Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, once said, “The story of villains is much more entertaining than the story of heroes, because monsters are not born, they are made.” They do not emerge from the void or darkness by themselves, but they are shaped by circumstances, by the wounds of the world around them. They reflect the deepest of human pain, rejection, loneliness, misunderstanding. A hero is defined by his acts of bravery, but a villain is the result of a heart that was once pure and ended up corrupted. The monsters, in their tragedy, show us what could happen to us all, if the world turned its back on us.”
This is a fantastic toy - one of the best I've seen in a long time! Rich in imagery and history and coming all fresh again with the movie Wicked!
The Wicked Witch is someone we immediately consider evil and awful, vengeful and scary, what with her flying monkeys and intent to murder Dorothy and destroy her companions. We write her off and that is where it usually ends. However, with the advent of the book and movie, WICKED, we can consider the back story: how did the Wicked Witch come to be the Wicked Witch? And is she totally to blame?
In real life we seldom look at the back story of those we condemn and ostracize and we lament their existence. But what if we did – what would be find? It is unlikely to let them off the hook, but it sure might help us recognize the road to hell and find ways to prevent people from ever getting there.
As I learned over and over when working in a maximum security prison: there was no help available when most of those men needed it in their younger years. Programs to help kids after school, or give extra assistance to those who needed it and whose families were unable to attend well enough to their needs, are the first to be de-funded when government budgets get tight. Once these people reach their penultimate malformations, we have no concern except to punish them, but it’s not that hard to see how the cultural neglect helped give them a highway to hell. That old phrase - a stitch in time saves nine - certainly comes into play here! Or consider this quote from Rupert Ross’ book……………..
Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, once said, “The story of villains is much more entertaining than the story of heroes, because monsters are not born, they are made.” They do not emerge from the void or darkness by themselves, but they are shaped by circumstances, by the wounds of the world around them. They reflect the deepest of human pain, rejection, loneliness, misunderstanding. A hero is defined by his acts of bravery, but a villain is the result of a heart that was once pure and ended up corrupted. The monsters, in their tragedy, show us what could happen to us all, if the world turned its back on us.”
This is a fantastic toy - one of the best I've seen in a long time! Rich in imagery and history and coming all fresh again with the movie Wicked!
The Wicked Witch is someone we immediately consider evil and awful, vengeful and scary, what with her flying monkeys and intent to murder Dorothy and destroy her companions. We write her off and that is where it usually ends. However, with the advent of the book and movie, WICKED, we can consider the back story: how did the Wicked Witch come to be the Wicked Witch? And is she totally to blame?
In real life we seldom look at the back story of those we condemn and ostracize and we lament their existence. But what if we did – what would be find? It is unlikely to let them off the hook, but it sure might help us recognize the road to hell and find ways to prevent people from ever getting there.
As I learned over and over when working in a maximum security prison: there was no help available when most of those men needed it in their younger years. Programs to help kids after school, or give extra assistance to those who needed it and whose families were unable to attend well enough to their needs, are the first to be de-funded when government budgets get tight. Once these people reach their penultimate malformations, we have no concern except to punish them, but it’s not that hard to see how the cultural neglect helped give them a highway to hell. That old phrase - a stitch in time saves nine - certainly comes into play here! Or consider this quote from Rupert Ross’ book……………..
