Prometheus' Subliminal Messages from the Religious Right

It's been over a week since I watched the summer blockbuster Prometheus in 3D. The film is advertised as a prequel to Alien and is easily seen as such for those familiar with director Ridley Scott's work. I'm a sucker for science fiction flicks, and for summer blockbusters, so this seemed like it would sufficiently satisfy my appetite for allegories of the human condition, as traditional sci-fi so often does.

What I did NOT expect was to encounter strong themes of religious-based faith, Anglo-Saxon imperialism, and the pop culture media-sensationalized fear of travelling. I did not expect to find these subliminal messages from the religious Right.

You should be warned that there are spoilers below. I won't hold it against you if you haven't seen it yet, but I will sit here and subtly shake my finger at you:

--

The first and most recurring problem I had with the characters in Prometheus was how often the majority of them (scientists, ship folk, and billionaire 1%ers) questioned lead character Elizabeth Shaw's science-based curiosity. She just wanted to know Why -- a question that, if you ask me, not enough people ask and not enough non-scientist folk hold scientists to figuring out -- and got slammed time and again by everyone. Why were there other scientists -- geologists, biologists, and medics, oh my! -- who insisted that her attempts to piece together anthropological origins were "irrelevant" to their current condition. The fact that American politicians neglect to donate money to schools and NASA only supports the idea that being kept ignorant -- and not asking Why -- is the best solution to keeping a nation compliant. We are responsible for our future and we need to start asking Why and demanding answers, or at least the means of exploring the possibilities.

My earliest memory of defending science came about in second or third grade when a team of my friends informed me on the playground that my older sister was weird (like I didn't already know . . . j/k): "She thinks we came from monkeys," they said, "tell her she's wrong."

Though I will admit that I'm not thinking about analyzing ancient hieroglyphs when I feel I'm in danger of being eaten by snake-like parasites.

Would it be a little pretentious to call them Face-Huggers?

Regardless of this simple plot device, I shall move on. The second thing I noted worth exploring was the ship's android, David, and his obsession with T. E. Lawrence, made famous not necessarily by his epic autobiographical piece of work, Seven Pillars of Wisdom, but by actor Peter O'Toole's portrayal of the British Lt. Colonel in 1962's Lawrence of Arabia.

Now in manga form.

Why would this bother me? The model of an Anglo man leading a group of people with different ethnic, racial, or species background that was extracted from Lawrence of Arabia has been used so often in cinema. The hero who saves a nation does not originate from that nation -- and in cinematic history this "White Savior" is celebrated for arriving (or infiltrating) a population of color and telling them what to do. In the real world, this doesn't necessarily work out. In the real world, you die if you don't do what the natives tell you.

I will admit that moments like this, where David expresses wonderment at looking back at Earth -- though he be of robot descent and therefore void of emotions -- were just simply beautiful.

Case in point, Grizzly Man -- if you haven't seen it, you should, and what I have to say regarding the White Savior syndrome won't alter or "spoil" your genuine reaction to it. In short, the GM was told by Alaskan natives to stay away from the grizzly bears although they were revered in the culture; it was understood both by Alaskan man and "beast" that their different instincts and reasoning makes it impossible for them to live peacefully together. One is always living in fear of the other killing them.

The tricky thing regarding David's condition in Prometheus is, who is he fighting for? Who are the "natives?" Who is his old self that he is repelling and who is his "new" one that his is embracing? As this Psychology Today article points out, the common theme in Lawrence, Avatar, and Dances is that the main character is going native (thereby re-creating himself), then ultimately finds himself in a battle against the army from which he came -- in a way he is battling his old "self." In the beginning, David is clearly hiding information from Theron's character, the billionaire daughter of Peter Weyland who is funding their trip. A case can be made for David either defending the humans in their escape from the planet, or for defending the beings thought to have created us.

Could he be OUR White Savior?

Before I move on to my third point, you might be thinking, Crystal Math, there was so much more that this movie offered -- you're seriously dwelling on some shit that only took up like, five minutes of the movie, dudette. What's your beef, brah?


That's a clown question, bro, but you would be pretty spot on: the first point I made that characters were typically anti-science and the third point I will be making about religion are totally out of the realm of my everyday thought and reality. That's not to say that I'm not informed -- I just didn't grow up going to church and fearing the wrath of God. I have always stood by science, the scientific method, and am naturally curious so it's hard to be empathetic or provide much editorializing on behalf of "non-believers;" however, my third point regarding Elizabeth Shaw's faith in the movie is difficult for me to elaborate on because I am . . . a non-believer. I don't know religion nearly as well as I know and have read up on social justice, race and identity issues within our society in a current and historical perspective. I don't read about the history or conflicts of religion unless you want to talk about overlapping themes of human rights.

I found that Prometheus skirted around the issue of religious-based faith -- we are shown images of a young Elizabeth as she watches what looks like a South-Asian funeral and turns around to ask her father where the dead will go in their faith (she also wants to know if that's where Mummy went). In the movie she is seen wearing a necklace with a cross and refuses to give it up when David tells her it's contaminated, but notes that she doesn't want to give up an icon of her faith. In another scene, he briefly compares her faith of science in finding the origin of our DNA to her faith of religion in a supreme being. I suppose the two can be seen as the same (both are powerful white dudes, one with a beard).

wants to destroy us all

wants us to stop apologizing

Yet another childhood memory I have of religious conformity and lack of critical thought hails from high school when discussing with a friend why she hated The Beatles: "He said they were better than Jesus. Nobody is better than Jesus Christ."

I think the main message at the heart of Prometheus is that we choose to believe what we want to, and conversely, we don't have to believe anything at all because regardless of wherever we originate, at the present we just are and our existence in itself is a remarkable achievement. It's a remarkable conclusion for someone who tends towards curiosity and seeking reasons behind everything. Prometheus proved to be a unique experience for me simply because of its status as a summer blockbuster -- my summer freedom allows me the time and resources to fully explore this film's themes, however vaguely they present themselves. I've heard a lot of mixed reviews from this film and while I wholeheartedly agree that it could have been made better, I recommend that one lower one's expectations of a summer big-budget film and relax. Allow your mind to take note of everything, and feel free to read whatever you wish into the story line. Let the debates begin. I love sensationalized theories found in cinema.

"She couldn't scream as I held her close"

Whatcha been listenin' to?

Recently I've been on a KISS marathon to get pumped up for the August show with Motley Crue. Though I'm not a Crue fan I'll give just about anything a listen. In between composing mental Top Five lists of Most Wicked Guitar Solos or Worst Gene Songs, I'm sprinkling tunes from high school and college into the mix like Liz Phair, Sheryl Crow, Alanis Morissette, Aimee Mann and her husband Michael Penn, Cowboy Junkies, Pat Benatar, and The Pretenders among others.

Just this afternoon I revisited The Killers:

The lyrics in the bridge of this song have always sent chills down my spine:

And someone is calling my name
From the back of the restaurant
And someone is playing a game
In the house that I grew up in
And someone will drive her around
Down the same streets that I did
On the same streets that I did 

Although they evoke many bittersweet memories, I'm thankful for them. As human beings I believe we all tend towards reflecting on personal and social growth, and I am no exception (actually I think I tend to over-reflect). I just finished a teaching assignment that lasted four amazing, excruciating, grueling and fantastic years of my life. On the second to the last day of school, as I told my students that I had grown so much as a teacher, and that this school has made me the teacher and person they recognize and look up to, it felt sad to conclude that the only way for me to continue growing is to move on to new things. 

and someone will drive her around/down the same streets that i did

There was a period of about a week where I was wrought with anxiety for saying my good-byes to a solid community and hellos to a new assignment where the only thing that was certain was the grade level and class I would be teaching. But, after all was said and done, and the students are gone, I'm filled with nothing but excitement and anticipation for what is to come.

smile like you mean it

I've got new, updated Algebra 1 resources that I got for FREE at a math conference two years ago. Now I'm prepared with intervention tools and pacing guides to help me along. I've got group-building activities that have accumulated from having a 35-minute Homeroom each day where we talked about our feelings, social issues, and the importance of passing final exams. In short, I feel prepared -- I just hope that feeling continues on August 21.  

Is there any GOOD news for women anymore?!??!?

I have just been wanting to scream with exhaustion due to the workload at my day-job and the emotional workload that is building upon reading what might very well be the worldly re-institutionalization of sexism:

1. First thing yesterday I read was this four-page masterpiece (or should I say mistresspiece?) by my new SHEro, Mona Eltahawy. "Why Do They Hate Us?" takes us where Eltahawy convincingly labels as the epicenter of the war on women: the Middle East. There's no argument coming from me; for one, I've never been to the Middle East (I really, really wanted to when I first saw the riot footage but retracted once I heard about all the sexual assaults female protesters had to endure not only from riot police but from male protesters as well), and secondly, I trust Ms. Eltahawy's journalism as a reliable source of information about how women and minorities are being treated, their rights remaining intact (or reporting when they are not). 

A final thought on her article is that I hope "We are more than our headscarves and our hymens" becomes a chant for women alongside with, "Keep your rosaries off of my ovaries."

I had actually seen her as a guest on Democracy Now a few months back during Egypt's turmoil over voting. She had been featured a few times prior, but this interview from last November still brings tears to my eyes that as a protester she had to endure so much police abuse -- and, as a woman, she had to endure such irreversible torture.

2. In trying to keep up with the latest national politics, all I seem to hear about is how [White male] Republican Presidential nominees want in on what I do with my lady-parts. Bills are being passed in Arizona and Kansas granting doctors the right to withhold information about the health of an unborn fetus, and the [mostly dude] news journalists and [predominantly male] talking heads are littering the airways with debate over whether contraceptives should be covered by one's health care, who should pay for it, etc.

Is there ANY good news for women anymore? Well, for one thing, I know what yarn-bombing projects I'm going to endorse myself in this summer:

It's a CLIToria!

3. The latest cover of Newsweek

and its accompanying article, written by a woman, that catches reader's eyes by claiming that "surrender is a feminist dream."

First of all, and most importantly, this is commensurate to exposing working men who like to be dominated (shaming and claiming that they are somehow less of a man), and therefore violating their right to privacy. A more abstract perspective would only conclude that people in places of power have so much of it that they can decide when they are in control or not. Why should it make any difference if a woman happens to be making that call? (Answer: Because it makes for a kinky Newsweek cover. This brings me to my next point.)

Secondly, the objectification of women portrayed in the cover (it makes me feel vulnerable, doesn't it you?) is a far cry from the content of the featured article, which is more like an observation on the growing popularity on topics of successful women getting off on being dominated. 

Though, I never would have imagined the feminist breakthroughs experienced by the release of Secretary would warrant an HBO episode of Girls where a main character fantasized about contracting AIDS as a means of alleviating herself from today's harrowing responsibilities of womanhood. Maggie Gyllenhaal's character in the '02 indie film overcomes personal issues of social anxiety and even though on the surface she appears to be taken control of by her boss (James Spader), in the end she comes out on top. It's a very submissive top, but a "top," nonetheless!

It is the content of the modern shows Shades of Grey and Girls -- not the content of the NW article -- that I feel are misinterpreting a woman's right to determine how she wants to be treated in the privacy of her (or someone else's) bedroom for generalizing the way ALL women want/need to be treated. Regardless of whether or not they think they want it.

4. Weeks back, this cracked.com article was brought to my attention -- "5 Ways Modern Men are Trained to Hate Women." I tried discussing it with a coworker today but then I realized that my blind hatred towards men who hate women probably skewed my overall impression of the article. My brain needs to marinate on it a bit more. 

Or, is it really necessary? When, and by what means, are we going to calibrate our perceptions to that of equality for every person?

How has this issue of feminism -- or even this blog entry -- been reduced from global women's issues to bedroom activity (or inactivity)? We are more than our headscarves and hymens and you must remove your rosaries from my ovaries!!!

I'm having an Angry Feminist Day... c'mon, somebody needed to say it!!

"Good math teachers always find a home."

And so someone told me. The 27th year of one's existence brings big changes. This equally scares and excites me. For the past four years I've been working with teenaged students while secretly wishing I was working with adults, only to find that what I discovered at my first job (dog kennel attendant at an animal hospital) remains the same: adults suck and animals/young 'uns rule. They will just let you know how they feel without sugar-coating or covering anything up. For the majority of my life I've gotten in trouble for speaking my mind or acting strangely when I feel like I've been living truthfully every moment of my existence. And it's always boggled my mind that others look up to it rather than dare to live it.

Not to say that teenagers are animals... because we all are. I think in a lot of ways adult humans clog up so much of their instincts with etiquette and formalities that sometimes we forget to listen to nature, each other, and even ourselves. What follows is that we forget to be there for each other and we also forget the weight a simple hug or greeting bears when we are in the middle of chaos.

There have been so many occasions in the past, that have seen me fearful of how others will take to my honesty. There's nothing like being afraid of the person you live with -- what will be thrown, what will be said, and what excuses will be made on their behalf from you. It's something that until recently has stirred up overwhelming negative emotions in me; however, the change brought on by Year 27 seems to have brought indifferent feelings in me with regards to those who have made me feel unsafe in my past. Within the last 3 days I've felt completely relaxed and separated from feeling of fear that once consumed my nights and caused me to worry if it would or could ever happen again.

It's important for me to be able to "drop the waterline," as they say, and learn to trust more. This is a huge change for me as I've felt abandoned or even betrayed by those I love in the past. Right now I can't believe how in love I am and the trust, like magic, has come naturally. I want to write more about it but the only word to describe it is Wonderful.

I am in love with my Reality.

East Coast Escapades

Top 5 things I will miss about the east coast:
5. Lack of Responsibility

Well, it wasn't quite that warm, but the sentiment is the same.

I had a week to tromp around the Big Apple and three other states in New England. It was a week well-deserved and completely void of papers to grade and ABC-gum to pry off of the underside of desks. 

Also, despite the chilly weather, my hands enjoyed the sabbatical from my old-school chalkboard and got moisturized with lotion whenever I gazed at them.

4. New York City -- you need to wear sunglasses at night walking around places like Times Square!

I had such a great time that I couldn't be bothered to think about how sore my feet were, how worn out my legs became from scaling the subway stairs as we commuted from Hoboken, NJ to NYC numerous times. Most noteworthy was the moment when we were trying to find public transportation to Hoboken from NYC. The lady at the bus station uttered only three words to me: "Follow the path."

I looked at her. She looked back at me, eyes uninterested in making further conversation. Her comment begged the question so I asked her, "Are you being metaphoric?" Turns out the New York version BART is the PATH, an underground train that runs with the subways and takes people from the city to New Jersey.


3. Brick buildings -- yes, they are more appealing than one would think.

Newbury Street, Boston

When I was first told about how crazy tourists were for staring at buildings it took me back to my youth growing up in Humboldt and Del Norte counties, "Home of the Redwoods."

At first I categorized brick buildings in the same as redwoods: something totally mundane that, when people just get over it, can enjoy their time. I should have remembered that after being absent from said Redwoods that I, too, fell under the spell of their wonder and beauty. The last time I made it up there was in 2004 and I couldn't stop staring at them and how gracefully they would sway in the wind... But to sum it all up, these buildings oozed with legacy and age and grace that is rare to see.

2. Taking pictures of wicked expensive stuff -- that's right. I'm a crafter and I gotta know what's hot and what's not.

As we strolled around Rockefeller Plaza I became increasingly aware of the fact that we were surrounded by expensive stores: an nth-level Macy's and... SAKS FIFTH AVENUE. I'd heard about this place, as I've heard of many expensive places, only in passing and I badly felt the need to share the same space with a different breed of people who bother to buy something with such a hefty price tag.

My findings included -- $1600 purses, $2500 dresses, and ... a whole floor dedicated to fur garments that I purposely avoided. I didn't even bother looking at the shoes.


1. LOBSTER
I don't think this requires many words... They were steamed then baked with a pile of delicious bread crumbs and a saucerful of butter for each person.

80's crap = Crystal Math gold

As a part of my 2012 New Years "Revolutions," I'm composing a list of [early] 80's mediocre music to accumulate next time my favourite persyn and I go on an excursion for obscure music. My list so far consists of well known and well-forgotten artists and "artists" of the desired decade. But I'm laying down one major rule:

• NO, and I repeat NO "best of" bullllllllllshiiiiiiiiiiit. It goes against the purist music snob that's begging to get out. Greatest hits albums are a cop-out and a limitation of what this artist is truly capable of.

Some of them have since reunited, and some of them have since insisted it never happened. Whether we listen to these bands on an LP or mp3, they are:

1. Howard Jones

2. Europe -- ever since "Final Countdown" came on the airplane radio on my way back to California I've been on a kick.

3. The Human League

4. A Flock of Seagulls

5. Adam and the Ants (focus on early punk, technically late 70's)

6. Marshall Crenshaw

7. Plastic Bertrand --> Here's Sonic Youth's cover of "Ca Plane Pour Moi." I don't think he ever had another hit...

8. Missing Persons -- this band was mentioned in a book I read, Less Than Zero, and prompted me to check out all the obscure bands therein.

9. 'Til Tuesday

10. Romeo Void -- I first encountered this band on an 80's compilation from Time Life (my eyes were glued to the tv whenever the infomercial came on and somehow my mom bought my whining pleas, and consequently the CD series)

11. Numbers -- yet another female lead band that fell into obscurity. Brush off the dust and you've got an interesting collection.

12. The Pretenders -- Yeah, everyone knows these guys already. In addition to the Human League, they'll probably be the easiest to find.
13. OMD (Orchestral Manuevers in the Dark)

14. Dugites --> The lead singer reminds me of a Pat Benatar/Jane Weidlin hybrid, though she was from the same era (but Australian). "Waiting" is another good one, but this tune caught my attention as well:

*ok ok ok ONE MORE*

15. Sparks -- forget that the guy has a Hitler mustache! He reminded me of Pee Wee and the video is cute:

Musings Not Bemusings

I feel like the world is my effin' oyster right now. 

Ever since I returned from El Salvador, I see so many options and paths ahead of me. It literally opened up my eyes to the people, the culture, the language of the world. It made me feel closer to those I hold dear to my heart -- or it inspired me to get closer to them. Conversely it's inspired me to let go of the things that have been the source of my hold-ups for the last two years.

Both are going to inspire big changes, but I have so much optimism that I'm hopeful for a future even if it means struggle. At least it'll mean change.

I'm not as offended anymore when people remind me how "young" I am... (I think what bugs me so damn much is that I have no perspective on the matter ... think about it: I don't know what it feels like to be any other age than the ages that I've already experienced, how could I possibly know how relatively "young" I am compared to someone older than me?) ... but it certainly has made me feel that I need to take the time to go the extra mile to represent, protest, oppose and propose the things that I want to see happen in my lifetime. I want to make this semester at school the best ever, and I want to make this summer the best ever, and everything else afterward: The Best __________ Ever!

Exploring another country that is as rich in history as it is in tragedy inspired me to explore my options that lie in my own local community. People that I talk with about my journey seem fascinated and admire me for doing it, but some part of me doesn't understand why. It makes sense to me that one would want to pursue a cause about which they are passionate. I know that there are some hold-ups: money, risks of traveling to a "developing" country, trust, etc.

I had never been more homesick but once I returned to the United States I couldn't stop thinking about returning to the pueblos and learning more about what it meant to be from El Salvador. When I returned from the Twin Cities to protest the Republican National Convention four years ago I was surprised to see that "nothing" changed while I was away; now, returning from another country, I'm witnessing the same thing (I just have more colorful stuff). Only this time around I'm taking more initiative to creating the results I want.