How does Buffy deconstruct traditional literary notions of good and evil?
Buffy the Vampire Slayer and other programs like it, offer a unique modern perspective on the classical ideas of good and evil. Braum (2000) states-
“What is interesting about some of these newer representations of the supernatural, however, is the moral ambiguity that permeates many of the characters, including both the inhuman beings and ordinary characters.” In my opinion, this complexity of morality is a more realistic view of the concept of good and evil, the idea of yin and yang; that all evil has some good and vice versa; or that peoples stances or interpretations of morality are fluid and can change. Even a monster (Hitler perhaps) has some trace of good or is indeed capable of a decent act, and the same applies to characters within Buffy. They may change as their circumstance or outlook does. Braum (2000) “Evil is often less fixed in these shows, with many characters demonstrating both decent and demonic traits and behaviors across episodes or seasons.” Good characters may reveal themselves as something different from what the viewer has been led to believe, and the intentions of an evil character maybe shown to be based on a righteous cause, Braum (2000) “Good characters may develop in frighteningly sinister ways; villainous ones may surprisingly reveal complex and even selfless motivations.”
Buffy the series almost becomes an exaggeration of real life personalities; given a license to do so by the constant adaptability and restlessness of a high fantasy narrative. It also relates to last weeks point about the combination of the Fantastical with the familiar, present in Buffy-like programs. The characters in Buffy almost acting like hyper personalities (changing morality very quickly) compared with the 2D characters present in many TV Dramas. Braum (2000)
“Moral ambiguity can turn into evil at any moment, and the characters are constantly faced with the challenge of navigating the changing boundries of hellmouth and their own motivations and desires.”
How do you think Buffy has influenced the contemporary vampire drama “TrueBlood” and the “Twilight” series of novels and films?
Although I haven’t seen Trueblood, it does seem to share the Gothic Romanticism of Buffy and Twilight, as well as a fantasy narrative and the muddying of morality. I did however have the unfortunate experience of watching Twilight 1 and 2, forced to watch under duress by a “friend” who practically raved about everything twilight (I think she was in love with that bi curious vampire). I can safely say Twilight has mimicked various aspects of the Buffy formula; vampires, werewolves, the supernatural. Factions within these groups, who adhere to different moral standpoints etc, and characters who straddle the boundary of good and evil. Twilight even has “vegetarian” vampires, who drink only animal blood. So again the fictional world brings to the supernatural, very real representations of human societal interactions. But alas, this is where the positive comparisons with Buffy the Vampire Slayer end. Buffy was an enjoyable show, with a wide target audience, an interesting storyline, decent acting and some great dialogue and plot development; Twilight from start to finish, is a wreck. Horrendous acting, the most clichéd storyline imaginable, weak characters and horribly forced dialogue; Twilight owes its success only to the fact that it was literally designed- from page to page, or reel to reel- to be the ultimate 15-25 y/o female fantasy. Every single plot development and almost every character are built around satisfying the one female main character’s (and ultimately some of the audiences) deepest desires. Far more than Buffy could ever be accused of. That alone doesn’t necessarily count against it, but combined with the other weak points of Twilight, it qualifies itself as a failure compared to the originality of Buffy, Box office aside.
References
Braum, B. (2000) The X-files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The ambiguity of evil in supernatural representations. Retrieved 18 October, 2005 from:
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0412/is_2_28/ai_64688900
Your comments on evil are most interesting. The fact that the characters you speak of have both good and evil (or bad) is what, from my reading over the years, I would say makes these characters appealing to today's audience. As a writer, I'm very aware that 'flawed' characters are necessary for a story. Having characters that are all good, or striving for good without having any actually perceived flaws is not accepted by audiences nowadays. The reader/viewer cannot identify with the character otherwise. Also, this makes the characters come across as more 'real', more 'human'. . . The latter being an interesting concept for non-human characters.
ReplyDeleteWhen you say Buffy has good acting - I'm far from being a connoisseur since I'm going from the two programmes seem via the screening. . . But whatever else is good about the show, it wasn't the acting. I found Buffy over acted to the extreme at times - especially when she's looking for her friend who's left the night club with the bad guy. A tad too overdone.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your interesting blog post, gets one thinking. Back to post another comment. Your comment about Hitler being "indeed capable of a good act". Perhaps. . . However, we'll never know if the motive behind the act was good or evil.
ReplyDeleteHello :)
ReplyDeleteI said "Decent" acting, which i thought was an acceptable label. Better acting that what passes in some big budget movies nowdays anyway.
The good vs evil debate is intriguing, I made the Hitler comparison because there were elements in his life that we would normally associate with goodness, which is utterly bizarre considering his atrocities. IE He was originally an art student, told that he had no talent by a lecturer at his art school, and perhaps the downward spiral began; painting is usually an occupation we would associate with good or "moral" people. And when he came to power, to alot of the german people he was the saviour of the german economy (pre WWII).
None of this justifies his actions, the deeds speak for themeselves, the monster reputation is justified; but it just shows that the monster is far more complex and human than we imagined
Great responses Rory. You overlooked the importance of humour / irony (often self-deprecating) in Buffy (in your second post). A recent critical review of a Dollhouse episode 'Ghost' suggested that it failed because it didn't contain the same sort of irony usually associated with the works of Joss Wheedon.
ReplyDeleteI think the criticism of the acting above is probably justified (it was the first episode after all), however the quality of the performances is overall a standout feature of BtVS, with episodes such as 'The Body' being critcally hailed as one of the most realistic portrayals of grief on our screens ever.
ReplyDeletehttp://buffy.wikia.com/wiki/The_Body