21 APR 2014 by ideonexus
Realism in "A Song of Ice and Fire"
Game of Thrones takes place in a land that feels somewhat post-apocalyptic — there are occasional glimmers of hints that something really bad might have happened to Westeros long ago, and that's the reason for the irregular and attenuated seasons. But even more than that, we know Westeros is on the brink of a zombie apocalypse from the very first moment of the story. And part of the genius of Martin's slow-as-soil-erosion storytelling is that the zombie threat never quite arrives, but we ke...The engaging storytelling is the result of its connection to how the world works with gray characters and glacial problems.
29 NOV 2011 by ideonexus
"Romeo & Juliet" Was Not About True Love
TO BE FAIR WE MISTAKE INFATUATION FOR LOVE ALL THE TIME. EVEN AS ADULTS. WHY THE MOST MISUNDERSTOOD WORK OF LITERATURE OF ALL TIME IS WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S ROMEO & JULIET. TO THIS DAY, IT IS SPUN INTO SOME SORT OF CAUTIONARY TALE TO PARENTS AND SOCIETY NOT TO STAND IN THE WAY OF TRUE LOVE FOR THEIR RIDICULOUS PREJUDICES! AND WHILE IT IS CERTAINLY THAT, IT IS ALSO AND COMPLETE AND UTTER INDICTMENT OF THE STUPIDITY OF INFATUATION. THEY'RE LIKE TWO FOURTEEN YEAR OLDS WHO LOVE EACH OTHER AT ...It was about the dangers of infatuation.