Buffy, seriously..?

[eponinethen]

This is me asking you guys for help with school stuff, again.
The thing is, I am supposed to talk about anything having anything to do with America, in my English class. And I know, it seems like there are a lot of things.. But I decided not to talk about anything BtVS related, since it's too personal and I care too much about it and all that.. But, when I thought of "American things", I thought of: Joss Whedon, Faith, Amber Benson, Eliza Dushku, Willow, The Fans of BtVS, Buffyverse, Vampires, Female super heroes, Feminism in TV shows.. eh, and many other things .. all BtVS related in one way or another.
Soo, I decided to talk about BtVS anyway (since it's the only thing on my mind). Now, I want to do this seriously, I am going to talk about how it all began, and about Joss.. I want them to understand that Buffy is not a joke, that it's serious and real and not at all about a silly blonde high school girl chasing vampires in a short skirt, eh.. So please help me, what are the things I need to tell them..? How can I possibly make them understand? (I know it's impossible but I can't stop trying...)

 

[Mr. Pointy]

Irony
Juxtaposition of "light" and "dark" themes - like mundane teen and young adult problems vs. the eternal struggle of Good and Evil...
Postmodernism (probably - never fully understood that one 🙂)
Comic/Tragic
Vampire/demon metaphors
are just a few off the top of my head thoughts, which may or may not help you (and,except for postmodernism, are all pretty much different ways of expressing the same idea)

 

[Jill_Valentine]

If she were but a blonde in a skirt chasing vampires, she wouldn't have been quite so controversial when she first appeared. There's more than one essay out there that argues why [insert religion here] should not watch it, but I've yet to see a similar one for Smallville. Although, oddly enough, I seem to recall Xena drawing a similar amount of ire. I'm not even a Xena fan, but I found that highly amusing.

Well, first of all, it might be useful to argue that Buffy is a cultural phenomenon rather than a TV show, complete with comic, video games and internet support. The only thing I can think of with as big a proportional impact is probably the Matrix, but even the Matrix didn't quietly change the way people used English.

So you might argue that BTVS both reflected and shaped the moral system of it's fanbase, which was primarily intended to be young Americans. The 90's generation didn't have a cause. We even got bored of passionate nihilism pretty quickly. But that's not to say we didn't have values, and the heroes that emerged from our media reflect that. Buffy reflects part of a generation in America (and elsewhere) that grew up in a post-feminist and post-religion world. The show deals with pretty heavy morality, but it does so in an environment where we've been told no such thing exists - Young people's suburban America. It asks serious questions of it's viewers, but because it does so against a backdrop of malls, cheerleader tryouts and fast food jobs, it's either underestimated or unfairly criticised.

It's a pop-culture hybrid - she's a comic book superhero that moves like an Asian action star, against an old style European flavour mythology - but it also takes advantage of religious iconography and spritual themes. When people bemoan the erosion of modern values, we can point at Buffy as proof that values have changed rather than disappeared. She distrusts authority, but only rebels when necessary. She's capable of physical violence, but adheres to fairly strict rules of engagement. She's mystically empowered but defies prophecies and Gods routinely. So Buffy, rather than being a tv character, is a cultural hero with her own modern mythology, and she's emerged from a society that's frequently written off as stupid or morally vacant.

That's stream of conscious ranting there, so I'm not even sure if any of it applies... Good luck though. :thumbs:

 

[Cookie Dough]

Just explain that Buffy didn't want to be the slayer and point out how the show pokes fun at itself and read some quotes. Like:
"I wanna date and shop and hang out and save the world from unspeakable demons...you know, I wanna do girly stuff." -Buffy
[Giles to Buffy:] "You are the only one powerful enough to save these girls and to save the world. It's all up to you." and then Xander says "But no pressure."

And for Joss, he says the premise of the show was to have the blonde girl who gets killed in movies instead turn around and fight the bad guy.

 

[Amber Benson]

Hey Hun... Hope everyone is helping ya out... I'm just gonna throw in my little imput for the night... Err... Day... (Its 2am here)

BtVS was basically a mainstream for shows like Alias, in the sense that Buffy was the first REAL believable FEMALE "super-hero" that wasn't made to be all guymagnet... She was independant, and didn't need that male role to help her... She came through and handled her own... That was the main reason she caused a stir... At first people saw the name, heard of it being a female character, and scoffed... But once people starting actually paying attention, it took off... Thats a big thing for the US, cause if you look at it, most programs carry a STRONG male lead... Where as, this one doesn't... Just Buffy

 

[Xander]

Irony
Juxtaposition of "light" and "dark" themes - like mundane teen and young adult problems vs. the eternal struggle of Good and Evil...
Postmodernism (probably - never fully understood that one 🙂)
Comic/Tragic
Vampire/demon metaphors
are just a few off the top of my head thoughts, which may or may not help you (and,except for postmodernism, are all pretty much different ways of expressing the same idea)

Postmodernism is a big part of Buffy, its what my media studies coursework is based on.

Heres a definition in my own words "post-modern texts focus on a simplistic style over content, favouring on ‘borrowing’ codes and conventions from other texts, know as bricolage, self-referentiality and intertextuality "

You can do a lot of reading on it (make sure its focused on the media side, rather than arts, culture etc) and if you can get your head round it it sounds quite intelligent. Few examples of postmodernism from Once More, With Feeling (my focus ep):

Style over Content- Using musical elements to tell story
Bricolage- Different musical genres (Spike=rock, Tara=ballad), Comedy/Horror/Action etc hybrid
Self-Referentiality- "Dawn's in trouble? Must be Tuesday"
Intertextuality- "When I get so warn and wrinkly will I look like David Brinkley?" and "Some day he'll be a real boy"

Any questions on post modernism ask me, as I have a 3-page long bibliography for my final essay, so i've read just a bit about it.

 

[eponinethen]

Aw, thanks guys. My only problem is I've got ten minutes to talk, and these people know nothing what so ever about BtVS. It's like trying to explain my whole personality and everything I care about in ten minutes.. And I have to finish the speech tomorrow (have unfortunately not had the time to start yet).

 

[Willow02]

10 minutes? thats gonna be hard, sorry not helping...umm if it were me, i'd go into how buffy makes an impact on peoples lives, or go into certain episodes that mean a lot to me. Or ones that have a lot of meaning, like earshot or the body.

 

[Cookie Dough]

You should act out scenes from it and bring in picture masks that you can wear for each character. cut out eyeholes. Act out the one where Angel comes back from hell but don't tell them that's what you're doing. just randomly fall down and start writhing on the floor.

 

[eponinethen]

Hehe, yeah I guess I should have done that. Then they would have really understood how special and serious BtVS is 😀

Anyways, thanks for the help all of you. I had the speech today, and I had written three pages fo great notes.. but, I emailed them to myself (so that I could print them out in school), but for some reason I couldn't open the file on the computer in school (stupid PC), so I had to talk without notes, and when I'm nervous I forget thing, ehh, but still, it went okay. (Only like three people laughed at me, and only one in an evil way.) But my wonderful English teacher/theatre director thought BtVS seemed really interesting, which was cool.

 

[Allycat]

Lol, quite coincidentally I have to do a 10 minute presentation about the same subject next week... could you send me your notes by any chance?

Does anybody have any other advice as to what to talk about? Perhaps, specific metaphores I should adress.

 

[eponinethen]

Hehe, I'd love to send you my notes but they are not like a text or anything. It's just words that would made be remember, it looks a bit like this:
"Joss Whedon, BtVS movie, re-wrote his, disappointed, crew not serious female super hero
TV show, why? blonde, vampires, weak.. horror movies killed"
Hehe, you get the picture..
But well, I mentioned things like the movie and what happened with that, the first scene in Welcome to Hellmouth, the focus on strong female characters (of course), how devoted the crew were, how obsessed people can become (uh, had to mention that 'cause, well, they know what I'm like).

A "funny" thing that my friend Eveliina told me was that a few years ago when we were discussing BtVS (way before I became a fan). Her sister was a Buffy fan, and me and Eveliina were arguing whether shows like BtVS and Charmed were feministic.. since they're more or less about female super heroes, and at least about strong women. And I had told her I didn't think they were, because Buffy (and the other girls on the show) still had to look really atractive and sexy and stuff. (And Eveliina asked me if I had changed my mind about this, or if it just mattered less to me now.) Well, I just thought it was interesting, that that's what I thought about the show before even really knowing anything about it. (And yes, I have changed my mind. And yes, it does matter less to me now..)

 

[killerdwarf]

Lol, quite coincidentally I have to do a 10 minute presentation about the same subject next week... could you send me your notes by any chance?

Does anybody have any other advice as to what to talk about? Perhaps, specific metaphores I should adress.

Ahh, metaphors...Season 6 was one big metaphor, having the characters fight external demons as a symbol of the internal stuggles with "demons"...drug abuse (Willow), mortality (Buffy), denial of what is (Normal Again...is that the ep? not sure), committment (Xander in Hell's Bells), sexuality (Spuffy). So many symbols, presented with actual demons to slay...

 

[QueenJ]

wow that must have been scary giving a speech also that 10 mins is a short time!!! i'm glad it went ok for you! :jumping40

 

[goldenboy]

eponinethen
Glad your speech went well. Always hated those. My palms would get all sweaty. Ugh.

Even though it's done, I'll throw in my two cents. Maybe Buffy will come up again in your studies. Plus, I love this kind of analysis. I'd bet Buffy is the most scrutinized TV show in history, by scholars and fans alike. You've got the whole feminist, post-modern thing going on of course. And the unique lingo.

If you wanted to tie Buffy directly to America in some way, you could trace her roots. I've heard that JRR Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" was, among other things, an attempt to create a mythology for England"”since it didn't have a coherent tradition of it's own. America, being a recently invented country, has the same problem.

There are folk tales, like Paul Bunyan and Johnny Appleseed and others. Some people consider an American invention, the comic book, the closest thing to an American mythology.

I just started this great book, "Men of Tomorrow: Geeks, Gangsters, and the Birth of the Comic Book" by Gerard Jones. It charts the amazing, sordid, maddening history of the comic book and it's creators. Basically, these poor, nerdish Jewish kids living in New York and elsewhere in the 1920's and "˜30's invented a new art form. They were inspired by science and the pulp magazines they read.

It was about wanting to escape, build a better America through science and hard work"”and superhuman powers. Superman was the first American god in this new mythos. Many others followed. Some were born that way, for some it was a freak accident, others were chosen (buffy) to be heros.

These heros reflect the "American Dream" in certain respects. The idea of limitless possibilities and that anyone has the possibility of reaching the pinnacle of society.

Now admittedly, the buffyverse is not just an America 'verse and slayers are a worldwide phenomenon. However, Buffy does help extend the idealist American comic book mythology. Ideal America is in part about upending class snobbery and traditions. Spidey proved that an insecure, formerly anemic nerd could become a superhero. Buffy proved that the girl doesn't have to be the victim, she can be the a**-kicker instead. Anyone has the potential to be one of these American gods: whether you're Jewish, black, a girl, etc...