If I am unable to make this work, I will probably use my idea of putting the Interview characters in modern times in a short story, kind of like a "where are they now" sort of thing. (I know, some of them died but this only works if I can use Lestat and Louis as they were towards the beginning of the book) I think I'm going to have Lestat somehow involved with investment banking and use my analogy of him being a ponzi scheme, and make it literal. I'm not sure how I would explain it but at some point in Lestat and Louis' lives it will become necessary that they have jobs and both of them will end up either as stock brokers or investment bankers. I may try to tie in the bailout and use the vampires to focus more on corporate greed than American greed as a whole. I think it would be interesting to see these characters in a Wall Street setting where "greed is good" and they would be praised for their complete lack of interest in other people's needs.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Plan for final project
My plan for the final project is to expand on my paper that looked at Interview With the Vampire from an economic standpoint. I think it would be interesting to consider how the characters would behave in the current economic climate (this may bring a bit too much "creativity" into an analysis piece but I'd like to try it). I would also like to bring in references from other vampire novels, such as Dracula and maybe some more modern ones, to further explore the effects of greed, selfishness, and consumerism throughout time. I am hoping that the ways in which the vampires live reflect the economic climate of the times in which they were written. I will also use information from an MSNBC program called American Greed to look at what drives people to wealth with no consideration for others.
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I really enjoyed your original literary analysis that you read in class last time. The economic standpoint you use raises many intriguing points about consumerism, corruption and capitalism in “Interview with the Vampire”. Bringing in the concept of greed from Dracula seems almost necessary, so I would definitely stick with that idea. The story of “where are they now” seems like the most fruitful thought you lay out in this proposal. Having Lestat be an investment banker seems like it would lead to an excellent story, and probably exemplify your point the best. Showing Louis as someone who is trampled by such a profession would be excellent.
ReplyDeleteLouis demonstrates his “consideration” for human life throughout the large majority of the novel. If you are going to use the Lestat and Louis from the start, I think highlighting that Louis has a great deal of humanity would draw a good parallel between these two bankers. Louis could crumple under the evil of his profession as Lestat rises to the top of Wall Street. I think this would be a diverse plot idea that would pull Lestat and Louis apart on somewhat similar grounds as in the actual story.
In adding in Dracula with this, I would say weave in all these vampires’ extravagant lifestyles and tastes. I think highlighting that Lestat not only uses money to make his life lavish, but people’s blood. He wastes many lives a night, especially people in the “prime” of life. His greed for everything without regard is a great topic for a story and I think that this will go really well for you.
I do like the expansion idea of your essay. It was a very thorough and well thought out piece. I would have never thought of it that way and to expand on it would be really interesting. To really delve more into America's "New religion" of consumerism would be great. There are a lot of things that you could branch off from that topic alone and I'd be excited to see what other topics you could come up with in working on this piece. I'd like to learn about this MSNBC American Greed. Sounds interesting and would probably help the reader better understand where you're coming from if they tuned into it. The challenge, I think, comes from incorporating the other vampires (Dracula) into the piece. I'm curious to see more of your stand point on vampires from different eras.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be upset, though, if you didn't end up doing the essay. The Wall Street Louis and Lestat sounds like an awesome idea. Having Louis and Lestat skip ahead about forty years from when we last heard from Louis has a lot of potential to be an amazing story. Genius. It'd also be amazing to see how their relationship has changed or if they even know where each other is and what each other is doing in the world. To have Louis and Lestat suddenly praised for their successes in such a corrupt yet real world that we could relate to would really get me hooked. I would definitely suggest intertwining the big events that led up to their careers. I do wonder, though, would Louis and Lestat acknowledge themselves as vampires? Has the world realized the existence of their race?
I agree completely with above posters. Both projects seem interesting and worthwhile. As I mentioned in class, have you thought of combining the two somehow? Mixing creative writing with more formal academic writing? This could produce some interesting results, as well.
ReplyDeleteFor your extended paper, if you haven't read it already, it might be worth your while to check out the criticism Capital Dracula on Pg. 433 of the Norton Dracula book. I hope this reaches you in time. Happy paper writing.
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