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Showing posts from October, 2019

Movies and TV in the 50s

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Movies and TV shows can be very influential towards young girl’s minds, so if Lolita saw any of these shows or movies while growing up, then she may have been swayed to think that her “relationship” with Humbert was normal. “I Love Lucy” (1951-1957) produced by Desilu Productions (Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball) photo from https://ilovelucyandricky.fandom.com/wiki/%27%27I_Love_Lucy%27%27_series_cast       This show is supposed to be a picture-perfect family of a husband and wife highlighting their adventures being married. A show like this would be one that any girl would see and immediately want to have a relationship like the one portrayed in the show. Theoretically, Lolita could have seen this show and therefore thought that her relationship with Humbert was okay because she may have wanted a similar relationship to that which Lucy and Desi had on TV. She could also have felt similar to Lucy in that she would get into trouble or do troublesome things yet Humbert would bail

Frank Sinatra's Songs Can Be Really Creepy

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One of the greatest artists of the 1950s was Frank Sinatra who mostly sang love songs. Usually, these would all be very sweet songs, but if you think about them as if you were Humbert, then they can easily be twisted into something more sinister. “Come Fly with Me” by Frank Sinatra (1957) This song is obviously an innocent love song about running away with your lover, but it can also be taken to be a bit creepy when you listen to it from Lolita’s or Humbert’s perspective. The lyrics are “Once I get you up there/I’ll be holding you so near/You might hear/ All the angels cheer because we’re together” which is normally quite sweet, but it’s reminiscent of how Humbert ran away with Lolita after her mother died. Humbert may have listened to this song and felt inspired to kidnap Lolita so they could be together forever. Though any normal person wouldn’t take this song like that, someone who clearly has mental issues can get this message out of the song.  “I’ve

Who Said Intersectionality Was Simple?

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We all have that one friend who just needs to make you feel sorry for them because they think they have it worse than everyone else. Next time they start to guilt-trip you about their lives, send them a link to "Who Said It Was Simple" by Andre Lorde . Her poem is about how everyone experiences oppression differently. Photo from https://agnesarnold-forster.com/2013/10/14/in-conversation-with-the-womens-liberation-a-review/ Originally, the feminist movement was about bringing justice only to white middle-class women.   This movement was leaving out women of color and low-class women. The white middle-class women were so focused on their own abuse that they forgot that there are many other factors to oppression and that ignoring them is leaving out many women. Intersectionality is an idea that race, gender, and class are all connected.   People have layers to their mistreatment.   Women can be persecuted not only for their gender but also for their race and so

Anti-war Mentality Isn't Ending War

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After World War II, two major events happened in the United States.   The first is that the US became a military superpower and the second is that people developed an anti-war response to this.   The anti-war mentality was seen throughout American culture including the arts.   Many poets started writing about war and how awful it is. The problem is, now that America is a military powerhouse, there’s no going back. Despite the critiques that poets like Denise Levertov and Maxine Kumin wrote about war and war culture in   "Life at War" and "Woodchucks" , war is still very present in American society . As great as it would be for us to be able to rid our lives of war and simply have peace, it’s impossible because the US government makes  a lot of money from  the military and selling military goods. The government also pours a lot of money into the mili tary to create new products to be sold. Photo from https://www.nationalpriorities.org/budget-basics/fe