Tag: Story
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The Reality of Fiction
The number of times I have heard over the years, when I ask my students about the nature of fiction, that it isn’t true or, even, that it is lies. Nothing, in fact, could be further from the truth. It is not hard to understand why students might think fiction isn’t true; they attend Science…
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The Story of Life
“Life? Don’t talk to me about life.”Marvin the Paranoid Android ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy‘ by Douglas Adams There is so much pressure, these days, to accept the science. We have no need, so we’re told, for faith or belief in anything for which we cannot provide evidence. Reason and the scientific method are…
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Only the Lonely
Imagine walking into a town only to find that your arrival brings the population to the grand total of 1! How long would it take to have you pressing the emergency button, crying for help? This is the premise of the very first episode of Rod Serling’s almost legendary series, The Twilight Zone (1959-1964). Earl…
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Caught on the Key
“Other than my books, there’s nothing I’ve wanted.” Vivian Bell’s explanation to her Reno lawyer of why she wants to leave a “decent marriage” leads to his remarking, “It’s a rare woman who wants out with no strings.” At this point in ‘Desert Hearts’ (1985), Vivian lets this blatant sexism slide. In fact, one of…
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Writing the text already written
Fox Mulder comes from a broken home. Approaching this scenario from a rational perspective, we can accept that some kind of traumatic event happened when Fox Mulder was twelve years old. This event involved the disappearance of his eight-year-old sister. This, in itself, is enough to tear a family apart. Mulder, at some point, came…
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