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And the Man Asleep in the Back Says?
Jan. 31st, 2008 07:13 pmMy British Literature class was interesting. We're going through The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus by Marlowe, which is fun--not because it's new, but because the people in my class provide a refreshingly modern take on it.
I'll give you an example. This one guy started off class by saying, "Yeah, I was really pulling for him."
He sold his soul to the devil--but this guy was pulling for him!
"You had no idea which way it was going to go," he continued.
A hint: any story that starts out with the main character declaring he wants to be better than God? Is not going to end well.
Anyway, later my teacher was asking us about the time period, and what aspects of the Renaissance and Reformation show up in the play, and whether Marlowe was a closet Catholic and such. Anyway, my teacher was talking about Calvinism. The thing is, I'm a Calvinist and people tend to have some really wonky ideas about Calvinism and they're not afraid to share because most everyone thinks it went the way of the Puritans.
"So you have this idea of predestination, which is a problem, because you have people like the Puritans. If you're saved, then you wonder, 'Well, am I doing enough? Am I being holy?' so you're nervous. Or you're not saved, so you wonder, 'Am I not saved? What if I can't be saved, what if I'm doomed to hell?' and you're really nervous. So basically our country was founded by some very nervous, depressed people."
Which is scarily accurate.
I'll give you an example. This one guy started off class by saying, "Yeah, I was really pulling for him."
He sold his soul to the devil--but this guy was pulling for him!
"You had no idea which way it was going to go," he continued.
A hint: any story that starts out with the main character declaring he wants to be better than God? Is not going to end well.
Anyway, later my teacher was asking us about the time period, and what aspects of the Renaissance and Reformation show up in the play, and whether Marlowe was a closet Catholic and such. Anyway, my teacher was talking about Calvinism. The thing is, I'm a Calvinist and people tend to have some really wonky ideas about Calvinism and they're not afraid to share because most everyone thinks it went the way of the Puritans.
"So you have this idea of predestination, which is a problem, because you have people like the Puritans. If you're saved, then you wonder, 'Well, am I doing enough? Am I being holy?' so you're nervous. Or you're not saved, so you wonder, 'Am I not saved? What if I can't be saved, what if I'm doomed to hell?' and you're really nervous. So basically our country was founded by some very nervous, depressed people."
Which is scarily accurate.
