same title. Protagonist Guem Jan Di is the embodiment of a K-drama Plucky Heroine. Nothing seems to get her down for too long. Not even when her father gets taken by loan sharks. Or when she herself gets kidnapped.

Or when her boyfriend gets engaged to another woman. Despite the repetitious storyline (seriously, one man can only get jealous so much and one woman can only be feisty for so long), the 25 episode series received high ratings. However, the Seoul chapter of the Young Women’s Christian Association (ywca) was highly critical, calling it “the epitome of materialism and the Cinderella complex” and that its popularity was due to “its good-looking cast and easy-to-understand storyline.” Which is true enough.

It’s because of the consistent good-looking casts and simple story lines that the “new Korean Wave” (Hallyu 2.0) happened.

Sue Jin Lee, author of “The Korean Wave: The Seoul of Asia,” describes it as “a surge in the international visibility of Korean culture” thatm “portrays an unprecedented frame of Korean popular culture by the Korean media alongside the line of commercial nationalism.” The first Hallyu wave occurred over

the late 1990s and early 2000s, focusing more on exporting local goods to East Asia, while the second, starting in 2007, was almost entirely media-based. The advancement in technology and mediadriven consumerism meant things like music, online gaming, and television shows were exported at greater frequency. The success of K-pop groups, achieved with formulaic pop numbers, masterfully executed dance moves, and attractive group members spawned more K-pop groups. Think Backstreet Boys on steroids or Destiny’s Child taken to the nth degree.

The Cinderella formula plot line in a story is almost a guaranteed success. It’s familiar and simple, based on a tale familiar to most, if not all, cultures. True love wins, evil is punished, and all ends happily ever after. While the spread of K-dramas started slowly during the first wave, the amount of television program exports grew tremendously, increasing 27.4 times between 1995 and 2007 ( Jin). The increasing amount of exports also meant a high number of remakes, like a 2009 Filipino remake of Stairway to Heaven and countless American remakes of Korean horror films (the U.S. should feel free to stop anytime with those).

Strange to realize how large an impact a tale passed down orally can have on current culture, thus cementing itself into history with so many recurring tropes and character archetypes found in stories from the past. At any rate, K-dramas don’t look like they’re stopping anytime soon, so enjoy the excessive amount of melodrama they can fit into an episode. • Works Cited Jin, Dal Yong. “Hallyu 2.0: The New Korean Wave in the Creative Industry.” International Institute Journal University of Michigan. 2.1 (2012): n. page. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Lee, Sue Jin. “The Korean Wave: The Seoul of Asia.” n. page.

Web. 28 Oct. 2013. “ywca calls ‘Boys over Flowers’ failure.” Korea Herald. 30 Mar. 2010, n. pag. Web. 25 Oct. 2013.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 45

Killing the Cat: Infamy and Obsession

By Rebekkah McKalsen

When you think of the Columbine school shootings, does your mind leap first to the shooters or to the victims?

Wikipedia lists the names of the two shooters, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, in the first paragraph of their article on the Columbine massacre but doesn’t begin to list the names of the 13 victims who died until the fifth subheading of the third section— about a quarter of the way down. Not only do the writers dedicate the second paragraph of the article to speculations about the shooters’ motivations, but there is an entire section, “The Search for Rationale,” with eight different subheadings in order to further examine the motives of the pair. Arguably, this reflects how confusing the events were to the American public. But in contrast, only three sentences are dedicated to the memorials and fund-raising done for families in the years immediately after the shooting, which certainly is not a good representation for how the country, the community, and the families of the victims mourned.

What does all of this suggest? If you, like Wikipedia, thought of the killers before the victims, perhaps that was because there were fewer killers to remember than victims, but more likely, it was due to conditioning by a perpetrator-centric society to think of the 46 FEATURES

killers before the victims. Consider how news sources treat serial killers. Most of them are easily recalled by the nicknames created by journalists during the police search for the criminal; for example, the unidentified “Zodiac Killer” of 1960s San Francisco; Dennis Rader, labeled the “btk Killer” for many years before his capture in 2005; David Berkowitz, who referred to himself as the “Son of Sam” in letters he left at the crime scenes; “The Cleveland Torso Murderer” of the ’30s who escaped capture—many of these killers have entered popular culture through these monikers, which were popularized if not created by the press and/or police.

Even (or perhaps especially) killers who are never caught are thus made memorable; however, every unknown body, regardless of where or how it is found, is labeled John or Jane Doe. Both parties are equally anonymous, yet the emphasis is on the killer. One killer’s nickname even graces the name of a group of laws: “Son of Sam” laws restrict criminals from profiting through publicity of their crimes (typically by writing memoirs or otherwise selling their story, as David Berkowitz did).

These laws exist for a specific reason; violent criminals are made memorable through their position relative to their victims in

In a Perpetrator-Centric Society

news coverage or the nicknames that follow them, but the infamy doesn’t stop there. Products derived from their crimes continue this glorification. Known as murderabilia, these items are either closely associated with the killer (for example, letters written by Ted Bundy) or the crime scene (such as dirt from serial killer Anthony Sowell’s home, reportedly sold in 2011). The “Son of Sam” laws of the 1990s tried, for the sake of victims’ families, to prevent the sale of these items, but were largely ineffective. The laws were modified and are now labeled “notoriety for profit” laws; however, these only inhibit the perpetrators themselves from profiting.

For those who want a piece of the crime, this means finding third parties that sell them—a surprisingly simple task. If searching “murderabilia” on Google, two out of the first three sites are selling “true crime memorabilia,” as Serial Killers Ink (the most popular murderabilia site) puts it. At the time of this writing, one of the items up for purchase on the site is a 243-page digital copy of Jeffrey Dahmer’s confession to murdering, dismembering, and later on, cannibalizing some of the 17 men and boys that comprised his victims in the late 1970s—with an asking price of $300.

The site is easily organized along a sidebar with such macabre categories as “Satanic killers,” “necrophiles and cannibals,” “crime scene autographs,” and “serial killer address list”—yes, for only $10, you can have access to the writing addresses of “over 500 … infamous inmates from around the world” (Serial Killer Ink). The site does not seem, then, to be promoting the use of murderabilia just by collectors, history buffs, or the like. By proudly displaying murderabilia news coverage that mentions the site (mainly negatively), the site’s owner, Eric Holler, is playing off of the “forbidden” nature of his business to attract buyers of all sorts, although he claims his biggest customers are psychologists and police officers who study killers’ psyches. According to Diena Thompson, whose daughter was murdered on her way home from school in 2009, “I’m sure they’re not doing [it] with intent to hurt anyone, but they don’t realize they’re profiting off of our nightmares, our misery, our agony” (“Inside the World of Murderabilia”).

Many areas have taken a stand against murderabilia, saying it goes too far. In Cleveland, Ohio, county officials took great care when dismantling serial rapist Ariel Castro’s home earlier this year to take “possessions, even junk, anything that could be [moved] … away to be ground-down and destroyed” (“Cleveland Takes a Stand”) in attempts to avoid having the items turned into

murderabilia. According to wkyc, a local station, the artifacts are “used to promote some of the nation’s worst criminals” (“Cleveland Takes a Stand”).

However, not everyone believes that murderabilia promotes killers. Littledean Jail in Gloucester, England, far from discouraging this practice, decided to exhibit its collection of murderabilia earlier this year. Andy Jones, curator of the collection and owner of the prison, told reporter Mark Duell in an interview, “I’m more interested as a collector in the psychology of these people; that’s what fascinates me. It’s not a morbid fascination—it’s more that their letters give an insight into the twisted minds of these people. You can read evil within the contents of the letters, their drawings, their artwork” (Daily Mail). The artifacts become curious and intriguing in terms of their creators/original owners; John Wayne Gacy’s (“The Killer Clown”) red painted handprint and Otto Toole’s drawing of the devil with an axe in his head make an intriguing contrast to the pink heart-shaped cushion supposedly hand-sewn by Rose West after her detention in 1995.

However, the exhibit certainly isn’t being marketed by media for its psychological curiousness—instead, it is being hailed by abc News as the “ultimate creep-out” and by the Daily Mail as “chilling,” as if it’s just another Halloween attraction. Indeed, despite Jones’s purported interest in the psychology behind the killings, he wasn’t afraid to capitalize on the exhibit’s creepy attractiveness in the same way Eric Holler wasn’t afraid to push the taboo nature of his website. The Gloucester exhibit was first reported on October 24, only a few days before All Hallows’ Eve. Even if the displayed items intrigue Jones for their psychology, the timing of the display suggests that he understands the ways in which the murderabilia will affect those around him.

As if this cultural obsession with true crime wasn’t enough, consider for a moment the amount of media related to fictional crimes: csi, Criminal Minds, Numb3rs, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Silence of the Lambs—the list goes on and on. But what does all of this attention mean?

The obsession with serial killers, real or imagined—the more twisted, the more infamous—creates, according to sociologist Zeynep Tufekci, an environment for copycat crimes, especially in the mentally ill. He states, “In the Middle Ages, psychosis may have involved visions of the devil, snakes, or witches. In the 21st THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 47

century, it can involve dressing in pseudo-combat gear, donning numerous high-powered rifles, and walking through a public place in a blaze of violence.” This difference is entirely constructed, because “the ways in which people express [psychosis] are heavily influenced by the norms, heroes, anti-heroes, and spectacles of their own places and times” (Tufekci). The article cites the example of teen suicides, which were rampant during the 1980s and ‘90s until the media began “carefully and voluntarily avoid[ing] sensationalizing such deaths.” According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, teen suicides “nearly tripled from 1965 to 1987,” but steadily decreased in the 1990s, when reporters stopped discussing suicides in great detail. Thus, the media controls a huge part of the ways people express themselves, especially mentally unhealthy individuals seeking ways to act out. Whether they do so consciously or not, current media outlets increase empathetic identification with violent criminals by trying so hard to understand them. Instead, they could be building sympathy for the victims by focusing on the impacts such crimes have on victims, families, and local communities, which would decrease the chances of murders as a result of copycat criminals.

How can we make this shift towards victim-centricity? Eric Holler said of his business, “There is a market for these items, and we are simply passing these items along” (“Cleveland Takes a Stand”)—it is our fascination with the forbidden darkness inside the very worst of us that has led the media to give so much attention to the killers. A cultural shift, starting with an understanding of why killers express themselves in the ways that they do, needs to occur before any large-scale change can happen. Tufekci claims that the more details released in terms of how the crime was committed, the higher the likelihood of a copycat crime.

However, we can change that reality simply by refusing to pay attention to such sensationalist media—if it doesn’t sell or begins losing popularity, the focus will change until it does sell. Tufekci also suggests guidelines specifically for media coverage of mass shooting sprees (which usually end with the shooter’s death and so aren’t often subject to man hunts like other violent crimes); the sociologist based the guidelines on the 1990s events with teen suicide. He starts by asking media to withhold as many details as possible about the killer (physical description, guns used, known mental conditions, etc). This is because these details “offe[r] an established path of action” (Tufekci) that greatly increases the risk of follow-through in similarly mentally troubled people. The sociologist also recommends withholding the name of the killer to avoid creating a spectacle and to avoid “an intense search for clues or reasoning beyond ‘troubled person commits unspeakable act; wish he had gotten help earlier,’ in as flat a reporting style as possible.” This flatness will deter other mentally disturbed individuals from committing such acts to gain attention or understanding from the world, because all of the attention will rest on the vic48 FEATURES

The more details released in terms of how the crime was committed, the higher the likelihood of a copycat crime.

tims. Another way we can move towards a victim-centric society is to respect people’s right to grieve in their own ways. Pushing a victim’s family and friend group in such a devastating moment in their lives is insensitive and creates an environment in which it is difficult not only to process what has happened, but to participate in legal proceedings as necessary and to move on.

The moral of this story?

Curiosity kills the cat—and the copycat. • Works Consulted Annan, Jules. “Murderabilia: Eerie Artifacts from the Most Notorious Killers.” abc News, Barcroft Media. n.d. Web. Accessed Nov. 1, 2013.

“Columbine High School massacre.” Wikipedia: June 26, 2002 (last updated November 1, 2013). Web. Accessed Nov. 4, 2013.

Duell, Mark. “Rose West’s corset, a letter from Ruth Ellis and John Wayne Gacy’s red handprint: The bizarre and chilling world of ‘Murderabilia.’” Associated Newspapers Ltd.: London, England. Oct. 24, 2013. Web. Accessed Nov. 2, 2013.

Frissore, Michael. “The 9 Greatest Serial Killer Nicknames.” The Unpublishables. Aug. 22, 2010. Web. Accessed October 30, 2013.

Holler, Eric. Serial Killers Ink. Web. Accessed Nov. 4, 2013.

“Inside the world of Murderabilia: First, Largest dealer of controversial collectibles based in Florida.” ksat: Antonio, tx. August 5, 2013. Web. Accessed Nov. 4, 2013.

Kugiya, Hugo. “Crime does not pay—unless you sell ‘murderabilia.’” Today News: November 9, 2010. Web. Accessed Oct. 30, 2013.

“List of Serial Killer Nicknames.” n.p. n.d. Web. Accessed Nov. 1, 2013. <http://community.fortunecity.ws/roswell/streiber/273/ inf_nick.htm> Shaffer, David. “Teenage Suicide.” nami: November, 1999. Web. Accessed November 5, 2013.

Tufekci, Zeynep. “The Media Needs to Stop Inspiring Copycat Murders. Here’s How.” The Atlantic Monthly Group. December 19, 2012. Web. Accessed Nov. 4, 2013. wkyc Web Staff. “Cleveland takes a stand against ‘murderabilia.’” wkyc-tv: Cleveland, oh. Aug. 8, 2013. Web. Accessed Nov. 4, 2013.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 49

Old Wives’ Tales From Around the World

By Abena Poku Old wives’ tale noun: a common belief about something that is not based on facts and that is usually false.

Of course we all know what old wives’ tales are—but some of us take them all too seriously. About a year ago, on the first night I spent with my roommate, we had just finished unpacking all our belongings and were starting to clean up the debris when she pulled out a broom. To this I screamed out, “No! You can’t sweep at night! You’ll bring the dwarves here!” I know—not a great first impression. I sounded crazy, but that’s only because from a young age I had been told this Ghanaian old wives’ tale from the country where I was born. You are simply not meant to sweep at night unless you want to be abducted by dwarves. Obviously, being the caring roommate that I am, I was looking out for my roommate and myself.

In all seriousness, I consider myself to be a levelheaded, fairly intelligent person. And I am sure most people who believe in old wives’ tales are as well—but then why do we take these beliefs so seriously? I wanted to find out if, like me, there are people at Wells who take these beliefs seriously and from what culture these tales originate.

If you have friends from outside your own country or culture, then you have undoubtedly noticed many cultural differences.

Just like every culture has their own language, major religions, and clothing style, so too do they have their own peculiar old wives’ tales.

Here are just some of a few tales I compiled from interviewing students at Wells—tales that these students take really seriously.

Philippines Don’t store a broom upside down.

If you are single, refrain from singing while cooking or else you will never marry.

Italy If you cut yourself on Good Friday, the cut will take months to heal.

(Note: Many of the same old wives’ tales exists in different cultures.)

Because most of these tales are not from my own culture, it’s easy to write them off as silly superstitions. But surely, if they were my culture, they would not be as easy to just shrug off (see broom incident). This is part of dealing with living alongside other cultures. You’re continuously exposed to different norms. So, I know I should be culturally sensitive and just deal with some of the quirks—obviously, it’s is nothing new. Since the dawn of civilization, humans have used mythology and folklore to convey important messages about religion, etiquette, and social roles. Indeed, from what I have heard, old wives’ tales are usually just stories of warning about your actions—probably based on someone’s past experiences. And perhaps there is a point in observing them—my room has yet to see a goblin invasion. •

Spain If you walk around barefoot, you’ll catch a cold.

If you eat watermelon at night, it will kill you.

If you’re stomach is exposed to cold weather, you’ll get a cold.

Garlic in your glove compartment will keep you safe from car accidents.

Venezuela

If you take a shower before going to bed, make sure your hair is completely dry. Sleeping with wet hair can cause dementia.



Suriname Don’t cut a baby’s hair until after her first birthday, or you’ll cut her life short.

United States Pee in the shower; it prevents athlete’s foot.

It’s bad luck to spill salt.

Everything bad comes in threes.

Don’t leave your purse on the floor; your money will run out.

Step on a crack, and you’ll break your mother’s back.

You have to wait 30 minutes after eating to swim.

It’s bad luck to open an umbrella indoors.

If you accidentally bite your lip, someone is talking about you.

An itchy nose means you will soon get a letter.

Having itchy palms means that you’ll be getting loads of money soon.

West Indies Do not sleep on an empty stomach. The spirit leaves the body when the body goes hungry and may never return.

You know someone is thinking about you when the urge to sneeze is interrupted halfway.

If you find yourself lost in a forest or field, wear your shirt on inside out and you’ll be able to make your way home without supernatural beings trying to lead you astray.

A kitchen utensil that falls to the floor while you’re having a meal is a sign that a visitor will be coming soon. A spoon means a female; a fork says it will be male.

West Africa A neighbor’s dog howling at midnight prophesizes a sudden death.

Avoid going to sleep immediately after eating a heavy meal at a late hour, or you’ll never wake up.

Don’t let your children play outside the house after six o’clock at night—the time when supernatural beings come out and look for children to steal.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 51

E mbodyi ng L egen d The Search for the Perfect Superhero In American Film

By Kristen Ryan

S

uperheroes are fairly common archetypes in American film culture and it is simply accepted that the actors who portray these characters will change with time. After all, the idea of the hero, not necessarily the actor is what matters here. But then this summer Ben Affleck suddenly became the next Batman, and Twitter and Facebook exploded with shock and rage. Of course, some people weren’t upset with the decision, but those who were cited his age, general critiques of his acting in the past (particularly in 2003’s Daredevil) and that the observation that he is more in dad-mode than super-hero mode as reasons for their disapproval. Up until that point, actors like Ryan Gosling and Joseph Gordon-Levitt were rumored to be taking up the role and even older gents like Gerard Butler were part of the buzz.

Of course, this decision matters to a lot of Americans, both fans of the comics and movie-goers alike. And information on why the decision was made or plans for the impending Batman versus Superman film have been largely kept quiet. Still, this example does suggest that Americans are tied to both the hero and the dude that plays him. To keep Americans happy, an actor should reflect some of the traditional aspects of that particular hero as well as designate a “new direction” for the series. Ben Affleck aside, how do movie and television studios choose the actors who end up playing some of the biggest legends in American culture? And how do these heroes change as a result?

The Pressure to Build: Right Guy, Right Story Any study involving a discussion of the American superhero will probably have something to do with Superman. Although from another planet, Superman has managed to invade the very identity of what makes a hero “super.” While perhaps only rivaled in his “American-ness” by the more obviously named Captain America, his legacy within the superhero genre is 52 FEATURES

unsurpassed in terms of both ubiquity and popularity. Think of it this way: the first Superman character debuted in a 1938 comic book. That was 75 years ago. And if you have seen the most recent version of this gallant icon in this summer’s Man of Steel, then you know—he looks damn good for his age.

And looking good is a huge part of the Superman role.

There has always been a very particular “look” that linked one Superman to the next. Take, for example, the similar physical appearance between Christopher Reeve, one of many famous names in the Superman train, and Brandon Routh, the generally dismissed actor who portrayed the Kryptonite native in 2006’s box office ghost Superman Returns. Typical for both depictions is white skin, retro-styled black hair (with that one oddly maintained curl of hair), a very large and toned body and piercing blue eyes. The selection of Routh as the new Superman was a clear return to the ghosts of Krypton’s past, emphasizing the very well known history of actors who have portrayed Superman on the big and small screens.

Perhaps, in Superman, we see the kind of legacy we expect from such a prominent hero. Superman is so much more than Brandon Routh or even the newest man in tights, Henry Cavill.

Although there isn’t a strong link back to Superman’s first life appearance in the 1939 World’s Fair (portrayed by the littleknown Ray Middleton), current audiences now know many of the names of Superman actors from film and television. Most notable on this list includes George Reeves (who first performed the role in 1951 and who is the only actor to portray the role both on TV and on the big screen), Christopher Reeve (first acting out the role in 1978), Dean Cain (Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman premiered in 1993) and Tom Welling (of Smallville fame).

While this list of “Supermen” is relatively well known with American audiences, these men are linked beyond their good looks and statuesque poses. Indeed, Superman in film is unique

S

in that there is a supposed “Superman Curse,” which is said to haunt those who portray the role. Not only do these men all don the iconic “S” on their chest (okay, it’s not really an “S” but still), many are also linked by disastrous injuries and unexpected deaths. Christopher Reeve’s paralyzing horseback riding incident may be the first to mind, but others who portrayed the hero, including George Reeves and Lee Quigley, each suffered unexpected deaths. Quigley, who played a baby Superman in Superman: The Movie (1978), died at 14 of inhalant abuse; George Reeves reportedly committed suicide on the eve of his wedding in 1959. While the merit to this curse isn’t important here, it does again show just how closely people are paying attention to these actors, the connections between them and the meaning associated with the role.

Of course, the newest Superman is Henry Cavill, an actor of U.K. origin most known for his role as the promiscuous best friend of Henry vii on The Tudors. In some ways, Cavill is a departure from the Superman norm. While he has the same physique as Routh and Reeves (basically the same build for every male superhero today), his face and hair are marked points of deviance from the Superman norm. In a Batman film, such features wouldn’t necessarily be of note (unless the actor wasn’t handsome—scandal!). To some extent, Cavill’s suit is also tricked out: it no longer consists of the basic red and blue but instead has a darker, more metallic quality to it. Again, these changes are somewhat minor but do represent a new direction for the franchise.

Furthermore, it is particularly interesting that Cavill’s Superman premiered so quickly after Routh’s attempt in 2006.

A similar phenomenon happened with the recent Spider-Man reboot, in which Tobey Maguire was replaced by Andrew Garfield. The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) is marketed as a completely new franchise, far distanced from the initial success of Maguire’s 2001 version Spider-Man. Potential reasons for

this change include Maguire’s age (he is eight years older than Garfield) as well as how the hero turned into a “dark” Spidey in which Peter Parker apparently forget to wash his hair and generally acted like an emotional mess that even Tumblr would toss back. The scene where he basically danced down the sidewalk was rough too.

Getting back to Superman, Brandon Routh received generally sour reviews for his uncharismatic portrayal of a legendary figure and, although his film made a profit, it still amassed under the 500 million dollar that was expected. Such a quick turnover in both these cases reflects not only the flexibility of the hero itself but the need to constantly have a young, fit and charismatic actor in the role. While the audience may not necessarily crave a new Superman after less than a decade, we are incredibly interested in who plays the role and how the story can be twisted in such a short amount of time.

There are limits, however, to the extent in which we want our heroes to change. While in physical appearance Cavill represents some deviation from the Superman legacy, it was the storyline of this new film that distressed some loyal fans.

In the film, the ultimate fight between Superman and Krypton villain Zod ends in a very un-Superman-like fashion: Superman actually kills Zod rather than just imprisoning him. The build up to the murder is also somewhat controversial in that the Superman-Zod fight results in the destruction of most of downtown Metropolis. How could people not be dying when these guys are crashing into and destroying buildings? But the key here is that Superman consciously committed the one act that many believed was beyond his capability. He murdered someone. True, he did it in what film writer David Goyer calls a “no win scenario” and only killed Zod to protect innocent humans. But still, this is pretty big.

In response to the controversy, Goyer explained that he felt a need to modernize the archetype of Superman. Does this THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 53

mean that not killing people is so 1950? No, Goyer believes that this film is, at its core, a telling of the Superman origin. Here is when we see why Superman develops a no-killing code. Not only was he traumatized by this murder, but it is extra personal because Zod was the last hope of recreating the Krypotonian race, of basically recreating Superman’s destroyed home. Of course, this is all slightly less convincing when one of the next scenes is of Superman laughing at a cia agent. Regardless, this change does beg the question: what makes a modern superhero?

Is it cgi in 3D paired with insane violence that supposedly represents a realistic fight scene? Is it a more dynamic, even revolutionary character arch?

In these ways, what we have conceived as perhaps the most traditional American superhero is changing. He is still the handsome man in tights with laser vision, but his capabilities for destruction—and the limits he places on himself in causing such destruction—have been transformed. Given that Americans are perhaps most tied to the identity of Superman, both in his character and in the legacy of portrayal, such a discussion of who this person is and how he is changing is both potent and controversial.

A Message Worth the Nine Bucks (Before Buying Any Redvines) If Superman represents a more traditional American hero, where in the world can we put Batman? The “Dark Knight,” as he has been more popularly deemed in the most recent installment of the archetype, represents a far seedier confrontation with evil. Batman’s dark nature is intrinsic to his image. After all, he is a bat: a nocturnal creature that is often misunderstood as something to fear. In this three film recreation of the story of the caped crusader, as portrayed by Christian Bale and directed

by Christopher Nolan, we see a Batman who is not only hiding his true identity from Gotham City but who is also the scapegoat, the only one strong enough to take on the corruption of Gotham and ultimately take the blame for the death of the “white knight,” Harvey Dent. This Batman is strong and good but, at the same time, represents that blurred line between hero and villain.

Batman as a character shares much in common with our other two subjects. He is rich and intelligent like Iron Man’s Tony Stark, and he uses these resources to benefit others. His superhero identity is somewhat “other” in its ominous animal reference and black motif and is thus similar in a way to Superman, who is “other” by his alien identity. Furthermore, both Batman and Superman attempt to hide their identities far more than Tony Stark does. Still, Batman has a very unique identity of his own. While Superman is weird because he wasn’t born here, Batman (and his birth identity, Bruce Wayne) is weird because he dresses up like a bat, drives around in impossibly amazing machines and essentially cleans up Gotham without any help from the expected social patrollers… you know, the police.

Of course, Christian Bale is tumultuous enough to merit his own analysis. Primarily of interest here is that Bale epitomizes the skill of method acting, perhaps to a fault. While his well publicized (and oft well remixed) rant on the set of Terminator led many to be—at least temporarily—disappointed in the actor, it is a good example of his dedication to character. The rant was 54 FEATURES

directed to a crewmember that interrupted a very serious scene during the shooting of Terminator, in which Bale played the unhinged character of John Connors. According to Bale, the incident took place at a moment when he “completely mixed up fact and fiction. I’m half John Connor, I’m half Christian there” (bbc News, 2009). While this may just be a justification to save his image, his method acting is also extremely noticeable in his instances of dramatic weight fluctuations for film. Bale reportedly only weighed about 121 pounds for a film in 2004 before bulking up to 190 for 2005’s Batman Begins, with further fluctuations to follow. This trend demonstrates a very physical dedication to characters and sets Bale apart both for his unique acting style and for the insane lengths he takes to most accurately portray a certain role.

Considering the identities of both Batman and Bale, this new hero is as dramatic and crazy as ever. The subversive identity of Batman in this newest trilogy is emphasized further by the villains he fights. Consistently, Batman is pitted against those who are actually comparable to Batman, and Bruce Wayne, in intensity. Ra’s al Ghul, the revolutionary-minded leader of the League of Shadows, trained Bruce both physically and mentally, creating a deeply rooted and complex connection between the League and the Batman identity (a connection later drawn on again in The Dark Knight Rises). The Joker, played by the late Heath Ledger, epitomized chaos and an almost inhuman disregard for others. To this villain, however, Batman wasn’t necessarily his opposite: [The Joker to Batman]: Don’t talk like one of them, you’re not! Even if you’d like to be. To them, you’re just a freak, like me. They need you right now. But when they don’t, they’ll cast you out, like a leper. See, their morals, their code... it’s a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They’re only as good as the world allows them to be. I’ll show you, when the chips are down, these... these civilized people? They’ll eat each other. See, I’m not a monster, I’m just ahead of the curve. (“The Dark Knight” 2008) Here, the Joker implies that Batman is refusing to accept that he is different from the rest of Gotham. Both characters have found something wrong with the way the city is constructed and controlled, in the way that its leaders have left the innocent to fall into ruin while crime abounds. While they deviate from one another in their responses to this problem, their mutual inability to be socialized into the typical Gotham blind-eye mentality makes them outsiders.

According to Christopher Nolan, this “Dark Knight” can’t be understood completely without the “White Knight,” Harvey Dent. The comparison between these two characters is derived from the different ways in which they deal with the chaos in Gotham, especially once it has been escalated by the Joker.

While Batman literally fights crime hidden behind a mask, Dent as the District Attorney focuses on bringing down crime rings based on established law and order. He is the public face of justice, one which Gotham citizens can look towards with confidence as one of “us” who is doing good. Who knew that the face of moral praxis didn’t need to be covered by a black mask and could actually be blonde and handsome?

When Dent eventually loses his mind after the death of his love and attempts to kill Batman’s ally, Gotham City Police Commisioner Gordon, and his family, Batman ultimately takes

the blame for his death, hoping to keep the “White Knight” image alive. Because Batman isn’t the kind of hero that Gotham needs in order to create a sustainable social order. According to Lieutenant Gordon, …he’s the hero Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now.

So we’ll hunt him. Because he can take it. Because he’s not our hero.

He’s a silent guardian. A watchful protector. A Dark Knight. (“The Dark Knight” 2008) In this sense, Batman isn’t “our” superhero at all. At least not in the traditional sense. But this identity as “anti-superhero” actually only increases the admiration for this iconic character.

He is strong enough to take care of us without needing the praise or even the acceptance of his fellow citizens.

Some Serious Swag From “The Billionaire Playboy Philantropist” Finally, we expect our superheroes to be decked out. Whether it’s the high-powered gear that could have been designed by only a Morgan Freeman character in the Batman series or the insane testosterone machine that is Henry Cavill (he didn’t have those muscles in The Tudors, mind you), Americans expect those they idolize to have the equipment to match their message. Bat Mobiles and an extreme dedication to P90x aside, no modern superhero matches the swag of Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man. Both Downey Jr. and Tony Stark have come to represent a strange combination of both arrogance and a touch of humility translated to the populace through sarcasm and deadpan delivery. These two characters, (given that Downey Jr.’s answers in interviews have taken on a life their own on social sites like Tumblr, Pinterest and BuzzFeed), are saviors with sass and unite our superhero identity with an unmistakable 21st century attitude: you don’t always have to be good to do good.

Take, for example, the legend that is Robert Downey Jr. Achieving success early in life, including an Oscar in 1992 for Chaplin, Downey eventually garnered a reputation for his drug addiction and troubles with the law. Arrested for drug possession on various occasions and known for breaking his parole codes, Downey spent a year in California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison before being released in 2000. It was the 1996 trial which sent him to prison, originally for a three year sentence after he was found speeding through traffic while in possession of cocaine, heroin and a gun.

To the court, Downey explained, “It’s like I’ve got a shotgun in my mouth, with my finger on the trigger, and I like the taste of the gun metal” (bbc News, 1999). Further infractions with the law occurred until 2001, the time of his last arrest, but in 2004, Downey explained on Oprah that he had to make the conscious decision to take control of his life.

Downey’s first big blockbuster after giving up drugs was Iron Man (2008). According to Director Jon Favreau, the selection of Downey had quite a bit to do with his history as a person, explaining “Downey Jr. wasn’t the most obvious choice but he understood what makes the character tick. He found a lot of his own life experience in Tony Stark” (The List, 2008). And truly, the man behind the Iron Man gear has his own reputation as well. Self-defined as a “billionaire playboy philanthropist” (The

Avengers 2012), Stark promotes anything from casual sex and excessive drinking in practice to nihilism and a kind of selfloathing conceit in his relationships with others. Of course, this character changes over time, mostly due to his assistant Pepper Potts but also as a result of his superhero status. After all, this is enough to throw any person into a crisis of heart.

And so who is the new Iron Man created through the melding of these two iconic characters? He is a paradox. He is a superhero that wears sunglasses while being questioned by the Department of Defense and who also turns his own home into an eco-friendly, “beacon of reusable energy” (Iron Man 2 2010). He drunkenly destroys his own home in a fight with his best friend and sacrifices his own body to the pain associated with his radioactive core. He is an absolute genius who actually creates a new atom just after struggling to find an emotional connection to his own father. This guy is all over the place because he is the most unique mix of swag and humility. Not only is he the ultimate character of redemption, but he flaunts his failures as well as his successes in the public eye without defining a typical superhero moral line between them. After all, he boldly (and unexpectedly) told a mass of reporters of his superhero alter ego without missing a beat. This character (and those that construct him) is ultimate in superhero attitude because he is the definition of both human failure and the hard earned redemption that defines a person as “super.” •

Works Cited Superman “Zack Snyder and David Goyer Talk about Controversial ‘Man of Steel’ Ending...that Christopher Nolan Didn’t Want.” EW. com. N.p., 19 June 2013. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

Young, Paul. “16 Actors Who Have Portrayed Superman.” Screen Rant. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

Keyes, Rob. “The Story Behind Henry Cavill’s Superman Casting.” Screen Rant. N.p., 31 Jan. 2011. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

“In Defense of Brandon Routh’s Superman.” CraveOnline. N.p., 12 June 2013. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

Batman Vary, Adam B. “The Cost Of Becoming A Superhero.” BuzzFeed. BuzzFeed, 30 July 2013. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

“Actor Bale Speaks out over Rant.” bbc News. bbc, 02 June 2009.

Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

Ryan, Tom. “In Defence of Big, Expensive Films.” In Defence of Big, Expensive Films. N.p., 14 July 2005. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

“Thor’s Cartoon, Stan Lee’s Medal and Dick Tracy’s Fate All in Everyday Hero headlines.”Hero Complex Movies Comics Pop Culture Los Angeles Times. N.p., 17 Nov. 2008. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

Iron Man “Robert Downey Jr.’s Heroic Comeback.” The List – the Guide to What’s on in the UK. The List, 2 May 2008. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

“World: Americas Addicted Downey Jnr Jailed.” bbc News. bbc, 08 June 1999. Web. 04 Nov. 2013. “rdj on O 3.” YouTube. YouTube, 06 June 2010. Web. 04 Nov. 2013.

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56

WELLS

LEGENDS

BY MIA WILSON

Ernie Olson, an Associate Professor of Anthropology and Religion began teaching in the Fall of 1994.

I asked him what he thought he was known for and I’m sure all you fellow students and coworkers know his answer...

“KAVA.” THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 57

My idea was to go around Wells Campus and find the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Legendsâ&#x20AC;? of Wells College. Clearly, there are more than five Legends across our campus, but we needed a limit or we could have an entire issue of just the legendary Professors and Faculty of Wells.

Jeanne Goddard One of the Professors of Dance, Goddard began teaching part-time in the Fall of 1987. I asked her what she thought she was known for, and she started laughing. What she recalled being most known for on campus was her comedic personality and a big heart. She also spoke about an ongoing joke with students and Professor Easter.

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THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 59

Bruce Bennett As a Professor of English and Director of Creative Writing, he began teaching at Wells in the Fall of 1973. I asked him what he thought he was known for here at Wells and at first he really had no clue what he was known for.

He opened up, speaking about

his â&#x20AC;&#x153;love for what he teaches with an enthusiastic attitudeâ&#x20AC;? and how his students truly appreciate his care.

60

Linda Lohn A Professor of English and National Endowment for the Humanities Preceptor in Writing, Lohn began teaching in the Fall of 1990. I asked what she thought she was known for, and she replied with

“bashing PCs” and “hegemony.”

At first, I had no clue what she was talking about then, once we took these photos, she actually tried throwing a PC. THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 61

Being able to meet with all of these professors, speaking to them one-on-one, and learning about their lives here at Wells was truly an honor to have. Some of their stories made me completely speechless, and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m very lucky to have met these truly phenomenal people so early in my career at Wells. Most importantly, after doing this project, I have learned the professors here at Wells College really are legends.

62

Tukumbi Lumumba-Kasongo As a Professor of Political Science as well as other subjects here at Wells, he began teaching here in the Fall of 1993. I asked him what he thought he was most known for on campus, his first instinct was

“I’m tough.”

Working closely with his Teaching Assistants and his students gave him the Best Teaching Award as well as great relationships with them. While Professor Lumumba-Kasongo may be “tough” to some students, he gives them creative space with his papers—especially the senior thesis.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 63

X]X

Musings X]X

Shedding Light on the Greek Muses

By Missy Brewer If you were to walk into a room full of 20-somethings today, blurt out “Greek gods,” and then exit the room, most would have familiarity with the topic to which you were referring. Ancient Greek mythology has become a fascination with many people today, perhaps because the subject is so different from modern culture; or maybe the fascination is as simple as a Disney movie. I am sure that ’90s kids remember the 1997 film Hercules, as well as the five tiny, fabulous ladies who narrated the story—the Muses.

They provided comic relief and sang such catchy tunes as “The Gospel Truth” and “Zero to Hero.”

In ancient Greek tradition, the Muses were the inspiration for intellectuals. Created by Zeus, the ruler of the gods, each Muse was associated with a different field of study. The Muses were not only called upon for inspiration, however, but also to help relieve human sorrows. Despite having been mothered by the Titaness of memory, the Muses were widely known for helping people to forget. Traditionally, the Muses spent their time with the god Apollo, dancing and singing as he played the lyre (“Muses, the Goddesses”).

The Muses make appearances in epic poetry, Renaissance paintings, contemporary films, and many more forms of artistic expression throughout time. They have inspired artists to tell stories of heroes, monsters and romance. Despite philosophical, religious and technological shifts throughout history, the legends of the Muses have managed to hold great influence over and give amusement to the masses while molding to these changing cultures in order to remain relevant.

Muse by Muse The legends of the Muses include nine very different sisters, each specializing in a certain field of knowledge. Interestingly enough, each Muse can fit into examples of modern-day women, lending even further to the relevance of the Muses.

Calliope: Muse of Epic Poetry Calliope is the oldest and wisest of the sisters, and is considered the most excellent. She is known as Homer’s favorite Muse, and in some versions of the legend she is Homer’s mother. Classic Depiction: Wearing a golden crown and holding The Odyssey.

Modern Muse: Bookworm.

Clio: Muse of History Clio is often considered the inventor of the guitar, as well as being the Muse of History. As legend has it, the Greek Goddess of love, Aphrodite, once made Clio fall in love with the Greek mortal Pierus, and together Clio and Pierus had Hyacinth, the lover of Apollo. Classic Depiction: Dressed in purple with laurels in her hair and a history book in her hand. Modern Muse: Hipster.

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Erato: Muse of Love Poetry Erato is a lover of love affairs and will defend all variations of them. She is also the Muse of hymns and wedding songs, contributing to the typical association of her with love. Although her fellow Muse, Terpsichore, is the Muse of dance, Erato claims that she invented the art of dancing. Classic Depiction: Holding a guitar or lyre in her hands. Modern Muse: Wild child.

Euterpe: Muse of Music Euterpe is known as the “Giver of Pleasure” because of her many talents. In addition to being the Muse of music, she is also the muse of lyric poetry and sometimes of sports. According to Greek tradition, Euterpe is the mother of Rheusus, a hero in The Iliad, whom she had with the river Strymon. Classic Depiction: Holding a flute. Modern Muse: Band Geek.

Thalia: Muse of Comedy Thalia is also the Muse of pastoral poetry, and sometimes of vegetation. All of her divine attributes convey a natural and easy feeling about her persona. It was often said that she had “eyes that flowed love.” Classic Depiction: Holding a comedy mask and shepherd’s crook. Modern Muse: Class Clown.

Melpomene: Muse of Tragedy Melpomene is the opposite of Thalia’s personality. As the Muse of Tragedy, she brings the drama that Thalia lacks. The two Muses are considered the two sides of the same coin. Classic Depiction: Holding a tragedy mask, and sometimes wearing buskins and a crown of wine leaves. Modern Muse: Drama Freak.

Polyhymnia: Muse of Hymns Polyhymnia is the serious one of the bunch, and is more specifically the Muse of divine hymns, sacred poetry and pantomime.

She is considered the inventor of geometry in addition to her more artistic talents. Classic Depiction: Looking strictly and thoughtfully up at the sky while wearing a wreath of laurels in her hair and playing the lyre. Modern Muse: Avid Church-goer.

Terpsichore: Muse of Dance Terpsichore is also known as the Muse of dramatic chorus. Her story fits in with that of the Sirens, the singing women who appear in The Odyssey, as she is their mother. The Sirens would also accompany the Muses in singing competitions. Classic Depiction: Playing the lyre, flute or triangle. Modern Muse: Dance Captain.

Urania: Muse of Astronomy Urania could predict the future by the position of the stars, and was thus also the Muse of astrology as well of mathematics. She wasn’t only confined to the world of science and math, however, as she was a “defender of love passion.” Classic Depiction: Hold-

ing a globe. Modern Muse: Science Fanatic (“Muses, the Goddesses”).

Origins in Ancient Greece Around 800 bce the Greek civilization developed their own alphabet, which was based on the Phoenician alphabet, finally allowing the stories that had long been transmitted orally to be written down (Pomeroy et al. 90-95). This transition brought about a new literary tradition, with the popular form being epic poetry. Homer was the supposed father—I say supposed because there is much debate on whether a man name Homer even existed—of epic poetry after he wrote The Iliad and The Odyssey, setting up patterns and traditions epic poets would later follow.

Another writer connected with the inspiration of the Muses is Hesiod. According to legend, Hesiod was a shepherd in Ancient Greece when the Muses gave him the ability to write poetry. In exchange they asked him to write down mankind’s past and future and, narcissistically, to praise the Muses throughout it. Therefore, Hesiod’s work is one of the first and most treasured recordings of history. It is also one that gives us insight into the treatment of the Muses (“Muses, the Goddesses”).

One tradition these two established that has stuck to this day is the invocation of the Muses. At the beginning of the epic work— almost where a prologue or forward would be—the author wrote a prayer to the Muses, asking for the words and power to write about their desired subject. Homer’s invocation in the beginning of The Odyssey asks the divinities to “Sing to me of the man, Muse, the man of twists and turns / driven time and again off course, once he had plundered / the hallowed heights of Troy...

Launch out on his story, Muse, daughter of Zeus, / start from where you will—sing for our time too” (77). To start The Iliad, a tale filled with more war and battle than The Odyssey, Homer began, “Anger—sing, goddess, the anger of Achilles son of Peleus, that accursed anger, which brought the Greeks endless sufferings…It all began when Agamemnon lord of men and godlike Achilles quarreled and parted” (4). These may be two invocations from the same author, but each cater to the specific stories. The Odyssey is written in an unchronological fashion, filled with flashbacks and changes of setting. The invocation captures the individuality of the story, and gives a hint to its confusing plot line.

The invocation to The Iliad starts with “Anger,” which is extremely representative of the wrath and revenge that drives Achilles throughout the story.

Invocations also varied between authors, as Hesiod referenced the Muses more directly in “Hesiod’s Theogony,” So spoke the fresh-voiced daughters of great Zeus And plucked and gave a staff to me, a shoot Of blooming laurel, wonderful to see, And breathed a sacred voice into my mouth With which to celebrate the things to come And things which were before. They ordered me To sing the race of blessed ones who live Forever, and to hymn the Muses first And at the end. No more delays; begin.

Although Homer and Hesiod were somewhat contemporaries, their invocations were highly individualized. Homer pleads to the Muses and focuses on how they can help him write his po-

ems. Hesiod, however, tells a story within his invocation, as he recalls the moment when the Muses imbued him with the gift of storytelling. Each legendary man believed in the Muses as a source of creative power, and they used that inspiration to cater to their own stories and start a tradition that would be followed by many to come.

Sticking Through Time The story of the Muses may have been created with the Greek Gods in the time of the Greek archaic period, but unlike the popularity of polytheism, the legend of the Muses did not diminish.

As the Renaissance flourished in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Muses were given new life through art; they were depicted as real people, often in Renaissance dress. In Giovanni Baglione’s “Clio, Muse of History,” Clio is shown in a large Renaissance dress, complete with a dark hat (“Muses”). The characterization of the Muses as frolicking ladies was formed because of Renaissance depictions and has continued throughout time. In group portraits the Muses are distinguished by their individual possessions, but are brought together by the landscape, often a field, and their focus on Apollo. Andrea Mantegna’s 1497 “Parnassus” depicts Aphrodite and Ares, the God of War, standing over the dancing Muses, with Apollo accompanying them on the lyre (“Muses”). The painting helped to establish the stereotypical idea of the Muses as music and dance-loving young beauties.

After the Renaissance, artists went through rollicking times as always, shifting through such movements as the Mannerist, Baroque, and Rococo until the development of the Neoclassic movement in the mid-18th century, in which the Muses were prominently featured once again. Anton Raphael Mengs painted “Apollo and the Muses on Parnassus” in 1760, mimicking even the setting in the Mategna’s Renaissance painting (“Anton Raphael Mengs”). Neoclassicism focused on the values of Ancient Rome—sacrifice, honor, duty—and the Muses and Apollo would have represented those morals that were inspired by the Muses in various works.

Together and individually, the Muses form a striking group.

All interpretations tended to pull on the accepted characteristics of each muse, but through certain details the artists’ devotion to the Muses can be seen very clearly. Thalia, the muse of comedy, has been traditionally depicted with a smile, a feature that most other subjects in paintings do not have. A great example of Thalia is in Jean-Marc Nattier’s “Thalia, Muse of Comedy” painted in 1739 (“Muses”). Clio, the muse of history, has been depicted by Jan Vermeer van Delft in a meta sense—he has portrayed himself painting her in “The Art of Painting” (“Muses”). If that is hard to wrap your head around, the other depictions of Muses are a bit simpler. “Homer and Calliope” by Jacques Louis-David—a prominent Neoclassical French painter—portrayed Calliope with her beloved Homer draped in classic Greek togas (“Muses).

Although the styles differ slightly, each Muse is a clear individual when portrayed by artists. Some artists even painted portraits of prominent people of the time in the guise of certain Muses. For example, in 1788 an unknown artist depicted Marie-Antoinette as Erato—a fitting portrayal because of Marie’s lavish lifestyle in France (“Muses”). Generally, the unifying feature of any piece of art featuring the Muses is an airiness about the scene, one that is full of sheer fabrics, light flowers and flowing hair.

The legends of the Muses even made it through the developTHE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 65

ment of monotheism, more specifically, Christianity. The masses stopped believing in a family of gods intervening in everyday life, turned to one God and his prophet son, and thus the Greek gods became mere stories that taught valuable lessons. Homer and Hesiod’s invocation also shifted as it became less of a prayer and more of an acknowledgement of tradition. Famous Christian writers, such as Chaucer and Milton, included these forwards, but their highly religious works indicate that they did not believe in the Muses as goddesses that were watching over them. Instead the influence of the Muses became a sort of superstition, in which writers would honor the Muses in hopes that their works became well known. The Muses have been able to remain in the artistic and literary traditions, even as their legendary contemporaries have disappeared from religious disciples.

Modern Amusement The influence of the Muses can be seen everywhere in today’s fast-paced world. Even in the English language, the Muses have left their mark. “Museum” is derived from the idea of a public place of knowledge and was first used by 18th century Enlightenment thinkers when they wanted to establish a “Cult of the Muses,” coinciding with the Neoclassical painters of the time (“Muses”). Words like “music,” “musings,” and “amuse” have roots in the worship of the nine Muses. Modern companies around the world are titled after the Muses, such as the Italian Magazine “Muse Magazine” (“Muses). “Adobe Muse” is a program that lets anyone design and publish a website without having to write a code (“Adobe Muses”). Both of these enterprises focus on culture and creativity—just as the Muses did.

In addition to the Disney hit Hercules, the story of the Muses has also inspired modern, live-action movies. The Muse tells of a struggling writer who hires a woman that advertises herself as a “personal muse,” and Down to Earth is a musical love story in which Terpsichore comes to Earth to chastise a cheesy Broadway producer, but ends up falling in love with him. Among these examples, there are countless references in various TV shows and movies to the heavenly creatures that could bring inspiration. An obvious reference lies in the alternative rock band, “Muse,” who supposedly chose their name when a school teacher mentioned the Greek Muses (“Muses”).

In following the tradition of the invocation, we can see that it has become a practice for some writers today to ask the Muses for guidance when stuck in the writing process. There are plenty of websites instructing you on how to channel your creative energy and invoke the power of the Muses. Author Howard Andrew Jones even posted his own “Invocation of the Muses” on his website; although he states that he does not believe in the Muses, just the state of mind that saying something like this will bring about: Muses, I praise thee.

Grant me the vision to craft words of power that sear into the mind’s eye.

Let my ears hear words that are true and pure.

Let my inspiration be a mighty steed that carries me forward.

I pledge to you that I shall fight Resistance and strive to bring glory to the tales you would have me tell.

Let the work begin.

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The tradition that Homer started over 2,500 years ago has maintained its relevance because of the overwhelming success of The Iliad and The Odyssey. Homer’s protagonists of the epics, Achilles and Odysseus, have become legends in today’s time. A part of the body is even named after the reason of Achilles’ downfall (the Achilles tendon). Writers of today want to create such long-lasting stories that, for whatever reason, capture the reader’s attention and keep them invested. Like vocal performers warming up for a show, writers use different methods of overcoming writer’s block, one of them being turning to the great Muses.

Are You Amused?

Why should we care about the Muses? Would our culture really be any different if Homer had ignored them and the Renaissance had just forgotten them? Perhaps we would still have the same stories and legends, but perhaps not. Creativity does not spring out of nowhere. A writer, actor, or artist creates because of some inner inspiration, something that is hard to pinpoint. The simple idea of nine, beautiful demigods as s source of inspiration became an outlet for creative expression; a reason for new and innovative creations. Legends were created because the Muses were supporting them. Whether an artist produced a depiction of the Muses themselves or drew inspiration from one of their artistic fields, the art that was created lead the way towards further artistic movements and inspirations.

The Muses and everything that they inspired is all around us.

Studying abroad in Europe, I just had the amazing opportunity to travel to Switzerland, Germany, and Austria during my fall break. In each country we visited at least one museum, and the Muses were present in every one of them. I could spot them in unnamed statues that lined the hallways of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and in various paintings throughout the Neue Pinakothek in Munich. Artists everywhere are driven to honor the Muses in any way they can. The Muses have stayed relevant to current culture, outlasting various trends and interests, and remaining an inspiration for people all around the world. • Works Cited “Adobe Muse CC/faq.” Adobe.com. Adobe Systems, 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.

“Anton Raphael Mengs—Apollo and the Muses on Parnassus.” Sedef ’s Corner. 9 Oct. 2011. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.

“Hesiod’s Theogony.” Ivpress.com. 15 June 2007. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.

Homer, E.V. Rieu, and Peter Jones. The Iliad. London: Penguin, 2003. Print.

Homer, Robert Fagles, and Bernard Knox. The Odyssey. New York: Penguin, 2006. Print.

“Invocation of the Muses.” Howard Andrew Jones. 13 Feb. 2013.

Web. 16 Oct. 2013.

“Muses.” CC 302 Final Project. Web. 16 Oct. 2013.

“Muses, the Goddesses of Art and Science.” Greek-Gods.info.

Web. 28 Sept. 2013.

Pomeroy, Sarah B., Stanley M. Burstein, Walter Donlan, Jennifer Tolbert Roberts, and David Tandy. Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History. 3rd ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2012.

Print.

( Legends That We Live By

)

By Shane Puskar

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 67

I

n what is perhaps his most important work, Friedrich Nietzsche kicks off On the Genealogy of Morality by stating, “We are unknown to ourselves, we knowers: and with good reason” (3). Rarely do such provocative statements show up in philosophy. However, Nietzsche was not your run-of-the-mill philosopher. He, along with Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud, has been called a ‘master of suspicion.’ Indeed Nietzsche, Marx, and Freud mastered the interpretative technique known as the hermeneutics of suspicion (Ricoeur 32). Unlike many of their contemporaries who simply (or simplistically) analyzed claims to knowledge on a purely evidential basis, our three masters of suspicion plumbed considerably deeper wells; they attempted to expose the self-deception and the latent motives that influence our behavior and shape our values. Yet, what were elements of self-deception and the latent motives that Nietzsche, Marx, and Freud were suspicious of ?

After examining Marx’s critique of morality, Nietzsche’s critique of truth, and Freud’s critique of God, I will consider objections to their positions as well as possible responses. Because I do not necessarily agree with the views of Marx, Nietzsche and Freud, my overall aim is simply to provide a thought provoking discussion of the ‘masters of suspicion’ and the philosophical legends that they challenged.

To start, Marx is deeply suspicious of the origins of our ethical values, and their ‘objectivity.’ Many individuals believe that their moral views are given to them by God or are discovered via rational reflection. For Marx, this view is mired in self-deception.

In their essay The Communist Manifesto, Marx and his coauthor, Friedrich Engels, declare that, “the history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles” (3). Accordingly, since the history of society is a history of class struggle, then it should not be surprising that morality amounts to a reflection of the interests of the dominant classes. To quote Marx and Engels again, “Law, morality, religion, are to [the proletarian] so many bourgeois prejudices, behind which lurk in ambush just as many bourgeois interests” (14). For Marx, any ahistorical formulation of the origins of morality is to a naiveté about social relations; one cannot properly examine the values of a society without first taking a look into the structure of social class, as it is the economically dominant class (the bourgeoisie) who determine what is moral and immoral.

So, what is the upshot of Marx’s take on morality? In short, whenever people make moral claims they are essentially parroting the interests of those in power. However, can we take Marx’s analysis of morality seriously? It seems rather far-fetched to believe that our moral values are merely reflections of the interests of the dominant classes within our society. However, let us introspect for a minute and consider an example: how often do we hear people argue over the moral status of abortion? Fairly

68 HUMANITIES

frequently, right? Yet, why would we even be having debates about what women do with their bodies if our society did not view women as property or a mere means of production? There is no debate about the moral status of vasectomies, after all.

Let us take our Marxian analysis of abortion a bit further. On the one hand, those that moralize abortion in terms of women’s rights seem to be use capitalist language—the language of private property—in order to justify the right a woman has to her body.

Private property is arguably the foundation of capitalism, and those who are dominant in a capitalist society would never want to threaten the source of their profits. Thus, private property gets moralized and extended, at least conceptually, to almost all areas of our lives. So, despite our belief that we are using neutral language to justify the right to control one’s body, we are still trapped in the vocabulary of the Capitalist, which naturally favors their interests.

What about those who moralize abortion, but in ‘pro-life’ language? Women play a crucial role in any capitalist society: they produce future laborers and consumers. The Capitalist (who needs profits) is dependent upon laborers to produce goods and consumers to buy goods. However, if the production of children is somehow slowed (like in the case of abortion), how can the Capitalist sell his goods and eventually turn a profit? The short answer: he cannot. Naturally, the dominant class comes to value the production of children as good, whereas failure to have them becomes bad. Soon enough, the Capitalist view on childbirth spills out to the rest of society, and its members begin dressing-up their expressions of capitalist values in terms of right and wrong.

Moving on, Nietzsche is dubious of the idea that truth is always good and is quick to debunk that legend. Nietzsche famously declared that the “truth is terrible” (Ecce Homo 144). What, one might justifiably ask, is so terrible about truth? For Nietzsche, there are at least three major ‘truths’ that are detrimental to human life, as they force individual’s to ask, “Why go on living?”

(Leiter). The terrible truths consist of the following: 1) The terrible existential truth that we are animals who will die. Not only do we die, but we will, in all likelihood, not be remembered. Moreover, even if some lucky humans manage to go down in the annals of history, the earth will one day fall victim to a slow heat death, rendering a final judgment on the importance of any human life/creation.

2) The terrible epistemic truth of how little we humans actually know about the world, ourselves, and our values.

3) The terrible moral truth that the world is indifferent to our moral standards. The history of the world is full of natural disasters, not to mention human tragedies.

3

Coming to terms with the three terrible truths is an extremely bitter affair. Indeed, human mortality often leaves people with a feeling of emptiness and a lack of purpose; our epistemic situation is in no better shape as a growing body of evidence supports the thesis that positive illusions are necessary for a healthy psychological state (Taylor and Brown 21-27). Lastly, the terrible moral truth that the world is indifferent to our moral standards tends to shed light onto humanity’s bloody history, not to mention the brutal history of the development of life in general.

What, if anything, is important about Nietzsche’s insights regarding truth? If we take Nietzsche’s insights seriously, then we should eliminate our faith in truth. This is not to say that truth is bad. On the contrary, truth is useful, but its use has limits. Indeed if we, as a society, were to make moral demands of individuals to always seek the truth, then people would be forced to remove their positive illusions—those false beliefs so important to our mental well-being. Worse yet, a moral imperative to seek truth would, at least on Nietzsche’s view, put one face-to-face with the terrible truths. In both cases, a moral demand to seek is selflacerating, at least psychologically.

Lastly, Freud is suspicious that religion boils down to elaborate illusion. It is important to note that, for Freud, an illusion is not a belief that is necessarily false. Rather, an illusion is a belief motivated by wish fulfillment (Freud 40). But what does wish fulfillment have to do with religion? According to Freud, our ancestors developed religious beliefs to cope with the “crushingly superior force of nature” (27). To be more precise, our ancestors, who wished to quell their insecurities about the natural world, humanized nature to make sense of its unforgiving attributes (e.g. lightning storms, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, etc.). Thus, when became humanized, it lost its impersonal attributes. Freud writes, “If the elements have passions that rage… if death itself is not something spontaneous but the violent act of an evil Will… we are not longer helplessly paralyzed; we can at least react” (20).

It is through reaction that religious ritual is born; prayer, alms, hymns, and sacrifices all allow us to bribe, or appease our God(s).

One might argue that Freud’s critique fails to give us adequate grounds for abandoning our religious beliefs. Even if religion is based on illusion (i.e. wish fulfillment), that does not mean there is no God(s), or that God(s) most likely do not exist. Hell, it is entirely possible that humans were created, by the Divine, to live with illusions. In other words, there is no necessary contradiction between religious belief and wish fulfillment.

So, is that it for Freud? Can we brush him off so quickly? I am not so sure. We can concede to the critics of Freud that their observations are spot on. There is no necessary contradiction between religious belief and wish fulfillment. However, there is no necessary contradiction between belief in leprechauns

and wish fulfillment. Yet, no one would take me seriously if I demanded that belief in leprechauns was rational, would they? As Freud notes, illusions make no reference to reality—no attempt to verify their truth or falsity (40). Why, then, should we take religious beliefs to be rational? In short, if Freud is correct that religion was formed due to wish fulfillment, then it seems we possess stronger reasons for doubting the existence of the divine.

At this point in our crash course of the hermeneutics of suspicion, it seems best to take stock of what we have learned.

We have explored the philosophical suspicions of Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Sigmund Freud. For his part, Marx is a powerful critic of morality; for him, popular morality amounts to the interests of the dominant classes. Although Nietzsche is suspicious of many philosophical legends, we explored his suspicion of truth. Nietzsche’s analysis is compelling: it forces us to drop our faith in truth, as it is often terrible. Lastly, Freud suspects religious belief amounts to illusion; the result of psychological coping mechanism passed down from our ancestors. These three writers critiqued morality, the utility of truth, and religious belief by exposing the hidden motives of these philosophical legends. • Bibliography

Freud, Sigmund. The Future of an Illusion. Standard Ed. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1961. Print.

Leiter, Brian, The Truth is Terrible (October 1, 2013). Daniel Came (ed.), Nietzsche on Morality and the Affirmation of Life (Oxford University Press, Forthcoming). Available at ssrn.

Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. The Communist Manifesto.

Updated Ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.

Nietzsche, Friedrich. Ecce Homo: How to Become What One Is. Revised Ed. London: Penguin Books, 1992. 144. Print.

Taylor, Shelley E., and Jonathan D. Brown. “Positive Illusions and Well-Being Revisited Separating Fact From Fiction.” Psychological Bulletin. 116.1 (1994): 21-27. Print.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 69

Urban Myth

PREVENTION Courtesy of Mike Lynch, Expert on Everything with Photos by

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Able to handle a variety of situations, your standard kit comes with the following items: Bloody Mary mix, celery, a black blanket, protective foot wear, a plastic hand, nose plug, sleeping mask, a rubber air horn, and three red rubber balls. To the untrained eye, these items seem like nothing special, but when you look closer, you’ll see their true potential. Each item was carefully selected by experts in all areas of paranormal research to ensure you receive the best product possible.

Picture this—you’re at a party, playing truth or dare, and suddenly you find yourself in the bathroom forced to summon Blood Mary. No problem, we have a solution for you! The ump Kit Bloody Mary Mix has you covered. Our mix is made from allnatural tomatoes grown outdoors by descendants of the original Pilgrims. The purity of the blood line infuses the tomatoes with

70 FEATURES

the hard working values of the Christian God Almighty, and wards off evil spirits. Pink Himalayan Sea Salt that has only been handled by Tibetan monks and Worcestershire Sauce from the local supermarket of Tim Burton help finish off this tasty concoction.

Simply open up your trusty knapsack, take out the Bloody Mary mix and have a swig. Pour ten seconds worth of mix on your head, and then create a circle on the floor around you. Now, when forced to summon the vengeful spirit of Bloody Mary she will be unable to penetrate the ring on the floor, and instead will be reduced to a pool of blood. And you can leave the bathroom gloating to your friends at how cool you are you. Only five easy payments of $79.99, and you can be the cool kid on the block!

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any scenario with confidence and ease. But what about escaped convicts? Have no fear; we have something for them too!

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It’s a dark night, and as you are wandering along the wooded path a rustling in the bushes causes you to pause: behind you, there’s a man with a hooked hand! Normally you may be forced into a game of chess where the hooked man bores you for hours on end about prison politics, and how unfair it is to give the job of librarian to the oldest of inmates when instead it should go to those who are most learned. And through all of this you know the only way out of conversation is if you lose the game of chess, but if you lose he is going to cut off your hand, and so in the end he bores you to death. But all that can be avoided if you buy an Urban Myth Prevention Kit! Simple take out the spare carbonfiber hand and offer it to the man as compensation for your life.

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72 MODELING BY JULIE HUANG

If you’re home alone and paranoid about what might be entering your home when you aren’t paying attention, then take out your rubber air horn, and all your security needs will be taken care of. Simply attach the horn to the front door frame, and secure it with the latch. Our patented rubber horn is made with the finest brass from remote German villages, pristinely shaped to provide maximum volume. That way when creeping through the dark, you won’t be surprised by unexpected guests. Especially that giant clown doll sitting in the corner. I mean, do you like clowns? Who does?

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74 MODELING BY CAROLINA GUERRERO & EMILY YONCE

this situation, don’t worry, the ump kit has you covered! Remove the three red rubber balls and proceed to juggle them. These rubber balls have been specially weighted so that they are barely heavier than your standard circus juggling balls. Now if you’re familiar with Clown Law then you’ll know that clowns are sworn to catch any balls tossed towards them and proceed to juggle them. Now the clown will surely misjudge the weight of these balls, so when you toss them to him/her, they’ll definitely drop them. This will discourage them for sure, and they’ll shrug it off and get out of your house. Problem solved!

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THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 75

76 MODELING BY KAREN KRAMARSYCK

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 77

Speaking of living situations, do you have a potentially haunted bathroom? Does your sink keep bleeding with no solution in sight? Wrong! Our Urban Myth Prevention Kit comes with specially designed footwear for traveling on bloody bathroom floors. Available in two colors (white/black, blue/white) you’re able to look stylish while traversing slippery territory. Along with the shoes, we will also include a matching pair of nose plugs.

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78 FEATURES

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THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 79

Not so Grimm: A Study in Disneyfication

By Jillian Fields

E

ver since their appearance on the entertainment scene, Walt Disney has become synonymous with feel-good family films. Their first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937), foreshadowed their monopoly over the appropriation of fairy tales and classic stories by adapting the Grimm brother’s 1819 tale. In almost every case, the tales have been heavily edited for content. This has been done to such an extent that a word has been coined to identify it: Disneyfication. The Oxford English Dictionary recognizes this as a word in noun form, as well as a joining adjective and verb: disneyfied and disneyfy respectively. The definition for each of these terms has one phrase in common—“to romanticize, sanitize, or simplify.” Each of the tales that follow have been modified in some, way, shape, or form to fit within the Disney standard. What exactly is removed or modified varies from tale to tale. In many cases, the omitted parts involve bloodshed or violence. In some cases, it is not what is removed, but what is added that disneyfies a tale.

In the original story of Cinderella, she is still a young girl who is mistreated by her stepmother and sisters. Surprisingly, she does actually have bird friends that help her in her plight. The helpful birds are also the ones who ultimately take revenge on her two stepsisters by pecking out their eyes. In the Grimm brother’s version, Prince Charming is more cunning, the stepmother more vicious, and the stepsisters more desperate. The Prince gets the shoe when Cinderella is caught in a trap he made to catch her as she ran away from their third encounter (yes, it is more than a one night fling before a kingdom-wide manhunt and a marriage proposal). The stepmother insists that her daughters cut off parts of their feet to fit into the minuscule shoe, and her daughters agree. At the end of the story, one of the sister is lacking her toes, the other has cut off her heel, and neither of them is married to the Prince—all of this before the friendly birds peck out their eyeballs at the wedding. One thing the Grimm’s never allowed was the villain escaping with out a terrible punishment.

Some things, when added, can affect the intended take away of the original tale. By adding the Fairy Godmother to the story, Disney not only successfully added comedic relief and an extra musical number, but the added magic and a way for Cinderella to accomplish all that she does. In the original tale, however, Cinderella is gifted with all that she is because of her kindness and piety. On her deathbed, Cinderella’s mother told her that as long as she is faithful, her mother’s spirit would help her. Young Cinderella visits her mother grave everyday, and when she goes there distraught because her stepmother has forbid her to go to the festival, the helpful birds perched in the tree by the grave throw down a gown for her to wear. While the morals are similar, the original tale promoted faith and piety more than the Disney version, which tells young girls that they should always be gentle and kind.

Hercules There was no Megara the original tale of the most widely known of Ancient Heroes. Nor was there a Pegasus, comedic minions of Hades, or spontaneous musical numbers. To be blunt, Hercules did not have a happy life. After becoming an established hero and settling down, Hera—the wife on whom Zeus cheated—cursed him. She caused him to go insane. In his psychotic rampage he killed his wife and children. When the curse cleared, he was left with the carnage of his family and an unbearable guilt. The famous twelve labors of Hercules were completed as atonement for his sin. Eventually, he moves on and marries again. Happily ever after, right?

Not so much.

In the original myth, Hercules’s second wife, Deianira, is tricked into killing him. When a centaur named Nessos assaults her, Hercules rescues her by shooting the centaur in the heart with an arrow. With his dying breath, Nessos sets out to get revenge by informing Deianira that his blood can act as a love potion that could help her to renew her husband’s affection for her and cure him of his wandering eye. Perhaps out of desperation, she believes him and saves a bottle of centaur blood. Later on, she spreads the blood on the inside of a cloak she had made for her husband. When Hercules put it on, rather than the bewitching affect Deianira had hoped for, the poisonous blood burned his skin as it made contact and ultimately killed him.

Sure, the Disney version has suffering. He is left as an orphan in the countryside, he is an outcast in his village, he goes through strenuous training, and he eventually falls for the woman working for his nemesis. That is not what we would typically consider “good luck.” But through his struggles and his willingness to sacrifice everything to save the woman he loves, he proves himself a hero. The morals of the story are still there, they are just mixed in with some musical numbers and comic relief.

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Snow White In the Disney version of the classic fairy tale—released in 1937— the titular character appears to be about the same unspecified-but-vaguely-late-teens age of most Disney heroines. In our culture, this ambiguously aged character can suffer, triumph, and fall in love in the end without too much social criticism. The Grimm’s brothers wrote another story entirely. In their version, Snow White is seven years old when her stepmother first learns that she is not the fairest of them all from her magic mirror.

Though passage of time is not well recorded, the reader can assume that Snow White is still a young girl when her stepmother sends her out to the woods with a huntsman tasked with her assassination. The huntsman is asked to bring back proof that he has completed his job: the lungs and liver of his victim. When he returns to the castle with the organs of a boar he encountered and killed in the woods, the Queen passes them on to the palace chef to be made into a stew for her. She revels in the idea that she is eating her victory over Snow White. Cannibalism is not typically a topic broached in contemporary children’s stories, but the Brothers Grimm pull no punches.

The story runs much like the familiar Disney version for a while: Snow White encounters the house of the dwarves, lets herself in and makes herself at home. The dwarves come home to find her asleep and are kind enough to let her sleep through the night and question her in the morning. There is even an extraneous detail of the misplaced dwarf rotating through the other beds; spending on hour each in the beds of the other dwarves.

The situation is explained and the dwarves agree that she can stay—so long as she will agree to act as their housekeeper. There are no deviations from the familiar until the Queen discovers that Snow White is still alive and the fairest of them all. She decides she must handle the threat by disguising herself as a peddler and selling Snow White a piece of lace. When Snow White lets the peddler woman into the house and purchases a piece of lace, the disguised queen strangles her with it and leaves her, apparently dead.

The dwarves return home and find Snow White on the ground, not breathing or moving. They examine her and find the lace tied around her. When they remove it, she revives. They warn her not to let anyone into the house while they are gone, again. Back at the castle, the mirror once again informs the queen that she is not yet the fairest of them all, so she must try again. This time she goes with a poisoned comb, which—after Snow White decides that the woman does not look too harmful and that the comb is really quite pretty—poisons her from her scalp. Once again, Snow White falls to the ground, apparently dead, and the dwarves return home to find her. They examine her again, remove the comb, and she revives. The “stranger danger” conversation is repeated, and they all move on.

When the queen finds out that she is still not triumphant, she decides that it is time for desperate measures. She slips away to 82 HISTORY

her secret chamber and conjures up an apple. The apple is half red, half white, and the red side is poisonous. She once again returns to the house, disguised as a peasant woman (this scene should be starting to sound familiar). The supposed peasant woman appears at the window of the house and offers Snow White an apple. To her credit, Snow White does seem to have learned her lesson and attempts to refuse the apple. After the mysterious peasant woman shows her that the apple is not poisoned by taking a bite of the white half, Snow White consents and bites into the red half of the apple. She immediately falls to the ground, dead. Yet again the dwarves return home and attempt to revive her using every method they know. When none of them work, they accept that their beloved Snow White is dead. Agreeing that she is too beautiful to bury underground, they create a glass coffin, in which she is laid.

As they are mourning, a Prince rides by and is captivated by her beauty. He asks the dwarves if he can purchase the coffin from them and take it with him, as he cannot bear to ever be separated from her beauty. Initially, the dwarves refuse. After a while, the dwarves take pity on the prince and allow him to take the coffin of Snow White. Miraculously, as the coffin is being jostled in the move, a piece of poisoned apple stuck in her throat is dislodged and she awakes, confused.

After the debacle is explained to her, the Prince declares his love for her and she agrees to marry him. They return to his Kingdom and the wedding is planned. Her stepmother is invited. Before the wedding, the stepmother stops at the mirror to stroke her ego yet again and is informed that the young queen is now the fairest of them all. Horrified, she decides that she must go to the wedding to see this new threat and freezes in horror upon recognizing Snow White. She is then forced into a pair of red-hot iron shoes and forced to dance in them until she dies. And everyone else lived happily ever after.

There was no magic kiss, and no forgiveness from benevolent and gentle Snow White. Disney, however, was not only editor this story. The most commonly known version, from which I have quoted, was published in 1819. There is an original version of the story, published in 1812, that was edited by the Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm themselves. Originally, the villain in the story was not Snow White’s stepmother, but her biological mother. A vengeful and homicidal mother was apparently a hard sell, and the brothers attempted to soften the blow by removing the familial connection, and successful creating the idea of the “wicked stepmother.” The other part that was modified came towards the end: originally, Snow White was brought back to life when a servant who was tired of carrying the coffin wherever the Prince went, vented his frustrations by trying to strangle the dead Princess. In the course of his attack, the apple was dislodged, and she awoke.

There is no word on how the servant attempted to explain the situation afterwards.

Mulan Disney’s 1998 animated feature is based on a ancient Chinese poem, “The Ballad of Hua Mulan,” which tells the story of a daughter who goes to war in disguise in order to take the place of her father. Overall, the Disney version stays pretty true to the original. If anything, the poem seems much more nonchalant about the whole ordeal. It describes her getting ready to go to war, buying everything she needs from a different market. It tells of how she bid her parents farewell at dawn and went to join the troops, before joining them in battle, staying with the army for ten years. She completed her service triumphantly and undiscovered. When the troops return to the royal palace, Hua Mulan is offered an official position, which she turns down, asking instead for a fast camel so that she may return home. Her family sees her coming from the city walls and is waiting for her. She returns to her home, changes back into her female clothes, and goes out to meet her fellow soldiers, who are all shocked to discover that they had served with a woman for so many years without noticing.

When looking at Disney’s adaptation, it is evident that it is not omission that is a factor, but rather extrapolation. The basics of the original story are all there: the daughter goes to war; the daughter comes home from war. Yet the film, which is without a doubt one of Disney’s most popular, contains much more. The film is sure to emphasize how Mulan does not fit within her expected role in society with a disastrous trip to the local matchmaker, who informs Mulan that she will never find a husband, followed by a heartfelt musical number and inspirational talk with her father.

All of this set up an internal conflict for the protagonist: she does not feel that she will every meet society’s expectations for her and she fears bringing shame to her family. The external conflict is introduced shortly after, when the Emperor calls for a man from every family to g to war. As her family has no son, her aged father must go. She decides to go to save him, stealing his armor and orders, cutting her hair, and riding off into a nighttime rainstorm.

Her family is devastated and afraid, and her Grandmother asks the family ancestors for help. The introduction of the spirits adds supernatural and comedic elements, especially in the character of Mushu, a dethroned guardian whose job it is to protect the family. The walking, talking, wisecracking mini-dragon heads off to find Mulan, and though his task is to bring her back, he decides that if he brings her home a war hero, he will be forgiven and his status as a guardian reinstated. Thus, he starts training her. This does not start off very well. After what is likely one of the most oft quoted Disney songs of all time, Mulan is asked to return home by her commanding officer, but decides instead that she is going to use her ingenuity to complete the challenge that all of the other men in their unit have failed. After this turning point, the unit is turned around, and is ready for war.

Once the troops head into battle, Mulan proves herself to be a war hero as she stops the invading army and save the life of her commanding officer. Unfortunately she is injured in the process

and her secret is discovered, which never happens in the original tale. I would argue that Disney has several reasons for taking this route. For starters, it allows for further character development of Shang, who when faced with the treachery of one of his soldiers, does not kill her as the law requires, but spares her life. Another is a matter of loyalty. The soldiers she befriended stand up for her, and believe her later on when she returns to the victory parade to tell them that the Huns are not dead, and are now heading for the city. They are able to see past the fact that she is a woman and respect her for who she is. The rest of the reasons relate to Mulan’s story, and a combination of her confronting her internal and external conflicts. She now knows who she is, and her reflection does reflect who she is inside. Now she just has to see if others will accept her for that. She goes to the city, devises a plan to save the captured emperor, succeeds, saves the Emperor, and is honored by him for her success. She returns home to her father who she presents with the tokens she received from the Emperor as a sign of honor for their family. Her father casts them aside, informing her that having her as a daughter is the greatest honor of them all. The film does not end on this heartwarming moment, but instead waits for Shang to show up at her home after he receives a non-too-subtle hint from the emperor that if he likes Mulan, he should get a move on and say something about it.

Once everyone is back where they belong and the film concludes as a charming tale about a girl who defied expectations, beat the odds, and got the guy in the end.

Does Happily Ever After Matter?

When looking at the disneyfied tales, the most common changes are the endings. Most of the work adapted to Disney has been tailored to fit within the modern ideal of a happy ending. Other edits were to help them fit within the mandatory “G” rating of a Disney animated feature. When looking at the elements that all forms of the term Disneyfication share, evidence of the shared definition becomes increasingly apparent. Hercules was simplified. When putting together the film, Disney managed to take an extremely long and complicated story and narrow it down to a story that contains just the basic facts and not much else. Snow White and Cinderella are both sanitized, very thoroughly. In Snow White, there is only one attempt on the life of the heroine, and the “death” that follows is clean and simple. Not to mention that the villain gets away without any gruesome punishment.

Mulan, on the other hand, was romanticized. Her storyline was expanded and dramatized in order to reach feature film length and appeal, the revelation of her true identity created more conflict, but the romantic storyline with Shang added the romantic element that exists in almost every film. The Princesses have their Princes, Hercules has Megara, and Mulan has Shang.

The changes made to each film do not necessarily ruin the stories. They simply present another version. The changes do, however, reflect the culture that we live in, and the values that exist within it. The original stories varied in medium and genre, but they did all share the same element of having a purpose and a message to rely. The same rings true with the modern retellings.

One of the most dependable aspects of a Disney animated feature is that the viewer is expected to have come out of the experience with a lesson. They may not be overt, but they omnipresent. The aspect that can always be counted on is that the protagonist will always live happily ever after. • THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 83

JACK OF ALL TRADES This Member of the Wells Family Knows What it Means to be a Legend

By Katie Lamanna

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“I’m going to tell you something that I tell all of my athletes, so don’t forget it. You’re a person first, a student second, and a runner third. And don’t mess up the order.”

That was the first thing Jack Daniels had said to me and the rest of the Wells College cross country team. We were sitting in the team room of the Schwartz Center. This man, our coach, had said something along these lines to all of his past athletes: the Olympians, the national champions, and the all-Americans. And now he was saying it to us.

Getting to know Jack has been one of those strange, surreal experiences that you never really come to terms with, no matter how much times goes by. From the second I met him in the team room of Schwartz there has never been an awkward silence or even a slight hesitation in speech. This man, our coach, has done everything from serving in the United States Army to showing cats.

After a typical Jack Daniels tougher-than-it-sounds rainy day workout, I sat down on the soaked grass of the athletic fields and tried to figure out this living-legend’s story.

“It’s pretty wild. I was born in Michigan. I tell people I didn’t like it, so I moved to San Francisco at six weeks old.”

Jack grew up and attended high school in San Francisco. After graduation, he went on to attend School of Mines in Colorado.

He quickly transferred to the University of Montana where he was part of the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps program.

Jack competed for the rotc rifle team and was the captain of the swim team all three years that he participated. Jack received his undergraduate degree from the University of Montana.

“My whole family moved to Helmville, Montana with a total population of 56 people,” said Jack, “and there were six of us. So we were ten percent of the whole population.”

Upon graduation, Jack was sent to Korea because of his commitment with rotc. While in Korea, Jack decided to enter his first triathlon.

“The only reason I did that was because I knew I could shoot and I knew I could swim. And I figured you didn’t need any skill to run, anyone could do that.”

The triathlon was composed of swimming, shooting, and running. Having shot and swam in high school, Jack didn’t think the race would be any problem. And, evidently, it wasn’t; as if it was no big deal, Jack shrugged. “So I won that.”

If I had any doubt before this very moment that my coach was Superman, it was gone now.

Jack’s performance at his first triathlon earned him the chance to compete in California where he did “alright.” Continuing to move up with his athletic career, Jack was invited to start training for the modern pentathlon in Texas. The modern pentathlon was composed of the three events from the triathlons (swimming, shooting, and running) plus fencing and horseback riding.

“I was still in the military and they sent me to San Antonio, Texas, so I trained all year round. I was there for two and a half years.”

In his years living in San Antonio, Jack went to the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, receiving a silver medal for modern pentathlon. He also participated in the Sweden and England World Championships.

Soon after getting out of the military, Jack moved to Sweden where he entered into a rigorous sports school for a year; “They were the best in modern pentathlon.” In Stockholm, Jack was able to participate in high quality education as well as intensive training in a variety of sports. From soccer to track and field to a two week trip in the Arctic Circle for downhill skiing, Jack was able to get a pretty wide variety of athletic experiences.

His days consisted of lecture classes from eight to ten every morning, followed by an hour lunch and six days of physical activity from eleven to three. The physical activities revolved around learning how to teach smaller children how to participate in sports. In June, for the last two weeks of school, Jack and the rest of the students had seven hours of track and field training from the national coaches. They learned all events of the sport, from pole vault to javelin.

After returning to the United States, Jack moved to Oklahoma for work and to get his master’s degree. This move provided him with the opportunity for his first collegiate coaching gig. Jack’s boss at the time had become the Vice President of Oklahoma City University, promptly starting a track and field program.

Jack, who had been coaching his boss’s son in high school, was offered the new job.

“We had an outstanding team. A couple of Australian guys.

One took fifth in Division I Nationals in the 5k.”

Jack’s first collegiate coaching job seemed to be a pretty great success, although Jack’s pure humbleness would never allow him to brag of his accomplishments. Oklahoma City University ended up dropping the program, allowing Jack to take another step in his journey as a legendary running coach.

“They dropped the program. So I became the national track coach for Peru.”

As if becoming the national coach for Peru and living in Lima for a year was no big deal at all, Jack shrugged off the accomplishment and continued on with the rest of his amazing life story.

When Jack came back to the United States after his year in Peru (1966-1967), he decided to get his PhD in Exercise Physiology, starting in Michigan and later transferring to end at the University of Wisconsin.

“I wrote my entire PhD dissertation between four and seven in the morning. I wrote the whole thing in about six weeks.”

In the fall of 1969, Jack took a job teaching physiology and coaching at the University of Texas in Austin. For the fall of 1972, he took a gig teaching at the University of Hawaii. During his time in Hawaii, the athletic world took a significant step forward, opening many doors for the already legendary coach: women’s sports were now being introduced at the collegiate level.

Jack went back to Texas in the fall of 1973 to help launch the women’s running program at the University of Texas. After seven

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years of coaching, in 1980, Jack went to work at the Nike Shoe Company in New Hampshire for about three years. Once that plant closed in 1983, Jack went to work for Nike in Eugene, Oregon, until they closed. During his time at Nike, Jack married his loving wife, Nancy.

“Everywhere I go, they close!”

After the closure of the plant in Oregon in 1986, Jack decided that he wanted to go back to collegiate coaching. “The only ones who would hire me were Cortland.” Jack was at the State University of New York in Cortland for nineteen years, coaching the Red Dragons to seven national championship titles, including thirty-one individual national championship titles and 130 All-American titles.

After being offered a job coaching at altitude for Northern Arizona University, Jack left upstate New York and took a job coaching international and national level athletes for nau. After about three years, that facility closed.

“And that’s what brought me back here.”

Here. To Wells. As our coach.

This brought me back to a realization that this man is, in fact, our coach. Jack had been named the World’s Best Coach by Runner’s World Magazine in 1993 and again in 2008. Jack Daniels is a legend in so many ways, but he will never admit that. The opportunities that my teammates and I now have because of this man are incredible.

Jack was, and still is, an amazing athlete; he participated in the 1956 Melbourne and 1960 Rome Olympics, receiving silver and bronze medals respectively. His last international competition was the Mexico City World Championships, where he received a bronze medal.

“In the five sports in modern pentathlon, easily riding was my best. Then swimming. I was third in the Olympics in that. Third was shooting. Fourth was fencing. Last was running. That’s why I became a running coach.”

The more that Jack studied running, the more he liked it and the better he got at it. According to Jack, he was running his fastest times around the age of 40.

But no, he still refused to believe that he is a legend.

I mean, I suppose I can understand how he plays down his success; Jack is an amazingly humble man that would never dream of inflating his accomplishments. But anyone who ever stumbled upon his Wikipedia page knows that this man is, in fact, a legend.

His mainstream life accomplishments—the ones listed on that Wikipedia page—are amazing. But what I wanted to know was

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what makes Jack a legendary man, not just a legendary coach.

It had cooled down a bit so we decided to get off the damp, grassy field and find a warmer place to finish our talk. As we were headed back to Jack’s car, he said to me, “Ya know, one of these days, you’re going to be fast.” Thanks Jack. I hope so.

As I got situated with my laptop in the front seat of his Volvo, I asked him if he thought he was a legend. Of course he said no. Even when I asked him about being named ncaa National Coach of the Year twice and Women’s Cross Country Coach of the 20th Century, he said, “Well, I was lucky because women’s sports didn’t really start till the ’70s.” Nancy, who was sitting in the back seat, chirped in that he had been helping people long before the ’70s, implying that Jack should take slightly more credit for his amazing accomplishments.

Although Jack won’t ever admit that he is such an accomplished athlete and coach, it is rather obvious after spending a few minutes listening to his stories. His constant stories about world-class athletes and excessive knowledge of the sport are a sure sign that that man knows what he’s talking about.

When asked if he ever gets tired of the intense and sometimes stubborn nature of his adoring fans, Jack simply said, “No, it doesn’t bother me at all. It’s kind of fun to meet some of the people. Some of them are friends of people I might have coached or something like that. I always think that maybe it’ll help recruiting.” He’s always thinking one step ahead.

Although Jack said that he hasn’t had too many strange encounters with fans, Nancy told me that she was on the phone with an operator to make a long distance call once and the operator made her drop her call so he could ask her questions about training for a marathon.

Nancy’s accomplishments are not something to be overlooked either; Nancy was a six-time ncaa Division I Cross Country and Track & Field Championship qualifier while at the University of New Hampshire as an undergrad. She was inducted into the University of New Hampshire’s Hall of Fame in 2001. Nancy also qualified for the Olympic Trials twice herself.

Jack claimed that one of his proudest moments of his coaching career was, in fact, Nancy’s qualifying marathon; “I was pretty proud, she wasn’t even feeling good. She was sick for a week.”

When talking about other proud moments in Jack’s coaching career, he mentioned countless individuals, from Vicki Mitchell winning the Penn Relays to Tammy Miller winning nationals all three times that she went. Cortland was also a topic of discussion when talking about his greatest coaching moments:

“They dropped the program.

So I became the national track coach for Peru.”

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Jack had been named the World’s Best Coach by Runner’s World Magazine in 1993 and again in 2008. Jack Daniels is a legend in so many ways, but he will never admit that.

“Well, at Cortland, the women that I coached won cross country national championships seven times. But I wouldn’t say that’s my proudest. You see, the best score that we ever had wasn’t with the best team. The competition just wasn’t very tough that year.

As a coach, that’s pretty hard. I think you can’t [pick] just one [moment]. I mean it was great to see multiple athletes make the Olympics.”

I’ve said it before, but Jack Daniels is the most humble man I have ever met. He had “some pretty outstanding performances at Cortland,” yet you would never know from his attitude the impact that he has made on so many athletes’ lives. Jack is not just a legendary coach to his athletes, but he is a role model who inspires individuals, both athletically and personally, to succeed and push forward.

When I asked Jack about his proudest moment in his own personal career as an athlete, his answer was simple at first: “I don’t know. I’ve never thought about it.” After a bit of help from Nancy, Jack was finally able to think of an event that he was truly proud of: winning the Sweden National Championships. Jack was the first non-Swede to win their national championships in the modern pentathlon. The Swedish had always been very dominant in the sport of modern pentathlon, “so that was pretty exciting.”

Some of Jack’s other notable accomplishments include publishing three volumes of his book, Daniel’s Running Formula, publishing his autobiography, Luck of the Draw, and helping to develop the vdot training system.

The vdot system is something that Jack’s runners all become very familiar with. Jack did extensive research in the ‘60s to formulate this revolutionary way of training.

“Any physical activity that is performed costs an amount of energy. In sports like running and swimming the cost is usually expressed in milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute.”

The system revolves around the concept of finding this volume of oxygen (VO2). In finding this, anyone is able to calculate a pseudo VO2max, referred to as vdot, by knowing how fast they are able to run a race. “Once you know vdot you can calculate any speed of training, based on what intensity of training is desired.”

Along with the vdot system, Jack has a set of very strong ideologies when it comes to training and running in general: 88 FEATURES

“Well first of all, you have to know what the purpose of every workout is or you shouldn’t bother even doing it. So you have to know why you’re doing what you’re doing. And you have to avoid injury, so that means not always training as hard as you would like to. Find positive things to think about. Everyone has good days and bad days. Everybody does. As a coach, treat each runner as an individual.”

Above all, I think one of the most important lessons that Jack can teach his athletes is to enjoy the journey. Jack says that he thinks “what you experience along the way is much greater than what you get at the end of the trip.” This can be related to so many aspects of one’s life, not just running. Jack related it back to the Olympics, saying that the people he met were far greater than getting a medal: “You might win some championships, but that isn’t as great as the people you meet.”

One of the last questions that I asked Jack while sitting in his nice warm Volvo was what the proudest moment of his life was.

This was the most simple and concise answer I had received all day: “Marrying Nancy and having Audra and Sarah. There’s no contest there. That’s easily the most wonderful thing.”

Before gathering my laptop and heading out into the cold and the rain, I asked Jack one last question. I asked if he had anything else exciting that he wanted me to know. The answer that I got was, well, definitely exciting.

“I was a smoke jumper. That was exciting. That was fun. Then I was a pilot for a number of years. That was probably the single most exciting thing that I ever did. I was flying from Montana to Wisconsin with my flight instructor with his wife in the plane and we ran out of fuel over North Dakota and I landed in a farmer’s field. It was a good landing. It was four degrees outside. The middle of January. The farmer took us out to town. I stayed at his house. Then we flew on to Wisconsin. I don’t think too many people get to have that kind of experience probably. I loved flying, but it got too expensive. I wanted to be an astronaut.”

I’ve spent quite a bit of time with Jack in the past few months.

I feel both honored and blessed to have been given the opportunity to train with him. Jack Daniels is a humble, determined, hardworking individual whose main goal is to see the people and athletes whom he cares about succeed. These are the characteristics of a truly legendary man. •

AUTOMATIC CURE ALL? Challenging the Mythical Promise of the Electric Car

By Molly Baillargeon

The first electric-powered car was developed in the early 1900s but has not gained substantial popularity until the past few decades (Who Killed the Electric Car?). Surely, the world’s population must be concerned with global warming and ways to mitigate our previous effects on the environment. Why is it, then, that electric cars are not the only cars we see on the road today? Could it be that they are not as environmentally friendly as was previously thought?

Though it may be a shock to those who have long believed electric cars to be the answer to our environmental woes, that just may be the case. The ways in which electric cars are manufactured and the way their batteries are charged may actually damper any potential world-saving, emission-reducing, environmentally friendly outcomes. Let’s take a look at those previous notions of these vehicles’ eco-friendliness and examine the ways in which electric cars are produced and maintained, the differences between gas and electric cars, and the overall environmental impact of a possible switch to electric cars. It’s time to ask: “Are electric cars really all that environmentally friendly?”

Electric cars have been around for nearly 120 years now. Public opinion about electric cars following their invention was more or less favourable. According to the 2006 documentary, Who Killed The Electric Car?, “100 years ago, there were more electrics on the road than there were gas cars. For many people, electric cars were the cars of choice. They were quiet and smooth and could be charged at home. Gas cars, by comparison, required cranking [to start] and produced exhaust.” Electric cars required little effort to start, did not have aggravating but necessary gear changes, were not loud, did not smell, and did not cause the intense vibrations that gas cars did. For all of these reasons, electric cars were very popular, but advances in technology—namely the invention of the internal combustion engine—changed this immensely.

The new and improved gasoline-powered cars were far cheaper, and their recognition rose as they pushed electric cars out of the market. At this point in the early 20th century, gasoline-powered cars boasted several advantages over their electric competitors: they had larger ranges, they were quicker and easier to refuel, and they were mass-produced, which effectively lowered their prices.

Electric cars did not make a substantial comeback into popular culture until the 1950s, with consumers’ concern for air pollution; the 1970s, with the energy crisis; and the 1990s, when the California Air Resources Board began to advocate for more lower-emission cars. Finally, in the late 2000s, renewed interest in electric cars again led to intensive research and production (Who Killed the Electric Car?). Given these waves of popularity, is there any chance these cars are here to stay this time?

One of the most important goals for the electric vehicle industry has been bridging the gap of disparity between cars powered by conventional internal combustion engines and those powered by electricity. Some key areas of interest are the aesthetics and operation of the electric vehicle, as well as design, production, and cost, but ultimately many consumers are most interested in the supposed advantages in the reduction of air pollution and carbon emissions. It is thought that electric cars emit fewer pollutants than internal THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 89

combustion engine vehicles, but is this true?

There have been many conflicting studies that demonstrate that electric vehicles are and simultaneously are not “cleaner and greener” than conventional cars (Thomas 2012, Orski 1998). Electric cars are believed to release less harmful pollutants into the atmosphere because gas cars contribute to tailpipe emissions while the emissions from electric cars are created at power plants. Electric vehicles need to be plugged in and charged periodically.

Though this may seem miraculously easy to the user, the process does indeed use electricity, which must be produced somehow. Charging an electric car with coal-generated electricity still produces carbon emissions. This appears to simply be a change in energy source—from oil to make petrol, to coal to create electricity.

However, “the beauty of powering cars with electricity from the grid is that we can generate the electricity any way we want” (Eberhard 2007). And what we “want” can be relatively clean or environmentally hazardous. Norway is nearly dependent on hydroelectricity, while China is heavily dependent on coal (Bomford 2013). The emissions produced over the lifetime of an electric car in these two countries would differ greatly in environmental impact.

In the United States in 2010, about 45 percent of electricity was generated by coal, 24 percent by natural gas, and only ten percent by renewable sources (“Green Car Congress” 2011).

Emissions are also an issue during the construction and assembly of an electric car, not just during its operation. A recent study

by Ricardo, a global consulting firm with a focus on new engineering and technology, has found that “electric and hybrid cars generate more carbon emissions during their production than current conventional vehicles.” This large amount of emissions during production, 46 percent of a vehicle’s total carbon footprint, is mainly because of the cars’ batteries. The batteries are very energy intensive to produce, but once the car is built, the carbon footprint is reduced significantly. Because of this, electric cars seem to have a better overall air pollution record than conventional cars. Of course, this is not always true depending on the source of the electricity used to charge the electric vehicle (“Green Car Congress” 2011).

Another important factor highlighting the difference between electric vehicles 90 FEATURES

and gasoline vehicles is “range.” Internal combustion engines generally have a range—the distance they can travel before requiring more fuel—of around 300 miles per tank of gasoline. There are cars that have significantly less range, and those that have significantly more, but the assumed average is around 300 miles. However, it could be said that gasoline cars do not have a limited range, as their tanks can be filled quickly, and the driver can be on their way in a short time. This is not true for electric vehicles, which must be recharged over a matter of hours, or—in some cases— overnight. The average electric vehicle has a range between 50 and 100 miles per charge, which is considerably less than the internal combustion engine (Model Year 2013 Fuel Economy Guide).

This generates “range anxiety”—the

“Emissions are an issue during the construction and assembly of an electric car, not just during its operation.” worry that they will not make it to their destination before running out of battery power—in the drivers of these cars. Despite the constrictive range of electric vehicles, the typical American will not drive more than 40 miles per day (Who Killed the Electric Car?). Nonetheless, it has long been known that the range of an electric car is not as great as that of a gasoline car. One publication from 1967 reads, “Americans, who generally make one car do for both around-the-corner trips and cross-country vacations, would probably only buy an electric as a second car” (“Electrics Cars: They’re Cleaner but…” 1967). At this point in the development of the electric car, it seems feasible that they can be used for the average American’s daily commute, or short trips, but not extended road trips.

The range of the battery life and charge time is simply not sufficient for the average American. To remedy this problem, research is being done on extending

battery life and decreasing charging times, in hopes that electric vehicles will be able to rival the range of conventional gasoline vehicles in the near future.

The safety of an electric car is an additional concern, especially because of the difference in design. Electrical energy storage and the protection against electrical fires are two large components of electric vehicle safety. There is speculation that an on-board battery and electrical system will increase the risk for fire, but “all vehicles— both electric and gasoline-powered—have some risk of fire in the event of a serious crash” (Green 2011). Another safety concern dealing with electric cars is the mass of the vehicle relating to the injuries sustained by occupants during a crash. The mass of electric cars is ideally kept low to increase range and battery life. However, lower mass vehicles sustain more damage during collisions than higher mass vehicles (Kahane 2003). There will need to be a compromise met between mass and range with respect to the electric car.

Another significant concern about electric cars is their quietness. Though touted by some as a positive feature, quietness actually poses a threat to pedestrians’ safety, especially pedestrians with impaired sight. Most people are able to hear a car approaching and avoid it, but electric cars are barely audible at high speeds and almost impossible to hear when moving slowly. The U.S. government has even passed legislature that requires a certain minimum decibel level for electric cars to ensure the safety of pedestrians (Thomas 2012).

But the largest observable difference between an electric vehicle and a gasoline vehicle is the battery. The most common type of battery used in electric cars on the market today is the lithium-ion battery.

Lithium-based batteries allow for good performance and high energy density but have only a relatively short lifespan.

The replacement of batteries is costly, and lithium-based batteries require more replacements than other battery types.

There are tradeoffs with each type of batteries, just as there are tradeoffs with most aspects of the electric car, but after any kind of battery is no longer usable in a vehicle, it must be disposed of. Like other types of batteries, vehicle batteries can be recycled but—in practice—not all will be.

Batteries that do not end up in a landfill will be disassembled and resold or reused as a whole for non-vehicular purposes. But

Molly Baillargeon is a senior Environmental Studies Major.

those that do go to the landfill create the problem of incorrect disposal. As landfill waste, the toxic lithium, acid, or metals in the battery will end up negatively affecting the surrounding area (Taylor).

The overall environmental friendliness of the electric car depends on several factors: the emissions during production and operation, the source of electricity used to charge the battery, the range of the battery, the amount of charging required, and the production and disposal of the battery. Market potential, price, reliability, convenience, and safety are also of concern, but even looking past these potentially undesirable social factors, the electric car comes up short on environmental friendliness.

The answer to the question of just how environmentally friendly is the electric car is certainly a tricky one. In studies done to date, there is no definitive, qualitative measure of how positive or negative the environmental impact of a switch to electric cars could be. However, by evaluating each factor involved with electric cars separately, it is possible to gain an encompassing view of their overall environmental friendliness.

At present, the electric car seems to be a viable alternative to the gasolinepowered car. But, the electric car versus gasoline car debate is analogous to the conventional versus microwave oven debate—summarized by Martin Bernard as, “Microwave ovens do some things better than conventional ovens, and some things worse; today, almost every kitchen has both—each doing what it does best” (Orski 1998). Each type of oven and each type of car will fulfil a different niche on the market and in a potential consumer’s garage.

Given the environmental promise of the electric car, it may be a good tool to increase environmental friendliness into the future—but to say they are an environmental cure-all ignores many of the current environmental drawbacks of today’s electric cars. •

Works Cited Anair, Don, and Amine Mahmassani. “State of Charge: Electric Vehicles’ Global Warming Emissions and Fuel-Cost Savings across the United States.” (June 2012): n. pag.

Union of Concerned Scientists. Web. 24 May 2013.

Bomford, Andrew. “How Environmentally Friendly Are Electric Cars?” bbc News. bbc, 04 Nov. 2013. Web. 24 May 2013.

Eberhard, Martin, and Marc Tarpenning. “The 21st Century Electric Car.” Tesla Motors, 17 Apr. 2007. Web. 22 May 2013.

“Electric Cars: They’re Cleaner, But...” Science News 91.10 (March 11, 1967): 232. Web. 22 May 2013.

“Green Car Congress: Ricardo Study Finds Electric and Hybrid Cars Have a Higher Carbon Footprint during Production than Conventional Vehicles, but Still Offer a Lower Footprint over the Full Life Cycle.” Green Car Congress: Ricardo Study Finds Electric and Hybrid Cars Have a Higher Carbon Footprint during Production than Conventional Vehicles, but Still Offer a Lower Footprint over the Full Life Cycle. N.p., 8 June 2011. Web. 24 May 2013.

Green, Jeff, David Welch, and Angela Greiling Keane. “GM Volt Fire After Crash Said to Prompt Lithium-Battery Probe.” Bloomberg. N.p., 12 Nov. 2011. Web. 24 May 2013.

Kahane, Charles J. Vehicle Weight, Fatality Risk and Crash Compatibility of Model Year 1991-99 Passenger Cars and Light Trucks 6. Rep. no. dot hs 809 662.

Washington DC: Department of Transportation, 2003.

Print.

“Model Year 2013 Fuel Economy Guide.” U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Environmental Protection Energy, 21 May 2013. Web. 24 May 2013.

Orski, C. Kenneth. “The Great Electric Car Debate.” The Urban Lawyer 30.3 (Summer 1998): 525-35. Print.

Reed, John. “Buyers Loath to Pay More for Electric Cars.”

Financial Times. N.p., 19 Sept. 2010. Web. 24 May 2013.

Taylor, Phil. “When an Electric Car Dies, What Will Happen to the Battery?: Scientific American.” When an Electric Car Dies, What Will Happen to the Battery?: Scientific American. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2013.

Thomas, Sandy. “How Green Are Electric Vehicles?”

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2012): 6053062. Print.

Who Killed the Electric Car? Dir. Chris Paine. Sony Pictures Classics, 2006. dvd.

91

The First Band to the Bar and Find t too Far: Long liv

By Joshua Brutscher

S

o there we were just sitting together on the couch watching The Colbert Report, just like any other night of the week, just the way the All-American semi-dysfunctional family is supposed to.

“A beloved English rock band is returning to the good ol’ U.S. of A,” Stephen Colbert announced.

“The Who is going on a North American tour,” I blurted out, anticipating Stephen’s next announcement. I had read the news on The Who’s Facebook page.

My father looked back at me, “Wait really!? Wanna go?

Wouldn’t be too embarrassed going with your old man, would ya?”

...

Several months and seven hundred dollars later, and my father and I were ready to put on our lead boots and take a long, long drive. We may end up spending all our money, but at least we’ll get to see our favorite band while they’re still (half ) alive.

I’m not sure whether it was an accident that my favorite band ended up being my father’s favorite band, or if I just really am my father’s son. All I know is that for the longest time I thought that the only music that existed was the bubblegum pop that all the kids at school would listen to—Britney Spears, The Spice Girls, Backstreet Boys, N*Sync, and whoever Nickelodeon and Disney were promoting at the time. I don’t know why all I heard was targeted at teenyboppers, but for this reason, I had spent most of my life thinking that I didn’t really like music. Sure, I guess I knew of other music—I would listen to classical music or The Beatles from time to time. But this was when I was working on homework or focusing primarily on something else.

So, music was never really as important to me as it should have been.

This didn’t change until around my senior year of high school, at which point I had become obsessed with the band Reel Big Fish and ska-punk music in general. But once I 92 CREATIVE WRITING CONTEST

became a Freshman in college, the cheery upbeat (albeit lyrically depressing) sounds of ska music no longer really fit me anymore. I wasn’t happy anymore. I was scared and sad and lonely, and I had already heard of The Who. My dad was playing Quadrophenia when he was driving me to Wells one day, and I had also remembered their performance at the Super Bowl that year.

During this time I had an insatiable urge just to listen to one of the only songs I knew by them at the time: “Who Are You.” I can’t say to this day whether I was directing the titular question to the strangers around me, or if I was directing it at myself. In hindsight, it was probably a little of both.

Eventually I settled down and began to actually enjoy college life, but I still could not stop listening to The Who. No other band seemed anywhere near as good to me anymore—no other band had the same amount of raw energy—no other band could be as loud, angry, melancholy, tough, and as sensitive all at the same time, without sounding fake.

And so they became my therapist every time I was stressing out about school, or upset about whatever girl I couldn’t be with at the time. Instead of talking to someone about my feelings, all I had to do was let Roger Daltrey scream them at me—and there was no reason to be embarrassed, either. Roger Daltrey’s vocals did not walk the tightrope between vulnerability and invincibility, as some may claim. No, they were the Schrodinger’s cat of the emotional and psychological food chain; until the box is opened it is to be assumed they exist in two completely different states at once—only this time, it’s a lock box and Schrodinger locked the key inside. “Real men don’t cry.” This is a myth—but unfortunately it’s one of those myths like Robin Hood or King Arthur. Even though on an intellectual level you know it to be fiction, something about the idea of it is so attractive that you just want it to be true. So when you hear someone scream out, and you don’t know whether they are upset

o Vomit on the Stage ve Rock with the whole world or at their own emotions, it can send you to that perfect state somewhere between escapist fantasy and cathartic reality.

Fast forward to the soft rumble of the wheels over cement and the smell of the fresh Pittsburgh steel mills wafting in through the window. It was pretty apparent that the concert couldn’t have come at a better time for either of us. In the spring of that year I lost a grandma, and my father lost a mom. We had also both lost our first family dog that summer. As for myself, I was also smack dab in the middle of losing my mind over what has thus far probably been one of the cruelest rejections I have ever been through or probably will ever go through. But tonight, none of that mattered; we were going to go see The motherfucking Who, come hell or high water.

One of my father’s biggest regrets was not going to see them perform Tommy when they were right in town, because he couldn’t afford it. Along with the fact that the band certainly wasn’t getting any younger, I think that this reason alone is why my mother didn’t object to letting us leave her behind for the night and dropping money that we couldn’t really afford to be spending on concert tickets. We needed this.

“Oh! What was that song on Who’s Next—it was like ‘One Note’ or something? I hope they play that!”

“I’m not sure. ‘One Note’ might be the title of one of those rarity songs but that might actually just be a lyric from ‘Pure & Easy.’ It was on the 2003 Deluxe Edition CD reissue, but I don’t think it was on the original release. It was on Odds & Sods too, I’m pretty sure. I want them to play ‘My Wife,’ but I doubt they will since it was sung and written by John Entwistle—wouldn’t be right for them to do it without him. I just wonder how they’re gonna do ‘Bell Boy’ without Keith Moon.”

“Yeah, how are they going to do that? Do you know who they’ve got on drums and bass?”

“Uh yeah, it’s Zak Starkey on drums. He’s Ringo Starr’s THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 93

son, but Keith Moon was his godfather, and I think he learned more from Mooney than he did from his dad. And then Pino Palladino is on bass. He’s played the bass parts for the Endless Wire album that they released in 2006 when they got back together.”

Whenever I would tell my friends how excited I was to see The Who in concert, they were fond of reminding me that I was only getting to go see half of The Who. But as far as I was concerned, half of one of the greatest bands to have ever existed is still one of the greatest bands to have ever existed.

As my father and I got closer and closer to the Consol Energy Center our collective energy became harder and harder to contain.

A strange but vaguely familiar guitar riff released itself from the radio speakers into the air we were breathing. It was a riff that I knew I’d heard before, but I couldn’t quite place my finger on it.

“Wait, who is this? It sounds like Jimi Hendrix on guitar, but I know it’s not Jimi Hendrix.”

“It’s not Jimi Hendrix.” It wasn’t Hendrix.

“Generals gathered in their masses. Just like witches at black masses.”

My father’s truck has a very peculiar sound system. Unlike conventional sound systems which have a volume meter that stops at 100, the sound system in my father’s truck has a volume meter that cycles all the way around, so that once you reach a volume of 100 the meter resets itself back to the zero position, even though the actual volume keeps getting louder. There isn’t any physical limitation on the dial itself to prevent you from spinning it after you reach a certain point. This means that the music stops getting louder either when you blow out the speakers, or when your eardrums rupture, whichever one comes first.

“Politicians hide themselves away. They only started the war. Why should they go out to fight? They leave that role to the poor, yeah.”

90 decibels is the level at which prolonged exposure can cause ear damage. This is about as loud as a truck without a muffler.

Lawn mowers and car horns measure in at around 100 decibels.

The sound of thunder weighs in at about 120 decibels. A level of 130 decibels or higher will cause damage to the ears immediately upon exposure. I can’t tell you exactly how many decibels my father’s speakers had been pumping out. What I can tell you is that had we continued to listen to the radio at that level after the song had ended, there probably wouldn’t have been much point in even going to the concert. Yet neither of us could be bothered to care about our health more than about head banging along to Black Sabbath and beating our hands on the steering wheel and passenger’s side dashboard to the rhythm of the song.

“You know, this band was pretty controversial back in the day,” my father shouted over the sounds of the radio.

“I never much liked them back then, but I’ve come to appreciate them more now. Hard to believe that they got the religious right so riled up back in the day. Some of the ‘kill your parents’ music that’s out nowadays makes these guys look like...the justin bieber 94 CREATIVE WRITING CONTEST

of satan worship. Except that i don’t wish i could smack black sabbath around a little bit. Actually, I pray that the gods of rock will forgive me for ever making that comparison, but you know what I mean—they’re, like, pretty mild.” We would be coming up to a tollbooth, soon.

The truck began to slow.

“Day of judgement, God is calling. On their knees the war pigs crawling. Begging mercy for their sins. Satan, laughing, spreads his wings! Oh yeah!” At that moment the truck came to a stop and for whatever reason, I felt compelled to look out the passenger’s side window and... no, it was all too perfect. There was no way I could actually be seeing what I thought I was seeing.

“Dad, there are two nuns sitting in the car next to us just staring at us!”

“That’s funny.”

“No, I mean there are actually two nuns sitting in the car next to us, I’m not pulling your leg!” But it was too late—they had already pulled several cars ahead of us. To this day I’m still not sure what takes precedence over the other: paying attention to the road or praying for the souls of a father and his poor unfortunate son who never stood chance against his dad’s corrupting influence.

We had decided to go to the Pittsburgh show for two reasons.

The first was that it was on a Sunday, so I would not have to miss any classes. The second reason was that Pittsburgh was my dad’s hometown, and his dad still lived close enough that we could stay at his house the night before and we wouldn’t have to wake up early in order to make it on time.

The opening band started playing at 7:00 and the main event started around 10:00. We arrived in the parking lot by 6:00. As soon as the truck came to a complete stop a man greeted us by the window.

“Wanna buy a T-Shirt? Only $20 out here, $40 inside.”

“Yeah, I’d love to buy a bootleg T-shirt!”

“Make that two,” my father chimed in.

We’d gotten the best seats possible without doubling the ticket price. If it were a baseball stadium, we’d be in prime position to catch a ball fouling just to the right of first base. The opening band called themselves “Vintage Trouble.” They were an R&B group and the lead singer had a voice that was uncannily reminiscent of James Brown. Their set played for about an hour.

Next act up on stage: the roadies.

My father tapped me on the shoulder, “I have to go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” I sat there quietly, watching as one roadie climbed a rope ladder to the top of the stage to adjust the overhead lights. I never saw him come back down.

“So I ran into the opening act in the bathroom. Offered me a hit off their bong. But nah. I’m done with that, and it would make me a total hypocrite to just do that in front of you. And I really wouldn’t want to be too doped up to remember tonight.

“But man, it just reminds me of how different things used to be back in my day. People used to go to these kinds of concerts and just smoke right in the stadium, without a care in the world. Some people used to blow the smoke right into the guards’ faces and taunt them. ‘What’re you gonna do, pig? Arrest me?’ Back then, for every one bust the cops would have made,

Joshua Brutscher is a senior Computer Science Major.

there would have been 30, 40, 50 other potheads in that section of the audience alone to show them what ‘peace, love, and understanding’ really meant. I always thought that the people who would taunt the police were being assholes. I was just happy to smoke my joint in peace without harassing anyone.”

My father believes it’s better to be upfront and honest with your children about these kinds of things. If you were in your teens or twenties during the 1960s and ’70s you’ve had at least one joint, and if you haven’t, you’re lying. “Learn from my mistakes,” he would always say. This method of parenting is what has made me fortunate enough to have such sage advice imparted upon me such as, “Never ever ever do opium. It’s so spectacular that you may just never want to do another thing for the rest of your life,” and “I don’t ever want you to try pot. I expect better from you. But if you ever do, make sure you already have your munchies with you before you start. It’s safer that way.

You won’t have to drive and you won’t have to go out in public.”

At 10:00 the lights dimmed and ambient noise from the first track of Quadrophenia filled the room.

“There they are,” my father pointed, “the Gods.” One might call this dramatic, but it just might be impossible to explain the levels of excitement we were both feeling.

Pete Townshend grabbed a Fender Stratocaster from a rack of maybe 20 or 30 identical Fender Stratocasters.

I leaned over to my father, “I know that Pete is almost 70 now, and has arthritis and could probably throw out his back, but part of me really hopes that guitar doesn’t get to live past tonight.”

The band took the stage. As the atmospheric sounds of motorized scooter engines and waves crashing against a dock came to an end, Roger Daltrey picked up his microphone.

“C-Can you see the r-reallll me...” No! No! He had managed to choke on the words that barely even escaped his lips. It’s understandable that a man who has been singing the way he sings for 53 years and has undergone two throat surgeries would lose his voice but...Roger readjusted himself and started again.

“Can you see the real me! Can ya, (can ya?)” And it was perfect, and it stayed perfect.

I never did get to see Townshend smash his guitar headlong into an amplifier—despite both his arthritis and the fact that the band once had to stop mid-concert to attend to the thumb he broke while performing a similar stunt, he still managed to pull off more than a fair share of windmills and scissor-kicks.

And despite giving himself an eye patch during a tour in the ’90s, Roger Daltrey showed no fear of swatting his microphone around like a flail from its wire. Even Starkey appeared as a visage of his godfather, hunched over his drums like an agitated and restless gorilla readying himself to break free from the constraining shackles around his arms. He was Animal from The Muppet Show, a character believed to have been a caricature of none other than Keith Moon himself. And as far as John Entwistle, when he was alive, the most active part of his stage presence would be when he would take half a step backwards when the rest of his band-mates were busy obliterating their instruments, as if to say, “Nobody lay a fucking finger on the bass.” As long as Palladino managed to emulate Entwistle’s bass playing to a satisfying degree, there really couldn’t really be much missing from the physicality of his performance.

I wanted to break things. Not out of anger. Not out of frustration. Not out of a desire for attention. There was no violent intent behind it, nor was it for vandalism’s sake. I just wanted to break something. I wanted to break things just so I could watch them break. Because it would feel good. That was the energy of the room. Even one of the band’s “mellowest” songs, “Behind Blue Eyes,” had its moments of inflamed passionate fury. And as I looked to the aisle adjacent to mine, I saw a man and his eight-year-old daughter. And as the band played I watched as the daughter sang along to each line. At that moment I felt such an inexplicable joy and freedom thanks to that complete stranger—just from knowing that a song written 40 some-odd years ago can still live on to be a part of the lives of generations old and new.

The band closed with “Tea & Theatre,” the end of a minirock-opera loosely telling a fictionalized narrative of The Who’s music career, which pays tribute to their fallen band-mates.

Those devious bastards. They knew that I wanted to break things, and they were going to put an end to it. Probably for the better. It may have not been my favorite song in their catalog, but I couldn’t think of a more appropriate ending to the night.

It was time to go home. The crowd all dispersed out into the parking lots and busy streets of Pittsburgh. The bootleggers who had not yet been busted by the police were offering 50% discounts.

After hassling with gps (which kept driving us around in circles and believed our destination to be East Aurora just southeast of Buffalo, New York) my father just decided to feel his way back to the school.

Nearly 14 hours after our initial arrival in the Consol Energy Center parking lot, we had made our way back to Wells. My father had been driving the entire night. When we got back, my father immediately dropped dead upon the bed my roommate had lent him. When he woke up he would have to say goodbye to his son and return to a slightly emptier home and a heart aching to see his beloved mother and precious dog once again.

In the meantime I had classes to attend and would have to continue to study hard and try not to crumble under the influence of a world that felt like it was falling apart all around me.

But for a night, none of it mattered. The only things that mattered were the bonds between a father, a son, and the music.

Pete Townshend has said that during tours for Tommy, there were moments where he felt vibrations from the audience that were so pure, that he could just imagine all of the energy culminating into one single note with the capability of sending the listener into a state of Nirvana. We may or may not have been sent into a kind of Nirvana that night—that is, if anyone’s idea of Nirvana involves my father screaming “fuck yeah” loudly enough that YouTube footage taken from front row ground seats managed to pick it up. What we did have for sure though, was what we needed during this particularly difficult time in our lives: a memory. And with a memory so freshly plucked from the aether of experience and vivid imagination, I couldn’t help but think that taking a mental vacation back to the recent past could distract from the buffet of the storm, just well enough to help us fight past it. • THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 95

WELLS’S RESIDENT GODDESS ANSWERS YOUR BURNING QUESTIONS.

96 DEAR MINERVA

DEAR MINERVA, Why is there a statue of an owl outside the library?

Sincerely, Gives a Hoot About it Dear Wise Wellsian, I am glad you asked—here is a little Wells history for you! There is a second owl outside the Henry Wells room and both were hung in an attempt to deter pigeons from nesting in the eaves of the library. This was unfortunately ineffective because the birds only stayed away for about a week.

It was decided that in order for this to be effective, the owls should periodically change location. However, a more effective method called for creating metal slopes on the air conditioning units to prevent the birds making a home out of Long library.

DEAR MINERVA, When I leave Wells, will you still look over me? Can I still look for your presence in my life?

Sincerely, Worried Wellsian Dear Grateful Graduate, Fear not my sweet Wellsian! No matter where you go in life after you leave Wells, Minerva will always be there for you. Wells College will be your home for as long as it will be mine.

DEAR MINERVA,

DEAR MINERVA,

Any tips for effectively balancing your social and academic life?

I graduate this year and I have no motivation to do work. What can I do to get myself motivated?

Sincerely, Stressed and Stretched Dear Studious and Social, Both your studies and your social life are important to maintain in college to be fulfilled inside and outside of the classroom.

By prioritizing your academic work and structuring your day around it, you should have time to socialize on the evenings and weekends. Mealtimes are perfect opportunities to catch up with friends and take a break from academics—but be sure you don’t spend your day in the dining hall neglecting your work!

Signed, Senioritis Sufferer Dear Pep-less Step, Finding meaning in your work is the first step to motivating yourself to completing it. Transform the way you perceive the tasks ahead from obligations to opportunities.

The work that you accomplish this year will allow you to walk across the stage feeling proud of what you’ve completed. Set priorities, make a to-do list, and structure your time to get the most out of the wonderful opportunity that is your senior year.

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 97

DEAR MINERVA,

DEAR MINERVA,

DEAR MINERVA,

I really want to be a captain on my athletic team but my coach does not seem to notice my efforts. What should I do to show my coach and my team that I am ready to step up?

What is your favorite prop or thing to dress up as?

There has been a lot of change in my life recently, especially at Wells. What are some coping mechanisms for feeling stressed about changes?

Sincerely, Eager Leader

Dear Decorating Director,

Dear Ambitious Athlete, In order to be considered for a captain position on you team, you must exhibit leadership qualities. Show your coach and your team that you are ready to be a captain by being the best player and teammate you can be. A hardworking team player is a trait of a good captain. A good captain is trustworthy and confident. If you are putting in the effort on and off the field, encouraging others, and maintaining a friendly disposition, your coach and teammates are bound to respect and recognize you. Creating or maintaining bonds with each player can also boost your chances, especially if the team chooses the captain. Best of luck to you!

98 DEAR MINERVA

Signed, Costume Conscious

I do enjoy having a warm scarf in the wintertime! However, my favorite prop would be the roses laid at my feet by the graduating senior class each year.

Sincerely, Lost in Translation Dear Rapid Rearranger, Recognizing the need to cope with change is a huge step in the right direction! Whenever we are faced with a change, many thoughts and emotions flow through us and it can be difficult to sort out. Identifying the benefits and the risks of the change will first help you process how change is affecting you. In a secondary appraisal, determine what you can do about the change. We have more control over a change in some situations rather than others, but we always have control over how we handle change. If you are uneasy about a change, especially in your community, take steps to find out more about it. Experiencing change can be difficult. Even if the change seems negative at first, we can usually find a positive outcome if you look for it. Only you can decide to grow from a situation or let it negatively affect you.

DEAR MINERVA,

DEAR MINERVA,

DEAR MINERVA,

How do you tell someone that you don’t want to hang out anymore without being rude?

I have a lot of issues with my body. My friends tell me that I‘m beautiful but that doesn’t help my own opinion. I eat healthy and I exercise—how can I change the way I see myself ?

As a legend yourself, what advice would you give to someone aspiring to be legendary?

Sincerely, Can’t Figure It Out

Dear Hopeful Hero,

Sincerely, Sensitively… See-Ya Dear Bromance Break Up, Sometimes, friends can drift apart or lose the compatibility they once had and it can be difficult to end a friendship. If you come to the point with someone where you no longer wish to be friends, assume the responsibility for that decision. Do not blame them for your choice—leave their ego intact. It is much better to tell someone, “We are not working” than to blame it solely on them. You don’t want the person on the receiving end to feel attacked. Another way to end a friendship is to distance yourself; fill your time with other activities such as your academic work, clubs, a job, or even new friends.

Dear Mad at Mirrors, We all have things we would like to change about ourselves but life is too short not to love yourself wholly and completely.

There are many ways you can show gratitude towards your body and change your perspective. Try creating a list of all of the things your body lets you do, write and review a list of positive things about yourself that do not have anything to do with your appearance, and remind yourself of these things. Appreciate your body for what it lets you do and continue to surround yourself with people that remind you of your inner strength and beauty.

Sincerely, Wanna-Be Winner

Thank you for the compliment! I would start off by always making an entrance; when I was born, I leapt from the head of Jupiter—my father—fully mature and in a full suit of armor. Also be sure to work hard and leave a lasting impression. Neptune and I had a contest to see who would be the patron god of the city of Athens. The fact that the city bears my Greek name— Athena—to this day should tell you how that contest worked out for him. But being a legend is about more than just being the best. A legend should stand for something and be an admirable person. That’s why I stand for wisdom, creativity, and craft! •

THE SYCAMORE / FALL 2013 99

VISUAL ARTS CONTEST WINNER

MARISSA BURNS IS A SENIOR VISUAL ARTS MAJOR.

“MISTY NIGHTS LEAVE REFLECTIONS”

100