Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Angel-o and Buffy-et: Contradictions and Plain, Old Addictions

For this blog Dr. Rose has asked us to describe the possibility of an "embodied metaphor" that was present in the first season. I was very interested in the character of Angel. His dark, mysterious presence is overshadowed by his caring concern for the slayer. The fact that he is, in reality, a vampire who has romantic feelings for the slayer is unimaginable. A vampire can not feel for anyone because vampires do not have souls and, thus do not feel. But Angel is an exception. Angel embodies contradiction and internal conflict in every sense of the term. He does not behave as he should--or, rather, as he is expected to. He also can easily be representative of retribution or repentance. He is hindering his own abilities by not feeding and destroying as is expected of vampires. By helping the slayer he contributes to the death of his own kind. All this he does in hopes of easing the burden and guilt he feels for the murders that he has committed.

Another interesting correlation which begins to evolve during the first season of Buffy is the allusion of Buffy and Angel's relationship to the forbidden, yet unchangeable love found in the tale of Romeo and Juliet. In both cases, rules and ideas which have been passed down for centuries lead to a separation of these lovers which can not be overcome. However, this is only the first season of seven and the feelings that Angel and Buffy have for each other are just being realized. Perhaps the episode "Angel" is "the party scene". Buffy has just realized the Angel is a vampire as Juliet realizes Romeo is a Montague. They are sworn enemies who feel an immediate connection which soon develops into a deep passion. It will be interesting to see how this love interest continues in comparison with the play.

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