Daring to Dance

Have you ever read the fairy tale "The Twelve Dancing Princesses"? I hadn't, until Fall 2012, when I was in a class on fairy tales and their retellings. This was one of the best classes I have ever had the privilege to be a part of, and my research on this fairy tale was perhaps the most pleasant research I've ever done. I had such a great time with it, and it's one of my favorite research papers I've written, so I thought I would share it here!

If you haven't read the fairy tale, here's a link. It's a pretty fast read. Check it out, and poke around the site, too - it's absolutely amazing!
http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/twelvedancing/index.html

Here's my insight on it. Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

Daring to Dance:
An Analysis of “The Twelve Dancing Princesses”

            Once upon a time, there were approximately 360 dancing princesses, along with about a dozen dancing princes. They wore out hundreds of dancing shoes, making about 30 royal shoemakers very busy and about 30 royal fathers very perplexed. That is, until about 30 soldiers or farmers discovered about 30 magical kingdoms where the girls danced at night, after which about 30 or more weddings were celebrated. And all the hundreds of princesses and dozens of soldiers lived, more or less, happily ever after. 

            The fascination with retelling fairy tales has certainly not overlooked “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” While I spent time with around thirty different versions of this story, I discovered that almost as many more were still out there, and I have the feeling that I probably overlooked nearly as many as I found. From young adult novels and picture books to anime cartoons and musical stage productions, this story has been retold a number of times in a number of ways. While there are many reasons to retell the same story, I believe that the tale of twelve girls who dance their shoes to shreds at night appeals to its audiences because of its openness to reinterpretation, particularly in regard to understanding the princesses’ motivations. 

            The story of “The Twelve Dancing Princesses” is thought to have originated during the 17^th century, and it was recorded by the Grimm brothers after they heard the story from some of their acquaintances (Heiner “History”). Andrew Lang, another well-known fairy tale author, published a longer and more detailed version of this story, but his inspiration came from the French “Les Douze Princesses Dansantes” by Charles Deulin, who based his version on the Grimm’s original (Heiner “Tales Similar”). Other early variations on this tale come largely from Central Europe, and for the most part this story “cannot be found further east than Russia” (Heiner “History”). 

            As with many fairy tales, this story has seen a surge in retellings and adaptations in recent years. Each new artist that retells a story, be they an author, illustrator, director, etc., brings to that story a new meaning and relevance. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm’s original version of “The Twelve Dancing Princesses” is very short, describing only the main events. In this way, it seems that the Grimm Brothers had a knack for giving us just enough information to make our minds run wild with possibilities. This means that each new version of the story offers its own interpretations and explanations. In retellings of “The Twelve Dancing Princesses,” it seems that one question is on everyone’s mind – why are these girls dancing, anyway? 

            In the Grimm Brother’s original story, the princesses apparently make the choice to go out dancing every night, and they seem to enjoy their time doing so. They give drugged wine to all those who attempt to solve the mystery, fully understanding that it will mean death for these men. By all appearances, “[t]he princesses show no remorse for their involvement in the mystery and the deaths of the suitors” (Heiner “Annotations”). For what is usually considered a children’s story, this seems a bit harsh. “The callousness displayed by the princesses is often troubling to many critics and readers. Are the princesses really that cruel or are they under an enchantment?” (Heiner “Annotations”). While the Grimm Brothers left this question unanswered, other authors have found many ways to address it. 

            One of the most popular explanations for the princesses’ actions is in the idea that they are all under an enchantment. This explanation may have come first from Andrew Lang’s version, where the actions of the youngest princess and the hero, Michael, break a charm. However, this charm appears to have only been over the princesses’ dancing partners, not necessarily the princesses themselves, and while Lina, the youngest princess, shows some compassion, her older sisters seem just as uncaring as they were in the Grimm’s tale. With this idea of an enchantment, however, came a host of stories about princesses under spells, in trances, or bound by magical contracts. In the novel Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George, the princesses are cursed, forced to dance every night for the King Under Stone, paying off the debt of their mother who, before she died, agreed to dance for him in exchange for his magical help. In some versions, the princesses don’t fully understand the reason they’re dancing, such as in a cartoon version, where they are under a deep trance (“Worn-Out Dancing Shoes”), or in the short story by Patricia A. McKillip, where the spell they are under convinces them that their nightly journeys are only a dream. In an older English tale we see another curse and an interesting switch in gender roles as the princess cleverly saves the prince who is under a spell that forces him to dance every night (Jacobs). Depending on the retelling, these various enchantments can be seen as humorous, “a puzzling – and downright silly – curse” (Haskell), or as deadly, a curse that must be solved, or else “the twelve princesses will surely dance to their deaths” (Zahler). Certainly, an enchantment of any kind is a reasonable way to explain why twelve girls would dance their shoes to pieces night after night. However, this is not the only explanation that has been offered. 

            If these princesses are not under any kind of enchantment or curse, it’s only logical to assume that the reason behind their dancing is the fact that they choose to dance. If this is the case, we have to examine the motivations behind this choice, and they are often far more varied and complex than any curse. In Entwined, for example, the twelve young princesses have just lost their mother, who loved and encouraged dancing, so although the rules of mourning forbid them from dancing, they use it as a way of coping with their grief (Dixon). In other versions, it is similarly the act of being forbidden to dance that causes the girls to pursue dancing in secret. Interestingly enough, this motive, holding an undertone of rebellion, seems to be common in some of the retellings geared toward children. In the animated film Barbie and the Twelve Dancing Princesses, Genevieve and her sisters sneak through the magic passage in their room to dance by themselves after an evil-step-mother type figure forbids all dancing. Similarly, in the children’s book by Emma Helbrough, the king “believed that princesses should be seen and not heard” (5), telling his daughters in an illustration to “sit down and look pretty!” (4). In this book, the king is said to hate dancing, “so whenever he wasn’t looking, [the princesses] danced anyway” (6). By the end of Helbrough’s book, the king comes to enjoy dancing as well, and the girl’s apparent rebellion and disobedience is never addressed or looked down on. 

If dancing in their underground kingdom is what these girls chose, then we are left to wonder whether or not the princesses will truly live happily ever after when the story closes. Perhaps the most extreme example of this is seen in the Gypsy tale “The Three Girls,” in which three princesses have been traveling to hell each night to dance with and, in the case of two of the girls, to sleep with demons (Groome). When the three girls’ father is informed of their actions, he promptly shoots and cuts open his possessed daughters, which isn’t a typical happy ending, even if the girls are later revived (Groome). Less dramatic and horrifying versions, though still dark, question whether or not dancing was something the girls wanted to continue. The beginning of Anne Sexton’s poem asks: “If you danced from midnight/to six A.M. who would understand?” (87). It then gives a list of people who would understand – the runaway boy living in Boston Common, the wife of a paralytic, the drunken poet, the insomniac. These people are, in one way or another, trying to escape. Once the soldier discovered their secret, the princesses could no longer escape, “the runaways would run no more” (Sexton 92), and the princesses “averted their eyes/and sagged like old sweatshirts” (Sexton 92) after dancing was taken away from them. This doesn’t quite sound like happily ever after! In “Feminism and Fairy Tales,” Karen Rowe seems to agree with the idea that the “unfortunate” (352) princesses didn’t exactly get the best end of the bargain. Rowe views these girls as being opposed to marriage (353), but apparently forced into it. Perhaps the soldier wasn’t such a hero, after all. It all depends on the princesses’ motivations and attitudes. 

Of course we also have to consider the view that the girls’ seeming deceitfulness wasn’t overtly rebellious, an option that often leads into issues in family, and especially parental, relationships. Perhaps they simply felt that they would be misunderstood and so were afraid to tell anyone, particularly their father, about their secret. In the novel The Midnight Dancers: A Fairy Tale Retold, which sets the story in modern times, the escaping girls who feel confined by their life are encouraged by the friend who finds them out to reveal their secret to their father themselves (Elenatintil). The same is true in the children’s book Brothers of the Knight, only this time the twelve princesses are transformed into twelve black brothers from Harlem (Allen). In these more modern retellings, the children struggle with the feeling that their father, who is a minister in both versions, will not understand their desires, but they are encouraged by an outside source to reveal their secret and show some trust in their father. The concept of feeling misunderstood and wanting to do something different than usual is especially strong in the children’s book The Princesses Have a Ball, where the twelve sisters are sneaking out every night not to dance, but to play basketball (Bateman). Then, of course, you have to consider the versions where everyone gets along nicely, such as the episode of the children’s show Super Why, where the princesses are sneaking out to plan their father’s surprise birthday party. 

As this story continues to be retold, each new version is shaped by the reason behind the princesses’ secretive dancing. This one variable has a profound influence on multiple aspects of the story. One such aspect is the question of who the princesses are dancing with. If they are under an enchantment, their dance partners are likely to be some sort of magical beings as well, whether monsters disguised as princes (“Worn-Out Dancing Shoes”), the undead (McKillip), or the inhuman sons of a witch (McKinley). In these versions, the princesses are usually destined to be married to these unappealing partners and trapped in the underworld. In versions where the princesses dance by choice, however, their dance partners are usually either nonexistent, as in Entwined, or relatively unimportant, as in Brothers of the Knight. You would expect these types of retellings to focus on the princesses’ desire to be with the men they love in secret, but few retellings seem to take this route. One of the few stories that does is “The Seven Iron Slippers,” an older Portuguese version of this tale where the princess is slipping out to dance with her lover, who happens to be a giant (Pedroso). However, true love doesn’t exactly seem to prevail in this version, as the princess is forced to marry the one who discovers her secret (Pedroso). No matter who ends up getting married in the end, the identity of these dance partners varies widely. However, it is only as important as the princesses’ reason for being with those partners. 

The reasons behind dancing not only end up influencing the characters and events, but also the theme of this tale. If it is a tale of enchantment or a curse, it will also very likely be a tale of mystery, danger, reward, and romance. If, however, the princesses have chosen their actions through their own agency, it becomes much more complex, a tale of inward rather than outward struggles. From this angle, the story can deal with rebellion, strained family relationships, misunderstandings, escape, promises, loss of innocence, initiation, learning contentment, and many other emotional struggles. 

            Since its earliest origins, this tale has been changing and adapting to fit its audiences. Through these changes and countless retellings, it has carved out its own niche in the world of fairy tales. Looking at the large number of different versions out there, one would think that “The Twelve Dancing Princesses” must be relatively popular and well-known. However, this is not necessarily the case. In my own family, despite our general love of fairy tales, we had never heard the story of “The Twelve Dancing Princesses” until I pulled the title out of a hat (literally) and was told to research it. It seems to me that, overall, relatively few people actually know this story. While you can hear constant references in our society to tales like “Cinderella,” “Snow White,” or “Beauty and the Beast,” I’ve yet to hear a reference in pop culture to “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” Even within literary circles, a culture all their own, critical pieces on stories such as “Red Riding Hood” or “Sleeping Beauty” abound, while any analysis of girls dancing in the underworld is sadly lacking. If there is not much of a popular or critical base of knowledge, we are left with the question: exactly what audiences are these retellings appealing to? 

It seems to me that a good portion of the audience for these adaptations may just be the ones doing the adapting. While writers do write to be read, they also write for themselves. And while there has to be a broader audience for a book to be published, there doesn’t have to be one for the book to be written in the first place. Perhaps rather than writing for a particular fan base, these authors wrote to satisfy their own curiosity over a curious story, to wrestle with the possible themes and explanations lying just under the surface of the words as forests of jewels lie just under the surface of a magic passage. Of course it’s impossible for me to state any particular author’s motivation, but I can always guess their motives in writing a story guessing the motives of twelve girls dancing through the night. 

This story’s inherent flexibility makes it appeal to both writers and readers on many levels, whether as an adventure story, a romance, a cute children’s tale, or a thoughtful look into common emotional struggles. As we read about a king and his daughters, we may start thinking about our own complicated relationships. As we imagine a magical underground kingdom, we may find ourselves longing for a means of escape. And as we try to understand why someone would want to dance until their shoes fell off their feet, we may end up trying to understand what motivates our own actions. Even the cutest stories are far from simple, and even an action as plain as dancing can take on a thousand new meanings when taken up by over 360 dancing princesses.

Works Cited

Allen, Debbie. Brothers of the Knight. Pictures by Kadir Nelson. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1999. Print.

Barbie in the Twelve Dancing Princesses. Dir. Greg Richardson. Universal Studios, 2006. DVD.

Bateman, Teresa. The Princesses Have a Ball. Illustrated by Lynne Gravath. Morton Grove, Illinois: Albert Whiteman and Company, 2002. Print.

Dixon, Heather. Entwined. New York: Grennwillow Books, 2011. Print.

Elenatintil. “A work of brilliance and depth.” Review for Regina Doman’s The Midnight Dancers: A Fairy Tale Retold. Amazon.com. 4 July 2008. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

George, Jessica Day. Princess of the Midnight Ball. New York: Bloomsbury, 2009. Print.

Grimm, Jacob and Wilhelm. “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” SurLaLune Fairy Tales. Ed. Heidi Anne Heiner. June 1999, updated 11 Nov. 2011. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

Groome, Francis Hindes. “The Three Girls.” Tales Similar to Twelve Dancing Princesses, SurLaLune Fairy Tales. Ed. Heidi Anne Heiner. June 1999, updated 27 Sept. 2010. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

Haskell, Merrie. The Princess Curse. Quote taken from jacket cover. New York: Harper, 2011. Print.

Heiner, Heidi Anne. “Annotations for Twelve Dancing Princesses.” SurLaLune Fairy Tales. June 1999, updated 11 Nov. 2011. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

Heiner, Heidi Anne. “History of Twelve Dancing Princesses.” SurLaLune Fairy Tales. June 1999, updated 7 July 2007. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

Heiner, Heidi Anne. “Tales Similar to Twelve Dancing Princesses: The Twelve Dancing Princesses (A French Tale).” SurLaLune Fairy Tales. June 1999, updated 7 July 2007. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

Helbrough, Emma. The Twelve Dancing Princesses. Illustrated by Anna Luraschi. London: Usborne Publishing Ltd., 2004. Print.

Jacobs, Joseph. “Katie Crackernuts.” Tales Similar to Twelve Dancing Princesses, SurLaLune Fairy Tales. Ed. Heidi Anne Heiner. June 1999, updated 7 July 2007. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

Lang, Andrew. “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” Tales Similar to Twelve Dancing Princesses, SurLaLune Fairy Tales. Ed. Heidi Anne Heiner. June 1999, updated 7 July 2007. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

McKillip, Patricia A. “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” A Wolf at the Door: and Other Retold Fairy Tales. Ed. Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2000. 150-165. Print.

McKinley, Robin. “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” The Door in the Hedge. New York: Greenwillow Books, 1981. 139-216. Print.

Pedroso, Consiglieri. “The Seven Iron Slippers.” Tales Similar to Twelve Dancing Princesses, SurLaLune Fairy Tales. Ed. Heidi Anne Heiner. June 1999, updated 7 July 2007. Web. 8 Dec. 2012.

Rowe, Karen. “Feminism and Fairy Tales.” Folk and Fairy Tales. Ed. Martin Hallett and Barbara Karasek. Ontario: Broadview Press, 2009. Print.

Sexton, Anne. “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” Transformations. Boston: Mariner Books, 2001. 87-92. Print.

“The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” Super Why! By Wendy Harris. PBS. 7 Apr. 2008. Television.

“The Worn-Out Dancing Shoes.” Grimm’s Fairy Tale Classics: Grimm Masterpiece Theatre. By Robert Axelrod, et al. Dir. Kerrigan Mahan. Nickelodeon. 16 March 1988. Television.

Zahler, Diane. The Thirteenth Princess. Quote taken from jacket cover. New York: Harper, 2010. Print.

Lofty Ideals

I'm kind of failing at this goal keeping business, aren't I? I thought the idea was to make little, easily kept goals so you can take baby steps and make progress. But what do you do when you trip over your baby steps? I haven't been faithfully keeping any of the goals I started the year with, particularly my writing goals. It's so easy to get wrapped up in life in general until even the things you care about get pushed to the side.

This is especially a problem for me during the semester while I'm in school. I'll start out doing a pretty good job balancing things, then homework assignments start getting longer, nights of sleep start getting shorter, extracurricular activities get more frequent, classes get harder. I'm constantly reading and writing for school, so when I get any amount of "free time," it's hard to talk myself into reading and writing things that aren't required. Then I feel guilty for not keeping my goals, but if I take time to keep up with them I feel guilty for taking time on something that's not strictly "productive." It's a vicious cycle, so it's hard to keep up.

Funnily enough, the comment I usually get is "Oh just wait, it only gets worse." Well thanks. That's encouraging. (No disrespect, and I'm not thinking of anyone in particular.) I know these people mean well, but it's really not the most hope-filled comment ever! I understand that it will get worse. It always does. The things that stressed me out to no end in junior high felt like nothing in high school, and the things that absolutely killed me in high school seem easy now. It does keep going, always getting busier, more stressful. But maybe that's because the older and more mature we get, the more we can handle (hopefully). But even when the workload changes, I think that the emotions stay pretty similar. We're all given different tasks and different burdens at different times. Mine isn't the same as yours. Maybe you can handle more right now than I can. That doesn't mean I should try to compete to keep up with you. Maybe I can handle a bit more than you. That doesn't mean you're not as stressed or busy as me. "Comparison is the thief of joy." One of my favorite performers recently shared this thought on his social media page, and it really resonated with me. It's so true, on so many levels. (Maybe it will get its own post!) When we sit here and compare our busy schedules to take some sort of strange pleasure in who is getting the least sleep, who has the most credits, who works the most hours, how can we hope to encourage and build up each other? We just get further strangled in our crazy schedules.

Anyway, sorry, that was a side note on some issues that I've been pondering lately. Maybe I will hash it out further at some point. The point is, we're all busy. It's kind of unavoidable in this hectic world we've created for ourselves. And when we're busy, sometimes it's at the expense of the things we love. And when the things we love get buried under "to do" lists, we start to trip over our baby steps.

So, I guess this is another apology for tripping.

Forgive me my craziness and the things that get lost in the bustle. But even if I trip, I'm pretty determined to get back up. And I'm going to keep plugging away at it. Maybe it won't always look like I think it should. But maybe somewhere in those faltering steps, there will be progress. Maybe I'll be able to dig deep and discover why I made these goals in the first place, why they're important to me, why I should bother to keep getting up. Please be patient with me on the journey.

Creating A Community

A community is a group of individuals with one linking factor. Sometimes it's where they live, the language they speak, or the beliefs they live by. Often it's a love for something that they share - such as a love for the written word and a desire to tell stories.

Communities fascinate and inspire me. I am amazed to see how one linking factor can bring together such diverse groups of people. The various communities that I find myself drawn into all mean so much to me. We as humans love to feel included, to be part of something bigger than ourselves, to have others we can go to who will understand us.

I could go on and on about communities. And perhaps I will, at another point in time. But for now, I bring them up because of one specific community that is in the exciting stage of coming into being.

The creative writers of Bob Jones University are assembling.

Did I have a small hand in the beginning of this assembly? Possibly. If I did, it was simply because mine was the hand that gave a little nudge out of the door (in the words of a famous wizard). Sometimes, for a community to be born, all you need is a little push. Here, from my point of view, is what happened...

To begin with a little background information, I attended Western Wyoming Community College for two years, getting my Associate of Arts with emphasis in English as well as a Creative Writing certificate. I loved the creative writing classes I took there, and I especially loved the feeling of community that existed among the writers. We had a very diverse group from our classes together and a writer's group that was open to the public, but we all had a strong sense of being able to share our work, give feedback, and generally have a support system. I valued that immensely, both for the friendships I made and for all the ways that it encouraged me and gave me solid growth as a writer.

When I transferred to Bob Jones University last semester to pursue my Bachelor's in creative writing, I was wondering what I would find among the other creative writing majors. Would there be a family I was jumping into? A spirit of camaraderie and sharing? Well...sort of. I did get to know a few other creative writing majors during my first semester, which was a start. In general, though, I felt like that collective spirit was lacking, which admittedly discouraged me.

Thank goodness for the creative writer's forums that we have here at BJU. Not only are they brilliant and helpful, but I feel like they are a big part of what helped get the ball rolling. After our forum last semester, I spent time chatting with two other creative writing majors, and we decided to do a dinner together. At that point it was just the three of us. When we came this semester, we revisited the idea, even adding one more person (although it ended up being only three of us again at the actual dinner). This was a start - I knew there were at least a few people who wanted to see things come together like I did. But I wanted something bigger. This is where I gave a little nudge.

Our next creative writer's forum was coming up, and I knew it was the best chance I had. So I hunted down the emails of all the creative writing majors (29, to be exact, over half of whom I didn't know), and I sent out a message. It was very simple - I just suggested that since we would all be headed to dinner after the forum anyway, those who wanted to might as well go together. You have to realize, sending that email scared me. I didn't know how people would respond or what they would think. "Who does this crazy transfer student think she is, barging in and trying to pull things together like she's something cool?" Probably people would never think that, but I had no idea. Still, I wanted to see if anything would happen. So I went for it.

I never expected the response. I got a few emails back from people who said they thought it was a good idea and wanted to come. That was more encouraging to me than they know. And then after the forum (which was excellent, by the way), several people started gathering around, asking if we were still on for dinner. We ended up with around a dozen people marching down from the Alumni Building to the Dining Common. I believe we ended up having seventeen people that night - and there were others who had expressed a desire to come but couldn't because of previous plans.

At one end of the strange L-shaped group of tables we had wrestled together to fit all of us, I just sat there, grinning, watching everyone, listening to the din of conversation and laughter, picking out bits of discussions over books and movies and goodness knows what. It was so fun and encouraging.

Then, towards the end of the dinner, with those who had stayed longer, things began to roll even more. One guy brought up the idea he had been having of setting up an online way to share our work and give feedback. We mentioned the possibility of getting together a petition for a novel writing class (which hasn't been offered here for the past few years). Another brought up the possibility of a literary journal for our school - a lofty but awesome future goal. I tentatively mentioned the idea of just having times to hangout in more of a writer's group format to further share work and offer feedback. We tossed around ideas, and I realized, I was definitely not the only one who wanted to see a community come together.

In the last week, we've had a chain of emails going to further discuss and solidify these plans. Our next creative writer's dinner is this Tuesday night. A community is starting to form.

Am I boasting, saying that I made this happen? Not in the slightest, because I really don't think I did. We're all making it happen, because we all had the same ideas. It just took someone to say "Hey, let's do something." And if I in some small way was that someone, I am honored.

The thing is, this isn't about me. It's about us. And I can't wait to see where this community goes.

Free Write - In Every Sense of the Word

I made a resolution to post weekly, and I intend to keep it.

"I made a promise, Mr. Frodo. A promise."

Something like that.

But sometimes the desire to blog and the time to blog don't want to correspond nicely like they're supposed to. So this is my basically free-write blog post, where I shall just spin something out and see what happens. It's quick, and will probably come out weird, but hey, that's free writing for you. Actually free writing is a wonderful exercise that I've started liking more lately. It's really weird once you first start it. It's like "I'm supposed to be typing out my thoughts? Umm...I'm thinking about what I'm thinking about. I'm think about what to write about. And so I'm writing about thinking about what to write about...Aaah!" Yeah, pretty much.

But once you let yourself go, and just be willing to type, to keep throwing stuff out there, to not stop or restrain yourself, it can be a great exercise. It's great to do if you have a lot of emotions that you want to pour out, even if you don't know how to articulate them. It can be used as a venting mechanism. It can be used as a type of brainstorming. It can help generate ideas, whether that's for writing or a project or just for how to deal with a situation in your life. There are lots of uses. Sometimes it just helps to pour it out there. And see, now I'm free writing about free writing. And I'm trying to not slow down or censor myself (within reason, you understand. Don't go crazy with what I mean by that). And not censoring is hard - especially since I know I'm going to be posting this. This is probably a little more controlled than most free writes I do, or than most free writes should be. I would suggest not even going back to fix typos when you free write, which is of course not what I'm doing in this case, because who wants to read a blog post full of illegible typos? Ew. No thank you. Anyway, I hope this isn't boring. It probably is. But it's a blog post. And that's the point.

Ok, a little free writing on some quick thoughts of what's been going on in my life. Hopefully that will be interesting to some degree. In no particular order, here we go. We had two snow days last week, which was beautiful. I loved having the time to relax. Also, I've never really had snow days before, since nothing is ever canceled because of snow where I'm from. Super fun. However, I have even more busy-ness this week than normal because of it. So now I'm looking at several tests, a mock interview, a mountain of reading... And instead of reading Wordsworth or reviewing the French Revolution or practicing my best interviewing skills, like I should be doing, I've been taking "Which Disney Villain Are You?" quizzes, finally signing up for Pottermore (and wishing I could spend all night on it), going to Jack in the Box to get milkshakes and tacos, talking with friends in their dorm rooms, and free writing/blogging about what I'm doing instead of what I should be doing. That's right now.

In general, life's been pretty great lately. I've learned that granola bars are life savers. I've learned that I'll never feel like I've gotten enough sleep. I've learned that the sun will rise. Ok, that came from the line in the song I'm currently listening to. (It's The Lion King Broadway soundtrack, in case you're interested.) I've learned that I've been on a major Broadway music kick recently. I've learned that all my high ideals often don't match up with reality. I've learned that I never quite know what to think of myself. I've learned that there are some areas where I really struggle with knowing what I believe and I feel torn between two extremes. And this just got a bit deeper than I thought it would.

Also this is beginning to get long. Long enough to be a legitimate blog post, right? Anyway, back to the original topic of free writing - this is a bit of what a free write looks like, although I wasn't as strict with myself for this one as I usually am. I usually don't allow any editing or any pauses. But that's the general idea. Hope this was interesting. And if not.... Sorry. It was hurried. Obviously. But other peoples' free writes are probably not as interesting as your own free writes. So go write. Take a chunk of time - even time yourself for it - and just write, everything that comes to your mind. It sounds crazy, but try it. You never know where it's going to go. And you don't have to be a writer to do it. Just have fun. Alright, enough of this. I know this isn't a normal blog post. And most of my posts won't look like this. But I wanted to post, yet didn't want to put the effort into pulling together a polished post. So it's half determination and half laziness. Take it or leave it. But if you read it, or if you try free writing, let me know what you think!

Antigone in 60 Seconds

[Disclaimer: May or may not take longer than 60 seconds]

I present Antigone by Sophocles, one of the classic Greek dramas, as interpreted by me in a snarky mood!
(In case you're not familiar with the story: Antigone and Ismene are sisters, Polynices is their dead brother, Creon is their uncle, Haemon is his son and Antigone's fiance, Eurydice is Creon's wife, Tiresias is a prophet, and the Chorus is a group of citizens who like watching everything and philosophizing.)  

Antigone: Help me bury our brother because our uncle said we can’t!
Ismene: No way!
Antigone: You’re lame! 

Chorus: Thank goodness that war is over!
Creon:  I’m king! Everyone be loyal to the state! Don’t you dare buy Polynices. 

Sentry: Promise it wasn’t me, but someone kind of sort of buried him.
Creon: *explodes* 

Sentry (brings back Antigone): She did it!
Antigone: Yep, I did. Let's debate our differing views on duty.

Ismene: I only have you, so I’ll die too.
Antigone: I’m mad at you, but fine.
Creon: Oh kill them already.

Haemon: Hi Dad.
Creon: Justice! The state! Discipline!
Haemon: Couldn’t agree more. Maybe you could let her go?
Creon: Idiot, why won’t you listen?
Haemon: Ditto. See ya. 

Chorus: Love, you’re lame. 

Antigone: Well this stinks. Let me sing my funeral song to mourn myself.
Creon: Oh go shut her in a tomb already.
Antigone: See what I get for being a good sister? 

Chorus: Wow, kind of like in mythology.

Tiresias: Not so smart, dude.
Creon: Shut up.
Tiresias: Fine, but you’re going to lose someone. See ya.
Creon: Ok, so maybe it wasn't so smart.
Chorus: So let her go.
Creon: I don’t want to…Oh fine. 

Chorus: Hey Dionysus, we could use some help. 

Messenger: Well, things just got worse.
Eurydice: Just tell me the worst.
Messenger: We buried the body, then went to get Antigone, but we found that she hanged herself. Haemon was there and tried to kill Creon, then killed himself in desperation. 

Creon: Guys, I messed up.

Messenger: It gets worse. The queen just killed herself. And she cursed you before she did.

Creon: “I am no one. Nothing.” 

Chorus: “The mighty words of the proud are paid in full with mighty blows of fate, and at long last those blows will teach us wisdom.” 

 *** 

(I must say, it got much harder to be snarky once everyone started killing themselves...)

This semester I am in a Play Writing class, which is definitely the best class I have! Combining writing and theatre - what's not to love? We just went through Antigone, and it was my first time reading it. Despite my goofy summary of it, and despite its darkness, I really did enjoy it. I loved the emotional conflicts and the contrasts between Antigone and Creon. Also for class, I made this chart plotting out Antigone's and Creon's emotional journeys next to each other. I stayed up way too late, but I had fun making it!

So there you have it - a little look into what I've been working on! I love this opportunity to learn more about theatre, to try my hand at it, to admire stories that have been classics for thousands of years, and to look at why some stories can stay with us for so long.

When Disney Gets It Right

[Disclaimer: This post will contain spoilers. If you haven't seen Frozen yet, do yourself a favor and go watch it now. Right now. Then you can read this.]

Imagine some of the creator's of Disney's Frozen having a chat together about the film, coming up with taglines to describe it...

"Ok, how could we sum things up? What's the heart of the movie?"
"Well, it's all focused on Anna and Elsa, on the sisters. Definitely about their relationship."
"It really contrasts love and fear between the two of them."
"Right! Because Elsa is dominated by her fear, which makes her unable to control her powers, until Anna sacrifices herself, love 'melts the frozen heart,' and Elsa realizes that love is the power she needs to conquer her fear and gain control over her abilities."
"So....'love defeats fear'?"
"'True love casts out fear'?"
"'Perfect love drives out all fear.'"
"That's great! That is definitely a major concept. What else have we got?"
"Well, this story kind of redefines the classic concept of 'true love.' It changes the way the romantic relationships work, but, again coming back to Anna and Elsa, it shows that true love isn't just romantic."
"Well, Olaf defines love by saying that it's putting the needs of someone else above your own."
"And then Anna sacrifices her life to save Elsa - the ultimate act of true love."
"Oh, that's good! 'The ultimate act of true love is sacrifice.'"
"'There is no love greater than sacrifice.'"
"'There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends.'"
"Perfect!"

Ok, my made-up dialogue may stretch things a bit...but maybe not a bunch. The fact is, Disney's newest movie that has taken our nation by storm (no pun intended) has a lot of substance to it. I believe that this is largely because some of the strongest themes at the core of the movie echo some of the strongest themes at the core of Truth - and at the core of the Bible.

The two lines above are from 1 John 4:18 and John 15:13. They deal with the selfless nature of love - a theme that we see throughout Frozen.

Love isn't falling for a perfectly charming prince the first time you see him. (Actually, that may not work out so well for you.)

Love isn't always neat or pretty - sometimes it means loving even when other people drive you crazy. And that kind of longsuffering love is powerful. ("We're not saying you can change him, 'cause people don't really change. We're only saying is love's a force that's powerful and strange. People make bad choices if they're mad or scared or stressed, but throw a little love their way, you'll bring out their best.")

Love is giving yourself for others, putting their needs before your own (walking out of town with your reindeer - then charging back in).

Love is the fact that:

Love is an action. And an act of true love doesn't have to be a kiss.

These are, honestly, only a few of the extremely solid messages from Frozen. And trust me, there are plenty of other blog posts out there about them (which you should definitely read). But the ones I noticed the most were the ones that very directly echoed themes - even direct statements - from the Bible.

I've completely fallen in love with Frozen for a lot of reasons, but perhaps the biggest is the fact that, in telling its own beautiful story, it often collides full force with some powerful truth.

Break the Glass

It's so easy to make promises,
words, words that come out so easily,
ideas that form in your mind
and grab your heart
and fill you with excitement
that reaches down to your fingertips.
But it's one thing to see the sunlight.
Walking on the sun is something else.
You can gaze deeply in the mirror
and see all the potential,
all the ability and enthusiasm,
and you can shout it out to the world.
But if it stays in the mirror
it is nothing,
only a reflection,
a dream that could have been,
a promise forgotten as soon as spoken.
You have to break the glass.
The glass is thick.
When it shatters
the edges are sharp.
You might bleed.
But then the words can step out,
become alive,
the promise can take form
and walk and breathe and dance.
The life that comes out through the shards
may not look exactly like the reflection
that you thought would greet you.
But it can be beautiful,
it can have life.
Just break the glass.

***

This poem, written very spontaneously and quickly, is my apology for already failing at my resolution to post once a week, and my determination to be faithful, even if my attempts don't always meet my own expectations. It's very easy to talk, very hard to do. But that should never keep us sitting down.
James 1:22 - 25