kcecka

Contributing writer for The Artifice.

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    Latest Articles

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    The Popularity of Broadway's Hamilton

    Hamilton has become THE hit show on Broadway since its debut last summer. Examine the reasons – both obvious and not – for the sweeping sensation this show has had on American consciousness, why it has succeeded as a hit over other Broadway shows, and what that says about American theater today.

    • Hamilton looks like a fascinating musical. I would love to read the input an author may have on it! – enizzari 8 years ago
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    • As someone with a mild obsession with the show, I can't say enough about how much this musical has got me interested in history. For the majority of my school years, history was presented as a passionless, textbook driven subject based on memorization and regurgitation of information (that was heavily edited and condensed). I think one of the real strengths of Hamilton is the way it really fleshes out the characters (particularly Hamilton, Eliza, and Burr), to the point that I have done independent research and tried to learn more about these people and their lives, outside of the few events passingly mentioned in school history books. – chrischan 8 years ago
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    • Yes, definitely write about it! Make sure you add how it reflects American values. – vpano94 8 years ago
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    • Some obvious reasons: there's a lack of representation of racial minorities in Broadway. This show proved to critics that (yes) actors and actresses of color should be placed in the center of shows, and they're profitable (some critics said casting people of color would affect ticketing); people of color can be placed in any show and shine. Another reason is that Lin-Manuel Miranda is good at what he does; there's a lot going on in Hamilton's lyrics (e.g. rhythm, puns). Also, like others have said, Hamilton puts an interesting twist on American history by getting a personal look at one of our Founding Fathers. – seouljustice 7 years ago
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    Feminism and Gilmore Girls: A Look after Sixteen Years

    Analyze the hit TV Show Gilmore Girls from a feminist perspective, looking at the way feminism has changed since the show ended in 2007 and how the show’s own brand of feminism is or is not outdated. Examine how the show’s feminism works and doesn’t work, and where it fails or does not fail.

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      Latest Comments

      No, you’re absolutely right. I wrote this originally focusing exclusively on British war-poets because they have the largest body of poetic work from the war, but there’s also French, German, and American soldiers writing as well – and doubtless more. The British poets tended to be the “voice” for the war-poets, but they were hardly the only experience that war-poets lived.

      Poetry and the Great War Soldiers: Necessity of Emotion

      For anyone just getting into fanfiction, I would highly HIGHLY suggest doing archiveofourown.net instead of fanfiction.net. A lot of authors have transferred their fics over to ao3 instead and it has a easier interface and search engine to use in order to wade through the fics more easily.

      But as you’ve said – fanfiction is an invaluable tool for beginning (and continuing) authors. While some of it is poorly written (often because the people writing it are young or new writers) there’s a vast majority that’s exceptionally written – equal to or better than many formal, published works.

      Fanficton: A Practice in the Art of Storytelling

      It’s really interesting to me that the sublime is a key characteristic of science fiction as well – and that gothic fiction works as a foreground for science fiction in many ways, notably through Mary Shelley. I tend to think of Shelley as a primary science fiction novelist precisely because Frankenstein is so concerned with the sublime and rationality and how those two intertwine. That grasping for rationality amidst the terror of the sublime is a very gothic experience, though – something I believe has survived to today’s literature primarily through science fiction. (Although horror definitely has some aspects as well.) Very interesting article!

      The Sublime's Effects in Gothic Fiction

      Honestly, if Rey does end up being a Skywalker (and most of her story throughout TFA seems to be leading up to that point – notably the use of Luke’s Theme during the lightsaber incident at the end of the movie), then her story resonates so much more after seeing both Luke’s and Anakin’s stories. There’s still depth there if we only consider the originals, but I do think we’re missing something if we fail to take the prequels into account as well. Kylo Ren’s focus on Darth Vader – and his inability to grasp that Vader always had Anakin in him, that Anakin is a part of Vader – seems to be central to what the new movies are working with, and ignoring Anakin’s history before he became Vader makes that less meaningful.

      I don’t know. I personally don’t have that many bad feelings about the prequels – I think they could’ve been handled better, but they’re hardly the shitstorm that fans tend to paint them as. And, as you’ve pointed out so thoroughly, they’re absolutely essential to understanding the journey our new batch of characters is going on, just as they added depth to the originals when they first came out.

      Star Wars: How The Prequel Trilogy Enhances The Force Awakens