I feel as though reading the first chapters and/or introduction to books, both fiction and non-fiction, seldom fails to create a sense of then-and-now, but this seemed especially true while reading Frank Kermode and Elizabeth Rosen. Continue reading
Author Archives: Danielle Gold
Apocolypse Among Us
So this little piece of ephemera fell off the inside my door and because it relates to this class, I decided to share it with you. I think its incredibly interesting how as college students we live with this sort of campy stuff hanging on dorm walls with out being so moved by the message to madness. Its also copyrighted 1958 so it relates to the cold war discussions.
Am I the only one with some apocolyptical decor? I would love to see people’s posters etc.
Children and the Apocalypse
As the idea of “childhood” evolved during the last 150 years, special apocalyptical media has been developed to appeal to youth in the hopes of protecting and/or manipulating them.
Last class, we briefly talked about the existence of children at the end of the the world, in the context of the Shakers not having any. The Apocalypse is often portrayed as an adult problem to be dealt with by mature men and women. Children, when not born to sun-ladies and Jewish whores, are not native to the apocalyptical landscape but when they are they are shown to become its most innocent sufferers and pawns. Continue reading
Proselytizing the Apocalypse
John lashes out at preachers and industrious, money oriented societies, but Book of Revelation is from its very beginning a sales pitch with “divine approval” in the form of letter to foreign churches. Jonathan Kirsh uses many words to discuss the hyposcrisy in this in order to show how universal and captivating the concepts behind John’s otherworldly vision were. They can warp to suit the people’s needs and ideals and thus are almost subject specific and relatable in spite of their abstraction. The theme of selling this cult of the future is continued over millennia as case after case of people living on muliple continents change their lives to accommodate the idea of the world’s end. Often they do so in order to convert people to their cause and understand their prespective. The effort to convert spurs media use and communication across large distances. It motivates some political action and explains or justifies others. It is not without entertainment value and has been a part of pop culure, ranging from medieval simplified illustrated versions to rock and roll to the Left Behind Series. Is the media the message? Here the message seems to make the media. It seems as though the proselytizing tone behind apocalyptical messages amounts as much for its sucess as the merits of its narrative.
When people are sold on the concept of an end of days, they are forced to accept other concepts. In literal cases, this is that there is a god, a savoir, judgment and benefits received through adherence to religious code. In a secular sense, as shown in Colby’s advertisement, there is an acknowledgement of seduction, uncertainty and urgency related to our mortal existence.
Not bad for a limited time offer 2000 years in the making.
Relating to Holy Texts about the End of the World
As a student that attended bi-weekly afterschool classes at a reform (progressive) Jewish synagogue from grades 1 -12, I learned to view the Old Testament, including segments of Daniel concerning the Moshiah, and its classical interpretatiations as metaphor. As someone who spent much of her remaining time using modern technology and interacting with other secular peers, I learned to see the bible as a period piece. It would be impossible for me, as it was for Kirsch, to read Revelation outside of a historical context, even with its fantastic imagery. (I also understand those that accept much of the Christian faith but are dumbfounded by John’s visions. Oddly enough, it seemed that the more cross-cultural references and allusions described, the more the tone of Revelation fit with that of the rest of the scriptures. ) The reading and the accompanying commentary reminded me how difficult it is to separate the idea of “biblical allegory” from “allegory.” Continue reading
