TALKING CATS: KROSP

You know that thing some people do on the web on Saturdays, where they publish pictures of cats, and comments about cats, and publish jokes and pithy sayings about cats and cat lovers, and they call it 'Caturday'? Isn't it annoying?

Let's do it.

In the torrent of cat-related posts there are few on talking cats. And yet there are so many to choose from.

Talking animals are a common device in fiction. Because the concept is absurd, talking animals make a good vehicle for comedy. Because it is a strange one, talking animals can also be used to add mystery, mysticism or just plain weirdness to stories. They make good guide and mentor characters because when an animal starts talking, you should pay attention. A staple of myths and fairy tales in the past, talking salmon and seals have been replaced today by more familiar animals like mice, dogs and of course cats. Real cats are aloof and distant at all times, except when they are cute and cuddly when they need something from you. That level of self-centered machination is practically human, making them an ideal avatar for our own selves.

As an example take Krosp, the emperor of all cats. A character in the webcomic comedy adventure 'Girl Genius' («a gaslight fantasy») he is the creation of a mad scientist, or 'construct, an artificially created sentient creature.

The story in Girl Genius can get quite complicated. Various characters pursue their own agendas while moving towards a grand finale that will probably involve time and dimension travel. Krosp is part a large cast of characters who weave in and out of the story. At first he is a gatekeeper, giving information to the heroine Agatha, moving her forward in her own story. When he first meet an isolated Agatha, she jokes that she has to listen to him. He surprises her by accepting seriously her fealty and offers her his protection. What is a joke to all the other characters is serious to him; Krosp was

literally created to rule. He cannot deviate from his pre-set agenda while at the same time understanding how absurd his position is. He later becomes her confident, a sounding board for exposition dialogue. From there he gradually evolves into an active ally.

Krosp leaves the story several times, making a grand entrance at each return. It turns out that he has his own story arc. When he finds the other constructs his maker created to be his subjects he can finally use his embedded leadership talent and is given the true power of an army. As the story progresses he uses this power to help Agatha. The importance of it is always downplayed through comedy.

In this talking cat case the focus is on Krosp's humanity. He is a person tapped in a cat's body. His cat qualities are useful to bring the story forward (for example he can follow a scent trail) or comedy relief (he freaks out when near water). His story arc is just as epic as the main character, we just don't get to see it as a lot of it develops offstage. In this case 'being a cat' can stand for 'dealing with preconceptions'. Everyone that Krosp meets is as much a freak as he is but his appearance keeps him apart. It is a very human position to be in.

THE DARK DESCENT OF ELIZABETH FRANKENSTEIN

 

ANCILLARY RETELLING

   A popular strategy used in reimagining stories is to focus on one of the original tale's secondary characters, making them the hero of their own adventure. Those characters exist in the world of the original, or canonical, fiction for which they were created.

Those adventures can be extra canonical. For example having Mrs. Hudson, the landlady of Sherlock Holmes, solving her own mysteries exploits the Sherlockian fictional space without interfering with the canonical stories.

  Others use a more involved approach using the parallel tale of this secondary character as a tool for a retelling of the original story. For example 'The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein' by Kiersten White follows the beats of the originalMary Shelley 'Frankenstein or the Modern Prometeus' (the 1831 edition where Elizabeth is an unrelated orphan). In the original story Elizabeth Lavenza, adopted into the Frankenstein family and destined to marry Victor the family heir acts passive and supportive. So does the Elizabeth from 'The Dark Descent...'. But in this version the passive behaviour is an act, as Elizabeth is always hyper sensitive that the protection of the Frankenstein family could be withdrawn if she does not help them control their psychopath son.

This premise creates a double parallel narrative that is both an original text and a reference to another text. It can be read as a self contained YA fantasy but there is another layer of reading in tracking down the canonical parts woven in.

  Elizabeth's original role as confidant and moral support from the original Shelly text is expanded into a resourceful and active character with a secret life. This secrecy justifies her actions not being mentioned in Victor's version of the story as he is unaware of how far Elizabeth will go to keep his confidence in her. Elizabeth weaves figuratively and literally in and out of the story of Victor and his creature. She secretly travels to Victor's whereabouts when he goes incommunicado for long periods of time (as he does in the original) and gradually pieces together what he did. The self-centered hubris of the original Victor experimenting without thinking of the consequences is replaced by the inhuman single mindedness of someone without empathy. The original story beats are carefully followed but now altered (for example Elizabeth is the one who destroys the monster's bride) gradually moving toward a conclusion that is different from the source material while still paying it homage.
  The interactions between Elizabeth, now the main character, and other originally secondary characters fleshes them out, gives them back stories and weaves them more actively in the plot. The greatest change is in the original main characters. Victor is not the hero of this story but the challenge that Elizabeth has to overcome. The creature is an invisible presence who only show himself late in the story, a mystery that Elizabeth gradually solves.
Among pastiches, ancillary retelling is less common than other reimaginings. It is relatively easy to give a secondary character their own adventures, or to have them show a different point of view to re-narrate an original tale.  By making an ancillary character a hero the narrative shifts into another dimension where the focus of who or what is important is changed.

FRANKENSTEIN, M.D.

MODERNIZATION

Most of the novels written in the early nineteen century are not well-known today. Most of them are of interest only to scholars and collectors and ignored by the general public,. Relatively few titles are still in general circulation today because of their influence on contemporary literature. Most people will recognize the titles, “Jane Eyre”, “Pride and Prejudice” or “Ivanhoe”. But only one title will be recognized by all.

Frankenstein.

The novel “Frankenstein” arguably the first science fiction story, was written in 1818 by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley who did something extraordinary. She created a new type of story (science fiction), a new type of villain (the mad scientist) but more importantly a new monster. The other creatures, mummies, vampires, ghosts and wolfmen popular in the public imagination, are based on old legends. But the unnamed “creature” in the book, brought to life by science, sentient and bent on revenge after being abandoned by it's creator was a new original concept.

We are familiar with 'Frankenstein' not because of it's historical literary innovation, position in the English romantic movement or female authorship but because of it's creature.

To be fair the version of the creature, or 'monster' that the general public is familiar comes not from the novel but from the American movie adaptation in 1931. The original creature was voluble and well spoken, the movie monster a grunting savage.

The differences in those two incarnations of the monster does not change the themes of the story on the nature of evil and the moral consequences of playing God. Numerous variations of the story have explored these themes from different angles. Other adaptations inspired by the original concentrate on the science fiction or horror tone or use it as a comedy or action vehicle.

Life finds a way

Victoria and her experiment

For example, the recent web series 'Frankenstein MD' uses most of the current story adaptation popular tools such as transmedia output, reimagining, remediation, adaptation retelling and gender swap.

The challenge of interpreting Frankenstein is that the story has two main characters very different from each other. Adaptations can focus on one the other or the interaction between both. In this case the story is very much the scientist's, focusing on the steps that lead to her decision to create life. In the original Shelley story the science that lead to the experiment is glossed over, whereas in this webseries it is the main motif. Frankenstein MD is a minute detailing of the evolution of the reasoning that leads to the creation of the creature.

This version of Frankenstein shares the hubris of the original novel's character. She does her experiments because because she can. The edutainment episodes cover the steps leading to the discovery of the secret of life with the added discussion on the ethics of such a decision. In this version, the last step of creating life is done out of guilt and naivety.

2018 IS DONE, FINALLY

Goodbye 2018 and good riddance. What a terrible year you were. You really pushed the extreme weather events, making climate change an unarguable reality, then found people to argue against it. The cartoon villains ruling the countries on either side of Canada got more villainous. You got rid of so many people dear to me. My father passed away. Stan Lee passed away. Nancy Roman passed away. Even Sister Wendy passed away. More villains and less heroes. Were you sitting in a swivel chair stroking a white cat 2018?

It wasn't all bad of course. My boys made me proud several times. Business picked up and I got to work on wonderful projects, including some personal ones with husband and friends.

But 2019, you are going to have to step up. You are going to need all the help you can get. So here's to working on projects that make people happy and encouraging others to do the same. Here's to the interconnectiveness of all things. Here's to sending so many positive vibes your way that you will have the power to defeat cartoon villains, or at least take away their twitter accounts.