The Lion King

One of my favorite Disney movies of all time is The Lion King. It is funny, but filled with grief as well. Simba is the son of the powerful King, Mufasa, and his dream in life is to be just like his dad. His uncle Scar, however, has other plans, and kills Mufasa so that he can be king. Simba is very young when his dad dies, and Scar convinces him it was he who killed his own father. He encourages Simba to run away and never return to Pride Rock. As Simba becomes a young adult, he is left with the guilt of his father's death.

In Frankenstein, Victor is like Simba. He is ecstatic to learn science and become one of the greatest scientists of the time. His creation of a the man creature pushed the boundaries that science set for him. Simba is ecstatic to grow up and be king of Pride Rock. He thinks he will be a great king, just like his father. When Victor actually accomplishes his creation, he is struck with guilt and fear that scares him away from the creature. He leaves his home so that the creature can't bother him, yet the guilt eats away at him.
When Simba finally reaches adulthood, he is living in exhile. This is also because or the guilt and fear of being found out. What will the others think of him if he were to return to Pride Rock, after years of isolation. He thinks they would surely shun him because he had killed their magnificent king.
Frankenstein and The Lion King, are both stories of guilt and isolation.
~Jannye

Who really killed Jenny?

Jenny Schecter is a complicated, mess of a person on the Showtime series The L Word. Like Dr. Frankenstein, Jenny is oblivious to her surroundings. Her wake up call comes in the form of a woman, Marina. After moving to Los Angeles with her boyfriend, Jenny becomes immersed in the lesbian world of Los Angeles. Throughout her journey on the show, Jenny experiences many ups and downs. She goes through numerous relationships, both sexual and friendship based, becomes a cutter, moves back home with her parents, returns, and ultimately resembles the lacking of emotion in that of sociopathic people. For example, Jenny has been friends with Tina since she moved to Los Angeles. Tina has always been a trusted and cherished friend to Jenny. However, when Jenny might lose her rights as a writer to her film, she decides to risk Tina's job as a producer and her friendship by stealing the footage. She doesn't tell Tina that she takes the footage and lets Tina get blamed and fired for it going missing. By the last season of the show, Jenny has become a complete Frankenstein. Her utter appearance makes the people around her cringe and she is aware of how hideous she is. Like the Creature, Jenny still tries to redeem herself. While doing these small acts of kindness, she also displays some horrific personality traits and habits. She relates to the scene in Frankenstein when the Creature is in the cave and sees the young boy. His intention was to take the boy as a companion and make him apart of his non-existent family. However, the boy screams at the sight of the monster and the monster kills him. Jenny had good intentions at times, but usually nothing ever had great results. Both Jenny and the monster were seen as less than human to the people around them. With the examination of each character's actions and mindset when acting, the complete opposite is evident. They both displayed the animalistic and sensitive nature of a human being. To both of their dismays, their inate attachment to the human condition never worked in their favor.

Presenting, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

After listening to this song for the millionth time, I realized that it would be a perfect depiction of Dr. Frankenstein. The second stanza states. "Who you following? Who you starting to move like? Who you falling for? Who you falling for? Who's lies? Who you following? Who you falling for? This sound's on your side." This part of the song stood out to me more than any other part because it's addressing how many people are like sheep. For example, Dr. Frankenstein is coasting through life with only the subject of natural philosophy in his sights. It isn't until the Creature wakes up that his attention is caught. There are many people like Dr. Frankenstein who operate on an unconscious level, as if they are on autopilot. It is stated later in the song, "What's your crime?" It arises questions within yourself as to how you could've contributed to your own despise. Dr. Frankensein blames the monster for the deaths of a few characters. However, it is his own fault. The Creature told Dr. Frankenstein that he would be with him on his wedding night, and he still marries Elizabeth. He knows that the monster is going to go after the people closest to him if he doesn't create a mate for him. Yet, he still decides not to make a suitable female companion. He operated as if he and all of the people around him were impervious to death. We are all mortal and apart of this world. The question is: Are you living in it?

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HELLBOY

Hellboy is a fictional devilish character that is isolated from birth. He is brought into the world with no one to watch over and protect him. Unknowingly, he was doomed for evil and despair and to bring hell onto earth. Luckily, soon after he is created he is found by a secret league of army and scientists , who takes hellboy into there facility. One man imparticular takes this young evil creature is his arms and gives him a home and teaches him to be good. Hellboy soon learns that he must be hidden and forced into isolation and hiding in front of human beings outside the facility. This deeply affects him as he is growing up, having no one to tell him where he is from or what he is and why he was created. Like Frankenstein, hellboy was brought into the world and immediately abandoned. Having no answers and a million questions, both creatures find they are hideous and are portrayed as dangerous and scary to people. Taking different paths, whereas Frankenstein kills and becomes evil because of his confusion, and Hellboy becomes good and helps people and prevents evil, working together with this secret league. They both are isolated and socially unexpected because of their appearance, but clearly handle the situation in completely different ways.

JOANNA ROJAS

HOMOSEXUALS

When thinking about socially unexpected beings, one thought came to mind. Lesbian, gay, and bisexual people face discrimination each day. They fight for the respect they deserve and the rights that are taken away. While I was searching information about this topic, I came upon thousands of hate websites discriminating against homosexuality. Some people believe lesbians, gays and bisexuals are evil, and that loving someone that is the same sex as you isn’t "right". Personally, I think that we do not decide what is right or wrong. A person has the freewill to love anyone they want, whether it is the opposite or same sex. Frankenstein was also socially unexpected. He was unknown, and innocent when first created which left him vulnerable. He was a human being like the rest around him, but because of his different appearance, he was thrown into isolation. Like homosexuals, who don’t follow the "norm", are automatically labeled and in a way forced into a community. They are people just like the rest of the world, expect with a different sexual orientation. So my question to you is:
Why cant people accept difference?


JOANNA ROJAS

Boundaries are icebergs

Boundaries can cause people to sink. Rose is intelligent and knows the rules of her class and what are the proper ways of doing things. Like Dr.Frankenstein, she pushes past these boundaries. Dr. Frankenstein has boundaries in almost every aspect of his life. He has them in science, love, family, friendship and even himself. However, when he tries to push past them, he ends up with consequences he never would've thought of. For Rose, the boundaries she accompanied were from environmental conditioning, which she broke away from. Her consequence involved losing the one she loved. However, she differs from the scientist because with that loss, she gained a greater appreciation for life. Both characters share the want to break free and discover the world. What makes them significantly different is that Rose was courageous and everything she did came from a place of love, not selfishness.

-Jamilah

The Creature is Terry Malloy

In the 1954 film ,On the Waterfront, Terry Malloy is a prize-winning boxer turned longshoreman. Like the Creature, Terry hurts people. He works for the biggest mob organization in his community and usually sets up people's deaths. In one particular scene, Terry is talking to his brother, Charlie. Charlie is sent to kill Terry and at the knowledge of this, Terry decides to be honest. He said, " You don't understand. I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am, let's face it. It was you, Charlie. " He is explaining to his brother that because of his lack of protection and guidance, he didn't amount to anything and he had no choice but to become a monster to survive. The Creature blames his creator, Dr.Frankenstein, for the deaths that he later causes. By creating him as an outsider with no other options, hopelessness and anger began to dwell within.

-Jamilah