International Perspectives on Rethinking Evil in Film and Television 2020033531, 2020033532, 9781799847786, 9781799868835, 9781799847793, 9781799849032, 9781799846550, 9781799857532

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International Perspectives on Rethinking Evil in Film and Television Dilan Tüysüz Adnan Menderes University, Turkey

A volume in the Advances in Media, Entertainment, and the Arts (AMEA) Book Series

Published in the United States of America by IGI Global Information Science Reference (an imprint of IGI Global) 701 E. Chocolate Avenue Hershey PA, USA 17033 Tel: 717-533-8845 Fax: 717-533-8661 E-mail: [email protected] Web site: http://www.igi-global.com Copyright © 2021 by IGI Global. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, without written permission from the publisher. Product or company names used in this set are for identification purposes only. Inclusion of the names of the products or companies does not indicate a claim of ownership by IGI Global of the trademark or registered trademark. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Tüysüz, Dilan, 1979- editor. Title: International perspectives on rethinking evil in film and television / Dilan Tüysüz, editor. Description: Hershey, PA : Information Science Reference, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references and index. | Summary: “This publication explores evil as a philosophical concept and popular phenomenon in narratives of cinema and television and contributes to the literature and analysis in the book to share an understanding of the issue”-Provided by publisher. Identifiers: LCCN 2020033531 (print) | LCCN 2020033532 (ebook) | ISBN 9781799847786 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781799868835 (paperback) | ISBN 9781799847793 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Good and evil in motion pictures. | Good and evil on television. Classification: LCC PN1995.9.E93 I58 2021 (print) | LCC PN1995.9.E93 (ebook) | DDC 791.43/653--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020033531 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020033532 This book is published in the IGI Global book series Advances in Media, Entertainment, and the Arts (AMEA) (ISSN: 2475-6814; eISSN: 2475-6830) British Cataloguing in Publication Data A Cataloguing in Publication record for this book is available from the British Library. All work contributed to this book is new, previously-unpublished material. The views expressed in this book are those of the authors, but not necessarily of the publisher. For electronic access to this publication, please contact: [email protected].

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Handbook of Research on Narrative Interactions Recep Yilmaz (Ondokuz Mayıs University, Turkey) Information Science Reference • © 2021 • 400pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799849032) • US $265.00 Handbook of Research on Aestheticization of Violence, Horror, and Power M. Nur Erdem (Ondokuz Mayıs University, Turkey) Nihal Kocabay-Sener (İstanbul Commerce University, Turkey) and Tuğba Demir (İzmir Kavram Vocational School, Turkey) Information Science Reference • © 2021 • 696pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799846550) • US $245.00 Describing Nature Through Visual Data Anna Ursyn (University of Northern Colorado, USA) Information Science Reference • © 2021 • 367pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799857532) • US $195.00 Multidisciplinary Perspectives on New Media Art Celia Soares (University Institute of Maia (ISMAI), Portugal & Polytechnic Institute of Maia (IPMAIA), Portugal) and Emília Simão (Escola Superior Gallaecia University (ESG), Portugal & Portuguese Catholic University (FFCS-UCP), Portugal) Information Science Reference • © 2020 • 279pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799836698) • US $185.00 Well-Being Design and Frameworks for Interior Space Valeria Minucciani (Politecnico di Torino, Italy) and Nilüfer Saglar Onay (Politecnico di Torino, Italy) Information Science Reference • © 2020 • 292pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799842316) • US $165.00 Contemporary Art Impacts on Scientific, Social, and Cultural Paradigms Emerging Research and Opportunities Janez Strehovec (Institute of New Media Art and Electronic Literature, Ljubljana, Slovenia) Information Science Reference • © 2020 • 177pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799838357) • US $145.00 Navigating Fake News, Alternative Facts, and Misinformation in a Post-Truth World Kimiz Dalkir (McGill University, Canada) and Rebecca Katz (McGill University, Canada) Information Science Reference • © 2020 • 375pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799825432) • US $195.00 Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design Luciano Crespi (Politecnico di Milano, Italy) Information Science Reference • © 2020 • 459pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781799828235) • US $195.00

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Editorial Advisory Board Onur Akşit, Ege University, Turkey Zehra Cerrahoğlu, Dokuz Eylül University, Turkey Emrah Suat Onat, Dokuz Eylül University, Turkey Selvi Şenel, Independent Researcher, Turkey



Table of Contents

Preface.................................................................................................................................................. xiv Acknowledgment................................................................................................................................ xvii Chapter 1 Sympathy for the Devil: Psychology of Evil From Milton’s Satan to the Joker...................................... 1 Dilan Tuysuz, Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Turkey Chapter 2 Gendered Spaces of the Devil: Reflecting Upon Space and Femininity in Lucifer TV Series Through Deleuze’s Baroque House Allegory........................................................................................ 16 Doğancan Özsel, Munzur University, Turkey Kadriye Töre Özsel, Munzur University, Turkey Chapter 3 Change of Good: Evil Concepts in Fantasy Genre................................................................................ 26 Selvi Şenel, Independent Researcher, Turkey Chapter 4 Reconsidering “Evil” Through the Star Wars Films.............................................................................. 38 Alper Erçetingöz, Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Turkey Chapter 5 Blurred Borders Between Good and Evil in Today’s “Lesser Evil World”: The Witcher as Book, Game, and Netflix Series....................................................................................................................... 59 Tülin Sepetci, Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Turkey Chapter 6 On Witches and Chic Evil: A Psycho-Sociological Analysis of The Love Witch.................................. 76 Octav Sorin Candel, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Iasi, Romania Chapter 7 #BlackGirlMagic: How to Get Away With Murder Is Not Evil............................................................. 88 Adelina Mbinjama-Gamatham, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, South Africa  



Chapter 8 Charming but Villain: Cross-Cultural Perspective on the Evil of a Little Girl in the Adaptations of The Bad Seed....................................................................................................................................... 104 Lale Kabadayı, Ege University, Turkey Chapter 9 Cinematographic Ethics Within the Autonomy of Art: Empathy With Pedophilia in Cinema........... 112 Onur Keşaplı, Usak University, Turkey Chapter 10 Question Concerning Evil in the Age of New Television: Dichotomy of Good and Evil in Money Heist..................................................................................................................................................... 135 Kemal Deniz, Munzur University, Turkey Chapter 11 Museum as Medium: Temporality, Memory, and Intricacy of Evil in Museo..................................... 150 Hüseyin Ekrem Ulus, Ege University, Turkey Aslı Favaro, Ege University, Turkey Chapter 12 Banalising Evil? Humour in Lisa McGee’s Derry Girls..................................................................... 164 Veronica Membrive, University of Almeria, Spain Chapter 13 The Demonization of Islam in Contemporary Hollywood Cinema..................................................... 176 Ayhan Küngerü, Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Turkey Chapter 14 From “Hero” to “Evil”: The Movie Richard Jewell as an Example of Moral Panic........................... 193 Bilal Süslü, Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University, Turkey Chapter 15 Discussing Abstraction of Evil in Concreteness of Murder: Elena (2011).......................................... 207 Eşref Akmeşe, İnönü University, Turkey Compilation of References................................................................................................................ 220 Related Readings................................................................................................................................ 234 About the Contributors..................................................................................................................... 243 Index.................................................................................................................................................... 246

Detailed Table of Contents

Preface.................................................................................................................................................. xiv Acknowledgment................................................................................................................................ xvii Chapter 1 Sympathy for the Devil: Psychology of Evil From Milton’s Satan to the Joker...................................... 1 Dilan Tuysuz, Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Turkey John Milton, in his epic poem Paradise Lost, describes the expulsion of Adam and Eve from heaven, leading to the beginning of the oldest struggle. However, the representation of the devil in Milton’s work, which is considered responsible for all evil in the world, is striking. The fact that Milton’s devil’s temptation has taken precedence over the story of expulsion of Adam and Eve is similar to Batman being overshadowed by the evil character Joker. Batman, who has many virtues and positive qualities as a superhero, has not impressed the audience as much as wicked Joker. But what makes the bad characters attractive to the reader/audience in Milton’s Satan and the Joker? Is the Joker mentally ill? Is there a rebellion like the Satan’s behind the Joker’s malicious actions or is it possible to talk about a different motivation? The aim of this chapter is to explore the answers to these and similar questions by taking a journey through the psychology of evil. Thus, it will be possible to understand whether our admiration of bad characters is a reflection of the darkness within us. Chapter 2 Gendered Spaces of the Devil: Reflecting Upon Space and Femininity in Lucifer TV Series Through Deleuze’s Baroque House Allegory........................................................................................ 16 Doğancan Özsel, Munzur University, Turkey Kadriye Töre Özsel, Munzur University, Turkey This chapter analyzes the representation of the subject-forming processes of female characters in the Lucifer TV series through the characters’ relation with space and how ‘evil’ is presented here as the distortion of the traditional forms of these relations. In doing this, Deleuze’s Baroque House is used as an allegory. The chapter thus highlights that creative ways taken in the series which is about the story of the ‘devil’ on earth, in order to represent subjectivity not as a solid identity but as a process that is constantly being constructed and deconstructed. Authors thus suggest an alternative interpretation of the series by focusing this construction’s relation with the space and highlight the multi-folded and permissive nature of the relation between femininity and space, that is often though within quite solid categories.  



Chapter 3 Change of Good: Evil Concepts in Fantasy Genre................................................................................ 26 Selvi Şenel, Independent Researcher, Turkey In the postmodern era, concepts, notions, even ideologies that used to be concrete lost their precision. On the contrary to the clear point of view of modernism with linearity, postmodernism is circular and holistic. Thus, concepts like good and evil must not be seen as a total contrast. With the holistic approach of postmodernism, there can be evil in good and good in evil. In the popular fantasy texts that have been made especially in the last decade, this change easily can be seen in the characters. In this part, change of the good and the evil concepts in the fantasy genre will be examined in the context of postmodernism and developments in these concepts will be approached with the roles as hero, villain, anti-hero, anti-villain. Chapter 4 Reconsidering “Evil” Through the Star Wars Films.............................................................................. 38 Alper Erçetingöz, Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Turkey Discussing the endless war between the good and the evil, the Star Wars series has expressed various discourses about evil from 1977 to 2019. These films, which have ingrained themselves in the history of cinema as ‘narratives of evil’, have been watched intently by an audience of different nationalities and age groups for a timespan of over 40 years. This currently ongoing interest has allowed the series to continue its narrative with new films. The dialectic relationship that cinema, which has a potential to produce ideas through images, establishes with its watchers as an opportunity that allows for the exploration of the human attitude and behavior towards evil, it necessitates the reconsideration of evil through Star Wars films. Chapter 5 Blurred Borders Between Good and Evil in Today’s “Lesser Evil World”: The Witcher as Book, Game, and Netflix Series....................................................................................................................... 59 Tülin Sepetci, Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Turkey The series of The Witcher discussed in this study stems from book series written by Andrzej Sapkowski. It started as a set of short stories in the 1980s. As short stories became very popular, full-length books were published in 1993. The most heard of The Witcher series was the digital game adaptations that was released since 2007 and lastly as TV series on Netflix in 2019. The story of The Witcher series is about a witcher named Geralt of Rivia. Geralt on the journey of evil hunting is narrated to the audience in a fantastic way. Although Geralt is an anti-hero fighting evil in the series, he himself stands on a very fine line between good and evil. This situation is noticeable not only in the main character of the series, but also in other prominent characters and reflects “the lesser evil” phenomenon throughout the series. From this point of view, The Witcher series, which conveys how the boundary between good and evil, can be transitive and relative and has been discussed through the concept of lesser evil. Chapter 6 On Witches and Chic Evil: A Psycho-Sociological Analysis of The Love Witch.................................. 76 Octav Sorin Candel, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Iasi, Romania



The Love Witch is a 2016 American film directed by Anna Biller. It tells the story of Elaine, a witch whose lovers happen to die one after the other. The film presents itself as a feminist view on gender roles and the dichotomy of femininity/masculinity. In this chapter, the author discusses the idea of evil and how it is portrayed in the film. Sociological and psychological perspectives are presented. The analysis shows that the main character can be viewed as a societal deviant or as a person struggling with a traumatic past, thus explaining her behavior that can be attributed to evil. Nevertheless, the film presents a novel view on feminine evil, showing that it is different, and it should not be compared with the masculine one. Chapter 7 #BlackGirlMagic: How to Get Away With Murder Is Not Evil............................................................. 88 Adelina Mbinjama-Gamatham, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, South Africa This chapter explores the relevance of Immanuel Kant’s categorical imperative to critique the unintended, subliminal evil representations in Shonda Rhimes’s work. Kant’s moral theory is used to re-think evil in the way that Rhimes portrays Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) in How to Get Away with Murder (2014-) as an influential defense attorney and law professor who goes to extreme lengths to get what she wants, even if her behavior is considered bad or evil. This chapter argues that Rhimes’s work challenges the systemic racism and stereotypical portrayals of Black women in television, as she not only focuses on the bad or evil doings of her Black characters but also on what makes them powerful, good and emblematic of #BlackGirlMagic. Chapter 8 Charming but Villain: Cross-Cultural Perspective on the Evil of a Little Girl in the Adaptations of The Bad Seed....................................................................................................................................... 104 Lale Kabadayı, Ege University, Turkey In the history of cinema, bad girl/boy characters are less common than other villain characters. However, these characters have a lot of influence on the audience. The Bad Seed movies, which are important book adaptations, are remarkable for the evil done by a charming, pretty little girl. The audience watched the story of this eight-year-old-girl for the first time with the adaptation made in 1956. The book was adapted as a television movie in the US both in 1985 and 2018. However, it was made in Turkey, too. This adaptation was shot in 1963 by director Nevzat Pesen. This black-and-white film is considered one of the best thriller-horror films of Turkish Cinema. In this study, the relationship of the little girl with evil will be examined in terms of differences in US and Turkish adaptations. Thus, the difference between the two cultures regarding the relationship between child and villainy will be evaluated from the point of cinema. Chapter 9 Cinematographic Ethics Within the Autonomy of Art: Empathy With Pedophilia in Cinema........... 112 Onur Keşaplı, Usak University, Turkey Pedophilia, which at the same time is considered as a sickness, was mostly handled in cinema history as an element of crime. Apart from the examples where the evil is punished, there also exists movies where the subject is handled but not named. And in recent past, movies that aim to empathize started to appear. These movies places pedophilia in the center, study the justifications behind actions and tries to establish sympathy. There are movies such as The Woodsman and Kind in which the main character is a pedophile, ones like Little Children where pedophilia is handled as a whole and ones like Nympnomaniac



Vol 2 wherein pedophilia is elaborately scrutinized. Common trait of all these movies is the acceptance of pedophilia, which is coded as a state of absolute evil, as a reality and engaging in an effort to understand it. These four movies which, within the frame of autonomy of art and within the context of cinematographic ethics, empathize with a state that is opposite to moral norms are of importance regarding confrontation with parts of human nature that is considered evil. Chapter 10 Question Concerning Evil in the Age of New Television: Dichotomy of Good and Evil in Money Heist..................................................................................................................................................... 135 Kemal Deniz, Munzur University, Turkey The new developments and transformations that changed the television have also some outcomes about content, style, and performanses in the productions. Thus, quality drama series on dijital television and internet subscription TV platforms like Netflix are getting more attention of the audience. New or subgenres, anti-heroes, muli-protagonists, moral dilemmas, new inquiries in socio-psychologycal level caused distinction between good and evil becomes more complex in this djital transformation age of television. In this context, Money Heist, which contains a harsh system criticism behind the robberies in its narrative, is considered a symbol of resistance with its unique iconography created by its aesthetics, genre, multiprotagonist characters and story, gained big attantion from global audiences. To understand how Money Heist achieved this audience support, it is evaluated in the context of genre, character structure, and iconography that created a symbolism of resistance in a global scale, considering the developments in television by the digital transformation. Chapter 11 Museum as Medium: Temporality, Memory, and Intricacy of Evil in Museo..................................... 150 Hüseyin Ekrem Ulus, Ege University, Turkey Aslı Favaro, Ege University, Turkey This chapter first discusses how and why it is extremely difficult to define the concept of evil in theory and next analyzes why Goldberg’s diachronic theory is useful in the study of evil. The authors explain how evil is fundamentally connected to the concepts of temporality and memory in the narrative universe of Museo. The intricacy of evil in the film is narrated through the metaphor of a museum. In this context, Museo’s narrative gradually shows that each identity (or story) is limited by its scope of memory; and hence, each identity and their definitions of evil are different but somehow interrelated. As modern individuals, the protagonists have limited perception of history, loose connection with other cultures, and this leads them to commit an evil act. However, as in Goldberg’s theory of diachronicity, when the museum brings several stories and temporalities together from different time spans, it becomes possible for the protagonist to question the motives of his evil act. Thus, Museo calls for a diachronic approach towards evil to challenge any form of ethnocentricity. Chapter 12 Banalising Evil? Humour in Lisa McGee’s Derry Girls..................................................................... 164 Veronica Membrive, University of Almeria, Spain



2018 was the celebration year of the 20th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement of 1998, bringing power-sharing and much peace to Northern Ireland. Twenty years seem a fair distance to address the issue from a comical viewpoint. Lisa McGee’s television show Derry Girls (2018) released in Channel 4, and recently in Netflix, seems to convey a nostalgic and caustic outlook at the 1990s during the last years of The Troubles and focuses on the lives of a gang of four Irish teenagers growing up in the setting of Catholic Derry. This chapter will interrogate the banalization of evil conveyed by McGee by tackling the representation of evil and violence in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. Chapter 13 The Demonization of Islam in Contemporary Hollywood Cinema..................................................... 176 Ayhan Küngerü, Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Turkey With the end of the Cold War, paradigms of the Cold War could not explain the emerging international environment. Therefore, Western authorities put forward various theories in order to elicit new order. One of those is Samuel Huntington’s “clash of civilization” thesis. In his work, Huntington stated that with the end of the Cold War, basic element of the clashes was no longer ideological, instead economic and cultural. In this context, clashes would occur between civilization and religion would be the main source of clashes between civilizations. He allotted the large part of his work to the differences between the Western and Islam civilization. American Sniper were addressed and analysed according to four dogmas of Orientalism in Edward Said’s book Orientalism. Accordingly, existence of the state of conflict between Western and Islam civilization mentioned in Huntington’s work have been observed. It has been seen that civilization of Islam built as the adversary of the West have been deemed as other and created as enemy. Chapter 14 From “Hero” to “Evil”: The Movie Richard Jewell as an Example of Moral Panic........................... 193 Bilal Süslü, Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University, Turkey The security guard, who was the pioneer to prevent the suspicious package left in the entertainment area, was primarily declared as ‘hero’ after the incident in Atlanta during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, and then he was vilified as ‘evil’ as a result of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and media representations about the incident. The incident was adapted into the movie Richard Jewell in 2019, directed by Clint Eastwood. The movie, in which Jewell’s devastating life is narrated in the screenplay, is regarded as to be worth analyzing because the media reflects the witch hunt that Stanley Cohen defines as a moral panic. Consequently, the moral panic creation of the media is tried to be analyzed through the movie Richard Jewell in this study. Chapter 15 Discussing Abstraction of Evil in Concreteness of Murder: Elena (2011).......................................... 207 Eşref Akmeşe, İnönü University, Turkey Evil, one of the ancient problems humanity has faced, continues its existence within the intellectual occupations of modern people by discussing benefit-harm and means-ends as matters of debate and is addressed as an important theme with different perspectives in cultural areas. The film Elena (2011),



directed by Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev, anesthetizes the evil in the context of material-moral interindividual relations within the structure of modern society, and opens it for discussion on the philosophical plane, allowing the evil to be the subject of abstract discussions in the context of concrete events. In this framework, the philosophical messages presented in Elena on good and evil are analyzed in the article, and the instrumentalization of evil to achieve the goal and the dynamics of doing evil for good are discussed in the context of subjective goodness thought. Compilation of References................................................................................................................ 220 Related Readings................................................................................................................................ 234 About the Contributors..................................................................................................................... 243 Index.................................................................................................................................................... 246

xiv

Preface

In everyday life, when we establish a relationship with evil our position is passive. We usually suffer because of evil or witness stories of those exposed to evil. However, mostly we are not willing to accept that we are doing any ‘bad’ action as a perpetrator. Bad people are always others. In real life, these ‘others’ are terrifying, we claim that they are demonic or pathological and we feel sorry for the victims. Evil in the fictional world is imaginary and it is usually aestheticized. Aestheticization of evil is a frequently used formula in cinema and television. However, the representation of evil as an aesthetic object pushes it out of morality. We can put aside moral judgments when evil is aesthetized in movies or TV series, because there is no real victim. Thus, situations such as murder or war can become a source of aesthetic pleasure. Evil as a philosophical concept, which has been interpreted in wide range explanations as physical factors such as natural disasters, diseases, accidents, metaphysical explanations based on the conflict between the devil and God, and the moral framework that point to human nature. Narratives in cinema and television sometimes based on a simple good-evil dichotomy and sometimes based on individual or social experiences of evil and follow a more complicated method. One of the aims of this study is to examine the changing representations of evil on screen are addressed in the context of the commonness, normalization, aestheticization, marginalization, legitimization, or popularity of evil. In this book, an international perspective is brought to the subject by looking at the representations of evil in cinema and television. We begin our journey through evil tales or villains in cinema and television, with the devil, who has long been seen as the chief cause of evil in the world. In the first chapter, “Sympathy for the Devil: Psychology of Evil from Milton’s Satan to the Joker”, we will try to understand the psychological motivations behind the rebellion of the devil figure described in John Milton’s poem Paradise Lost. Then the parallels between the devil and the Joker, one of cinema’s popular villains, will be interpreted from a Freudian perspective. In the second chapter of the study, “Gendered Spaces of the Devil: Reflecting Upon Space and Femininity in Lucifer TV Series Through Deleuze’s Baroque House Allegory”, we continue with a modern interpretation of the devil or alias Lucifer. In Netflix’s popular TV series Lucifer, Töre Özsel and Doğancan Özsel discuss not only the prince of darkness, but also the women in his life in the context of their relationship with evil. We would not be mistaken if we say that in the fantastic productions, which are among the genres where the contrast between good/bad is most common, evil is generally represented by aesthetizing or popularizing. In this context, after the fantastic TV series Lucifer, we continue with “Change of Good - Evil Concepts in Fantasy Genre”, which deals with allegorical interpretations of evil in fantastic fiction in a broader and general framework in the third chapter. Selvi Şenel makes a comparative analysis of the representations of evil in the fantasy genre in modern and post-modern periods through popular productions such as The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and Game of Thrones. 

Preface

Alper Erçetingöz, on the other hand, interprets the endless struggle between good and evil in the Star Wars series, one of the prominent representatives of the fantasy genre, in the fourth chapter, “Reconsidering ‘Evil’ Through Star Wars Films”. The chapter explores ways to rethink the appeal of evil, its dialectical relationship to good, and its constant defeat against good, through the nine films of the series. The fifth chapter, “Blurred Borders Between Good and Evil in Today’s ‘Lesser Evil World’: The Witcher Series as a Book, Game, and Netflix Series”, approaches the distinction between good and bad in fantastic worlds from a different perspective with the concept of ‘lesser evil’. Tülin Sepetçi evaluates the lesser evil concept, which is defined as the less bad one among two bad alternatives, through The Witcher novel series, computer games and TV series. The sixth chapter continues to examine evil through a fantastic character, but this time in terms of gender. Octav Sorin Candel examines the psychological motivations behind evil through the female villain character in “On Witches and Chic Evil: A Psycho-Sociological Analysis of The Love Witch”. In the seventh chapter, we continue the narratives that associate female characters with evil. In this chapter entitled “#BlackGirlMagic: How to Get Away With Murder Is Not Evil”, Adelina Mbinjama draws on the fact that black people have been represented on television as villains for years. It specifically explores how black women have continuously been connected with evil and ‘black magic’ through the representation of the main female character in the popular TV series How to Get Away with Murder. Representing evil by associating with a certain gender or a race in cinema and television is among the subjects that we are accustomed. However, there is a very unusual representation that is about the connection between evil and the child. Lale Kabadayı discusses the concept of ‘evil child’, contrary to the general acceptance that we usually associate children with pure goodness. The eighth chapter, “Charming but Villain: Cross-Cultural Perspective on the Evil of a Little Girl in the Adaptations of The Bad Seed”, examines child malice, comparing the Turkish and American versions of The Bad Seed movie and discussing the subject in a cultural context. In the ninth chapter, we move on to the narratives in which the child turns from perpetrator to victim of evil by reversing the relationship between child and evil. Onur Keşaplı evaluates a sensitive subject, pedophilia and pedophile characters in cinema in the section entitled “Cinematographic Ethics Within the Autonomy of Art: Empathy with Pedophilia in Cinema”. One of the important narratives that tells the problem of evil through the good/bad dichotomy is undoubtedly the crime stories. Against the ‘bad’ criminals, ‘good’ protectors of law and order often come across in cinema and television. Of course, there are also narratives in which we take the side of criminals, but they are not portrayed as ‘evil’ characters in order to gain our sympathy. Kemal Deniz touches on exactly this subject in the tenth chapter. “Question Concerning Evil in the Age of New Television Dichotomy of Good and Evil in Money Heist” first evaluates the heist genre, and then Money Heist (La Casa De Papel), one of the popular TV series of the new TV era. In the eleventh chapter, we move on to another story of robbery. Ekrem Ulus and Aslı Favoro point out that in the chapter entitled “Museum as Medium: Temporality, Memory, and Intricacy of Evil in Museo”, where they examine the Mexican film Museo, explanations of evil should be considered with the elements of time, history and temporality. When evil and violence come together in cinema and television, it often becomes ordinary for the audience they see on screen. Veronica Mebrive takes the TV show Derry Girls in the twelfth chapter entitled “Banalising Evil? Humor in Lisa McGee’s Derry Girls”, exploring that when humor is involved, banality threatens to blur the lines between good and evil.

xv

Preface

Ayhan Küngerü examines the issue of evil in the triangle of violence, terror and religion. The thirteenth chapter, “The Demonization of Islam in Contemporary Hollywood Cinema”, takes a critical look at the problem of representation of Islam in mainstream Hollywood cinema. In the fourteenth chapter entitled “From ‘Hero’ to ‘Evil’: The Movie ‘Richard Jewell’ as an Example of Moral Panic”, Bilal Süslü evaluates the ambiguous line between hero and villain within the framework of the concept of moral panic. Eşref Akmeşe chooses Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Elena (2011) to rethink good and evil in the fifteenth chapter. In this last chapter entitled, “Discussing Abstraction of Evil in Concreteness of Murder: Elena (2011)”, discussions of good and evil are addressed on the axis of human nature, free will, current conditions and choices, in short, human relations. In conclusion, this book provides detailed and interdisciplinary data for professionals, researchers, students, cinephiles and enthusiasts working on the problem of evil in general and the representation of evil and villains in cinema and television in particular. Undoubtedly, there is much more to be said about evil, but we believe that with this book we made an important contribution to the field.

xvi

xvii

Acknowledgment

As an editor, first, I would like to thank my dear fellow academics who wrote chapters for this book. This book hopefully will present new perspectives for researchers, students and academics interested in the field thanks to them. I would also like to express my gratitude to the academics of the editorial advisory board who provided valuable support in the constitution of the book. Finally, I would like to thank the IGI Global Publishing House for giving me the chance to publish this edited book.



1

Chapter 1

Sympathy for the Devil: Psychology of Evil From Milton’s Satan to the Joker Dilan Tuysuz https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5887-9519 Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Turkey

ABSTRACT John Milton, in his epic poem Paradise Lost, describes the expulsion of Adam and Eve from heaven, leading to the beginning of the oldest struggle. However, the representation of the devil in Milton’s work, which is considered responsible for all evil in the world, is striking. The fact that Milton’s devil’s temptation has taken precedence over the story of expulsion of Adam and Eve is similar to Batman being overshadowed by the evil character Joker. Batman, who has many virtues and positive qualities as a superhero, has not impressed the audience as much as wicked Joker. But what makes the bad characters attractive to the reader/audience in Milton’s Satan and the Joker? Is the Joker mentally ill? Is there a rebellion like the Satan’s behind the Joker’s malicious actions or is it possible to talk about a different motivation? The aim of this chapter is to explore the answers to these and similar questions by taking a journey through the psychology of evil. Thus, it will be possible to understand whether our admiration of bad characters is a reflection of the darkness within us.

INTRODUCTION The concept of ‘evil’, against ‘good’ that considered equal to beauty, happiness and desirable, is naturally linked together with ugly, unpleasant, harmful and undesirable things. It is seen that the discussions about the problem of evil throughout history are generally about the reason “why” it emerges, rather than “what” is it. Why do people do evil? Where is the source of evil? Is it in God or The Devil? Is it in a person’s upbringing or social environment? Or is it inside of a human being?

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch001

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The oldest and classical views on this topic completely bill Devil for evil in the world. Lucifer, one of the angels of God, rebelled against his creator, for this reason, he was thrown out of heaven and for the revenge, he made the famous bluff that brought Adam and Eve to the world. After that day, The Devil considered responsible for all the sins committed by human beings. Because to the end of the world, the devil will whisper seductive words in the ear of humans to perform prohibited, sin and therefore ill-considered actions. In addition to that, in this scenario, in an order dominated by good, the reason for the emergence of evil is uncertain. It is accepted that there was a certain bad thought behind Lucifer’s rebellion, which turned him into a demon when he was the radiant angel of God. So evil must already be the part of that sacred order. In that case, wouldn’t it be wrong to blame The Devil for being the root of all evil? So should we see evil as a part of God’s great plan? In Enlightenment, where rational thinking started to be accepted, thinkers like Jean Jacques Rousseau and Immanuel Kant looked into human nature to find evil. Accordingly, the free will that God gave to man is seen as the most important factor that determines whether a person will choose good or bad actions or not. This study does not have the intention to add a new discussion on the causes of evil that have been made for centuries that do not have any consensus. If it is placed aside what the evil is and where its source should be searched for, the thing that must be questioned is why evil is tempting. Because evil often scares everyone, but with its one side it is also attractive to most people. Of course, it is not sensible to love dictators, terrorists or serial killers whose actions are considered bad by the majority, but it is important to consider that many fan letters contain the proposal to marry Ted Bundy in prison. It seems more innocent to have sympathy for the fictional bad characters in literature and cinema rather than a killer that killed more than thirty women. The world of movies and novels are full of popular evils: the villains we love more or at least as much as the hero we’re supposed to identify with. They can do most of the things we want to do but we cannot do because of various reasons; they can build a Death Star and blow up galaxies, rob a bank, kill someone that annoys us, terrorize a big city or wage war against God. In this sense, do we love these bad characters for their acts without fear of blaming, committing sin, and most importantly having punishment, or do we love them because they can act freely despite these fears? After all, committing a robbery or waging a war in heaven is not everyone’s cup of tea. Waging war against God appears in the first ‘evil’ that is the Satan which is one of the heroes of the fall story told by John Milton in Paradise Lost. Milton wanted to tell a story about the expulsion of Adam and Eve from heaven, but while doing it he could not prevent Satan from taking the center stage rather than the real heroes of the work, Adam and Eve. A situation similar to the popularity of Satan in Paradise Lost repeats itself in Joker, one of the notorious enemies of Batman, the protector of Gotham city. At the end of The Dark Knight (2008, Dir. Christopher Nolan) movie, we can be relieved with Batman defeating his enemies and ensuring everyone’s safety, but it is still possible to enjoy the evil actions of the Joker that drifts the whole city into a state of chaos. The Joker character portrayed by Heath Ledger became so popular that the origin story was shot eleven years later, where we learned about the character’s past and hence how he fell into the ‘dark side’. In this study, while discussing the psychological roots of the sympathy for the Devil and the Joker, it is necessary to understand their ‘bad’ nature by starting from the analogy between these two characters. Where did Devil found evil in a place where everything is good and perfect? What turns the agent of the morning light into the Prince of Darkness? What about the Joker? How did Arthur Fleck, whose only goal was being a comedian and make people laugh, became the leader of anarchy and destruction? 2

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Above all, why can we have sympathy with these characters? Investigating the answers to all these questions will certainly not be sufficient to explain the problem of evil, but might be a little helpful to understand the temptation of evil.

THE REBEL AND THE TEMPTER: LUCIFER ALSO KNOWN AS THE SATAN The story of the expulsion of Adam and Eve that is among the most known narratives in human history has been the subject of many works of art for centuries. One of the most important of these is the Paradise Lost written by John Milton in 1667 based on the Bible. In the book of twelve chapters, Milton epically described the Lucifer’s fell to hell as a result of his rebellion against God, the war between armies of heaven and hell and the expulsion of Adam and Eve, who were deceived by the Satan, from paradise. Milton’s featured character of Satan started a deep debate that the main hero of Lost Paradise can actually be The Satan instead of Adam and Eve. In this debate, while one side argues that Satan cannot be seen as the real hero of the work, on the other side there are those who accept Satan as a hero as the narrative techniques in the text point out. The writers and poets like William Blake who says that Milton takes Satan’s side unwittingly; Mary Shelley that wrote Frankenstein who reads Paradise Lost where he identifies with The Satan and queries his master; Charles Baudelaire who interested in beauty in evil and modern writers like William Empson and Michael Bryson are on the second side. Milton’s character of Satan who is open to different readings has led the discussions about whether he is the main hero of Paradise Lost. Some would argue with that opinion by saying he is nothing more than just a deceitful, liar and insidious being. But the word proposed by John Carey about the ambivalent situation in Satan’s nature seems acceptable: depth (2020, p. 126). According to Carey, who says that the depth of a fictional character depends on the necessity of the character’s various levels hidden from the viewer/reader, Milton’s Satan is therefore a character with depth. In the beginning, Lucifer, as one of God’s archangels, appears in different positions as The Satan who is the Prince of Darkness, and eventually the serpent who seduces people as the narrative proceeds. The transition between these positions does not happen suddenly and without reason, the mood of Satan is revealed throughout the poem. As William Empson points out, “We first meet him certain of the righteousness his cause though defeated, follow him into doubt and despair, switch back in the narrative of Raphael to find him confident that his cause will be victorious as well as just, then return to the story and find his character rapidly rotting away “(1965, p. 71). Milton cannot maintain this attitude that reflects the character of Satan to the reader when it comes to Adam and Eve and this makes The Satan the deepest character in Paradise Lost. Although Adam and Eve who are the perpetrators of the original sin are at the center of the story of Paradise Lost, Milton embodies the fall of human in Satan by portraying a multi-dimensional Devil. Therefore, the analysis of Satan’s complex psychological state can be a guide for understanding the causes of the original sin, and with it, human nature. Milton’s work is based on the fall of Adam and Eve, but it is important to remind that The Satan was the first that fell from heaven, not Adam and Eve. In a place where everything is good and perfect, Satan caused the emergence of evil and the war between the angels. However, he is Lucifer, who was originally among the favorite angels of God, “brighter once amidst the host of angels, than that star the stars among” (Milton, 2005, p. 201). Therefore, what happened and Lucifer decided to rebel against the mighty creator? 3

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It is important to look at Milton’s understanding of the cosmic order before getting there. God as a father figure is in a dominant position in everything as the creator of this cosmic order. Angels can be thought of as his sons and they are sacred beings with various titles and duties, most importantly within a certain hierarchy. Lucifer is a high-ranking angel in this hierarchy. From this point of view, it can be said that there is a kind of monarchy in Milton’s heaven. According to the narrative, things get complicated when God declares his Son the only regent and orders all the angels to obey him. Satan raises an objection to God’s decision in a manner like a worldly political reaction and queries God’s power in his speech in heaven to gather supporters: This only to consult how we may best With what may be devised of honours new Receive him coming to receive from us Knee-tribute yet unpaid, prostration vile, Too much to one, but double how endured, To one and to his image now proclaimed? But what if better counsels might erect Our minds and teach us to cast off this yoke? Will ye submit your necks, and choose to bend The supple knee? Ye will not, if I trust To know ye right, or if ye know yourselves Natives and sons of heaven possessed before By none, and if not equal all, yet free, Equally free; for orders and degrees Jar not with liberty, but well consist. Who can in reason then or right assume Monarchy over such as live by right His equals, if in power and splendour less, In freedom equal? or can introduce Law and edict on us, who without law Err not, much less for this to be our lord, And look for adoration to the abuse Of those imperial titles which assert Our being ordained to govern, not to serve? (Milton, 2005, p. 161). In his speech, Satan likened God to a tyrant king who restricts freedoms, acts unfairly and unequally, thus places himself in the position of a freedom fighter who defies the monarchy. The presence of crowded fans of other fallen angels supporting him also strengthens this position by creating the perception that he is not alone. This leads us to why Satan chooses evil. In the poem, Satan says “Evil, be thou my good”. “What is evil good for in Satan’s eyes? The answer is nothing other than - freedom. In his pride, Satan revolts against God, because he refuses to be a slave to God and his commandments (…) Satan embraces evil as a means of freeing himself from God. Therefore, for Satan, evil only has an instrumental worth (…) Satan’s goal is freedom, not evil for its own sake” (Svendsen, 2010, p. 95). Satan also promised freedom to his followers who rebelled with him in paradise. Because according to Him, “Better to reign in hell, than serve in heaven” (Milton, 2005, p. 25). After Satan’s rebellion, 4

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there is a three-day violent war between the forces of heaven and hell. The Satan loses every time and is forced to retreat. On the third day, the Son lands on the battlefield at the command of his father and ultimately defeats Satan. Thus, Satan and his supporters are driven to hell. However, this absolute defeat fills Satan with a desire for revenge, in addition to feelings like anger and arrogance he feels. He needs to develop a different strategy because he knows he cannot win any other war against God and other angels. Thereby, he implements the new plan that targets God’s new creation, the human that is Adam and Eve. However, this time he has to find something other than his promise of freedom, which he pledges to his fans in hell. For this reason, the promise he used to deceive Eve is the wisdom. The forbidden fruit will bring Godliness, a happy life and most importantly, ‘knowledge to distinguish between good and evil’ to those who eat it. According to Satan, God is a tyrant because he forbids such a fruit to people because he does not want his creations to look like him by eating the fruit. Describing knowledge as a force that equates human with Gods, Satan criticizes God’s deprivation of Adam and Eve from that force. He convinces Eve also in this way. When he first sees the Tree of Knowledge, he reveals that the real thought he said to himself was in this direction: (…) all is not theirs it seems: One fatal tree there stands of knowledge called, Forbidden them to taste: knowledge forbidden? Suspicious, reasonless. Why should their Lord Envy them that? can it be sin to know, Can it be death? and do they only stand By ignorance, is that their happy state, The proof of their obedience and their faith? O fair foundation laid whereon to build Their ruin! (Milton, 2019, p. 120). Accordingly, in the eyes of Satan, God forbade his servants to access knowledge that could push them to any questioning for them to be ignorant and to obey him. Thus, we can say that The Satan wants to take revenge on God because he thinks God acts like a tyrant with unlimited authority and power. For this reason, he deceived Adam and Eve and caused them to be expelled from heaven because he could achieve this goal with the fall of human. However, there is a point that puts the reader into contradiction in accepting that God is a tyrant who does not grant anyone the right to speak, as The Satan claims. According to Milton, the mighty God who created everything gave free will on angels and human. He expects his creations to follow his orders, but angels and humans can also prefer not to follow those orders and prohibitions. In other words, humans and angels are free to choose good and evil. So in this case Satan chose evil instead of good by his own will. For man will hearken to his glozing lies, And easily transgress the sole command, Sole pledge of his obedience: so will fall, He and his faithless progeny: whose fault? Whose but his own? ingrate, he had of me All he could have; I made him just and right, Sufficient to have stood, though free to fall.

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Such I created all the ethereal powers And spirits, both them who stood and them who failed; Freely they stood who stood, and fell who fell. Not free, what proof could they have given sincere Of true allegiance, constant faith or love, Where only what they needs must do, appeared, Not what they would? (Milton, 2005, p. 89). As it is understood, the reasons behind the fall of human and The Satan before that are their own decisions. Satan started his rebellion with his own will and other angels who were exiled to hell with him decided to join him with the same will. Free will is one of many similarities between Satan and human. Milton describes Satan as a being with human characteristics and weaknesses. Satan gets angry, jealous, sad, happy, but his most important weakness is arrogance. These human qualities stand out as the reason behind Satan’s rebellion. It is important to note that the Satan launched his rebellion as a revolt against a tyrant, but that he did not seem to worry about this hierarchy while in God’s service in heaven. The rebellion began when the Son’s emerge threatened his ‘favorite of God’ position. So instead of seeing Satan’s rebellion as a political dare, it may be more accurate to interpret it with a psychology-based explanation. In this context, it is necessary to turn our point of view from the “tyrant-rebel resistance” duality to father-son relationship. The relationship between God and his creations (angels, fallen angels, and Adam and Eve) in Paradise Lost reminds the relationship between a father and his children. In Sigmund Freud’s Totem and Taboo, he says that the god is similar to the father. The individual’s personal relationship with the god is related to relationship with his father in real life, he changes along with this relationship and basically the god is nothing but an exalted father (2001, p. 171). Within this framework, Milton’s work provides important clues to make sense of individuals’ relationship with the father and therefore with God. If we go back to the point where the rebellion started; Lucifer does not object to the existing hierarchy and monarchic structure in the cosmic order when he was among his father The God’s favorite sons. Balance is disturbed by the emergence of the Son. This situation resembles the jealousy of the child who wants to gain the attention and appreciation of his father. From this point of view, Satan’s position is more like a non-mature child rather than an opponent who claims to be equal to God. The Satan’s plans for the expulsion of Adam and Eve from heaven are almost the same as the child’s hostile attitude towards his brother, whom he wants to dismiss from his father’s eyes. As the rebellious son, Satan’s relationship with his father The God can be explained by the “bivalent” situation of the son against the father, as Freud pointed out. Accordingly, while the child sees his father as an enemy and desires his death, on the other hand, he feels love for his father to a certain extent. As a result of these two spiritual behaviors, Freud states that the son wanted to be in his father’s place because of his admiration for him, but that is exactly also why he wanted to eliminate him (1981, p. 16). If we conduct psychoanalysis on Milton’s Satan, it is possible to say that he also suffered from the Oedipus complex. As a reflection of the ambivalent attitude towards the father, he admires God’s greatness and power and also he hates Him. According to Freud, after murdering the father, the son’s hate will find satisfaction and then the desire to identify with him will take the place. However, Satan knows that he does not have the power to annihilate the almighty God. Instead, he identifies himself with his father The God to suppress his feelings of hostility and fear of him, then he claims to be equal, and revolts against him.

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Freud found traces of opposite emotions towards the father such as admiration and hostility in totemism before monotheistic religions. The crime of murdering the father is revived in the ritual of sacrificing the totem animal and the totemic religion acts as a representation of regret and atonement, as well as the victory against the father. Freud says that the totems seen in primitive tribes are the first form of paternal substitution, and adds that God should be seen as a paternal substitute that was re-humanized and developed afterwards. According to him, what constitutes the origin of all religions is “a longing fort he father” (2001, p. 172). From this point of view, this ambivalent attitude towards the father is at the root of the evil of the Satan, who is responsible for the first sin that has an important place in Christianity. Feelings of admiration and hostility to his father The God are the source of Satan’s conflict. Satan is portrayed as a proud and arrogant being in Paradise Lost, and this is true to some extent. However, more than arrogance, the love/hate feeling that a boy feels for the father lies behind his claim that he is equivalent to God. After God proclaims his Son as his only representative, Satan faces yet another conflict. This conflict is a sibling rivalry as a reflection of feelings of jealousy towards the Son. As Lacan’s words, the son is the “interventionist” who steps in. He won the love, care and approval of the father - God. At this point, it is possible to say that Satan’s spiritual conflict arising from his ambivalent feelings towards God is intensified. He desires his father The God’s love because of his admiration for Him, and he hates Him for offering this love to someone else. The final defeat by the Son after the war in Heaven fills Satan this time with a desire for revenge. For this, he will target humankind, the last creation of God. However, jealousy to humanity is added to the jealousy of the Son when he sees the world created to be offered to the service of Adam and Eve and the humanity that will derive from them. As can be seen, the mood leading to Satan’s fall is related to the Oedipus complex and it is fueled by arrogance, pride, anger, jealousy, desire for revenge and hatred. At the same time, Satan brings forward his rebellion as a ‘battle for freedom’. This is nothing but the Freudian defense mechanism. His arrogance and pride prevent the Devil from accepting jealousy and causes him to suppress his desire to be accepted into heaven again. Therefore, he cloaks the pain caused by his fall from heaven and favor in a guise of freedom battle. William Empson describes the contrasting feelings you may feel when you read the Paradise Lost as shaking because of the evilness of Satan or as suffering for his ruined greatness (1965, p. 69). Indeed, it is possible to hate Satan as being responsible for all evil in the world, and it is possible to appreciate Him in the face of his determination and courage to start a certain battle from the beginning. “It is true that most readers enjoy Paradise Lost’s Satan, in all his glowering, doomed defiance of the Almighty. But we enjoy him largely for his more positive qualities (courage, resilience, resoluteness, and so on) rather than for anything specifically evil about him. In fact, there is very little specifically evil about him” (Eagleton, 2010, p. 61). Above all Satan is represented as a strong character in Paradise Lost, he does not cease to go on fighting after each defeat, he is intelligent, and he is shown as a being who is so into his independence and do not accept submission even in the presence of a being that has unlimited power. When evaluated from this point of view, he is impressive and fascinating for the reader. The most important element in Milton’s description of Satan is giving him a chance to express himself. Satan tells about his anger and pain, his desire for revenge, shortly all his feelings. Thus, his internal conflicts and real intentions become more understandable for the reader. In other words, we are guided to show empathy towards why Satan is ‘evil’. The issue here is not about to acknowledge Satan to be right or wrong about his rebellion or to take his side. The important thing is to understand what causes Satan’s evil. However, once evil is understood, it ceases to be ‘evil’. Because evil itself is without reason. “The less sense it makes, the more evil it is. Evil has no relations to anything beyond itself, such 7

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as a cause” (Eagleton, 2010, p. 14). Trying to find and understanding the causes of any action described as evil justifies it in some way. Accordingly, as we see the background of Satan’s actions in Paradise Lost, as we listen to Satan with his own words, in a way as we empathize with Satan, his evil begins to cease to be evil. If we look from the viewpoint of psychoanalysis, which argues that the relationship of the man with his father lies at the core of all kinds of neurosis, Milton’s Satan is nothing more than the first example of a universal conflict arising from the bilateral emotional attitude towards the father.

THE ANARCHIST AND THE VIOLATOR: ARTHUR FLECK ALSO KNOWN AS THE JOKER It is possible to say that the elements that make Milton’s Satan a deep character are related to what we have learned about his past and what we have heard about Satan’s inner contradictions, spiritual conflicts and ambivalent emotions through his monologues. We can try to understand his behavior even if we do not take his side in the war against God Almighty who can able to win everything under any circumstances for sure. Just like the Satan, another ‘loser from the start’ is a villain who confronts heroes with extraordinary special abilities in the world of super-strong superheroes but the viewer knows this challenge is futile. The villain has a number of special powers and most importantly, a sharp intelligence just like the superhero. However, it is not common for the villain to prevail in comic books or movies adapted from it, so the reader/viewer who is already on the side of the superhero knows that the villain is ultimately destined to fail. However, there are “villains” that are as popular and loved as the superheroes. The Joker is one of them. Both in the comics and in the movies, Batman has many enemies like Two-Face, Penguin, Poison Ivy, Riddler or Scarecrow. However, none of them was as interesting as the Joker. In the first Batman adaptations in the cinema, the Joker appears as a cartoonish figure rather than a scary sadist. Cesar Romero’s performance in the 1966 Batman movie drew a portrait of a fun and cheesy Joker who constantly burst into laughs. Joker, played by Jack Nicholson in the Batman version of Tim Burton in 1989, is an impressive flat interpretation that is nothing but a psychopathic clown. The movie The Dark Knight (2008) in which the Joker character stands out by even more than Batman who is the real hero of the story is the second Batman movie of Christopher Nolan’s. The Joker that we watch with the unforgettable performance of Heath Ledger is stealing the show from the main hero indeed. The scenes with the Joker in the movie are fun, full of interesting dialogues. We need to admire Batman, but we cannot get ourselves fascinated by the Joker. Moreover, in The Dark Knight, we see the Joker mostly from the perspective of the good, represented by Batman and Detective Gordon. The audience is not informed about the Joker’s real name, where he came from, why he has a makeup and dressed in this way. He makes up different stories about the cause of the scars on both sides of his mouth. So the Joker in The Dark Knight lacks a background to get to know him, but that’s exactly why he’s an impressive, fascinating and mysterious character. His abusive actions and aggression are not supported by any ‘traumatic childhood story’; he does not have the psychological depth we mentioned at the beginning of the article. His evil’s only purpose is to create chaos. In this aspect, Danny Smith explains the evil of the Joker with the concept of “diabolical evil” borrowed from Immanuel Kant. Unlike the radical evil, which ignores all moral motivations and directs the individuals to act only in accordance with their own pathological interests, the sole purpose of diabolical evil is that the individuals act only in the opposite direction of the good, ignoring their interests (2014, p. 99-100). 8

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According to Smith, this stage of evil is quite difficult to accomplish because a diabolically evil agent must have the will to leave all of its interests to entirely fulfill evil. Therefore, “diabolical evil is identical to the highest good”. When we look at the Joker from this perspective, we see that he does not have any desire for interest or gain. The money he sets fire indicates that he is not pursuing wealth, he has no plans to lead any criminal organization, his goal is not power and dominance, and even his life seems to have no value. It is not possible not to wonder the same thing as Batman: What is the Joker up to? The answer comes from Alfred: “Because some men aren’t looking for anything logical, like money. They can’t be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn”. Just wanting to enjoy creating chaos and watching it is an example of Joker’s diabolical evil. The fact that his evil lacks a cause such as greed, revenge or power, in other words, his arbitrary nature brings him closer to the devil. Because ‘evil for evil’ is a motto dedicated to the devil, and Joker’s desire for nothing other than the satisfaction of doing evil makes him even more diabolical than Milton’s Satan. The reason why Satan choosing evil is to take revenge on God, but the Joker has no purpose. We said that evil will cease to be evil at the point where it is understood, so the evil of the Joker must be considered pure evil because it cannot be understood. However, based on psychoanalysis, when we look at the Joker it may be possible to find a few points that make his psychology understandable. Joker’s desire to ‘watch the world burn’ brings to mind the death drive that can be described as “obscenely gratifying sound of the whole world crashing around its ears” (Eagleton, 2010, p. 57). Freud points out the death drive and life drive as two opposing drives that direct people. The life drive, or Eros, is about sexual instincts. The death drive, Thanatos, on the other hand, is an inorganic state of all organisms that is an impulse that ensures the desire for death. Freud states that primitive creatures did not want to change themselves from the beginning and they repeat the life process under the same conditions, but they necessarily accept changes in life processes through the development of the earth. According to Freud, organic impulses are trying to achieve their old goals. These old goals are the initial state that is, being inanimate. In other words, “the goal of all life is death” (Freud, 2011, p. 48). According to the Freudian understanding, there is talk of man’s inborn tendency to wickedness, to aggression and destruction, and therefore to cruelty (2004, p. 45) and the death drive is located at the root of this tendecy. In this context, it is possible to read the Joker’s desire for chaos, turmoil and watching the burning of the world by associating it with the impulse of death. He just released this impulse instead of suppressing, as most of us do. The mysterious past of the Joker in The Dark Knight becomes clear with the origin story that released eleven years later. Todd Philips’ 2019-dated Joker movie gave the evil clown a name, a parent, a traumatic childhood story, and even a profession. The character we have watched as the hero’s sworn enemy so far is now the hero himself. In the film, Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), who works in small jobs like clowning and dreams of becoming a comedian, is a lonely man looking after his sick mother. Difficult situations that he faces because of his neurological discomfort appeals to our feelings of pity, his closeness to his mother caress our heart and we feel sorry for him as he is humiliated by his surroundings. Because, in fact, Arthur is a kind and neat person who tries to do everything right. He tries to adapt to society and become ‘normal’, he goes to therapy, takes his medications, wants a romantic relationship, and most importantly, he has a dream to make people laugh. When we consider all of these, he is a very suitable character for the viewer to identify and sympathize with. Arthur is also a person with psychological illness, but initially his madness has no harm to others than himself. However, what he experienced in the first half of the film prepares the viewers for the violent 9

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acts of Arthur. Arthur is seriously battered by a group of young people who have stolen the advertising sign in his opening sequence. During his comedy performance, the gun he carries for protection accidentally drops the ground and he is fired because of it, and the colleague who gave him the gun betrays Arthur. While unemployed and lonely Arthur returning home, he witnesses that three men harass a lonely woman in the subway, and when the same men begin to assault Arthur, it becomes almost inevitable for Arthur to pull his gun and shoot the men. The men he killed were so repellently described that there is an implication that they deserve not to be killed but a good thrashing because of their harassing and humiliating attitudes first against the woman and then against Arthur. All these humiliations and oppressions that come over and over to this point have left Arthur no other way than responding to violence with violence, at least they want viewers to think so. Although he was a murderer of three people, we continue to take his side. Based on this, we can say that the movie puts Arthur not into a villain but to a victim position. As a reflection of this strategy, the dramatic and unfortunate events of Arthur continue. The famous TV show host Murray Franklin (Robert de Niro) that Joker sees as his idol makes fun of him. When he stands against Thomas Wayne, whom he thinks his father, Joker faces the possibility that his mother may be mentally ill. When he looks at the records at Arkham Hospital, he learns the truth: he was adopted and he was a subject of physical violence by the boyfriend of Penny who he thinks as his mother. The rest is history; Arthur kills his mother, then his colleague who betrayed him, and finally Murray Franklin in a live broadcasted TV show on which he joined. Gentle, unlucky, lonely, unfair and ridiculed Arthur’s story of transformation into the Joker, who kills with cold blood and fed from chaos, is roughly this way. It may be true to interpret this transformation only with a traumatic childhood, pathological relationship with her mother or mental disorders, but the validity of these explanations is limited. It is possible to say that if it’s accepted to see Arthur as an individual with free will and he is considered to have the option to behave otherwise under the same circumstances, he deserves to be accused and described as ‘evil’ by being acted this way. Nevertheless, it would be appropriate to make reference to psychoanalysis to interpret Arthur’s/Joker’s evil and reveal its analogies with Milton’s Lucifer/Satan. The first concept that we can use in this context is the Oedipus complex. According to Freud, the Oedipus complex takes the child’s relationship with the parents into the center. As Heinz Kohut pointed out, the most important feature of Oedipus’s story is that he is a rejected child (1982, p. 404). We know the story, Oedipus is a child who was left to die by his own father Laios when he was still a baby and was raised by another family as an adopted child. King Laios sent his son to death because of the prophecy that he would be killed by his son in the future, but this is undoubtedly not an excuse. Therefore, the main drama of Oedipus is that he is not wanted by his parents. As his name which means ‘swollen foot’ points out, the wounds that occur because he is tied by his feet and left in the forest are also a representation on his body that reminds him of his abandonment. Arthur first thinks that Thomas Wayne is his father, and later learns that he is adopted. However, there is a possibility that Thomas Wayne is indeed the father of Arthur and he issued false documents so that such a situation does not affect his career. Whichever option is correct, in the end Arthur is an undesired child by his mother and father, and Penny was not a loving mother. As a child, he was tied to the heater core and faced physical violence. His brain damage that causes uncontrollable laughter crises, like Oedipus’s wounds, is a reminder of being an unwanted child by his father. Another ideal father figure for Arthur is Murray Franklin. He dreams that he is appreciated by Murray and he wants to be a comedian who entertains people like him. However, both father figures reject Arthur. It is not possible for Arthur to have the attention and love he desperately needs from Thomas Wayne. Moreover, there is a ‘rival’ brother who has this interest and love instead of him: Bruce Wayne 10

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or future Batman. At this point, it is possible to see the similarity between Arthur’s feelings of jealousy and what Satan feels when God glorifies the Son as his only regent. If it is remembered that Milton’s Satan also started an uprising in paradise because he could not have the approval he expected from his father The God, it would look familiar that Arthur, who suffered from the Oedipus complex, dragged Gotham into chaos. His humiliation by Murray who is his role model causes Arthur to lose his other father figure. Arthur is used to people despising, ignoring, and making fun of him, but the repetition of these through Murray is the final step in his transformation into the Joker. With every murder he committed, Arthur releases his impulses that he repressed with the desire of ‘normalization’ and loses his identity a little more. According to this, it is possible to say that aggression is the most repressed impulse that we can guess is related to “negative thoughts”. Freud takes aggression not as a response to external stimuli, but as a fundamental, independent instinctive energy. From this point, Arthur’s murder of three people who beat him in the subway can be seen as self-defense and it would seem that it is contradicting with Freud. Arthur’s shot of the first two people is really for self-defense. However, he especially follows the third person and shoots the injured man lying on the floor repeatedly even though there is no possibility of him getting harmed. This action is a clear reflection of the death drive, which turns to the outside world and manifests itself in the form of aggression and destructiveness. Immediately after the murders, we see Arthur’s sex drive takes action. Arthur’s aggressive impulses serve as a stimulant that provokes his sexual desires. In the scene, where we will later realize that it is just a dream, he turns up Sophie’s house and kisses the woman, implying that sexual intercourse will occur between the two as the door closes to the viewer’s face. As Freud insists, there is an inseparable link between sexuality and aggression, which are the two most basic drives, as seen in Arthur’s case. Although the death drive is about breaking down and destroying, life drive tries to piece together and produce new things, and this creates the unstable rhythm of life according to Freud. To Freud, the main content of human life is Eros and Death, the war between life instinct and instinct of destruction (2004, p. 46). The interaction of these opposing and inseparable creative and destructive energies are manifested through Arthur’s dance. After murdering three people in the subway, he performs a victory dance with heavy and calm movements in the public toilet where he was hiding. In the following scenes, he will repeat this victory dance as he changes and gets stronger as Joker. Immediately after murdering her colleague Randall, we watch the scene in which he dances with confidence and even erotic moves on the stairs, completely transformed into Joker with his suit and makeup. All of his body movements that are under the influence of libido from holding his cigarette to his facial expression evoke eroticism. Arthur dances similarly before going on Murray’s television show, and when he enters the studio, he kisses the guest woman’s lips for a long time. His aggression triggered his libido. Arthur actually planned to commit suicide in Murray’s TV show. Arthur thinks that he can give a certain message by killing himself as he wrote in the notebook he writes down his jokes; “I just hope my death makes more cents than my life”. If it is remembered that the death drive is connected with the desire to return to the original state of being inanimate, it is seen that Thanatos’s destructive energy was directed towards self. In an earlier scene where the urge of death is shown strongly, right after he is punched and rejected by Thomas Wayne, Arthur comes home and enters the fridge that he emptied and then he closes the door. This scene, which can be considered as the metaphor of the longing to return to the mother’s womb, emphasizes the death drive that desires to return to the inorganic state and the suicidal tendency of Arthur.

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If we continue to analyze from a Freudian perspective, Arthur’s fear of castration continues, as he cannot kill his putative father Thomas Wayne. On the other hand, Thomas Wayne is replaced with Murray who is both hated and admired substitute father. Thus, Arthur’s murder of Murray with a gun, which is a phallic object under the pressure created by his ambivalent mood, is a reflection of “death drive, turned outward so as to wreak its insatiable spitefulness on a fellow human being” to the outside world, as Eagleton stated (Eagleton, 2010, p. 113). If we remember Paradise Lost again, Satan admitted that he would never know joy, but if he would never feel happy, then he decided to be satisfied with the companionship of the pain he had suffered to others. Arthur chooses a similar way. When he realizes that he cannot be a comedian and make people laugh, in other words, he will never be accepted by society, he chooses to get satisfaction through anarchy, chaos and violence. He had expected to be understood by others (his mother, therapist, colleagues, and listeners) throughout his life, but he eventually realized that this would not happen, so he would no longer struggle for it. Waiting for the other side to understand the things that seem funny and meaningful to him has become meaningless. So now, his only purpose is anarchy for the anarchy itself. However, as he never planned, he turns into a symbol of rebellion against wealth, power, corruption and social injustice represented by Thomas Wayne. At this point, it is also important to mention the situation of the mass that vandalised the streets while Joker was arrested and taken to prison. There is already a simmering city before the Joker’s actions on live TV. The piles of garbage that have been accumulating in the streets of the city of Gotham for days are like an expression of crime, corruption and poverty in the city. In such a tense environment, the murders committed by Arthur in the subway are perceived as an anti-rich protest. The “Clown Vigilante” headlines of the newspapers intensify the killer’s placement into the ‘anti-system’ figure position. After Thomas Wayne described the murderer and those who sympathized with him as a “clown”, many people in the city began to protest against the rich by wearing a clown mask. It is known that anger and hatred towards a particular person, institution or situation plays a unifying role among people. For this reason, the public rage against income inequality, poverty, and ruling class white-collar people becomes concrete in Thomas Wayne, who is a candidate for the mayor. Thomas Wayne, as a businessman who is quite rich, strong, and insensitive to the problems of the public as it understood from his interviews, becomes the representative of everything the people of the Gotham hate. As it is known, love or hate feelings towards a common object have the power to bring crowds together. In this case, while the common hate object for Gotham people was Thomas Wayne, the object of love and admiration was the Joker who takes subway murders upon himself on television and spilled out hatred against him being ignored. In his book Group Psychology and The Analysis of The Ego, Freud discusses the attachment of individuals to a group under leadership and states that libido which covers up offensive impulses connects the individual to the leader. Individuals identify themselves with the leader and sharing the mutual sense of identity leads to their bonding. However, according to Freud, communities are one of the places where repressed aggression can easily manifest itself. The tendency of aggression, which is one of the instinctive capacities of man, waits to emerge when conditions are suitable and can turn a person into a wild monster (2004, p. 39). Behaviours that individuals show when they are in crowds but control and restrain when they are alone are accepted as the expression of the subconscious. The disappearance of individual instinctive constraints and the loss of personal characteristics of individual tendencies result as a big change in the mental activity of the individual within crowds (Freud, 1949, p. 33). Therefore, the oppressed and suffering people of Gotham united under the leadership of the Joker

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rebelled against the upper class, which they saw as responsible for their problems, and the whole city surrendered to anarchy. Of course, we realize that there was not a goal to be anti-system behind Joker’s murders, he tells Murray during the TV show: “Oh come on, Murray. Do I look like the kind of clown that could start a movement? I killed those guys because they were awful. Everybody is awful these days. It’s enough to make everyone crazy”. He acts completely with his own motivations. However, in the end he is positioned as a rebel who violates the rules, revolts against the established order and makes fun of official institutions. He becomes a freedom fighter just like Satan, who rebelled against God, whom he accused of being a bully tyrant. However, while Satan uses this position as a defense mechanism to cover his own jealousy and arrogance, the difference of Arthur/Joker is that his position is completely unplanned and developed beyond himself.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The subject of evil will continue to show itself as long as the movies and tv shows exist. The evil characters will attract to the audience as well. In this study, the psychology of evil was emphasized and how the psychology of bad characters affects our sympathy for them was interpreted through the epic poem Paradise Lost and Joker movie. A comparison was made between the Satan and the Joker. In future studies, researchers can compare evil characters and their pyschological statements in literature, cinema and television. Representations of evil characters will continue to be an important area to be investigated in the cinema and television.

CONCLUSION Many readers and viewers admire Milton’s Satan or The Joker. It is possible to understand the motivation behind the evil actions of these characters to some extent. Still, we do not want to be in their place. Because both characters seem like doomed to their defeat against the superpowers they rebelled. They may cause significant distress and chaos at first, but it is already obvious at the beginning of the story that they will eventually lose. In Satan and the Joker, it is possible to find the reflection of dark impulses, repressed fears and desires that are inside the human. Unlike ordinary people, they were brave about exposing these dark impulses, facing them, and staying on this path despite the possibility of defeat and pain. This aspect of the characters is the one that requires to be admired, but it also paradoxically shows why their path should not be chosen. The first of these two characters that we tried to reveal the analogies between, the villain of Paradise Lost lost the name Lucifer that he bears the in the heaven when he abandons good and chooses evil, and after his fall he started to be mentioned as Satan. It is seen that Satan has also changed physically after he lost his position in heaven. When looking at the illustrations of Satan in the Paradise Lost, it is seen that the fallen angel gradually turns into a scary and ugly appearance. There is a serious difference in the demon images between Book 2 and at the beginning of Book 9. However, Satan and his entourage take on their final physical forms after the fall of Adam and Eve and they all turn into serpents. Our second character, the hero of the movie Joker, suppresses his identity Arthur Fleck with every murder and rises as the Joker in the finale of the movie. Clown makeup on his face and his colorful suit 13

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complete his new persona, there was nothing left from Arthur. In scenes where we see that he gets ready alone at home; while he curls and bends his body in an animalistic way, the appearance of the bones on his back evokes a wild creature. Just like Satan, his physical transformation accompanies his spiritual transformation. However, as a result of this transformation, one falls and the other rises. In fictional narratives, as we understand the goals of the evil character, in other words, the motivation underlying their evil actions and empathize with that character, the actions of the evil to achieve those goals begin to lose their importance. When we learn that Anakin Skywalker has joined the dark side to save the woman he loves from death, we can ignore that he killed a planet full of people and sympathize with Darth Vader, or when we get the knowledge that Hannibal Lecter was forced to eat his sister by the Nazis when he was little, it becomes ‘understandable’ why in his adult life he is murdering and eating people. However, empathy for the causes of evil has the risk of trivializing the consequences of evil. We have to keep in mind that that evil has no purpose or it seems that way. “Evil is supremely pointless. Anything as humdrum as a purpose would tarnish its lethal purity” (Eagleton, 2010, p. 47). For this reason, it is important to realize that the actions of Satan and the Joker are causeless. Just as Satan’s goal is not to start a battle for freedom against tyrant God, the Joker does not aim for a resistance against the system. Both of them are characters who have not been able to get over the Oedipus complex, and whose mental states have been surrendered to the death drive and feeding from chaos. As you may recall, at the beginning of the article we highlighted the importance of investigating the sympathy for evil characters or the source of the charm of evil. This study does not give a final answer to these questions but argues that the clue lies in human psychology. Considering that we are all familiar with the complex of Oedipus and under the rule of Eros and Thanatos, the sympathy for Satan and the Joker becomes somewhat understandable.

REFERENCES Alt, P. A. (2016). Her Şeyin Başlangıcı: Şeytanın Düşüşü ve Kötünün Doğuşu (S. Yücesoy, Trans.). Sel Yayıncılık. Carey, J. (2020). Milton’s Satan. In R. M. Peaslee & R. G. Weiner (Eds.), The Supervillain Reader (pp. 125–140). The University Press of Mississippi. Eagleton, T. (2010). On Evil. Yale University Press. Empson, W. (1965). Milton’s God. Chatto&Windus. Freud, S. (1949). Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego. The Hogarth Press Ltd. Freud, S. (1981). Dostoyevski ve Baba Katilliği. In S. Hilav (Ed.), Psikanaliz Açısından Edebiyat (pp. 5–32). Dost Kitabevi. Freud, S. (2001). Totem and Taboo. Routledge. Freud, S. (2004). Civilization and Its Discontents. Penguin Books. Freud, S. (2011). Haz İlkesinin Ötesinde, Ben ve İd (A. Babaoğlu, Trans.). Metis Yayınları.

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Kohut, H. (1982). Introspection, Empathy, and the Semi-Circle of Mental Health. The International Journal of Psycho-Analysis, 63, 395–407. PMID:7152804 Milton, J. (2005). Paradise Lost. Oxford University Press. Russel, J. B. (2019). Mephistopheles Modern Dünyada Şeytan (E. Çelik, Trans.). Panama Yayıncılık. Smith, D. (2014). The Joker and Diabolical Evil. In R. Arp (Ed.), The Devil and Philosophy The Nature of His Game (pp. 97–102). Open Court. Svendsen, L. (2010). A Philosophy of Evil. Dalkey Arcive Press.

ADDITIONAL READING Bryson, M. (2016). The Atheist Milton. Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315613796 Neiman, S. (2015). Evil in Modern Thought: An Alternative History of Philosophy. Princeton University Press. Norden, M. F. (Ed.). (2007). The Changing Face of Evil in Film and Television. Rodopi. doi:10.1163/9789401205276

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Drive: Impulse, instinct. Evil: The condition of being bad, cruel, immoral, or harmful. Genesis Narrative: The creation myth of both Judaism and Christianty. Oedipus Complex: Freud resorted to the myth of Oedipus to explain a subconscious sexual desire in a child for the parent of the opposite sex, usually accompanied by hostility to the parent of the same sex. Sigmund Freud: Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis. Villain: A character in a book, play, film, etc. who deliberately harms other people.

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Chapter 2

Gendered Spaces of the Devil: Reflecting Upon Space and Femininity in Lucifer TV Series Through Deleuze’s Baroque House Allegory Doğancan Özsel Munzur University, Turkey Kadriye Töre Özsel Munzur University, Turkey

ABSTRACT This chapter analyzes the representation of the subject-forming processes of female characters in the Lucifer TV series through the characters’ relation with space and how ‘evil’ is presented here as the distortion of the traditional forms of these relations. In doing this, Deleuze’s Baroque House is used as an allegory. The chapter thus highlights that creative ways taken in the series which is about the story of the ‘devil’ on earth, in order to represent subjectivity not as a solid identity but as a process that is constantly being constructed and deconstructed. Authors thus suggest an alternative interpretation of the series by focusing this construction’s relation with the space and highlight the multi-folded and permissive nature of the relation between femininity and space, that is often though within quite solid categories.

INTRODUCTION Words, phrases, sentences, daily life experiences, verses, acts and plays are all infinitely iterable. But as French post-structuralists remind us, no iteration can guarantee the exact reproduction of the same meaning. That is because meaning is relative to context and each iteration inevitably alters that context. In other words, texts are contextual entities and no single context is final, or the Context with a capital ‘C’. So every text can be recontextualized, and its meaning can thus be manipulated. Iterability, even when it emanates from an urge for exact reproduction, is the name of this ongoing operation of recontextualization. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch002

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This recontextualization is used in a manifest way in the TV series Lucifer, aired for the first time in 25 of January 2016 at FOX channel (Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth and Mike Dringenberg), in reproducing gender roles and their traditional spatial contexts in order to disrupt their theological groundings and dismantle the heterosexist ontology upon which they stand. In this chapter, this recontextualization and its alternative (non-)ontology is analyzed with reference to the Deleuzian ‘Baroque House’ allegory. In the first part of the chapter, we offer a brief conceptual background to introduce the concepts we use in order to read the series. Afterwards, in the third part of the chapter, we discuss the interrelation of femininity, power and maternity in representing the subject formation processes of Lucifer. Then, the next part builds on the previous one and uses the Baroque house allegory in order to read these processes in a novel and creative way. th

SPACES AND SUBJECTS: INTO DELEUZE’S BAROQUE HOUSE Helene Frichot, in her article Stealing into Gilles Deleuze’s Baroque House, offers an understanding of the architect as a pickpocket who gathers spoils “from the expansive oeuvre that is signed with the name Gilles Deleuze” (2005, p. 64). This closely resembles a cine-philosophic attitude towards Deleuze’s wide spectrum of concepts. Cine-philosophy is not exclusively about searching applicability of some concepts of philosophy in the visual arts and thus developing new interpretative opportunities. As Deleuze pointed out, cinema is all about the creation of images just like philosophy is about creating new concepts (Tomlinson and Galeta, 1997, p. 15). It is not an ‘object’ of the philosophical mind but another modality of a similar intellectual praxis. Thus, rather than searching for philosophical concepts within the movies, cine-philosophy thinks through movies. It steals those images to create new concepts and further analyze existing ones. It also, concomitantly, steals concepts to take a second look at the images and pursue the possibility of alternative gazes towards them. It is a part of Deleuze’s challenge of the mainstream philosophical traditions that resolve around a systematic dialectics, through Spinoza: “A truism of French intellectual history states that for national and philosophical reasons every postwar thinker, from Jean Hippolyte to Jacques Derrida, must contend with Hegel. Deleuze had resisted the totalizing effects of the dialectic by aligning himself al once with Cartesian and left-wing political traditions. He made moves that showed how, by way of Spinoza, a more complex, fragmented and prismatic philosophy antedated Hegel and could not be supplanted by systematic dialectics” (Conley, 1993, p. 13). In this spirit of fragmented and rhizomatic philosophy that we intend to steal the ‘Baroque House’ of Deleuze, use it as an allegory, and transform it into an operative concept such that it paves the way for a whole new conceptual angle to look at the Lucifer TV series and the gender-space interplays within it. Baroque House, for Deleuze, is a concept about formation of subjectivity. But rather than being a core of subjectivity, Baroque is actually the concept of a function, of continually creates curves in space that mantles and dismantles subjectivity. “Announcing Baroque,” says Benjamin (2015), “does not refer to an essence, whole area of philosophical inquiry is put to one side immediately. We are concerned with the Baroque understood as an operative function.” As Deleuze notes, Baroque “endlessly creates folds. It does not invent the thing: there are all kinds the folds coming from the East, Greek, Roman, Romanesque, Gothic, Classical folds. (…) [Yet the Baroque trait] twists and turns the folds, takes them to infinity, fold upon fold, fold after fold. The characteristic of the Baroque is the fold that goes on to infinity” (Deleuze, 1993, p. 3).

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Baroque being its function, subjectivity is therefore an artefact of a dynamic of multiple folds and twists. In other words, it is not a person but a power given to immanent forces to act and produce affects. There are, as Deleuze says, singularities or commonalities, which occur at a pre-personal stage of formation and the baroque is particularly about this formation. This whole conceptual vocabulary about being and subjectivity provides a fertile ground for reading characters’ way of using spaces in the Lucifer TV series. Therefore, although Deleuze never used the term ‘allegory’, we intend to use Baroque House as an allegory and analyze the representation of female subjectivities of the characters in Lucifer, and the reciprocal relation between these subjectifications and space.

Lucifer: Femininity, Power, Maternity and the Evil Act of Challenging the Boundaries Main story of the series resolves around Lucifer, the devil and the ruler of hell. After got bored from his position in hell, Lucifer decides to go down to earth with Mazikeen, his principal servant, for a brief holiday. In the first episode of the series, he is introduced to the audience as the owner the Lux Night Club and a consultant for the Los Angeles Police Department. Throughout the first five season of the series, Lucifer the devil, finds it hard to match the evilness in the human world. Lucifer’s world in heavens is much more naïve in comparison to the materiality of the earth. Unlike his siblings, Lucifer is unable to tell lies. And his evilness falls short of the evilness of humans he encounters. As the lord of hell who punishes evil deeds humans commit on earth, he thinks ordinary human as much more evil than himself. Another leading character is Detective Chloe Decker, to whom Lucifer gives consultancy. Decker, especially in the initial episodes, seem to represent the good in the storyline. Yet, in general, none of the characters are purely good or bad. That is even true for Lucifer. A more significant dichotomic dimension is the one between earthly and heavenly. And Chloe, through her love relationship with Lucifer, is the prime drive that pulls Lucifer down toward the earthly plane of existence. Such that Lucifer, a supernatural being that should be invulnerable against earthly beings, discovers that, he becomes vulnerable whenever he is around Chole. Lucifer’s relation with Chloe seems to lead him to self-reflect upon his own childhood and his character. Love and care he receives from Chole leads the devil to think of his father, the God of Creation, and his mother, the Goddess of Creation, as poor parents who provide neither of those. Furthermore, Chloe tries to convince Lucifer that he is not necessarily an evil entity and urges him to question his deeds from an ethical point. Lucifer is vulnerable to physical attacks only when he is near Chloe. This can easily be read as symbolizing the weakening effect of love in general, or of heterosexual love in particular, for males. But if all characters in the series are considered, rather than such patriarchal prejudices, the more prevalent theme in the series is the depiction of powerful female characters who rupture these patriarchal social and spatial limits. Chloe, for instance, is not a traditional female character who is ruptured in between home and workplace. Instead, she clearly integrates these two spaces into a single experience. She is not only a mom at home, nor is she simply a law enforcer serving public duty at the office. Likewise, Dr. Linda, a psychologist to whom Lucifer goes for therapy, is a powerful female figure of unbiased scientific assessment and mediation within the conflicts between the devil and other human beings.

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Yet, in line with patriarchal prejudices, motherhood is still depicted as the only weak point of these powerful female characters. Both Chloe and the Goddess of Creation are single moms and they both endanger their own lives for their children. Maternal feelings of these characters commonly led to illfated decisions and cause further problems. The case of Goddess is especially interesting here. She is the mother of Lucifer and all other angels. As the story goes, they were once living in the Silver City with her partner, God of Creation, and their angel children. But after many years, God decides to focus on a new project, the humankind, and becomes apathetic to the Goddess. She reacts this by trying to prevent this new project of God and is exiled to hell by him. Viewers listen these events during the therapy sessions of Lucifer with Dr. Linda. Lucifer accuses her mother to remain indifferent to his father’s harsh treatment of him. We are led to think that Goddess remained silent and indifferent to Lucifer’s fate, thus, she is initially depicted as a character who refuses traditional maternal duties. Yet, this portray gradually changes once she decides to follow her son down to earth and incarnates into the body of Charlotte, a dead lawyer. From there on, the portray changes from an emotionally unavailable mother towards an altruistic one who takes certain risks to bring back her son. And incarnating into a human body is presented to viewers as her penance. Hence, maternal feelings and the whole ideology of motherhood once again appear as an unfavorable quality for women of power. Mazikeen, the female demon, is another example of this prevalent outlook in the series. She is an important side character in the series as the principal servant of Lucifer. Once Lucifer comes down to Earth and begins to run the Lux, Mazikeen follows him and works in the club as a bartender and bodyguard. She is a very powerful female figure who can easily overwhelm her opponents either physically or emotionally and manipulate their behaviors. In the initial episodes, she represents pure evil qualities and reminds a femme fatale in that sense. And, as if an integral part of that powerful female figure, her distanced relationship with children is highlighted in numerous episodes time and again. Mazikeen is portrayed as being clearly irritated with children in the initial episodes. She shows a total lack of understanding and appreciation of their needs, and even refuses to call them children and names them as “little humans”. Hence, female characters of Lucifer are neither in secondary roles, nor are they depicted as dependent on masculine power and protection. Yet, this power is showed as being incompatible, for the most part, with motherhood in general and traditional maternal roles in particular. This, in a sense, implies another patriarchal stereotype, that of the tension between the public roles of modern women and their private duties. It suggests a tension in between the public and private, which is commonly spatialized as a cleavage between ‘home’ and the outer world. But Lucifer has a quite different stance in the depiction of such spatialization of gender roles. In other words, in the series, female characters seem to disrupt the traditional conception of home, a place of recession identified with femininity, against the public spaces that belong to masculine openness and daring. Considering that all these female characters are in direct relation to the devil either as his mother, guardian, lover or consultant, this challenge of traditional gender-space rules resonates the story of Eve and Adam in the Garden of Eden. It was Eve who is seduced by the devil and violated the spatial-behavioral boundaries of Heavens. Devil was seen as a seductive force to dare to cross the boundaries. Challenging the norms and searching for unknown and not fully defined alternatives is seen as the evil act par excellence. Hence, the female characters in Lucifer, and their challenging of the traditional gender and spatial relations is a modern depiction of this evil act, albeit from a much different perspective. In the next part, we turn to this portrayal of the relation between the space and gender roles and clarify the specificities of that perspective. 19

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Space and Gender Roles The image of “home” has always been an important allegory in conceptualizing numerous distinctions in philosophy. The dichotomies of transcendent and immanent, mind and body or husband and wife, are all theorized through a spatialized contrast in between the domesticity of home and publicity of the agora (see Chiara & Mezei, 2012). According to this traditional conception, what lies beyond the outer walls of home (which is not necessarily a single building but can be a polis or a region) is chaotic, disorderly and dangerous world. What preserves us from this chaos, what secures us from storms and wildness of that open space is solid walls of our home, within which, we are offered a ‘private space’. While lands out of these walls belongs belong to nomadic people who are stigmatized with disorderliness, the allegorical home clearly implies security, order and normativity of the civilized people. And within it, specific areas are further reserved for women, children and slaves, while men are thought to befit the publicity within a controlled and orderly space (see Ruth, 2007). Even modern philosophy can be read through this allegory, as an attempt to extent the borders of home against the wild, and thus give an order to the outer world, to territorialize the no-man’s-land in favor of the civilized. This deep desire to give an order to the disordered external world is a fundamental drive of the modern mind and has its reflections in many dimensions of modern societies, including arts and architecture. Throughout the 20th century for instance, especially until 1970s, architecture was largely seen as a discipline that regulates people’s lives through the manipulation of space with utmost effectiveness and give these lives a proper order. One of the epitomes of this functionalist mindset is the Pruitt–Igoe urban housing project that was built Missouri, USA, in between 1951 to 1955 (see Rove, 2011). There, individual families were given private flats but architects planned to encourage meaningful social relations in public sphere through manipulating the space by creating numerous common spaces. For instance, in order to give residents more chance to meet while walking up or down through the stairs, elevators were not stopping at every floor. Only a few high-capacity laundry rooms were placed, again to provide residents more chances to encounter and interact in those common spaces. Nevertheless, human spontaneity challenges every norm and predesigned order. Humans are creative beings and they use what is given to them in quite novel ways. As a result, common areas in Pruitt–Igoe that were meant to be used as public spaces turned out to be the exclusive spaces of criminal activities that the residents try to avoid as much as they can. As a result, Pruitt-Igoe became a symbol of urban violence and crime, and city government decided to demolish the whole block to resolve the problem. As such failures accumulated in the latter part of the previous century, architects began to question modernist presumptions and dismissed the idea that spatial forms should necessarily follow function as is in the image of a traditional home. A similar trend was already ongoing in continental philosophy in terms of questioning the modernist forms in ontology, epistemology and social theory. Deleuze turned to the allegory of home in that moment and argued that the real, and especially the real of subjectivity, does not operate as if in the image of a traditional home in which every distinction is crystal clear and each sub-space is separated by thick walls. Instead, Deleuze uses the Baroque House allegory in order to explain the rhizomatic formation of the real, to explain the relations between material and immaterial or between sensible and insensible. According to that, lower floor of the Baroque House represents everything that is sensible and there resides the folds of materiality. That floor has large windows, which let light through. Upper floor, on the other hand, has no such windows. It is an utterly dark place and is “closed in on itself, without window of opening” (Parr, 2010, p. 108). There resides the insensible and the folds of soul. While lower floor provides a safer feeling for subjectivity with its windows and stairs to the outer world, impenetrable walls 20

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of the upper floor gives little clue about what is within. It is impossible to guess the width of that area since it is the location of what is beyond our control, our voluntary deeds or our consciousness. Lower floor, on the other hand, is the space of senses and includes quantifiable things. What moves constantly within that space is the event. Unlike ‘facts’ understood as fixed and stable phenomena, events are in constant motion, change, and a state of becoming. In Deleuze’s words, event is neither material nor immaterial. Rather than residing solely in any of the two floors of the Baroque House, the event wanders in between them like a specter. It transgress the border between the two floors. To put it differently, for the event, there is no border between the two floors but only a permeable membrane. This thin membrane between the floors is the plane of imminence that is simultaneously, both internal to the two floors, and belongs to none of them. This thin membrane of the imminence with its infinite folds in and upon itself, never allows for an absolute being, a concluding decision, an ultimate context or meaning within which the event can reach a final end. Down floor is only a frame, which gives to the subject a temporal materiality at best. The event that wanders through is the plane of imminence and we come into becoming upon this plane as subjects who create certain clichés and ideas, who write some scripts and map it through concepts in order to render that plane predictable. But that task is impossible to complete as the plane of imminence is beyond our capacity. Apparent chaos of this world is not because of this chaos to be a permanent feature of the world but due to the world’s complexity in comparison with our limited cognitive capacity. As is seen up to this point, by using the allegory of the Baroque House, Deleuze thinks of subjectivity through space, and thinks of space through subjectivity. The relation between female characters and space in Lucifer can also be analyzed as a cinematic interpretation of the same subjectivity dynamic, which is discussed by Deleuze through this allegory. And such an analysis can be done in different scales. Lux Nightclub can be the focus of an analysis since it functions as the shelter of characters and as the plane of imminence within which the event wanders through and engages reciprocal negotiations for subject formation. But in a wider scale, the whole world and heavens can also be regarded as a Baroque house and characters as events in between these two floors. No matter which scale is chosen for analysis, spaces that are matched with female characters in Lucifer are almost always depicted as multi-folded and permeable, thus represents a dynamic subjectivity, an event, as against classical factual understanding of identity. All these spaces that envelope female characters follow the form of Deleuze’s Baroque House allegory in their formative relation of subject formation with the characters in the series. Despite the materiality of their sensible and inviting first floor, rather than simply operating as a traditional home that preserves female characters from the outside and giving them a permanent identity, the spaces has a transparent membrane in between the lower floor of the material, earthly and traditional, and an upper floor of the unconscious, indeterminate and heavenly. Within these two floors, the spaces allow female characters to form and reform their subjectivity through moving within the plane of immanence, question the traditional distinction between the public and private, and consequently, distort the traditional gender roles attributed to each of these traditional socio-spatial spheres and invite the audience to rethink on the patriarchal and anthropocentric theological conceptions. As noted above, traditional form of the relation between woman and space is depicted upon borders. And transgressing or violating these borders is an obvious act of evil. Lucifer though, tells us a story from the perspective of the Devil. While these borders do not cease to exist in that story, female characters can pass through the borders occasionally, just as upon the membrane in between the two floors of the Baroque House. They use the border itself as a source of creative power in their challenging of the

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patriarchal border. They are not punished for ignoring heavenly borders, which forbade certain tastes. And by doing so, females are empowered greatly, and even become Goddess of Creation. As a consequence of the permissiveness of the spatial borders in Lucifer, domestic spaces are intertwined with the public ones in the series. A nightclub or an office, for instance, appears as a domestic space in disguise. For female characters in the series, such domestic spaces are “homes” that does not simply preserve them from the chaos beyond their walls, but rather homes that empowers these characters and allow them to manipulate that chaos beyond. Take the Lux Night Club for instance. It is not a classical ‘home’ that separates the ordered and expected from the disordered and unexpected. Mazikeen sometimes manipulates the outer-world from within it, only to create more havoc and fluidity. It is a multi-folded material plane and there resides the transitional and eternal event that can exist between the earth and heavens. It is also impossible to find a right place for the Lux, in the dichotomy between the public and private. It can be both, but also not quite any of these. Linda’s use of her office as a home and Charlotte’s use of her office as a private sphere from time to time also points at the same spatial stance in the series. Goddess is a perfect example of this stance, as this time, the earth itself becomes the spatial context with which she engages in a subject-forming relation. In her case, once Lucifer realizes that her mother was actually caring for him, and was a ‘proper mom’ as per traditional gender prejudices, he offers her a way to go back to heaven, that is a home and safe place for the Goddess. Supposedly, she should desire it more than most, as it is the private space where women actually belong. Yet, it is shown in the series that things are a lot more complicated than this. Goddess experiences earth within different bodies and experience the spaces of these bodies, while also lacking a permanent concept of home for herself. In Deleuzian terms, she is a deterritorialized nomad. She flows within the lacunae that are left by other female characters and thus imply the fluid and non-conforming gender formation of all female characters in the series. Once Lucifer opens an irreproducible portal to heaven and tells her that going to heavens would be a one-way travel, Goddess chose this path only because she realizes that the more she wanders on earth the more predictable, mundane and temporal she becomes. Thus, even leaving earth is a decision she makes in order to preserve a creative operation that turns on itself, and thus remain in a stance of perpetual subject formation. Singh points at this and two other themes in relation to the role of the Goddess in the series. “With the entry of Lucifer’s mother,” writes Singh (2016, p. 49), “the gaps are filled along with other female characters as there are three themes that have emerged within the postmodern feminist framework and are useful in understanding feminist theologies: the instability of the subject; the force of the unknown; what happens when application of these ideas is applied to the category of gender.” Goddess is indeed presented as a threat for the God. The latter afraid her to hold the grasp of the three spheres that of earth, heaven and hell, and reshape them in her own image. She is thus, in a sense, an unbeknown for the God who is, in his masculinity, is the expression of the first floor. He represents the known, the absolute and the unbend that finds it hard to grasp the fluid and ever changing subjectivity of the feminine. He thus sends Uriel to earth with the sword of Azrael, in order to kill the Goddess. Hence, once females distort gendered categories of space, the dichotomy between good and evil also blurs. Yet, females in Lucifer distort the masculine religion without totally denying it. They make fun of it through irony and shows us a path that leads beyond this masculinity. They render spatial distinctions inoperable not by destroying borders but by continually getting through them, showing their permissiveness and emphasizing their multi-foldedness. Even in the global scale, for example, the world is a home but one without any vectors. It is not presented within a matrix that has a constant axis of coordinates. 22

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Just as the wander of event upon the plane of imminence and existing in between the material and the immaterial in the Baroque House allegory, characters in the series move in between the earth, heaven and hell as if the borders between them are only temporal. And there is no trace of a Platonic stance that praises the unchanging eternity of the heavens. On the contrary, particularity of the earth is praised by the heavenly characters from time to time. Just as the walls within the Baroque House, which are not obstacles but permeable opportunities, the borders both upon earth and in between earth and heavens are depicted not as absolute obstacles but as openings as is the case of the portal Lucifer opened for the Goddess. And it is unclear if any of the spheres are located above the others. For instance, when they move from hell or heaven to earth, do they fall upon or rise to it? This question is left unanswered since they all exists in a space without definite coordinates. Or it depends on the context that defines the meaning. Moving from the precepts of traditional theology, if one is in heaven, she can only fall upon earth. Yet, in Goddess’ case, it becomes obvious to the audience that such an interpretation relies only upon a limited understanding of the interactions between heavenly beings.

CONCLUSION There are certain conceptual-intellectual dynamics that ultimately depends upon a Spinozian ontology and ethics to which Deleuze points at through the Baroque house allegory. We hereby used these dynamics as an opportunity look at Lucifer TV serials and develop a different interpretation, which highlights the socio-philosophical moves that are taken in the series in order to disrupt traditional heteronormative forms and theological understanding, in order to urge viewers to rethink about these in creative ways. As such, we highlight the multi-folded and permissive nature of the relation between femininity and space that is often though within quite solid categories.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS This essay demonstrates the possibility of using the Baroque House allegory in conceptualizing the links between social categories and spatial imaginations and uses. This approach is used here to reflect upon the links between gender categories and space within the context of Lucifer. This approach can be used to look at other cinematic productions and/or categories other than gender.

REFERENCES Benjamin, A. (2004). The Appearance of Modern Architecture: Deleuze on the Baroque. https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=qgtO_54lAzY Briganti, C., & Mezei, K. (2012). The Domestic Space Reader. University of Toronto. Conley, T. (1993). Translator’s Foreword: A Plea for Leibniz. In G. Deleuze (Ed.), The Fold: Leibniz and Baroque. The Athlone Press Ltd.

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Deleuze, G. (1993). The Fold: Leibniz and Baroque. The Athlone Press Ltd. Deleuze, G. (1997). Cinema 2: The Time-Image (R. Galeta, Trans.). University of Minnesota Press. Frinchot, H. (2005). Stealing into Gilles Deleuze’s Baroque House. In I. Buchanan & G. Lambert (Eds.), Deleuze and Space. Edinburgh University Press. doi:10.3366/edinburgh/9780748618743.003.0004 Herzog, A. (2001). Affectivity, Becoming, and the Cinematic Event: Gilles Deleuze and the Futures of Feminist Film Theory. In A. Koivunen & S. Paasonen (Eds.), Conference Proceedings for Affective Encounters: Rethinking Embodiment in Feminist Media Studies. University of Turku, School of Art, Literature and Music, Media Studies. Rove, A. H. (2011). The Rise and Fall of Modernist Architecture. Inquiries, 3(4), 1–1. Singh, A. D. (2016). Literature, Films and Television: Reconstruction of Intertextuality in Select English Television Serials. Asian Quarterly: An International Journal of Contemporary Issues, 3(14), 46–56. Tomlinson, H., & Galeta, R. (1997). Translators Introduction. In G. Deleuze (Ed.), Cinema II: Time -Image (pp. 15–18). University of Minnesota Press. Westgate, R. (2007). The Greek House and the Ideology of Citizenship. World Archaeology, 39(2), 229–245. doi:10.1080/00438240701257671

ADDITIONAL READING Briganti, C., & Mezei, K. (2012). The Domestic Space Reader. University of Toronto. Buchanan, I., & Lambert, G. (2005). Deleuze and Space. Edinburgh University Press. doi:10.3366/ edinburgh/9780748618743.001.0001 Deleuze, G. (1993). The Fold: Leibniz and Baroque. The Athlone Press Ltd. Deutsch, S. (2000). Women and the City. Gender, Space, and Power in Boston. Oxford University Press. Rowley, C. (2007). Firefly/Serenity: Gendered Space and Gendered Bodies. British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 9(2), 318–325. doi:10.1111/j.1467-856x.2007.00286.x Subero, G. (2016). Gender and Sexuality in Latin Amerian Horror Cinema: Embodiments of Evil. Palgrave. doi:10.1057/978-1-137-56495-5

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Amenadiel: Senior son of the God. Baroque House: An allegory used by 20th century French philosopher Gilles Deleuze in order to explain the rhizomatic formation of the real and to explain the relations between material and immaterial. Cine-Philosophy: A multidisciplinary research area which intends to reflect upon philosophical concepts and research problems through cinematic images and create images through philosophic concepts.

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Gender: Gender refers to the roles, behaviours, activities, attributes and opportunities that any society considers appropriate for girls and boys, and women and men. Gender interacts with, but is different from, the binary categories of biological sex. Lucifer: Another name for Satan, that is a powerful evil force and the enemy of God. Mazekeen: Lucifer’s principal servant and a demon of hell. Michael: An angel who came to the human world in the shape of Lucifer’s twin brother.

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Chapter 3

Change of Good:

Evil Concepts in Fantasy Genre Selvi Şenel Independent Researcher, Turkey

ABSTRACT In the postmodern era, concepts, notions, even ideologies that used to be concrete lost their precision. On the contrary to the clear point of view of modernism with linearity, postmodernism is circular and holistic. Thus, concepts like good and evil must not be seen as a total contrast. With the holistic approach of postmodernism, there can be evil in good and good in evil. In the popular fantasy texts that have been made especially in the last decade, this change easily can be seen in the characters. In this part, change of the good and the evil concepts in the fantasy genre will be examined in the context of postmodernism and developments in these concepts will be approached with the roles as hero, villain, anti-hero, anti-villain.

INTRODUCTION: CHANGE OF GOOD AND EVIL CONCEPTS THROUGH PARADIGM SHIFT IN EPISTEMOLOGY Humanity has existed with the concepts of good and bad since the beginning of history. Since the first evil Satan, these concepts appear in the works of art and in everyday life as determining factors of people’s view of events and people. History can also be defined as the struggle of good and evil, depending on which side wrote it. However, from a broader perspective, we can see that like most concepts, the content of these has changed and elaborated over the years as well. This change, of course, did not happen by chance. The change in epistemologies also changes the way humanity perceives very basic concepts. Before discussing the changes of these points of view, it would be appropriate to deal with the changes in the episteme that appeared in human history.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch003

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 Change of Good

BACKGROUND From the traditional period to the postmodern period, it can be said that although the traditional period covers a much larger part of the history, the period that affects the current situation of humanity the most is the modern period. This period, which started with the Enlightenment, has changed the traditional man’s life in an irreversible way. People, who used to explain life based on religious books with a habit of thousands of years, have stepped into a new era with the introduction of questioning and rationality. In this period, people who defined the world only with their knowledge learned that there are much more exist than they knew and learned from his ancestors. The most important of these is the humans questioning themselves. Descartes recognized that perception is important in the search for the truth, but he observed that our perception could mislead us. Descartes, who started by questioning everything systematically, stated that human existence cannot be questioned only as a thinking being. Stating that a clean and prejudiced mind is the basis of understanding everything, Descartes has revealed a clean distinction between matter and mind and body and soul (Fiero, 1998) The foundations of modern epistemology were laid with the concept of Cartesian dualism, which is a concept mooted by Descartes that states mind and body completely separate from each other.. Until the time when the Cartesian duality separated mind and body, humanity was dealing with this distinction through religious approaches to which they belong. Body was a shell to be left in the world that seen as the source of self, pleasure and therefore sin, while mind was identified with god, and therefore had no place among ordinary people in daily life. This binary approach of modern epistemology continues with other dualities such as science/metaphysics, society/individual, religion/rationalism. The cause-effect relationship can be counted as another of these binaries. Seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were called the age of reason in the West. Enlightenment thinkers see that each individual has more or less a mind above all (Cahoone, 1996, p. 27). All of the social information related to nature is based on the synthesis of empirical realities that individuals can only grasp with their perceptions (McGuigan, 1999, p. 40). The belief that empirical knowledge that comes with positive sciences is the only valid information reflected as the necessity of cause and effect relation in daily life. This requirement, which forms the basis of rationalism, implies that everything that exists has a reason and that it can be explained by science. Therefore, metaphysics and religion are pushed out of everyday life. The idea that the source of everything that is happening can be explained by science is the first step of materialism, and hence, individualization. Kant (2007) explained the importance of the subject as follows: “If we remove our subject or even only the positive constitution of the senses in general, then the entire constitution and all relations of objects in space and time, nay space and time themselves, would vanish “. The importance of ordinary people has increased as the perceptions of the subject and the individual have become the main means of understanding the world. This change, which led to the emergence of the concept of humanism, laid the foundations of the world, as we know it today. According to Wagner (2012), modernism always offers a progressive approach. Humanity always has the potential to go one-step further and improve itself by reason. This approach also brings linearity. Modernism, which always takes the mind, the individual and the science as a reference for the sake of achieving the better, truer and more prosperous, has found the way of this progress in the industrial revolution. The shift from village to city and the change in the source of production and workforce caused the city, industry, technology and therefore capital to come to the fore within the linearity of modern perception.

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The last approach that can be seen as a complement to modernism is structuralism. With the industrial revolution, the masses who migrated from the village to the city had to change their way of knowing along with their lifestyle. The fact that science has become one of the determining factors in daily life has changed all the habits and mindset of humanity. Structuralism offers a perspective that says that human perception works with structures and classifications, and that culture can only be perceived through these structures. Structuralism, which we can see as the last leg of modernism, is an indispensable part of modern life as a way of perceiving everyday life, especially in the fields of linguistics, anthropology and literature. Large structures such as family, state, education, marriage are the basic elements that shape the perception of the individual in daily life. Structuralism, as an interdisciplinary upper paradigm in the 1950s and 1960s, combines everything about humanity with science in the framework of social sciences (Peters, 1999). This upper paradigm, which mediated social sciences to fulfill today, has formed the modern era epistemology. Post-structuralism emerged as a criticism against structuralism in the following periods. Poststructuralism is generally taken in parallel with postmodernism and the two are sometimes mixed up. According to Peters (1999), there is a clear distinction between postmodernism and post-structuralism. While post-structuralism shows itself in the field of philosophy, postmodernism is mostly seen as the last point of the development of the modern period in the field of art. In addition to this, the concepts of deconstruction, collage, pastiche, intertextuality, irony, sarcasm, which are seen in postmodernism can be observed not only in the field of art, but also in everyday life, especially in the last twenty years. Postmodernism, which shaped the cultural scene in the world especially after the 1980’s is a dominant phenomenon especially in popular culture products today. Rejecting the progressive and linear structure of the modern period, postmodernism offers a more circular and inclusive perspective. Unlike modern designs that remain true to a single form and meaning, especially in the fields of art and architecture, postmodern designs have a structure that can be inspired by all the currents before it, cut and mow these structures, and put them back into a completely different meaning. The postmodern context presents a paradox where modern foundations are replaced by coincidences (Lakeland, 1997, p. 14). Structures devoid of foundations become eclectic, hybrid and transient in their own development process. These features, which can be observed easily in popular culture today, also manage the perception of people about life and concepts. Individuals who can make sense of a concept or a structure with a single dimension in a cause and effect relationship in the modern period are now on a much more fragile ground in the postmodern period. The foundations of large structures such as family, state, education and marriage have been shaken, so the individuals only trust themselves (Sennett, 1998). The individual who has to plan his own life, even his own self, differs from the traditional individual who defines himself over others, or from the modern individual who thinks that a better society can be obtained by working. At this point, the individual who focuses on himself rather than the society is far more different from the individual that emerges with modernism and focuses on the view that “we should always work together to achieve the better”. Naturally, the postmodern individual who is one-step beyond the individualization in the modern sense, perceives and explains the concepts by their own inner world. The individuals who live with a flow that more or less dependent on the basic structures in the society in the modern period, desires a multi-dimensional life by centering themselves today. At this point, this new individuals are in an effort to build their own selves with consumptions by choosing among the lifestyles offered by new capitalism. They use this multi-dimensional approach that determines their view of their ordinary life while consuming popular cultural texts as well. Consequently, individuals have become more and more identified 28

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with texts where a single truth, a single false, a single good or a bad evil does not exist. As a result, the presence of multi-dimensional good and bad in cultural texts has become the new normal. When talking about this epistemological change, it would be appropriate to talk about the change of the content of cultural texts. High cultural texts belonging to the modern period are generally texts in which good and bad can be clearly observed and the timeline progresses linearly from the beginning to the end. As we can observe in novels and theatrical texts, these have an ethical concern. It is intended that the reader or viewer learn a lesson from them. For this reason, the motivations of the characters in modern texts are generally supported by social concerns. Especially in texts that we can consider as classics, individualization can be seen as the main theme, but these individualization stories are the stories of individuals trying to find their place in society. When a good character does an evil act, he/ she questions this act morally and aims to adapt to society in some way. In these texts, evil characters are often excluded from society. Bad people do evil for reasons such as money, power, ambition and they act in a way that does not comply with the legal and ethical rules of the society. If there is a bad man who still exists in the society, he hides his identity and goals. When their purpose is revealed, they are identified and punished by the good. At this point, for the modern individual, a picture of the world is drawn that is always good and moral. Therefore, it is not surprising that in these texts, the good is without exception good and the evil are literally evil. The modern mind makes character classifications accordingly. One-dimensional characters with limited borders and motivations form the roof of the cultural texts of the modern period. According to the Affective Disposition Theory (Raney, 2006; Zilmann&Cantor, 1976), who explains what factors stand out in the appreciation of media texts, one of the most important conditions for the viewers to appreciate the characters is the ethical judgments about the character’s behaviors and motivations. While the audience loves and identifies characters who act in accordance with their ethical judgments, the villains representing immorality are condemned to lose. In modern texts where good and bad are clearly defined, this process is easy for the audience. The fact that the good ones/heroes prevail against virtueless villains and provide justice in the narrative provides an ethical conclusion that implies the necessity of good defeating the evil (Raney & Janicke, 2013). Satisfying moral expectation and achieving justice offers a solid closure to the audience and strengthens the structures in their minds. The domination of the texts produced in parallel with the cultural structure created by modernism continues until the Second World War period. However, it is observed that these norms are gradually breaking in cultural texts after the extreme nationalist characters of the Second World War (Pumphrey, 2019). This era appears as a period in which confidence has weakened in the post-war world and the foundations of post-structuralism and postmodernism are laid. The war has shaken the foundation of many structures. Therefore, in parallel with postmodernism the emergence of more flexible and multidimensional characters has become inevitable in cultural texts. Contrary to the clarity of modern characters, postmodern characters have become fragmented in parallel with the subject structure in society. According to Kellner (1995) “in postmodern culture, the subject has disintegrated into a flux of euphoric intensifies, fragmented and disconnected (..) and no longer possesses the depth, substantiality, and coherency that was the ideal and sometimes achievement of the modern self”. Therefore, the postmodern individual’s understanding of good and bad in cultural texts has changed as opposed to the modern individual who clearly approaches the concepts of good and evil and builds them on moral foundations in their mind. Moreover, the clear boundaries between these two concepts have disappeared, as in yin and yang in the eastern philosophy, the bad in the good and the good in the bad have been highlighted. In the postmodern era, texts that audience can see both 29

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the frailties and weaknesses of the good who always suppose to act morally and also motivations of the bad who has to be punished according to their acts have begun to emerge. The intertwining of good and evil concepts in the postmodern period has also mediated the highlight of morally complex characters, which contain both of them in cultural texts. Recent empirical studies on the appearance of these characters are verify their likeability, often to an extent greater than traditional virtuous heroes (Raney & Janicke, 2013). Individuals who are deprived of moral judgments guided by the structures they lean their back on in daily life, started to judge these characters from their inner world, becoming the moral compasses of their own selves. As a postmodern subject, individuals who see the complexity they see in themselves in fictional characters naturally identify with them. The individuals, who can handle the good/bad balance, action motivations, fragmentation and weaknesses in his inner world in a multi-dimensional way, demand similar characters in the cultural texts they consume.

CHANGING THROUGH HEROES AND VILLAINS TO ANTI VERSIONS The concept of hero appears in cultural texts as a concept frequently studied from the traditional period to the present day. In traditional texts, especially in mythological stories, it is used to characterize the person who lives and dies for the sake of heroic honor (Schein, 1984). When looking at modern cultural texts, the hero usually points to dignified, moral and orderly people who serve the well-being of the community, ignoring their own interests. Nowadays, when it comes to heroes, it is the characters we encounter in epic fantasy stories and comics rather than real life (Camp, 1976). Like other concepts, the concept of hero has transformed with episteme changes. The concept of hero often appears in cultural texts in contrast with the villain. Hero and villain, which can be seen as representative of the concepts of good and evil, are in a constant state of battle. While hero is the representative of the order, the society, the good, the right and the moral, the villain is disruptive of the order, bad, corrupt and selfish. These concepts appear as a part of the modern episteme when they reviewed in this state. Hero who is the representative of the good “simply exists to be morally perfect and could not perform any act of evil” (Pumphrey, 2019). Villain, on the contrary, is an evil character, morally disturbed, serving his own interests and motivated by ambitions such as power and money. The good/bad opposition in modern cultural texts continues on the axis of the hero/villain. Hero, which has no evil in it, is a morally suitable character that a modern individual can identify with. Superman is an excellent example of the concept of hero, which emerged as a comic book character especially before the Second World War. Superman is a god-like character who came to the world from another planet. For this reason he is pure good and morally totally acceptable. In parallel with the modern epistemology that it comes from, Superman has a good role as a savior who interferes with social problems and battles with evil in his stories. Although the villains and their goals change from time to time, Superman maintains his clear position on being perfectly good. Similarly, in modern texts, the evilness of the villain is indisputable. They do not hesitate when doing evil to get money, position, power or whatever they desire. Although they have been shown to have goals such as taking over the world, earning a lot of money, gaining a powerful position, seducing the person that they want, generally motivations under these goals are not mentioned. At some point, they seem to do evil just to be evil. In modern cultural texts where character boundaries are clear in this way, the main purpose of the existence of villains seems to be defeated by heroes and restore social order and

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justice because of this defeat. In this way, the audience will be able to reach catharsis and the modern society order in which they live in will be reproduced. When it comes to the postmodern period, it is observed that the concepts of hero and villain also changed with the episteme. Defective and complex heroes are not found before the 1950s. Especially with the loss of trust to the states and the system in the post-war period, the ultimate goodness of order defender heroes becomes questionable. Especially in the 1950s, the presence of sidekicks started to appear in the comics. “While heroes argues with the sidekicks, it is possible to witness what goes on in the mind of the hero, so the hidden character traits, complex, conflicting thoughts and flaws begin to be understood” (Pumphrey, 2019). This narrative laid the foundations of the anti-hero concept. Heroes that have their own conflicts in their inner world, can stretch the rules for the sake of doing goodness and have multi-dimensional character characteristics, begin to dominate cultural texts. These characters are not morally perfect like modern era heroes. Unlike them, they stand in the gray area and this is exactly what the audience expects from them. Anti-heroes that Raney & Jancike (2013) described as morally complex characters offer more surface area for the audience to grip. Because they are more complex, they appeal more to the complex inner world of the postmodern individual. Also because of this complexity they provide variety of characteristics that different audience can identify on a larger scale. Anti-villains as known as complex villains are also part of this change. They become complex as well. Background stories began to be written about villains about the reasons of evilness of the character, which were seen to do evil just for sake of doing evil before. An example of this is the main character of the movie that was released as the origin story of Joker in 2019 that imaged as notorious enemy of Batman. While there is no clue as to why the Joker was a villain in his previous sceneries, in the last movie, the audience witnesses Arthur’s story before he became the Joker. This story shows that villains, like heroes, can be complex and the motivations behind their actions have the potential to justify them. The episteme changing with postmodernity enables the audience to be identified not only with heroes but also with villains in cultural texts. As with many concepts, the deconstruction of hero and villain concepts seems appropriate to the postmodern episteme. Deconstruction as one of the prominent features of the postmodern era means the critical demolition of concepts, structures, norms, categories and the self, reconstruction of them with these criticisms and eventually becoming new versions of themselves. The concepts of hero and villain evolved in this way with the change of the episteme and became much more complex versions of them.

FANTASY GENRE AND CHARACTER TRANSITIONS Since the beginning of history, fantasy and fantastic elements have been the source of people’s imagination. Paintings on the walls of the caves, hieroglyphs depicting gods in the Egyptian pyramids have existed thanks to the fantastic elements of human imagination. It is a certainty that the concept of fantasy exists where there is human and imagination. If we look at the word’s meaning, according to Steinmetz (2006), fantastic is the opposite of logic. In this sense, it may correspond to imagination and illusion. The fact that it is completely the production of the human mind confirms this. Although it stands against fantastic logic, it does not stand against mind. Fantasy is a natural human activity. It certainly does not destroy or even insult Reason; and it does not either blunt the appetite for, nor obscure the perception of, scientific verity. On the contrary. The keener

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and the clearer is the reason, the better fantasy will it make. If men were ever in a state in which they did not want to know or could not perceive truth (facts or evidence), then Fantasy would languish until they were cured (Tolkien, 2008, p. 65). When it comes to fantasy, many things come to mind from fairy tales, mythology, epics to sci-fi stories (Steinmetz, 2006, p. 11-15). In a story, novel, poem or movie, everything that seems impossible in the world conditions we live in, is described as fantastic. Giants in fairy tales told to children, plants stretching to the clouds, wonderland where even rabbits can speak are the expressions that fill the concept of fantasy. At this point, the content of the concept that comes to mind when it comes to fantasy reaches a wide range that is difficult to grasp. Nowadays, fantastic texts occupy a large place in popular culture. It is possible to come across many fantastic texts in different categories from novels to movies, comic books to serials. The spread of these texts has reached a remarkable dimension in the last decade. Fantastic texts like the stories of superheroes in Marvel and DC universes that include comic book worlds, stories that begin with the Lord of the Rings and take place in epic fantasy universes that have many subspecies, stories of fantasy creatures from folk culture such as vampires, werewolves and witches, space stories that have creations which have not been invented yet, or texts such as sci-fi stories containing dystopias have dominated popular cultural texts today. Fantastic texts originally originated from countries that can be seen as the center of the culture industry, such as United States of America and England, appeal to audiences from all over the world with globalization and subsequent localization. Fantastic popular cultural texts starting with comic books in USA now can be produced in many different countries and reach the world. Along with this spread and ease of access, it is inevitable that fantastic texts, like other cultural texts, undergo content exchange in parallel with the episteme dominating the world. This change can be demonstrated by examining the characters of so many different fantastic texts from the classic American comic hero Superman to Polish originated fantasy fiction anti-hero the Witcher. It is seen that the heroes were completely good at the time when fantastic texts were written in the modern episteme. Modern era heroes, where concepts are clear and structures are reliable, stand out as the representative of justice and protector of order, representing the moral values ​​of society. As discussed above, Superman is a perfect example of hero concept. Captain America is also an example of a modern hero. While Superman fights against enemies within the country at the time of its release, Captain America first appears as a powerful hero who can protect the country from external enemies during the Second World War. These two heroes are characters that are compatible with American moral values ​​and have respected places in the society. Their goodness and character traits are not questioned; goodness and therefore American values will ​​ surely gain in their world. The Lord of The Rings, which forms the basis of epic fantasy in the sense known today, is also an example of modern fantasy texts. Although J.R.R. Tolkien is a traditionalist conservative, The Lord of the Rings can be seen in many ways as a critique of modernism (White, 2003), but its narrative is constructively part of the modern epistemology. In The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien depicts a world in which friends and enemies are certain, have no gray characters and characters act according to certain rules. The goodness of the goods and the evilness of the evils are unquestionable. Although the background of some of the characters was mentioned with Silmarillion, which was published after the main books, the main text did not show any other purpose for the goods than saving the Middle Earth, and the evils taking over the Middle Earth and bringing the darkness. Everyone in The Fellowship of the Ring is a 32

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hero, everyone in the ranks of Sauron is a villain, and villains must be defeated by the heroes in order to save Middle Earth. The most prominent character in The Lord of the Rings with hero features is Sam Gamgee, the gardener of the ring bearer Frodo. Even though all the members of the fellowship are heroes because they are in the ranks of the good, for the purpose of victory of the good side, Sam never leaves Frodo alone and he is selfless enough to sacrifice himself for this purpose. While making a very serious sacrifice by leaving village of Hobbit when he is a simple gardener, with the motivation of protecting his friend, Sam stands out as a hero. At every stage, he reminds Frodo of the task of destroying the ring and the magnitude of his responsibility. The destruction of the ring can be seen as the success of Sam to a large extent, as Frodo’s energy drains away and Sam carries him to the top of the mountain. Sam is a complete modern text hero because in all circumstances he acts for the good of the Middle Earth, being selfless and perfect. It is possible to exemplify how good and evil are separated by thick lines in modern texts by the Gollum character in The Lord of the Rings. The story of Smeagol is told at the beginning of The Return of the King, the third film of the trilogy. He was an ordinary Hobbit, gradually turning into corrupt Gollum after finding the ring of power. After becoming corrupted, Gollum could not live among the well-created Hobbits and while bearing the ring, he lived in exile. After so many years that he lost the ring, he found out that ring was in Frodo’s possession. He followed them to get the ring back. When Frodo and Sam realize the presence of Gollum, instead of killing him, in the adventure of destroying the ring they want him to guide them on the road to Mordor, where he has gone before. In this duration, since the one ring is in Frodo’s possession and not in his, he was in a conflict that on one hand the desire to serve the ring bearer and on the other hand, the evil side in him aims to take back the one ring. When the name of Smeagol which was the Hobbit side of him mentioned, he remembers the good in him which was lost in deep in his soul and after that moment the audience witness’ the conflict of good and evil side of him. There is both a good and an evil side in Gollum, but he is not like the gray characters in postmodern texts. Gollum is shown like that, he has a multi-personality while experiencing conflict. Gollum represents the evil side of him and Smeagol represents the good, and these two characters are clearly distinguished from each other. This is clearly understood in the scenes where he quarreled with himself. In a modern narrative, if there is good in evil or evil in good, these characteristics are in conflict with each other. Ultimately, one must win and the other must lose. Gollum wins the Gollum/Smeagol conflict at the end of the story and when he fell to the lava with the ring he took from Frodo’s finger by biting it, that scene show that the evil has lost the battle. With the destruction of the ring of power, Sauron, who was the villain of the story, has been defeated and darkness has left the Middle Earth. The fellowship of the ring, which the audience has identified with since the beginning, prevails from the good and evil battle in the Middle Earth. Victory of the good side gives the experience of the catharsis to the audience. Star Wars series, which is one of the first series that comes to mind when mentioned fantasy genre, contains both modern and postmodern era films since they were shot in different periods. The first three films of the series were released in 1977, 1980 and 1983. These films can be included in the modern episteme in terms of narrative structure. These are films such as Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Obi van Kenobi and Han Solo are fully good, and Darth Vader and Palpatine are fully bad. The aim of the good side, the Rebellion, is to destroy the Republic, which has taken over the senate. To do this, Death Star, a weapon capable of destroying planets, must be destroyed first. During the story telling, the good and the bad are clearly separate from each other and the inner worlds and motivations of the characters are not mentioned. For example, Han Solo initially joined the team of good people as a paid pilot, but after completing his first mission, he goes on with the team until the end of the adventure. At this point, 33

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Han Solo has no motivation other than fighting on the good side. Aiming for the greater good is enough motivation for a modern hero. The second trilogy of the Star Wars series was came to theaters in 1999, 2002 and 2005. The change of the characters can also be observed in these films, which were shot during the period when the postmodern episteme can be clearly observed in popular texts. These films are the story of how Darth Vader has become one of the most powerful villains of the universe, which appears only as villain in the first movie and is not given much detail apart from being Luke Skywalker’s father. Throughout the three films, the Jedi apprentice named Anakin Skywalker is shown to be corrupted by the Force step by step. However, this time the story also includes inner world, feelings, ambitions, and weaknesses of Anakin who is corrupted by the Force. Since he is normally the bad character of the previous trilogy, instead of being an enemy to Anakin, audience justifies him in some ways by understanding and identifying his motivations. When he crosses to the dark side in order to use the Force more powerfully to reach his goal, he murdered younglings, who are the future of the Jedi. Although it is morally unacceptable behavior for him to kill children, his actions are motivated by love, which is a reason that audience can easily understand. Having an appealing reason makes him a complex villain. Identifying with villains became possible only in the postmodern period when the boundaries became uncertain and intertwined. The last trilogy, which has been released in recent years, is distinguished from other films because it contains both modern and postmodern period characters. While self-focused postmodern self is prominently featured in new characters in these films, the specific evil and good boundaries can be clearly observed in the characters from the modern episteme. The new characters are so lost in their inner world that they do not even know if they will stand on the good side or the evil side. Also from time to time, characters change sides. In these films, Rey and Ben Solo represent good/evil inner voices in a single character rather than the hero/villain opposition. Although they are in constant conflict, the fact that they act together at the end of the film is an indication of how good and evil intertwined in the postmodern period. Besides, their conflicts with the previous generation can be seen as the modern and postmodern episteme conflicting in the narrative. Comic book universes also contain examples that embed the anti-hero and anti-villain characters, where good and evil intertwine, into the narrative structure. For example, Hulk, who is in the Marvel universe, is shown in the 1960s stories as a government-sought character, primarily like a villain. Only readers can see the thoughts and good actions of this creature because they know that he is actually a scientist who turns into a green giant because of an experiment that was not successful (Pumphrey, 2019). While nobody cared about the thoughts of heroes in the comics before, characters like Iron Man that emerged after this period and shared their inner world with the audience have turned into anti-heroes who do not care about the minor damages they cause for greater good and are still loved by the audience. Even Captain America appeared with the content that questioned America’s policy from time to time after this change. This shift made possible by postmodern episteme that blurs the strict lines between good and bad. In Marvel universe, Thanos is a perfect example of a complex villain. He wants to eliminate half the population of universe but he wants to do it for giving other half a better life. Eliminating half of the population can seem pure evil at first but the reason of it makes this act reasonable. Considering the universe has limited sources and constantly increasing population makes it impossible to have decent life for all, eliminating half of it and giving the remaining half-better living conditions seems like a perfect

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solution. That is why for some of the Marvel fans, Thanos is a hero, not a villain. When audience knows the motivations and thoughts of a villain, evil acts can be legitimized. Conflicting or staying side-by-side due to complex character traits rather than just being good or bad characters is a common pattern in the postmodern episteme. The Civil War movie is a clear example where Captain America and Iron Man who are both on the good side in the Marvel universe have conflict because of the political opposition. While Captain America, whose character has his roots from the modern era, defends to act within the rules and boundaries as a total hero, Iron Man as an anti-hero is in the gray area where there are alternatives. Conflicts are no longer caused by good and evil, but by the coming across of complex character traits that are embedded in the narrative in detail. Another fantastic series that can be read into the postmodern episteme is Game of Thrones. The writing and sequencing of books coincides with a period in which postmodern narration was at the top in popular cultural texts. Game of Thrones, which has a multi-charactered complex plot, offers a narrative focused on character motivations where good and evil are generally ambiguous. With a few exceptions, it is not clear that who is a hero and who is the villain. With these exceptions, Game of Thrones is a text that includes characters that can be an example for all of the concepts of hero, villain, anti-hero and anti-villain. Jon Snow as a modern era hero who is completely good, loyal to the rules, thinking about greater good and an anti-hero like Daenerys Targaryen, who may sometimes harm people to reach the good with her own motivations, can act together and engage in conflict within the same narrative. While Joffrey Baratheon, who is clearly a villain, is on the evil side hated by the audience, Jaime Lannister, who was always discussed by the audience that whether he is good or evil, has gained many fans. As a result, Game Of Thrones contains multi-dimensional, contradictory and disintegrated characters, such as the postmodern subject, and the whole series focuses on the conflicts of these characters rather than good and evil.

CONCLUSION As can be seen in the examples, the narrative structure and characters of fantastic texts were directly influenced by the changes in the episteme. The texts of the modern period reveal regular, limited and plain characters in a more linear narrative structure. Heroes and villains of the modern era are clear characters that are not open to discussion with their own rules and morale features. Heroes, which will satisfy the purpose of the modern society for reaching the better and truer, and which will benefit the society in this way, are part of this epistemology. It is observed that there is a narrative structure that has heroes who are suitable for the moral structure of the society and aims for the greater good is loved without question, and the villains standing before them are doomed to lose. Modern individuals demanded a specific type of characters in cultural texts that they can identify with from their standpoint while living planned lives in solid structures. In the postmodern period, it is seen that the fragmented subject structure, which started to be observed in the society, is also found in fantastic texts. Heroes, who take their strength and motivation from their inner world, and can shift to gray or dark area from time to time, caused the emergence of the concept of anti-hero. The explanation of the viewpoint and inner world of villains that are always doomed to lose, has made them become characters that can be identified. From the perspective of audience, the existence of these characters, which are called complex villain or anti-villain, appears as a third option to good

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and bad opposition. In the postmodern period, like all structures, character structures are decoded and become multi-dimensional. Looking at the point where fantastic texts come today, the hero/villain conflict of the modern era has been replaced by the hero/anti-hero conflict. This also makes the narrative complex, and it shows that it is no longer an option for the audience to stand by the good without questioning. On the other hand, the postmodern subject, which is alone with its complex inner world, is already demanding content with this feature. The world of one-dimensional heroes and villains has become naive and nostalgic today. The concepts of good and bad have lost their sole meanings in the modern era. The narratives that center their conflicts have been replaced by a more complex narrative structure that is based on context and establishes conflicts based on the personal motivations of the characters. In this narrative structure, catharsis is obtained from the audience’s individual expectations about the narrative rather than who is the winner and the loser.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS With many political, economic, sociological and technological changes that change the world, it is inevitable for people not to change how they perceive and know the world. This chapter has dealt with the fantastic reflections of the episteme changing around the world. Like many other fields, fantasy genre has shifted from community focused modern episteme to individual centered postmodern episteme. Further research can be made about whether this shift can be observed or not in other genres as well.

REFERENCES Cahoone, L. E. (1996). From Modernism to Postmodernism: An Anthology. Blackwell Publishers Inc. Camp, L. S. d. (1976). Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers: The Makers of Heroic Fantasy. Arkham House. Fiero, G. (1998). The Humanistic Tradition, Book 4: Faith, Reason, and Power in the Early Modern World (6th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education. Kant, I. (2007). Critique of Pure Reason. Penguin. doi:10.1007/978-1-137-10016-0 Kellner, D. (1995). Media Culture: Cultural Studies, Identity and Politics between the Modern and the Postmodern. Routledge. Lakeland, P. (1997). Postmodernity: Christian Identity in a Fragmented Age. Fortress Press. McGuigan, J. (1999). Modernity and Postmodern Culture (2nd ed.). Open University Press. Peters, M. (1999). (Posts-) Modernism and Structuralism: Affinities and Theoretical Innovations. Sociological Research Online, 4(3), 122–138. doi:10.5153ro.342 Pumphrey, N. (2019). Superman and the Bible: How the Idea of Superheroes Affects the Reading of Scripture. McFarland.

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Raney, A. A. (2006). The Psychology of Disposition-Based Theories of Media Enjoyment. In J. Bryant & P. Worderer (Eds.), Psychology of Entertainment (pp. 137–150). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Raney, A. A., & Janicke, S. (2013). How We Enjoy and Why We Seek Out Morally Complex Characters in Media Entertainment. In R. Tamborini (Ed.), Media and the Moral Mind (pp. 152–169). Routledge. Schein, S. (1984). The Mortal Hero: An Introduction to Homer’s Iliad. University of California Press. doi:10.1525/9780520341067 Sennett, R. (1998). Karakter Aşınması (B. Yıldırım, Trans.). Ayrıntı Yayınları. Steinmetz, J. L. (2006). Fantastik Edebiyat (H. F. Nemli, Trans.). Dost Yayınları. Tolkien, J. R. R. (2008). Tolkien On Fairy-stories, Expanded Edition, with Commentary and Notes (V. Flieger & D. A. Anderson, Eds.). Harper Collins Publishers. Wagner, P. (2012). Modernity: Understanding the Present. Polity Press. White, M. (2003). Tolkien: Yüzüklerin Efendisi’nin Yaratıcısı (D. Körpe, Trans.). Inkılap Kitapevi Kelepir Yayınları. Zilmann, D., & Cantor, J. (1976). A Disposition Theory of Humor and Mitrth. In A. J. Chapman & H. C. Foot (Eds.), Humour and Laughter: Theory, Research and Applications (pp. 93–115). Wiley.

ADDITIONAL READING Alsford, M. (2006). Heroes and Villains. Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd. Turner, B. S. (1990). Theories of Modernity and Postmodernity. Sage Publications. Zima, P. V. (2015). Subjectivity and Identity between Modernity and Postmodernity. Bloomsbury Publishing.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Catharsis: A feeling that audience has when the drama unfolded and story fulfilled their expectations. Episteme: A philosophical term that used for describing a knowledge, science, or an understanding. Fantasy: A genre, which includes events or characters that created by human imagination. Modernism: A global movement and thought system that has the reason and science in its center. Postmodernism: The movement that emerges as a criticism to modernism. The term used to describe the era after modern period.

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Chapter 4

Reconsidering “Evil” Through the Star Wars Films Alper Erçetingöz https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9168-5740 Aydın Adnan Menderes University, Turkey

ABSTRACT Discussing the endless war between the good and the evil, the Star Wars series has expressed various discourses about evil from 1977 to 2019. These films, which have ingrained themselves in the history of cinema as ‘narratives of evil’, have been watched intently by an audience of different nationalities and age groups for a timespan of over 40 years. This currently ongoing interest has allowed the series to continue its narrative with new films. The dialectic relationship that cinema, which has a potential to produce ideas through images, establishes with its watchers as an opportunity that allows for the exploration of the human attitude and behavior towards evil, it necessitates the reconsideration of evil through Star Wars films.

INTRODUCTION Classical narrative cinema makes use of the nature of evil to set in motion its central elements of conflict, curiosity and catharsis. While the watchers who relate to the protagonist side themselves with the good, the screen is filled with images of evil and the struggle to get rid of these images. The images that make up evil can sometimes originate from exterior factors. Sometimes, however, they originate from within, meaning the hero himself, and present a much more complicated existence. Using classical narrative models, the Star Wars series1 exhibits this chaos through the development of characters like Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader and Ben Solo/Kylo Ren, and presenting the audience with various ideas regarding evil through the cinematographic images that the series produces. Lars Svendsen, describing evil in his book Philosophy of Evil as “a holdover from a mythical, Christian worldview whose time had already passed” (2010, p. 9) thinks that cinema should be left out of the conversation while philosophically questioning the meaning of evil in this time and age. Svendsen, while regarding the representations of excessive evil present in films, remarks that evil, as an aesthetic DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch004

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 Reconsidering “Evil” Through the Star Wars Films

object, has gained a different meaning that is separate from reality (2010, pp. 9-10). The aesthetization of evil signals the replacement of its nature, is portrayed as boring, bleak, and common, with an imaginary charm. This charm, which is achieved through cinema, eliminates the feeling of terror that is caused by evil seen in daily lives and legitimizes its existence. Every phenomenon that is associated with evil like pain, death, poverty, torture, exile, are all facts that cannot be fully comprehended unless a person experiences them. This distance between facts and experience is even further in cinema. Emotions, due to being the natural and secure mutual denominators between cinema and reality, are easier to grasp for the audience than ideas. Regarding evil, however, ideas as well as emotions, as long as they are not connected to real experiences, do not turn into permanent impressions. Because of this reason, the film’s effect is isolated even in the case of a deeper approach. Thus, the aesthetic essence of art that can be used to evoke emotions without hurting people, is first seen to prompt self-defense and escapist mechanisms when it comes to evil. When it comes to the presentation of ideas and emotions however, not only should aesthetics be influential, but also ethical categories. Cinema has qualities like raising awareness about the details that are lost in daily lives and unearthing phenomenon that are not seen by the watchers because they are ordinary or obstructed by an ideology. Hence, only taking the aesthetics into consideration and excluding cinema from the philosophical activities regarding evil will result in ignoring its potential in creating discourse on ethical categories. There are generally three options regarding the subject of evil when it comes to fictional films. Including evil under no circumstances and ignoring it, taking the approach of mythology and confining it to a cycle of defeat, or creating a deep aesthetic representation and trying to reach its true meaning. The practice of cinema that is described as ‘popular’ or ‘mainstream’ and utilizing classical narrative molds choose the second option and is thus found to be superficial. Recently, however, new approaches which claim that through the similarities between cinema and philosophy, including the films produced for the mainstream, films idiocratically create notions2, claim that through analyzing the visual and auditory imagery found in films, different illations can be made. This approach regarding the re-readability of the representations of evil that appear in popular films and the opportunities that are provided by the cinema in the identification and the resistance towards evil make up the basic motivations for this study.

BACKGROUND: EVIL AS AN ABSTRACT AND CONCRETE CONCEPT In classical and modern thought, there are many notions about the existence, source, psychological, anthropological, and ideological reasons of evil. Hence, classifications regarding the subject of evil generates a wide notional richness. While these generalizations that attempt to make evilness comprehensible are expressed as a scientific necessity, recently, comments regarding evil possessing an autonomous meaning, hence each action needing to be evaluated in its own right through observable tangible equivalents, have been gaining importance. In classical thought the notion of evil and natural disasters like earthquakes (Neiman, 2002, pp. 240250) are described through moral actions of humans that are in line with mythological and theological discourses associated with the creation of the world and humanity. In this frame of understanding, evil is associated with “world’s imperfection” (metaphysical evil), “suffering” (physical/natural evil) and “sin” (moral evil) (Svendsen, 2010, p. 83). In the earlier periods, theological approaches to evil are seen to be more prominent. Manichaeism, which describes good and evil as the two ends of a spectrum, is one of these doctrines. Manichaeism, which predicts a dualist world order, describes evil as the good’s opposi-

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tion of equal strength (Alt, 2016a, p. 65). This doctrine, which states that evil, could be comprehended by the amount of light that good radiates (Bataille, 2004, p. 116), advocates that what gives meaning to good and evil, is the opposition between them. ‘Theodicists’ which originate from Christianity and ignore the idea of an autonomous evil, argue that the injustice and the evil present in the world seems so because of humanity’s limited comprehension, however, they argue that when looking from a more totalistic and divine point of view, every one of them happen for a good reason. This approach points not towards god as the source of evil, but the human who has made choices through free will (Werner, 2000, pp. 15-34). The origins of evil are deemed to be ‘perversity’ and is explained through the Christian teaching of ‘original sin’. Humanity is fundamentally/radically argued to be morally evil. The subject of question is not justice in the world, but rather the people who create injustice through their choices. A person should suffer for the evil that he/she has caused. Suffering is seen to be a way to salvation. The theological arguments revolving around the existence and the origin of evil, in a subject whose questions are accepted to be not so easily answered, have finalized in a notion that proves God is not to blame for the evil in the world. When the transcendental approaches that see evil as absence/nothingness, a part of good, or humanity’s fate, give their places to ethical, anthropological, and psychological explanations with the Enlightenment, the issue is seen as the ethical relationship between evil and people. Thus, it can be seen that rather than the existence or the definition of evil, what was beginning to be questioned is the societal and psychological reasons behind the presence of evil through a humanitarian and moral perspective. Regarding the subject of explaining the evil in the world, metaphysical or natural evil being inadequate has made it necessary to approach the notion through moral evil, which creates more significant personal and societal effects. The moral perspective analyzes the humane attitudes and behaviors to make it more comprehensible when it cannot be described. Understanding the reasons behind attitudes and behaviors carries importance in the struggle with evil. Is this world, “the most perfect of all possible worlds” as Leibniz suggests (2007, p. 69), or is it “the worst of all possible worlds” (1966, p. 583) as Schopenhauer suggests? The answer to this question is shaped according to the answer given to the question of whether the evil in this world has a reason, a purpose, or more explicitly, meaning. Nietzsche’s modern man sees not pain itself, but its lack of meaning as a problem and with the whole of the current values, argues that evil, as the theodicists describe it, should be reevaluated. When the cause and effect cycle in its description is shattered, the evil in the world begins to be explained through accidents and coincidence. This approach directs the view towards evil from the notion of poetic justice to the reality that is injustice. However, according to Terry Eagleton, attempting to describe evil through moral justice would result in two different outcomes: The first outcome of these descriptions is making the current ethical notions much clearer, and this would result in a much more distinct understanding of morals; the second outcome would be that the rational interpretation of evil would rebate the current moral justice (2011, p. 13). In this case, humanity would be desensitized and would stay quiet against public acts of evil. Thus, fictional narratives that showcase evil, which is an abstract category, in concrete situations, would be expected to not just create an aesthetic representation or try to describe evil, but raise awareness about its origins, and show how to distinguish evil (Neiman, 2002, p. 9) and ways to resist injustice.

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Evil as an Aesthetic Design Art, which is the result of human action, has a strong relationship with ethics. This relationship which births various responsibilities from the perspective of the artist and the work, is based upon the approach that art is not just representing reality, but is putting forth moral discourse through is creation. In this context, a good work of art is described to be tasked with revealing qualities that are deemed as virtuous. This task is not only valid when it comes to content, but it is also valid regarding the presentation of content. The expression of every moment that is associated with the world, meaning the most mundane of details, reveals details that are challenging to notice in the flow of life. According to Iris Murdoch, good art achieves this through not easily comprehensible and familiar ways, but by ways that defamiliarizes the audience with themselves and through this, creates designs that enriches the awareness of those that are receptive (2000, pp. 91-92). France Farago states that Andrei Tarkovsky, who explores the deep affinity between good and evil and presents them in creative ways in his films, believes that art has a pragmatical duty towards the human brain’s perception of what good is (2011, p. 232). However, the works that establish the connection between good and evil on a shallow opposition create a stricter didactic structure, which present moral lines that are associated with the description of evil. This notion that believes evil should not be represented through art, when associating evil with ‘others,’ emphasizes that evil, originating from an exterior factor and embodied in another person, should be struggled against. Since the unreal projections presented in these works are seen to be inadequate in making evil comprehensible, there appears a judgement, which necessitates the disembodiment of moral responsibility from art. From the 18th century evil, as well as good, is discussed as an autonomous term. Detailed analyses are applied for its description, rather than proposing superficial imagery. In this approach, the ways that evil is made to be visible also change. This new understanding of aesthetic, which contemplates about its own forms and structures, puts factors of evil that are categorized as amoral, anomalous, disgusting, ugly, perverse, and sick in its center (Alt, 2016a, p. 10). The solution to overthrowing evil and moral notions that, through various judgements, try to limit evil would be to show it in its most disgusting and bare form. In this way, evil has both dreadful and attractive qualities. Here, evil is accepted to be the expression of the inherent and takes on a psychological dimension. In this period where the allegorical representations of devil are losing their believability, molds that reflect the complicated structure of evil are constructed. Peter-André Alt distinguishes that this aesthetic understanding of evil which constructs its own imagery and indexical language, as having moved away from pedagogical obsessions (2016a, p. 14). This venture attempts to interpret evil, which is taken as independent from moral doctrines and an autonomous notion, on a concrete level. Continuing the dialectic connection with social reality, which is defined through moral boundaries, cinema as an aesthetic representation creates a contradictory situation for the viewer. Cinema is a part of reality. It also continues to structure this reality actively. This fluidity between cinema and reality is also valid from the perspective of films, which contrarily aim for artificiality and continue outworn didactic habits. Through the usage of specific codes, genre films that are produced in studios according to various formulas and are generally shaped through national ideologies are part of the commercial mechanism that is the mainstream. As such, these films primarily attempt to construct aesthetic elements in order to engross the viewer. Svendsen opposes aestheticizing horrible actions, making them appealing in films, and presenting them in a form that can evoke admiration: Cinematographic descriptions such as “the music of machine guns”, “the glint of steel on weapons”, and “the color of napalm,” result in “robbing war of its reality,” whereby “individual vulnerability” and “the suffering of others” turn into notions 41

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that are more easily acceptable (2010, pp. 97-98). As it is in this example, it can be seen that evil, as an aesthetic object, renders moral values nonfunctional, and cinema, which reaches from its own reality to day-to-day reality, can be seen to pose a danger in terms of the comprehension capabilities that humans have of evil. However, it is thought that when these films are studied again not by their aesthetic objects, but by studying their cinematographic ideas through philosophy, deep analyses of genre movies can also be made. Thus, through genre films that fulfill a very basic task of rendering evil visible (Alt, 2016a, p. 81), watchers find the chance to rethink evil through a much larger perspective. In the classifications regarding narratives where evil takes part as an aesthetic representation, it can be seen that there are four types of discourse that are determined “mythological, scriptural, metaphysical and anthropological” (Kearney, 2003, p. 84). The mythological discourse that is at the basis of narratives of evil recreates the imagery of a monster around a specific storyline. From the perspective of “moral choices”, these narratives which Richard Kearney names as “mythological drama”, have a defining structure of “cosmological cycles of fate and destiny” (2003, p. 84). The usage of these types of narratives is changing evil, which humans take as a notion exterior to themselves, into a state where it is aesthetically pleasing. Thereby, “unbearable” is made to be “somehow bearable,” and “the outrageous accessible” (Kearney, 2003, pp. 84-85). The discourse originating from Holy Scripture, with the narrative of the ‘original sin’, puts forth a notion regarding the origins of evil and focuses on the seductiveness of evil and the guilt of one who goes along with it. In these narratives, evil is both something that humans are exposed to, and an act that humans themselves do. Metaphysical discourse defends Christian theologist Augustine’s understanding of evil which he defines as the lack of good (2019, pp. 98-118). Here, it is argued that evil is not present in the universe as a substance and the evil that exists is realized through the choices that one makes with their free will. The notion of ill will that is structured in line with this concept connotes the sins that one commits with their free will; while the notion of punishment connotes the evil that materializes as the price for these sins. In anthropological discourse, narrative regarding evil is established upon the notion of human responsibility. Evil, together with Kant’s notions of ethics, is studied through the frame of “human practice and judgement” after being free of the abstract portion of metaphysics: The notion of “radical evil,” whose source cannot be rationally describes, is then put forth as the result of this study (as cited in Kearney, 2003, p. 87). Evil, though it cannot be comprehended, it is made visible through the pain of the victims present in the narrative. The mythological discourses that are amongst the efforts made to interpret evil, make up the basis of the social and cultural impressions regarding the notion. Creation myths are studied as the reference point for the discussions surrounding whether or not evil came into being before or after good. In these myths, separate from humanity and as a substance, the understanding of evil which has a part in the genesis of the universe, makes up the conflict between good and bad through a historical perspective and creates a cycle of struggle where, at the end, the good wins. Myths that are described as fictional discourses that came into being with language, are accepted to have originated from real life experiences of people. The myths which create a unique cycle of causality through various behavioral schematics are seen as a part of culture for rendering their narratives and forms rational. Alt expresses that, every narrative of evil that is realized in a frame of cultural reflection cannot be comprehended independent of the fictional drafts that are presented with original myths (2016a, p. 44). The issue under focus here is that every narrative that handle the topic of evil have to utilize the mythological foundation to make themselves comprehensible.

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EVIL IN THE STAR WARS UNIVERSE The story of the Star Wars series, which is accepted as a narrative of evil, is established on familiar mythological motives. For example, every film starts with the statement that the events that are transpiring happened a long time ago, thus specifying that its narrative3 is mythologically constructed. The nascency of events in the films also support this view. The ‘downfall story’ in which Anakin Skywalker transforms into Darth Vader, is handled like the ‘fall from grace’ tale, which is a part of the myth of the ‘original sin’ in Christian belief. Evil, which is born with free will from greed, pride, arrogance, and envy, accompanies the ‘hero with a thousand faces’4. Similarly, when it comes to the relationship between Palpatine, Anakin and Padmé, the storyline of the snake, Adam, and Eve from the original sin is repeated. Palpatine who has the qualities of the snake, by making use factors like machinations and observations, hiding his own guilt, speaking provocatively and moving towards action, he tempts Anakin who wants to achieve the knowledge of immortality. The actions of Anakin are carried out as a rebellion to the teachings of the Jedi, and results in his dismissal to his own hell. Alt, referring to Bartholomew’s Bible, describes the angel’s fall from grace as the punishment of a father who is furious with his rebellious son (2016a, p. 36). Quoting Ernest Jonest, Alt states that the feeling of hate, which is born from the desire to imitate and go to war with the father, has been shown to be the fundamental concern since mythological narratives (2016b, p. 90). Father and son conflict is also one of the fundamental frequents of the Star Wars series. Anakin Skywalker and Ben Solo continue the contention of the angel wanting to start its own sovereignty by starting the rebellion with motivations such as arrogance and disobedience, which cause their downfall. Anakin does not have a father, thus, his conflict is directly with God: He challenges both destiny and death. In the case of Ben, he is betrayed by his uncle Luke. However, Ben holds his mother Leia and his father Han Solo responsible as well. When he is entrusted to Luke for his Jedi training, Ben, feeling abandoned, fills the emptiness left by his family with a powerful figure of evil, his grandfather Darth Vader. Luke Skywalker struggles with the demonic identity of his father, Darth Vader, and Han Solo struggles with the demonic identity of Kylo Ren. Even though the events transpire in different ways, it can be seen that at the end of these conflicts, good always prevails. Darth Vader, who cannot stand his own son dying in front of him, saves Luke at the expense of his life. However, Luke’s love for his father first turns into divine help and frees Anakin from the darkness that he is entrapped in. In the case of Han Solo, instead of punishing the rebellious son, he embraces him. Kylo Ren kills his father, whom he sees as the symbol of weakness, in cold blood. Hoping to achieve the dark powers that his grandfather held through this deed, Kylo Ren unexpectedly changes. His growing regret and remorse change him into a good person once again. Thus Han Solo, even though at the cost of his life, achieves his goal. Here, there is a paradoxical pattern, which shows that love, which has a functional significance in Christian teaching, has a potential to be turned into a weapon of both good and evil. Murdoch confirms this contradiction by stating that love inclines towards two opposite ends. Associating love with commitment and fidelity, Murdoch states that love which takes it source from a specific object is open to waste away: Love that grows like this becomes the biggest cause of mistakes that are made (2000, pp. 106-107). Anakin Skywalker’s love of his mother whom he had to abandon at an early age and love of his wife Padmé transforms into feelings of guilt and regret with their death. These feelings, although originating from love, are situated at the base of Anakin’s motivations in going over to ‘the dark side of the force’. Murdoch states that, if the same feelings become free of objects and become pure, they would incline towards good: In this situation, commitment and fidelity which exposes love turn into a source from which the soul is nourished and is given energy and passion 43

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(2000, p. 107). This description, especially if its evaluated through the friendships that Rey establishes in the final films, refers to ‘the force’ in the Star Wars universe. The energy, which Rey faces with love, makes her to be good. Rey is seen to possess moral motivations that are described as the highest good (Güney, 2004, p. 100) throughout her life by exhibiting qualities like living in harmony with nature and self-sufficiency. Her decisions are effected by these qualities in situations, which she experiences where she has to make a choice in the storyline and they impel her to choose the right thing. ‘The force’, which forms the essence of the Star Wars universe, is rooted in the balance between good and evil. Good and evil represent the equal but opposed aspects of ‘the force’ in the films. This dualist structure (Russell, 1999, p. 269) which exists in Manichaeism and Christianity are made visible through the battle of the forces of light and dark. This is an ongoing war both throughout the world, and within oneself. In Christian belief, there is the notion that having insight regarding redemptive, transcendent, and absolvatory issues, light can triumph over the dark (Connolly, 1995, pp. 15-16). ‘The force’, which is described to exist independently from humans and as an all-encompassing energy, expresses the deific aspect of the universe. Good and evil exist as the common qualities of ‘the force’, and it can be seen that in the case of a deed done, ‘the force’ is not seen as responsible. One deciding its position between good and evil through their choices evokes the classical theodicy regarding evil. Additionally, there is an education system where the teachings of good and evil are passed down from generation to generation, which is operated through a master-pupil relationship. The teaching of Jedi, which puts forth an approach regarding good is in humans and cannot be taught, acts through the understanding of ‘guidance.’ Good cannot dictate itself but makes itself apparent to be discovered by free will. Evil, however, always works in the background and makes itself necessary by manipulating the events. When one is choosing evil, he/she is in a position where his/her free will is damaged and is forced to choose evil. The real source of evil within the Star Wars universe is the dark side of ‘the force’, which has become dominant. In the film, this notion accepts evil as an ontological principle situated at the center of the universe. Thus, instead of creating a deep and complicated structure, it centers a superficial duality and the conflict that is birthed from it. The sources of both good and evil is in nature and comes from the universal energy named as ‘the force.’ Humans as well as these phenomena take their powers from ‘the force’. In this sense, ‘the force’ is the one common connection between all the phenomenon that brought the universe into being. Being aware of this is a necessity when it comes to arriving at the meaning of good and evil. However, this awareness requires one to make a choice that forms a milestone in the relationship between him/her and the universe. One, who understands the meaning of ‘the force’, has the authority to shape the universe through it. In the film, the ‘Skywalker’ family is seen to be exceptional when it comes to understanding the meaning of ‘the force’. Hence the film argues that there are genetically chosen standings. However, it is understood that when it comes to choosing good or evil, genetics have no real determinant affects. In the film universe where the Skywalker family represents the good and Siths represent the evil, characters such as Anakin Skywalker who chooses evil after being a Jedi and turns into Darth Vader, Kylo Ren who turns into Ben Solo, and even though Rey was a Sith, instead of sitting on Palpatine’s throne, she chooses to stand with the light side of ‘the force’ and choose to be referred to as ‘Skywalker’ are the indicators of this. In a war, which has been ongoing for years between the two phenomenon, choices that are important regarding which side one will take, are accelerated in line with one’s own historical past and psychological determinations. One’s verdicts and pent-up emotions that are acquired in the years of childhood and early adolescence, unaware of ‘the force’, are determinants in their tendencies and behaviors. 44

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Star Wars, while accepting the allure of evil, also includes the ethical, psychological and social aspects of temptation. This situation means that the existence of a demonic power intent on tempting the characters is not enough to turn Anakin Skywalker into Darth Vader. In order to explain all of the deviation seen in Anakin’s development from his childhood, it is necessary to take into consideration factors such as his self-awareness, responsibilities, fears, and love which all drive him towards his choices. Padmé, who is also known as Princess Amidala5, becomes the source of Anakin’s fears of loss after the death of his mother. The melancholic mood of Anakin, struggling with the thoughts of losing Padmé, is the basis of his deal with evil. Eagleton states that there is two parts of action for people who live under the threat of death: accepting that life is transitory and accepting death or showing interest in the idea of immortality at the level of obsession (2006, p. 215). According to him, the ones who take the first path, meaning the ones who do not dismiss the idea of death and choose to live with it in piece live a life that is more virtuous and enjoyable. This notion has its equivalent in Jedi teachings that accept death as a part of the usual flow. The ones who take the second path, meaning the ones who are in an illusion thinking they can live forever, are in cooperation with immorality and evil (Eagleton, 2006, pp. 215-216). With the feelings of superiority that Anakin exhibits with his skills, he thinks he can overcome even death. Here, not only is death denied, there is also the establishment of a heroic imagery of individualism. Thus, the desire for immortality, whether it be from himself or others, is revealed to be the basis of evil inside Anakin. The dichotomy here is whether Anakin used Padmé as a tool for realizing his desire to achieve power; or if it is about his desperate sacrifice in order to save Padmé with an illusion, source of which is his pride. In both cases, Anakin surrenders to the darkness calling for him after resisting it for a long time. Even though the choice is Anakin’s to make, the society of good who excluded, left him alone, and did not stand by his side because of distrust has a share in this development. Jean-Pierre Changeux states that fear, in the case of an individual being debarred from a social group and solidarity, can be associated with evil (2013, p. 260). Even though Anakin puts himself on a pedestal, when there is an opportunity to showcase his superiority, he has doubts on achieving this power. It can be seen that this doubt weakens as his ties with the group deteriorates. As a result, thoughts of losing Padmé surpasses the image of his individuality. However, the reality that he would be the most hurt with the absence of Padmé shows that, behind Anakin’s evil acts that he perceives as good, there is a selfish love for himself. Humans are in a spiritual conflict between love and hate, compassion and destruction (Klein, 1997, pp. 176-235). Associating evil with destruction, Eagleton states that against the meaninglessness of existence and the thought of death, evil acts with the desire to destroy everything that is alive (2011, p. 57). Evil, which directs its hatred towards the world, only selfishly loves itself and wishes for its own immortality. Jean Baudrillard, who states that every order is there to be rebelled against, attacked, changed, and overthrown, remarks the destructiveness of evil that is selfishly realized (2011, pp. 99-100). ‘Destructive violence,’ expresses the state of war, which is the concrete manifestation of evil in the Star Wars universe. Weapons as big as planets and millions of living beings that are massacred with the push of a button is descriptive of the degree of terror. When power is associated with destructiveness in the essence of evil, it can be seen that terror is in the background and evil is made to be tempting. Eagleton draws attention to how the allure of evil promises a privileged position to its possessor (2011, p. 53). Thus, doing evil acts becomes one of the ways to reach this privileged position. One of Palpatine’s promises to Anakin is privileged position of evil against the dullness of good. In the relationship between power and evil which is represented in the film, ecstasy of evil finds its equivalent with the notion of ‘sublime,’ which is dialectic unison of the “sacred” one and “the monstrous” one (Kearney, 2003, p. 99). This concept, which Edmund Burke first put forth, refers to a phenomenon 45

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that both symbolizes God and the devil, and when encountered, makes one feel both fascination and terror (Russel, 2001, p. 258). The concept of sublime, in its essence, refers to evil when it cannot be described. It is used to verbalize excessively violent acts to refer to a concept that is beyond evil when the present explanations for evil are inadequate. The space station which is designed to be a ‘Death Star’ in the film creates such a situation with enough firepower to randomly select a planet to destroy in mere seconds. Neither such a weapon, nor the mass slaughter that can be executed with such ease have been defined before. Because the sublimity of evil refers to an indescribable and traumatic condition, the moment of encounter with it can only be defined by a deep silence. However, silence which reflects the terror of evil and is more than just an aesthetic element, legitimizes the act of evil. The indescribability of “horror and exuberance”; “disgust and ecstasy”; “deity with the Monstrous” (Kearney, 2003, pp. 89-98) can be seen aestheticized in a body with Lord Sidious, or in his absence, within ‘supreme leader’ Snoke, the biggest delegate of evil. These bonds that these existences, which Joseph Campbell describes in his book The Power of Myth as “God in the role of destroyer” and “horrific” (1991, p. 278) have with the ‘sublime’, assumes its most visible form with Darth Vader, a character created by George Lucas who was influenced by Campbell’s ideas. Darth Vader is Anakin Skywalker’s own hell. The hellish cave and the river that flows lava where he lived his last moments continue to exist, with all of their terror, inside his mask. Hell envelops Anakin, who believes he has killed Padmé, and leaves behind a weak voice and breathing. At first glance, this voice and breathing, which combine with Darth Vader’s frightening appearance, actually signify the good and the living as parts of Anakin. Lale Kabadayı who states that in cinema, voices have a direct psychological effect on the audience, expresses that the sourceless voice which Michel Chion conceptualizes as ‘acousmatic,’ causes an uncanny mood within the audience (2017, pp. 284-286). Because of this, it is argued that the presence of acousmatic voices is associated with the appearance of evil in cinema. Even though the possessor of acousmatic voice is situated out of the sight of the audience, behind the curtain, Kabadayı draws the attention to various usages of it in this field and states that the image of the sourceless voice can also be obscured by hiding it behind a “mask” (2017, p. 287). As it is determined here, the mechanical voice heard within the mask, gets ahead of its own image and, in Kabadayı’s words, empowers the uncanny image of the ‘dark side of the force’ (2017, p. 287). Darth Vader’s mechanical voice and breathing not only intensify the frightening purview of the black costume, completed by a cape, but also become evil itself. When the watcher who identifies with him hears this voice and breathing, he makes an affirmation of evil. Vader’s laboriously breathing and the music which can be heard as he appears become the leitmotif of evil in the film universe. The watcher who follows these moments, where the meanings have been agreed upon, imitates the evil that the film creates unwittingly, in order to legitimize the suppressed evil in himself/herself. Thus, Darth Vader’s voice finds new bodies outside of the film universe and retains his ideology in real life. As long as the voices of past tragedies exist, they never stop following the person. Even if the imagery is erased, voices that are unbound from time and space drag on through time to find their owner. This condition resembles the distinction between the body and the soul. Even if corporal evil perishes, it persists as an “linking object” (Volkan, 1997). Eagleton, who expresses that evil is a type of existence that is stuck in between life and death, states that the reason why evil is identified with ghosts, mummies, and vampires is that such beings that are neither living nor dead have the potential to signify imaginary evil (2011, p. 110). Darth Vader, whose difficulty breathing and mechanical voice can be heard but whose face and body cannot be seen, is a part of this imagery with his existence between life and death. However, it is possible to associate his voice and breathing, as a symbol of the past that cannot be gotten rid of, with both evil and good. The 46

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undetermined source of his voice and breathing belong just as much to Anakin Skywalker, as they do to Darth Vader. Luke had noticed the faint breathing within Darth Vader and had succeeded in bringing his father Anakin back. While Star Wars is seen to recycle radical mythological narratives, it also makes a comment that is beyond the classical concepts by arguing that the boundaries between good and evil are transitive. The acceptance of the dialectic relationship between good and evil makes up the concept that good and evil cannot be separated from each other with precise lines. Rendering someone partial is done through the dismemberment of the body by cutting off its limbs. This act is not just a psychological ‘castration’, but it is also defined as the ‘deficiency of good’ and shows the aesthetical construction of evil. It can be seen in the films that this approach where evil is always deficient and flawed, is overcome by the inception of a sort of optimism. The understanding of evil, within the frame of the internal conflict of characters, which evolves from physical deficiency to spiritual complexity, gains meaning that is not substantially different from good. What creates the difference is the choices one makes through their own free will. The powerful essence of Darth Vader, who is the embodiment of evil, originates from Anakin. Even though it is a weak breath, Anakin and the good that he symbolizes continue to exist within Darth Vader. Otherwise Vader, being a reflection of the principle of partial existence, will remain a representation of evil who gets determined through negativity. This principle of deficiency is always destroyed by what is present. The film, through characters like Anakin, Ben, Luke and Rey, expresses that humans cannot be just good or evil, but simultaneously be good and evil. There are opinions, which, contrary to the notion that evil is attractive, state that evil is an aesthetic delusion. Eagleton, who states that evil denies the rationality of cause and effect, expresses that it cannot have an objective related to it: Evil as a nonentity is positioned beyond time; evil, in opposition to life in a state of flow and change, is eternally and vapidly the same (2011, pp. 77-78). This approach, which is derived from within classical thought, while remarking the vapidity of evil, states that the tempting allure of it is just a superficial condition of style. Evil, which does not have a true essence and cannot be swept away by emotional confusion, reflects the cumbrousness of emptiness (Eagleton, 2011, p. 110). Yoda enters Palpatine’s room in the film when he is revealed to be a Sith lord that tempted Anakin. In the scene, after Yoda enters the room and Palpatine greets him, there is a short, but long enough to be noticed, pause which is called ‘dead time.’ This pause where Palpatine sits in his chair, doing nothing and simply waiting, shows the vapidity that symbolizes the nature of evil. According to Svendsen, the allure of evil is caused by the mysterious meaning that a person attributes to it. While humanity mistakenly thinks that evil can have a deep and unique meaning, the meaning of evil has certainty that is shallow enough to be noticed at the first glance. Svendsen who gives examples like “persecution, starvation, torture, murder”, expresses that these events find meaning when they are visible; there is no other deeper meaning aside from the obvious reasons and presence of savagery and pain (2010, pp. 26-27). Philip Zimbardo states that, in the case of an act of evil, instead of focusing on the perpetrator’s personal qualities, tendencies and genetical structures, the existence of an outer force who controls that perpetrator’s actions should be in focus. According to Zimbardo, most people unwittingly become an instrument of the role of evil that is designed for them, just like an actor or an actress (2007, pp. vii-viii). Thus, in order to make the true purpose of evil comprehensible, it is necessary to reveal not just the act on the stage, but also the thought that planned the action backstage. In the film, even though the war that Lord Sidious starts has a grand plan to rule the universe, inherently originates from the impulse to take personal revenge. Sidious’ aim is to end the line of Jedi, who have wiped out his own race in the past, by putting an end to their lineage. Accordingly, he attempts to make them suffer through creating unpro47

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portional violence and is personally satisfied from it. According to Fred Alford, evil is not just harming another human being. There is also the urge to fully take control of a person, alongside the thoughts of harming him/her (1997, p. 21). The Sith lord who can read the emotions, thoughts, and intentions, fundamentally puts pressure on the person in front of him/her. The power of evil makes Darth Vader and Kylo Ren have radical delusions from the moment they surrender to it. According to Friedrich Nietzsche’s terminology, this delusion is expressed by power signifying what is good, and weak signifying what is bad (1968, pp. 24-30). Eagleton remarks that power that does not want to accept its own frailty, hates weakness (2011, p. 91). By this understanding, it can be seen that the true aim of characters like Anakin and Ben who go over to the dark side of ‘the force’ is to cover up their own weaknesses. This mechanism of governance and control continues until the different one is completely wiped out. Approaching from a different point of view, Alt expresses that the internal rationale of evil is to continuously multiply itself (2016b, pp. 45-46). Even though Palpatine is one of ‘the strongest’ being in the film universe, he always has a student to do the dirty work and reprimand in the case their failure. In this sense, his aim is not just to achieve malicious goals, but also to use others, govern over them and through this method multiply himself. The gigantic armies that he assembles are the indicators of it. Others lessen while he multiplies. Evil becoming more dominant through quantity causes the good to turn into quiet clutters.

Star Wars and the Struggle With Evil In the film A New Hope (1977), the first of the series, right after the Jawas are slaughtered by Droids who are searching for Stormtroopers, Luke returns home and sees the smoke coming from his home. Afterwards, he finds the burnt corpses of his uncle and aunt in front of the house. The only things remaining is their skeletons. In the film universe, these deaths serve to make the hero leave his home in order for the adventure, ‘the hero’s journey’ to begin. This dramatic deed happens because of the tragic event that the character goes through. In this sense, the traumas that occur in because of evil are seen to be imposed by the plot as a necessity for the transformation that the character will go through. This approach puts forth a theological rule, which states that, in order for good things to happen, it is necessary for the bad to happen before it. While Eagleton accepts that evil can put out good, he expresses that this is not always valid and even if it was, it is not enough to justify the existence of evil (2011, p. 119). Svendsen states that suffering does not make a person more mature and that “suffering is purely destructive” (2010, p. 53). Jean-Luc Nancy too describes evil as “unjustifiable,” and “unbearable and unpardonable” (1994, p. 123). These notions converge on the point that evil cannot, under any circumstances, be accepted as legitimate and excusable. Evil is not right nor an abstract idea to ignore, it should be accepted as a concrete fact that needs to be prevented. In the Star Wars universe, there appears a ‘prophecy’ of the war between good and evil ending and the balance between them being established. Anakin is accepted to be the person to bring balance to ‘the force’. The real aim of the formation of the Jedi is to fight evil, annihilate it, and restore the balance. However, the fight with evil taking priority renders the existence of good as a subject of discussion. Anakin, who is alienated and isolated by the Jedi council, gradually becomes less powerful in his internal war because of such a deficiency. Similarly, Luke Skywalker focuses so much on the annihilation of evil when teaching Ben that, the possibility of failure blinds him to the point that, even for a second, makes him think about killing Ben. The real essence of the struggle is forgotten when the struggle with evil becomes the dominating factor. Especially in the last films, the differentiating between ‘hero’ and ‘dead hero’ shows that the discourse has changed. The thought of ‘fighting whom we hate,’ can be seen to

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evolve into ‘saving those we love’ in the final films. The sanctity of one’s duty in the prior films, which is seen as more important than one’s life, leaves its place to the sanctity of human life in the latter films. Thus, the fight against evil turns into the prerequisite for the existence of good. Even though a divine goal is seen to be more important than everything, a humanist manner that adopts notions such as friendship, sharing, and love against evil is seen to be displayed against evil. In this sense, the ‘sharing of suffering’ appears to be one of the ways to resist evil. While drawing a universal frame regarding the perception of evil through ‘resemblance’, Russell states that any scream prompted from suffering will be heard by the whole of humanity, disregarding temporal and spatial distances (1999, pp. 13-14). This concept defends that, the existence of just ‘one’ person in the world, wherever he is, is enough to fight against evil. Sufferings, caused by evil, is contagious. It effects not only the one who is subjected to evil, but everyone that loves him/her and has close ties with him/her. Thus, everyone who has a connection to ‘the force’ in the films can feel great pain with a disturbance in ‘the force’. This companionship is determinative in pain transforming into conflict. While one of the factors that determine evil behaviors is argued to be genealogy, the others are sociological and political factors that are described as environment like family, friends, social structure, and institutions. One’s state of mind is viewed to be the third factor. Destructive that are emotions are hidden in one’s unconscious to unexpectedly appear as one’s ‘shadows’. This approach foresees that, the deeper these shadows are hidden, the stronger that they will resurface themselves. Macfarlane states that evil, which he describes to be mysterious, veiled, and incomprehensible, possesses shadowlike qualities, which is why it is associated with the night, darkness, and black (1993, p. 125). Even though shadow is an echo of reality, it is also, what obstructs the true essence of reality from surfacing. Consequently, the nature of shadows indicates a structure of things that is different than what is seen. In this sense, bodies that appear with masks are defined as a shadow of a real identity. Peter-André Alt observes that because of its evil qualities, the devil is embodied as something that is repulsive and detestable in the Middle Ages. This distinctiveness of its appearance is recomposed to hide the devilish qualities with the Renaissance. Real identities and places remain hidden and shrouded in mystery (Alt, 2016b, pp. 55-56). In old discourses where the devil would possess someone to make him/her commit evil acts, evil is seen to be in an inward orientation. With the case of Anakin, however, evil is made be coming into view from within. Evil, is hidden in humans. Consequently, it is impossible to judge him superficially, as it is with the representations of the devil. The ever developing spiritual complexity of evil, regardless of the fact that it has lost its exterior qualities, draws attention as an element of danger (Alt, 2016a, pp. 156-157). This change primarily be seen in literary works, and the surreal figures found within nature myths, leave their places to morbid acts, heresy, and flaws that can be determined anthropologically (Alt, 2016a, p. 18). Contrarily, in the film, it is easy to distinguish imaginary evil. However, for this to come true, evil first needs to crawl out of its hiding. Evil that is translocating from exterior to interior, meaning from the body towards the soul can only be determined through introspection. Alt expresses that, with the Enlightenment, the aesthetic experience happens through knowing oneself, in practical terms (2016c, pp. 24-25). This condition shows that the relationship between art and morality is strong. In the film, when those who have the skills reach ‘the force’ with their eyes closed, good and evil simultaneously appear. The most concrete indicator that is associated with the good shows itself as this connection between ‘the force’ and the individual. The individual, who becomes one with ‘the force’, achieves peace through the feeling of possessing its knowledge. Evil, however, is somewhere much deeper. Every Jedi who comes in contact with ‘the force’, experiences the dark side of it to face their desires and fears within. Being connected to evil means facing its allure, 49

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which caters to suppressed desires. Evil calls from within the dark in a mysterious and inviting manner. If an individual chooses the dark side, evil comes out and disguises itself. In this sense, the dark side of ‘the force’ reflects change rather than coalescence. Jung states that, instead of suppressing emotions, evil or not, knowing and understanding them can help to control evil acts (1998, pp. 83-84). So long as it is unconscious, evil, which has a potential to mislead an individual through the power of whispers, shows it true face in the range of awareness and loses its allure. In this sense, in the Star Wars universe, ‘facing evil,’ is determined to be one of the ways to fight it. Michael Ryan and Douglass Kellner, who analyze Star Wars through the lens of political ideology, draw attention to how the films are just as revolutionist as they are conservative: While the films try to conserve the values of the past, they are motivated by the negative conditions such as the economic recession, military setbacks, and the crisis of confidence within the leadership (1997, pp. 360-361). From this point of view, Star Wars is shown as a film that signifies the failure of liberalism in American society, and one that reflects the fears of the society. The government that Palpatine is the president of, described to be either liberal or socialist, is a figure of evil because it represents restrictions regarding personal governance and freedom (Ryan & Kellner, 1997, p. 360); And President Palpatine is a metaphor of evil that this distrust creates. As for the new conservative thought that tries to compensate for the conflict that the liberal system creates, is presented as a symbol of revolutionist resistance against government and tyranny. Zimbardo points out that, having personal and social awareness regarding political goals is one of the ways to fight evil. In this sense, being wary of the elected leaders’ search for power and reflexively developing mechanisms that prevent the use of excessive power and protect the society from the harms of adhibitions are necessary. The political tyranny that is established on individuals reveal the evil within the Star Wars universe as described by Hannah Arendt. In line with this, evil materializes not because of an individuals actions, but because of the killing of individuality. According to Arendt, in totalitarian societies where concepts such as free will and personal conscious have lost their purpose, the value assigned to humans are nullified; thus, everyone either has the potential to become an aggressor or a victim (1994, p. 261). In the film, evil characters such as Count Dooku, Darth Vader and Kylo Ren are portrayed as characters who turn into victims when a stronger replacement for them are found. The ‘mask,’ which becomes integrated with Darth Vader, is used as a metaphor that signifies the killing of individuality. The removal of the mask, which means the characteristics and thus individuality and free will of an individual coming into focus, is portrayed as a symbolic act in the fight with evil. FN-2187/ Finn who is ordered to kill innocent civilians, ‘thinks’ about what he is doing for a moment. This gap that contains a moment of inertia sparks a favorable transformation. Svendsen states that, differentiating between good and evil is not a matter for the personal conscious, but rather for the state (2010, pp. 145146). Thus, making humans numb towards evil through destroying societal sensitivity, from a political and moral perspective, threatens factors like personal responsibility and critical thinking. In totalitarian societies where there is no norm that is greater than the will of the leader, no order given by the leader can be questioned and personal decisions are seen as betrayal. Disobedience has a potential to rock authority to its foundations, as it does not recognize it. Therefore, Svendsen remarks that the refusal of obeying orders is a potentially powerful weapon (2010, pp. 161-162). The film follows the same idea by disturbing the system of evil within the chain of command and condemn it to defeat. Hannah Arendt states that normal people, in situations where distinguishing right from wrong is impossible, can unintentionally commit an offense and expresses how this occurrence of evil can be so commonplace by the concept of “the banality of evil” (2012, pp. 281-282). Questioning the concept of ‘banality’, Zimbardo attempts to answer the question of how people turn into passive practitioners by 50

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deactivating their minds and wills. Drawing attention to organizational structures like families, schools, places of worship, workplaces, and the military and states that these places present various roles to the individual (2007, pp. ix-xiv). These roles become part of their identity in time and defines their whole existence through moving it outside of these places. From this perspective, it seems like there is no escape from the ideological structure that surrounds humans and forces various roles onto them. On the topic of overcoming evil, Kant states that even if one person gives it their all, he/she cannot be successful and salvation is impossible without divine assistance: According to him, what he labels as exact freedom is a gift from God (1960, p. 62). However, these approaches that see evil as a practical problem assign an active role in the fight against it. These roles become much clearer in thoughts that effect a person’s choices and the motivations that spring him/her into action. The first of these approaches, which is “thinking as opposition” (Svendsen, 2010, p. 187), puts forth thinking as a way to fight against Hannah Arendt’s ‘banality of evil.’ In actions that Arendt classifies as common evil, the perpetrator is guilty because he/she did not use his/her capacity to comprehend, did not show the courage to think for him/herself and instead just followed orders, or rather, chose to follow orders. Here, the focus of attention is the direct relationship between evil and the lack of knowledge. Instead of obeying orders without question, evil can be overcome by listening to one’s conscious (Svendsen, 2010, pp. 199-201). Even if it has different causes, the evil characters in the movie like Darth Vader, FN-2187, and Kylo Ren can be seen to switch over to the light side by listening to their conscious. Svendsen who associates guilt and remorse with morally knowing oneself, expresses that the thoughts caused by these feelings can create a preventative mechanism towards evil acts, acts occurring or to occur in the future (2010, pp. 190-191). The configuration of the plots of films also affirms this approach. Another approach that confronts ‘the banality of evil,’ can be explained by Zimbardo’s concept of “positive banality” (2007, p. 483). According to Zimbardo, just as how “the violent, destructive actions of perpetrators” are manifestations of evil, “dissent”, “disobedience”, and “failure to act” are also variations of it (2007, p. 314). Here, Zimbardo describes a new kind of hero who takes action. In line with this, “heroic actions” are not just done by people who have outstanding skills granted to them by their genes, people who possess super powers, or people who are special because they assumed the role of guarding the good. It is stated that, ordinary people who take action necessitated by the conditions he/ she is in can also prevent evil through his/her actions. “This perception implies that any of us could as easily become heroes as perpetrators of evil depending on how we are influenced by situational forces” (Zimbardo, 2007, p. 486). Expressing that there is a “decisive moment” in these situations, Zimbardo thinks that the hero myths and images fabricated by societies assume the role to send society a message by choosing to do the right thing when that moment comes (2007, p. 487). In this context, it can be said that the mythical and imaginary hero archetypes that films like Star Wars reiterate are sources of inspiration for societies to make their own heroes. This approach adds another mission to these films that are categorized as ‘escape cinema.’ When evaluating from the specific case of Star Wars, it can be seen that, aside from the main characters, many side characters do not remain inactive when faced with evil and gain various achievements by acting heroically, no matter the cost. In The Force Awakens (2015), FN-2187/ Finn’s refusal to obey orders and choosing not to use his gun shows that there can be a transition from ‘the banality of evil’ to ‘positive banality.’ This act, which starts as a personal rebellion but then reaches the magnitude of mass resistance in later films, shows itself to be a new weapon against the dominant power by transforming into a positive behavior against ruthlessness and complacence. Founded upon the teachings of the Jedi and located at the foundations of the opposing Republican discourse, it can be

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understood that choices of action or inaction regarding issues like ‘helping others’ and ‘preventing others from being harmed,’ are determinant in the standings against injustice and barbarism. Another way to prevent evil is the type of action, which Alenka Zupančič’s conceptualizes as “ethics of the lesser evil” (2000, p. 86). This approach which depends on a Leibnizian notion of “a lesser evil is a kind of good” (2007, p. 131) comes to infer the prevention of anything which starts as good that can lead to evil. Ben Solo’s training, which starts as Jedi training, is sought to be ended precisely because of such a worry and fear. However, the film argues that in such a case, no good is even a subject of discussion. Ben Solo going over to the evil side and becoming Kylo Ren and Luke, whose temple is destroyed and with his feelings of failure, retiring to a place where no one can reach him shows that this idea does not find a place in the film’s discourse. Kearney, based on Paul Ricoeur’s “critical philosophy of action”, puts forth an approach which renders the transition to ethical action through overcoming evil by allowing for the distinguishment of good and evil in a three staged process of “practical understanding”, “working-through”, and “pardon” (2003, p. 100). “Practical understanding” verbalizes the attempt to describe evil from the frame of human mind’s limitations by moving it from theory to practice. Fictional narratives reflect evil, which is an abstract concept, as concrete acts in line with narrational imagery. Fictional figures that are created through a critical and skeptical approach allows the making of a more comprehensible, but not complete, description of evil. This approach presents evil as an assignment to be overcome and suggests taking action against it (Kearney, 2003, pp. 100-101). Cinema narratives are important in creating an opportunity to re-experience and reevaluate the current biases by visualizing abstract and hard-to-understand phenomenon in a real situation. When the phenomenon in question is evil, it can be seen that evil has been put forth as a point of conflict that necessitates struggle throughout the history of cinema through methods such its embodiment or making the evil within person’s soul visible through various actions. The concept of ‘working-thorough,’ however, remarks that evil is not “just something we struggle against,” but also “something we undergo” (Kearney, 2003, p. 103). Against evil, the feeling of powerlessness that can be caused by one accepting their passivity is as good as gone when it is described as something that needs to be struggled against. However, only focusing on the struggle means ignoring the negative effects of evil. The concept of ‘working-through,’ accepts the “traumatizing effects” of evil and attempts to work through to consume it (Kearney, 2003, p. 103). In the struggle against evil, this approach shows a point where practical comprehension is not adequate. However profane it is made to be, at the moment of encounter with evil, the person is caught off guard. Meeting evil drives one to melancholy. Melancholy itself leads to other evil. This can be prevented through the “work of mourning”. Mourning has a cathartic effect and as long as it ensues, it allows for the purification of people. “Alienation” that is caused by evil, in the process of mourning, changes into “acts of revolt” and “self-renewal” to then disappear. Kearney who states that narratives have an important use in this topic, argues that the visitors of evil can be brought back to life through narratives of mourning (2003, pp. 103-104). Mourning processes in Star Wars that draw attention being short and sloppy, is caused by the concept of duty being in focus. This shows that the films do not find the process of mourning to be effective against the terror that evil creates. Emphasizing action and struggle constantly, the film prefers active and heroic deeds rather than passive resistances like mourning. According to Kearney, mourning allows one to cope with evil, even if it does not completely eliminate it. Kearney who assigns an important task to narrative, also accepts that narrative, aside from being an “ethical resistance”, cannot salve the pain that is caused by evil (2003, p. 104). Consequently, it can be seen that films justify ‘counter violence’ as a radical solution.

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The practice of ‘working-through,’ is important because it makes evil opposable. Narrative catharsis model also helps in impairing the allure of evil. ‘Pardoning,’ which is the third practice, means to give the perpetrator of evil “marvel of a once again” (Kearney, 2003, p. 105). Pardoning carries importance when regarding the resurfacing of evil from the past and preventing cycles of vengeance. However, according to Kearney, because “the possibility of forgiveness (…) surpasses the limits of rational calculation and explanation,” it is seen as a “marvel” (2003, p. 105). Kearney states that narratives, because of their cathartic effect, can make forgiveness possible. However, this infers the forgetting of the past. On the contrary, remembrance gives more meaning to forgiveness because it makes one comprehend what he/ she is exactly forgiving (Kearney, 2003, pp. 105-106). Through characters that go over to the dark side of ‘the force’ like Darth Vader and Kylo Ren, Star Wars questions the possibility of the transformation from evil to good from frame of the act of ‘pardon’. According to Zimbardo, good and evil are natural parts of the daily reality and there is no clear boundary between them (2007, p. 3). Rather, there exists a permeable structure that allows for both to turn into the other. Zimbardo, while accepting the possibility of evil turning into something that is good, he also draws attention to how difficult such a change is in practice. In any case, something good turning into evil is much more plausible. Stating that evil spreads easily, Zimbardo remarks that a person can easily be tempted because of their goals and needs and defends that, a small step is enough for this to be realized (2007, p. 208). Zygmunt Bauman explains this anthropological notion regarding evil by reminding the concept of “Nagasaki syndrome”: “What has been done once can be repeated over again, with ever weaker reservations” (2011, p. 142). Bauman writes that, this depiction of evil that occur more easily the more it is repeated, will also be in a state that is more devoid of feelings. It is hard to break free from the thought of evil that has embedded itself in one’s sense of self because of these repetitions. While the connection one has with evil gets stronger with each repetition, the hope for forgiveness also lessens. The amount of people this ever-spreading evil comes in contact with increases. Forgiveness, which is a personal act, loses its meaning. Because every individual who is exposed to evil has the right to forgive individually. It takes three films to turn Darth Vader into a good person again. The watcher sees him as good one again when his mask is taken off and feels sorry for him. This scene causes the watcher, who imagines him/herself in a similar position, to leave his/her personality aside or identify with it, revealing his/her inner evil, regret, and remorse. Like an absolution, this scene attempts to purify Darth Vader. Even at the face of such a marvelous moment, Darth Vader is still responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people, regardless of if they were children, women, young, or old, and the pain that is caused by these deaths. What allows him to overcome his selfishness and save Luke is the love that is based on kindred ship, which is traditionally connecting. Causing the deaths of millions of innocent people, whatever the reason might be, is not something to be forgiven when considering from the perspective of real life instead of a fictional character from a film. The same false notion is valid for Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. The film, within the frame of a father-son relationships, shows the contradiction within forgiveness. The love originating from kindredship, being the marvelous factor in forgiveness causes Luke to forgive his father, Darth Vader, and Han Solo to forgive his son, Kylo Ren. Rey, however, who forms a more divine bond through ‘the force’ with Kylo Ren, sees the good in Kylo Ren whom she sees as a monster and thinks that he should be forgiven. The events transpire in line with Rey’s intuition and Kylo Ren, taking the hand in front of him, turns towards to light side of ‘the force’. However, it is impossible for Kylo Ren, who has caused tens of innocence suffer like his grandfather Darth Vader, to live like this. Thus, it can be seen that forgiveness handled as a symbolic aspect in the film. Regardless of his transition to the dark side, the evil that Kylo Ren has committed acts as an obstruction against Kylo Ren establishing a 53

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normal relationship and consequently, continue his existence in a concrete way. Star Wars asserts that forgiveness, which is seen to be necessary for purification, is not enough for staying alive and the films have to kill Anakin and Ben even though they are once again on the light side of ‘the force’.

CONCLUSION Star Wars builds a universe of aesthetic where good overcomes evil, love overcomes hate, the impulse to live overcomes the impulse to die, and democracy overcomes autocracy and totalitarianism. In the process of realizing this, however, instead of trying new ways, it reiterates the mythological cycles of narratives of evil. The film, which sees the conflict between good and evil as a natural element of life, asserts that evil, and consequently its struggle will not end, but there will always be good. In popular American genre films, few of the molds like the approach of ‘the good always triumphs’ or ‘evil is doomed to fail,’ which are accepted as the norm by the watcher because of their continuous reiterations, can be seen in every film of the series. While this understanding does not present a realistic perspective to the reader regarding evil, it attempts to legitimize war by putting forth an approach of historical progressivism that causes the evil acts committed to be immediately forgotten. While war is imposing itself as a way to fight evil, the suffering that is caused by going after the perpetrators is forgotten. Because finding the person responsible or the source of evil, punishing, and eliminating him/her will make society feel relief, it can be seen that the general tendency in the films is focusing on the search for the perpetrator. Thus, evil as an act is beyond the interest of the watcher. Overcoming evil is as enjoyable to watch as the magnitude of it. Victory, fictional or not, brings the readers new motivations about the real life struggle with evil after they leave the theater. However, this motivation also aids the watcher’s tendency to run away from his/her own reality. In the Star Wars universe, there is no room for coincidences. Everything happens in the chain of causality that classical narrative has built. This approach, where the banality within the flow of life is ignored, handles evil not within the frame of the suffering it has caused, but within the frame of abstract ideas. Just as how cinematic abstraction has negative qualities like taking a concept from the plane of reality and carrying it over to a plane of surreal meaning, it also has positive qualities like strengthening the concept through creating new designs associated with it and allowing for a new perspective. Cinema is as important as how much it makes violence, which has lost its meaning collectively, visible through the tragedy of an individual. Instead of making an abstract concept like evil visible through an individual’s tragedy, it puts forth an ontological notion about the boundaries between good and evil being unclear. It makes a theologically outweighing inference regarding evil being the responsibility of humans with the moral dilemmas that determine a person’s tendencies and behaviors and the concrete detections regarding how choices affect flow of life. Even though it dooms evil to defeat, when choosing its own heroes, it insists on its view that ordinary people have a role to play in the struggle. Parallel to the generation of watchers who followed the films, the characters undergo change. However, the struggle with evil remain at the center of the Star Wars universe. On the subject of overcoming evil, even though it takes a superficial path, it can be seen that the film retains a philosophical argument in its undertones and attempts to revise its discourse regarding evil.

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FUTURE RESEARCH AND DIRECTIONS The 20th century signifies a period where evil, which is gaining mass visibility through communication devices, is being resurrected. Even if they are not from the perspective of tangible experiences, images of evil that are being perceived as reality from the media are becoming a part of the flow of life. This rise which disrupts the order of the universe and redefine the boundaries of evil brings an old dispute back in the limelight. In this dispute, there is a humanist stance against people who regard evil as a sign of a healthy society, and consequently think it is necessary to continue its existence, that contains one’s struggles to deem his/her life meaning. Evil, which is a tangible concept that people encounters throughout their life, should be made inoperative exactly because of this reason, because it is ‘meaningless’. The struggle to give evil meaning, with the intent to legitimize it, while creating an unrequited hope regarding the continuation of live, causes the disregarding of the fact that every living person has a contribution to evil. Evil as a notion that is associated with the nature of cinema has to exist for good to triumph. Cinema is founded upon a state of balance named as ‘happy ending’. Evil rises and good, which exists as a potential, moves to eliminate it. The boundary where evil is eliminated is the point where the film ends. In this sense, cinema takes the role of good and exploits the existence of evil to make itself whole. Just as how cinema is effected by daily experiences, it also has the potential to effect them. Because of this, cinema represents a fluid relationship where evil is visible, finds meaning, and transforms to join daily experiences. Thus, it not only creates aesthetic designs regarding evil, but also ethical designs. Nevertheless, can it be said that the reality that cinema creates is as effective and determinative when it comes to moral attitudes in this day and age where television and especially internet makes the most extreme versions of evil visible and form a much more direct relationship with the watcher? Could a person, who is responsible for almost all of the evil that he/she encounters, have used up all of the ways to fight against evil through cinema at the present time which is named the Anthropocene Era? These questions waiting to be answered can be the topic of other research and studied, however, what is certain is that where evil ends, the need to establish ‘a new cinema’ will arise.

REFERENCES Alford, C. F. (1997). What Evil Means to Us. Cornell University Press. doi:10.7591/9781501720512 Alt, P.-A. (2016a). Her Şeyin Başlangıcı: Şeytanın Düşüşü ve Kötünün Doğuşu (S. Yücesoy, Trans.). Sel Yayıncılık. Alt, P.-A. (2016b). Aydınlanma ve Psikoloji: Şeytanın Yeni Marifetleri (S. Yücesoy, Trans.). Sel Yayıncılık. Alt, P.-A. (2016c). Karanlık Ruhun Arkeolojisi: İçimizdeki Kötülük (S. Yücesoy, Trans.). Sel Yayıncılık. Arendt, H. (1994). İnsanlık Durumu (B. S. Şener, Trans.). İletişim Yayıncılık. Arendt, H. (2012). Kötülüğün Sıradanlığı, Adolf Eichmann Kudüs’te (Ö. Çelik, Trans.). Metis Yayınları. Augustine, S. (2019). Confessions (T. Williams, Trans.). Hackett Publishing Company. Bataille, G. (2004). Edebiyat ve Kötülük (A. Sönmezay, Trans.). Ayrıntı Yayınları.

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Baudrillard, J. (2011). Çaresiz Stratejiler (O. Adanır, Trans.). Boğaziçi Üniversitesi Yayınevi. Bauman, Z. (2011). Collateral Damage: Social Inequalities in a Global Age. Polity Press. Campbell, J., & Moyers, B. (1991). The Power of Myth. Anchor Books. Changeux, J.-P., & Ricoeur, P. (2013). Neden Nasıl Düşünürüz? Etik, İnsan Doğası ve Beyin Üzerine Bir Tartışma (İ. Birkan, Trans.). Metis Yayınları. Connolly, W. E. (1995). Kimlik ve Farklılık. Siyasetin Açmazlarına Dair Demokratik Çözüm Önerileri (F. Lekesizalın, Trans.). Ayrıntı Yayınları. Eagleton, T. (2006). Kuramdan Sonra (U. Abacı, Trans.). Literatür Yayınları. Eagleton, T. (2011). Kötülük Üzerine Bir Deneme (Ş. Bezci, Trans.). İletişim Yayınları. Farago, F. (2011). Sanat (Ö. Doğan, Trans.). Doğu Batı Yayınları. Güney, M. (2004). Metinlerle Felsefeye Giriş. Karahan Kitabevi. Jung, C. G. (1998). Psikoloji ve Din (R. Karabey, Trans.). Okyanus Yayıncılık. Kabadayı, L. (2017). Star Wars’un Akusmatik Sesleri. In S. S. Serter (Ed.), Star Wars Sinemasi Okumalari (pp. 283–317). Dedalus Kitap. Kant, I. (1960). Religion within the Limits of Reason Alone (T. M. Greene & H. H. Hudson, Trans.). Harper Torchbooks. Kearney, R. (2003). Strangers, Gods and Monsters, Interpreting Otherness. Routledge. Klein, M. (1997). Envy and Gratitude and Other Works 1946-1963. Vintage. Leibniz, F. G. W. (2007). Theodicy: Essays on the Goodness of God, the Freedom of Man and the Origin of Evil (E. M. Huggard, Trans.). BiblioBazaar. Macfarlane, A. (1993). Kapitalizm Kültürü (R. H. Kır, Trans.). Ayrıntı Yayınları. Murdoch, I. (2000). İyinin Egemenliği (T. Gülal, Trans.). Ayrıntı Yayınları. Nancy, J.-L. (1994). The Experience of Freedom (B. McDonald, Trans.). Stanford University Press. Neiman, S. (2002). Evil in Modern Thought, An Alternative History of Philosophy. Princeton University Press. Nietzsche, F. (1968). The Will to Power (W. Kaufmann & R. J. Hollingdale, Trans.). Vintage Books. Russell, J. B. (1999). Şeytan, Antikiteden İlkel Hıristiyanlığa Kötülük Tasarımları (N. Plümer, Trans.). Kabalcı Yayınevi. Russell, J. B. (2001). Mephistopheles, Modern Dünyada Şeytan (N. Plümer, Trans.). Kabalcı Yayınevi. Ryan, M., & Kellner, D. (1997). Politik Kamera, Çağdaş Hollywood Sinemasının İdeolojisi ve Politikası (E. Özsayar, Trans.). Ayrıntı Yayınları.

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Schopenhauer, A. (1966). The World As Will and Representation (Vol. II; E. F. J. Payne, Trans.). Dover Publications. Svendsen, L. (2010). A Philosophy of Evil (K. A. Pierce, Trans.). Dalkey Archive Press. Volkan, V. D. (1997). Bloodlines: from ethnic pride to ethnic terrorism. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Werner, C. (2000). Kötülük Problemi (S. Umran, Trans.). Kaknüs Yayınları. Zimbardo, P. (2007). The Lucifer Effect, Understanding How Good People Turn Evil. RandomHouse Trade Paperbacks. Zupančič, A. (2000). Ethics of the Real: Kant, Lacan. Verso.

ADDITIONAL READING Baudrillard, J. (1993). The Transparency of Evil: Essays on Extreme Phenomena (J. Benedict, Trans.). Verso. Girard, R. (1989). The Scapegoat (Y. Freccero, Trans.). The Johns Hopkins University Press. Hick, J. (2010). Evil and the God of Love. Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/9780230283961 Lara, M. P. (2007). Narrating Evil: A Post-Metaphysical Theory of Reflective Judgment. Columbia University Press. doi:10.7312/lara14030 Ricoeur, P. (1969). The Symbolism of Evil (E. Buchanan, Trans.). Beacon Paperback.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Darth Vader: The name that Anakin Skywalker assumed after switching over to ‘the dark side’ when he was a Jedi who was thought to bring balance to ‘the force’. Force: The universal energy between humans, nature, and objects found in the Star Wars universe as the source of both good and evil. Star Wars: The science fiction series that discusses the eternal war between good and evil and consists of nine films (1977-2019) as of now, belonging to American producer George Lucas.

ENDNOTES

1



2

The study includes the nine films (Star Wars: Episode I-IX, 1977-2019) that are a part of the main series, the films Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Han Solo: A Star Wars Story that are centered around side characters have been excluded. See Deleuze, G. (1997). Cinema 1 The Movement-Image (Trans. Tomlinson, H. & Habberjam, B.). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press; Deleuze, G. (1997). Cinema 2, The Time-Image

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3 4



5

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(Trans. Tomlinson, H. & Galeta, R.). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press; Frampton, D. (2006). Filmosophy. London: Wallflower Press. “A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away...” American writer Joseph Campbell’s book by the same name, where he analyses the hero archetype in mythological narratives, is one of the sources of inspiration for George Lucas, the producer of the Star Wars series. Amidala resembles ‘Amygdala’ which is a cluster of nuclei located in the brain which controls the emotion of fear.

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Chapter 5

Blurred Borders Between Good and Evil in Today’s “Lesser Evil World”: The Witcher as Book, Game, and Netflix Series Tülin Sepetci https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2584-4333 Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Turkey

ABSTRACT The series of The Witcher discussed in this study stems from book series written by Andrzej Sapkowski. It started as a set of short stories in the 1980s. As short stories became very popular, full-length books were published in 1993. The most heard of The Witcher series was the digital game adaptations that was released since 2007 and lastly as TV series on Netflix in 2019. The story of The Witcher series is about a witcher named Geralt of Rivia. Geralt on the journey of evil hunting is narrated to the audience in a fantastic way. Although Geralt is an anti-hero fighting evil in the series, he himself stands on a very fine line between good and evil. This situation is noticeable not only in the main character of the series, but also in other prominent characters and reflects “the lesser evil” phenomenon throughout the series. From this point of view, The Witcher series, which conveys how the boundary between good and evil, can be transitive and relative and has been discussed through the concept of lesser evil.

INTRODUCTION “Evil is evil. Lesser, greater, middling, makes no difference. The degree’s arbitrary, the definition’s blurred. If I’m to choose between one evil and another, I’d rather not choose at”.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch005

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Geralt of Rivia Since the existence of humankind in the world, people have always faced situations where they has to choose between good and bad. In a virtually morally perfect world, no one would have encountered much of such difficult choices. If everyone were completely conscientious and good, most of the difficult and tragic choices would not have arisen. Even if all the people in the world were bad, hard choices in this style would not enmeshed people in dilemmas. In particular, to prevent someone else from doing anything worse, the individual would never have to decide whether they should choose the lesser evil behaviour. Unfortunately, we do not live in such a perfect world. There are good and bad, and a person’s choice of the good or bad option leads her/him to be qualified as the same, that is, good or bad (Hill Jr., 1983, p. 213). With greed, evil, jealousy, pride or some other emotions, people are ready to commit the most disgusting crimes against other people. Goodness and evil come across to the individual everywhere, spreading all areas of life. The media industry also loves and supports products containing classical narratives, because the classical narrative, which set off from the struggle between good and evil, has always been the lifeline of the media industry. People like to see that good people get what they deserve, while bad people are punished in news, movies or books. However, especially in recent years, the boundaries between good and evil have blurred in movies and TV series, and bad characters has been brought more to the fore with different aspects. For instance, although characters such as Joker in Batman and Loki in the movie of Thor play the villain, they are loved at least as much as the hero of the movie, and perhaps even more. While the Walter White character in Breaking Bad, which is a very popular tv series liked by everone, is a “very good man” at the beginning of the series, becomes a person who can be described as “bad” later in the series. On the other hand, it is noteworthy how a character with “bad” qualities like Jesse Pinkman differs in the later parts of the series. Therefore, the distinction between good and evil is not as sharp as before, perhaps because the postmodern narrative is also more exposed to media products. From now on someone who is known as good can do bad things; what is known as bad can win the hearts of the audience due to their justified reasons. Sometimes, the individual can find himself/herself in a situation where s/he has to choose from more than one bad option at the same time. The fact that the individual who is known as good has to choose lesser evil in order not to choose the worst brings with many moral debates. From this point of view, this study will try to explain how the boundary between good and evil is blurred with examples from the The Witcher series, which has already taken the concept of “lesser evil” to the center of its story. Starting from the books, there are many events in The Witcher series that are based on a combination of good and evil, and that someone who is thought to be good can do unexpectedly bad things. On the other hand, whether The Witcher, which is popular with the book, then the game, and finally with the Netflix series, differs in the presentation of the good and evil, lesser evil in different channels, and if there is a difference, the reasons will be discussed.

THE CONCEPT OF LESSER EVIL The concept of lesser evil, which is a component of Christian thought (Lang 2007, pp. 18–41), is also found in the work of Epicurus and Aristo (Molloy, 2009, p. 100). However Spielthenner (2010, p. 140) 60

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argues that the concept of lesser evil needs further clarification because its logic is not well understood. Therefore, trying to explain lesser evil reasoning correctly can cause confusion and controversy for many researchers. Aristotle sees the choice of lesser evil, which can form the basis of moral judgment, as part of politics (Molloy, 2009, p. 97). According to Epicurus, when an evil is not done deliberately, it convinces the individual that it is good compared to a greater evil, so that the individual follows it. For Aristotle, the subject is more complicated because lesser evil is the second best option. Aristotle distinguishes between conditional and unconditional benefit and uses the term conditional good to express what is indispensable and the term unconditional good. Conditional good is actually just the choice of lesser evil. That is why lesser evil is good for Aristotle, because lesser evil is always chosen more than greater evil. What is more worthy of choice is good, and what is more valuable is better (Molloy, 2009, p. 100). The concept of “lesser evil” is viable to any choice between alternatives. It may indicate to certain actions or to overall systems. According to Marxist tradition, the concept has commonly indicated to decisions on whether to give short-term tactical support to bourgeois political ideology. However, the essential argument for a “lesser evil” approach may appear at widely varying levels of generalization. It may be used to argue for tactical back off or reconciliation of threats to a movement’s survival. It may be used in defending a united front with particular bourgeois parties against repression or in favor of progressive social policies (Wallis, 2010, p. 119). A basic trap to be fudged in lesser evil reasoning is to lock an individual in a box with two alternatives (Spielthenner, 2010, 145). This mistake in reasoning is supported by the nature of lesser evil reasoning because it proposes that the individual compare two alternatives and then choose the better one. If the individual applies lesser evil judgement, s/he does not tend to think much about new options. S/he assumes that knows all the alternatives and consequently takes many of her/his decisions from a narrow set of options. But there are almost always more alternatives, and being unable to identify them is an error in reasoning. There is something to tell in this study to reference “lesser evil” sense. Harry Truman seemingly evaluated his decision to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in lesser evil way. It was clearly an evil, a wrong to many innocent people. On the other hand, Truman thought the Japanese leadership, would otherwise refuse to surrender, causing the deaths of much more people than would be killed by the bombs. The problem, was set up by the Japanese leaders that they were wrong to bomb Pearl Harbor and would be wrong to continue the war at great cost. By forcing an immediate surrender, dropping the bombs seemed to him a justified lesser evil (Hill Jr. 1983, 213). “Lesser evil” is everything that is justified in an undeserved situation, sometimes in a deserved situation. However, the complementary reason of the lesser evil is circumstances including the greater good obligations. The greater good obligations in tough situations such as war or disaster times can provide a persuasive explanations for inexplicable issues (Rodin, 2017). In short, if a person confronts with more than one bad situation and has to choose one of them, s/he had to choose “lesser evil”. For example in rescue cases, when one chooses to let one die in order to save several others, one is choosing the lesser evil (Blum, 2010, p. 40). In other words, it is the difference between the specific effects of any evil action and the general effect of a lesser evil action. In the end, weighing and evaluating the two situations with subjective judgments, given the uncertainty factor, the lesser evil is speculative and often leads to wrong characterization by other people (Blum, 2010, pp. 45-46). 61

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Each person has the capacity to choose an action, which causes the least harm, and moral behavior stems from trying to choose among several possible actions the one that is least evil (Molloy, 2009, p. 101). However, determining what is a lesser and what is a greater evil understands how to proceed in the knowledge that the truth cannot be known. According to Minow (2005, p. 139) the truth will be deflected by “felt necessity in the moment of perceived danger”. It is widely believed that acting on lesser evil justifications is morally optional, unless there is some inequality of harms (Frowe, 2018, p. 479). In one sense, lesser evil concept is an integral element of defensive behavior of the individuals. This subjective understanding of the “lesser evil” principle differs from the classical imperative, which justifies actions that save what is better among the trivial things. It is also different from the classic understanding of forcing that offers an excuse regardless of the greater or less harm when a person is not a threat. Essentially, lesser evil can be understood as drawing a line that requires less than fulfilling “necessity”, while drawing a line that requires more than just “forcing” (Blum, 2010, p. 13). So how does someone who has to choose lesser evil behave? First of all s/he faces with evil options and choses lesser evil; in fact s/he acted to prevent imminent harm; expects a reasonable relationship between his/her own actions and prevention of harm; there isn’t any other legal alternative choices to avoid harm and lastly the situation that required the choice of lesser evil was not caused by his/her own negligence or indifference. (Blum, 2010, p. 32). In a lesser evil situation avoided greater evil must be “significant”. As long as choosing the lesser evil provides greater benefit to the society, lesser harm justification of lesser evil is fulfilled (Blum, 2010, p. 37). Although the ideal in Aristotle’s conception of the lesser evil is to avoid excess and deficit, he underlines that since to hit the mean is hard in the extreme, individuals must choose the second best, take the least of the evils (Molloy, 2009, p. 110). In the case of choosing the lesser evil, the cost-benefit analysis, which is the core of the reason for that choice, depends on who or what is taken into account and how much it costs. Determining what constitutes lesser evil requires an analysis within the scope of need defense. Necessity defense does not clearly distinguish between actions of decision-makers designed to protect the interests of the individual and actions designed to protect the interests of others. For example, what should be considered to justify the violation of the laws of war, that is, how much lesser should the lesser evil be to justify humanitarian necessity. Therefore, a strict pragmatic approach is in line with a “de facto utilitarian framework” that tries to increase the benefit of society. At this point, there may be a negative approach to decisionmakers in choosing lesser evil. Therefore, the question that should be asked is whether people who are faced with lesser evil selection status will be better or worse than decision-makers in assessing risks and possibilities in emergencies and crisis situations (Blum, 2010, pp. 60-62). It is easy to judge, but no one can guarantee that a different decision will be made if the same situation remains. Many people consider the position of choosing one of two bad options as an extreme and ethical problem. The point to focus on here is the question of whether there is a justified way of doing lesser evil to prevent someone else doing a greater evil. If lesser evil is really justified, the person who does it never feels any hesitation from his/her action. Even if there is no clear line showing that a lesser evil choice is justified, at least the reasons and moral thoughts against those who oppose the lesser evil can be explained more clearly (Hill Jr., 1983, p. 214). Therefore, there is a lot of controversy over whether a person should choose the lesser evil or not. The most discussed point is that a person should not do or choose lesser evil even if it is “lesser”, because lesser evil is evil howsoever; and man should never do or choose evil. This argument is literally 62

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the most basic problem in lesser evil. Defining it as a situation in which it is necessary to do a “lesser evil” to avoid a “greater evil” situation, of course, cannot solve all moral questions. This means that preventing someone from doing something seriously wrong, is normal and lesser wrong kind of action at first glance. The person still has two choices, doing something to prevent the greater evil or standing by and letting it happen and watch; one cannot assume that action is worse than inaction; and so one must understand that the “lesser evil” is an act of commission rather than an omission does not imply that standing by is morally preferable. Of course, “lesser evil” would not have a place in a morally perfect world, but whether it is wrong to do is still an open question (Hill Jr., 1983, pp. 215-216) and unfortunately, we live in a world that is very far from morally perfect. Nevertheless the ubiquitous evil does not require the abandonment of ethics, but in itself produces the conditions for universal ethics; so lesser evil’s ethics. Real moral guilt is only valid if the individual chooses greater evil than the two evil options (Molloy, 2009, p. 100). So why do people react so harshly to “lesser evil”? It is best to find the answer to this question in the sharpness of the good and bad separation that exists in the human mind. All cultures try to make sense of the world, and ways to make sense of the world are universal. The meanings are cultural and often gratuitous. The meanings are based on a system of categories that depend on their relationship with other categories in the same system, and they all have systems for combining categories to make culture-specific explanations. The point that Levi-Strauss draws attention is these categories. Because the categories are the essence of creating meaning for him and he explains the focus of this process with the structures he calls “binary opposites”. In binary opposition, everything is in certain categories, and the process of making sense takes place by applying the world to these categories (Levi-Strauss, 1990). While the human brain produces an infinite amount of binary contrasts, which are separated by certain lines, in nature there are comparable continuities rather than certain categories. For example, there are no precise lines separating the darkness from the light or between the seasons. There is a successive continuity between them. According to Levi-Strauss, there are illegal categories among these opposing categories that bear the characteristics of both categories (Fiske, 2003, p. 154). The extraordinary categories have a lot of meaning because they take their features from both sides because they emerge from nature and culture. In general, they are considered in the category of “taboo” or “holy”. The extraordinary category is the category that is between two different categories where the limits are very strict. In this sense, good and bad correspond to binary oppositions, while lesser evil corresponds to the extraordinary category.

THE WITCHER SERIES The Witcher is a set of fantasy world inspired by the works of Polish author Andrej Sapkowski. According to a survey conducted in 2012, among the fans of fantastic literature, The Witcher is one of the undisputed best fantastic works written by Sapkowski. With the international success of the first computer game based on the series in 2007, the popularity of the series on abroad has increased (Guttfeld, 2017, p. 78). The Witcher world is available to all of the fans, now an extensive franchise, launched by a series of twelve short stories featuring the title character, then published in book form in two volumes, with one more story short forming a narrative frame. Between 1986 and 1993, short stories have been published, adapted for a series of comic books and a RPG (Role-Playing Game). Furthermore, between

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1994 and 1999 Sapkowski published five-volume series of novels, and it followed by another RPG, a film and a TV series. The interest in The Witcher series continued between 2007 and 2015 with three computer games. There are also other outcomes of the series, which are card games, board-games, and another series of comic books. Especially the computer games helped the author gain popularity in worldwide (Guttfeld, 2017, p. 82). In creating the character of The Witcher in his original short story Wiedźmin, Andrzej Sapkowski distanced himself from the common fantasy and fairy tale hero types (Dzięcioł-Pędich & Pędich, 2017, pp. 51-52), and he created Geralt of Rivia who can be called both hero and antihero. Many examples of choice of between two evils show up in Andrzej Sapkowski’s The Witcher series. In fact, lesser evil is like a whalebone concept of The Witcher Series including the books, RPGs and television series. Why is it such a prominent concept of these series? Actually “lesser evil” is value conflicts per definition. If lesser evil is presented well, they raise awareness to the general values or principles. Lesser evil choices increase empathic concern of the audience and let the audience create their own meanings.

LESSER EVIL IN THE WITCHER BOOKS The “lesser evil” phenomenon, which also inspired the games and television series, is frequently seen in the books of The Witcher series. Last Wish is the second book in The Witcher series in the publication order. In this book there is a wizard called Stregobor. The audience can meet him in Netflix series too. Stregobor lives in Kovir and he is a servant of King Idi. He helps with the Brother of Sorcerer’s Council efforts to learn about afflicted girls. Because they believe the mutant girls “would have drowned entire countries in blood”. Killing the mutant girls is a though quest, so they lock the girls up in towers. Queen Aridea’s stepdaughter Renfri was born with the same illness. Queen thinks that many people can die because of her stepdaughter. Stregobor reveals that she is really a mutant. Therefore, he wants her to keep in a safe place, but the Queen wants to kill her and hires someone to do it. But Renfri manages to kill him and escape (https://witcher.fandom.com/wiki/Stregobor). Essentially, a degenerated version of the Snow White fairy tale can be seen here, and again a reference to the intertextuality of the postmodern narrative is required. Years pass, and the roads of Renfri and Stregobor cross many times. Finally, Stregobor asks Geralt for help. Despite Geralt’s negative feelings for the wizard because of their past relations, Stregobor still asks him to kill Renfri. He explains his justification with lesser evil. However, Geralt does not accept his offer because he thinks the woman has his own reasons. Stregobor: Please Geralt. Geralt: No, Stregobor. Stregobor: Geralt when we were listening to Eltibald, many of us had doubts. But we decided to accept the lesser evil. Now I ask you to make a similar choice. Geralt: Evil is evil, Stregobor. Lesser, greater, middling, it’s all the same. Proportions are negotiated, boundaries blurred. If I’m to choose between one evil and another, then I prefer not to choose at all.

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Stregobor: Witchers are famed for using the law of suprise to steal more children so that they may create more of their kind. A small price to live? Hardly! Both prices are steep. Your existence forces people to choose the lesser evil, do not be so arrogant as to think you are above such a decision (Akagi, https:// www.docdroid.net/1fswwlJ/the-witcher-a-lesser-evil-script-pdf). On the other hand, when Geralt finds Renfri, the conversation between them can be shown as an example of lesser evil selection. Renfri is one of the characters that is also seen in Netflix series. Unlike in the series, a much more flirty conversation happens between the two. For example, in the book, Renfri smiles and crosses her legs while talking to Geralt, but does not need to cover her calves. However, Renfri is a proud and warrior woman in the series. As in the case of Renfri, many characters in the book are in a blurry line between a good and a bad person. The ex-princess Renfri is both an innocent victim of torture and persecution, and a heartless murdering mutant. In the book, Renfri claims that she always suggests the best possible solution, “lesser evil,” rather than choices to turn the place upside down. Renfri: Geralt, did Stregobor ask you to kill me? Geralt: Yes. He believed it was the lesser evil. Renfri: Can I believe you refused him, as you have me? Geralt: Yes. Renfri: Why? Geralt: Because I don’t believe in the lesser evil (Akagi, https://www.docdroid.net/1fswwlJ/the-witchera-lesser-evil-script-pdf). Ironically, Geralt says he does not believe in the lesser evil, but the lesser evil choices follow him throughout the series. In the continuation of this dialogue, Renfri justifies Geralt in a way. She says there is evil and there is greater evil; but pure evil lies in the shadows. Pure evil is unimaginable, and according to Renfri, pure evil necessarily captures a person and forces him to choose either itself or lesser evil. In addition, she says that the individual does not choose lesser evil, pure evil forces her/him to do so. Geralt tries to persuade Renfri for a peaceful solution after this speech. Therefore, Renfri will able to prove everyone that she is not a cursed sinister mutant. In addition, everyone will see that there is unfairness to Renfri. In fact, the blurring of the boundaries between good and evil is also shown through a character in this situation. While those who accuse Renfri because of her actions are right from their own perspective, Renfri is right from her own perspective as well. Renfri emphasises that giving up revenge does not mean Stragebor is right. At the end of this incident, Renfri is killed by Geralt, as in the Netflix series. But he does not let the wizard touch the body of Renfri. His moral values come into play and make the readers/audience experience once again the dilemma of if Geralt is a hero or a ruthless hired killer. There is no good or evil, as everyone involved in Renfri’s tragic story, including Renfri herself, is evil. All Geralt can do is choose between evils, and in the end receives no prize or recognition. The townsfolk see the destruction Geralt caused and stone him. Geralt is never sent off with applause and gratitude like traditional heroes.

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Figure 1. Covers of The Witcher Book Series: https://comicbook.com/gear/news/the-witcher-books-arebuy-2-get-1-free-on-amazon/

LESSER EVIL IN THE WITCHER RPGs Like the novels on which The Witcher game is based, the lesser evil choices within the game are meant to portray a world where morality is not clear, where ambiguity and the consequences of one’s decisions are unknown. Instead of presenting a classic narrative codes choosing between good and evil and following the “right” way, the RPGs of The Witcher let players find and make their own meaning with the world depicted in the game (Chen & Toole, 2007). The games of The Witcher series generally have a tendency to make players make ethical decisions. At the lesser evil point, the player has to make one of the choices in which alternatives are always “bad”. It should not be forgotten that Geralt often helps the souls rest in peace. Therefore, the player should fulfil their obligations. So the players’ most important duty is fulfilling their obligations with the goal of protecting The Witcher’s fantastic world from “evil” (Tamm, 2019, p. 36). Situations in a game are motivational factors that lead players to play that game. In the games of The Witcher series, players often find themselves in a fantasy world full of challenges and skirmishes when they need to choose one of the two evil situations. Bostan (2009, p. 1) states that the variables in the Witcher game satisfy player motivation in a broader scope by offering ways to satisfy the relationship between the psychological needs of the players and the game environment and keeping in mind the basic components of targeted behavior. If the player is not blamed or criticized for his actions during the game, it becomes more difficult to justify the need to avoid accusation, opposition and defense, because this is the critical component of social interactions. Therefore, if the player is directed to make a choice in the game, s/he should not be blamed or criticized for her/his actions. Freedom of the player in the selection is an important requirement of the game and supports interaction. But ultimately, the player’s decisions will inevitably violate a moral value. The march of events puts players in a complex situation where many small decisions make important differences (Stevenson, 2011).

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In general, choices in digital games are polarized between the dark side and the light side, or evil and good. When players have to choose good or evil, it is an easy decision for them. However digital games provide an alternative world where making mistakes or choosing the the wrong path choices can be fixed by reloading a previously saved game. However, The Witcher series force the players to follow another path. The Witcher games are full of lesser evil choices and those kind of choices are more interesting. They have both positive and negative aspects. They cause players to doubt themselves. They make leaving a sense of regret, much like choices in life. It can be concluded that choices in computer games are also meaningful as long as there is a relationship between the player’s actions and the system’s outcome. Players should not be blamed or criticized for choices that do not affect the virtual environment or actions that are ignored by characters experiencing that world. However, player choices have a meaningful impact on the virtual world of The Witcher RPGs and its inhabitants (Bostan, 2009, p. 17). The Witcher RPGs have the grey, not black or white, variational choices and the perceivable impact of these choices on the each unit of the game. Especially plot points involve serious moral choices and appearence and behaviors of the game characters distinguishes the game from others. The stereotypes of the popular culture products do not often seem to appear. On the other hand, Geralt of Rivia, the protagonist of The Witcher series, is usually criticized or blamed for his choices by the other characters of the game. Sometimes he evaluates and judges his decisions and choices as well. Because everyone in the game has different moral judgments, he does not know what his moral and ethic values should be. In The Witcher RPGs, players can see effects of their actions and choices in the game and this allows players to make their own internal assessments (Bostan, 2009, p. 14-16). Therefore, the game mechanics allow players to make complex choices that enable the game to satisfy a wide range of psychological needs (Bostan, 2009, p. 12). For example, if a player chooses the “lesser evil” option, it is because they are more concerned with the immediate effects. This mechanism may promote bias deliberation, instead of reducing it. Hence Katsarov et al. (2019, p. 359) suggest that “to mitigate this risk, the dilemma would need to be presented in a way, which fosters empathy for all involved parties, and which sensitizes players to the potential biases, or in combination with feedback”. The Bloody Baron story in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt game is one of the most obvious events of the lesser evil. As Geralt continues to search for Ciri, his path falls to Crow’s Perch, where Ciri had been seen. In exchange for the help of the Bloody Baron he met there, he asks him to find his lost daughter and wife. His wife recently disappeared mysteriously. Baron did everything to find them, but his efforts remained unrequited. Geralt accepts his offer and begins his research. During his research, he realizes that there is something wrong. He learns from a village wizard that the Bloody Baron is a drunken and violent man, beating his wife while drunk, and that is why his wife had a miscarriage. Because of this event, the soul of the child who is not properly buried turns into a creature and haunts the Bloody Baron. In fact, this deadly creature that haunted Baron can be used for good purposes. If the curse is lifted, the creature becomes a humane home protector. This situation can lead Geralt to the missing daughter and wife of the baron. At this point, the game offers the player a selection mechanism. Geralt will either kill the creature, or the body of the creature will be buried in the castle. If it is buried in the castle, the curse will be broken. Geralt goes to talk to Baron so blinded with anger. Baron admits during a discussion under Geralt’s force of sword, that his wife had a miscarriage and his daughter had escaped. Geralt decides not to help the Bloody Baron because he is lying, but the Bloody Baron threatens him not to give information about Ciri. Geralt has to accept the offer. Here, the choice of choosing a lesser evil choice among the options between killing the cursed baby and burying it under the threshold of the castle is up to the player. 67

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The wife and daughter of the Baron did not run alone, a fisherman helped them. Geralt goes to the fishermen’s hut, learns that the cruel monsters attacked the two women while they were running away and that Baron’s wife was kidnapped into the forest. The wife of the Bloody Baron was detained and cursed by the swamp witches. Lesser evil comes into play in this event where the player is forced to make a moral and conscientious choice. The player is given two options regarding the wife of Bloody Baron: Witches will release the woman, but in return, they ask Geralt to kill another creature. Geralt finds the other daughter of Bloody Baron living in the city. The other daughter escaped from her father, made a good life for herself. She does not want to see her father. She even asks Geralt not to help her father, saying that he is a very bad person who beats both his mother and herself. At this point, the game allows players to have a voice in Geralt’s choices, often giving them the chance to choose one of the two bad options. On the one hand, a bad baron and his wishes; on the other hand is the way to reach Ciri. The game allows the players to make this choice and continue the path according to their own choices. As mentioned above choosing good or evil one is the easy part; but players often fall into something “lesser”. Generally, in games, players are challenged either cognitively or physically, while in The Witcher RPGs, players are challenged by moral values as well. Geralt having to make decisions in various situations can have negative consequences. This form of challenge is neither physical nor cognitive, but rather a dilemma the player must choose (Eriksson, 2016, p. 27). Even though Geralt’s rightful justification is to save the spirits, the players still have to judge theirselves once again. They have to struggle with every decision, because there is no right answer and no one can be sure which choice is the lesser evil. Regardless of their choice, they may have to face the people affected by that choice on the road or at the end of the road. Therefore, in The Witcher games, every player can reveal their own meaning from the game and this is what the postmodern narratives expected to be. Figure 2. Covers of The Witcher RPGs: https://collider.com/the-witcher-explained/

LESSER EVIL IN NETFLIX SERIES The Witcher, which started on Netflix in 2019, has become a work that has become very popular with Henry Cavill’s leading role, even there are lots of people who do not know the books and games. Actor

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Henry Cavill’s resemblance to the Geralt typage in the game has been discussed on many platforms. The former regulars of the series agree that The Witcher is mostly compatible with books and games, unlike productions like Death Note, which is disappointing for its fans. However, there are still minor differences between books and games and the series. For example, in the books and games of the series, almost all female characters have a purpose to have a relationship with Geralt, whereas in the Netflix series, a romantic relationship is seen only with Yennefer, the made woman. It is also possible to associate this with the conservatism, which has increased worldwide in recent years and is supported by the media. On the other hand, it is seen that many of the female characters, which are in the foreground in the games, are in the background and almost faint. The biggest example of this is Triss. Triss is one of the main character of the games and books unlike in the Netflix series. Instead of Andrzej Sapkowski’s West Slavic people, actors of different races play in the Netflix series. It is necessary to discuss whether the producer, who says that they intend to add the best actors to the series regardless of race, or the media contents that stand out with different races, which have become a trend in recent years in the media. Apart from these, moral dilemmas and the blurring of the boundaries between good and bad come to the fore in the Netflix series too. Of course, there is not a harsh narration as much as in the book and in the RPGs, but there are still events that can be cited as an example of lesser evil. One of the events in which the lesser evil option came out in Netflix series is the golden dragon Villentretenmerth, also known by the human name of Borch Trzy Kawki. It also appears in one of Sapkowski’s finest works, Granica Możliwości. Dragons are a rare and solitary creatures; Villentretenmerth is one of the most precisous beings in The Witcher world. With the help of Geralt and his companions, the dragon survives and receives his prize to continue its lineage. Moreover, Geralt gets a chance to accompany to love of his life on the dangerous road (Dzięcioł-Pędich & Pędich, 2017, pp. 51-52). So what is the beginning of this story? Geralt and his companion Poet Dandelion come to a pub one day as they continue their hunting adventure for money. A number of men meet at the bar invite them to the dragon hunt. Geralt does not lean towards dragon hunting, because Geralt does not normally kill creatures that do not harm humans. For this reason, unlike many similar heroes of other games and books, he does not kill any creatures that do not attack or harm someone/something. Geralt does not hurt the dragons because they do not attack humans for no reason and the dragons are extinct. However, Geralt has to go with them since Yennefer also joins in this hunt. An old man and two women who look like amazon women join them as well. Along the way, Yennefer struggles to Geralt’s envious behaviors and words. At the end of the adventure, it is understood that the Golden Dragon is the old man who has been with them since the beginning. Golden Dragon does not harm Geralt since he does not have a bad purpose unlike the others. The Golden Dragon defines Geralt as the “true man”. This event is both in the book and Netflix series, but not in the game. However, in the dragon hunt story, lesser evil is more prominent in the book while the relationship between Yennefer and Geralt is more prominent in the series. This story also reflects Geralt’s dilemma between good and evil. Ultimately, Geralt is a monster hunter and a hired killer who kills for money. In a world where killing for money is considered “bad,” Geralt tries not to kill any creatures for pleasure. Even if someone does that for pleasue, he stands against her/ him. Thus, he destroys the “bad” perception attributed to those who kill in exchange for money. Since he cannot be considered as a “good”, he turns into a lesser evil. Geralt’s lesser evil choices turn him into a lesser evil as an antihero.

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Figure 3. Covers of The Witcher Netflix Series: https://thewitcher.fandom.com/tr/wiki/The_Witcher_(Netflix)

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Lesser Evil Characters of The Witcher Series The witcher Geralt is a mutant, professional monster hunter with no roots and a clear past. He meets new people and he often finds himself in difficult situations. At critical points, he has the option to choose good or bad sides, but he can also stay neutral and abandon or ignore people and conflicts (Bostan, 2009, p. 17). Generally, Geralt receives the call to adventure in a situation of normality and initially refuses the call. Because he is a professional monster hunter, he is often motivated by money rather than heroism. His character is ready and willing to perform the task if the money is right. This reverses many of the common types of the conventional heroes. Geralt is the type of a character who believes in a clear definition of what is good and evil and who, if faced with such a decision, would not commit acts he seems to be evil. It is easy to accept this characterisation of Geralt as it is being presented to us through content of media in classic narratives. Though Geralt is a character who does not believe there is something called lesser evil, he has to choose the lesser evil of the two options throughout the series. Sometimes he decides to do something, he would consider evil. Sometimes he is presented with a decision where committing a so-called evil act would result in something good. In content, which does not allow interactivity such as books or series, the reader or viewer has to settle for whatever is presented to them. However, in the RPGs players take on the active role of Geralt and can affect change within the game world. The player becomes Geralt himself and is “given the power to decide in his stead how to act when faced with certain decisions in the game, many of which influence the narrative of the game and carry with them a moral aspect related to that narrative” (Tamm, 2019, p. 1). Sapkowski presents the witchers as a rare and dying profession, so is Geralt. He is so to say that isolated even from the other characters (Dzięcioł-Pędich & Pędich, 2017, pp. 51-52). However, his isolation allows him to interact more easily with the excluded characters of society. He interacts with different kind of people and creatures such as the elves, the dryads, the dwarves. In short, he is in relationship with many people and creatures of different races or different species. Media content, driven by the capitalist bourgeois ideology, likes privileged heroes who are snobbish and arrogant, but acting as if they are not. Geralt is out of the usual heroic character category because he maintains his everyday relationships with excluded or ordinary people in The Witcher universe. He is out of the usual heroic typing, because he does his work not under the category of favor, but mostly for money. With this aspect, it sets an example for Levi-Strauss’ out of category person. Furthermore, it is a situation that supports gray rather than black or whites in postmodernist narrative. As one of the main characters in the The Witcher series, Yennefer draws as much attention as Geralt. In fact, especially in the Netflix series, Yennefer is a very dominant character and sometimes even moves ahead Geralt. Playing with the time-flow frequently used in the postmodern narrative is also seen in this series. By showing the audience, what Yennefer lived in the past, gains meaning to the future. Yennefer, who was born as a humpbacked in the book, is also portrayed with an ugly face in Netflix series. Yennefer’s family send their daughter to the sorcerer school, because they think she cannot marry with a man because of her humpbacked in the book. Her parents use violence to their ugly-looking daughter Yennefer. It can be said that there are serious problems in passing of Yennefer’s story to audience and the reasons why Yeneffer went to the sorcery school. Yennefer is not just a magician, she also wants to be beautiful and gets beauty in return for a big price. She will not be able to become a mother in her entire life. However, towards the end of the series, it is felt that she started to experience the regret. In the book and the game, it is seen that she tries to eliminate the desire for motherhood by protecting Ciri. 71

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On the other hand, she is ready to cooperate with all kinds of evil in order to recover what she lost. She is constantly hurt, as she wants to take the resentment of her motherhood, which she lost because of her tragic childhood, her perception of beauty imposed by the world with her own conflicting sides. It is never satisfied. Even she falls in love with Geralt, she does not hesitate to deceive him. According to Hill Jr. (1983, p. 224), even the best person naturally feels some hate or anger if s/he is forced to choose between evil choices. If everyone in the world were ready to do what she or he had to do, no one would have chosen lesser evil, in other words evil, even it is lesser. Anyone who has to choose lesser evil at any time in their life, especially someone with a conscience, may have to change her/his life in a way s/he finds disgusting, because someone was not willing to make her/his choice and play her/his role. Being forced to do what one’s best instincts hate to do naturally upsets someone, especially when the problem is only relevant to what can be easily avoided because others do not do what they have to do. Feeling such anger is natural and understandable in people who depend on moral values. Forgiving and overcoming anger may be ideal, but one can never truly forgive if s/he is injured by her/his own choice, as in Yennefer case. Even if Geralt does not believe in lesser evil, he often finds himself in this dilemma. However, Yennefer is happy with being evil and doing evil things. The dilemma of who is good and who is bad, which has become a trend in movies, series etc. in recent years, is also in the case of Yennefer. The audience cannot know where the limits of evil and good begin and end. On the one hand, there is Yennefer, who does not hesitate to sacrifice her friends in the sorcerer school for her own benefit. On the other hand, by showing the physical and psychological violence that Yennefer suffered by his family in the past, it is absolutely stated that the evil has a history of victimization. Therefore, Yennefer, like Geralt, finds herself in The Witcher series as a character that cannot be called good or bad.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS In today’s world, media contents with bordered and sharp corners are not so popular. Postmodern narratives continue to shape the content of movies and serials as well as branches of art such as architecture, sculpture, and painting. In this context, intertextuality is also at the forefront of this type of contents. Therefore, more studies are needed to conduct in order to reflect postmodern narratives and intertextuality to media contents. Audience-based and reception studies should also be conducted in terms of the role of narratives in this style and their sectoral and psychological effects on the series and movie contents.

CONCLUSION The Witcher series have become a huge success in worldwide. There are comic book adaptations, films, a television series, a card game, RPGs and lastly Netflix series. Part of the popularity of The Witcher series is the common theme of moral ambiguity. There is always uncertainty in any given decision or behaviour of the different characters, including the main characters, is the right or wrong choice. Indeed, throughout the all series, Geralt faces lots of morally ambiguous choices where it is not clear who the monsters are or/and what the evil is.

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The Witcher world is united in the constant conflict between groups of different purposes that cannot be coexist. The characters are not black and white, light and dark, most of time full of grays. Entering The Witcher world involved making a series of interesting and hard decisions about which factions to fight for. The audience, who makes their own internal comparison against events in the books or series, decides and actively implements their own decision in the game. This turnes the players into a reluctant hero, or an anti-hero of sorts. In the case of books and series audience/readers everyone knows what’s going on in their inner world (Molloy, 2009, p. 101). One may at times need to choose “a lesser evil” to fight a greater evil (Minow, 2005, pp. 137). The world that human beings live in is a flawed world characterized by the prevalence of evil. Therefore, what is necessary is the discovery and implementation of imperfect values based on the moral roots of the lesser evil, the appropriate normative context for the ethical codes of behavior in everyday life (S. Chen, 2008). The Witcher series offers situations that make people think about their personal morals, just like in real life. However it is not about teaching moral ethics in a didactic way, but it tells that everybody is right from their own perspectives. Everyone can somehow choose a “lesser evil” which can be considered “evil” by someone else. “Lesser evil” choices can also have unpredictable costs at the end. On the other hand, a proper assessment of these payment of prices should take into account not only the directly affected individuals, but also the impact of the existence of the society on the world (Wallis, 2010, p. 125). In addition, they can sometimes be prevented in a way that no one would consider in a morally perfect world. One should choose one of the bad options; s/he may find her/himself in the terrible dilemma between doing lesser evil or allowing others to do something greater evil (Hill Jr., 1983, p. 213). It is possible to see this in all contents in The Witcher series. However, at the lesser evil point, there is a smoother transition than books and games in the Netflix series. In most cases, there is no guarantee that lesser evil will prevent greater evil. Likewise, it is even more difficult to make sure that lesser evil behavior is necessary to prevent greater evil. Moreover the moral quality and consequences of the lesser evil seem to be more tolerable today than many other negative decisions. According to Hill Jr. (1983, pp. 222-223) the ideal moral individual would not have been able to live a morally pure life, but of course they would. For this reason, even if the individual is right for choosing lesser evil, lesser evil selection is always a possible source of frustration and regret. This disappointment and regret is like the reflection of the mood of today’s world. It is conveyed to the audience with postmodern narratives, in which the results of lesser evil choices of heroes that do not fit in any category are expected to lead to worse results. After all, the world is now the world of gray heroes and lesser evil, with blurred boundaries. Although Geralt’s profession is perhaps a profession that can be considered evil, he performs this profession within the framework of lesser evil with his own criteria and border lines. As a matter of fact, the fact that heroes are stuck between lesser evil and great evil, which is frequently encountered in postmodern narratives, seems to continue to be seen in media contents.

REFERENCES Akagi, R. (n.d.). The Witcher: A Lesser Evil Script. Retrieved from https://www.docdroid.net/1fswwlJ/ the-witcher-a-lesser-evil-script-pdf

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Blum, G. (2010). The Laws of War and the Lesser Evil. The Yale Journal of International Law, 35(1), 1–70. Bostan, B. (2009). Player motivations: A Psychological Perspective. ACM Computers in Entertainment, 7(2). Chen, M. (2008). Moral Ambiguity in The Witcher. E-Learning and Digital Media, 5(3), 358–365. doi:10.2304/elea.2008.5.3.358 Chen, S. (2008). A Question of Morality. Edge Online. Retrieved from http://www.edge-online.com/ blogs/a-question-morality Chen, S., & Toole, A. (2007). Narrative Design and The Witcher. The Writers Cabal Blog. Retrieved from https://writerscabal.wordpress.com/2007/11/29/narrative-design-and-the-witcher/ Dzięcioł-Pędich, A., & Pędich, M. (2017). Constructions of the Other in Polish Fantasy Literature. Crossroads. A Journal of English Studies. doi:10.15290/cr.2017.18.3.04 Eriksson, J. (2016). Violence or Challenge? Determining factors for conflict resolution in RPGs. Bachelor Degree Project in Media Arts, Aesthetics and Narration 30 ECTS Spring term. University of Skövde. Fiske, J. (2003). İletişim Çalışmalarına Giriş (S. İrvan, Trans.). Bilim ve Sanat. Frowe, H. (2018). Lesser-Evil Justifications for Harming: Why We’re Required to Turn The Trolley. The Philosophical Quarterly, 68(272), 460–480. doi:10.1093/pq/pqx065 Guttfeld, D. (2017). Fantastic neologisms in translation: Creature names in Professional and amateur renderings of Sapkowski’s Witcher series into English. Między Oryginałem a Przekładem., 23(36), 77–96. doi:10.12797/MOaP.23.2017.36.05 Hill, T. E., Jr. (1983). Moral Purity and The Lesser Evil. The Monist., 66(2), 213-232. Katsarov, J., Christen, M., Schmocker, D., Tanner, C., & Mauerhofer, R. (2019). Training Moral Sensitivity Through Video Games: A Review of Suitable Game Mechanisms. Games and Culture, 14(4), 344–366. doi:10.1177/1555412017719344 Lang, A. F. Jr. (2007). Morgenthau, Agency and Aristotle. In M. Williams (Ed.), Realism Reconsidered: The Legacy of Hans J. Morgenthau in International Relations (pp. 18–41). Oxford University Press. Levi-Strauss, C. (1990). The Naked Man Introduction to a Science of Mythology (Vol. 4). Harper & Row. Retrieved from http://www.google.com.tr/books?hl=tr&lr=&id=vJ4hy6tf Minnow, M. (2005). What is the Greatest Evil? [Review of the book The Lesser Evil: Political Ethics in an Age of Terror, by M. Ignatieff]. Harvard Law Review, 118, 2134–2169. Molloy, S. P. (2009). Aristotle, Epicurus, Morgenthau and the Political Ethics of the Lesser Evil. Journal of International Political Theory., 5(1), 94–112. doi:10.3366/E1755088209000342 Rodin, D. (2017). The Lesser Evil Obligation. In S. Bazargan & S. C. Rickless (Eds.), The Ethics of War: Essays (pp. 28–46). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199376148.003.0002

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Spielthernner, G. (2010). Lesser Evil Reasoning and its Pitfalls. Argumentation, 24(2), 139–152. doi:10.100710503-009-9158-7 Stevenson, J. (2011). A Framework for Classification and Criticism of Ethical Games. In K. Schrier & D. Gibson (Eds.), Designing Games for Ethics (pp. 36–55). IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-60960-1201.ch003 Stregobor. (n.d.). In Witcher Wiki. Retrieved from https://witcher.fandom.com/wiki/Stregobor Tamm, L. S. D. (2019). Ethical Decision-Making in Video Games: Implementing Video Games as a Tool for Experiencing Ethical Theories (Unpublished Thesis Master of Science Interactive Digital Media). University of Dublin. Wallis, V. (2010). Lesser Evil as Argument and Tactic, from Marx to the Present. Socialism and Democracy, 24(3), 119-129.

ADDITIONAL READING Cavendish, R. (1975). The Powers of Evil in Western Religion, Magic and Folk Belief. Routledge. Pelinka, A. (2017). Politics of the Lesser Evil. Routledge. Sapkowski, A. (2018). Blood of Elves (The Witcher). Orbit.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Geralt of Rivia: Protagonist of The Witcher series. Lesser Evil: Making a relative moral choice by choosing the lesser bad of the two bad choices. Netflix: Paid television platform broadcasting via internet. Out of Category: Levi-strauss’s qualification used for binary structures that cannot be included in any category. Postmodern Narratives: Postmodern narrative is a form of narration that is characterized by the use of metafiction, unreliable narration, self-reflexivity, intertextuality. Postmodernism: Associating a text to another text and connecting similar or related content of media/literature. Witcher Series: A fantastic novel series written by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. Yennefer: Sorcerer, one of the leading female characters in The Witcher series.

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On Witches and Chic Evil: A Psycho-Sociological Analysis of The Love Witch Octav Sorin Candel https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4472-5754 Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Iasi, Romania

ABSTRACT The Love Witch is a 2016 American film directed by Anna Biller. It tells the story of Elaine, a witch whose lovers happen to die one after the other. The film presents itself as a feminist view on gender roles and the dichotomy of femininity/masculinity. In this chapter, the author discusses the idea of evil and how it is portrayed in the film. Sociological and psychological perspectives are presented. The analysis shows that the main character can be viewed as a societal deviant or as a person struggling with a traumatic past, thus explaining her behavior that can be attributed to evil. Nevertheless, the film presents a novel view on feminine evil, showing that it is different, and it should not be compared with the masculine one.

INTRODUCTION Modern society changed evil, from a solid and distinguishable phenomenon into an insidious and disorganized matter that flows indiscriminately through space and time (Bauman & Donskis, 2016). However, people are still interested in the image of evil and are still trying to understand it. The nature of evil has been a hot topic in films regardless of their era. Despite this interest, evil does not have as many faces as some would believe. The marginal, the weird or the psychopath are some of the archetypes of villainy, usually portrayed in the forms of drug dealers, disfigured killers or individuals who, at the surface, resemble us, but underneath, they are not like us. This creates a strong dichotomy between good and evil, one that reflects poorly on various real-life problems (Hills, M., & Schneider, 2007). If one thinks about horror movies, the evil takes even fewer forms. Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, Leatherface, and all the other standard slasher villains are similar, inhuman foes. Their cognitions are universally the same, their emotions are rarely a matter of interest and their motives are clear. They are oversimplified DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch006

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characters, usually possessing only one defining trait, their lust for murder (Norden, 2007). Another trait that most horror movies “big bads” share is their gender. For each Mrs. Voorhees, there are dozens of male killers and for each Samara/Sadako, there are countless other male ghosts or demons. Women are underrepresented as horror movie villains, but when they appear, they are usually portrayed in more complex manners. This chapter proposes an analysis of a female villain, Elaine Parks form 2016’s The Love Witch (Biller). She is a witch who moves to a new town after the death of her husband. Soon, all the men she meets start falling in love with her with deadly results. We consider that the film and its main character propose a different aspect of evil, a more humane one, with a strong psychological interpretation. The evil discussed here is charismatic but deadly, soft, but also scary. It is more than the “point of weakness” (Ricoeur, 1967, p. 254) that leads to the fall from the Garden of Eden. It is more complex and, through its characteristics, significant for our society. Firstly, the characters (and the movie) are viewed through larger, sociological lenses. The second part of the analysis narrows its purposes and presents the psychological motives behind evil. The third part is dedicated to an analysis of gender roles and how gender is portrayed throughout the movie. Finally, the last chapter discusses the personal meanings of evil.

A MODERN TRAGEDY WITH A THROWBACK STYLE The Love Witch presents the story of Elaine, a young woman searching for a fresh start. She moves to a new town, renting a room in a Victorian mansion. There she meets Trish, an interior decorator who takes care of the house. After a brief discussion, Elaine proposes her main goal that of finding a man who is perfect for her, who wants to love her and be loved by her. This proves to be easy because soon men start falling in love with her regardless of whether they are married or not. The twist is that Elaine is a witch, specializing in love (or sex) magic. However, she was not always a witch. She had a husband who left her and then died in a mysterious way. Heartbroken after his betrayal, she met a coven of witches who taught her magic, thus offering her a new purpose in life. The first man that falls for Elaine is Wayne, a university teacher, who takes her to his cabin in the woods. There, she gives him a drink tainted with hallucinogenic drugs. After spending the night together, Wayne becomes extremely anxious and emotional and dies from a heart attack. Next, Elaine seduces Trish’s husband, Richard. He also becomes obsessed with her, which determines Elaine to end the relationship. Soon, he commits suicide. Wayne’s death does not remain unnoticed and puts a detective, Griff, on her tracks. However, he also falls in love with her. Their involvement is short because Griff finds some evidence linking Elaine to the previous deaths and tries to arrest her. Upset that no man can ever love her enough, Elaine stabs Griff to death. The film was well-received by critics, who particularly praised its style. Using bold color pallets, lavish costumes, and set design, it is a throwback to the cinema of ’60 and ’70. However, the film is more than style over substance. It was named an important example of the female gaze (Garvey, 2017) as it proposes a woman’s vision (through its director, its main character and its spectators) on its main themes. The Love Witch speaks about gender dynamics and gender differences. Women and men are mostly portrayed as incongruent. Their desires, expectations, and behaviors are different. Throughout the movie, they rarely get to know what others want. The characters see the world through some very thick lenses, they adhere to rigid gender norms and thus they become conflicted. In a way, this misunderstanding 77

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of gender and its role acts as the cause of all evil. However, this idea also needs a face and that face is Elaine, the titular love witch. Elaine is definitely a murderer and the movie does not try to hide this from the viewer (there is no mystery regarding her involvement in the men’s deaths). But is she really evil? This is one of the main questions arising throughout the film. Which are her motives? Why does she kill the men? All of these are thought-provoking questions showing that Elaine is a complex character. In the subsequent parts of this chapter, we will see how society would consider Elaine to be a deviant. Also, we will try to see how her psychological profile makes her actions easier to understand, but not excusable. In the end, she is a character that kills and loves, a fascinating dichotomy that is worth discussing.

THE SOCIOLOGICAL NATURE OF EVIL To grasp the nature of evil from a sociological standpoint, we first must understand that in sociological terms, evil is regarded as deviance. Elaine is not only a witch but also a murderer. Her behavior places her outside of human conventions, at least from some points of view. However, one can regard deviance through its causes or its meanings. When discussing the causes of deviance, one adheres to the positivist theoretical standpoint. Being more interested in the meanings of deviance, the theoretical view shifts its focus on the constructionist side (Thio, Taylor, & Schwartz, 2013). In this section, we will refer to the meaning of deviance. The causes of evil (or deviance) will be discussed in the next section. Firstly, we must present Elaine’s deviance in broader terms. Just like the title suggests, she is a witch. For centuries, society hunted, abused and killed witches. They are regarded as deviant. They violate numerous norms of the society (of sexual or religious nature). However, in the film, the coven of witches is nothing more than a hippy community that acts in perfect communion with their sexuality. Although they practice some “satanic” rituals, they are peaceful and well-integrated. The witches are campy and different, but not evil. According to the labeling theory of deviance (Thio et al., 2014) being labeled as a deviant is not a matter of actual deviance but one of applying a definition. In The Love Witch, the society (represented by the people from the bar or the police) considers witches to be bad regardless of their actual behaviors. Conventional morality is imposed by those who are more powerful (usually white males), but rejected by the witches. In this aspect, the movie adheres to Baumeister’s point of view, who supports the idea that “virtue and idealism lead to cruel, violent, or oppressive acts” (1997, p. 170). It is also worth noting that the witches support sexuality as a more feminine characteristic (a woman’s greatest power lies in her sexuality). Society feared women’s sexuality because it feared its effects and thus killed them as witches. Elaine, as a witch, is labeled a deviant, evil, by most of the society even though she and her fellow witches do not see themselves as such. One must not forget that in a male-oriented society, female are already seen as different, but inferior. Their sexuality might play an important role in their labeling. To strive, women must adopt characteristics that are more masculine and deny their traits. In a way, they also start labeling themselves as evil because they diverge from the patriarchal view about morality. When presenting the meaning of female evil, we can adhere to a feminist perspective. Until the ’70, sociologist regarded deviance through the lenses of androcentrism. Thus, crime and evil were discussed through a male’s point of view (Rodmell, 1991). This happened mostly because men did the research in the deviance field and men regarded male deviance as being more interesting (Millman, 1975). More78

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over, when female deviance was discussed, its motives were presented as being different. According to Millman (1975), the consensus was that a woman could become deviant because she falls in love with a deviant male, when she was mentally ill or when she used her sexuality differently compared to all the other women (she became a prostitute). Also, women were more prone to some deviant activities compared to others (shoplifting was seen as a more feminine crime compared to burglary). Finally, women were dull and uninteresting, the perfect image of a moral society, while men were portrayed as rebels or righteous bandits that fought against the norms. The Love Witch paints a very different image of female deviance, one that is in agreement with its feminist perspective and filmmaking. One important feminist criticism regarding the sociology of deviance is that the male scientist identifies (at least partially) with the deviant he studies. That is why many male deviants were portrayed as interesting characters that deserve attention. However, in this male-dominated domain, there were not many female scientists to identify with the female deviant. One similar point was made in regards to the women’s filmmaking. Female filmmakers are needed because they present the women in their true colors, just like a female scientist would. Like a true feminist director, Anna Biller presents a complex portrait of Elaine, one that respects the ideas of feminist sociology of deviance. She is chic, elegant and interesting. Although capable of some bad behaviors, Elaine remains an attractive character. Thus, just as men present their deviants as fascinating characters, Biller’s witch is engrossing and alluring. Elaine is not interested in the status quo and tries to change it. She seeks perfect love in a world where men and women seem incapable of such feelings. Her means of doing this are not appropriate, but the director still empathizes with the character, thus determining the viewer to do the same. The character transcends her status and becomes active and agentic, trying to control the world around her. The majority might consider her search for love, the use of sexuality and status-breaking habits deviant, but they are not evil. However, the means she uses to obtain love and what she does after are criminal. In 1950, Reckless said that women’s criminality is a different phenomenon compared to crime in general. “The Love Witch” challenges this bias and presents a female character that is capable of evil at the same level or even more than her male counterparts are. Just like the feminist perspective attacked the idea that men should impose their version of deviance on women, the movie tackles the nature of the antagonist. Elaine is not a victim of men (unlike many women who are subdued by the patriarchal society) nor commits acts of evil that are more specific to women. She is self-assured, but also cold and arrogant. In one review, Darren Tilby (2019) calls her a narcissist. She has some masculine traits, but at the same time, she never loses her femininity. In a male-dominated world, she makes all her suitors die, but she kills them with love. One other point in the feminist critique of the sociology of deviance is that it does not show the women’s view on deviance, their opinion, and explanations for their deviance (Rodmell, 1991). Women are usually seen as victims, rarely as perpetrators. The men are once again the main unit of analysis; they are the point of interest (regardless of their role). Elaine is, conversely, anything but a passive and uninvolved piece in the cycle of deviance. She is the force behind many acts of deviance in the movie and the viewer sees all of them from her point of view. Thus, it becomes easier to understand her behavior, to judge if she is evil or not. As a conclusion to this part, it is not important whether a person is evil or not, as long as the society perceives him/her as evil. Elaine is a witch. Thus, she is a minority that is ostracized by the masculine, patriarchal society. At the same time, she is a woman and the sociological tradition was not necessarily kind to the deviant women. In many scientific writings, women were ignored or at least downgraded. From a feminist perspective, Elaine’s brand of deviance is essential because it restores equality between 79

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men and women. She is capable of evil just like any man. Moreover, her creator identifies with her and presents her as sympathetic (at least to a certain degree). She is a symbol, a rebel, a character that is bad in their fictional world, but good and meaningful in the real world.

THE PSYCHOLOGICAL NATURE OF EVIL The Love Witch also departs from the idea of “being evil for the sake of evil”. The main character is not a female counterpart of Michael or Jason. Elaine is not a bad person at an intrinsic level. She is deeply flawed, but she is not the only one. Moreover, the viewer gets multiple chances to empathize with her. Her “evil” traits are understandable when taking a closer look at her background and her personality. Thus, one must distance himself from the constructionist theories of deviance and look at the positive theories when trying to understand why Elaine behaves as she does. People have different chances of being deviant based on psychological characteristics. Their environment also plays an important role in shaping one’s behavior (Lianos Douglas, 2000). For Elaine’s type of evil, both explanations work. She is a product of trauma and constant disappointment. She has a personality structure that makes her vulnerable to some outlandish behavior. Of course, many of her traits are exaggerated (the fictional world of the movie is already an exaggerated one), but real problems are reflected in this fictional character. Firstly, we can trace the causes of her evil to the protagonist’s maladaptive behavior in her romantic relationships. Elaine kills each man she wants to be loved by. One can also consider that she loves them too much, but this might not be the case. Regardless, the end of a relationship (here signified by the death of the lover, but in broader terms, brought by the end of romantic love) is one of the main points of the attachment theory. Proposed by Hazan and Shaver (1987), it presents people as being either anxious (always fearful of their partner’s rejection) or avoidant (emotionally detached from their lovers). A third category, of secure individuals, is those who are more successful in their relationships. However, “The Love Witch” is not the story of a successful relationship. At first, Elaine seems like the prototypical anxious person. She craves the love of men and cannot live without her suitors. Even after being abused by her husband, she still needs a new lover. We can even say that she is not herself without the love of those around her. To find and retain “her knight”, she is willing to give a man his fantasy, to become “that pretty woman to love and take care of them”. She thinks “to have love, you must give love”. She cooks, she dresses well, and she is sexy and flirtatious, all because she thinks all men like that in a woman. Her goal is to keep the perfect man (or men, as the movie proves) and she does anything to avoid their rejection (until a certain point). However, this is just half of her character. After she bewitches them and after they drop their manly defenses, each man seems to become inferior compared to what she has expected from him. Wayne becomes extremely emotional and starts crying in fear; Richard becomes obsessed with her and believes he cannot live without her. In these moments, Elaine’s behavior dramatically changes. “What a pussy, what a baby” she thinks of a crying, broken Wayne. She becomes stressed because they need her, but their needs contravene to her images of the ideal man. She feels betrayed. Thus, she rejects them, not willing to care anymore about the men that disappointed her. She acts like an avoidant individual and this makes her attachment patterns even more interesting. How can someone who has such profound needs of belonging become so cold and distant? The attachment theory also proposes some explanations for this situation. While anxiety and avoidance are 80

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maladaptive attachment styles, they have the benefit of being coherent (the person acts in the same way across different contexts; Beeney et al., 2017). However, coherence is not something characteristic of Elaine’s love life. In psychological terms, these variations might be caused by a disorganized attachment style (Cassidy & Mohr, 2001). People with disorganized attachment can have highly contradictory behaviors and a highly affective state-of-mind. They oscillate between different emotional dispositions without any apparent motive, can become aggressive or even violent (Beeney et al., 2017). While Elaine becomes violent only in the last scene of the movie, her covert aggressive tendencies are visible throughout their interactions with the male characters. Not only that she chastises the men for their lack of manliness, but she is completely uninterested in their emotional suffering. Even when they turn up dead, she seems to be unfazed and believes she is not guilty of their demise. However, none should forget that all of these come after she confesses her love for them, after she cares for them and makes love to them. The reader, however, should not believe that Elaine is a female version of Ted Bundy (or any other seductive, male serial killer). She does not seduce and kills men to appease her murderous lust. At first, she genuinely cares for the men. She desperately wants to be loved by them and willingly offers them what she feels men need. It is only after she finds her lovers incongruent with her ideals that she behaves in such a passively aggressive manner. She becomes stressed, confused and doubtful. And when the men show their real face (grown-up babies, like she names them), why should she care? How did Elaine develop this behavior? Classical psychological research points to the fact that the attachment patterns are achieved in early childhood and are based on the interaction between the child and their caregiver (Ainsworth, 1979; Bowlby, 1969). Later, the working models crystalize and change their focus. The mother is no longer responsible for the individual’s emotional needs. Instead, the romantic partner fills in this role (Hazan & Shaver, 1987). Thus, we may presume that The Love Witch’s erratic patterns of attachment are a continuation of her interactions with her parents. However, such a disorganized pattern shows a little more than an uninterested mother. Many psychologists link it to childhood trauma (Waldinger, Schulz, Barsky, & Ahern, 2006). Although there is little information regarding the character’s childhood, one scene is relevant to the assumption that she faced some traumatic events during that period. Elaine remembers how her father treated her because of her behavior and weight: I have a crazy bitch for a daughter. Well, if you’re not crazy, then you’re stupid. Which is it? Are you crazy or are you stupid? And you can lose a few pounds. One can assume that her father’s behavior was the same when Elaine was a child. If that were the case, it would have triggered major fear and a lack of self-esteem. Fear inducing trauma is a potential cause of disorganized attachment (Cassidy & Mohr, 2001). When suffering from such a pattern, the children might act oddly, sometimes being aggressive and sometimes extremely withdrawn. In a word, they might look crazy. Later, during adulthood, these individuals do not know how to deal with different threats and negative behaviors. We see that Elaine’s husband is mad at her due to her lack of household skills. However, she still loves him and is afraid to leave him, despite being in an abusive relationship. Moreover, in her latter relationships, this pattern of anxiety remains relevant (the first thing she wants after arriving in the town is to find a lover), but the avoidance also becomes evident. A disorganized individual cannot cope with difficult situations (such as offering emotional support to men) and might

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use contradictory behavioral strategies that nullify each other (Cassidy & Mohr, 2001). Although she deeply needs a man, Elaine ends by killing all her suitors. Both childhood trauma and a disorganized attachment are also related to psychopathy (Arrigo & Griffin, 2004; Krischer & Sevecke, 2008). Many movie villains are written and portrayed as realistic psychopaths, from Patrick Bateman to Any Dunn. But is Elaine also a psychopath? Psychopathy is characterized by a deficit in affect, deceptiveness, impulsiveness and antisocial tendencies (Sevecke, Franke, Kosson, & Krischer, 2016). It is simply to see how some of her traits align with this definition. While she is not necessarily lacking in affect, she is not quite interested and affected by the suffering of others. Elaine is not shaken at all by Wayne’s death or by Richard’s obsession. Also, she does not care about Trish’s mourning, being more interested in bragging about her new lover than in comforting the newly widowed woman. She is also deceptive, posing as a sexy and easy-going woman to attain her goals of being loved, but unable to return the love when she feels betrayed. She is impulsive (one of the first things she does in the new town is to search for a man) and prone to violence (she directly kills two people and indirectly causes the death of two others). Early childhood trauma can lead to higher levels of psychopathy in adults (Krischer & Sevecke, 2008). This is especially true when the child is emotionally neglected. Some people with a disorganized form of attachment also show traces of psychopathy (Schimmenti et al., 2014). Thus, it becomes quite simple to understand Elaine’s behavior from a psychological standpoint. “All my life I’ve been tossed in the garbage” Elaine says during the final moments of the film. “No one was ever there for me when I was crying my heart out”. These two lines summarize the traumatic events Elaine was put through before. Does her suffering justify her murders? Not at all. Does it make her look less evil? Not necessarily, but they offer a better understanding of her evil and her flaws. Firstly, she does not perceive herself as being evil. By knowing what she’s been through and by understanding her personality, the viewer might empathize with her a little more. Elaine is not evil for the sake of being evil. She is a victim just as she is an executioner. She is complex and through her mental health issues, she becomes the perfect vessel for the film’s main themes.

GENDER ROLES AND EVIL Most psychological theories place evil at an individual level. On the contrary, the sociological constructionist perspectives state that evil depends on who sees it (Thio et al., 2013). Some acts might be evil in some contexts while others might not. In the end, society is the one who judges. According to the former, Elaine might be evil because she has a distorted view of the world. She was traumatized, and she might have a disorganized attachment style or even some psychopathic traits. These attributes might condemn her, but might also save her, showing that her bad deeds are out of her control. According to the later, she is part of a minority, she is a woman and a witch, a deviant in the eyes of society. However, the simple fact that we pay attention to her deviance is important because society has a rich history of downgrading the deviance of women. While these scientific perspectives are interesting in discussing the evil from The Love Witch, we must also pay attention to the film itself, to its themes and the voice behind it. Anna Biller was, reportedly, disappointed by the media’s inability to perceive her real intentions. Most critics praised the sets, the costumes, and the cinematography. Fewer were interested in the message. For this chapter, the intentions of the filmmaker are as important as the psychological and sociological explanations. 82

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For Biller, all the manifestations of evil seem to come from the misunderstood gender roles. Despite her psychological issues, Elaine’s crimes are motivated by how she sees the role of men and women in a romantic relationship. She wants a perfect man, strong and capable. But in the end, no men can be as perfect as her desires. At the same time, she thinks that the way to a man’s heart is to act like a perfect woman: to be sexy, to cook well, and to take care of them. She thinks that sex is enough to “unlock their love potential”. However, she is either unprepared or psychologically unequipped to deal with what comes later. She is profoundly disappointed by the real faces of Wayne or Richard, so much that she becomes passive and uninterested when they suffer. She only cares for them as long as they look and act manly. Other women do not seem to fare much better. Trish seems to be more interested in her own needs. She puts herself in the first place so much so that she forgets how to please Richard even though she admits using sex to get married. She also guides herself by the traditional gender roles of men, believing they only want sex, although her conclusions and behaviors are different from Elaine’s. Men are also guilty of oversimplifying gender and of having a stereotypical view on women. Wayne is disappointed by the fact the prettiest women are less intelligent than what he wants and most intelligent women are not interesting from a sexual standpoint. Moreover, when meeting a beautiful and intelligent woman, he becomes overwhelmed. Griff provides the best evidence for men’s view on feminine ideals: (…) love is soft. I’ve seen guys get shot because they fell in love and got soft inside [… ]. The feminine ideal only exists in men’s minds… When (a woman) gives you more, you feel like you’re suffocating, drowning in estrogen. Men like Wayne and Griff conjures all three of the facets through which society associated women with evil: women are seen only as beautiful, but weak physical entities, that through their inherent weakness and corruption lead to a good man’s downfall (Noddings, 1989). The love a woman gives is evil because it takes the man away from his ideals of masculinity. The paradox and the tragedy are that Elaine’s dream is a manly man who can love her for what she is, but in reality, this kind of man can never love her. Existing gender roles act as the evil in the world because they condemn women and men to unreasonable expectations and conflicting views on each other. Is there a solution to this problem? Biller, through the voice of the witches, proposes one: They teach us that the normative human being is a hyper-rationalist, stoic male and that women’s emotions and intuitions are illnesses that need to be cured. And we believe that men and women are different and that true equality lies in their differences. However, even this statement seems to have its naiveties. Barbara (one of the coven’s leaders) considers that women can destroy men’s defenses using sex magic. However, we see that this is not working as it is supposed to. In conclusion, Biller proposes another cause of Elaine’s behaviors. All of us are interconnected and interdependent (Thibaut & Kelley, 1959). We cannot live without other humans, but the exchanges are not always in our favor. Gender roles are enforced by the parents and, latter, by school or media (Witt, 1997). Boys learn to be dominant and strong while girls become gentle and submissive. Sometimes, these differences are irreconcilable and prove to be an obstacle in the way of happiness. In Biller’s view, Elaine is not good or bad, she is just a product of her environment. She learned to expect one thing from

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men and men learned to offer her something else. Moreover, with such a discrepancy and an inability to create a common path, her behavior becomes easier to understand.

THE PERSONAL MEANING OF EVIL Taking a stance from Badiou’s (2002) work, the movie simply rejects the idea of “radical evil” .From a distance, Elaine might seem evil but, as previously mentioned, her behavior has many shades. Just like in many moralist tales, no bad act remains without consequence. In the case of Elaine, her evil behaviors affect both her and those around her. Virtually all films and television shows decide to portray evil as a danger to the world. The Love Witch does the same thing. Elaine is a murderer and with her behavior, she irremediably and tragically affects others. However, her evil is also more personal. Given her psychological insecurities, she also affects herself. She is damned to live alone, always losing the one thing she cares about, the love of others. With this realization, the tragedy of the character is complete. The Love Witch does not present a good vs. evil dichotomy simply because nobody proves to be completely good. Even Gahan, the seemingly jovial warlock, seems to be a little too interested in Elaine, to the point of becoming forceful. The exaggerated world of the film is populated with many exaggerated characters. Thus, evil can come from many directions. Just as Baumeister said, modern people “gain more frequent and vivid glimpses of the face of evil from movies than from religious writings” (1997, p. 63) and The Love Witch presents some interesting views on evil. Biller uses the idea of evil to show that strict gender norms and roles are not good, that women can be as dangerous as men can and that society creates most of the deviant behaviors from seemingly benign sources. It also shows the psychological and sociological determinants of evil or deviance. On a much personal note, the film shows that evil is not easily understandable. At first sight, Elaine’s behavior is hard to comprehend, but using both psychological and sociological lenses, one can see much deeper inside her mental state and public persona.

CONCLUSION The Love Witch is an important film for the feminist movement in American cinema, although not the first “witch” movie that tries to contest the dominant male gaze. Coming 19 years after The Witches of Eastwick (Miller, 1987), it presents a darker, more horror-centric view on the evil and on women’s place in society (while the titular witches are responsible for their share of mischief, it is clear that Jack Nicholson’s devilish character is the villain; however, Elain is the antagonist of her own movie). It was well received for its technical prowess and many critics (although not all of them) also took note of its thematic richness. This film is, however, much more than a vessel to discuss gender role politics. Subsequently, Elaine, its main character, is much more than a pretty face with a body count. She is a murderer, a deviant, but in a world still dominated by male villains, a female protagonist who is also the antagonist is quite rare. This choice only enriches the feminist perspective on deviance. Not only those women should be viewed as real deviants, but movie characters should also have this chance. Psychologically speaking, she might have many traces of psychopathy (which are an indicator of evil), but she is much more complex than that. The viewer can empathize and understand her, although she does not represent the traditional masculine form of evil. By using the female gaze on such a story, Anna

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Biller creates a memorable character, an important one for the female viewer (but also for the male one, we could add) and one that can be further analyzed using a variety of methods. In conclusion, The Love Witch is a rich film tackling a variety of themes. It has things to say about gender politics, romantic relationships, and mental well-being. In a world where people have trouble speaking and understanding evil (Baudrillard, 1993), the movie can initiate some new topics for discussions. It presents the chic and attractive side of evil by making its anti-heroine a beautiful and lovely witch. It can be understood as a feminist narrative on sexuality and deviance, as a call for healthy romantic and sexual relationships and equality between men and women, but even more, it speaks about the tragedy of evil. Being bad hurts the other, but also hurts oneself. Moreover, evil can be comprehended and thus, changed. Where Elaine failed, maybe others will succeed.

REFERENCES Ainsworth, M. S. (1979). Infant–mother attachment. The American Psychologist, 34(10), 932–937. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.34.10.932 PMID:517843 Arrigo, B. A., & Griffin, A. (2004). Serial Murder and the Case of Aileen Wuornos: Attachment Theory, Psychopathy, and Predatory Aggression. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 22(3), 375–393. doi:10.1002/ bsl.583 PMID:15211558 Badiou, A. (2002). Ethics: An Essay on the Understanding of Evil. Verso. Baudrillard, J. (1993). The Transparency of Evil: Essays on Extreme Phenomena. Verso. Bauman, Z., & Donskis, L. (2016). Liquid Evil. John Wiley & Sons. Baumeister, R. F. (1996). Evil: Inside Human Cruelty and Violence. Henry Holt & Co. Beeney, J. E., Wright, A. G., Stepp, S. D., Hallquist, M. N., Lazarus, S. A., Beeney, J. R., Scott, L. N., & Pilkonis, P. A. (2017). Disorganized Attachment and Personality Functioning in Adults: A Latent Class Analysis. Personality Disorders, 8(3), 206–216. doi:10.1037/per0000184 PMID:26986959 Biller, A. (2016). The Love Witch [Film]. Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and Loss: Attachment. Basic Books. Cassidy, J., & Mohr, J. J. (2001). Unsolvable Fear, Trauma, and Psychopathology: Theory, Research, and Clinical Considerations Related to Disorganized Attachment Across the Life Span. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 8(3), 275–298. doi:10.1093/clipsy.8.3.275 Garvey, M. (2017). Female Gaze: Lana Del Rey, I Love Dick, And The Love Witch. Retrieved from http:// www.mtv.com/news/3011777/female-gaze-lana-del-rey-i-love-dick/ Hazan, C., & Shaver, P. (1987). Romantic Love Conceptualized as an Attachment Process. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52(3), 511–524. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.52.3.511 PMID:3572722

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Hills, M., & Schneider, S. J. (2007). “The Devil Made Me Do It!”: Representing Evil and Disarticulating Mind/Body in the Supernatural Serial Killer Film. In F. Norden (Ed.), The Changing Face of Evil in Film and Television (pp. 71–87). Brill. doi:10.1163/9789401205276_006 Krischer, M. K., & Sevecke, K. (2008). Early Traumatization and Psychopathy in Female And Male Juvenile Offenders. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 31(3), 253–262. doi:10.1016/j. ijlp.2008.04.008 PMID:18514903 Lianos, M., & Douglas, M. (2000). Dangerization and the End of Deviance: The Institutional Environment. British Journal of Criminology, 40(2), 261–278. doi:10.1093/bjc/40.2.261 Miller, G. (1987). The Witches of Eastwick [Film]. Millman, M. (1975). She did it all for love: A feminist view of the sociology of deviance. Sociological Inquiry, 45(2‐3), 251–279. doi:10.1111/j.1475-682X.1975.tb00338.x Noddings, N. (1989). Women and evil. Univ of California Press. Norden, M. F. (2007). The Changing Face of Evil in Film and Television. Brill. doi:10.1163/9789401205276 Reckless, W. C. (1950). The Crime Problem. Appleton Century Crofts. Ricoeur, P. (1967). The Symbolism of Evil (Vol. 18). Beacon Press. Rodmell, S. (1981). Men, Women and Sexuality: A Feminist Critique of the Sociology of Deviance. Women’s Studies International Quarterly, 4(2), 145–155. doi:10.1016/S0148-0685(81)92918-3 Sevecke, K., Franke, S., Kosson, D., & Krischer, M. (2016). Emotional Dysregulation and Trauma Predicting Psychopathy Dimensions in Female and Male Juvenile Offenders. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 10(1), 43. doi:10.118613034-016-0130-7 PMID:27822303 Schimmenti, A., Passanisi, A., Pace, U., Manzella, S., Di Carlo, G., & Caretti, V. (2014). The Relationship between Attachment and Psychopathy: A Study with a Sample of Violent Offenders. Current Psychology (New Brunswick, N.J.), 33(3), 256–270. doi:10.100712144-014-9211-z Thibaut, J., & Kelley, H. H. (1959). The Social Psychology of Groups. Wiley. Thio, A., Taylor, J. D., & Schwartz, M. D. (2013). Deviant behavior (11th ed.). Pearson. Tilby, D. (2019). The Love Witch review. Retrieved from https://www.ukfilmreview.co.uk/post/the-lovewitch-review Waldinger, R. J., Schulz, M. S., Barsky, A. J., & Ahern, D. K. (2006). Mapping the road from childhood trauma to adult somatization: The role of attachment. Psychosomatic Medicine, 68(1), 129–135. doi:10.1097/01.psy.0000195834.37094.a4 PMID:16449423 Witt, S. D. (1997). Parental Influence on Children’s Socialization to Gender Roles. Adolescence, 32(126), 253–260. PMID:9179321

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ADDITIONAL READING Bacon, H. (2015). The Fascination of Film Violence. Springer. doi:10.1057/9781137476449 Fry, C. L. (2019). Primal Roots of Horror Cinema: Evolutionary Psychology and Narratives of Fear. McFarland Books. Jackson, J. K. (2011). Doomsday Ecology and Empathy for Nature: Women Scientists in “B” Horror Movies. Science Communication, 33(4), 533–555. doi:10.1177/1075547011417893 Staub, E., & Ervin, S. (2003). The Psychology of Good and Evil: Why Children, Adults, and Groups Help and Harm Others. Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511615795 Zimbardo, P. (2007). The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil. Random House.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Attachment Theory: A psychological theory proposing a deep and stable emotional bond connecting two individuals that have a close relationship; mostly discussed in the cases of mother-child or romantic partner relationships. Deviance: An action that violates social norms. Female Gaze: A term used to describe a movie made by a female filmmaker that describes the world from a feminine perspective. Gender Role: A set of learned behaviors that are considered as socially acceptable or even desirable for one gender. Interdependence Theory: Psychological theory stating that one person’s experience is determined and influenced by the experiences of the other persons that are close to him/her. Labeling Theory: A sociological theory proposing that the behavior of one individual might be determined by the terms used to describe it and not by the person’s characteristics. Psychopathy: A personality disorder characterized by a profound lack of empathy, amoral behavior, and weak long-term planning abilities.

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#BlackGirlMagic:

How to Get Away With Murder Is Not Evil Adelina Mbinjama-Gamatham https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2899-0707 Cape Peninsula University of Technology, South Africa

ABSTRACT This chapter explores the relevance of Immanuel Kant’s categorical imperative to critique the unintended, subliminal evil representations in Shonda Rhimes’s work. Kant’s moral theory is used to re-think evil in the way that Rhimes portrays Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) in How to Get Away with Murder (2014-) as an influential defense attorney and law professor who goes to extreme lengths to get what she wants, even if her behavior is considered bad or evil. This chapter argues that Rhimes’s work challenges the systemic racism and stereotypical portrayals of Black women in television, as she not only focuses on the bad or evil doings of her Black characters but also on what makes them powerful, good and emblematic of #BlackGirlMagic.

INTRODUCTION From a western perspective, Evil has always been a concept associated with Black people (see Zimbardo, 2004; Williams, 2018). Over decades, Black women especially have been represented on television as evil. In African-American culture and in television, those evils including “black magic” have been written on in several texts (see Wanderer & Rivera, 1986; Chireau, 2003; Summers, 2012; Jenkins, 2017; Williams, 2018). Recently, there has been a change in the way in which Black women are portrayed on screen; they are now depicted as more powerful, educated, professional and determined to succeed. Shonda Rhimes’s work has gained much popularity in mainstream media with her first Black female lead character, Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington), in Scandal (2012-2018) which was followed by Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) in How to Get Away with Murder (2014-). Immanuel Kant’s moral philosophy as a philosophical concept on evil is used to interpret some of the misrepresentations about Black women and how they are connected to evil through a critique of Rhimes’s television shows. The paper briefly DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch007

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discusses Olivia Pope in Scandal but focuses more heavily on the representation of Annalise Keating, who draws one’s attention to her ‘blackness’ in her career and love life and how this affects her, as evil. While the portrayal of Olivia Pope centers on her work as a crisis manager (a ‘fixer’) and the impact that the men in her life have on her, Annalise Keating channels broader issues related to race, infidelity, sexual orientation, sexual abuse, alcoholism. Her characterization is not confined by these issues as she is represented as a strong-willed woman who rejects falling victim to others around her by doing what she needs to do in order to be respected in both her work and personal life. Annalise Keating represents particular aspects of Kant’s view of evil which is meshed into his categorical imperative as it relates to respect for women and humankind. Some authors have discussed Kant’s work in light of the respect one gives women (see Kofman & Fisher, 1982; Schulzke, 2012). They determine that to respect women is to obey the categorical imperative which requires reverence with regard to the other as moral personage. Choices to do what is evil can be attractive, while preserving Kant’s claims that we do not choose to do evil simply for its own sake (Kant, 1948). These perspectives echo with this paper’s exploration of Rhimes’s shift in the representation of Black women lead characters in television as highly educated, professional and overcomers. Especially since endurance and resilience has been part and parcel of Black women’s representation through the ages, in one thinks of The Color Purple for example. Thus, #BlackGirlMagic becomes an integral concept in Rhimes’s attempt to address the ascendant nature of modern-day Black women, and the rejection of their association with “evil”, degradation and humiliation by reasserting the powerful, strong, opinionated view points and controversial actions of her lead Black woman subject.

BACKGROUND According to Zimbardo (2004, p. 3), evil is intentionally behaving – or causing others to act – in ways that demean, dehumanize, harm, destroy, or kill innocent people. The titles of the television shows Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder imply and carry evil undertones; thus, one would expect the lead characters, Olivia Pope and Annalise Keating, to be evil women. The so-called “evil” that these characters exude are somehow “normalized” in other television shows, however, Black powerful women have never been represented in the way that Olivia Pope and Annalise Keating have. Since Black women have for centuries been associated with violence, rape and racial segregation, and thus their reactions to their present circumstances can only be explained by the social ills they have experienced. Zimbardo (2004, p. 3) asks the philosophical question “Who is responsible for evil in the world, given that there is an all-powerful, omniscient God who is also all-Good?” That conundrum began the intellectual scaffolding of the Inquisition in the 16th and 17th centuries in Europe. Kant’s work is influenced by philosophers from this era. According to Acton (1970, p. 1), Immanuel Kant, born in 1724, lived and taught in East Prussia during the intellectual movement known as the Enlightenment. From 1755 he taught various branches of philosophy and died in his hometown, Konigsberg (in East Prussia) in 1804. Kant’s work was influenced by Wolff and Pietism, a movement that emerged from the Lutheran church in Germany in the previous century. According to Anton (1970, p. 2), this sect encouraged studying the Bible, participating in church affairs as well as personal involvement in spontaneous devotion and good works. Anton (1970, p. 2) explains that Wolff’s account of the natural world seemed to leave no room for miracles or for free choice, which created some separations between him and Pietism. As revealed in Malleus Maleficarum, the handbook of the German Inquisitors from the Roman Catholic Church, the inquiry concluded that the Devil was the source of all evil (Zimbardo, 2004, p. 3). However, these theo89

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logians argued that the Devil works his evil through intermediaries, lesser demons and, of course, human witches. According to Williams (2018, p. 35) “Enlightenment science developed the idea of “white” as a marker of European superiority over African ‘black’ people”. So, the hunt for evil focused on those marginalized people, who looked or acted differently from “ordinary people” as stated by Zimbardo (2004, p. 3), who may qualify under rigorous examination of conscience and torture to expose them as witches, and then be put to death. The majority of the persecuted were women who could readily be exploited without sources of defense, especially when they had resources that could be confiscated. An analysis of this legacy of institutionalized violence against women is detailed by historian Anne Barstow (1994) in Witchcraze: A New History of the European Witch Hunts (Zimbardo, 2004, p. 3). Historically and in various cultural contexts, Black women have continuously been connected with evil and “black magic”. Black magic in the Global South is often represented by Black women performing curses, rituals and sacrifices to enact revenge against an enemy, secure a lover or advance their business and careers (see Zambelli, 2007; Hayes, 2011; Talton & Mills, 2011; Tudor, 2013). This misrepresentation of Black women in television has impacted the way in which Black women are viewed in society, both in the workplace and in the homestead. Black women are blamed and then shamed for the wrongdoing which has taken place, whether they are involved in it or not. These representations have intensified the stereotypical portrayals of Black women. From the early times of broadcasting to date, the view that Black women are inferior, dark, evil or bad has been drilled into viewers through film and television (see Appiah, 1993; Farley, 2000; Gabbard, 2004; Glenn & Cunningham, 2007; Missouri, 2015; Oudadene, 2020). Kant is an ethicist and best known for the categorical imperative, which is complimentary in exploring evil as a philosophical concept and popular phenomenon in narratives of cinema and television. For the purpose of this paper, the categorical imperative is used as a “rule for judging one’s proposed plans of action, or maxims, in order to assess their moral status” (White, 2003, p. 91). Rhimes’s work introduces television viewers to an alternative viewpoint of what women, in general, are capable of by representing them in professional and respectable roles. The fact that the main characters are Black women, not portrayed as demure, humble and innocent is incongruent with what audiences regularly experience in the portrayal of Black women. Through Kant’s categorical imperative, this paper discusses the good/evil dichotomy which the author has operationalized as the “#blackgirlmagic” versus the “black magic” complex associated with black women generally, and how this now can be explained in Rhimes’s television shows. According to Brinkhurst-Cuff (2016), #BlackGirlMagic is a movement that was popularized by feminist writer CaShawn Thompson, in 2013, as a way of counteracting the negativity that society places on Black women. The concept was coined to express solidarity amongst Black women and to reiterate how “magical” they are by celebrating their strength, beauty and success (Brinkhurst-Cuff, 2016). This concept is central to the analysis of the two characters, especially that of Annalise Keating, who is the primary focus of this paper. This paper contributes to the literature on the representation of evil through the analysis of two powerful Black women characters (with a stronger emphasis on Annalise Keating) in the hope of extending the understanding of this issue.

BLACK WOMEN LEAD CHARACTERS IN TELEVISION SERIES As previously mentioned, Kant’s moral theory through the principles of universalizability and humanity broadens our understanding of the representation of evil in Rhimes’s Black women lead characters, and how their portrayal is different from that of other women who have appeared in television shows in the 90

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past. This section is an analysis of why one would need to re-think how evil is represented subliminally and overtly in Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder, and offers some insights into understanding the philosophical concept of evil differently. Rhimes has received much appraisal as the highest paid Black female television writer and producer for successful shows. Her work has impacted the lives of people, especially the Black community, through her production company, Shondaland, which has created and produced compelling shows with two Black women as lead characters. This has placed her and her lead actresses in a league of their own; therefore, the Twitter movement #BlackGirlMagic became associated with these Black women in show business with very little negative attention regarding their representation.

The Interconnectedness with Scandal Kant’s moral philosophy proposes that moral laws or rules must be consistent and universal (Kant, 1948). This is often misunderstood as it suggests that one should only make decisions or act on matters that they believe everyone else is expected to do. Kant is not saying that one should only do something if it wills everyone else, then that is not being good (Kant, 1948). Kant believes in free will and so does Rhimes. Rhimes’s work is admirable because she advances Black women by empowering them to advance in the entertainment business by having two Black women as lead characters in two of her television shows. Her transformative work began with the main character of ABC’s television series Scandal (2012-2018), Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington), who is an African-American woman. Scandal is based very loosely on the life of Washington crisis manager Judy Smith (Paskin, 2013). According to Pixley (2015), Judy Smith is a Black woman, with qualifications in public relations and law, who served as the Deputy Press Secretary for former President of the United States of America, George H.W. Bush. Smith is known to have later opened her own crisis management firm. Judy Smith is also the co-executive producer of Scandal. The character of Olivia Pope is inspired by Judy Smith’s work as a Black professional woman in a strategic position. When Scandal premiered in April 2012, it became the first television drama to feature a Black woman in a lead role in nearly forty years, and it was the first such drama to be created and co-executive produced by a Black woman, Shonda Rhimes (Chatman, 2017, p. 299). The Scandal viewership grew as a result of the representation of Olivia Pope as an intellectual who is both charming and sometimes mischievous, as she was having an affair with the on-screen President of the United States of America, Fitzgerald Grant (Tony Goldwyn). These representations cause some viewers to re-think what they consider evil, while others perceive this as normalizing and popularizing evil. During an interview with Robin Roberts, Kerry Washington said that “[t]here is a beautiful balance in Shondaland between escapism and presence; the shows make you think about who you are, who you want to be, who you don’t want to be” (ABC News, 2014). Kerry Washington expresses what most viewers like to experience when watching television; how media content is represented in such a way that one forgets their present circumstances. She also alludes to being present when one can reflect upon what has been portrayed and find meaning in the discourses. Rhimes’s work is inspirational and self-reflective as it allows viewers to think about who they want or do not want to be. One presumes that the ‘you’ here speaks to the show’s audience in general, and the show’s Black women followers specifically. According to Erigha (2015), the “fact that Scandal stars an African American woman, Kerry Washington, as a lead character, Olivia Pope, gives the impression that Black women have at long last been accepted in abovethe-line positions in mainstream Hollywood production”. According to Chatman (2017, p. 299), Black American viewers articulate a sense that Scandal is “their show”. According to Paskin (2013), Scandal 91

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was the “No. 1 drama at 10 p.m. on any night, on any network, among the most desired demographic, adults 18 to 49”. Every Thursday night, the primetime television show was sound-tracked by R&B and soul music, which resonated with Black Twitter1. Rhimes leveraged Scandal enthusiasts’ robust Twitter activism to change the face of American network television in the age of social media. Fans collectively tweet their approvals and condemnations in real time, while viewing; this participatory and interactive engagement has become an unmatched game-changer in television production and consumption. Needless to say, Black Twitter has been instrumental in supporting Shondaland, and reinforcing the significance of its ground-breaking content in mainstream media. It also became a highly “social” show turning Twitter on Thursday nights into a giant Scandal chat room with fans of the show posting more than 190,000 tweets per episode. Apparently, a good number of those tweets contain at least one “OMG”2 (Paskin, 2013). Black Twitter was so shocked by the media content because the president has a wife (who happens to be a white woman) and Olivia Pope is painted as his mistress. Although she earns millions, she is unfulfilled in her relationship with him. She remains hooked to him. This suggests that Black women like to be mistresses. What this says about a Black woman being a mistress to a white man, can serve to be controversial, racially awkward and suggests colonial tropes since we cannot ignore the historical incidents in which Black women were sex slaves to their white masters. It was not Rhimes’s intention to portray the Black female lead actress in this way, however, some audiences grappled with these representations while simultaneously celebrating Rhimes as #BlackGirlMagic for her work and introducing viewers to a Black female lead character in a high-profiled position. The reaction from audiences highlights that the representation of an educated, strong Black woman in a television series is not something to which one would be accustomed. Rhimes’s decision to make this possible reveals her moral motivation and duty to break stereotypical representations of Black women in television. In order to figure out what is moral, Kant’s categorical imperative formulates the universalizability principle: “Act on that maxim through which you can at the same time will that is should become a universal law” (Kant, 1948). The interconnectedness that viewers worldwide had with Rhimes and Scandal, via Twitter and other social networking sites, somehow makes the immoral acts of Olivia Pope understandable because the good will of the show outweighs the so-called “evil” representations. Viewers across the world, from various racial and social contexts would now be able to foresee more Black women in leading roles on television. The global acceptance of Scandal prepared viewers for the role that dark-skinned Viola Davis would play as Annalise Keating in How to Get Away with Murder.

RE-THINKING EVIL IN HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER Black Twitter’s universal support and interconnectedness with Rhimes and Washington resulted in the approval of How to Get Away with Murder. These fans created the hashtag #HTGAWM for the television show. This show is analyzed in greater detail in this paper because it unearths many societal issues that are prevalent worldwide. This show is also different from Scandal because Annalise Keating is played by a dark-skinned woman with more African features than Olivia Pope, making her portrayal as a Black woman lead character even more fascinating to watch. At the same time, there is an expectation that Viola Davis would represent Black women more realistically and engagingly while assuming the role of the legal professional she characterizes. Coupled with the fact that she is playing the role of a thrilling, high-profiled, high-performing defense lawyer and professor, this is extremely inspiring 92

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for viewers. Rhimes focuses on representing her characters in relatable ways to ensure that there is a human connection by which viewers can see parts of themselves in her characters. This section of the paper analyzes HTGAWM in light of Kant’s moral theory by emphasizing, in the formula of humanity, another principle of his categorical imperative which is used to understand some of the themes in the show. This section also addresses how the “so-called” evil representations that derive from Annalise Keating’s high performing position and personal life give rise to some “evil” or immoral representations, which do not take away from the #BlackGirlMagic that is experienced by Rhimes, the viewers and the main character in the show.

Duty and Pleasures From the onset, we experience Annalise Keating as a busy, powerful, Black woman professional. In the second scene of “Pilot” (Season 1, Episode 1), Professor Annalise Keating introduces herself to students and announces that the name of her class “Criminal Law 100” is referred to as “How to Get Away with Murder”. In this scene, Annalise Keating immediately smirks after this pronouncement and provides three steps to cause doubt in a case and to get away with murder: 1) Discredit witnesses, 2) Introduce a new suspect, and 3) Bury the evidence. The first episode is startling because it is unusual for a Black woman to be a professor who explicitly tells her class how to win a defense case through contentious means. The fact that Annalise Keating was instructing her students to discredit someone, shift blame and hide anything that can allude to the truth, could rationally be considered questionable; however, she believes in doing her job well irrespective of whether her actions are deemed good or not. Over the years, she has acquired the practical experience in law and thus has the formula to defend her clients as well as to teach students how to successfully represent murderers. Keating’s focus is on her work. Even though Kant (1948) believed that religion helps us to be good, and that killing someone is evil (and this should not be a law that can be made universal), we need to consider what this means for someone who defends murderers. Does it make them complicit if they are actively defending someone who they know is guilty of the crime? Or, in Annalise Keating’s case, is it merely her pleasure to do this work? And just because she enjoys her work, is it evil? The show does not make a lot of biblical references so one can tell that Rhimes’s focus on Annalise Keating’s successful career as an attorney allows viewers to extrapolate what they want from the show. She can control the representation, but not the reader’s interpretation as much. The representation would lend itself towards particular types of interpretation. As far as the enforcing of a shift in viewer’s reading can go, the dichotomy between good and bad will always exist and the free will to act is intersubjective. Annalise Keating acts upon her human instincts, which ties in with Kant’s belief that human beings are constantly fighting between duty and pleasures (Kant, 1948). In the courtroom, (“Pilot”, Season 1, Episode 1), Annalise Keating presents her first witness, a detective, Nate Lahey (Billy Brown), who happens to be the Black man that her student Wes Gibbins (Alfred Enoch) found her having sex with a few nights before. During the cross examination, Keating asks Nate Lahey what he was doing two nights ago, knowing full well he was with her. Wes Gibbins looks on at this display of authority, as Keating uses her lover’s testimony to win her case. Gibbins is left shocked, surprised and impressed by the lawyer’s ruthlessness. Soon hereafter Keating asks Gibbins to join her law firm as a student intern, an offer that he cautiously declines because of Keating’s unethical courtroom behavior. In response to Gibbins’s judgement of her courtroom lies, Keating states: “We won because I did my job!” Thereafter she pointedly asks Gibbins whether he wanted the job in her firm or not. She then tells him that the detective is her boyfriend. This raises moral questions around a married Black 93

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woman having a boyfriend. Although she is married to a white man, her boyfriend is Black too. In this sense, Keating tries to justify her behavior by saying that she was able to win the case because the detective was her boyfriend, rather than a random man with whom she was having sex. Annalise Keating expected her student to understand this. She passive aggressively used her power as his professor and employer to both intimidate and silence him. She also used her sexuality to make him aware that she is a woman who is able to do almost anything to get what she wants. While apologizing and sobbing, she tells him that she and her husband are stressed out since they have been talking about having a baby. She emotionally blackmails Gibbins, thanking him for keeping her secrets, then continues to rub his chest in a strange but affirming way until the student manages to say “of course”. While the first impression of Annalise Keating is shocking and leaves one wondering whether she is evil or not, especially because having an extramarital affair is considered evil in religious contexts. The audience begins to understand how hard working she is, and how nurturing she is towards her team despite her demeanor which comes across as tense, straight forward and conspiratorial. Annalise Keating is this way because she has to be tough and respected in her industry. Kant’s deontological ethical system distinguishes between categorical and hypothetical imperatives. Her happiness when cheating might be frowned upon and considered bad, however, in this context, Annalise Keating had to choose the immoral act in order to fulfil her own desires. According to Kant (1948), morals are not completely deduced by religious views, which are considered hypothetical (nonmoral) imperatives. Even though Kant believes in God, he does not believe that morality is based in one’s belief in God. Keating’s desire to do what she wants, was out of her own will. Hypothetical imperatives are a means to an end; they claim that something is good for something else, which is what Annalise Keating does in order to win and survive within the judicial system. As a defense attorney, she wins her cases by defending mostly murderers, which is her duty, her job, so she is not considered an ordinary person who is going beyond the normal in defending criminals. For a criminal lawyer this is standard, mundane work.

Cheating or Meeting Needs? In “Kill Me, Kill Me, Kill Me” (Season 1, Episode 9) Annalise Keating confronts her husband Sam Keating (Tom Verica) about his series of extramarital affairs. He had been cheating on her with one of his students, a white, blonde-haired girl who had been found murdered and, according to the autopsy results, was six weeks pregnant. She learnt of his infidelity through text messages she found on his phone. In this scene she begins to angrily insult him and boast about her own extra-marital affair: I’ve been window dressing for you. The black woman on your arm so you can hide, so that people only saw the good guy. And maybe it took me 20 years to see it, but I do now, I see it! And that’s why you killed Lila. Because she was pregnant and you knew that if it got out people would see you for the pathetic man you are…because that’s who you are…I have been screwing another man. His name is Nate, and, boy, he is good to me. He knows me. Just what I like and how I like it. He knows how to make me scream and groan and sweat. And so, I let him take me wherever he wants. On this counter, on my desk, in our bed. Annalise Keating expresses her sexual affair to her husband and it is clear to viewers that she is exposing herself in order to deal with the stress in her life and the complex marital issues she is encountering. Keating’s behavior is quite contrary to how Black women are expected to behave towards their husbands. Often, Black women are told to not insult their husbands or confront them about their extramarital af94

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fairs. Annalise Keating lashes out at her husband by boasting about her own sexual activities with her lover, Nate Lahey, which raises significant discussion around women’s issues and “Black Love” (love between a Black man and Black woman). Even though she boasts about her sexual affair to spite her husband, this scene characterizes the avowal and appreciation that some Black women have for Black men; especially when their needs (sexually, emotionally, spiritually and intellectually) are met. Annalise Keating declares how her sexual lover, Nate Lahey knows her and what she likes. In response, Sam Keating tells his wife that she is “nothing but a piece of ass” that when he first talked to her, he knew she would only be good for dirty, rough sex and that she was a disgusting slut. This scene is noteworthy because through the representation of Annalise Keating, Black women “are reminded of painful racial stereotypes of the past, such as the mammy, the Jezebel, the tragic mulatto, the welfare queen, Saphire and Topsy” (Mask, 2015). The Jezebel can be traced back to the Bible, since Jezebel was the name of a queen who turned her husband King Ahab’s heart away from worshiping God. Today, the Jezebel figure is better known as a promiscuous, manipulative seductress (Ladson-Billings, 2009). Physically, the Jezebel figure is seen as being very attractive and is often depicted as a Black, light skinned or mixed-raced woman. The Jezebel is another popular stereotype used to describe Black women. According to Ladson-Billings (2009, p. 89), examples of this stereotype include the casting of actresses Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne and Halle Berry in the role of the Jezebel. This may be a criticism of both How to Get Away with Murder and Scandal: that Black women are considered only good enough to be the mistresses of white men, Sam Keating and Fitzgerald Grant, respectively, while being used as a social front for the non-partisan ethos, ‘good’ behavior and ‘sound character’ of either their white employers or their white partners. What makes the altercation between Annalise Keating and her husband cringe worthy is that Sam Keating represents those white men who treat Black women only as a means to achieve their own desires. His treatment of her reminds viewers of the dehumanizing experiences that Black women have had with white men throughout history, not forgetting that he is Annalise Keating’s former psychologist prior to her becoming his mistress, and later his wife. His response to her highlights that the evil of racism and sexism still exists, and that it will take some time for Black people to completely be comfortable and feel fully accepted in relationships with white people. To some extent, the audience becomes more sympathetic towards Annalise Keating because she is a dark-skinned Black woman, who has had a miscarriage and is now rejected and made to feel unworthy by her white husband. The reality remains that she is stereotypical of a Black woman to mostly a white audience, even if she is portrayed as an educated and high-profiled defense attorney. Because of these layers, we rationalize her extramarital affair with Nate Lahey, through the assumption that he probably understands her better than her husband. When her associates mistakenly kill Sam Keating, she justifies the killing by trying to convince them that he killed the girl with whom he was cheating on her, so it was right for him to die. Annalise Keating vindicated their evil deed and participated in covering up the crime, as well as burning and burying his body. While her participation in hiding crime evidence is extreme behavior, the personal situation filtered into her work life and she had to defend whoever killed her husband, namely, Wes Gibbins, the student with whom she forms a maternal relationship. We also begin to notice that her choice and free will to protect him, and the rest of her team from going to jail, gives one the sense that Annalise Keating is extremely protective and has a demented, mentor-student relationship with Gibbins. While these questionable acts play themselves out, audiences are completely in awe of how Annalise Keating continues to act on her free will and make decisions that benefit herself and others. She fulfils her own moral needs by challenging her students to perform at their best, even if it means that she encourages 95

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them to find unfavorable means to resolve cases. One might question her methods; however, her motives may be justifiable depending on the lens through which one chooses to look.

Surviving Personal Struggles, Games and Systems HTGAWM unpacks many themes through the representation of Annalise Keating and her team; from personal struggles to the games that have to be played, to beat the social systems. In “She’s a Murderer” (Season 1, Episode 12), Annalise Keating gets Nate Lahey framed and arrested for the murder of her husband in order to protect her associates. Because of his love for Annalise Keating, Nate Lahey took the heat. In “The Night Lila Died” (Season 1, Episode 14), Keating gets Lahey beat up in prison and removes the judge who would prosecute him so that he has a better chance of avoiding prison. What she does to Lahey is outrageous, however, for Keating, she is merely working around the system in order to protect her boyfriend, herself and her associates from being sentenced for the murder of her husband. The legal cases that Annalise Keating takes on expose the American legal system and how verdicts are influenced through racial and social biases, as opposed to evidence. Often, the system is in favor of white men and women, the rich, and those with networks within the system. It was easy to frame Nate Lahey, an African-American male for the murder of a white man, based solely on the premise that he was having an affair with the victim’s wife. When she gets him out of prison, we read Annalise Keating differently again: as a Black woman who protects her Black man. As previously stated, Black Twitter has created a sense of community dialogue on such issues as they arise in the two-television series, along with a wide range of pertinent socio-cultural topics. Throughout the show, Annalise Keating struggles with sobriety. She drinks heavily in order to deal with the stresses of her personal life. The show provides a relatable and humanizing mirror on the stigma surrounding mental illness within the Black community, that is, the fact that it is a reality that needs to be addressed. In “Mama’s Here Now” (Season 1, Episode 13), when her mother visits, Annalise Keating revisits her childhood trauma and asks her mother if she knew what her Uncle Clyde did to her, suggesting that Keating was a victim of childhood sexual abuse. Her mother ignored the allegation. Her mother informed her of some people they knew that were raped, including herself. Annalise Keating ordered her mother to leave her house, feeling despondent and exhausted from her emotional breakdown as well as her mother’s ignorance. Her mother brings up the fact that Annalise Keating married her “shrink” and informs her she will leave in the morning, but offers to do her hair. While doing so, she explains to Annalise Keating how their house burnt down with Uncle Clyde in it. The revelation that her own mother had set their house on fire, burning everything, they owned including killing her brother, Clyde, was comforting to Keating who desperately wanted to know if her mother knew she was being sexually abused by a close family relative. The mere fact that her mother burnt the house knowing that the perpetrator of Keating’s abuse was in it meant that the mother knew what was going on and administered her own justice for the abuse experienced by her daughter. One might argue that this act of evil was premeditated murder, but also that it was self-defense. Keating’s mother had to kill her own brother in order to defend and protect her teenage daughter. This scene suggests that Black women have long been disenfranchised and their abuse even sanctioned by various elements within their society, slave system, ideological violence against Black girls, and the community’s protection of abusers through silencing the abused, etc. therefore, the machinations that Black women make in secret to protect themselves and their own are part of their mode of survival – but are often interpreted as evil. This is evident even in older texts such as Beloved which focusses on Black women slaves who would kill their own infants as 96

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an act of love/survival rather than having them endure the tortures of slavery, etc. This is the big debate at the core of the text’s dissection of infanticide. So sometimes doing bad things in order to do something good for someone may not always be considered evil, especially in the social systems in which Black women find themselves. Annalise Keating understands that women need to take charge of their own destinies. She is impressed when her students are willing to go to any length to get what they want. When a need arises for Annalise Keating to get inside information from a client who might be attracted to or is dating Michaela Pratt (Aja Naomi King), a Black female student, she would tell her to use her “boobs” not her heart to maneuver her way through her personal and professional career. At first, when she asks Michaela Pratt to do this, we question Annalise Keating’s moral compass but we begin to understand that a woman using her sexuality in a more strategic way, especially if she is attractive, allows her to advance faster towards getting what she wants because it is often assumed that an attractive Black woman is “dumb”. In “Two Birds, One Millstone” (Season 2, Episode 6), Annalise Keating encourages her white female student, Laurel Castillo (Karla Souza), to use her sex appeal in order to solve a case. Annalise Keating teaches her students to lie so as to win the trust of others in order to trade secrets that would allow the team to win a case. She goes out of her way to ensure that her clients are successfully represented. In the second season of the show we begin to see Annalise Keating as more of a survivor than anything else because she believes it is her moral duty to provide excellent service to her clients irrespective of whether they are guilty or not. Moral duty arises from the categorical imperative within a person because it is based on motives, unlike the hypothetical imperative within a person. Free will is essential for morality, to freely act from duty which makes something right. The relationship between freedom and morality in the categorical imperatives do not change, apply to all and are not based on goals and desires, unlike the hypothetical imperative. The categorical imperative is linked to a person’s consciousness. For audiences, Annalise Keating is read as someone who is always conscious that she has the free will to do what is right for her, her team and her clients; she therefore takes on cases that she knows she is likely to win and be proud of (at least most of the time). In “Skanks Get Shanked” (Season 2, Episode 4), Nate Lahey’s wife calls Annalise Keating to the hospital where she is dying with cancer and asks her to love Nate Lahey. Surprisingly, she also asks Annalise Keating to give her pills she thought would kill her so that she does not continue to be a burden to her husband, and wished to free him. Annalise Keating could have killed her but refused to do so. This is unexpected because Annalise Keating had always been using her protégés Frank Delfino (Charlie Weber) and Bonnie Winterbottom (Liza Weil) in order to ‘get rid’ of people who are in her way and who she regards as problematic. Keating was capable of killing Lahey’s terminally ill wife, yet she chose not to, which proves to viewers that she is not evil despite her many wrongdoings. Even though she loves Nate Lahey, Keating knew it was not her place to come between a married couple and their issues. In this instant, we view Annalise Keating differently, more respectfully perhaps, because, had she killed her, she would have been read as a murderer and a desperate man ‘snatcher’. At the same time, one should interpret what it would have meant if she killed Nate Lahey’s wife. Would it have been regarded as evil if she had agreed and out of compassion effected the act? It might not be wrong if Annalise Keating would do if for the sake of the wife’s humanity, but at the same time, it would not benefit all three parties, because Nate Lahey would resent her for killing his wife. Annalise Keating’s decision not to help Nate Lahey’s wife kill herself was the correct decision, as it compliments Kant’s universalizability principle which suggests that an act or decision is immoral if it is something that everyone should not lawfully oblige to do. Asking someone other than one’s own relative to commit assisted suicide is not something 97

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people would rationally agree to, even if the request comes from someone who is terminally ill and unable to do it themselves. Kant’s humanity principle is also at play here, because Annalise Keating’s morality was being tested in this scene, since she was still having an affair with Nate Lahey, even after her husband her died. Kant’s humanity principle states that one should “act in such a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own persons or the persons of any other, never simply as a means, but always at the same time as an end” (Kant, 1948). Having this in mind, it would have made sense for her to help Nate Lahey’s wife commit suicide. However, audiences would have typically viewed this as a selfish act, and read Keating as a murderer since killing another human being, whether intentionally or not, is an act against humanity and the laws around it requires that we do not take matters into our own hands. Consequently, Annalise Keating’s decision not to act immorally gains her and Rhimes (as the storyteller) much respect for its defiance of the notion that Black women ‘steal’3, or kill, in order to gain a husband/partner. In addition, we can view Nate Lahey’s wife’s request as an honor for Annalise Keating, because instead of resenting her for having an affair with her husband, she asked her for help and gave them her blessing to continue their affair. Thus, reiterating the concept of “Black Love” as the wife cares for the wellbeing of the husband, even when she is well aware that he abuses her good nature by cheating on her with Keating. It also accords with #BlackGirlMagic concept and rejecting the stereotypical portrayals of Black women in television.

Rejecting the ‘Angry Black Woman’ Stereotype A veteran New York Times television critic, Alessandra Stanley, wrote in the first paragraph of her article about the television series “When Shonda Rhimes writes her autobiography, it should be called How to Get Away with Being an Angry Black Woman” (Mask, 2015). This statement is regarded as racist and unfounded since the show was created by Peter Norwalk, a white man, and executive produced by Rhimes (Mask, 2015). Stanley’s article subjects Rhimes as the sapphire, a stereotypical African-American woman who is seen as being “stubborn, bitchy, bossy and hateful” (Ladson-Billings, 2009, p. 89). The name of the Sapphire comes from the character portrayed Ernestine Ward in The Amos ‘n’ Andy television show in the 1950s (Ladson-Billings, 2009, p. 89). This stereotype, which has been used again and again as the character of a “mad Black woman” continues to sell. It should be further explained that Stanley participated in a form of gendered racism that American society has enacted against Black women with the highly charged ‘angry black woman’ trope, which resonates with old-school racist stereotypes that construct self-respecting Black women as domineering, aggressive, castrating, and unfeminine (Mask, 2015). One could connect it to Rhimes’s own feminist views and her openness about her shows, which viewers may consider too controversial. Moreover, as her leading female character in How to Get Away with Murder is Black, it only reiterates how white people read Black women: as constantly angry and discontent. The racist stereotype is an easy point for white women to harp on, as it could never apply to them, as they are the pure virginal opposite to the angry Black woman in the racist discourse on womanhood.

Same-Sex Relationships and Inclusivity Sexual and romantic relationships are very important themes in HTGAWM. From the first episode of the show, same-sex relationships are represented through Connor Walsh (Jack Falahee). He is famously remembered as the student who had sexual intercourse with Oliver Hampton (Conrad Ricamora) in order 98

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to obtain information from him for Annalise Keating, who in turn gave him the trophy for winning the “Criminal Law 100” competition. Some fans of the show shared their discomfort for the homosexual portrayals of Connor Walsh and Annalise Keating. Annalise Keating’s sexual orientation and gender identity becomes apparent in “I Want You to Die” (Season 2, Episode 7) when she asks her ex-girlfriend from Harvard Law, currently a death row attorney, Eve (Famke Janssen), to represent and defend her boyfriend, Nate Lahey, for the murder of her husband. Rhimes has openly challenged the heteronormative beliefs of some of her viewers on Twitter. For example, on October 19, 2014, @Dabdelhakiem a critic of the show, tweeted “the gay scenes in scandal and how to get away with murder are too much. There is no point and they add nothing to the plot”. Rhimes responded with the following four tweets: “There are no Gay scenes. There are scenes with people in them”. Her tweet received three thousand two hundred retweets (3,2k) and four thousand four hundred (4,4k) likes. She later added, “If you are suddenly discovering that Shondaland shows have scenes involving people who are gay, you are LATE TO THE PARTY.” Another tweet she released stated, “If u use the phrase ‘gay scenes’, u are not only LATE to the party but also NOT INVITED to the party. Bye Felicia. #oneLove”. To end her disgruntlement, Rhimes tweeted, “I love all you Tweeples. Even the ones who still need to grow. And remember that at some point, someone discriminated against you too.” Rhimes’s response on Twitter makes it clear that she opposes any discriminatory and homophobic views. Her last tweet in this back and forth is particularly important as it reminds her Black Twitter followers that, at some point, someone discriminated against them too. Others, however, viewed her response to @Dabdelhakiem as harsh and unnecessary. Nevertheless, Rhimes makes her point that if a viewer does not like her content, then they should simply not watch Shondaland. This show mostly matters to Black women because of what was said earlier about Black Twitter allowing for fans of the show to engage on matters of self and inclusivity. While both Scandal and HTGAWM have been praised as the standard in character diversity for network television, it is clear that the Black community still needs to re-think what they believe is immoral about a person’s sexual orientation. Some viewers could not reconcile with the portrayal of Annalise Keating as possibly pansexual, that is, her sexual choices are not limited to biological sex, gender or gender identity. Viola Davis said she is the one who proposed to the show’s producers and creator that Annalise Keating be portrayed as sexually fluid (Bastidas, 2018). Since Rhimes rejects the term “gay scenes” and the labeling of same-sex couples and their sexual activities, it makes one re-think traditional views on evil (that is, the idea of ‘wrong’ from a Christian religious point of view) and how we view humanity; thus allowing viewers to open themselves up to more love, and therefore more inclusivity and goodwill. Kant’s moral philosophy does not try to convince us that morality exists, he asks what it is to be good (Kant, 1948). He speaks of the “good will” (the will to do the right thing) whatever that is. He believes that acting in ways that one can call moral some of the time is realistic as situations and circumstances can make a person act differently. Kant believes that morality is a set of rules that come from human beings and acting from good will is the only way to really be moral (Kant, 1948). To be responsible for purposeful, motivated actions that have a range of negative consequences on other people is considered immoral. Zimbardo (2004, p. 3) explains that it excludes accidental or unintended harmful outcomes, as well as the broader, generic forms of institutional evil, such as poverty, prejudice or destruction of the environment by agents of corporate greed.

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FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The behaviorally-focused definition of evil seems problematic for the contemporary times in which we live, especially in light of traditional views on evil that seem to plague many of us. However, it is important for individuals to acknowledge that there are lawful and moral obligations that inform what is considered right and wrong. While this paper focused only on two of Kant’s categorical imperatives, the universalizability principle and humanity principle, there is room to explore other thoughts on evil in television shows with Black women so as to raise pertinent issues around race, diversity and inclusivity. Generally, viewers connect with shows when there are scandals and crises, thus making the shows Scandal and HTGAWM popular. Rhimes has set the standard for future shows, especially, as they include Black women in leading roles in television. Future research will need to explore the representation of Black women as symbols of evil in television series, especially in their professional roles. In the near future, we hope to see Black women being represented more in television as not only doctors, lawyers but also technology experts and conscious leaders. Rhimes’s production company, Shondaland, allows for new and creative content that engages audiences online; we can then look forward to more authentic stories about marginalized groups in our societies and how evil representations are interpreted.

CONCLUSION This paper reflected on the relationship between Rhimes’s Shondaland and its followers, who, it has been argued, influenced the way in which the shows have progressed. Annalise Keating and Olivia Pope are both represented as strong Black women who each have a team of subordinates that help to expound on the character’s ability to lead, make decisions and multi-task. One can argue that the evil deeds of these characters do not define them, but are justified because the evil is centered around their professional work and protecting the people they care about. The ‘evil’ is represented in a way that lures the audience to take the side of the main characters who are seen as superwomen and who represent #BlackGirlMagic, since they are Black women who are powerful, intelligent and professional. Even when they do bad things for reasons such as women empowerment, sexual gratification and financial independence, to name a few, these Black women’s actions are always out of their own will and made popular by the obvious online engagements on digital platforms. Audience support reinforces the significant contribution Rhimes has made in pop culture by allowing audiences to be engaged and to critique how Black women characters are represented on television shows. Audience participation and their support of the characters, and how they are being framed in traditional and digital media, says a lot about the audiences themselves and their appetite for the so-called ‘evil’ portrayed in exhilarating and dramatic ways. Kant’s principles of universalizability and humanity guide television viewers generally, and that of Rhimes’s shows specifically, to critique and engage on their own interpretations of what is considered right, wrong or immoral. Rhimes’s work dares women of color to see parts of themselves through imagery, sound and other forms of rhetoric. Other subliminal messages evoke the viewers understanding of evil with the notion “the end justifies the means”. In the case of these shows, the rhetoric is signified by both Black women lead characters when they go to great extents to protect their reputations, as well as that of their clients and associates, by doing some form of evil. In some instances, the evil deeds were carried out to do good. The dichotomy between good and bad is central to this paper since the two Black women are, in essence, portrayed as good women who do bad things. The representation of Black women in Shonda Rhimes’s 100

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shows are integral to the way in which women, particularly Black women, see themselves represented and how they aspire to behave when they reach levels of success. In this respect, the paper points out a few of the related challenges faced by Shonda Rhimes for her representational choices, and it highlights some of the popular criticism of Shondaland.

REFERENCES ABC News. (2014). Behind the Scenes of Shondaland [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=H9B5Us9zHRc Acton, H. B. (1970). Introduction: Kant and the Enlightenment. In Kant’s Moral Philosophy: New Studies in Ethics. Palgrave. Appiah, K. A. (1993). No bad nigger: Blacks as the ethical principle in the movies. In M. Garber, J. Malock, & R. L. Walkowitz (Eds.), Media spectacles (pp. 77–90). Routledge. Bastidas, J. (2018). ‘HTGAWM’ Star Viola Davis Reveals Character’s Sexuality was Inspired by Jazz Jennings. Retrieved from https://popculture.com/tv-shows/2018/11/10/htgawm-star-viola-davis-revealscharacter-sexuality-inspired-jazz-jennings/ Brinkhurst-Cuff, C. (2016). How #BlackGirlMagic became a rallying cry for women of colour. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/womens-blog/2016/apr/11/how-blackgirlmagic-becamea-rallying-cry-for-women-of-colour Chatman, D. (2017). Black Twitter and the Politics of Viewing Scandal. In J. Gray, C. Sandvoss, & C. Lee Harrington (Eds.), Fandom: Identities and Communities in a Mediated World (2nd ed.). New York University Press. doi:10.2307/j.ctt1pwtbq2.21 Chireau, Y. P. (2003). Black Magic: Religion and the African American Conjuring Tradition. University of California Press. doi:10.1525/california/9780520209879.001.0001 Erigha, M. (2015). Shonda Rhimes, Scandal, and the Politics of Crossing Over. The Black Scholar, 45(1), 10–15. doi:10.1080/00064246.2014.997598 Everett, A. (2015). Scandalicious. The Black Scholar, 45(1), 34–43. doi:10.1080/00064246.2014.997602 Farley, C. J. (2000, November 27). That old Black magic: Hollywood is still bamboozled when it comes to race. Time, 156, 14. Gabbard, K. (2004). Black Magic: White Hollywood and African American Culture. Rutgers University Press. Glenn, C. L., & Cunningham, L. J. (2007). The Power of Black Magic: The Magical Negro and White Salvation in Film. Journal of Black Studies, 40(2), 135–152. doi:10.1177/0021934707307831 Hayes, K. E. (2011). Holy harlots: femininity, sexuality, and black magic in Brazil. University of California Press.

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Jenkins, C. M. (2017). Black Refusal, Black Magic: Reading African American Literature Now. American Literary History, 29(4), 779–789. doi:10.1093/alh/ajx033 Kant, I. (1948). Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals (H. J. Paton, Trans.). Random House. Kofman, S., & Fisher, N. (1982). The Economy of Respect: Kant and Respect for Women Social Research. Current French Philosophy, 49(2), 383–404. Ladson-Billings, G. (2009). ‘Who you callin’ nappy-headed?’ A critical race theory look at the construction of Black women. Race, Ethnicity and Education, 12(1), 87–99. doi:10.1080/13613320802651012 Manjoo, F. (2010, Aug 10). How Black people use Twitter: The latest research on race and microblogging. Slate.com. Retrieved from 2 April 2015. Retrieved from https://slate.com/articles/technology/ technology/2010/08/how_black_people_use_twitter Mask, M. (2015). A Roundtable Conversation on Scandal. The Black Scholar, 45(1), 3–9. doi:10.1080 /00064246.2014.997597 Missouri, M. A. (2015). Black Magic Woman and Narrative Film. Race, Sex and Afro-Religiosity. Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/9781137454188 Oudadene, H. (2020). Screening Evil Women: Black Magic and “Black” Desire in Early Hollywood. Quarterly Review of Film and Video, 37(3), 284–293. doi:10.1080/10509208.2019.1639971 Paskin, W. (2013, May 9). Network TV Is Broken. So How Does Shonda Rhimes Keep Making Hits? The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/12/magazine/shonda-rhimes.html Pixley, T. (2015). Trope and Associates. The Black Scholar, 45(1), 28–33. doi:10.1080/00064246.201 4.997601 Ramsey, D. X. (2015, April 8). The truth about Black Twitter: Complex, influential, and far more meaningful than the sum of its social justice-driven hashtags. The Atlantic. Retrieved from https://www. theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/04/the-truth-about-Black-Twitter/390120/ Schulzke, M. (2012). Kant’s Categorical Imperative: The Value of Respect and the Treatment of Women. Journal of Military Ethics, 11(1), 26–41. doi:10.1080/15027570.2012.674241 Summers, M. (2012). Witchcraft and Black Magic. Talton, B., & Mills, Q. T. (2011). Black Subjects in Africa and Its Diasporas: Race and Gender in Research and Writing. Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/9780230119949 Tudor, P. (2013). Black Jews in Africa and the Americas. Harvard University Press. Wanderer, J. J., & Rivera, G. Jr. (1986). Black magic beliefs and white magic practices: The common structure of intimacy, tradition, and power. The Social Science Journal, 23(4), 419–430. doi:10.1016/ S0362-3319(86)80016-7 White, M. D. (2004). Can homo economicus follow Kant’s categorical imperative? Journal of SocioEconomics, 33(1), 89–106. doi:10.1016/j.socec.2003.12.002

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Williams, B. (2018). White Light, Black Magic: Racism in Esoteric Thought. Retrieved from http:// brandywilliamsauthor.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/White-Light-Black-Magic_-Racism-in-EsotericThought Zambelli, P. (2007). White Magic, Black Magic in the European Renaissance (Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions). Brill. doi:10.1163/ej.9789004160989.i-282 Zimbardo, P. G. (2004). A Situationist Perspective on the Psychology of Evil: Understanding how Good People are Transformed into Perpetrators. In A. Miller (Ed.), The social psychology of good and evil: Understanding our capacity for kindness and cruelty. Academic Press.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Black Girl Magic: A movement created to celebrate the accomplishments and general amazingness of black women. Black Woman: A woman of African and Afro-diasporic descent. HTGAWM: A Twitter Hashtag and abbreviation for How to Get Away with Murder. Immanuel Kant: An ethicist and philosopher. Moral: Concerned with the intentions, decisions, and actions of right and wrong behavior. Representation: Portrayal of someone or something in a particular way. Shonda Rhimes: An African American television producer, television and film writer, and author. Viola Davis: An African American actress.

ENDNOTES

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2 3

The concept of Black Twitter first erupted in the United States (Manjoo, 2010). It is a hard term to conceptualize and understand for those who are not necessarily part of it. Ramsey (2015) describes Black Twitter as “a large network of Black Twitter users and their loosely coordinated interactions, many of which accumulate into trending topics due to the network’s size, interconnectedness, and unique activity” An abbreviation for “Oh my God”, “Oh my gosh” or “Oh my goodness”. “Steal” here refers to the colloquial term ‘stealing someone’s man’

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Charming but Villain:

Cross-Cultural Perspective on the Evil of a Little Girl in the Adaptations of The Bad Seed Lale Kabadayı https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5533-795X Ege University, Turkey

ABSTRACT In the history of cinema, bad girl/boy characters are less common than other villain characters. However, these characters have a lot of influence on the audience. The Bad Seed movies, which are important book adaptations, are remarkable for the evil done by a charming, pretty little girl. The audience watched the story of this eight-year-old-girl for the first time with the adaptation made in 1956. The book was adapted as a television movie in the US both in 1985 and 2018. However, it was made in Turkey, too. This adaptation was shot in 1963 by director Nevzat Pesen. This black-and-white film is considered one of the best thriller-horror films of Turkish Cinema. In this study, the relationship of the little girl with evil will be examined in terms of differences in US and Turkish adaptations. Thus, the difference between the two cultures regarding the relationship between child and villainy will be evaluated from the point of cinema.

INTRODUCTION As audiences, we are very interested in making various excuses regarding the bad person and bad things we see on the screen. Many of these excuses make sense regarding the cause of the evil in our mind in some way. Thus, if we avoid a similar situation, we believe that the evil will stay away from us. It is a fact that the evil we are watching relieves us because the possibility of encountering a similar situation is far away. After all, these bad things happen to someone else. And there is always an enjoyable aspect in cinematic gaze. However, there are also some points where the pleasure of watching is fragile. For example, in every culture, we become more uneasy about children-related issues that we consider to be DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch008

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our “red line” in life. Maybe this is the reason why the existence of bad characters based on boys/girls is so much indelible in our minds although they are less in number than other villains in the history of cinema. These “evil children” of the cinema make their uncanny existence stronger by the fact that their evil deeds are based on no reason. Question marks about the evil they do also guide the stories of the films. We expect a logical explanation until the end of the film, as we don’t want to believe they are “pure bad”. As we wait to be convinced of the reasons, our discomfort grows a little more with each question in the story. Evil children surprise us and cause us to stuck in a gap where we don’t know what to think or what to feel. One of these evil children characters is an eight-year-old girl who is the “bad seed” in the history of cinema. The Bad Seed movies, which are important book adaptations, are remarkable for the evil done by a charming, pretty little girl. The audience watched the story of this girl for the first time with the adaptation made in 1956 in the US. The book was adapted as a television film in the US both in 1985 and 2018. Turkey also has adapted the story into a movie. This adaptation was shot in 1963 by director Nevzat Pesen. The black-and-white film is regarded as one of the best thriller-horror films of Turkish cinema history. In this chapter, the relationship of the little girl with evil will be examined in terms of differences in US and Turkish adaptations. In this direction, the film shot in 1956 in the US and the film shot in 1963 in Turkey will be discussed. Thus, the approach of these two countries’ cinemas to the psychoanalytic and sociological aspects highlighted in these films will be revealed. As a result, the attitudes of two cultures to the relationship between child and evil will be examined from the point of cinema.

“YES, MOTHER!”: IMAGE APPEARING IN THE MIRROR OR RHODA’S FRAGMENTED IDENTIFICATION The 1956 film The Bad Seed, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, is based on the thriller novel by American writer William March and the Broadway play by Maxwell Anderson. Eight-year-old Rhoda Penmark (Patty McCormack) lives with her mother, Christine (Nancy Kelly), who stays with her despite her father who is away for military service. Rhoda seems like an ideal daughter. She is a tidy, hardworking girl who pays special attention to dressing well and she has mature behaviors compared to her peers. The host Aunt Monica defines her as “thrifty, courageous, knowing what she wants”. But behind this perfection, there is a person who cannot tolerate losing, blames everyone but herself, engages in immoral acts, and is problematic and evil in her social judgments. Christine realizes that her daughter killed her classmate Claude Daigle for the penmanship medal and learns that Rhoda felt nothing about the death. Worse, Rhoda calls the killing process “exciting”. This situation reveals that the “nature” of the little girl is not shaped by the social. The film makes very important references to psychoanalytic criticism, which will have become more prominent in film studies, especially in the 1970s. Aunt Monica, who openly claims to have met Freud, starts a conversation about dreams, relationships with men and especially with fathers at lunch where the residents gather. Christine explains that she always thinks of her father, loves him very much, and spends her entire childhood fearing that she is adopted or not. She summarizes her dreams about this fear. The story of the disappearance of serial killer Bessie Denker is also told at lunch. Christine’s answers to the questions asked at lunch generally contain Oedipal references. The story about Christine’s birth mother, which Christine prefers to push this into her unconscious because she has difficulty in accepting, is made 105

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its presence felt to the audience. Then, a connection is established between dream and reality towards the end of the movie. Christine is actually Bessie Denker’s own daughter. She escaped from her serial killer mother when she was about two years old and was adopted by Richard Bravo, whom she called him as her ‘father’. Christine still feels the fear she used to have towards her mother in her childhood and has nightmares about this related fear. Although the movie seems to be concerned with Christine’s pushing her sad past to the unconscious, the reason why the information about the past comes back to consciousness is that Rhoda has a tendency to murder. Rhoda’s situation, unlike her mother, goes beyond being a dream/reality dichotomy. In the existence of the girl, there is a position where one step before being acculturated is decisive. Rhoda is structured as a character in which readings about the Mirror Stage of the process of identification in the Lacanian sense would be made. The Mirror Stage which Jacques Lacan constructs it in order to correspond to the developmental stages of a child -even though he puts boy at the center- grounds its basis on identification. As Lacan states in The Mirror Stage as Formative of the I Function-as Revealed in Psychoanalytic Experience presented in Zurich in 1949, in the imaginary stage, the child misinterprets his integrity (2007, p. 76). The child, who sees himself as a self-sufficient being in the mirror between 6-18 months, is in the error of being in a “perfect” (Ideal-I/Ideal-ego) completion. The imaginary stage marks the development of a narcissistic understanding of the child, who produces his fantasy image with himself through his ideal image. The Freudian ideal-ego in the imaginary stage is positioned differently from the ego-ideal in the symbolic stage (Bakır, 2008, p. 25). Because in Lacan’s “ideal ego”, the ego tries to imitate the ideal of perfection. In this way, as distinct from the development of the superego it can make the child experience a “heroic” feeling of completion through its mostly fragmented image even if it is a fantasy product. It is possible to establish a relationship between the fragmented state of the fictional self here and the use of mirrors as an indicator of the fragmented mood in films. Thus, while pointing to the ideal-ego, the idea of the mood disorder of the film character is placed in the mind of the audience with character’s inability to adapt to the symbolic order. Accordingly, the mirror can also be used “as a metaphor for the social” (Diken & Laustsen, 2011, p. 25). Similarly, in The Bad Seed, Rhoda is shown in the “dual nature” state as being stuck in the imaginary stage. On the one hand, the narcissistic identity persists, just as she confirms herself in the mirror that she often looks at. On the other hand, she needs approval through the “words” of the symbolic order that she has to use. When Rhoda often looks at herself in the mirror, she self-approves for her actions. She believes that with her perfect appearance, she deserves her every move. In any criticism from the Other, she acts in accordance with the templates imposed by the symbolic order. She speaks to those whom she confronts using the words they want to hear. She praises her mother’s beauty and speaks very kindly to her teacher or Aunt Monica. The only person she really shows herself in real is the gardener LeRoy who not only likes her but also is left out of the society as she is. Because of LeRoy’s provoking Rhoda, the part of the imaginary section in Rhoda’s split personality is in danger of “losing its perfection” for a short time. The ideal-image is temporarily distorted when LeRoy says that the police would find the murder device or frightens Rhoda that she would be executed in the electric chair. But Rhoda solves the problems one by one that prevent her from completely losing faith in the integrity of what appears in the mirror. And she kills LeRoy, like the others who get in the way of her target. LeRoy’s death by burning is not shown exactly. Only Christine’s face is displayed, and the audience gets an idea of the ​​ horror of the image through her expression. Rhoda copies the masculine language approved by the social structure in the symbolic order. By repeating similar sentences one after another, she hides and protects herself against the damage that may come 106

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from the law of the father. This is because the symbolic order has the potential to damage her “nature”. This “nature” does not need to be positive and approved. It can also have a caustic/destructive nature. But “nature”, whether it is constructive or destructive, is either degraded or changed by the influence of the symbolic order. Because Rhoda senses this, she continues to hide herself by living in a dual order. For this reason, she does not progress in the developmental stages of the Lacanian Mirror Stage. And until her mother realizes the murder, she preserves her essence, maintaining her “bad” nature despite the social. In this case, the real destructor of Rhoda’s ‘perfect’ and ‘happy’ identity in the imaginary stage is her mother, Christine. So it is the mother who genetically ‘created’ and then ‘destroyed’ Rhoda. Rhoda knows that her mother is a bearer of the symbolic order. Therefore, when she replies to her mother, she often says “Yes, Mother!” Thus, she continues her role as an individual approved by the society. For this, she lies when it is necessary. In the end, she reveals that society does not care about the existence of human beings, but the way of their living by the rules. Thus she enables us to question what/who is the real evil. For the mother who has adapted to the father, it is not enough to pretend to be suitable for the society. It is necessary to fully adapt to society. Therefore, Rhoda is the “bad seed” according to her mother Christine. Christine understands that her daughter, like her own mother, maintained her own sense of perfection, despite being aware of the social. This situation threatens the social. Because it holds the power to break the rules of society. Therefore, the bad seed must be destroyed. The perfect face that Rhoda sees in her mirror other than herself belongs to her grandmother, not to her mother. The person with whom she feels integrated is her grandmother Bessie. Her grandmother is not a weak, surrendered character like her mother, Christine. The structuring of the mother here confirms the thoughts of E. Ann Kaplan: “The entire construction of woman in patriarchy as a “lack” could be viewed as emerging from the need to repress mothering” (2001, p. 202). Therefore, Rhoda is connected to her mother only by “language”. She tells her what she wants to hear. But she cannot see herself and her mother as a whole in the imaginary stage. Rhoda’s appearance on the screen is similar to the image in the mirror phase. She is not wanted to be accepted as “Real”. For this reason, a camera angle which allows the audience to identify with Rhoda is not used. Thus, the audience is not allowed to discover or question the pleasure they can get from evil. Rhoda is tried to be killed by Christine, who knows that the “masculine world” is worse than her own daughter. Soon after, Christine attempts suicide. However, they both survive. Despite the Cold War and the fear of the “other”, the mother who is sanctioned by the society is not allowed to be the murderer, due to the general understanding of Hollywood and the social structure of the period. Rhoda goes to the side of the river in search of the penmanship medal on a rainy night. She dies as a result of a lightning strike. In a conservative sense, divine justice is provided. The answers to the questions that are frequently mentioned in the film are left to the audience such as “Are the guilty children the product of society?” or “Are their genetic origins determinant?” Basically what is shown is that a person who fails to progress through the stages of development will be left out of society. Well, is it possible to consider the death of Rhoda as metaphorically disappearing since she cannot stay in the imaginary phase any longer and cannot bear to be invisible in the symbolic order? Perhaps, the momentarily flashing of an exciting idea that Rhoda could show up from another shore and continue her life could mean that we have different opinions about the person whom society calls ‘bad’.

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DISPLAY OF VIOLENCE VS. THE EVIL THAT THE LITTLE GIRL DOES It is Nevzat Pesen who wrote, directed and produced the film called Kötü Tohum (The Bad Seed) (1963) in Turkish cinema. He adapted the novel and the US version of the film into the scenario (Özgüç, 2012, p. 60). Nevzat Pesen left some characters in the original version out of the narrative and added a few characters. The director also made changes in the use of space without disrupting the main story. An important feature of the films between 1940 and 1970 in Turkish cinema is that the names of the leading actors/actresses are frequently given to the characters in the film. Kötü Tohum movie is an example of this. The credits of the movie are given with a close-up of the protagonist Alev Çeliktaş’s (Alev Oraloğlu) eyes. The name Alev is also suitable for the narrative in terms of its meaning. Because the meaning of Alev is flame. The garden of a primary school is seen in the first scene of the movie. Primary school children play in the garden on a sunny day. With the black smock and white collar school uniforms used in this period, the income difference between rich and poor students can not be understood. Alev reads a magazine about movie stars in the schoolyard. Her teacher warns Alev not to read the magazine, saying that such magazines are not suitable for her age. It is her friend Cemal who gives the magazine to Alev. Cemal is a child who shows great interest in Alev. When the tip of her pen is broken in the exam, he gives Alev his own pen. He always wants to play games with her. However, Alev turns down the game offers, saying that her friends are treating her badly. Lâle (Lâle Oraloğlu), who is also the mother of Alev in real life, lives with her daughter as a tenant of a mother and a daughter who own a large mansion. Due to the long business trips of her engineer husband, Lâle became like a family with the owners of the mansion. Melek Hanim and her middle-aged daughter Gönül especially love Alev. They find her “beautiful and sparkling like Hollywood stars” and pamper her. When Cemal wins the fine writing contest held at the school, Alev gets jealous of him and breaks the pencil that Cemal gave her in the exam. The phrase “to break his pencil” means “to bring the end irreversibly” in Turkish, as in many languages. Since 1984, the death penalty has not been applied in Turkey. The origin of the phrase “to break his pen” goes back to the time of death penalty. The phrase refers to the decision to end a person’s life, but also refers to the fact that the judge who gives the sentence breaks his pen in real to state that he does not want to impose this punishment upon anyone again. Accordingly, Alev’s “breaking the pen” of Cemal gives the audience an idea about what would happen soon. Memo takes care of the gardening and cleaning of the mansion. Memo is a pseudonym. Instead of the name Mehmet, the abbreviation Memo is usually used in villages in Turkey. While Memo is being portrayed as an unpopular character in the film, it is preferred adding physical disability to his mental deficiency. Memo can not walk properly. This situation should be read as a negative judgment towards people with disabilities. Also, Memo is excluded from the society not because he is bad as he describes himself, but because he is an ‘uneducated peasant’. While Memo tries to anger Alev, he says that she does not bother to talk to him. Memo points out that ‘Little Lady’ is talking to people she can only fool. Memo is killed after threatening Alev. In the movie, every scene with violent content is shown. First, we watch Alev igniting the straw. Memo is then seen screaming and asking for help in the coal hole, which he could not get out of due to the iron bars. After breaking the door, he runs towards the pool in the garden while he is on fire. He jumps into the pool. It is not shown that he hits the stone and dies. It is preferred to show all other horror moments, to increase the effect of the evil done on the audience. However, the audience does not think like this. Instead of blaming her, we are almost glad for Alev, as 108

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she is busy with her piano and as she does not have to witness these horror moments. When we look at the film in general, we can say that the evil done by Alev is perceived lighter than the images of violence. One of the aspects of the film that differs from the novel and film which it was adapted from is the increase in the use of different spaces as well as outdoor spaces, as stated earlier. The garden is used for evening chats. The lakeside is shown multiple times both day and night. It is seen that Alev performes with her gun in the role of a hunter at the performance held at the school. The use of these spaces and the almost “mischievous” music used as non-diegetic material disrupt the creation of an ‘evil atmosphere’. Talking about the death penalty with the electric chair appears as an adaptation problem. Alev says that such a penalty does not exist in Turkey. This creates an atmosphere where the threat of punishment is not scary enough. The discipline given by school education is shown in the scene where children walk in a single row in the garden. Under this discipline, not only Alev, but all children are portrayed in accordance with social rules. Accordingly, the clues about Alev’s growth stages, which we can find in psychoanalysis, are not included in the film. Alev is only portrayed as a jealous girl. On the nature of evil, no expression of genetic inheritance is used other than Lâle’s blaming herself. In addition, the idea that society creates evil is not clear. Because the individual is not at the center. In short, in the social stratification, he/she uses violence against the one who is lower than him/herself. In the film, the situation of the evaluation of this as evil, is carried out by using a little girl metaphorically. In this direction, it is necessary to talk about a “subject” who has already entered the field of language in order to explain the situation of Alev in a Lacanian way. As Alain Badiou relates the connection he established between evil and ethics, Lacan “showed that the subject had no substance, no ‘nature’, being a function both of the contingent laws of language and of the always singular history of objects of desire” (2001, p. 6). So when the human subject is taken as basis in the Lacanian sense, ‘universal demarcation of evil’ has become the goal. In this case, it is possible to say that the evil of the subject is equated with the social evil for this film. The evil of the subject reflects the evil of society. To emphasize, the most important difference between the two films discussed is seen in the additions to the narrative. When Alev tells her mother about the killing of Cemal, flashback is used. Things progress like a daily fight between two children. When Cemal threatens Alev to complain to the teacher about her, Alev pushes him into the lake and starts hitting him. There is more of a little girl situation who avoids her elders while misbehaving, rather than an evil person who plans this on purpose. After Memo is killed, Lâle goes to the lake and throws the medal into the water and says goodbye to Cemal. Lâle says, “Yes, Cemal, this medal is your right. I return it to you. God, save me from this suffering!” and she pleads with God. She gets her answer in a short time. The film tries to put every event on a logical ground. Whether the evil is caused by a genetic or social structure is not given very clearly. Lâle tries to kill her daughter with pills and commits suicide. Lâle dies. Her daughter Alev survives. On a rainy night, Alev goes to the lake and dies as a result of lightning. Thus, justice which does not change society is achieved by punishing a person.

CONCLUSION Selected as an example from US and Turkish cinema, The Bad Seed/Kötü Tohum films have structured their main stories on the evil nature of a little girl at first sight. While The Bad Seed asks clearer questions about whether evil is a genetic or social construct, the answer is more on genetics. Kötü Tohum, on 109

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the other hand, keeps these questions more secret and refers to our unconscious in which the society is bad. As with every moment when we cannot make sense of evil, what we feel towards these two films drag clearly us into an uneasy and uncanny mood. In the examples of The Bad Seed/Kötü Tohum, girls who leave us in this uncanny space are trying to find a place for themselves with the help of temporary security of the ideal-ego due to the uneasiness of independence from their mothers. The mother with whom once was identified in the mirror shows that she is different from her child now. The mother is not only a different individual but also the bearer of the symbolic order. In this direction, the gap between “I” and “other” is getting wider and the insecure environment is widening. Besides, placed in the heart of the society as bad seeds Rhoda and Alev, actually put a fear of the fertility of women into our unconscious. The woman who has the privilege of giving birth has the potential to ‘create’ what is evil as well as good. This marks a point where society can blame the mother and thus place itself above her. Therefore, the mothers in both movies blame themselves for their bad daughters. Christine and Lâle see themselves entitled to intervene in the body of their daughter, who has become independent from them. They try to kill their daughters so that they are less hurt. Saying that she is “disgusted by all kinds of violence”, Christine directs the biggest violence to her daughter. Lâle puts her daughter, whom she says she loves very much, to sleep and quiet. However, the issue of body intervention is also seen in both mothers whether they are approved or not approved by the society. While grandmothers committing murder is deconstructive, Christine and Lâle’s attempt to kill their daughter is equated with social adaptation. In this respect, mothers and daughters and their daughters are equated with each other not in terms of intentions but in the actions they take. As representatives of the incomplete language, both a military father who serves the government during the Cold War and an engineer father who serves social development, hardly appear in films. In addition, allowing the mother (Christine), who is a good housewife, to continue her existence affirms her integrity into the symbolic order. In the Kötü Tohum, the mother (Lâle) who wants death with a fatalistic attitude is ‘saved from this torture’ by God. Meanwhile, questioning about positioning and responsibilities such as femininity, motherhood, housewifery, living under social control, domestic labor, child rearing do not attract much attention in both films. The ‘ideal’ of motherhood shaped by the symbolic order is placed against the ideal-ego and this causes the destruction of perfection. The fact that the evil is punished by divine justice, even as a child, is confirmed in both films and in both cultures. The expression “The beauty of you is reflected on your face” used in Turkish is not valid for these films. Evil is shown hiding behind beauty, and it is portrayed as more dangerous than ugly-evil like LeRoy or Memo. Also, as Rhoda and Alev do, any selfish behavior or an attempt to dominate others, which is not for the benefit of the society or the status quo, is pushed out by society. It is also useful to briefly mention the “innocent” or “victim” terms which are the means of naming the evil. Claude and Cemal are the losers from the beginning in a world where even success is seen as belonging to the upper class, despite Rhoda, who is emphasized as an unnatural child, or Alev, who is portrayed as an incompatible with her friends. The mothers of both come from the lower classes, and even they doubt whether their children deserve the medal. Innocents who are positioned dichotomically against evil “die easily and a lot of evil goes unpunished” (Neiman, 2006, p. 166). It is therefore ironic that the boys disappear after achieving the only success in their lives. The questions of whether the crime can be learned or it is genetically inherited are left unanswered. However, the possibility of the existence of “bad seeds” serves to keep the fear of the legacy of evil

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on the agenda. Both films, in the field opened by psychoanalytic readings in cinema studies, have the potential to activate these fears by leaving many questions unanswered in our minds.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS In the relationship between evil and cinema, boy/girl characters will always be of interest. It is important to make psychoanalytic or sociological evaluations in structuring these characters. Thus, it will be possible to interpret the situation of society and individuals periodically.

REFERENCES Badiou, A. (2001). Ethics: An Essay on the Understanding of Evil (P. Hallward, Trans.). Verso. Bakır, B. (2008). Sinema ve Psikanaliz. Hayalet Kitap. Diken, B., & Laustsen, C. B. (2011). Filmlerle Sosyoloji. Metis. Kaplan, E. A. (2001). Women&Film: Both Sides of the Camera. Routledge. Lacan, J. (2007). The mirror phase as formative of the function of the ‘I. In Écrits-The First Complete Edition in English (B. Fink, Trans.; pp. 75–81). W.W.Norton and Company. Neiman, S. (2006). Modern Düşüncede Kötülük: Alternatif Bir Felsefe Tarihi (A. Sargüney, Trans.). Ayrıntı. Özgüç, A. (2012). Ansiklopedik Türk Filmleri Sözlüğü. Horizon International Yayınları.

ADDITIONAL READING Khun, A. (1994). Women’s Pictures: Feminism and Cinema. Verso. Smelik, A. (1998). And the Mirror Cracked: Feminist Cinema and Film Theory. Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/9780333994702 Stam, R. (2000). Film Theory-An Introduction. Wiley-Blackwell.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Diegetic Material: It is the material that a character can hear, see, feel in a movie. It is part of the world that the movie character is aware of. Mirror Stage: Stade du miroir. Lacanian term. Indicates the developmental stages of the child in psychoanalysis. There are basically three stages: real, imaginary, and symbolic. Non-Diegetic Material: It is the material in a movie that a character cannot hear, see, feel. It helps the audience make sense of the movie.

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Cinematographic Ethics Within the Autonomy of Art: Empathy With Pedophilia in Cinema Onur Keşaplı Usak University, Turkey

ABSTRACT Pedophilia, which at the same time is considered as a sickness, was mostly handled in cinema history as an element of crime. Apart from the examples where the evil is punished, there also exists movies where the subject is handled but not named. And in recent past, movies that aim to empathize started to appear. These movies places pedophilia in the center, study the justifications behind actions and tries to establish sympathy. There are movies such as The Woodsman and Kind in which the main character is a pedophile, ones like Little Children where pedophilia is handled as a whole and ones like Nympnomaniac Vol 2 wherein pedophilia is elaborately scrutinized. Common trait of all these movies is the acceptance of pedophilia, which is coded as a state of absolute evil, as a reality and engaging in an effort to understand it. These four movies which, within the frame of autonomy of art and within the context of cinematographic ethics, empathize with a state that is opposite to moral norms are of importance regarding confrontation with parts of human nature that is considered evil.

INTRODUCTION In cinema, where the main stream is still determinent, the classical narrative mostly preserves its codes from the earlier stages. It cannot be said that it is on the same grounds contentwise. The spectacles the cinema presents concerning objective decentness, rightness and goodness while telling stories by means of moving images, have become prominent in such a way that the objectivities of the words are ignored. The narratives that are built around simple arguments like the defeat of evil, wrong and ugly and the win of good, right and beautiful have undergone a change comparatively in the course of time. With examples of world cinema, mainly European, that are positioned outside Film Noir and Hollywood, good-bad, DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch009

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right-wrong, beautiful-ugly adversities have begun cohering gradually being no longer a contrast. The films in which bad characters are not solely bad, where their acts are justified are no longer extreme examples nowadays. Bringing to the fore bad characters, which can be considered as radical examples for adult-oriented mainstream films of the 20th century, and moreover the possibility of empathizing with them can even be seen gradually in 21st century in the films targeting youths and even children. At this point, how cinema approaches or should approach pedophilia, which, in 21st century, has become prominent with ever-increasing incidences reported and discussed, which causes large-scale reactions and agitations from place to place attracts attention as an extreme example. It can be seen that the pedophilia, apart from the argument whether it is a disease or not, is made malicious by being characterized as perversion and has no positive connotations and is even demonized. That the global reactions to actions including sexual harassments and assaults directed at children involve demands for castration and death sentence shows that pedophilia has a malicious reception beyond the other evils. Accordingly, handling pedophilia in art and particularly in cinema due to its power is expectant of much more sensibility. It can be said that pedophilia, which mostly in films is almost demonized by being matched with absolute evilness, is recently being represented with more diversity. There exists films, which handles, discusses and criticizes the topic from its sensitiveness, and ones that mentions it by using it only as a motif. Moreover, in recent years, apart from works that treats pedophilia as a central theme, works, which handle pedophilic individuals and even provide for representations, which shows effort to have the audience empathize with them are being produced. The Woodsman, directed by Nicole Kassell in 2004, is a film in which a pedophile is chosen as a main character and the whole storyline is focused on this topic. Little Children, directed by Todd Field in 2006, treats problem of pedophilia as a frame of the plot, while at the same time portraying as a side character, the pedophile who caused the trouble. In Nymphomaniac, Vol.2, directed by Lars Von Trier in 2013, there is an extensive scene in which empathy toward a pedophilic character is achieved. Within the scope of the study, through analysis of the mentioned three works, the directors’ choice of representations in the films for pedophiles, who are regarded as evil and satanic in terms of ethics almost everywhere in the world, and their assesment of pedophilia towards which exists a globally same bad perception will be discussed and evaluated. For the purpose of a philosophical framework, the study will advance with Kant’s definitions of evil. Later on the concepts of morality, ethics and empathy will be processed together with pedophilia and emphasis will be put on whether the films in question provide an opportunity or not for collective reception with the autonomy of art concurrently and whether, accordingly, they have visual and audial propositions or not will be discussed. In general, in this study, within the scope of autonomy of art, by means of the example of pedophilia, opinions will be expressed on whether cinematographic ethics is possible or not.

BACKGROUND: ART AND AUTONOMY It has mostly thought that the statement that art may be autonomous or that it is already autonomous due to its core was born back in 19th century with the expression “art is for art”. This attitude that can be interpreted as a reaction to the understanding that art is for society which has become prominent in the wake of ideological and actional revolts following Renaissance and Enlightenment, has actually sprouted before the dominant point of view which states that art should be for society. According to Ali Artun, the process first begun in philosophy, with Romantic philosophers. Artun, takes Enlightenment philosopher 113

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Immanuel Kant’s book Critique of Judgement published in 1790 as start and states that any benefit or advantage shouldn’t be expected from art. The art that has no use for anything but itself differs from the system based on advantage and benefit. Moreover the art is isolated from the deeds such as usefulness, utility and the interests of human beings that are among the principles of the industrial capitalism. According to him, autonomy of art brings along purification from some values and while describing the regime of modern knowledge, Kant cuts art off intellect and ethics. The truth is in itself innate. It does not represent, delineate and imitate anything (Artun, 2018, para. 1). These proposals breaks up all the boundaries set to art since then. It is seen that the autonomy of art proceeds concurrently with the individual becoming a subject. Without a doubt, the interpretation of autonomy as being exempt from socialism promotes the idea that independent art cannot attain to socialization. According to Adorno, it is quite the opposite. Adorno, who thinks that art had a more direct relation with the society before the subject became liberated, says that the autonomy of art is a result of bourgeois consciousness of freedom. When it became aware of its autonomy, the art, which also managed to take poisition against manners and customs of communal sovereignty before this consciousness that brings along independence from society, got to directly challenge the society. For Adorno, this situation in fact, has ensured the art to become socialized by challenging the society (2017, para. 1). Christoph Menke too, says that defending the autonomy of art does not mean suggesting that it is independent from the society. In his opinion, the differention of structures in modern societies has communal quality, accordingly, as so in other fields, the attained autonomy of art is as well communal (Menke, 2018, para. 3). That the autonomy of art is mentioned more so with the understanding that art is for art rather than understanding that art is for society, has roots in the reactions of the authors and artists of Romantism movement of 19th century, to the ways of living of masses imposed by ever-increasing and expanding hegemony of bourgeois. The understanding art is for art which was first expressed by Théophile Gautier attracted attention as a reaction against new moral impositions of the period. Jackson Petsche, in spite of thinking that the understanding that “art is for art” is an insurgency against bourgeois from the beginning, emphasizes that such an understanding did not come to a point of eradication of social relations of bourgeois. Petsche says that while Gautier and the artists of the period revolt against the limitations imposed by the ethics of bourgeois, they haven’t clashed radically with the ideology that brings about the ethics they object to (2017, para. 7). Hence, accepting the autonomy of art or it being inherently autonomous is not a stage that guarantees its freedom. It can be seen that the discussion on the autonomy of art has been continuing in the direction of artists’ work but with a prerequisite of them having a critical nature. This conditional autonomy that is brought to the art producer from outside is just like upgrading of craft handicrafts to the level of art. According to Adorno who, through maintaining this stance claims that art can never be entirely autonomous but has to assume autonomy in order to have an honor of being able to criticize the society, total objection of society by art is refusal of society’s becoming determinant. In his opinion while the autonomous art that refuses the society turns itself into a tool of ideology, the startled society is watching in the distant and this is a state beyond ideology (Adorno, 2017, para. 3). This adverse situation which Adorno describes as contradiction, to say the least, surely does not mean the same for autonomy of modern art which, from the beginning, acts with a motivation that considers art as a field apart from reality as stated by Irmgard Emmelhainz (2016, para. 15). For Petsche this endeavour regarding the artistic productions that can exist, if necessary, independent from meaning and even significance points, together with announcement of the death of the subject by postmodernism, to the end of autonomy of art which from the beginning was heralded with the birth of the subject. (2017, para. 5) From this point forth, when the unique self114

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ness practice and innate ideology of the artist is accepted as ended, the disputes such as what does the artist do and should do becomes idle. If reverted again to Kant who is at the center of the argument, whether art is autonomous or not, it can be seen that the thoughts Kant expressed also points to artistic freedom apart from autonomy. According to Kant, the art is free because the inclusion between understanding of competence and sensitivity is suspended. The philosopher, who integrates the aestetics as a concept with autonomy as a situation, rises the aesthetical freedom to a level exempt from everything by coding it independently from legislative power of imagination and understanding. For Kant, the aesthetical freedom is one without law (as cited in Menke, 2018, para. 13). Absolute freedom attributed to art in accordance with its autonomy is one idea that will cause numerous conflicts. Where do the freedom of art begins and where it ends, beyond opposing the dominant ideology or not, clashes with moral and ethic concepts that are wowen/ surrounded by traditional cultural values.

Morality, Ethics and Art Because of the probability of harbouring elements that can contradict especially with moral and ethics, even in places and times throughout the history where the most libertarian honors were given to art, one can find numerous examples, which show that the artist does not have an unlimited freedom. That being the case, unavoidably, it is questioned whether, in the wake of accepting autonomy of art, lies a struggle to position the art away from the society due to potential risks. It can be claimed that isolating art and the artist in a way he/she will be far away from the society and be on his/her terms against the danger of him/her being close to society, mingling with it and shaping it, is seen as a solution. At present, didn’t the art and artist ask for autonomy and freedom? In that case to submitting the request both for the artist and the society -hegemony- can well be preferred. However, even when the interaction between the art and society is minimized, the task assigned to the art and the responsibilities expected for it to undertake does not have an end. According to D.H. Lawrence, the basic function of the art should be about morality. The art should only be moral; should be beyond easthetical, beautifying, about having a good time, and even relaxing. This ethical duty of the art, which Lawrence describes it as changing opinion rather than mind (as cited in Spilka, 1963, p. 151), should appeal to emotions more than rationality. It can be thought that the concept of ethics mentioned here is placed in an ideal framework rather than singular samples, probably into conscience, but one can see that transforming of the term morality into responsibility in artworks is seen mostly in the examples under the heading of sexuality. Susan Sontag, who opposes this argument radically states, based on the works Jean Genet, that “the approval or disapproval of what the artwork “says” in terms of morality is as external a thing as feeling sexual arousal from an artwork” (as cited in Demirkaya, 2012, para. 55). As could be seen by multipe examples, mentioning of morality in conjuction with art gives birth to radically opposite ideas. To try to understand the foundations of morality, as a term that became a concept and insights aimed at it is important. Considering the prevalences, two understandings of morality can be seen as dominant. In the scope of these understandings, which has become sectarian in terms of the good-evil equation, Rousseau asserts natural understanding of morality while Kant asserts the formal understanding of morality. For Rousseau, in the scope of natural morality, there are things that every individual knows as evil. Accordingly, humans as a species harbours a general concept of evil. While for Kant, the stylistic ethics is a universal state of liability exceeding singular situations, which means that there is also an universal evil beyond circumstances. According to him in the wake of discovery of 115

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subject, every human being has a liability to overcome the animal side in itself and become a subject. Refusing this, meaning being a complete human subject, is bad (Badiou, 2019, para. 3-4). However, both understandings harbours absoluteness in themselves. While understanding of natural morality discovers evil in a physiological essence, understanding of formal morality, despite being an abstract fiction ideality, accepts a morality that is assumed to be positioned in psychological essence. For Zupancic, who initiated the discussion on formality of morality, it is always possible to expose the reasons, drives, motivations of the subject by explaining the actions of it. However, the humanist attitude of the subject in being able to see the foundations of the potential problems while getting into action with this kind of secular factors, harbours the risk of causing a theological point of view by turning the human beings into living creatures that function mechanically. According to Zupancic, this acceptance can prevent going beyond the state that Kant designates as psychological freedom (2005, pp. 37-41). Moreover, inclination of a subject, with consciousness that measures to its own conscience and nature, towards adverse and immoral action, corners the understanding of morality that imposes positiveness to the subject. Eagleton states that the discussion of morality, by being integrated with ethics, has a trajectory that continues until now since Aristo which leads to repetition of mistakes and points out to impossibility of accepting the assumption that ethics has to do with being a human being and reaching perfection. According to him, seeing politics integrate with ethics and confuse morality with moralism is a characteristic mistake of bourgeois one that even Marx has repeated. For Eagleton nobody can realize an ideal ethics in a socially isolated environment and where the political institutions that make him/her possible are unavailable. Those who believe in this cannot predict that moralness is related to searching the texture and eligibility of human behaviour in a substantial and sensitive way and that this cannot be made by isolating humans from the social environment (Eagleton, 2006, pp. 146147). It seems to be a strong possibility that discussions about how art should behave under headings of morality and ethics will come to lean on the issue of legality whose most extreme and common point is censorship. At this point Bahtin emphasizes the sense of responsibility. In his book titled “Art and responsibility” in which he touches this topic, after stating that the artist has to take responsibility of what he experiences and understands in art in his own life, Bahtin states that this scope of responsibility also requires responsibility with regards to crime and accusation points/stages (Bahtin, 2005, p. 13). The task of responsibility which posses a highly moral motivation is a powerful call to include the artist as a task in the herd dominated by classical ethics. But this call also tends to see art as a limb and extension of life and reality. Adorno opposes to these and similar ascriptions. For him what is social in art is not his expressed views, but his innate act against society. The historical power of expression of art rejects the very emprical reality that it is part of itself, which at most, as long as social function is imposed on the artworks, means their disfunction.

The Evil in Art and Pedophilia The evil in the arts, which lays in the center of the tension that is between morality and the ethics, is at the same time almost a catalyst for the arguments on the autonomy of the arts. Opinions which claim that the autonomic freedom granted to arts is abused existed almost in all periods but the distance covered, steps taken by the arts under the evil heading against morals and ethics – without an obligation of having such a goal- made evil and aesthetics on evil a topic. Within a moral point of view, it is not difficult to look positively on aesthetics of evil for making a holistic approach of mankindpossible and therefore providing a recognition and understanding of motivations of the evil. Foucault critisizes the search for 116

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the ideal ratioanalism and the futility of constructing morality and the ethics on the basis of ideal of western thinking. According to thim West, through artists like Goya and Sade, found the oppurtunity to exceed reason within violence and irrationality became determinant in artwork in modern world. Foucault, through this state he praises also by referral of insanity notion, states, for the first time, that western world is guilty against the artwork first through madness (2006, pp. 267-273). This idea, which attributes mirrorlike duty to the artwork and challenges the world to face not only the good but also the bad that is reflected in the mirror, delivers a positive qualification to evil in art. Adorno, who at this point praises the reckless autonomy of artwork, which do not aim to get popular or harmonise with the market, views the evil art as an involuntary attack. However, this attack is not intangible. Accordingly, for him, the imagination of the artist is not disconnected from the reality since it does not exist out of nowhere. On the contrary, the artworks, as pure products are instructions for the society that they hold themselves seperate from and are, as should be, products of the lives lived (Adorno, 2016, para. 1). Still, even if there is an affirmation in Adorno’s approach towards evil art it can be seen that it is voiced through a purpose. For Paglia, who in her book “Sexual Personae” examines especially western art history, traces the evil in the works as well as sexual identities, and gives examples, the situation is both beyond and in depths of the modern and moral justifications. For Paglia who chooses the word “decadent” instead of “evil”, the art aesthetics in question is a ritualistic epiphenomenon and contains romantic sexual personas, priests, idolaters and victims of evil nature. According to her, “decadent art” is not solely a design that is made up of depiction and representation. Coming from pagan grounds as turn of phase, it has hostile demands upon the spectator while dramatising the dominant Western image and the sexual subjugation of the offensive eye (Paglia, 2004, pp. 517-518). As seen in many words these different approaches arising on evil and later on the evil in arts, necessiates focusing on the core of the evil. During an interview on this topic, Kuçuradi describes evil as an adjective that characterizes everything that harms humankind and expresses that harm might be intentional but also could be inflicted without awareness, due to ignorance or even with good intentions (Atalay, 2020, para. 4). That Kuçuradi sees psychic roots in harm inflicted without ill wishes and gives examples of fear and lack of self-control calls for more explanations on evil and the evilness. At this point if one revisits Kant can see that the philospher determined three different models of evil. To these models which states that, through us submmitting to pathological urges despite our goodwill, the human nature is weak and the human will is impure, something somehow differently structured or radical evil, Kant later on added a fourth model which he termed demonic evil which cannot be applied to humans (Zupancic, 2005, pp. 105-106). It can well be said that Adorno’s stating that the evil serves as a mirror, Paglia’s bringing to the fore of elements that may get offensive sexually for the spectators by pointing out the fall and collapse in the representation of the evil and Kant’s satanic evil that refers to the absolute evil unites in pedophilia which is perceived as a universal evil as commonview of the mankind and which is also at the center of this study. Pedophilia, which is among the acts that is directed towards abused children, includes sexual abuse towards nonadult. When defined as a clinical illness the diagnosis includes occurence of recurrent sexually stimulating fantasies, sexual urges or acts about engaging in sexual activities with a kid or kids that have not reached puberty yet (generally 13 years old or younger) for at least 6 months (Kıral, 2014, para. 3). Pedophilia includes not only the sexually aimed behaviours but also sexual abuse and it is possible to group it in three as follows; sexual abuse without contact, sexual abuse with contact and sexual abuse through violence (Özdemir, 2012, p. 43). Pedophilia cases which brings causes permanent damage on

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pyschology and development of children may give rise to physiological and pyshological wounds that might be carried for life, encompassing the kid’s adulthood. İşeri defines the concept as the abuse of an adolescent or a kid that has not completed sexual develeopment, by an adult or an adolescent in order to fulfill sexual desire and needs through threat and deceit, and thinks that, based on the acceptance of age difference to be at least 4, the abuse between two kids should also be considered as pedophilia (as cited in Kanak, 2011, p. 14). While the diagnosis and scope of pedophilia becomes tangible, there is an ambuguity in determining which individuals are susceptible to this disease and might soon engage in crime of abuse. According to Uzun, in order for someone to be diagnosed as a pedophile he/she should at least be 16 years old and while most of the affected are below 13, one third of the victims are girls (2014, p. 15). To the extent that it is regarded as kind of a health problem, pedophilia has serious reflections in criminal law. It has been detected that most of the abusers are adult males within 40-70 age range. According to Erdoğan, developmental, familial and environmental factors and the interaction of these effects the emergence of pedophilic tendency (2010, p. 141). As Uzun states, it is determined that pedophiles show antisocial, introvert, pyschosexual and socially immature personality traits within their families and most of the sexual abuse acts are planned. In addition, through the case studies it is determined that most of the perpetrators were exposed to sexual abuse during childhood and that generally educational and socioeconomical levels of these individuals are low (Uzun, 2014, p. 16). In the recent years, there is an increase in pedophilia cases from all around the world. Many believe that this dramatic increase is not related to the increase in sexual assault but has to do with grasping of it by the society and the experts as a result of light shed on the topic (Search, 1993, pp. 15-16). Considering the transformation of ethical and moral criterias throught the human history, it is noteworthy that a situation, which was observed throughout history, gets to be defined, considered as crime and consequently shows global prevalence only in the recent past. The acceptance of childrens’ innocence and purity coincides with the modern and following era which is claimed to have more moral damage and the neglectance of Antique era and the Middle Ages as if they are free of this evil is problematic for many reasons. The findings of Paglia, who scrutinized many famous works of art history, reveals that already there are many artworks and narratives that will be considered as examples of pedophilia. Talking especially about the numerousness of sexual tendencies directed specifically at boys which is termed pederasty Paglia underlines the discrepancy of present efforts to embrace virtues and values of Ancient Greek turning transforming into judicial crime when showed a sexual direction at young man (2004, pp. 128129). Other than in plastic arts, among the narratives that are about pedophilia as examples of evil, the fairy tale Red Riding Hood, which can also be considered a classic and Lolita of Nabokov, which is one of the most important and controversial work of Western literature stands out. Although has many versions, generally known as told by Grimm Brothers, Red Riding Hood fairy tale is about a girl being bothered by a wolf while walking through the forest in order to visit her grandmother. The wolf asks the girl where she is headed to and upon learning about the visit, goes and eats the grandmother before the girl arrives. The wolf then dresses up like the grandmother, which causes anxiety for the girl. Following the questions as to why she looks different, the girl gets swallowed by the wolf like her grandmother and is later pulled out from wolf’s stomach by a forester/hunter who happened to be walking around. Later the wolf is killed by stones placed in his stomach. Despite some differences, in many compilations, the narrative contains advice on how especially attractive children, will fall prey to wolves if they talk to strangers (Ashliman, 2018). In some of the versions, the girl saves her ownself without a saviour and in some, she cannot be saved and falls victim to the wolf. According 118

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to Greenhill and Kohm who examined the fairy tale and its adaptations in relation to pedopohilia, talks about the occurence of versions in which the girl is undressed by the wolf and placed in bed (2009, p. 36). For all its versions, Red Riding Hood tale can be regarded as containing warnings for children and families. Besides being an example of the evil pointed at in the mysteries of fairy tales, it is a striking example through conveyance that the possibility of matching of the evil with pedophilia and the charm and carelessness of the girl is as dangerous as the wolf. Lolita, which was written in 1955 by Vladimir Nabokov is structured around emotional and sexual tendencies of Humbert Humbert, who conducts academic studies on language, directed at girls at puberty which he refers to as “nymphet”. The novel progresses around the confessions of Humbert against the jury in the court, who is accused of killing Quilty who kidnaps Dolores Haze, nicknamed Lolita, who he is in love with. In the recent years the findings which suggest Lolita is not fiction claims that the novel is based on the 20 months long kidnap and abuse story of a 11 year old girl named Sally Horner. Sarah Weinman in The Real Lolita which she wrote as a result of her research on this topic states that Nabokov wrote Lolita with a hidden moral anger but did not confess what he knew about the case being real since he embraces the principle art is for art (Celt, 2018, para. 13). In the days it was published, the book faced censorship threat beyond the sensation it caused and was considered to be morally dangerous through disregard of ethics. When faced with reactions for making pedophilia a subject matter and encouraging it, Nabokov defended the book and accepted that it hints at the physiological urges of a pervert but objected to merging of reality and entertainment stressing that the readers are not kids (Nabokov, 2013, p. 364). But according to Yılmaz who performs a critical reading of the book giving pedophilia a central place, Nabokov, accompanied by Freud’s theories, normalizes a case which is too radical of a nature to be accepted. Yılmaz states that, besides his Freudinian opinions Nabakov makes opportunistic use of the oppressive state, which was shaped during the hunt for communists that took place in the 1950s in US with the leadership of McCarthy, and acts with the notion of an updated civilization border where even pedophilia could be a discussion topic under freedom and tolerance. In this way, Humbert character transforms into both a passionate lover and a father covering up the dominance he built over women and girls. According to Yılmaz, upon Humbert’s being left by Lolita the narrative also talks about heartbreak and by bringing down her passiveness and her boundlessness, Lolita is molded into a character that represents US’s new generation libertarian. Yılmaz states that the handling of Humbert character in a way that makes psychological empathy possible, makes Lolita morally and ethically problematic (2010, pp. 77-80). De Oliveira, who approaches Lolita in a similar critical manner as Yılmaz, states that the author softens the trauma experience within the time and language extents of literature by methods such as semiotics and temporal hybridity. For him, from aesthetic point of view, through the manipulation made possible by its extraordinary lyrical language, Lolita both makes it easier for the characters and the readers to face with pedophilia, which they consider obscene, and aims to make people think on societal ethics and morality again (De Oliveira, 2019, p. V). Lolita example opens to discussion as to how a situation, like pedophilia, which is accepted as evil, is portrayed and should be portrayed in an artwork. When evaluated along with Red Riding Hood, the evil in Lolita necessiates, along with the analysis of the evil of pedophilia under the heading of art, the scrutiny of how it is scrutinized in art to be included in the discussion. When mapping the history of the evil aesthetically and with regards to art, Alt emphasizes that its modern history is the history of it being transported to the field of psychology. According to him this way it will be possible to rearrange and use that old mythical figure and expression catalogues (Alt, 2016, para. 2). In this regard, it can be expected for the classic narratives – such as Red Riding Hood 119

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and Lolita – to make way for changing receptions according to changing tendencies as it also allows for different inferences in different periods.

Pedophilia in Cinema According to Greenhill and Kohm, M, directed by Fritz Lang in 1931, which tells the story of a stranger who abuses the kids by tricking them with candy and kills them later on, is the first film to overtly handle pedophila. While as a subject matter, it was brought to silver screen for around 80 years with some changes, elements of crime and conservative ideological codes set point of view of how pedophilia is handled. For years, even if these films tried to develop more modern approaches for handling pedophilia, they ended up being shaped around the absolute dual apprehension of Hollywood. Simultaneously, the films which balances the assault to innocence of children, which is claimed to be the most sensitive topic for Western conservatism with a tension that stems on crime and sexuality, proceeded with endings, where the evil, who are portrayed as outcasts through representation of them as monsters and freaks, gets punished in the hands of the good. This course gone through its first metamorphosis during 1950s and 1960s that is referred to as “liberal era” (Greenhill & Kohm, 2009, pp. 41-43). It is at this period that Nabokov’s Lolita is published and adapted to cinema for the first time. Lolita, which was directed in 1962 by Stanley Kubrick, is regarded by some as brave and progressive while sick and nihilist for others, proceeds between obsession for catastrophe and liberalism, which, on its own right, are generally the most important uncertainities director’s works (Wollen, 2004, p. 163). The part of the book where it is explained that the trauma caused by the death of Annabel, the childhood love ofHumbert is the main reason and the foundation of his passion towards girls at puberty is omitted in the film. Although this leads to an impression that the film might treat the pedophilia subject matter more directly, the result is distant and veiled. It can be seen that Humbert, who conveys a black comedy tone, which at times is dominant in the book, takes form of a typage in the film. Humbert’s no longer being a subject also is in tune with ubrick’s cinematography. According to Burak Bakır, the subjects in Kubrick’s cinema apart from forming their own objects, lose their subjectiveness under the oppression of exactly this newly formed objects and by this, are transformed and guided by the reality more than they change the reality in which they live in (2008, p. 150). Contrasting with the book, the age of Lolita is not revealed in the film where, as a character, she is more dominant and deterministic of the flow. Another diversion of the adaptation is the transformation of Quilty into a dominant character but this serves more as a humour element than evil since it is played by Peter Sellers. According to Wollen, it is meaningful that the director chose Sellers. Apart from not encompassing any humanitarian core, Sellers carry elements of good caricature and imitation (Wollen, 2004, p. 165). According to Bakır, this situation that the subject is put into, is one of the unique signatures of Kubrick cinema as his view, in addition to transcending singular character view of classic narrative cinema, moves beyond pluralist view of modern cinema and watches subject from outside, from a height (2008, p. 161). In addition, the film, by covering the scenes with sexuality with censorship effects, prevents it from becoming a work of crime of pedophilia. According to Greenhill and Kohm, by portrayal of the pedophile as an ordinary character rather than habitual portrayal of them in cinema as hostile, monster-like, serial killer type character, the film places the topic away from elements of crime. While regarding of pedophilia according to period’s moral point of view attains a pyschological backbone in Nabokov’s handling of the topic via childhood trauma, in Kubrick’s Lolita it is concretized as a pitiful main character who loses his subjectness for his passion (Greenhill & Kohm, 2009, p. 43). The adultlike behaviour of Lolita character and the pyscho120

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logical catastrophe Humbert goes through because of her, takes the theme away from pedophilia and turns into a heartache of unreciprocated passionate and obsessive love. The slow reversal of the liberal period that Hollywood became a part of as a result of being inspired by the liberatarian moves of European cinema in the 1970s, resulted in appearence of pedophilia in conservative narratives once more as a crime that needs to be punished. The films such as Taxi Driver and Dirty Harry supported the claims that as a result of the political preferences and the reinless liberatarian attitudes, the morally unacceptable tendencies such as pedophilia got away without the punishment they lawfully deserve. In this regard, the artworks which contain heroes who are not absolutely good, who also harbour evil tendencies and who take the law into their own hands and punish the characters who are again described as absolute evil correspond to a revert. The hippie style of the evil character in Taxi Driver who forces the girl into prostitution contains a conservative premise through where a possible reinlessness might head to, under the heading of sexual liberties which was discussed previous years and grounds was gained. The Hollywood of the 1980s, where conservatism was the dominant tone, hosted surfacial and ordinary representations of pedophilia. During the following decade, becoming widespread of internet and contact with child pornographitti gradually turned pedophilia into a global threat. According to Schofield, this situation turned child abuse into an act that is most feared and worried about (2004, p. 121). Despite this, it can be seen that in 1990s the representations of pedophilia in cinema is rather diverse compared to previous years. In the film Leon of 1994, the love that is referred to germinate between an adult hitman and an adolescent girl whose family is murdered. Although director Luc Besson chose to omit some scenes from the US edit in order to avoid from reactions and censorship, Leon focuses on a rather veiled adult-children relationship but one that does not involve any abuse or sexuality. Despite this, with regards to morality and ethics, Leon initiated hesitative approaches. Along with films such as this, which are positioned in extremes within the autonomy of art, in action films like Faceoff, pedophilia becomes one of the accessories in the evilness arsenal of the absolute evils that show monstrous behaviours. The family of a police officer who had to have a face transplant in order to bring down a crime ring gets abused by the criminal who has the face and voice of the police officer. That the criminal have the face and the voice of the police officer turns the cliche of “fearsome stranger” around and the possibility, him abusing the nonadolescent daughter of the police officer becomes an element that reinforces the evilness of the evil. Moreover, in the finale of Faceoff, in order to provoke him, the criminal tells the officer things he could do to his daughter. During the same period, appearing of pedophilia in cinema, even in comedies like Big Lebowsky, points to the acceptance of the existence of a situation, which is both an illness and crime. Pedophilia, which lost nothing about it’s evilness but freed from being a cinematographical taboo, is mentioned in Big Lebowsky, as the reason that lies underneath the aggressive and strange behaviours of a side character. Flashbacks about this situation of Jesus character, who finishes his jail sentence by obligation to tell all the residents of his neighbourhood that he is a pedophile, becomes a part of the general absurd comedy of the film. However, the film that directly handles the topic of pedophilia in cinema becomes concretised by the second adaptation of Nabokov’s book. Lolita that was directed by Adrian Lyne in 1997 is loyal to the book compared to Kubrick’s adaptation. The parts of the book about Humbert’s childhood love Annabel which ambiguates whether he is a pure pedophile is included in Lyne’s adaptation. By this way the film, just like the book, without mention of the word pedophile causes the audience to think that underneath Humbert’s intense attention for adolescent girls lies his unreached and unfulfilled desire during his adolescence years for Annabel, who dies shortly after he falls in love with her. 121

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Lolita, under the direction of Lyne, has a cinematography where the desire and the passions reaches beyond the oral narratives and is transferred into visual language. To the contrary of what Kubrick did, the characters are reinforced via high number of close and detailed shots that makes them move beyond typologies and enables sympathizing and apart from turning Quilty into an evil identity via cliche choices like low angle lightings, they are natural to the point that they cannot be easily labeled as good or evil, that easy labeling as good or evil is not possible. Just at this point Lyne states that what disturbes the audience most about the film is that they cannot manage to hate Humbert (Lyne, 1997). At the end of the book, over the course of events in which Lolita is also an active part of, Humbert is tricked and defeated, which leads to sympathetic impressions. This part being conveyed loyally in the film surely reinforces/feeds the interaction mentioned by the director. But the discomfort caused by 1997 adaptation is the courage the film displays with its sexual content. Still, it cannot demonstrate the courage it shows portraying pedophilia in expressing and explaining it. Despite the course of it being a story of a forbidden and passionate love and camera and light preferences that lean towards building of an interaction and empathy with the main character, the film does not allow for empathy for pedophilia by not describing the main character as a pedophile. Moreover, the film goes beyond the book and makes an allusion to the first sin through Adam and Eve by showing Lolita playing with a red apple in an extra scene after the credits. Just like Eve caused the first sin by making Adam eat the forbidden apple, in the film, by becoming an effective subject, Lolita is made to be identifiable as a provocator of the events and the sin of pedophilia aside from being an abused. The erotic codes in the scenes where Lolita appears for the first time and later on abstract and concrete touches directing at Humbert which cannot be designated conscious for certain, makes one think the young girl is aware of all going on. At this point, one remembers Paglia who developed a critical stance regarding the presupposition that kids and adolescents are pure and innocent stating they can be more conscious than what adults think and even can be perverse. Paglia states that he shares Bruce Benderson’s opinion that kids can and do choose (2004, p. 129). Lolita, while it has courage that can set an example for this radical thinking, presents its own self and its audience with opportunities to escape confrontation with the matter it handles. In the films following Lolita that continue to handle the topic, alongside films with classic evil portrayals of pedophilia, there are ones like Hunt which is about an honor war of an adult who faces accusations of pedophilia because of a kid’s lie. Beyond this style of narratives that validate Benderson and Paglia, that are frame breaking at moral and ethical points, after 2000, there also exist films that aims to make audience directly empathize with pedophile character without concealing it. Treatment of these works, with regards to the autonomy of art is important as to whether cinematographic ethics is possible and about the clashes it can experience with moral criterion.

EMPATHY WITH PEDOPHILIA IN FILMS Especially considering mainstream films, empathy is not a stranger concept for cinema at all. Films that aim to make the audience identify with the main character or more than one character nurture feelings of sympathy and empathy as well. But at the point the audience moves beyond making associations with their own experiences and that of the characters, storylines, situations they watch, cinematographic preferences move in. While the characters and events knitted with patterns of thousands of years, follow the introduction –development- conclusion track that the audience is accustomed to provide a certain safe zone, the camera preferences that feed certain emotional states, especially close-up shots are the bond 122

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establishing and even steering preferences directed at catharsis. Audio preferences and use of music that strengthen the audience’s feelings also provide a ground where the audience can identify, sympathize and purify with the character, even if they cannot find any resemblance with their own lives. In this way, the cinema, while demonstrating since it’s first hundred years, that it can be a discipline that is open to manipulation where the audience could also establish bonds with bad characters and bad preferences, has become objectionable/unfavourable with the contents that some countries express as immoral and unethical. The need for empathy to achieve objectivity that includes subjectivity shows that not every effort may be successful. Establishing empathy with a state that is considered nonhuman, like pedophilia too, other than the effort undertaken to establish empathy, harbours some difficulties. It will be constructive to pay attention to how this distance, in which the effect of moral and ethical codes will be felt, is covered in the examined films.

The Woodsman The Woodsman, directed by Nicole Kassel in 2004, tells the story of pedophile who tries to return to life upon completing the sentence of crime of 12 years in prison due to child abuse. The Woodsman, which proceeds with a focus of the character Walter who is played by Kevin Bacon, is an open, honest and a pioneering film at the point of understanding pedophilia. Walter starts working in a timber factory thanks to his relatives and while he tries to keep his secret as much as possible, has to live in a place whose front facade faces a school on the grounds that he couldn’t find a home elsewhere. Bacon as he plays Walter who has to face the motives that evoke the crime he has committed everyday, brings forth emphasis of regret and obliqueness in his acting. The weight the film places on close-ups, which proceeds as a classical narrative, serves as a physical affinity for the audience as well as underlining the main characters’ preferences for isolation against internal conflicts and the siege. The name of the film and the content of one of the dialogues with police of Walter who monitors Walter’s post prison life, reveals the inspirations from Red Riding Hood. According to Greenhill and Kohm, Walter in the film is a “woodsman” both in terms of his profession and also, due to his positioning as a “woodsman” who will protect the children from the forecasted evilness of a pedophile he named Candy whom he noticed as a result of his observations of the school garden. Despite this, as in the fairy tale, his uncanny approaches to a 12-year-old girl named Robin, who walks through the trees to watch birds, turns him into a “wolf” (Greenhill & Kohm, 2009, p. 48). While this scene corresponds to one of the films climactic moments, the fact that Robin is in red clothes makes The Woodsman’s connatation to Red Riding Hood direct. Walter’s direct expressession of his intentions towards Robin despite all the regret and shame transfers him from heroism to evil while his effort to prevent evil in him in a film in which pedophilia is considered a disease is important because of the emphasis that pedophilia can manifest with motives beyond the dialectic of good and evil. The person with whom Walter engages in a positive dialogue together with Robin is his girlfriend from the workplace. Walter’s relatisonship with her, which is also problem-free sexually, is another factor that normalizes him in the eyes of the audience. The fact that two side characters that the main character tries to behave nicely to and at least manages to inflict no harm to, being sexually abused is meaningful. While Walter’s lover was subjected to domestic pedophilia as a child, Robin is sexually abused by her father as she also explains to Walter. This situation, as Greenhill and Kohm points out, beyond reinforcing the multiplicity of fairytale character of Walter character, expresses a reality that is based on the fact that most of the pedophilia cases take place within the family, at home (2009, p. 49). This 123

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information, renders idle, the erronous stereotypes of pedophilia such as the monstrous representations throughout the history of cinema and drawing attention to the danger from strangers in many narratives, particularly Red Riding Hood. As in every mainstream narrative, the bond and identification attempted to be established between the main character and the audience in The Woodsman proceeds to understand pedophilia. According to Gleiberman, the empathy that the film wants to achieve with a pedophile character is erronous because it handles the situation like a statistic that needs to be overcome, and the film is unsuccessfull due to the facile sympathy it has develops with pedophilia (2004). As for Travers, the director’s preferences and the acting of Bacon, not only do not demand any sympathy but also intends to develop a rational and objective approach to pedophilia in order to make Walter seen as a human being (2005). Havis, who wrote a criticism on the film with moral and ethical focus, states that the film drew a realistic profile by not preferring a misleading ending to cleanse Walter of pedophilia and that while leaving the decision to the audience at the point of ethics it handled the topic with the aim to study it’s causes and outcomes as a sickness, excluding, through rationalism, morality from it’s frame (2004). Schickel who says that The Woodsman allows for a pretty controlled and uncanny sympathy, writes that the audience is hesitant at the point whether Walter’s desire to be good is enough to prevent the evil he can put into action (2005). It can be seen that the film does not keep empathy on an ordinary identification/catharsis track. It can be said that the attitude of understanding and accepting pedophilia rather than getting rid of it is one of the aims of the film. When the pedophile nicknamed Candy whom Walter observes from home abuses a boy, Walter inferferes and beats Candy in the middle of the street. Because of this scene, it can still be said that the film aims for a cathartic ending. Affirmation of the police of this act, who actually do not trust and believe in Walter from the beginning, causes the film to approach a Hollywood ending. On the other hand, the fact that Walter, who while punching Candy, feels as if he is punching his own face for a moment shows how the main character suffers from his own illness and how he desires to eradicate the evil within himself. However, according to Greenhill and Kohm, right at this point, The Woodsman shadows its courage with clichés. According to them, the character of Candy feeds all the stereotypes knitted pedophilia until today. The narrative in which children are deceived by an uncanny, white, foreign man with sugar leads to stereotype judgements. Moreover, Candy is interested in boys which adds homosexuality to his pedophilia and makes him more perverse and evil than Walter who is interested in adolescent girls aged 10-12 years old (Greenhill & Kohm, 2009, p. 51). To categorize pedophilia in terms of good, evil and heroic and monstrous isn’t just not objective but also misleading as one can see that Candy character, who seems to be attached to the storyline as a typage only to be punished by Walter and in the end serves to attach hope motive to Walter character despite him being unhealed. Nevertheless, such choices does not lessen the leading importance of The Woodsman, which host multiple breaking moments and endings, in handling pedophilia.

Little Children Little Children, directed by Todd Field in 2006, focuses on the intricate relationships of families with children in a suburb in US, which gives impression that it is rich and organized in the USA. The director who chooses a narrator, who seizes the subjectivity of the characters, as well as their maturity, presents a riddle about who is included as the children that the film title implies. In this town where young and charming mothers take their children and gather in playgrounds for socialization, a young father too brings 124

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his child to the same park which serves as an introduction to the moment the audience gets involved in the developments in town and the subsequent storyline. The rapprochement of the man whom the young mothers nickname as “Prom King” due to his handsome appearance and intriguing calm and the young mother who drew attention among the mothers with her uneasiness and incompatability constitutes the main plot of the film. Despite the fact that the couple’s emotional relationship with one another that saturate the deprivations in their marriages sets the course of the film, the tension factor in Little Children is the child abuse issue that has taken almost everyone under the influence, rather than the couple getting busted and condemned by their spouses or neighbors. What triggers this is that Ronnie, who was sent to prison for child abuse crime, completed his sentence and returned to the suburbs, next to his mother. The information acquired from the first minutes of the film and the rumors surrounding it turn the pedophilia topic, which seems to be a side narrative in Little Children into a narrative, tension that frames all the characters and events. According to Kroenert, through pursue of humanization and understanding of pedophilia rather than making a monster of it, Field makes a humanist film (2007, p. 27). The film uses the pedophilia topic, which is morally pertinent to be rejected to expose the mass hysteria and the fear for the foreigner/the other in US especially after September 11 attacks. According to Greenhill and Kohm, Little Children’s liberal approach, despite all his good intentions, feeds the rhetoric that child abusers can only be an unknown stranger (2009, p. 44). According to Bohlman, who interprets the film as a criticism of West’s aged mindset of protecting the child innocence and purity, childhood and adulthood by seperating them by sharp boundaries, the pedophilia in Little Children is a key directed at the discussion of the limitations of the image of a material child idealized under the name of childhood innocence (2012, p. 91). The film is full of adults who make many non-mature decisions and actions due to which discussion on where the childhood begins and where it ends may be sparked although one dialogue of mothers who are afraid of pedophilia makes the transition in question ambiguous. The response a friend gives to a mother who reacts to the release of Ronnie saying he should be castrated is that they showed their sexual organs to each other with their brother when they were kids. As far as it is known in the film, the reason that caused Ronnie to be jailed was his showing his genitals to the children, which when lived between two kids is not considered a crime. The film also reveals the porn addiction of the husband of the main character, who is unhappy in her marriage for many reasons, especially the asociality of her husband. The remarkable detail here is that the pornstar her husband follows is someone who wears child clothes. Here, too, the boundaries between childhood, adulthood pedophilia and crime become obscure. The question as to how Little Children’s evil figure, Ronnie, was released, how he was allowed to reintegrate into society and whether he necessarily should harm an innocent to return to prison where he deserves to be are questions that the audience might well ask as much as characters can. Ronnie’s first scene achieved this uncertainity with a very unique and associative cinematography. Children swim with their families in the swimming pool, which is one of the primary locations of the film. All of a sudden with detail shots, in slow motion an adult is shown putting on a snorkel and getting ready to swim. After these frames, which sharpen the audience’s focus, the viewer suddenly, through the perspective of the subjective camera, watches a scene similar to Jaws and other shark attack films. The silent and heavy uncanniness of underwater shooting is dealt with shoots near children’s bodies and the accompanying sounds of breathing. The massive panic, which is lived when it is understood that the person who has been mentioned since the beginning of the film, who has been dehumanized through various words, who is the sole evil is in the pool leads to sudden evacuation of the pool and removal of Ronnie under the supervision of the police. While it is not well received that Ronnie, who quietly gets out of the pool in the midsts of cries of parents and kids who are triggered by them, says he just wanted to cool, it is 125

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meaningful that the crowd returns to the pool with screams of joy as if nothing has happened. So much so that this scene, which functions as a satirical comedy according to Greenhill and Kohm (2009, p. 46), is for Alleva, moraly distorted as well as disturbing due to humorous elements (2007, p. 19). This scene, which draws attention to exclusion and social irrationality, obscures as to what kind of a bond should be established with the character by keeping the actual intention in Ronnie’s action under the wraps despite the ridiculousness. But, when considered with the preferred general shot of when he is removed from the pool, this scene where Ronnie is seen for the first time in the film shows that the character has a pathetic physiology as well as the loneliness. The character, played by Jackie Earle Haley has a deformed face, which does not conform to the beauty criteria of Hollywood which is completed with a frail and incompatible body and a body language that lack self-confidence. According to Beller, such appearance of Ronnie, as representation of the beast as a pitiful, reaches a sympathetic conclusion before the audience (2007, p. 31). Later on in the film, it can be seen that Ronnie’s importance increases. Ronnie, whom almost everyone reacts to negatively except for his mother, is transformed, despite the deformed appearance and with the help of the close-up and upper angle preferences, into a character with whom one can empathy with due to the endless abuse and the attemps to remove him from the neighbourhood by the retired police officer who is after him. In the scenes, he appears with his mother, listening to the suggestions that he should be a good person from then on, Ronnie states that he did not choose to be pedophile and that he is disturbed by this. After mobbing of the neighbours and the request of his mother Ronnie goes on a date with a woman same age as him but after giving an impression that he will harmonize with this character who also suffered a pyschological trauma, he succumbs to his instincts and begins to masturbate looking at a children’s park, ignoring the presence of the woman next to him. This scene which proves that Ronnie can only have sexual desires for children is an exclusionary and alienating moment for the audience who began to empathize with Ronnie’s pathetic state. For Alleva, the fact that all of the other adult characters of the film have carried out unethical behaviour, and that even the retired police killed an innocent and remained unpunished makes it even more important as to what Ronnie represents in Little Children. According to him, Ronnie’s visual and actional evilness is the embodiment of the unmaturity of adults in the film each one of whom actually makes childhish mistakes (Alleva, 2007, p. 20). It is seen that Field’s symbolism in using of such a radical title by embodying it in a figure and it is actions aims to hold a mirror to American society through an example of a town. According to Vineberg, this attitude of the director is as deceitful as it is reasonless, and ultimately allows for sympathy towards characters and situations whom should not receive these feelings (2006, p. 52). The bond that the film tries to establish with the audience about Ronnie has a tidal path according to the director’s very own preferences. Later on in Little Children, Ronnie’s mother, who reacted to the endless mobbing towards her son dies, which leads to breaking moments for the pedophilic character. While, in the following scenes the loneliness and desperation of Ronnie, who lives the pain of losing the only person that loved him after a verbal attack, is given through detailed shots, the balancing of the close plans directed at tears with harmonious music aims to make the audience unavoidably share the feeling of sadness. While trying to behave in accordance with his mother’s advice to be a well-behaved child, one night at home Ronnie experiences an emotional climax and smashes many objects and trinkets that belong to his mother. According to Beller, the appearence of some of the objects supports the view that first and foremost Ronnie might have been a victim of pedophilia, that the love of his mother towards him might be unhealthy (2007, p. 31). The possibility that Ronnie might have been a victim of sexual abuse as a child strengthens the sense of pity for the monster of the film. In addition, it is open to debate how much a person, who grew 126

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up and became and adult in a house full of childish objects, which symbolize innocence, can grow out of childhood and accordingly whether he will subconsciously have erroneous assessment of the ages of those towards whom he shows sexual inclination to. The fact that these breaks that Ronnie live leads to softening and mature behaviour in many characters, primarily the retired police, takes the character to the center of the film. So much so that the forbidden love story that started Little Children is left in the shadow of Ronnie in the multiple finale of the film. The fact that Ronnie, who becomes especially lonely after his mother’s death and fails to overcome the illness he is very disturbed with, saves a child who was lost in a playground and cuts his penis which he sees as the symbol and reason of all thereaches a Hollywood ending. It is seen that in Little Children the pedophilia, specifically as character Ronnie, is presented to the audience with a dual approach; deadlock despite being handled as an illness and further use as allusion directed at various social content. In the film, audience is made to establish empathy with Ronnie’s dilemma, which has high rightfulness rather than pedophilia.

Nymphomaniac: Vol. II Nymphomaniac, which was directed by Lars von Trier in 2013 and was released in two parts has an episodic montage. It starts when Seligman, an asexual intellectual, brings home Joe, a sex addict whom he has encountered beaten-up on the street, and continues with flashbacks about Joe’s life story. The film which accomodates partly symbolic and partly hyperrealistic preferences together with the dialogues between Seligman and Joe, eliminates the distinction between eroticism and pornography. The second part of the film, where audio and visual scenes regarding the extreme versions of sexuality appears through Joe’s (played by Charlotte Gainsbourg) addiction, includes a scene regarding Joe’s encounter with a pedophilic individual. In the corresponding episode, Joe, who works for a crime ring, uses her broad sexual experience on people who can resist brutal force and threat in order to force them to speak out their hidden information. In a similar situation, a person who gives a very tidy impression and is described as gentlemen by Joe stands idly as his house is being destroyed or as two men near Joe exercises heavy-handed force. He even can withstand Joe’s sexual narratives, which have been effective on everyone else until now. Joe, who tries to find the weakest point of the gentlemen tied to the chair being naked below his waist with the narratives of sadomasochism, fettishism, homosexuality and all sexual experiences that have been metioned or shown so far in the film, relays that the man gets nervous and starts to get erected when she starts to talk about a children playground. The scene as a whole continues through the voice channel of Joe telling Seligman about the incident. In this way, as much as the moment of the event, the impact of the event on Joe and its reflections in Seligman provide a multiple perspective. However, under the supervision of the director the pluralism turns into a manipulative illusion. The pedophilic character played by Jean Marc-Baar cannot keep his tears from falling as he continues to get erected after his attempts to stop Joe’s narration. Pedophile is crying for his being pedophilia includes Trier’s close-up preferences as well as sudden zoom and distortion. An extraordinary revelation of an extraordinary situation is supported cinematographically by Dutch angle uncanniness and fragility. While whether the reason of the pedophilic character is crying is due to his embarrasement for being a pedophile or due to giving up in the face of the crime ring is not explained in the scene, Joe’s attitude is decisive at this point. As Joe relates this situation to gentleman’s pain and embrassement because of being a pedophile, the bond that the audience established until that moment with Joe while witnessing various kinds of extreme situations and experiences causes the audience to develop an empathy for the character as well. 127

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Joe says that she pities the pedophilic individual because of this situation which he has to hide for all his life, perhaps even from himself. Seligman asks Joe how she can feel pity for such a great evil. Joe replies Seligman that a pedophile such as him deserves appreciation and even reward as he has not acted according to his desire and has never hurt a soul, but has carried on his life with the shame of his desire. Visual presentation, from an upper angle, of the close-up of the tearful, painful face of the pedophilic character who is tied to the chair right at the moment when her reply is heard, aims to make the audience experience Seligman’s persuation process as well. Such a perspective towards pedophilia can also be seen in some texts. Solmaz writes that pedophilia is a disease but some of the patients live without transforming their disease into a crime as they isolate and consequently desolate themselves without asking for help (2014, para. 13). This situation is in accordance with the pedophilia scene in the film and Joe’s point of view regarding pedophilia. While Seligman’s persuation leads to mentioning, in reference to Thomas Mann, that resistance to sin is considered as a virtue, Joe replies to this approval by citing a rumor that Mann is a pedophile. Later on Seligman states that the writer may have used writing to deal with this situation and reminds the Nobel Prize that Mann received. While refering to this, unavoidably the pedophilia example that Joe has just wanted to give a medal to comes to mind. According to Del Rio, the empathy that Joe and together with her the audience develop for a case such as pedophilia, aims at a criticism to Seligman’s and the audience’s political correctness (2016, p. 47). In the film, the pedophilia scene, which Joe subjectively interprets from her point of view and is presented with a cinematography that prevents multiple approaches, is strengthened by Nymphomaniac’s main character’s own personal empathy towards the pedophilic individual. Joe, for the first time sees someone like her who has been carrying the same burden, someone who has been excluded because of a sexual disease and has been sentenced to loneliness. While the increasing dose of empathy, according to Romney, is converted into such a daring statement in the film that it nearly could give rise to a hero from a pedophile, Nymphomaniac becomes one of the extreme examples of sympathy and empathy for the devil (2014, p. 31). While Trier’s provocative film, which simultaneously can be interpreted both as sexual libertarian and as a depiction of the moral decay, is not suprising regarding the filmography of the director, when Nymphomaniac’s focus on the sexuality of a woman’s 50 years of life is considered, its connection with pedophilia should not be sought only in the aforementioned scene. In the first film of the series, which includes Joe’s discoveries about her body and sexuality in her childhood and adolescence, for some reason the fact that a minor is a central figure in many relationship scenes does not evoke the issue of pedophilia. According to O’Donoghue, this situation makes Nymphomaniac similar to Lolita (2014, p. 13). These scenes for which the word pedophilia is not mentioned from the point of view of the spectator even though they conform to the definition of pedophilia do not cause an attention or reaction in this direction. This proves not only the narrowness of the perception of the audience and the society towards an issue that they react to but also the guiding of the manipulative power of the cinema. Nymphomaniac reflects the pedophilia subject, which it clearly articulates in a single scene, through the narrative of the main character regarding the situation, instead of giving it through film-based reality and successfully enhances the effect of empathy by using pity and intention reading. In this way, Trier tests the power of the cinema in guiding of audience’s emotion both visually and verbally by building empathy over a situation coded as the greatest evil possible, and also succeeds in this.

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FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS This chapter’s main focus is western cinema and culture. Therefore, in order to have a wider perspective on empathy towards pedophilia in cinema, one should also conduct research on how other cultures and regions deal with the same topic in cinema.

CONCLUSION According to Bohlmann, especially for Western civilization, the issue of pedophilia has recently turned into a post-modern witch-hunt, a much more diverse element of scary evil than it was supposed to be for both children and adults. This attitude nurtures Western culture which has inclination to treat childhood and adulthood as 2 seperate stages that does not have bond, continuity or integrity and results in, apart from drawbacks for child development, behaving with prejudice full of anxiety, where every adult will assumed to be a potential pedophile and every moment with adults will assumed to be a potential abuse case (Bohlmann, 2012, p. 61). Consequently, the four films discussed in this study pioneer a rational approach to pedophilia compared to the narratives that cuts it off from realistic bonds by demonizing it by cliché methods or the films that address the relationship of adolescent and adults, which also include emotionality and sexuality without naming the situation. In all three films, the suffering of the individual for being a pedophile is revealed. In The Woodsman and Little Children, individuals with pedophilia who have committed the crime of abuse and received punishment are presented with regret. While in Nymphomaniac, we see a character who is not known for certain whether he have committed this crime before or not, but who even suffer regardless of being first time or not, from the possibility of acting as a pedophile. From a socioeconomic perspective, it can be said that the character in Nymphomaniac is from upper, middle upper class while the characters in the The Woodsman and Little Children are from lower and middle lower class. This coincides with Hedin’s findings that sexual abuse can be seen in every class that it cannot be attached to any socioeconomic group (as cited in Kanat, 2011, p. 15). In addition, except for the pedophile in Little Children, no pedophilic character in the other two films is provided with information about a problematic or abusive childhood to justify the situation as an illness. It is seen that the pedophile characters are all men in three films. Visual and auditory data convey that pedophiles have inclinations towards the opposite sex in The Woodsman and Little Children, and towards same sex in Nymphomaniac. Of the three films, pedophile is shown to have sex with adults only in The Woodsman. The age ranges of children who have been abused or whom pedophilic individuals made move towards is also different. While pedophilia is directed at girls in adolescence in The Woodsman, it is directed towards pre-adolescent children in the other two films. In all three films, pedophilia is considered to be a disease. The regret and helplessness of pedophilic individuals is treated more as a motivational and transcendent orientation than a sexual choice developed later on or gained consciously. This shows that while relating pedophilia and evil, these films become compatible with first of Kant’s evil models in which he talks about predominance of pathological impulses despite the will to do good. All of the films reflect the efforts of characters resisting being a pedophile. The situation in The Woodsman has not been overcome but seems to be under control. The solution to pedophilia in Little Children, which is shown to be both not overcome and uncontrollable, is seen as the individual is castrating of himself. Nymphomaniac prefers openended finale rather than reaching conclusion with its narratives that is interested more in revealing of 129

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pedophilia rather than solution to it. In all three films, pedophilia, which is assumed to be viewed with prejudice by the audience, is removed from being purely malicious. However, the kindness indicators of the characters do not turn them into heroes. At empathy building point, one needs to first look at the characters’ weight in the storyline and screen times. Pedophilic character is the main character in The Woodsman so the plot does not carry a seperate narrative aside from pedophilia. While the pedophile in Little Children is a side character, it can be seen that the tension triggering weight of the pedophilia in the plot goes beyond the character. In Nymphomaniac, the pedophile and the subject of pedophilia takes place in a long but single scene. In The Woodsman, the bond between the main character, who is accompanied and witnessed from start to end, and the audience is ambivalent but strong. In Little Children, the scenes of the character with pedophilia provide this bond somewhat while in Nymphomaniac it is momentary. In all three films, by close and detailed shots, physical closeness to pedophilia and a variety of human aspects are presented by witnessing moments that encompass different emotional states of individuals. It is seen that each of the films present pedophilia as a disease that needs to be understood and accepted and pedophilic characters as humans rather than monsters. It is clear, however that the films do not agree on promising pedophilia, that Nymphomaniac follows a different path. While in the other two films the pedophilic character becomes the subject in his scenes through his body language or verbal behaviour, in the pedophilia scene directed by Trier, the individual remains as an object, not a subject. However staying in the position of object here did not decrease but increase the empathy. Yet the director has made the main character of the film also an absolute subject in that scene and preferred to convey his views on pedophilia through him. This situation, within the context of reception of artwork by the audience, exemplifies the direct intervention of the artist. While this intervention, which is indirect in the other two films, is conveyed with a direct course in Nymphomaniac, at the point as to what the audience should feel turned into a method the director directly carried out. Despite methodological differences, it is possible to say that all three films contain moves to remove coding of pedophilia as absolute bad. When examined with these inferences, films discussed approached the issue of pedophilia with quite socialist goals. It can be seen that the films, which prefer not to show the abuse moments do not operate in a way that will encourage pedophilia or show it as ordinary. In the words of Jeremy Irons who plays the lead role in the second adaptation of Lolita, the pedophilia is a situation that can neither be supported nor encouraged but is a reality and art/cinema has a responsibility to address and examine all such facts (1997). It is open to discussion whether the cinema, which will push moral criteria and proceed on bladelike grounds, has or whether it should have unique ethics. The autonomy of art says that cinema can have ethics that is independent from everything and is knitted with its own codes. However, this is not a task that artists of cinema should aim for and implement. The subjectivity of the artist can be manifested concretely through the method, which Trier underlined it, or can remain more abstract as seen in the other two works. Regardless of the content it and the way it handles it, a subject artist who, by producing with freedom that rises from autonomy, makes cinematographic ethics work, provides the oppurtunity to see, recognize, feel and perhaps establish identify with the human being and the possibilities. The ability to socialize without the need for a social motive is accomplished in these films that aims to establish sympathy and empathy, through a title that is becoming increasingly difficult to voice, such as pedophilia. Developing technology and especially the extent of virtual reality make one feel that pedophilia is an issue that needs to be discussed more with more rational and scientific data. Lastly, for the moment, when we look at the reactions to the film The Trouble With Being Born during the 2020 Berlinale, which tells the story of an adult with a robot in the appearence of a girl, it can be predicted that even the 130

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boundaries of pedophilia might become obscure in the near future, but the majority are not ready for it. This being the case it should be seen that radical refusing will not work and it should be accepted that one day art might well handle, following pedophilia, diseases like zoophilia and necrophilia too which are less talked about and relatively less demonized, since they are not subjected to presupposition like child innocence. As a result, within the framework of the autonomy of art, the production of cinema with a cinematographic ethic exempt from moral criteria, regardless of the size of it’s destructiveness, will take on a constructive identity at the point of building a more rational, realistic and functional morality and ethics. The quest for good and evil, if still important, will have a more accurate roadmap only in this context and open to updating.

REFERENCES Adorno, T. W. (2016). Sanatın Özerkliği Üzerine. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/skopbulten/ cagdas-estetik-sanatin-ozerkligi-uzerine/3170 Adorno, T. W. (2017). Sanatın Toplumsallığı ve Özerkliği. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/ skopbulten/pasajlar-sanatin-toplumsalligi-ve-ozerkligi/3281 Alleva, R. (2007). Inscrutable ‘Little Children’. Commonweal (New York, N.Y.), 134(3), 19–20. Alt, P. A. (2016). Her Şeyin Başlangıcı: Şeytanın Düşüşü ve Kötünün Doğuşu. Retrieved from https:// www.e-skop.com/skopbulten/her-seyin-baslangici-seytanin-dususu-ve-kotunun-dogusu/2885 Artun, A. (2018). Sanatın Sınırları. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/skopbulten/sanatin-sinirlari/3787 Ashliman, D. L. (2018). “Little Red Riding Hood.” Folktexts. U of Pittsburgh, 1996–2008. Retrieved from http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0333.html#perrault Atalay, F. (2020). İoanna Kuçuradi: Bazı Filmler Neden Çekiliyor Anlamıyorum. Retrieved from https:// www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/cumhuriyet_pazar/1719209/bazi-filmler-neden-cekiliyor-anlamiyorum. html Atmaca, M. Ç. (2018). Kötülük Mektupları. Retrieved from http://www.viraverita.org/yazilar/kotulukmektuplari Badiou, A. (2019). İyinin ve Kötünün Ötesinde. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/skopbulten/ pasajlar-iyinin-ve-kotunun-otesinde/4676 Bahtin, M. (2005). Sanat ve Sorumluluk (C. Soydemir, Trans.). Ayrıntı. Bakır, B. (2008). Sinema ve Psikanaliz. Hayalet. Beller, T. (2007). The End of Innocence. Film Society of Lincoln Center. Bohlmann, M. P. J. (2012). Moving Rhizomatically: Deleuze’s Child in Twenty-First Century American Literature and Film (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Ottowa / Faculty of Arts Department of English.

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Celt, A. (2018). The True Story of the Real Lolita with Sarah Weinman. Retrieved from https://electricliterature.com/the-true-story-of-the-real-lolita/ De Oliveira, C. R. (2019). Traumatic Testimonies: Trauma, Temporal Hybridity, and Language in the God of Small Things and Lolita (Unpublished master’s thesis). Boğaziçi University/Institute of Social Sciences, Istanbul. Del Rio, E. (2016). Lars von Trier’s Nymph()maniac: Polyphonic Anatomy of a Cruel Film. Image & Narrative, 17(5), 41–53. Demirkaya, E. (2012). Bozguncu ve Göçebe: Jean Genet. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/ skopbulten/bozguncu-ve-gocebe-jean-genet/899 Eagleton, T. (2006). Kuramdan Sonra (U. Abacı, Trans.). Literatür. Emmelhainz, I. (2016). Neoliberalizm ve Sanatın Özerkliği. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/ skopbulten/neoliberalizm-ve-sanatin-ozerkligi/2889 Erdoğan, A. (2010). Pedofili: Klinik Özellikleri, Nedenleri ve Tedavisi. Psikiyatride Güncel Yaklasimlar, 2(2), 132–160. Foucault, M. (2006). History of Madness (J. Murphy & J. Khalfa, Trans.). Routledge. Gleiberman, O. (2004). The Woodsman. Entertainment Weekly, 798. Greenhill, P., & Kohm, S. (2009, Winter). Little Red Riding Hood and Pedophile in Film: Freeway, Hard Candy and The Woodsman. Jeunesse: Young People, Texts. Cultures, 1(2), 35–65. Havis, R. J. (2004). The Woodsman. Film Journal International, 107(12). Kanak, M. (2011). 0-10 Yaş Çocuk İstismarının Sanal Medyadaki Yansıması (Unpublished master’s thesis). İnönü Üniversitesi/Eğitim Bilimleri Enstitüsü, Malatya. Kıral, G. (2014). Çocuk Gelinler ve Pedofili Üzerine. Retrieved from http://www.viraverita.org/yazilar/ cocuk-gelinler-ve-pedofili-uzerine Kovel, J. (1994). Tarih ve Tin (T. Birkan, Trans.). Ayrıntı. Kroenert, T. (2007). Harsh Lighting Exposes Moral Wrinkles. Eureka Street Magazine, 17(2), 27–28. Menke, C. (2018). Özerkliğin Ötesi. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/skopbulten/ozerkliginotesi/3813 Nabokov, V. (2013). Lolita (14th ed.; F. Özgüven, Trans.). İletişim. O’Donoghue, D. (2014). A Girl Named Joe: Nymphets, Nymphomaniac, and Lars von Trier. Cinéaste (New York, N.Y.), 10–15. Özdemir, E. E. (2012). Çocuk İstismarı Haberlerinin Yazılı Basında Sunumu (Unpublished master’s thesis). Gazi Üniversitesi/Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Ankara. Paglia, C. (2004). Cinsel Kimlikler. Ankara: Epos.

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Petsche, J. (2017). Özerk Olmanın Önemi: Sanat İçin Sanat İlkesini Marksist Bakışla Savunmak. Retrieved from https://www.e-skop.com/skopbulten/ozerk-olmanin-onemi-sanat-icin-sanat-ilkesinimarksist-bakisla-savunmak/3369 Romney, J. (2014). The Girl Can’t Help. Film Comment. Schickel, R. (2005). Cutting It Very Fine. Time Magazine, 165(2). Schofield, K. (2004). Collisions of Culture and Crime: Media Commodification of Child Sexual Abuse. In J. Ferrell, K. Hayward, W. Morrison, & M. Presdee (Eds.), Cultural Criminology Unleashed (pp. 121–131). Glasshouse. Search, G. (1993). Son Tabu. Sarmal. Solmaz, M. (2014). Çocuk Gelinler ve Pedofili. Retrieved from https://www.birikimdergisi.com/guncel/483/cocuk-gelinler-ve-pedofili Spilka, M. (1963). D. H. Lawrence: A Collection of Critical Essays. Prentice Hall. Uzun, B. (2014). Mukayeseli Hukukta Cinsel Suç Faillerinin Kastrasyonu ve Ülkemize İlişkin Örnekler (Unpublished master’s thesis). Marmara Üniversitesi/Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Istanbul. Vineberg, S. (2006). Arrested Development. Christian Century Foundation. Wollen, P. (2004). Sinemada Göstergeler ve Anlam (Z. Aracagök & B. Doğan, Trans.). Metis. Yılmaz, M. (2010). Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita: A Parody of Mimesis of the Psychologised Self Reflexive Civilization (Unpublished master’s thesis). Yeditepe University/Institute of Social Sciences, Istanbul. Zupancic, A. (2005). Gerçeğin Etiği (A. S. Özcan, Trans.). Epos.

ADDITIONAL READING Harkins, G. (2020). Virtual Pedophilia: Sex Offender Profiling and U.S. Security Culture. Duke University Press. Lee, J. (2005). Pervasive Perversion: Paedophilia and Child Sexual Abuse in Media/Culture. Free Association Books. Paglia, C. (2018). Provocations: Collected Essays on Art, Feminism, Politics, Sex, and Education. Pantheon Books.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Autonomy of Arts: It is a term that supports the idea that the art disciplines have the right to be independent from any hegemony towards art and artists, by having a ground on its own.

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Cinematographic Ethics: Cinematographic approach to the study of what is morally right and wrong, or a set of beliefs about what is morally right and wrong amongst the boundries of cinema medium, under the term of autonomy of arts. Empathy: The ability to share and feel someone else’s feelings or experiences by imagining what it would be like to be in that person’s situation. Little Children: A feature film directed by Todd Field in 2006, which showcase the lives of two lovelorn spouses from separate marriages, a registered sex offender, and a disgraced ex-police officer that intersect as they struggle to resist their vulnerabilities and temptations in suburban Massachusetts. Nymphomaniac: A noun that describes a woman who likes to have sex very often, especially with a lot of different people. Also the title of the feature film directed by Lars von Trier as two parts in 2013, which include a major scene where the major character is confronted by a pedophile. Pedophilia: The condition of being sexually interested in children, or engage in sexual activity with children. Pedophilia in Cinema: Films that deal with pedophilia as a topic or have a pedophile character. Woodsman: A motion picture directed by Nicole Kassell in 2004, in which a child molester returns to his hometown after 12 years in prison and attempts to start a new life.

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Question Concerning Evil in the Age of New Television: Dichotomy of Good and Evil in Money Heist Kemal Deniz Munzur University, Turkey

ABSTRACT The new developments and transformations that changed the television have also some outcomes about content, style, and performanses in the productions. Thus, quality drama series on dijital television and internet subscription TV platforms like Netflix are getting more attention of the audience. New or subgenres, anti-heroes, muli-protagonists, moral dilemmas, new inquiries in socio-psychologycal level caused distinction between good and evil becomes more complex in this djital transformation age of television. In this context, Money Heist, which contains a harsh system criticism behind the robberies in its narrative, is considered a symbol of resistance with its unique iconography created by its aesthetics, genre, multi-protagonist characters and story, gained big attantion from global audiences. To understand how Money Heist achieved this audience support, it is evaluated in the context of genre, character structure, and iconography that created a symbolism of resistance in a global scale, considering the developments in television by the digital transformation.

INTRODUCTION Television has undergone digital transformation in different contexts by virtue of the rapid developments witnessed in internet technologies. This change and transformation process, noticed in the ongoing television broadcasting and new television viewing practices, has also some transforming effects in production and distribution in the context of industry; in genre, aesthetics, technique and content in the context of narrative; and in social, cultural and ideological dimensions in the context of the audience. The effects of the transformation created by new technologies in television and its viewing practices are observed DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch010

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today on the most common and global scale in Netflix and similar SVOD platforms. These platforms, which have their own dynamics independent of the requirements of the commercial system specific to network television, have the opportunity to produce more creative and commercially risky narratives or transfer them from network television. Money Heist (2017-) or La Casa de Papel in its original name, is an example of this phenomenon. Money Heist, which can be considered in the heist sub-genre of crime, contains a strong system criticism behind the two robbery themes in its narrative. This feature requires a reinterpretation of the meaning that a crime-themed narrative based on evil characters, not only in terms of the genre distributed by this platform but also what expresses to the new television audience. The characters who are evil because they commit illegal acts and they are outlaw can get the public support. Is illegal action morally acceptable or legitimate? How does a robbery gain public support and the challenge symbolized by this robbery turns into a resistance? Money Heist reveals a criticism that answer questions that contain such dichotomies of good and evil with both its visual aesthetics and content. Money Heist with its theme, genre, multi-protagonist character structure and iconography that has turned into a global phenomenon can be evaluated in the context of why the new television, which is currently in digital transformation, is so effective on the new viewer who are mostly digital native.

NEW TELEVISION AND NETFLIX Various comments and evaluations have been made in recent years about the end of television. Nevertheless, new technologies have allowed television to go through digital transformation rather than ends. Thanks to the advancements in internet technology, significant developments and transformations occurred in television broadcasting, service distribution and viewing practices. One of the most significant consequence of these improvements is that television became more individualized than ever before. This individualized television gained greater importance through emerging media platforms and distribution formats. As Gray and Lotz (2019) indicate, the advent of television distributed through the internet is one of these innovations. Video content transmitted over internet protocols has accelerated the development of mediums, which allow for very different television viewing experiences, recently. This led to significant changes in television broadcasting and service. While network television is benefiting from this digital transformation, new TV services have also emerged. These overall developments brought about by the technological transformation enabled television studies to be continued in a broader scope. Known as “Live Television, Filmed-series Television and ‘Quality’ Television” in previous periods, television is now expressed in classifications such as “Multi-channel or Digital Television” in the context of transmission and reception technologies, new revenue generation methods and new content creation formats (Moran and Malbon, 2009, p. 9). Thus, with the development of digital broadcasting applications such as digital television, cable TV, PPV, OTT, and service providers such as VOD and SVOD, finally subscription platform TV services have been reached. In its most general definition, the platform, which is defined as the “technology which allows the viewer to receive electronic content” (Griffiths, 2003, p. 57), started to become widespread as a television service. The commercial success that subscription platform TV achieved on a global scale has created a contemporary television concept defined through new broadcasting and distribution structures and new viewing practices. Subscription TV platforms and streaming services became widespread and available for users through the internet network. This new broadcasting service, which can be accessed from various devices such as televisions, computers,

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tablets, consoles and mobile phones that support high quality video and audio, enables users to receive this service whenever and wherever they want. Owing to the cultural cross-border structure of network television brought by globalization, the locally integrated versions of internationally formatted shows go into circulation worldwide and their trade still lasts. A proper criticism on this issue is that this integration can in no way be complete or inclusive, especially when it comes to language and cultural issues. In Moran’s words, “television formats may indeed be global in their flow, but are usually local in their interaction with and resonances for national audiences” (2009, p. 157). Netflix-like platforms, which have a different structure than network television’s production, distribution and revenue models, can distribute their programs to users around the world via internet connection after a simple membership process. Instead of franchising formats or reproducing them as local adaptations, these streaming services aim to produce content that can be watched on a global scale. Thus, the audience can access quality and original productions created in international standards, rather than finding some ties in the adapted ones on their local culture. On account of these efforts, Netflix has been on the way to become a new sort of global television service in recent years (Gray and Lotz, 2019, p. 1). In this context, it may be necessary to consider Netflix’s place in the developing streaming broadcast service industry. Various definitions have been made about what Netflix is. Lobato (2019) lists them as “a video platform, a distributor, a television network, a global media corporation, a technology company, a software system, a big-data business, a cultural gatekeeper, a lifestyle brand, a mode of spectatorship, or a ritual”. Based on these definitions, he indicates Netflix’s position in the industry as “shift around — between the television, video, technology, internet, digital media, entertainment, and information industries” (p. 21). As a result of these relationships and combinations between sectors and technologies, the development of this platform has also led to some changes in the practice of watching television content. The development Netflix has shown in streming has essentially abolished the time gap between viewers’ choice of content and the availability of this content for their own use. Viewers no longer had to choose what was on a certain time (Lotz, 2014, p. 74). This development caused the asynchronous viewing practice to become widespread. Thus, viewers can watch the programs without any schedule or broadcast time limitation. Nonexistence of time limitation between the episodes of the shows also allowed audience to get the binge viewing / watching habit. The idea that ‘interruption has disappeared’ which Williams put forward in the concept of flow (1974, p. 91), now has been literally realized with the process of binge watching of series that are not divided by advertisement on the internet streaming services. Brundson (2010) mentions about binge watching as a form of addiction whose roots comes from watching soap opera episodes. He emphasizes that rather than housewives of old television age, today young audience of new quality drama experience this binge watch culture as addictive (pp. 64-65). Beside individual and psychological effects of the change in the viewing practice in the context of technology, its cultural and social reflections have also the effect of creating political consciousness. Jenkins’ observations (2006) that media convergence improves participatory culture and contributes to democracy has attracted much attention. Gilmore (2017, p. 122), emphasizes that the dissemination of political content through their programs should take into account Netflix’s political potential and media circulation and, accordingly, its contribution to the politicization of social media. As can be deduced from these comments, television and digital media are highly converged in different contexts. Thus, television continues its own technological transformation by trying to keep up with other media that have undergone digital transformation. It is stated that (Moran and Malbon, 2009, p. 10) internet distribution contributes to the expansion of the area and technology of television rather than replacing the previous television. This resulted in television continuing to change constantly in this new era and diversifying 137

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with new and old television technologies and services. Today, evaluations continue to be made on both the technological developments and the social, cultural and political effects of digital transformation of television. Briefly, “television is in transition” (Shimpach, 2010, p. 16) for both the television industry and the audience. In this convergence era, in the media that is quite intertwined with the new and old, similarities and differences can be observed in the content and narrative structures of the productions. The studies carried out in this period that take a more inclusive view of different but interrelated areas of media and technology, can offer a variety of perspectives that enable the conclusions to be in more detail. In this context, as Lobato (2019, p. 35) stresses Netflix also stands out as the subject of discussion of different areas such as “new media studies”, “internet studies” and “platform studies”. Money Heist, a drama series that is distributed on Netflix, deserves an evaluation through old to new as a series that has switched between old and new television. With its genre, theme, characters, narrative structure and audiovisual iconography supporting them, Money Heist is one of the appreciated examples that carries a unique aesthetic, cultural and ideological discourse and audience popularity on a global scale in Netflix.

MONEY HEIST Network television channels continue their broadcasting lives with advertising revenues. For this reason, they continue to broadcast or cancel programs according to the interest of the audience. It is therefore valuable what Lotz (2014), suggests that network channels, which avoid taking risks economically, can establish relations with companies that provide funds independently for television, which may give these channels the opportunity to act more courageously in the emergence of creative productions (p. 107). Unless similar alternative financing methods can be put in industry, the cycle of receiving advertisement based on rating system results in broadcasting of projects that have previously proven success and are far from uniqueness to the audience. Although alternative and quality productions are broadcasted, they have to be cancelled when the ratings decrease. The new television offered the opportunity for programs to be watched globally as they are produced. Thus, the effort to produce profitable and localizable formats that keep network television alive before, has just changed to take on programs and genres that are globally popular, especially on streaming TV platform services today. The drama genre among them, as Shimpach (2010, p. 26) marks, struggles with the technical superiority, extraordinary performances and effective visual aesthetics against the limitations of language, culture and national level in the transforming television age. In fact, Money Heist created by Álex Pina, previously produced for the Spanish network television Antena 3, was cancelled after audience ratings decreased. After a while, Netflix acquired the global broadcast copyright of the series, which the local audience did not show interest anymore. The series, which was only put on the category list without being advertised or promoted, attracted great attention from the audience who were Netflix subscribers from different countries in a short time. On the road to understand why this production has received so much attention globally, some main narrative elements of the series like genre, plot, and character traits, and the meanings that they symbolize can be evaluated considering ‘evil’.

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EVIL In this study, the evil is not considered on theological-metaphysical discussion, but on secular-mundane, that is, conscious actions of people, which belongs to their own responsibility. In other words, what makes the people evil is not the sin committed by them, but the criminal act against the law or other people. Baumeister (1999, p. 1), who tries to understand ‘evil’ not from a supernatural or moral viewpoint, but from a psychological perspective, states “if there were no victims, there would be no evil”. He also characterizes the ‘pure evil’ (p. 72-74). According to his findings, evil involves deliberate harm to humans and is caused only by the desire to harm, for the pleasure of doing it. Therefore evil is a sadistic act. Victim of evil is usually innocent and good. Evil is the ‘other’ that exists not on its own, but only in relation to good. The conflict between good and evil is usually overlapped by the conflict between them and us. Evil is stable and relentless and often unchanged. It represents the antithesis of order, peace and stability. Evil characters are often egocentric and overconfident. In addition, evil characters have difficulty keeping control over emotions, especially anger and rage. Yet, there are exceptions that evil can be very cold blooded. The perception that what is accepted as evil will come from what is outside of us, the unknown, the other, or the enemy, makes this ideological discourse easier to accept. Baudrillard (1993, p. 82) claims that, power today stems only from the symbolic ability that determines the ‘other’, that is, its enemy, ‘evil’. However, the ability to identify power as ‘evil’ has disappeared today and there is no opposition willing to do so. Pomerance (2004, p. 6), points out that this situation is reflected on the screen in the same way. The use of public rebellion and violence is unacceptable, at the center of the depiction of a world that would be useful to the general repressive nature of the state’s authority. When aggression is carried out by well-organized “others”, it is shown as an “enemy” action. However, the aggression of officials is considered “logical, noble and heroic.” The dichotomy between good and evil has been offering a narrative structure that lays out the central conflicting poles of narratives since ancient religious and cultural myths. Accordingly, in the traditional narrative structure audience empathizes with the good. The good defeats the evil. The audience experiences catharsis. In the end, everyone becomes satisfied. This has led to the use of popular and commercial narratives to legitimize an authoritarian structure through this dichotomy of good and evil. Since the state security forces have conventionally been presented as good ones, even using the most illegitimate and evil means to defeat what is described as ‘evil’ can still be seen as legitimate. As Parenti (1991, p. 2) indicates; film and television narrative simply dissaminates the propagandist depictions of “imperialism, phobic anticommunism, capitalism, racism, sexism, militarism, authoritarian violence, vigilantism, and anti-working-class attitudes”. Beside, it tries to hide a critical perception of the facts of the sociopolitical order we live in. It constantly places safe and shallow pictures on our head. Likewise, the evil on the screen gives us a sense of power to the extent that we can become alienated from it just by watching. The villain we do not like is the depiction that the screen predicts, which we cannot accept as a version of ourselves. The more violent the image, the longer we can reject it. Thus, as long as we are not close and in touch with evil, we feel living in an environment where the world is perfect (Pomerance, 2004, p. 17). Nevertheless, new narratives like Money Heist reverses this good and evil dichotomy and its influences on audiences. The team of Money Heist know who they are and what they do. They rob the The Royal Mint and the The Bank of Spain. At the end of this, they will get a huge share and the highest rank as the most famous robbers in the world. If they fail, they know how cruel the punishment awaiting them. In short, they are aware of the responsibility of their actions. That means they are not the brainwashed evil Frenkensteins 139

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that fulfill the orders of El Profesor or obey him unconditionally. Therefore, these robbery actions do not simply put them in the classification in Arendt’s (1963) Banality of Evil theory. Nonetheless, the robbery actions of Money Heist’s characters have a contradiction in nearly invariable dialectic of the evil character, in the context of the implementation of these actions and the consequences of them for harming humans. Evil has to choose a victim or victims. Otherwise, there must be victims who are harmed by the actions of the evil one. In the Money Heist, except for unintentionally wounded, there is no human victim. The victim of the group is the government itself and its law enforcement agency, which already responds to them with much more evil action. After all, if there is a victim of the action, this is the hegemonic system itself, which is already victimizes people. As evil act cannot be considered without victim, the planning of the actions of the group members on the principle of not harming hostages and the police, keeps them out of the evil category. These robbers are criminals and simply bad persons. At this point, making a distinction between being criminal and bad and being evil can provide a clear understanding of the narrative and illuminate why the characters are empathetic anti-heroes. Rawls (1999, p. 385-86) distinguishes between the unjust, the bad and the evil one. Unjust man has a desire to do the wrong and the unjust to achieve their goals. He pursues domination such as wealth and security. The bad man seeks arbitrary power, because he likes the sense of competence gained by practicing it and seeks social appreciation. When he accurately restrained, he has an excessive desire for the respect of others and a sense of self-direction. This way of satisfying his ambitions makes him dangerous. Conversely, the evil seeks complete unfair rule. He violates the equal positions of other people and thus insults their personality through the superiority he achieved and how he displayed it. The evil one enjoys this flaunt and humiliation. His love for injustice motivates him. These inadequacies and helplessness of those who are affected by the damage caused by evil give him pleasure and want them to know that he does this damage. This information shows that Money Heist characters can hardly be classified as evil ones. Pomerance (2004, p. 10), asserts that there are two dangers in detecting screen malice. Structurally, failure to grasp social formations related to bad and good. Phenomenologically, failure to understand the viewer’s emotions and experiences due to excessive orientation to ideological analysis. Considering his determination, it is important to evaluate genre and character traits, both to reveal the ideological meaning and to try to understand what social and cultural impact it has on the audience.

GENRE Dramatic narratives gathered under certain classifications in the context of some common features. These classifications revealed genres in literature, cinema and television. After first used in literature, the generic origin of audio-visual productions based on genre films. Grant (2007, p. 1) defines briefly that, genre films are “commercial feature films which, through repetition and variation, tell familiar stories with familiar characters in familiar situations”. In these films, certain patterns are repeated taking into account commercial concerns (Tudor, 2014, p. 182). Pointing out to this commercial aspect, Feuer (1992, p. 107) states that genre studies cannot be independent from the realities of the industry. According to Schatz (1981, p. 6), the genre films based on the Hollywood studio system are the films that made good profit during this period and after. Andrew (1984, p. 110) states that the genre, which has formulas that provide certain products to be offered to certain customers, first creates and then satisfies the desires in the audience that will consume it. Industrial production conditions highlight “the system of production”, “structural analysis of the text” and “the reception process” in the genre concept (Feuer, 1992, p. 108). 140

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Besides being created with industrial requirements, according to Altman (2000), the genre is a complex concept with more than one meaning. Thereupon, each film has a generic blueprint, structures identified with the genre, a generic label when it is displayed and a contract with audiences to ensure them for interpreting a genre accordingly (p. 17). Grant (2007, pp. 9-27), likewise identifies common elements of the genres. He lists them as “convention, iconography, setting, stories and themes, characters, actors and stars, viewers and audiences”. Genre films, which are created in aesthetic and content at certain standards, appeal to a mass audience rather than an individual audience, through wider social and cultural conventions. Thus, genre films “contain standard ways of representing gender, class, race, and ethnicity” (Grant, 2007, p. 80), which often leads to content and characters being designed in a stereotypical way. Even in cases where the content differs, popular genres can be used as tools to legitimize socially conservative results (Tudor, 2014, p. 221). Nevertheless, popular narratives with alternative funding can be represented in different formats and dissident content, both in film production and distribution, and new television and streaming TV platforms. Television studies also deal with similarities and differences within a family of programs rather than a single program (Gray and Lotz, 2019). Thus, the aesthetic and content components of these programs ranging from production to purchasing or consumption should be taken into consideration. Genre is also an element that includes these components and determines them in a certain level. In the television industry, it is preferable to use genres with reliable formulas, such as in films, to control audience distribution (Feuer, 1992, pp. 108-109). Especially when digital channels work with limited budgets, it is important to create content that is suitable for producing that will make a profit (Griffiths, 2003, p. 90). Television continues to adopt an inter-media structure that allows extensive readings in the context of new production, distribution and viewing practices started with digitalization. In this context, Mittell (2004, p. xii) states that the television genre as a classification process can be best understood in the media industries, audience, broadcast policies, critics and historical contexts, rather than texts. In order to understand this process, new television practices, the survival methods of the old network television and the genres of quality drama originating from films are the areas that should be evaluated together. In the global branding process, network programmers can easily stretch and reshape the rules of a TV genre to hold a specific audience while creating the target audience (Edgerton and Nicholas, 2005, p. 252). The most obvious and frequently used example of this is seen in the intertwining of reality narratives with fiction. Reality shows produced by non-actor characters, low costs and poor aesthetic quality turned into profitable program investments. However, there has been an increase in quality drama productions in recent years, as well. Conventionally, there are three main types of drama on television. These are “feature lenght drama, drama series and soap operas” (Griffiths, 2003, p. 90). On television, low quality “prime time soap” and “quality drama” have been compared for years in terms of aesthetics and content (Mittell, 2005, p. 245). Today, with the influence of technological developments and globalization at the cultural level, different forms of narratives continue to develop and different genres hybridize. Mittell (2005) expresses the status of television in this period with the term “complex television”. He uses this term as a storytelling mode that spans some genres and across a wide range of programs, and for a group of associated production and receiving practices (p. 233). On television, which is gradually becoming more and more complex with the consequence of new distribution technologies and streaming TV platforms, it is observed that both the other genres combining reality and fiction and the wider sub-genres of drama are diversified. While quality drama offers stories in genres more appealing to the audience, it is seen that the content

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can be transferred with a better-rendered narrative, successful acting performances and a powerful audiovisual design. Money Heist is one example of this. Although its genre is labeled as “action”, “crime”, “mystery”; its plot, theme, and character structure reveal the characteristics of the heist genre, which can be called the sub-genre of crime. Beyond this, it has become a social phenomenon by going beyond being a popular drama series with its messages and iconography, which has became a global symbol of resistance. Iconography, by the way, has an important place in genre research. In particular, iconography is a frequently used element in the definition and analysis of genres such as western, gangster, science fiction, etc. Alloway (1971, p. 41) states that, once the genre-specific and standardized iconographic elements are identified and separated, then personal contributions to the work can be understood. When one leaves behind the elements that make up the typical iconography of the classic crime and robbery genre, she can see that Money Heist created its own iconography and this iconography overlaps the rhetoric and discourse of this story.

Heist Genre Genre has become culturally specific in film and television. Feuer states that the comedy in literature has become specific in sub-genres such as “screwball comedy” in film and “sitcom” on television (1992, p. 105). In his comment on the detective novel l’Emploi Du Temps, which belongs to Michel Butor, Todorov (1971, pp. 11-12) addresses the detective typology in two stages. One is the story of the crime and the other is the story of the crime’s investigation. He emphasizes that these two stories are different. This structure is also shown as a reference to the structure of the crime genre in the film and television narrative. Here, the same story can be told in different ways, not only in detective but also in criminal oriented. “Heist” or “big caper” as its former famous name, is the genre in which different narrative like Todorov’s exemple is standardized to a more specific taxonomy. Heist is a kind of crime genre (Lee, 2014, p. 2). However, it is a sub-genre of crime, which has developed unique genre codes and especially tells the story by criminals’ viewpoint. The heist genre can be described by combining two adequate definitions. Heist is “a carefully organized robbery of a bank, jewelry store, casino, or other commercial institution…” (Leach and Sloniowski, 2017, p. 1), “...whose narratives emphasize the logistical and technical difficulties of a crime and its execution” (Thompson, 2017, p. 43). Characters in heist are generally portrayed different from classical crime heroes. Contrary to the heroes, there are generally team members who continue to do their own daily work while performing the robbery. These stated definitions show that the main features of the genre is a narrative based on the characteristics and skills of the criminal characters. That is why it is necessary to remember multi-protagonist character when thinking about Money Heist in particular.

Multi-Protagonist Heist Narrative The repetitive structure of television series has enabled their characters to have a static structure that does not develop in the narrative, but accumulates and deepens from it. This may have an impact on weakening narration (Pearson, 2007, p. 56). In the drama series, character development in time can be considered as an important element for the pleasure of watching. However, most television characters do not have a changeable asset, they are stable and consistent (Mittell, 2005, p. 133). Especially series with episodic storytelling often emphasize plot action. This prevents the character from having a progressive 142

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and developing structure (Lotz, 2013, p. 23). However, unconventional and multi-dimensional characters can be seen as an alternative. Pearson (2007) divides the structure of televisual character into six elements and lists them as; “psychological behaviors; physical characteristics; speech patterns; interactions with other characters; environment; and biography” (p. 43-49). These elements can also be adapted to multi-protagonist narratives in new television dramas. The accurate functioning of this structure allows describing in detail the differences, similar aspects, inner worlds, basic physical features, past stories, and intimacy or incompatibility of these multi-protagonist characters in the story. Thus, characters can become more complex and multi-dimensional ‘real’ persons, not artificial depictions, who are identified just from their stereotypical or genre specific indicators. Different genres and complex narrative structures also give the opportunity to form richer rendered characters. Azcona (2010, p. 27) determines that a multi-protagonist narrative structure is being used in new and contemporary forms in the context of human interaction and human relations, with more complex narrative structures. Especially in the heist genre, dramatic narratives with many characters have become more common lately. To name a few from earlier times to the recent; Asphalt Jungle (1950), The Killing (1956), The Sting (1973), Reservoir Dogs (1992), Ronin (1998), Ocean’s Eleven (2001), Bandits (2001), Italian Job (2003), Foolproof (2003), Inside Man (2006), among others, can be considered heist movies. The multi-protagonist structure that the genre uses frequently is also related to the features of the genre. Especially the heist stories required the combination of multidimensional characters with different qualities. This narrative structure enables relatively deep processing of all characters and their relations with each other play a role in character development, as well. Robbers are a group of talented indivuduals who become a team and make division of labor rather than being a gang accustomed to being seen in the crime genre. Being a team can have an importance in the theme of the narrative even if narrative begins with the individualist characters, their struggling for common effort and purpose turn them into a whole. After their mission is acomplished, they can spread apart, either.

CHARACTER TYPOLOGIES OF MONEY HEIST For viewers to continue watching a TV production, it is important that the characters are consistent and that the viewer builds long-term relationships with these characters (Mittell, 2005, p. 127). Characters in Money Heist are relatively designed multi-dimensionally. Almost all of them have a past story. Their relationship with each other is complex, but emotionally strong. Although they occasionally fell into skirmishes they all loyal to the plan and other team members. When their collective consciousness is strong, their unity does not shake. Nevertheless, despair, personal ambition (desire to be a leader) and emotional ties between characters cause them to suffer disintegration. These features enable the mulitprotagonist heist characters to differ from the individualistic and shallow criminals. Since the rational and routine aspects of the crime genre’s stereotypical gangster character are not shown, its wild practices are effective throughout the character. He is a character who is successful as far as he is wild (Warshow, 2016, p. 229). It is seen that the harsh and brutal character of the gangster is shaped within the group (Langford, 2005, p. 134). The group or gang he (or rarely she) is in does not reduce his / her individuality and ambition to rise. The character of the traditional crime genre can have a structure that shares common features, regardless of being a police representing the law or a gangster. Violence, murder and death are common for these characters. Rise and fall are frequent career and life cycles. They do not make moral inquiries 143

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in their actions. For their purposes, they do not hesitate to eliminate those close to them. They can betray their colleagues. They have an individualism stemming from their personal passions. They do not have a world of their own and have artificial relationships. They are against the rules and the authority it represents (Tudor, 2014, pp. 201-202). Police characters of Money Heist can be considered in this typology. Inspector Murillo/Lisboa, who later changed sides and joined the robbery group, does not fit this typology. She is a good person with her strong and weak aspects. She is loyal to the law. In the end, although she is aware that El Profesor is illegal, she agrees the moral correctness of what he does. However, Inspector Alicia Sierra (Najwa Nimri), who took her place, fits all of these definitions. She tries to catch the robbers for his own personal ambition. While doing this, she does not hesitate to act illegally. After her dismissal and making statements scribbling her superiors and police department, she continues to trace to catch El Profesor. Other police officers in the police force and intelligence departments also try various illegal ways to catch the robbers and they try to hide these methods from the public. It shows that, these law enforcement members portrayed as antagonists and villians are fit the crime typologies mentioned above. These characters, pictured at a more stereotypical level, are those who cannot win the trust and support of the public, and try to catch the robbers, regardless of whether their method is legal or not. So these are the characters much more belong to crime genre typologies. Besides these, Arturo Román, who has well constructed character, is very visible in both robberies. The character of Arturo Román, The Royal Mint manager, was created in a very satirical way. This character of selfish, croaker, morally low and pathetic is constantly walking around everywhere as a metaphor for the moral collapse in society. He comes out from anywhere to confuse people, make them nervous and complicate the situation. He is not villian, but he is not a good person either. To become a hero, he constantly jeopardizes other hostages around him. He is constantly degraded and humiliated to pitifully ridiculous and miserable situations. His only success in life is ‘to be taken hostage’ in The Royal Mint robbery. He has become a pulp phenomenon using the fame the robbery brings. Even the cops who collaborated with him in the second robbery thought he was a ‘clown’. Lee (2014, p. 5) cites from Stuart Kaminsky that the heist film has two broad categories in terms of character typologies. One is the gang leader and mentor who can be the same person from time to time and the other are team members with some individual skills and crafts. Confirming Kaminsky’s early observation, Money Heist has abundance of multi-protagonist characters that include both categories. El Profesor (Álvaro Morte) continues to assist the team as both the team’s leader and mentor, and perform even extreme actions when needed. El Profesor is depicted as a nerdy, shy and antisocial character but knows human nature very well. He is presented as the perfect manager of the heist plan with his intelligence and wisdom. Not killing police officers or harming hostages are the main red lines for him. He wants to see the support of the people, especially on the streets and through the media. He is a good teacher. He trains the professional team he brings together before both robberies. This comprehensive training is to ensure that they stick to the plan to complete the robbery, stay alive and not to lose their legitimacy by harming anyone. Other team members apply the robbery plan inside the building. As seen in this series example, heist characters do not have a gangster-specific brutality. These characters are not usually gangsters in more recent narratives. They are a group of people with different professions or skills. Besides elite robbers, safecrackers, counterfeiters, there are also workers such as IT experts, welders, blacksmith, miners, etc. The tendency of heist characters to violence and brutality within the group decreases. Collectivity is at the forefront and sticking to the plan until the goal is achieved is more valuable than acting individually. No one in the team is after individual heroism. The common effort and division of labor are constantly highlighted on behalf of the common purpose of the team. As Shimpach 144

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(2010, p. 30) suggests, the action characters continue to be the choice of the producers with their iconic and heroic features, especially since they have a structure that can move in time and space on new changing television. Money Heist with its action elements is shaped as a collective heroic story with iconic characters. Dali masked, red coveralled anonymous anti-heroes are offered as an alternative to telling the story of a single hero. It is a remarkable symbolic choice that the multi-protagonist structure turns into a single anonymous character with the red coverall and the Dali mask. Through this iconography, the multi-protagonist structure carries a symbolic expression of a common goal and consciousness, whether it is robbery or resistance, under a single character appearance. The characters must remain anonymous both in order not to disclose each other at the risk of being caught and to perform the heist plan perfectly. No one in the team knows each other’s real name and identity at first. Instead, each character uses city names such as Tokio, Nairobi, Helsinki, Oslo, Denver, Río, Berlín, Moscú, Bogotá, Palermo and Marsella. Inspector Raquel Murillo and Royal Mint Secretary Mónica Gaztambide who later joined the team, also take the nicknames as Lisboa and Stockholm respectively in the second robbery at The Bank of Spain. It is seen that these anonymized characters are designed in different character features, different psychological structures, different conscientious sensibilities and even different sexual preferences to represent the whole society. The deep processing of the psychological and humanistic features of the characters increases their empathic sides. They look real to the audience not only with their action performances, but also with their human aspects including emotions, strength and weakness. Their criminality does not damage the innocent people, but the corrupt order. Actually, they are relatively good persons in their inner self. That is why El Profesor collected them to perform this heist. As in the old-fashioned stereotypical crime character, they are not inherently evil. Although the characters are criminal, they are all people with some merits and loyalty as well as they have talent and craft. The second robbery, stealing the gold from The Bank of Spain, was committed to save Río (Miguel Herrán) who is captured and tortured by the police. This second action therefore means a lot for the heist team and the public support here is much greater value. Especially during the robberies, it is seen that the people who support the main team members with their labour are workers such as miners, blacksmiths and welders. These workers continue to perform their own work and as profession during the robbery. During the Royal Mint robbery, as long as the robbers remain inside, they continue to print money. People working in the money-printing department of the Royal Mint and the help of the some hostages do this work. These workers, who work the same as legally print this money, spend the same effort and do not get a share of the wealth produced from this labour. Ironically, these people just continue to do their work during the robbery. The only difference is the printed money goes to the robbers, not to the government, capital owners or bankrupting companies and banks. Therefore, whether the money stolen or printed, it is not the money of the people anyway. As such in the second heist, the gold melted in The Bank of Spain is also not the reserve of ordinary people. People cannot get a share of this wealth. This reality makes the public keep supporting the heist team. Since they undermine the power of governments’ legitimacy to seize the common wealth of the people and manage it as they wish. This narrative creates the analogy that heist becomes a resistance for the supporters. As Gray and Lotz (2019) indicates, since some genre are widespread in certain periods, analysis of these genres is useful to make sense of narratives, messages, and ideologies that are culturally rising, persistent or declining. Money Heist’s narrative in the form of heist and its muli-protagonist structure coincide in the context of the global audience who lives in a world that intertwined with digital culture and today’s economical system. Tudor (2014, p. 180) states that the genres belongs to mass culture and 145

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has a decisive role in the actions of the masses at the sociological level. This inference can be read in two opposite ways as passivating and mobilising. In this case, the action and behavior of the characters evokes social support. The iconography they create with their red workers’ overalls, the Dali mask and the Bella Ciao song is highly adopted by the public. This iconography becomes the informal symbol of an anonymous resistance, regardless of whether they are robbers or public. This anonym iconography is symbolized in the series with the support of the people in the discourses of “people with us”, “we are resistance”, and “we are against the system”. This symbolic resistance iconography can also be observed in a reflexivity among public as well as the audience of the series. In the fictional narrative, the public’s support and being together with them gives legitimacy to the actions of El Profesor and his team. This public support also finds reflexion in the context of the audience. New TV services created by new communication technologies continue to contribute to the establishment of a globally shared audience culture. This culture is effective on the communities formed by people especially those who considered as the digital native generation, who use social media effectively and who have a common language in expressing some reactions and sensibilities at the social and political level. This group has the ability to adapt and use elements in popular culture or mass culture effectively and creatively in line with their own goals and actions. Even if broadcast platforms and content producers use the criticism of political order and discourse of resistance they put in these quality dramas just because “rebel sells”, the new protest culture and its common mass, which cannot be evaluated independently of the new audience culture, can easily adapt the rhetoric of these productions to their daily discourses. This shows why a narrative that blesses collective action such as Money Heist and provides popular support from the production of a resistance rhetoric, is now responding to a rapidly growing global audience in a completely globalized world.

CONCLUSION Some genres may be more effective on viewers in the context of narrative and content features. The fact that the heist genre attracts more attention today than the classic crime genre might be associated with the fact that it corresponds to a current sociology on a global scale. The broader discourse of the heist genre is well beyond that the criminals are just illegal individuals who only carry out actions motivated by their own personal desires or ambitions of success. They also take actions that make certain problems at the social, cultural or ideological level visible. What they do for their own personal interests may also cause questioning of what is good or evil, legal or crime, moral or corrupt. Deeper and multi-dimensional aspects of heist protagonist beyond being stereotypical “evil” characters in the classical narrative enable the audience to empathize with these characters rather than the members of law enforcement. This narrative structure also reverses the fact that even though criminal is the protagonist character that gains the audience’s empathy, eventually will be defeated by the protectors of the order. In these new narratives, the corrupt and illegitimate law and order positions the crime and the criminal to a morally acceptable legitimate ground. The global cultural discourse of the heist narrative, transforms the genre from the “stealing with style” to the “stealing as resistance” on the example of Money Heist. While criminals of the heist genre were individually struggling against the law, in this example, the robbers who took the backing of the public also fighting against the system. The narrative has also a reflexivity that reveals this reality. This popular support continues strongly not only by the supporters of the robbery team in the story but also by the audience who are the people outside for protests. With its catchphrase “We Are the 146

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Resistance”, the red workers’ overalls, the Dali mask and the Bella Ciao song have turned into a resistance iconography of many activisims, protests and social movements. The socio-cultural reflection style of the original icons of a crime narrative on a global audience has become a common symbolic language of system and order oppossition. This social reality shows that the actions performed by the characters, despite being illegal, can shake the corrupt order so that create moral truth to the masses and inspire them in a global scale. In the age of new and transforming television, it is necessary to consider the implications and changes of the content and discourses affecting social, cultural and ideological dimensions as much as what new practices comes to the front by developing technologies. To sum up, new narratives in quality television continue changing the conventional conceptions about good and evil as well.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Will evil against evil be still evil when it works for the sake of the good? This is a question must be answered by critically studying new narratives especially in more philosophical ways considering today’s digitally transforming world in the contexts of people who are globally affected by this digital transformation every aspects of their lives.

REFERENCES Altman, A. (2000). Film Genre. British Film Institute. Andrew, J. D. (1984). Concepts in Film Theory. Oxford University Press. Azcona, M. M. (2010). The Multi-Protagonist Film. Wiley-Blackwell. doi:10.1002/9781444325300 Baudrillard, J. (1993). The Transparency of Evil: Essays on Extreme Phenomena (J. Benedict, Trans.). Verso. Baumeister, R. F. (1999). Evil: Inside Human Cruelty and Violence. W.H. Freeman and Company. Brundson, C. (2010). Bingeing on Box-Sets: The National and the Digital in Television Crime Drama. In J. Gripsrud (Ed.), Relocating Television: Television in the Digital Context (pp. 63–75). Routledge. Edgerton, G. R., & Nicholas, K. (2005). “I Want My Niche TV”: Genre as a Networking Strategy in the Digital Era. In G. R. Edgerton & B. G. Rose (Eds.), Thinking Outside The Box: A Contemporary Television Genre Reader (pp. 247–267). The University Press of Kentucky. Feuer, J. (1992). Genre Study and Television. In R. C. Allen (Ed.), Channels of Discourse, Reassembled (pp. 104–120). Routledge. Gilmore, J. N. (2017). Circulating the Square: Digital Distribution as (Potential) Activism. In C. Barker & M. Wiatrowski (Eds.), The Age of Netflix: Critical Essays on Streaming Media, Digital Delivery and Instant Access (pp. 120–139). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Grant, B. K. (2007). Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology. Wallflower Press. Gray, J., & Lotz, A. D. (2019). Television Studies. Polity Press. 147

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Griffiths, A. (2003). Digital Television Strategies: Business Challenges and Opportunities. Palgrave Macmillan. Langford, B. (2005). Film Genre: Hollywood and Beyond. Edinburgh University Press. Lawrence, A. (1971). Violent America: The Movies 1946-1964. New York: Museum of Modern Art. Leach, J., & Sloniowski, J. (Eds.). (2017). The Best Laid Plans: Interrogating the Heist Film. Wayne State University Press. Lee, D. (2014). The Heist Film: Stealing With Style. Wallflower Press. doi:10.7312/lee-16969 Lobato, R. (2019). Netflix Nations: The Geography of Digital Distribution. New York University Press. Lotz, A. D. (2013). House: Narrative Complexity. In E. Thompson & J. Mittell (Eds.), How to Watch Television (pp. 22–29). New York University Press. Lotz, A. D. (2014). The Television Will Be Revolutionized. New York University Press. Michael, P. (1991). Make-Believe Media: The Politics of Entertainment. St. Martin’s Press. Mittell, J. (2004). Genre and Television: From Cop Shows to Cartoons in American Culture. Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203642139 Mittell, J. (2005). Complex TV: The Poetics of Contemporary Television Storytelling. New York University Press. Moran, A. (2009). New Flows in Global TV. Intellect Books. Moran, A., & Malbon, J. (2009). Understanding the Global TV Format, Bristo & Portland: Intellect Books. Pearson, R. (2007). Anatomising Gilbert Grissom: The Structure and Function of the Televisual Character. In M. Allen (Ed.), Reading CSI: Crime TV under the Microscope (pp. 39–56). I. B. Tauris. doi:10.5040/9780755696208.ch-003 Pomerance, M. (2004). Introduction: From Bad to Worse. In M. Pomerance (Ed.), Bad: Infamy, Darkness, Evil, and Slime on Screen (pp. 1–18). State Universıty of New York Press. Rawls, J. (1999). A Theory of Justice. Harvard University Press. Schatz, T. (1981). Hollywood Genres: Formulas, Filmmaking and the Studio System. Random House. Shimpach, S. (2010). Television in Transition: The Life and Afterlife of the Narrative Action Hero. WileyBlackwell. doi:10.1002/9781444320671 Thompson, K. M. (2007). Crime Films: Investigating the Scene. Wallflower Press. Todorov, T. (1971). Poetique de La Prose. Éditions du Seuil. Tudor, A. (2014). Image and Influence: Studies in the Sociology of Film. Routledge. Warshow, R. (2016). The Gangster as Tragic Hero. In G. B. Keith & M. Kurtz (Eds.), Notions of Genre: Writings on Popular Film before Genre Theory (pp. 226–231). University of Texas Press.

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Williams, R. (1974). Television: Technology and Cultural Form. Routledge.

ADDITIONAL READING Allrath, G., & Gymnich, M. (Eds.). (2005). Narrative Strategies in Television Series. Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/9780230501003 Butler,J.G.(2018).Television:VisualStorytellingandScreenCulture.Routledge.doi:10.4324/9781315181295 Fiske, J., & Hartley, J. (2003). Reading Television. Routledge. Grodal, T. (1999). Moving Pictures: A New Theory of Film Genres, Feelings and Cognition. Clarendon Press. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198159834.001.0001 Hartley, J. (1999). Uses of Television. Routledge. Heath, J., & Potter, A. (2005). The Rebel Sell: Why the Culture Can’t be Jammed. Harper Perennial. Kremer, E. J., & Latzer, M. J. (Eds.). (2001). The Problem of Evil in Early Modern Philosophy. University of Toronto Press. doi:10.3138/9781442682146 Neale, S. (2000). Genre and Hollywood. Routledge. Norden, M. F. (Ed.). (2007). The Changing Face of Evil in Film and Television. Rodopi. doi:10.1163/9789401205276 Tulloch, J. (1990). Television Drama: Agency, Audience and Myth. Routledge.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Binge Viewing: Watching multiple episodes of a TV series without giving a break. Digital Transformation: Integration of digital technology into non-digital areas and thus the emergence of productive, operational, organizational, or cultural change in these areas. Genre: Type of art, painting, literature, music, film, or TV show that can be classified by certain common features. Narrative: A storyline with a beginning, middle and end for telling a story, whether real or fiction. Series: A group of programs divided into seasons or sets of episodes that based on a narrative and is broadcast on television. Streaming Television: Television that digitally distributes its audiovisual content as streaming over the Internet network. SVOD: It stands for ‘subscription video on demand’ that can be consumed per a specific period by paying service fee.

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Museum as Medium: Temporality, Memory, and Intricacy of Evil in Museo Hüseyin Ekrem Ulus https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0310-6455 Ege University, Turkey Aslı Favaro Ege University, Turkey

ABSTRACT This chapter first discusses how and why it is extremely difficult to define the concept of evil in theory and next analyzes why Goldberg’s diachronic theory is useful in the study of evil. The authors explain how evil is fundamentally connected to the concepts of temporality and memory in the narrative universe of Museo. The intricacy of evil in the film is narrated through the metaphor of a museum. In this context, Museo’s narrative gradually shows that each identity (or story) is limited by its scope of memory; and hence, each identity and their definitions of evil are different but somehow interrelated. As modern individuals, the protagonists have limited perception of history, loose connection with other cultures, and this leads them to commit an evil act. However, as in Goldberg’s theory of diachronicity, when the museum brings several stories and temporalities together from different time spans, it becomes possible for the protagonist to question the motives of his evil act. Thus, Museo calls for a diachronic approach towards evil to challenge any form of ethnocentricity.

INTRODUCTION Modern archeological excavations show that burial of horses with their owners used to be a common application not only in Anglo-Saxon culture but also in many other parts of the world such as China (Johns, 2006, p. 23) or Iceland (CBC, 2019). Considered in temporal and modern context, such a widespread tradition across cultures is both unacceptable and abhorrent by 21st century standards in public opinion, in addition to being punishable by law. Horse burial, now seen as a means of torture to animals, DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch011

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could very well be categorized as an evil act in the eyes of many people. Then, one question appears: to what extent is it possible to reach a definition of the concept of evil, which could be pertinent to all cultures and times? In spite of relatively recent scholarly attempts to find intercultural definitions for the concept of evil, it is extremely hard to define the term for two reasons. First, people of different cultures interpret evil in various culture-specific contexts. As the horse burial example above may illustrate, the understanding of evil differs among various cultures and religions, as well as between religious and secular contexts, for that matter. Second, just like culture-specific approaches to evil may not prevail across all societies, the perception of evil at a given time may not apply to other eras or times. In this context, the aim is to explicate the following positions regarding evil: first, this study will explain how simple wrongdoing is different in comparison to the category of evil. Then, the authors will discuss how evil is a multilayered concept that should be studied and tested across cultures and times. In connection with the first proposition, this chapter will finally elucidate why the notion of evil must be studied not in a synchronic, but with a diachronic approach, as Goldberg argues. Overall, this theoretical background will help comprehend how Ruizpalacios’ 2018 film Museo approaches the complex notion of evil through cross-cultural and diachronic perspective.

BACKGROUND: EVIL IN THEORY: DIACHRONY VS. SYNCHRONICITY To start with, evil is a term that is quite hard to pin down, particularly in its difference from the categories of bad, or wrongdoing. American Heritage Dictionary defines evil as something “morally reprehensible”, “causing discomfort or repulsion” or “causing harm” (n.d). This definition is still too broad and does not provide a satisfactory distinction from the category of bad, which is defined as “morally objectionable”, “injurious” and “harmful” by the very same dictionary (n.d). What is more, the word evil is even presented as a synonym of bad. Yet, evil is definitely more complex and multilayered than its basic definitions, and there is no consensus over a definition. For instance, according to Steiner evil is “wrong acts that are pleasurable for their doers” (2002, p. 189). This secular interpretation of evil is psychologically more complex and fundamentally different from wrongdoing (Calder, 2019, p. 221). Neidleman writes that Hillel’s interpretation of evil is limiting, on the basis that it reduces the term only to “the most diabolical actions” (2019, p. 106). There are other noteworthy attempts to distinguish evil from bad or wrongdoing. In this line, Goldberg writes that evil and wrongdoing are close to and/or far from each other as much as genocide and theft are related to each other (2019, p. 328), because there is a considerable moral threshold to pass in order to commit an evil act (Formosa, 2019, p. 264). Similarly, Eve Garrard separates wrong and evil through the example of massacres or genocide (2019, p. 189) but also states that secular perspectives and definitions of evil are still “quite limited” in terms of their explanatory power (2019, p. 200). Stephen de Wijze asks the same question on the difference between evil and wrongdoing, and states that evil and wrongdoing can be separated on the basis that the if the former is “left unchecked it could destroy or seriously undermine accepted and established moral/social/ political boundaries,” which could “make viable social and political coexistence impossible” (2019, p. 204). Also, Todd Calder separates evil actions from non-evil acts by pointing to the form, when he writes that “evil actions have a quality of evilness that non-evil actions lack” (2019, p. 230). Based on the several definitions above, our first proposal is that the concept of evil is hard to define as it does not have an immediate essence or content. In other words, in a culture-specific context, evil may have 151

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different definitions, and this is why many scholars attempt to define it through its form, not its content, which is the exact reason for which finding an overall definition for evil is a grueling task. Most religions (Islam, Confucianism, Daoism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism) have various approaches to and interpretations of evil limited to their religious and cultural contexts as Leezenberg explains (2019, pp. 360-379). On the other hand, considering that secular interpretations (mostly after WWII) have limited explanatory power as Garrard writes, one may conclude that a satisfactory definition of evil requires careful consideration of multilayered socio-cultural structure of the concept of evil. More specifically, to be able to have a comprehensive grasp of the concept, one must not only study evil in cross-cultural context, but also in cross-temporal one. For this reason, Golderg’s approach to evil is quite practical. In “Evil’s Diachronic Characteristics,” he argues that making a clear distinction between evil and wrongdoing –and thus, focusing on the explanatory power of evil harm– is not sufficient to analyze evil (2019, p. 328). The reason for the insufficiency, as Goldberg explains, is that most definitions of evil concentrate upon the “synchronic, or current time-slice” characteristics of evil (Ibid). Then, continues Goldberg, the asymmetrical power relationship between the evil agent and the victim appears over time. In this case, past and/or history become essential parts of the exploitation between perpetrator and victim (2019, p. 328). Goldberg’s perspective is significant, because it shows that simple separation between wrongdoing and evil does not work; Todd Calder’s (2019, p. 230) or Formosa’s (2019, p. 264) formulations that evil can be defined through the extreme amount of harm (beyond wrongdoing) are not wrong, but according to Goldberg these harm-based explanations of evil do not consider the elements of time, history and temporality sufficiently (2019, p. 329). What is missing in the harm-based theories of evil, for Goldberg, is the notion of time. He writes the following in this regard: harm-focused definitions of evil “. . . focus only on a single time-slice of evil action, namely the moment after the act has already occurred. Examining evil harm synchronically ignores conditions that facilitate this kind of harm, and are likewise critical to an act being evil” (2019, p. 329). Then, Goldberg proposes that one should consider “the facilitating conditions” of evil and study it in its historical context, because the exploitative relationship between perpetrator and the victim may not be fully understood otherwise (2019, p. 333). Goldberg’s definition of evil requires one to think diachronically (over a time period), not synchronically (in the same time-span or time-slice); in this way, it becomes possible to observe the underlying conditions of evil, understand “temporal structure” and view its “relational elements” (2019, p. 338). All in all, Goldberg’s view of evil is different from those of Formosa and Calder, because it asks us to study evil in a larger context, over a relatively longer time-span. In this respect, Goldberg’s diachronic theory of evil also becomes a theory of scope and memory: people’s and law’s view of a violent murder could very well be different depending on the history of the perpetrator and that of the victim. He continues that in diachronic theory of evil, the evil action “reveals evil’s temporal structure and relational synchronic approach that identifies only a current time-slice of harm as constitutive of it (2019, p. 338). What Goldberg underlines is that the theory of evil based on the amount of harm fails to explicate the complexity of an evil act: one must definitely analyze what caused asymmetrical power relations in the first place, as well as how and why exploitation occurred between the perpetrator and the victim. This perspective of evil that demands us to consider the history among the perpetrators and victims is significant, because Ruizpalacios’ Museo (2018) juxtaposes several immoral and evil acts in its narrative, and thus calls for going beyond the scope of identities that are situated in synchronic or current time-slice, in the terminology of Goldberg.

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FUNCTION OF MUSEUM AS MEDIUM: TEMPORALITY OF IDENTITIES Based on the discussion on the complexity of evil, this part explains the function of museum in the narrative of Museo. Museums, crucial cultural agents and products in constituting national identities (Anderson, 1991, p.163) also play quite important roles in the narrative of Ruizpalacios’ film. First, museum in Museo becomes a narrative tool that brings several identities, temporalities and memories together. In this context, past, present and future are brought together through and in the museum. Such a juxtaposition, secondly, enables seeing certain norm(al)s of a given society or identity as evil, particularly from another perspective. In other words, museums are never neutral in their design, presentation or message; that is, museums are value-laden products that both juxtapose and re-interpret cultural components. Even though museums appear to be neutral in the way that bring things of the past into the present, they never are. In Museo, this problem is brought into the attention through the issue of agency: whoever constructs the museum becomes the one that sets the norms (and hence, decides what the evil is). In such a way, the narrative of Museo makes it almost impossible to choose sides among Mayans, Aztecs, Spanish conquistadors, or modern cultural thieves from South America or Britain. Their stories waver between being convincing and unconvincing, reliable and unreliable, particularly when these stories are juxtaposed. Ruizpalacios’ Museo (2018) opens with an epigraph, hinting that it is quite difficult to define evil, as individuals and societies are limited by their memories. The opening statement, “Esta historia es una réplica de la original” [meaning, “This (hi)story is a replica of the original”], draws the attention of the audience to how reality is (re)constructed. The epigraph implies three things: First, historical narratives are stories and are not objective; they rely on a storyteller or narrator. Second, histories (or stories) are therefore always products of translation; that is, their unreliability stems up from the fact that historical narratives are carried across to us from other times and geographies. Then, third, such an act of carrying narratives across cultures and times implies a disconnection with the original event(s) to a certain extent. In this context, the epigraph is a foreshadowing of the movie’s political stance regarding the nature of evil: both individual and social memories are all limited in scope, thus the protagonist, audience or any modern subject have to make do with the only alternative they have in hand: a replica of the original, a translation. This metafictional epigraph reminds the audience that their perception of the reality (and hence, of evil) will always be limited, similar to the characters in Museo, as well as the film itself. This skeptical and sarcastic attitude towards history and narration can also be seen in the narrator’s opening description of Juan: Juan always said he didn’t believe anything from History class. Or books, for that matter. How could they be so sure what Hernán Cortés thought...or Montezuma, or Alexander the Great? He said it was all made up. He said no one could know why someone did what they did...except for the person who did it. And more often than not, not even them. This opening passage connects the epigraph to the philosophical attitude of the film towards evil: Juan, the protagonist of Museo, will soon commit perhaps one of the most abhorrent acts in his nation’s history: stealing the most precious Pre-Hispanic artifacts from the National Museum of Archeology and thus undermining the memory of the land and people. The narrator juxtaposes Juan’s evil act of robbing people of their history with those of other rulers or conquerors, such as the Aztec Emperor Montezuma or Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés of the 16th Century. Such a juxtaposition, as this paper explains, 153

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enables the film to challenge any national or religious perspectives based on short-term social memory. Hence, Museo shows, any interpretation of evil based on a nationalist or religious social perspective falls short of grasping the complex historical reality. The agent of evil, in this perspective, is a creation and consequence of all its predecessors; and Juan’s evil act is somehow connected to the conquerors/ rulers before him. Museo’s filmic narrative develops its thesis that Juan’s evil act cannot be separated from many other allegedly evil acts in the history of the land and people with its impressive opening scene: the monolith of Tlaloc, the god of fertility in Aztec mythology, is removed from its original place and carried to the city and the National Anthropology Museum by engineers. The carrying of the monolith of Tlaloc is very significant, because the scene shows the audience that even the god of rain and fertility, which “controlled all the elements,” can now be carried to the museum like a commodity, showing that the spirit of times –the zeitgeist— had changed. The monolith is huge, reminding the modern audience how the god was powerful, once upon a time. The existence of the monolith of god Tlaloc in the modern city is paradoxical; it is so huge that it does not fit in the city: the electric and telephone poles have to be removed so that the ancient god can be replaced in the city’s museum. The dichotomy of smallnessbigness is repeated in the scene of theft, when Juan steps over the models of temples: now criminal Juan is like a giant in comparison to the historical artifacts. In addition, the narrator of Museo makes it clear that the removal of the monolith is another evil act: when “engineers...took the god Tlaloc away from his home,” the narrator informs us that “[p]eople were angry and sad, but they took him anyway” (Museo). The reason for people’s anger, we learn, is that the god is removed from its place “without asking for permission or forgiveness” (Museo). For the curators of the modern museum, the monolith is no more than a historical artifact, but for many others, the god is a part of collective identity. In short, the juxtaposition of an ancient god (Tlaloc) in the modern setting (city and museum) enables the film to illustrate that the times change and our identities are usually based on a limited scope of memory. This emphasis on the limited nature of memory is a central theme and a problematic in Museo. For instance, at the surface level, the transfer of the Tlaloc seems to be only a matter of engineering: the voice over explains how the huge platform is pulled by 860hp vehicles and they transport the god in two stages. However, at a deeper level, the act of removing the monolith of a central Aztec god itself is quite traumatic for the local people, including Juan, the protagonist of Museo: Juan’s father explains his son that the act (of transferring the god) is indeed a “plunder” (Museo). Juan’s father looks despondent in the scene, and the narrator closes the scene by providing the audience with another critical piece of information: after Juan’s father takes five-year-old Juan to see the god Tlaloc in the museum, Juan never forgets this traumatic event. Then, it is implied that Juan’s evil act as a grown-up cannot be comprehended in isolation; and therefore Juan’s evil deed becomes somehow strongly connected to not only to his childhood trauma but also to the historically evil deeds committed in and before his lifetime. This is how Goldberg’s theory of diachronicity is seen in Museo’s narration. The filmic narrative makes sure that the audience connects the historical evils to the modern ones through the sequence of Benjamin’s long speech at the beginning of the movie: right after the moment we learn that Juan’s father defines the transportation of Tlaloc to the museum as “plunder” and that five-year-old Juan is traumatized by the act, the next scene flashes forward to the resolution point of the film and shows Juan with the stolen artifact in his hand. This is the moment that Juan turns himself in to the authorities. This sequence, which connects Juan’s childhood trauma to his evil act in his adult life is an example of how Museo approaches evil: as in Goldberg’s theory of evil, one cannot fully 154

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comprehend evil without evaluating it diachronically. In other words, Museo’s opening sequence helps us better understand Juan’s detestable evil act by situating it in time and space, on a much larger scope. What connects several subplots, namely, the stories of the god Tlaloc, Hernán Cortés, or Montezuma to that of Juan is the museum. It is no surprise that Juan’s childhood trauma takes place at the National Museum of Anthropology. Museum, usually a metonymy of time in fiction (Jones & Ormrod, 2015), brings together narrative elements from the past to the present, and thus achieves the potential to shape the future. In this regard, several stories of historical or mythic characters mentioned above merge in the fictional space created by the museum. An interesting example of this sort is the moment of theft: after committing one of the most evil acts in his society, Juan tries to escape the museum with the stolen goods in his hands. While trying to escape the museum through the ventilation system, Juan momentarily sees the 7th century Mayan ruler, Pakal the Great, idly sitting and carefully watching him. The scene is ultimately distressing for Juan, because the museum functions diachronically; that is, it brings back individual or social memories that are suppressed or muted. In this example, Juan’s sudden and unexpected encounter with the 7th century Mayan ruler Pakal urges Juan to reconsider the weight of his act in a historical context, but more importantly, the scene enables the film to make a bridge between the ancient and modern evil acts through the concept of memory. In other words, museum brings together memories that are not always available to the modern subject; in this case, to the protagonist Juan. Figure 1. Pakal the Great at the Museum, (Museo, A.Ruizpalacios, 2018). Detalle Films, Distant Horizon, Panorama Global

Individual/social memory and museum are central themes in Museo: the two thieves (and thus the duo that commit the evil act) cope with memory-related problems throughout the movie. Juan is not alone in being traumatized by the removal of Tlaloc or shocking encounter with Pakal the Great. Just like Juan, Benjamin suffers from both memory issues and the museum since his childhood: Benjamin remembers visiting the museum in eighth grade, “to copy the captions next to the piece...and get [his] notebook stamped to prove [he] had been there” (Museo). Yet, what is common to both Juan and Benjamin is the difficulty of remembering, or being deprived of the ability to connect to the past or history. Benjamin 155

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narrates his childhood experience in the museum as follows: “I heard stories about the creation, and wars...and about the things that used to be here. . . But I don’t remember any of it” (Museo). For Juan and Benjamin, memory is always something to be recovered at a slow pace, which makes them round (changing, evolving, learning) characters. The museum, then, is a key factor in their transformation. In Museo, museum functions as the hub that brings memories together, but these memories are always presented as vague stories and the characters are always out of touch with them. For instance, when the narrator Benjamin looks back and recounts everything that happened, he remarks that “Juan used to say it was impossible to know how things start......we can only know how they end......once they’ve ended” (Museo). This extreme difficulty in remembering is emphasized both at the beginning and at the end of the narrative. Here is a much more clear example: Benjamin asks the question that is related with both the museum, and memories around it: “Where does an idea begin? Who can tell?” (Museo). This question is central in understanding the main conflict of the protagonist and his evil act: Juan, as a modern subject, has a very limited scope of memory. He is both connected to, but is equally out of touch with the past or history. He robs his society of its past, but the very museum he robs displays Pakal the Great to him, which is an incident Juan cannot easily cope with. Such a problematic memory and a state of disconnectedness is a problem of modern individuals, as exemplified in both Juan and Benjamin. Such a limited span of memory causes Juan to go through personality conflicts. For example, Juan is forced by his family to dress as Santa at every Christmas, just like his grandfather used to do for many years. However, upon the death of grandfather, the family agrees that Juan must take over the task, which is protested by Juan on the basis that he would prefer to dress as Quetzalcoatl, an ancient Mesoamerican deity. Torn between different social memories and mythological frameworks, Juan is both a part of them, and not. He knows both traditions superficially, but never feels ultimately connected to any of them: at night Juan deliberately fails in his task as Santa by spoiling the surprise gifts to children, and he also robs the museum of anthropology. In other words, the memories of the main characters are loosely connected to histories and cultures, and the modern evil is connected to this state of negative disconnectedness. The evil act of the protagonists is linked to the short scope of memory and thus the state of disconnectedness is one of their hidden motives. A striking example to support this thesis is in the scenes of a painting of a cliff diver. The film shows us the image twice, once at the beginning of the movie, before Juan commits the heinous theft: he sees the painting of a diver in his father’s office, and is mesmerized by the figure of the diver that is suspended in the air. In the painting, the diver has already jumped down and started the dive, but when the painter freezes the moment, he is neither in the rock from which he jumped, nor he is in the water. The painting is neither in the past (the act of jumping), nor in the future (touching the ocean’s surface). Instead, the image in the painting is stuck at the present: this is a pregnant scene, loaded with something to come. In the scene of Juan’s awe in the painting while he is in his father’s office, Museo uses the metaphor of a suspended diver to portray how modern individual’s memory is stuck in the moment, or at present. Just like the cliff diver in the painting, Juan is stuck at the present. He has a vague relationship with the past, but this connection is not strong enough to keep him away from his evil choices or acts. Just as we cannot see the rock from which the diver started his dive, Juan (or the audience, for that matter) does not feel a strong connection with the past or history. What is more, just as the painting hints that the diver will hit the water but still does not show the completion of the movement, Juan does not know enough about his future and the consequences of his evil act of robbing the museum. As a modern individual, he is stuck in the present time, which is a state of disconnectedness. 156

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Figure 2. The Painting of Cliff Divers (Museo, A.Ruizpalacios, 2018). Detalle Films, Distant Horizon, Panorama Global

In the filmic narrative, this scene of a diver is used once more, but this time with a quite significant formal trick, as the narration gets closer to the resolution. Towards the end, Juan and Benjamin understand that they cannot sell the historical artifacts and conclude that they would probably get arrested. The film, then, shows us the diving scene in its entirety: the divers are no longer frozen in the moment, as they dive into the ocean in real time and moving image; and the dialogues even inform us why and how they dive, as well as how much they earn. In other words, the narrative of the film juxtaposes the still image of the suspended diver (in the painting) at the beginning of the movie, with the moving image of cliff divers at the story’s resolution point. The still image and the moving scene underscore the difference between the protagonists’ limited connection with the past and future, and that of the audience who can see several stories in their entirety. In other words, Museo once more implies that the protagonists suffer from a sort of fragmental memory and short-sightedness, and they cannot fully grasp their position and have a control over their lives, because they can only see one brief moment in time. This is the paradox in which the protagonists Juan and Benjamin have to live in, just like most modern individuals or societies. This is also how Museo approaches critically to the problem of limited scope of memory in modern life, through the distinctive language of film. To what extent is Juan’s robbery of the anthropological museum evil? The narrative does not leave so much doubt about the evil nature of the heist: as soon as the robbery is announced in the national news channels, the theft is accursed by almost everyone, starting with Juan’s own family members. The speaker in the TV announces that the robbers stole “some of the most valuable [items] of all time” and that these criminals “threaten every museum in the world” as they are now “enemies of their past and heritage” (Museo). Hence, it is now the duty of all Mexican citizens “to rally against this act of shameful, unpatriotic theft,” because the cultural and artistic value of the artifact cannot be stated in any economic terms (Museo). Perhaps most painfully, it is Juan’s own father who calls the anonymous thieves “miserable bastards with no past or future” and he wishes them to “rot in their own curse, their own stupidity” as the thieves are “the dark shit of the country” (Museo). The scene is clearly a great example of dramatic irony, as Juan’s father does not know the identity of the evil agent, even though his own son is standing next to him with the stolen artifacts in a bag. The father condemns the evil act by saying that “it is our solemn duty to whip them in the main square” and later “drag their damned bodies until they bleed out” (Museo). The scene closes after Juan’s father calls the anonymous thieves “sons

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of bitches,” which is ironically a swear expression against his own family. Right after the father, Juan’s mother leaves the scene in tears. All in all, there is no question on the fact that Juan’s robbery is an evil act even beyond the national level. One of the key moments in Museo that expresses the magnitude of historical evil that Juan partakes in is when Juan, Benjamin and Bosco visit the British collector Frank Graves in Acapulco. The residence seems to be a luxurious place, and the walls are full of artwork, about which Juan and Benjamin are clueless. Juan has the mask of Pakal-the-Great in his bag and the plan is to sell the priceless artifact to the British collector. At this moment, a local woman in a bikini enters the scene, gazes at the trio, utters nothing, except that her nose starts bleeding while she has both a gloomy and accusative look in her eyes. The protagonists are still oblivious of what is going on: Benjamin looks at the attractive body in bikini and says that he “loves Acapulco” (Museo). This is an outstanding scene on the nature of Juan’s evil, his ignorance, blindness, his evil’s historical roots, its effects on memory, as well as how intertwined evil is with capitalism. Figure 3. Bleeding Local Woman at the Party (Museo, A.Ruizpalacios, 2018). Detalle Films, Distant Horizon, Panorama Global

In this scene of nose-bleeding, Museo’s narrative persuades the audience that Juan and Benjamin take part in one of the most evil crimes they could commit: whatever they did is something that scars the body from inside, and leaves no chance to survive for body, memory or culture, just for the sake of being richer. The film expresses the trauma of centuries in the personification of a local woman in a bikini, because the female body has been commodified just like the culture(s) of the land. They are in Acapulco to sell Pakal’s mask, but the piano playing in the background or the artwork on the walls are

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all westernized. When three elements --cultural artifact, local smuggler and western collector-- come together, the trauma of historical plunders reappear in the body of the local woman, and she sadly bleeds from the nose. It is also quite disturbing that she is the only character in the scene that is speechless. In this metaphor, the land/woman is helpless, deprived of voice, and the memory is only traumatic. Put the matter another way, evil materializes in three dimensions in the scene and through the metaphor of nose-bleeding. First, traumatic memory is something that cannot be contained; it overflows, just like the bleeding. Second, this historical evil (plundering the natural, cultural and historical resources) creates a basis upon which the western world builds its welfare, as seen in the luxurious setting at the party, in addition to the artwork on the walls. Third, the historical plunder and evil both impoverish and mute the locals, as expressed in the bleeding and her inability to speak. However, most important of all, the scene strikingly juxtaposes the protagonists-perpetrators with the victims: on one hand are the evil criminals who are stuck at present and disconnected with its past due to their greed and implicit desire for rebellion, whereas on the other hand is the passive victim that remembers. This being said, the scene also shows that past and memory are fairly powerful elements: no matter how greedy Juan, Benjamin or the British collector may be, none of them could avoid the power of memory. Just as in the two scenes of cliff divers, Juan is only seeing one moment in time, but at the resolution, he will be able to see things in a larger context thanks to memory, which is why neither Juan nor the British collector can never sell/buy Pakal’s mask, on the basis that the mask is “unsellable” as people know and remember its real worth. The fatal flaw in Juan’s evil act is that he is stuck in his short-sightedness and temporality; that is, he is just like the suspended cliff diver in the painting. While refusing to buy Pakal’s mask, the British collector makes a bold statement about the complexity (having many parts) and intricacy (having a great deal of detail) of evil: he utters that “there is no preservation without plunder” (Museo). What Frank Graves means is that all the museums necessarily take part in pillage of previous cultures in one way, including the example of Tlaloc, as in the opening scene of the film. In this respect, according to the British collector, Juan’s evil act cannot be understood or evaluated individually, because it is only a repetition of previous heists, plunders or violence. The collector proves his point with an interesting example from a news magazine: recently an American expedition team discovers a Spanish galleon worth millions of dollars gold in international waters. The question is who should lay claim to ownership to the gold: the Americans who recovered the ship? Or the Spanish government on the basis that it is “a part of their national heritage,” or the Peruvian government, as the gold carried in a Spanish galleon and sank by the British and recovered by Americans was actually Inca gold that was stolen by the conquistadors centuries ago? (Museo) To simplify, the point of the British collector is that one cannot understand the complexity and intricacy of the evil without situating it in the historical context: each cultural change contains violence to a certain extent, as in the example in the transportation of the god Tlaloc. The collector implies that all parties in the conversation are at least as guilty as Hernán Cortés, who came to plunder South America, and the modern cultures are as violent as the pre-moderns. In his statement of “there is no preservation without plunder,” (Museo) it is implied that modern people form misperceptions as to how their culture is somehow more civil and morally at a higher point in comparison to others. On the contrary, according to the British collector, all the museums and cultures partake in cultural violence, as in the example of Tlaloc’s “plunder” (Museo). The climax of the film, Museo, is when Juan comes back to the museum in order to turn himself in and return the artifacts they had stolen. The scene is significant, because the film conveys its philosophical approach towards the modern state of disconnectedness with history, short scope of social and individual memory, as well as the function of museum. The intensity and depth of Figure 4 stem from its ability to 159

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Figure 4. Faces and Masks Merge at the Museum (Museo, A.Ruizpalacios, 2018). Detalle Films, Distant Horizon, Panorama Global

bring many stories together in one shot. To start with, there are several faces or masks in this shot. For instance, the camera angle shows the two faces of Juan; one is himself, and the other is his reflection on the glass, as if he is looking at himself. Thanks to the museum, Juan is now able to see the context and the consequences of his evil act of theft, which makes him a round/changing character. In other words, the Juan that has returned to the museum is not the same person that had robbed it. Second, King Pakal seems to be looking down to Juan from above, as if he is teaching him a more comprehensive way to see and understand life, history and memory, so that he can repent after his evil act. This look is a part of Juan’s development as a character. The next shot (Figure 5) focuses on a detail, which connects the scene to the epigraph of the film. The mask of Pakal in the showcase is not the original one, as the original mask is still in Juan’s bag. Still, Juan looks at the replica in awe, and we learn from the narrator that “when the museum reopened after the robbery,” paradoxically more people came than ever before” to see the museum, as ”everyone wanted to see the empty cases” (Museo). The narrator explains the paradox as the theft turned out to be a “reminder that no one knows what they have until it’s gone” (Museo). The last face in the shot is that of the security personnel, distant and clueless about the transformation of Juan, the mask of Pakal as the surrogate of the original, or the function of the museum in bringing all of these stories together, which ultimately changes Juan. In dialogue with the epigraph at the beginning of the movie, “Esta historia es una réplica de la original” [meaning, “This (hi)story is a replica of the original”] the shot in Figure 5 reads the following note on the showcase of Pakal’s mask: “Esta pieza es una réplica de la original” [This piece is a replica of the original] (Museo). Even though Juan has changed his evil ways, the film underlines the fact that individuals and societies have a very limited scope of understanding life, history and memory in their entireties. Just like the visitors in the museum, people make do with their limited perception and knowledge, and the identities they develop based on these narrow, imperfect, inadequate and distorted views are a part of their modern lives. It is the museum that reminds people to question and challenge the inherent violence in their cultures, so that they can build a more inclusive, relatively more pluralist societies. If the museum in the film calls for finding ways to challenge cultural violence and evil by bringing the replicas and the originals together, the film Museo performs the same function by drawing together several historical and modern stories, which underlines the paradox of modern individual: being

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Figure 5. Replica of the Original (Museo, A.Ruizpalacios, 2018). Detalle Films, Distant Horizon, Panorama Global

both bombarded with great amount of superficial information, which is accompanied by an inability to process them. This state of disconnectedness is exactly what the museum changes in Juan, as one of the main motives of his evil act.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Evil is a complex term that is quite hard to define, as any definition of it is limited by socio-cultural values shaped in a given society. In this respect, it will be beneficial for future studies to analyze this multifaceted concept not synchronically, but diachronically as proposed by Goldberg. Doing so could encourage individuals and societies to approach the idea of evil in suspicion. In other words, when put into the test of time, the comparative study of evil may not only help individuals and societies find more comprehensive definitions of evil, but also to challenge their own cultural norms that produce it.

CONCLUSION What does Museo have to show us about the concept of evil, as a problem of the modern world? Even though some scholars have stated secular interpretations of evil is mainly an issue of the 20th and 21st centuries (Calder, 2020), it is impossible to fully understand the concept of evil by isolating it to the past one and a quarter centuries. In this regard, Museo shows us that some evil choices, as in the example of Juan’s heist, are shaped by historical forces that are not always available to the evil agent. Identities are quite selective in their connections with history and other cultures. Goldberg’s theory of evil recommends us to study evil diachronically; that is, not limited in a shorttime span, but rather within a long time period. The use of this perspective is to go beyond the temporal reasons and consequences of an act, and to evaluate the motives and the outcomes over a long time span. If we see Juan as a tragic character, his flaw was not being able to think and act diachronically. In other

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words, the protagonist of Museo, Juan was stuck in his temporality, as he had almost no understanding of history or proper respect to the cultures that shaped him. Then, the diachronic element that changes the protagonist and urges him to undo his evil act is the museum. In Museo, the museum is the hub that brings together histories, stories, characters and hence, perspectives. Museo, as a metafictional film, reminds that museum itself is a form of fiction among many others. In this respect, the museum is a healing force for Juan. However, Museo also shows that museums both make and break societies and their values. For instance, even though the museum enabled Juan to stop his evil ways, one should also consider that museum could also be an element of cultural violence, as seen in the example of the transportation of Tlaloc at the opening of the film. This is exactly why Goldberg’s theory of evil –that evil must be evaluated diachronically, not synchronically– is a sound advice that Museo provides.

REFERENCES Anderson, B. (1991). Imagined communities: Reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism (Rev. and extended ed.). London: Verso. Calder, T. (2019). Evil and Wrongdoing. In T. Nys & S. Wijze (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of the Philosophy of Evil (pp. 218–233). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315679518-17 Calder, T. (2020). The Concept of Evil. In E.N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2020/entries/concept-evil/ Formosa, P. (2019). Different Substantive Conceptions of Evil Actions. In T. Nys & S. Wijze (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of the Philosophy of Evil (pp. 256–266). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315679518-20 Garrard, E. (2019). Does The Term ‘Evil’ Have Any Explanatory Power? In T. Nys & S. Wijze (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of the Philosophy of Evil (pp. 189–202). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315679518-15 Goldberg, Z. J. (2019). Evil’s Diachronic Characteristics. In T. Nys & S. Wijze (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of the Philosophy of Evil (pp. 328–341). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315679518-26 Horses buried with Icelandic Viking nobles were male, ancient DNA shows. (2019). CBC. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/viking-horses-burials-iceland-1.4966126 Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing. (n.d.). The American Heritage Dictionary Entry: Evil. American Heritage Dictionary. ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=evil Jones, M., & Ormrod, J. (2015). Time Travel in Popular Media: Essays on Film, Television, Literature and Video Games. McFarland. Leezenberg, M. (2019). Evil: A Comparative Overview. In T. Nys & S. Wijze (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of the Philosophy of Evil (pp. 360–380). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315679518-28 Neidleman, J. (2019). Jean-Jacques Rousseau on the Origin and Nature of Evil. In T. Nys & S. Wijze (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of the Philosophy of Evil (pp. 97–108). Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315679518-8 Steiner, H. (2002). Calibrating Evil. The Monist, 85(2), 183–193. doi:10.5840/monist200285211

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ADDITIONAL READING Han, B. C., & DeMarco, A. (2017). Topology of Violence. MIT Press. Loomba, A. (2015). Colonialism/postcolonialism. Routledge. doi:10.4324/9781315751245 Neiman, S., & Project Muse. (2015). Evil in Modern Thought: An Alternative History of Philosophy. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Schlegel, J., & Hansen, B. (2010). Challenging Evil: Time, Society and Changing Concepts o of the Meaning of Evil. Inter-Disciplinary Press. doi:10.1163/9781848880269 Tomlinson, J. (1991). Cultural imperialism: A critical introduction. Pinter.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Archeology: Scientific study of data on human activities, obtained by excavation. Diachronic Theory of Evil: Goldberg’s theory on evil. Requires one to evaluate evil over a long time span. Evil: A term that is quite hard to define, usually denoting acts beyond simple bad or wrongdoing. History: Study of events of the past. Mask: Persona. Memory: Recollection, remembering things from the past. Museum: An institution where any items of cultural interest are kept and displayed. Temporality: A relationship with ‘tempo,’ time. Violence: Acts of physical or psychological damage inflicted on people or things.

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Banalising Evil?

Humour in Lisa McGee’s Derry Girls Veronica Membrive University of Almeria, Spain

ABSTRACT 2018 was the celebration year of the 20th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement of 1998, bringing power-sharing and much peace to Northern Ireland. Twenty years seem a fair distance to address the issue from a comical viewpoint. Lisa McGee’s television show Derry Girls (2018) released in Channel 4, and recently in Netflix, seems to convey a nostalgic and caustic outlook at the 1990s during the last years of The Troubles and focuses on the lives of a gang of four Irish teenagers growing up in the setting of Catholic Derry. This chapter will interrogate the banalization of evil conveyed by McGee by tackling the representation of evil and violence in Northern Ireland during The Troubles.

INTRODUCTION. A REVIEW OF THE CONCEPT OF EVIL Lisa McGee (1979) grew up in 1990s Derry (or Londonderry), a city located in Northern Ireland which is considered the second city of the region after Belfast. Her adolescence was impacted by years of violence in the region which came from a historical confrontation between Unionists or Loyalists (Protestants) who claimed that the six counties on the North of the island would remain as part of the United Kingdom, and Irish Nationalist or Republicans (Catholics), who wanted the territory to be kept as part of the Republic of Ireland. The conflict was internationally known as ‘The Troubles’ or the ‘Northern Ireland Conflict’ as reflected in the press. After decades of extreme violence, the armed conflict was finally over after a negotiation process known as The Good Friday Agreement which took place in 1998. This chapter aims at shedding some light on the discussion of whether Lisa McGee’s TV show Derry Girls (2018-2019) banalizes or normalizes The Troubles by providing a comical portrayal of the conflict as the embodiment of evil and violence as the “most common and familiar form of human evil” (Baumeister, 1997, p. 18). The concept of “evil” has been studied from an array of angles through history. In Paradise Lost (1667), John Milton was capable of presenting his personal rewriting of the Genesis and conferring the character of Satan, as the embodiment of evil, the most appealing and complex personality of the entire DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch012

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epic poem. It is very interesting to see how more than three hundred since Paradise Lost was published, Milton’s masterpiece continues to cause controversy: Milton’s Satan offers a reflection on the danger of new forms of repression and the practice of rhetoric. Satan is blatantly a fantastic speaker and God punishes the fallen angels by curtailing their ability to speak, which could be grasped as an unembellished cue of current censorship, but also of the flaws of idealized individuals and how today’s hero can become tomorrow’s villain. Milton’s work also brings to our minds questions such as: Are we born evil? Are we basically good? Initial notions of evil were linked with and described through myths as natural. Ricoeur (1967) delves into defilement, sin and guilt as the primary symbols of evil and defines myth as “not a false explanation by means of images and fables, but a traditional narration which relates to events that happened at beginning of time and which has the purpose of providing grounds for the ritual actions of men of today and, in a general manner, establishing all the forms of action and thought by which man understands himself in his world” (p. 5). Yet, since the myth is disconnected from our present time in history, they myth does not functions as justification. Cogitations about the notion of evil were already there. Plato had the belief that a good person is safe from evil and then, Aristotle put into play acceptance of tragedy and luck. There have been several studies on “evil”, especially from the 20th century. For example, Sartre rejected the fact that evil could be redeemed, and Nietzsche believed that evil was something necessary for good, suffering for joy and pain for pleasure, which takes us to one of the constants when trying to build a definition of “evil”: its foundation on dualisms, being “good” and “evil”, and “victim” and “perpetrator” as opposed. Similarly, we find distinctions regarding different types of evil. Natural evil can be described as the suffering that happens with no deliberate or negligent agency of any human being. Conversely, moral evil becomes involved in the “problem of evil”, especially from a theological point of view, which gives rise to theodicy or “the philosophical attempt to reconcile the goodness of God with the existence of evil (Noddings, 1989, p. 6). Van Inwagen (2008) focuses on a philosophical or theological perspective to study evil, especially to analyze the issue to get to the conclusion that “the problem of evil” cannot be defined for having a multilayered sense. Theoretical problems of evil are divided into two categories. Inwagen establishes doctrinal problems as those which theologians face, the permissible views on the original and place of evil in the world (p. 5). However, apologetic problems are based on external intellectual attacks on theism by its enemies, the fact that the Creator would indeed allow the existence of evil. According to these problems, he ruminates on moral evil and physical or natural evil to conclude that “the problem of evil is the problem of how to find meaning in a world in which everything is touched by evil” (van Inwagen, 2008, p. 16). However, Card (2009) does not consider natural events (such as catastrophes) as evils or atrocities but “human failure to respond” (p. 5) to them. Baudrillard (1990) analyzes modernity and labels it as “after the orgy” period, meaning a period in which several ways of liberation (political, social, sexual, gender, etc.) have already been achieved. He considers that we live in a state of simulation and human beings can only hyper-realize states of utopia to finally wonder where Evil went. The author finally abandons the binary opposition between Good and Evil because “the Good consists in a dialectic of Good and Evil. Evil consists in the negation of this dialectic, in a radical dissociation of Good and Evil, and by extension in the autonomy of the principle of Evil” (p. 139). Yet, when categorizing the different types of evil, ethics, “a part of philosophy which organizes practical existence around representation of the Good” (Badiou, 2001, p. 1), becomes paramount to approach evil. Besides, Jung claimed that what humanity needs is a “morality of evil” in order to manage evil in ourselves and others. Baumeister’s widely known book on evil (1997) takes a causal stance to provide the reader with a very detailed review of a plethora of aspects linked with the 165

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concept, such as its origin and manifold motivations, why and how does it spread, and its perennial representation as well as the role of the social environment. He establishes that there are four major causes of evil, namely: the desire for power or money, egotism, idealism and sadistic pleasure. Finally, Dews (2008) reviews the concept of evil and its intractability from Kant to Adorno, going through Schelling, Hegel, Schopenhauer and Levinas. Stereotypes are also a feature of the concept of evil, what Baumeister calls “the myth of pure evil” (1997). This entails popular images of evil embodied by reiterating types of perpetrators based on eight assumptions related to intention, egotism, and the establishment of opposing entities (victim and perpetrator). Usually, the formation of the notion of “the Other” in contrast to ourselves promotes the perpetuation of foreigners or people who are considered “different” as one of the stereotypes of evil. An example of theorizing around alterity would be Edward Said’s canonical book Orientalism (1978). He defined the West’s historically condescending depictions of “The East” (mostly societies of Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East) to claim that Orientalism, in the sense of Western scholarship about the East, is intimately attached to the imperialist cultures that fashioned it. Other researchers, such as Levinas, contend that it is impossible to arrive at an authentic thought of “the Other” from the despotism of the Same, which is incapable of recognizing the Other. Moreover, Badiou (2001) devotes an entire chapter to interrogate the actual existence of “the Other” and the “ethics of difference”. All in all, “the Other” causes fascination and denial (for its stereotypical association to evil) at par. Typically, when dealing with the good-evil dichotomy, this is embodied by victim-perpetration (who is regarded as “the Other”). However, since “evil” is in the eye of the beholder, Baumeister (1997) brings forward the concept of “magnitude gap”, which focuses on the differences in the appreciation of evil from the perpetrator and the victim. Card (2009) pushes the envelope and describes several problems to define “victims” and “perpetrators” because they are usually established as a simplistic dualistic conception, while this would suggest that “individuals are simply one or the other” (p. 9). This dualism would be related to the way in which Baudrillard reflects on the concept of “hospitality” when dealing with alterity: “it represents a reciprocal, ritualized and theatrical dimension. […] The message is passed –but there is no exchange between people. […] The Other is my guest. Not someone who is legally equal, though different; but a foreigner, a stranger, extraneous. And for this very reason, his strangeness has to be exorcized. But once he has been initiated in due form, my guest’s life becomes even more precious to me than my own” (p. 142). This would be a representation of Radical Exoticism as the very scale of efforts made to exterminate the Other is testimony to the Other’s indestructibility as radical otherness survives everything: conquest, extermination, the virus of difference, the psychodrama of alienation. On the one hand, the Other is always-already dead; on the other hand, the Other is indestructible. This is the Great Game according to Baudrillard (1990, p. 146). When violence is involved in the conception of evil and, especially if there are killings, evil as a social construct intensifies its groundings on this rhetoric of separating good and evil. But who is/ are the perpetrator(s) and victim(s) considering that evil “primarily exists in the eye of the beholder” (Baumeister, 1997, p. 12)? Baudrillard (1990) coins the concept of “violent other” and claims that any radical otherness at all is thus the epicenter of a terror: the terror that such otherness holds, by virtue of its very existence, for the normal world. And the terror that this world exercises upon that otherness in order to annihilate it (p. 128). To this regard, Arendt talks about the concept of “radical evil”. She gives a new meaning to this term described by Kant in 1793 in his essay On the Radical Evil. The Kantian conception that the human being does not possess freedom without any prior determination but has to be constructed as the capacity to think and act according to principles which are valid for us. To Kant, all 166

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human beings are trammeled by an innate propensity to evil that is, “an inclination to ignore the claims of the moral law, at least when our cravings are sufficiently strong, or when the going gets rough” (Dews, 2008, p. 25). Adorno and Levinas also ruminate on the notion of “radical evil”, but Adorno focuses on Western culture’s dynamics of “identity thinking” and repeatedly applies the concept to the social world because evil is “not to be found where the old metaphysicians of the satanic looked for it, namely, in the idea that some people use their freedom of choice to choose evil” (Adorno, 2006, p. 206). What Levinas labels as “alterity”, Adorno refers to as “non-identitical” to refer to the external, the other, as threatening. Card (2009) reviews the concept of evil and tackles the hardness in establishing boundaries between good and evil among people but also institutions and establishes atrocities (both perpetrated and suffered) as paradigms since she considers that many evils lack the scale of an atrocity: “not every murder is an atrocity, although murder is also a paradigm of evil” (p. 9). She illustrates her theory of atrocity through three case studies. Besides, Noddings (1989) considers that one simply brushes aside the actual violence, terror, and evil and concentrates on the progress of abstract thought. This way seems merely irrational –and perhaps blindly optimistic –but the way actually chosen, to justify violence and terror in the name of ultimate good, is far more frightening (p. 14). Baudrillard’s perspective on evil related to power, violence and alterity is innovative as, to him, “power exists solely by virtue of its symbolic ability to designate the Other, the Enemy, what is at stake, what theaten us, what is Evil” (1990, p. 82). He also poses the critical question of the application of security to prevent violence as the form of evil. Baudrillard also defends the idea that we have exhausted “the Other” as raw material and consequently, the other is no longer there to be exterminated, hated, rejected or seduced, but instead to be understood, liberated, coddled or recognized. Thus, otherness “has become sociodramatic, semiodramatic, melodramatic” (p. 125). If evil, alterity and violence are put in a cocktail shaker, the notion of “banality of evil” arises. Even if it was Hannah Arendt in 1963 who put the spotlight into this issue, it was already from the 18th century that the term was conferred the sense of trite, platitudinous or unoriginal. Arendt’s treatise on the banality of evil implied that virtually “anybody could become a mass murderer, (or his accomplice), without an ideological or political motive, or belief, and without being a sadist” (qtd. in Hollander, 2016, p. 57). However, to Adorno, banality has a more complex definition: “I would not say that evil is banal, but that banality is evil – banality, that is, as the form of consciousness and mind that adapts itself to the world as it is, which obeys the principle of inertia. And this principle of inertia truly is what is radically evil” (2001, p. 115). Morris considers “banality” as part of a group of words (which includes “trivial” or “mundane”) that describes the “disintegration of old ideals about the common people, the common place, the common culture” (1988, p. 26). Besides, Baumeister also tackles the concept of “banality of evil” and concludes that the essential shock of banality is “the disproportion between the person and the crime” (1997, p. 391). Finally, Morrow prefers talking about “normality of evil” instead of “banality”. Since World War II, evil has been approached with a focus on perpetrators. However, in the 1990s, psychology turned its attention towards survivors’ responses to trauma and victim testimonies or narratives are a major source of knowledge. Recent approaches to the term of evil include Dew’s notion of the intractability of evil. Dews proposes the exploration of evil from a re-work of religious conceptions of the term, and “religious versions of the hope for its overcoming, in more strictly philosophical terms” (Dews, 2008, p. 13). Besides, Noddings (1989) proposes the description of a morality of evil from a female perspective since women have until recently been relatively silent on evil, especially because they have themselves been “closely identified with evil in the traditional view” (p. 5). Finally, a more recent approach to evil is Donskis and Bauman’s proposal (2016) that evil is “transitory and does not vanquish 167

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humaneness (or only briefly when it does)” (p. 8). These researchers interrogate the contemporaneousness of Manichaeism today and the self-sufficiency of evil to come to the conclusion that we live in the era of fear, negativity and bad news. Besides, Donskis abandons the term “solid evil” for being based on an either-or social perspective and embraces “liquid evil” because it assumes “the appearance of goodness and love. More than that, it parades as a seemingly neutral and impartial acceleration of life –the unprecedented speed of life and social change implying the loss of memory and moral amnesia; in addition, liquid evil walks in disguise as the absence and impossibility of alternatives” (p. 10). “evil is not obvious and self-evident anymore” […] Good news is no news. Bad news is the news by definition” (p. 12).

THE TROUBLES ON CINEMA. A SHORT REVIEW Even if Baumeister chooses not to use movies or literature to describe evil because of the “distorting power of the myth of evil” (1997, p. 29), the concept of evil in its multilayered meanings has been widely reflected in all cultural disciplines through history, namely literature, fine arts and, more recently, in visual arts such as cinema and television. In fact, although most religions have spread their predicament taking the binary opposition of good and evil as one of their bedrocks as shown in their sacred scriptures, the truth is that, from the emergence of cinema and television, people gain “more frequent and vivid glimpses of the face of evil from movies than from religions writings” (Baumeister qtd. in Norden, 2007, p. xi). Norden (2007) tackles the question of how audiences from around the world have been conditioned by media to have a reductionist perspective of communities, social groups or cultures as categorized as good or evil and gets to the conclusion that the interest in the concept of evil is not distinctive of any specific historical period. Baudrillard relived the term “banality” to frame a theory of media which deals with the tele-visual relationship between everyday life and catastrophic events. He actually labels today’s violence as “terror”, especially the one exposed on television and claims that “terroristic hyperrealism of our world, a world where a real event occurs in a vacuum, stripped of its context and visible only from afar, televisually” (1990, p. 79). Regarding media coverage of The Troubles, back in the 1950s and 1960s, silence was the word to define the status quo for several years because broadcasting authorities wanted to prevent “the coverage on radio or television of political or social events from being itself the cause of further events” (Smith, 1972, p. 20). Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s even questioned if media was actually giving publicity to terrorism and make the “murderers” become martyrs (Thatcher, 1981). However, impartiality or objectivity was troublesome. Internationally, each country seemed to adopt its stance depending on particular beliefs and it was as such represented by media in each nation interested in the conflict. The importance of television in the sectarian trouble was paramount, especially from the last years of the 1960s when local programs were to be produced in the region. Local television, in particular, Ulster Television, was a point of reference for both loyalists and unionists for their efforts to provide a fair coverage of the conflict, if that was ever a possibility. Peace negotiations were also impacted by media (this process actually started by the final years of the 1980s after a series of meetings between Sinn Fein and the Social Democratic and Labour Party) as participants “have sought to use news as a form of leverage within talks” (Spencer, 2004, p. 610). Cawson (1995) asserts that the escapist trivialization of embodied evil is often found in popular culture and that it has to be accepted that the media must respond to public demand, that their explicit function is to entertain and diverts, that self-righteous moral lessons are self-defeating and unacceptable”. 168

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Even though, it has taken Northern Irish media twenty years to dwell on the conflict. Not to mention through a comical outlook. The depiction of the conflict on television and cinema is actually a point of contention. Donnelly (2000) analyses how potentially dangerous was in Northern Ireland the portrayal of The Troubles in cinema and focuses on three films in particular from the 1940s and 1990s, namely Nothing Personal (1995), Some Mother’s Son (1996) and Michael Collins (1997). Even if most films were released during periods of ceasefire, the controversy caused in the area was noticeable, especially those which were foreign productions made for foreign potential viewers. Many movies did not depict the conflict through a realistic outlook, such as Odd Man Out (1946) which presented an IRA man in an imaginary, mythicized Belfast which looked alien but at the same time “adjacent” (Cousins, 2019, 8:12) to the ordinary life in the city. Similarly, during the worst years of the armed conflict (1960s and 1970s), we find movies such as A Quiet Day in Belfast (1974) which portrays an absurd love story with The Troubles as background. As secrecy and paranoia increased in the area in the 1980s, the conflict started to become interest for Hollywood productions; the problem of representation was due to the fact that these were Hollywood productions starred by American stars as well, as A Prayer for the Dying (1987). Even though, Cousins spotlights Angel by Neil Jordan (1982) and Elephant (1989), a thirty-nine minute TV show, as audio-visual products that abandon Northern Irish clichés such as the psychopathic terrorist, the romanticized freedom fighter or a romantic relationship across the barricades and focus on the pure mechanism of evil and murder. The 1990s brought a ceasefire and The Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Still many American movies chose a Northern Irish setting to delve into the same stereotypes, such as The Devil’s Own (1997) or Resurrection Man (1998). Finally, at the turn of the century, other movies try to provide a more realistic account of the complexities of the conflict, namely H3 (2001), or Hunger (2008), about the hunger strike; or Good Vibrations (2012), and ’71 (2014) which talks about a British soldier trying to survive in Belfast.

BANALISING EVIL? LISA MCGEE’S DERRY GIRLS Lisa McGee (1979-) is the writer and creator of one of the most successful TV shows produced by Hat Trick Productions and released by Channel 4 in 2018. Derry Girls, currently divided into two seasons, gained international attention after its worldwide broadcast in Netflix. The twenty-minute episodes tell the story of a gang formed by four Derry female teenagers who belong to the Catholic side of the city, and a male Londoner in the initial years of the 1990s, when the armed conflict was giving its death throws. Erin Quinn, the main character, dreams of becoming a prominent writer and loves the TV show Murder She Wrote. The rest of the gang is formed by Erin’s cousin Orla McCool, who features the most surreal situations, shameless Michelle Mallon, Clare Devlin, a lesbian fearful girl and, finally, James, the son of an Irish woman who emigrated to London and has decided to leave her son in Derry for some time with Michelle’s parents. Observing community traumatic events from space-time distance would confer viewers (especially those involved to a greater or lesser extent) the leniency of what they are watching –especially if the historical event resolved in a relatively contented way for both opposing sides–, and filmmakers or showrunners the chance to present horrendous acts as “palatable to viewers’ complacency in an undoubtedly wiser present” (Salamon, 2007, p. 18). This distance allows the representation of cruelty and the acknowledgment of past mistakes on the part of both sides. The suitability of using comedy as the instrument to tackle a traumatic event in a community has always enthused dispute. When filmmakers or showrun169

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ners conceive a script about contemporary painful historical events, the fine line between a comedic yet powerful depiction and an offensive parody can easily get blurred. Celli’s article on Benigni’s comical movie Life is Beautiful (1997), which was set in a Nazi concentration camp, would serve as example since Benigni “has defended himself against charges relating to the film’s suspension of disbelief by citing Proust and Poe, who felt that a story should never provide all the details but allow the participation of the reader or spectator’s imagination. A reduction of graphic horror is the style adopted by some of the most effective films on the Holocaust” (2000, p.153). Similarly, Morris (1988) takes Patricia Mellencamp’s article “Situation Comedy, Feminism and Freud: Discourses of Gracie and Lucy” to explain banality and fatality through two American sitcoms, and considers that these TV shows are a “fable of origin about situation comedy, foreign policy and domestic catastrophe” (p. 7). In Derry Girls, the comical approach chosen by the creator is sometimes Rabelaisian, sometimes sharp, and sometimes gentle and nostalgic, and sometimes all of them simultaneously, so the story has the ability to take the audience (especially viewers in their thirties or forties) to a state of nostalgia that, in some cases, is more powerful than the conflict itself. Multiple elements representative of this period shape the environment of the story: Avon Cosmetics sellers, diegetic and non-diegetic music or references to movies. The introduction of the setting in the TV show is made clear from the very beginning as the opening of the first episode presents Erin, the main character, apparently reading a passage from her personal diary, and she lets the audience know that she comes from a place called “Derry or Londonderry, depending on your persuasion” (DG, S1, E1). Simply by means of this seemingly unpretentious opening statement, McGee gives a picture of the 1990s status quo in Northern Ireland and, in particular, in Derry. Characters complain in many occasions about their misfortunes and blame Protestants for not being able to have an ordinary life, as the “good side would never seek out or desire conflict” (Baumeister, 1997, p. 97) since “as long as you are an innocent victim, you have a legitimate claim on the help, sympathy, and support of thers, which may extend to financial or material aid” (p. 100). There is a blatant distinction between “Same” (victims) and “the Other” (perpetrators), as in the pilot episode in which Sarah (Erin’s aunt who lives with the family) learns that a bomb has exploded in the bridge and she claims that “they want ordinary people to suffer” (DG, S1, E1). Protestants are mostly referred to as “they” or “these Protestants” with comments such as: “that’s the English, they are fucking savages” (DG, S1, E1). A clear establishment between victim and perpetrator from their perspective is identified in older characters as they experienced the worst years of the conflict (especially the 1960s and 1970s) as well as a more radical position: the grandfather living in Erin’s house regards Protestants with a higher level of disregard than her daughter (Erin’s mother). This is not that obvious when the spotlight is put under younger generations of Northern-Irish citizens in the show, especially the main gang. An apparent banalization of terror and evil could be derived from the series’ filter of a comical outlook on the armed conflict, especially after we learn that the bomb on the bridge meant bad news for Erin’s mother because that implied that her daughter would be another day at home and because Sarah would miss her date at a wellness center. Similarly, in the final scene of one episode, Erin is apparently reading a passage from her diary: “injustice is something I have become used to. I am after all the daughter of crossfire. But I choose to get over it, the road to peace is paved with tolerance and understanding. Violence is never the answer” (DG, S1, E1). After pronouncing that final sentence, she realizes that Orla is actually reading her diary and Erin springs into action and tries to hit Orla. McGee focuses on the representation of the process of identity change experienced among the population after decades suffering from terrorist attacks, kidnaps and murders. Thus, the comical approach is only possible to be tackled once the conflict has been solved (to some extent) and peace has been established in the area. 170

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Similarly, McGee underlines the difficulty for this community to establish their individualism in a very uniform, sectarian and closed group in which holding the balance between a strong provincialism and thriving globalization is also mixed with the impending urge of these teenagers to define their own identity in this microcosm that is Derry. This is represented through the scene in which Erin tells her mother that she “should be allowed to express her individuality” (DG, S1, E1) by wearing a denim jacket with her school uniform and, once she meets the gang without a trace of the garment, Clare decided to take off her own and claims that she is not going to be “individual on [her] own” (DG, S1, E1). Derry Girls’s pretensions go beyond the depiction of The Troubles from a comical perspective that would, to some tastes, trivialize the pains of the conflict among the community. The TV show hints a genuine interest in the multilayered concept of alterity in the first season but it is starkly explored and developed in season two. When the girl gang takes part in the peace project “Friends accross the barricades”, in which there are gatherings among boys and girls from Catholic and Protestants neighborhoods in order to promote cross-community relations. However, “both sides of a conflict perceive it through the lens of the myth of pure evil –but in mirror images. Each side sees itself as the innocent victim and the other as the evil attacker” (Baumeister, 1997, p. 102). As it happens with foreign students who visit the city for a short period, Protestant individuals are also regarded as exotic: they all believe that if you are able to become friends with a Protestant or a half-Protestant, you will be considered cool at school. During this exchange experience, the girls’ main aim is to have sex with one of the Protestant boys. In this episode, the series blurs the line between victim and perpetrator as well as same and other in an array of occasions. This part deserves particular attention as when the whole group is asked to talk about what they would consider they have in common, both Catholic girls and Protestant boys are only able to stress differences: “Protestants are richer”; “Protestants are British and Catholics are Irish”; “Catholics like statues and we don’t so much”, or “Catholics like to walk and Protestants like to march”, among others. This is the moment when the gang, and especially Erin, get to realize that they are “the Others’ Others” and the lack of knowledge and trust between both communities is hampering reconciliation. This seems to happen because, as they learn about each other they don’t see “the Other as gaze, the Other as mirror, the Other as opacity” (Baudrillard, 1990, p. 122) anymore, this is all gone. “Henceforward it is the transparency of others that represents absolute danger. Without the Other as mirror, as reflecting surface, consciousness of self is threatened with irradiation in the void” (p. 122). Indeed, there are minor plots in both seasons in which, apart from the Otherization of Protestants, women are otherized in a blatantly male society, travellers and gypsies are otherized as well, and even the inhabitants of Derry are “the Others” themselves when compared with the largest city in Northern Ireland, Belfast, since at some point it is described as a “primitive and savage place” (DG, S2, E2) and Erin’s grandfather hates it. Those identified as different, as not proper members of society, are always a potential enemy and “the more threatening the behaviour of these outsiders seems, the more clearly is the internal enemy identified” (Elliot et al., 1983, p. 157). The role of James in the story is essential as he seems to represent the only objective outlook on the conflict for being an outsider as he comes from London. Derry Catholic community considers him an Other (part of the Protestant community) and he is enrolled in a girl’s school for the fear of being bullied by other boys. He is in many occasions nicknamed so his identity is dispossessed. The terror derived from the armed conflict does not represent the main issue of the story but the gang’s aims and anxieties as teenagers. This is explicit at the end of the episode when the whole group starts fighting and Erin writes “Parents” on the blackboard as one thing they all have in common. This would reverse the traditional use of Ulster “simply serving as a colourful ‘background’ for universal 171

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human drama” (Donnelly, 2000, p. 395). McGee avoids this strategy and confronts and presents the city of Derry where violent acts perpetrated by both sides are part of the story but not just as a background but to tell the story from the inside: in actual locations with actual characters who adapted their everyday lives to the surrounding violent environment. Derry Girls, thus, is a brave response to the desires and demands of Ulster audiences. Freeland claims that “films and TV programming that represent evil – can and do “offer rich, varied, subtle and complex views on the nature of evil”. And this is what McGee does. In Derry Girls, the differences between good and evil are never simplistic and there is a process of demystification of the conflict, especially from Season 2. In the show there is an array of character categories, all of them personifying virtues and immoralities. Religious violence reveals extreme violent conflicts around the world for centuries: Serbia, Bosnia or Spain would exemplify this idea. St. Thomas believed that “the existence of evil in the world is the single greatest obstacle to Christian faith and doctrine” (qtd. in Baumeister, 1997, p. 13). Considering that this sectarian conflict is also grounded on religious differences, the main characters show their deeprooted religious beliefs: Catholicism. Thus, the separation between good and evil is made very clear, especially among older characters, since “the invocation of ‘evil’ allows us to reduce the complexities of politics and history to the opposition of ‘us’ and ‘them’” (Dews, 2008, p. 1). Similarly, teenagers are attending the Catholic female school named Our Lady Immaculate College, an institution which favors the gang’s lack of individuality and curtails their eagerness to establish connection with other realities; these realities are only available to the group through television. These restrictions include access to pop songs or any contacts with boys let alone Protestants. In Season 2, Episode 3, the gang sneaks out of their house to Belfast to a Take That concert. While travelling by bus, there is allegedly a bomb in a suitcase and all passengers must evict the bus. Eventually, the viewer finds out that the girls had taken a suitcase to take alcohol to the concert and they did not want to recognize it in front of other members of their community so they chose to play along with the charade. Baudrillard believed that terrorism was “the transpolitical mirror of evil” (1990, p. 81). In fact, it could be claimed that violence as a demonstration of evil is based at least on one of the major roots or reasons for evil, according to Baumeister: idealism; and “there is ample evidence that perpetrators of violence learn to detest their victims” (1997, p. 195). It surfaces in both seasons, almost in every episode. The gang find themselves involved in several hilarious situations in which violence is the eventual result. Episode 5 from Season 2 also exemplifies how McGee plays with violence and terror and teenage experience. The girls go to prom by the end of the semester and a girl from Donegal wants to reproduce the final scene from the film Carrie to ruin their dresses and spoil the whole night. In the very moment the paint falls from above, shots of Erin’s parents watching the announcement of the ceasefire on TV are inserted. The final episode from Season 6 focuses on the visit of Bill Clinton that actually took place in 1995 and referred terrorists as “yesterday’s men”. McGee again composes the storyline of the episode around an actual historical event related to The Troubles but the main plot revolves around the main gang. However, in this occasion the series closes the season with a special remark on the importance of reconciliation as the only possible solution to the conflict: James, a British boy, becomes a full member of the girl gang when Clinton is giving his speech: “build on the opportunity you have before you”. It could be claimed that McGee’s ultimate purpose is to confront the audience with the weak though complex pillars in which violence in this conflict has been based for many years.

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FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS This chapter’s main goal has attempted to provide a thought-provoking approach to the Northern-Irish long lasting conflict and analyze how a humorous perspective does not necessarily imply a banalization of violence and terrorist attacks experienced in the area. Considering that there have been not many TV shows or films that have depicted The Troubles from a similar perspective (as explained before), it would be interesting to see, on the one hand, the manifold paths taken by cinema and TV to represent the armed conflict and, on the other, how will these multiple perspectives will be perceived by the viewers, specially Norhtern Irish population.

CONCLUSION This chapter has aimed at discussing Lisa McGee’s comical representation of Northern Ireland’s The Troubles in her situation comedy Derry Girls (2018). Regarding the question of banality of evil displayed in the TV show, it could be claimed that the depiction of the conflict blurs the lines between good and evil and revolves around alterity and the question of who is the Other, especially in Season 2 in which Protestants and Catholics try to search for common ground and McGee puts a mirror in front of both sides. Andrew Delbanco argued that “our society suffers from an impoverished moral vocabulary and lack of compelling and complex narratives about good and evil” (qtd. in Hibbs, 2007, p. 90), ant the truth is that, even if the main characters belong to the Catholic side of Derry, McGee’s audiovisual product avoids a simplified one-sided depiction of the city’s road to ceasefire and later peace agreements. All in all, the humorous viewpoint of the series does not imply a banalization of terror and violence but a way to talk about something that is universal: growing up, being a teenager trying to develop your own identity and understand your place in your community.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT This research has been supported by Cei Patrimonio.

REFERENCES Badiou, A. (2001). Ethics: An Essay on the Understanding of Evil. Verso. Baudrillard, J. (1990). La Transparencia del Mal [The Transparency of Evil]. Ed. Anagrama. Bauman, Z., & Donskis, L. (2016). Liquid Evil. John Wiley & Sons. Baumeister, R. F. (1997). Evil. Inside Human Violence and Cruelty. New York: W. H. Card, C. (2009). The Atrocity Paradigm: A Theory of Evil. Oxford University Press.

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Cawson, F. (1995). The Monsters in the Mind: The Face of Evil in Myth, Literature and Contemporary Life. Book Guild. Celli, C. (2000). The Representation of Evil in Roberto Benigni’s Life Is Beautiful. The Journal of Popular Film and Television, 28(2), 74–79. doi:10.1080/01956050009602825 Cousins, M. (n.d.). 50 Years of the Troubles. Academic Press. Dews, P. (2018). The Idea of Evil. John Wiley & Sons. Donnelly, K. J. (2000). The Policing of Cinema: Troubled Film Exhibition in Northern Ireland. Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, 20(3), 385–396. doi:10.1080/713669724 Elliott, P., Murdock, G., & Schlesinger, P. (1983). ‘Terrorism and the State: A Case Study of the Discourses of Television. Media Culture & Society, 5(2), 155–177. doi:10.1177/016344378300500204 Hibbs, T. (2007). Virtue, Vice, and the Harry Potter Universe. In M. F. Norden (Ed.), The Changing Face of Evil in Film and Television (pp. 89–99). Brill Rodopi. doi:10.1163/9789401205276_007 Hollander, P. (2016). Revisiting the Banality of Evil: Contemporary Political Violence and the Milgram Experiments. Society, 53(1), 56–66. doi:10.100712115-015-9973-4 McGee, L. (2018-2019). Derry Girls. Channel 4. Morris, M. (1988). Banality in Cultural Studies. Discourse (Berkeley, Calif.), 10(2), 3–29. Noddings, N. (1989). Women and Evil. University of California Press. Norden, M. F. (2007). The Changing Face of Evil. In Film and Television. Brill. Ricoeur, P. (1967). The Symbolism of Evil (Vol. 18). Beacon Press. Salamon, L. B. (2007). Screening Evil in History: Rope, Compulsion, Scarface, Richard III. In M. F. Norden (Ed.), The Changing Face of Evil in Film and Television (pp. 17–36). Brill Rodopi. doi:10.1163/9789401205276_003 Smith, A. (1972). Television Coverage of Northern Ireland. Index on Censorship, 1(2), 15–32. doi:10.1080/03064227208532171 Spencer, G. (2004). The Impact of Television News on the Northern Ireland Peace Negotiations. Media Culture & Society, 26(5), 603–623. doi:10.1177/0163443704044218 Van Inwagen, P. (2008). The Problem of Evil. Oxford University Press on Demand.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Banality: The quality of being boring, ordinary, and not original, or something that is like this. Evil: The condition of being immoral, cruel, or bad, or an act of this type.

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Northern Ireland: Part of the United Kingdom, lying in the northeastern quadrant of the island of Ireland, on the western continental periphery often characterized as Atlantic Europe. Northern Ireland is sometimes referred to as Ulster, although it includes only six of the nine counties which made up that historic Irish province. The Troubles: Also called Northern Ireland conflict, violent sectarian conflict from about 1968 to 1998 in Northern Ireland between the overwhelmingly Protestant unionists (loyalists), who desired the province to remain part of the United Kingdom, and the overwhelmingly Roman Catholic nationalists (republicans), who wanted Northern Ireland to become part of the republic of Ireland.

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The Demonization of Islam in Contemporary Hollywood Cinema Ayhan Küngerü Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University, Turkey

ABSTRACT With the end of the Cold War, paradigms of the Cold War could not explain the emerging international environment. Therefore, Western authorities put forward various theories in order to elicit new order. One of those is Samuel Huntington’s “clash of civilization” thesis. In his work, Huntington stated that with the end of the Cold War, basic element of the clashes was no longer ideological, instead economic and cultural. In this context, clashes would occur between civilization and religion would be the main source of clashes between civilizations. He allotted the large part of his work to the differences between the Western and Islam civilization. American Sniper were addressed and analysed according to four dogmas of Orientalism in Edward Said’s book Orientalism. Accordingly, existence of the state of conflict between Western and Islam civilization mentioned in Huntington’s work have been observed. It has been seen that civilization of Islam built as the adversary of the West have been deemed as other and created as enemy.

INTRODUCTION1 Celebrating the 25th anniversary of Samuel Huntington’s “clash of civilization” thesis last year, many international developments have kept peoples’ mind occupied, as Daesh was an existential threat to peace in the Middle East. Donald Trump’s provocative statements over the Muslim World, Russia, China and Latin geography have deepened the fault lines as Samuel Huntington suggested and ultra-right wing political parties have found political space in Western Europe. These developments have brought Huntington’s thesis to the surface. To put it bluntly, it has been never out of the picture for the warlike Westerners since it has been published in Foreign Affairs in 1993. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch013

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Samuel Huntington bases his “clash of civilizations” thesis on the rivalry between Western and other civilizations mostly Islam. His proclaimed visionary thoughts for the U.S. world policy for the post-Cold War order is detailed in Huntington’s article and book titled The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order. In the post Cold War environment, Islam has become the main subject of Othering of United States of America (USA) and its projection was limited to the violent-terrorist inclined version of Islam than the classical depiction of Muslim Orient which was basically portraying it as inferior than the West. This otherness practices can also be observed in the entertainment area. Hollywood, as an American system of film production is politically reflective and sometimes intertwined with American policy and aforementioned clash of civilization thesis may become the backbone of mainstream American cinema. Since 1980s, Arabs, Muslims and Middle Easterners have become the main subjects of othering practices of American cinema and this situation can incrementally be observed with the end of the Cold War. Hollywood’s inclination towards Islam, Muslim and the Middle East generally and mostly creates a negative impression as Said said “…Arab is associated with lechery or bloodthirsty dishonesty. He appears as an oversexed degenerate, capable, it is true, of cleverly devious intrigues, but essentially sadistic, treacherous, low. Slave trader, camel driver, moneychanger, colorful scoundrel.” (Said, 1979, pp. 286-287). In addition to these traditional Arab roles in cinema, the naturalization and normalization of Islam and fundamentalism connection is seen in the mainstream American cinema. Islam as other has been created as a belief to be feared, to be controlled, to be dangerous and malignant. This study looks into Hollywood cinema within the clash of civilization perspective and analyses the movie American Sniper in the context of the dogmas of Orientalism detailed Edward Said’s canonic work Orientalism. Four dogmas of orientalism lead the way and form the analytical framework of the study. With the movie involved, it can be said that clash exist between the Western and Islamic civilizations at least according to the Western point of view. The movie American Sniper in one sense creates an American hero, Chris Kyle who becomes famous and assumes a nickname as “The Legend” due to his count of killing with his sniper rifle. On the other, Islamic civilization is demonized, directly related with terrorism and opposed the West due to the two civilization’s ontological differences. In conclusion, it can be seen that Hollywood films are tools in conveying clashing civilization thesis, which is based American reasoning against Muslim world.

BACKGROUND: CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS Samuel Huntington claims that the World has entered a new phase with the dissolution of the Soviet Union and end of the long-drawn Cold War, which was “rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union lasted for decades and resulted in anti-communist suspicions and international incidents that led the two superpowers to the brink of nuclear disaster” (history, 2019). According to him, unlike Cold War, rivalries, which was mainly ideological and economic, post-Cold War conflicts would occur between civilizations and clashes between civilizations would prevail among civilizations: It is my hypothesis that the fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of conflict will be cultural. Nation states will remain the most powerful actors in world affairs, but the principal conflicts of global politics will occur between nations and groups of different civilizations. The clash of civilizations will dominate global politics. The fault lines between civilizations will be the battle lines of the future (Huntington, 1993, p. 22).

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People would describe their identity in terms of civilizations, which they belong to and civilizationbased identity would determine behavioral pattern of people. In the modern world, Huntington counted eight civilizations as Western, Confucian, Japanese, Islamic, Hindu, Slavic-Orthodox, Latin American and possibly African civilizations. Within this conflicting and chaotic world order, all civilizations would exert efforts to increase their zone of influence in global affairs. Yet, the West is still the most powerful civilization with its economic, military and administrative capabilities. However, apart from Western civilization, other civilizations have emerged as Challengers and are trying to displace and weaken it and vice versa. This idea constitutes the basis of clash of civilization thesis. “Us” and “them” dichotomy lays the foundation of how the West perceives the world. In this clashes of civilization perception, Samuel Huntington assumes that Confucian and Islamic civilizations would be the main adversaries of the West and gives the lion’s share to civilization of Islam which have been regarded as the most historic opponents of the West as two civilization had not been found a common ground in the time of history emphasized in the renowned orientalist scholar Bernard Lewis’ article titled The Roots of Muslim Rage in which Lewis used the term “clash of civilizations” to emphasize that Western and Islamic civilization may not coexist due to some ontological problems: It should by now be clear that we are facing a mood and a movement far transcending the level of issues and policies and the governments that pursue them. This is no less than a clash of civilizations—the perhaps irrational but surely historic reaction of an ancient rival against our Judeo-Christian heritage, our secular present, and the worldwide expansion of both. It is crucially important that we on our side should not be provoked into an equally historic but also equally irrational reaction against that rival (Lewis, 1990, p. 60). In The Roots of Muslim Rage, Bernard Lewis purposely see fundamentalism as a part of Islam and says fundamentalism’s main war is against secularism and modernism. Islamic war against secularism is not implicit and Muslims see those responsible for this secularist world as Jews, the West and the United States. War against modernism is derived from the social and cultural changes that Islamic world has undergone. He talks through his hat and says that “there is something in the religious culture of Islam” and turns an ordinary man in the times of disturbance to a person full of hate and rage due to his resentment against the Western world. He also finds vindication for his act of maleficence in the life Prophet (Lewis, 1990, p. 59). First of all, Bernard Lewis falsely claims that religious fundamentalism exists in and is a part of Islam and sees the secularist world comprised of Jews, The West and the United States overlooking the Jewish State, Israel’s Zionist policies and Western worlds and the U.S’ discriminative actions against Muslims. The ongoing conflict between Islam and Christianity is not derived from periodical phenomena but two religions and civilizations affiliated with them. Samuel Huntington states that this conflict is based on a difference between the Islamic understanding of a world combining religion and politics and Christian concept of world separating range of influence of God and Caesar. That both heavenly religions are monotheistic, universalistic that declare themselves as the one and is of similar concepts as “jihad” and “crusade” lead to confrontation with each other (Huntington, 2005, pp. 310-311). Huntington symbolizes Islam as a super entity that governs all aspects of life for its believers, on the other hand makes Western political life off limits for the realm of Christianity and asserts that even the similarities between two religions does not suffice to find a common ground.

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Huntington’s “clash of civilizations” thesis is based on the West and the Rest dichotomy. This understanding of the world reveals itself in many phrases and it is related with many theories and concepts as Orientalism and Islamophobia.

Orientalism and Islamophobia Orientalism is a Western discipline and policy that seeks to understand, describe, portray, picturize and represent the Orient and the Westerners undertaking those responsibilities are befittingly called orientalists, as Edward Said said “…Orientalism can be discussed and analyzed as the corporate institution for dealing with the Orient-dealing with it by making statements about it, authorizing views of it, describing it, by teaching it, settling it, ruling over it: in short, Orientalism as a Western style for dominating, restructuring, and having authority over the Orient” (Said, 1979, p. 3). A European or American researching the Orient introduce himself to Orient as a European or American rather than putting his individuality at first. This being an American or European status per se is a mastery over the Orient solidifying its power of dominance since the times of Ancient Greek (Said, 1979, p. 11). About the Orient and Islam, the characteristic of Western discourse have not changed to date but its source have changed. In medieval ages, Arabia was seen as the place of infidels and Prophet Mohammed as an “apostate” and in the twentieth century Islam is claimed to be no more than “Arian heresy” (Said, 1979, pp. 62-63). Since the fourteenth century, Islam was positioned against the West and the ultimate point of this negative positioning is orientalism. For Hilmi Yavuz, orientalism is based on an “Imaginary Islam” idea and with institutionalization of orientalism, there is added “Imaginary Orient” beside “Imaginary Islam”. These delusive Islam and Orient imagination then turned to realization with the fourteenth century and this accounted for detachment between two civilization. Western civilization’s cutting dialogue with Eastern civilizations resulted in cognitive breakdown and after that real Islam and Orient was superseded by the imaginary ones. These imaginary discursive mythic representations of Islam can be detailed as (Kumar, 2012, pp. 42-55); • • • • •

Islam is a monolithic religion Islam is a uniquely sexist religion The “Muslim Mind” is incapable of reason and rationality Islam is an inherently violent religion Muslims are incapable of democracy and self-rule.

Runnymede Trust (1997, p. 4), a think-thank based in UK studying race equality, summarizes open and close views of Islam which is sufficient enough to comprehend two different inclinations over Islam. In closed views of Islam, Islam is monolithic, static, other, separate, inferior, aggressive enemy, manipulative. Critics coming from the Muslim world is ruled out and discrimination against Muslims is embraced and negative discourse about Muslims is normalized. On the other hand, in open views of Islam, Islam is diverse and dynamic, similar and interdependent, different but equal, cooperative partner and sincere. Critics coming from the Muslim world are taken seriously. Discrimination against Muslim is rejected and negative discourse about Muslim world is seen suspiciously.

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Hollywood mostly embraces closed views of Islam that differentiate Muslim and Muslim affiliated societies as Arabs, Afghans, Pakistanis, Turks. After the dissolution of Soviet Union and ending of the Cold War, prolonged war of West with the communism came to an end. The U.S positioned itself as the leader of the world and new world order that America put forward in order to define form world policies in which it sought to sustain its power domain due to power vacuum. In this newly shaped world order and with the absence of hostile power, the US designated itself new enemies as suggested in Huntington’s clash of civilization thesis, hereby Muslim world have taken lion’s share so far. For long, Hollywood dealt with Arabs and Muslims as Others of the periphery but with the second half of the 80s and mostly 90s to date, Muslims and Arabs have become terrorist others of the West who intrinsically and frankly exposed themselves as the enemy of Western world and wanted to harm it. Lina Khatib says Arabs representation as Other went through cinematic transformations from a womanizer, seducer in the movie Sheik to the terrorists nowadays. (Khatib, 2006, p. 8). Gulf War brought about new foreign policy that helped United States keep up its status as world’s policy and helped to add new ones as savior of the maltreated people. This allegoric representation found itself in cinema as introducing the “new men”. Jeffords argue new way for new man: “Not, as in the 1980s outward into increasingly extravagant spectacles of violence and power . . . but inward, into increasingly emotive displays of masculine sensitivities, traumas, and burdens. Rather than be impressed at the size of these men’s muscles and the ingenuity of the violences, audiences are to admire their emotional commitments and the ingenuity of their sacrifices.” (quoted from Khatib, 2006, p. 65). For instance, in Edward Zwicks’s The Siege, Denzel Washington’s character Anthony Hubbard, FBI agent trying to solve who is behind terrorist attacks perpetrated in the heart of New York City is differentiated from its predecessors such as Rambo. In the modern Western culture, the frequency of affiliation of Arabs and Islamic fundamentalism is salient. September 11 terrorist attacks, Iraq War and situation in Palestine are reasons to relate Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism and make fundamentalism as an enemy of Western civilization. Islamic fundamentalism is perceived and represented in the context of various myths based on East/West dichotomy. One of the scholars articulating Islamic fundamentalism is Samuel Huntington who strongly advocates that there exists a clash between Islamic and Western civilizations. With this understanding fundamentalism is often associated with religion Islam and the Middle East and maintaining myths about Islam, fundamentalism and the Middle East around clash-based concepts have taken serious criticisms. Fred Halliday is opposed that Islam as a monolithic power is positioned against the Western civilization, criticizing the West due to its efforts building itself as a homogeneous entity which naturally located against menacing Islam. Halliday also criticized contradictory stereotypes over Muslims and Arabs that Muslim-Arab Other is sentimental and hedonist as well as militant and passive. In this context Hollywood is one of the places where such myths are available abundantly. For over 25 years, Muslim Arabs have been represented as relentless, faceless, fundamentalist killers. Islamic fundamentalist has become synonym of terrorist and dehumanized. There is no differentiation between the concepts of Arab, Muslim and Islamic fundamentalism. This otherness concepts of Arabs and Muslims is making them enemy of the West and making it a battle between “us” and “them”. In Hollywood, one side of the picture is Arabs and Muslims and other side of it is the United States which is superior and invincible (Khatib, 2006, pp. 165-166). Jack Shaheen (2003, p. 172) in his book Real Bad Arabs in which he documented and discussed over 900 films said that most of the films he analyzed presented Arabs with a distorting image and this image reflected Arabs as menacing and unlike. Arabs and Muslims is seen as enemies in ages and for 180

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Hollywood, it began with the cinema: “From 1896 until today, filmmakers have collectively indicted all Arabs as Public Enemy #1-brutal, heartless, uncivilized religious fanatics and Money-mad cultural “others” bent on terrorizing civilized Westerners, especially Christian and Jews”. Hollywood come up with a answer to the question what is an Arab as “brute murderers, sleazy rapist, religious fanatics, oilrich dimwits and abusers of women”. In television and film, five common Muslim and Arab stereotypes in television and film have become prominent. First, Arabs and Muslims are part of the life in desert. Secondly, they are seen as villains and terrorists. Thirdly, to emphasize the superiority of Western civilization, Arabs are represented as barbaric. Theme song in Aladdin says “from a faraway place, where the caravan camels roam, where they cut off your ear if they don’t like your face. It’s barbaric, but hey, it’s home”. Fourth, despite the infrequency of Arab woman in cinema, Arab woman showed with veils, hijab and as belly dancers. Lastly, Arabs portrayed as Muslims and foreigners even if they have gained citizenship with birthrights (Nittle, 2019).

METHODOLOGY This study is based on a qualitative analysis. Qualitative analysis “uses subjective judgment based on non-quantifiable information, such as management expertise, industry cycles, strength of research and development and labor relations” (Smith, 2019). Qualitative analysis depends on qualitative data. In this context, with the aim of observing the relation between clash of civilization thesis and Hollywood films, Edward Said’s four dogmas will constitute the framework of research analysis. These dogmas are as follows: 1. First dogma is that there is absolute and systematic difference between the West, which is rational, developed, humane, superior, and the Orient, which is aberrant, undeveloped, and inferior. 2. Abstractions about the Orient, particularly those based on text representing a “classical” Oriental civilization, are always preferable to direct evidence drawn from Oriental modern Oriental realities. 3. The Orient is eternal, uniform, and incapable of defining itself; therefore it is assumed that a highly generalized and systematic vocabulary for describing the Orient from a Western standpoint is inevitable and even scientifically “objective”. 4. The Orient is at bottom something either to be feared or to be controlled.

AMERICAN SNIPER: SYNOPSIS Chris Kyle growing up in Texas learned how to use a rifle from his father when he was a kid. After years, Chris became a rodeo cowboy and with his little brother, he toured the country to participate rodeo competitions. One day, he returned home early and busted his girlfriend with another man and kicked her out. Killing time before television with his brother, news has taken his attention explaining the bomb attacks carried out against US’ missions in Africa and he decided to join the army. When he went to join the army, he was directed to SEAL forces, which includes sea, air and land. Chris completed his training with success and a joined sniper training Chris met a girl named Taya in a bar and the two started to date while he continues shooting training. One day, at home, Taya called on Chris to show collapsing Twin Towers on television which is the

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indication of September 11 attacks masterminded by Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Chris and Taya got married and when they were performing their wedding dance, Chris and his SEAL friends got the call that they were assigned to Iraq. He was sent to Fallujah for the first tour. He used his sniper rifle to a woman and child carrying Russian grenade. After a while, he was nicknamed as “The Legend” by his closest friends Biggles for his account of kills. In the meantime, there is an enemy sniper Mustafa who perpetrates deadly attacks on American troops and broadcasts them on television. In Fallujah, American troops must wipe El Qaeda militia out in order to end turmoil, Al Qaeda’s chief militia in Iraq is Zarqawi, and his number one dog is Butcher who became famous with his ruthlessness that he drilled American friendly sheik’s son’s brain out. After first tour ended and Chris got back home, to America. Chris and Taya have a child together and Taya wants Chris to come back home but Chris is not enthusiastic about it. Chris went to Iraq for second tour. Chris and his team decide to hunt down “Butcher” and find him in a restaurant, launching a raid and kill Butcher when he tries to escape. Chris got back home second time. He has a daughter. Taya complained about his changing behavior that when he was with them he actually was not there in mind. Chris went to Iraq for the third tour. This time he and his team go after enemy sniper Mustafa who allegedly won a medal in Olympic Games. When they are in operation, Mustafa shoot Biggles and Marc dies in a combat with Iraqi militants. Chris get back America for Marc’s funeral. Chris visits his friend Biggles at hospital. Biggles is badly hurt and tells Chris about his plans with his fiancée. Chris have an argument with his wife for his coming back home. Chris returns to Iraq for the fourth tour. This time enemy sniper Mustafa killing American soldiers is the target. He learns that his friend Biggles died on the table. He and his team take on information Mustafa’s whereabouts and go to operation field. Mustafa kills an American soldier from the opposite side they are located. Chris relocates himself and his rifle. The distance is too long, approximately two kilometers. He realizes that this is Mustafa, says do it for Biggles, and shoot Mustafa. In the meantime, they are exposed and they have a contact with an enemy. Due to sandstorm, they could save themselves and Chris finally returns America. He starts to help veterans in their recovery process and help them learn how to use sniper rifle. In 2013, he says goodbye his wife and children to give some advice to a veteran and at last, it is written that he is killed by the ex-soldier whom he helps to and it is followed by real funeral footage of Chris Kyle.

AMERICAN SNIPER: ANALYSIS Dogma One: There is absolute and systematic difference between the West, which is rational, developed, humane, superior, and the Orient, which is aberrant, undeveloped, and inferior. At the beginning of the film, Chris is watching out the US’ military convoy with his sniper rifle. While looking at his rifle’s binoculars, he sees a man talking with his cellphone and after a bit a woman wearing an abaya and a child leave the building and walks through the convoy. A woman carries a Russian grenade. There is flashback coming and we see young Chris and his father at the hunt. Chris shoot a deer and with excitement, he puts his rifle on the ground, goes the hunt, and is warned by his father: “Get back here. Don’t ever leave your gun in the dirt.” He tells him that he has a gift and he will be a good hunter someday. These following scenes shows that Chris is positioned as a “hunter” and the woman and child that he looks through his sniper rifle are positioned as “preys”, speaking metaphorically Western civilization and its leader United States of America is at active position as being an hunter of Muslims

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whom are passively represented as preys of war machine of United States. This hunt and hunter discourse provides safe haven for the US’ invasion of Iraq and legitimacy of the assault of US forces. Chris and his family at the church probably attending Sunday ceremony, giving attention to what pastor says: “We don’t see with his eyes so we don’t know the glory of his plan. Our lives unfold before us like puzzling reflections in a mirror. But on the day we rise, we will see with clarity and understand the mystery of his ways”. Chris leaves the Bible while listening to the pastor and next scene opens with the whole image of Bible and Chris’ father is speaking of types of people in the world: Wayne Kyle: There are three types of people in this world. Sheep, wolves and sheepdogs. Some people prefer to believe that evil doesn’t exist in the world, and if it ever darkened their doorstep they wouldn’t know how to protect themselves... those are the sheep. Then you got predators who use violence to prey on the weak. They’re the wolves. Then there are those blessed with the gift of aggression and an overpowering need to protect the flock. These men are the rare breed that live to confront the wolf They are the sheepdog. Now we’re not raising any sheep in this family and I will whoop your ass if you turn into a wolf. But we take care of our own. Within this long speech of Wayne Kyle, Chris was saving his little brother from a bigger kid bullying him. In a situation like this, Chris is granted permission to finish bullying kid and save his brother. Wayne says: “Then you know who you are…You know your purpose”. In these sequential three scenes, building of Western civilization and United States as the leader can be explained as: Firstly, with hunt and hunter metaphors, Islamic civilization is become passive, inferior and transformed into object of hunting. Secondly, over the pastor speech, it is realized that Christianity is the basis of Western civilization. Today, United States of America assumes the role as Saint Paul did -according to the Bible and it is criticized now as Paul was judged in the past. In the scene that just because Chris had to kill a woman and a kid because of their intention to attack American soldiers, he will draw criticism, but similar things were thought for Paul in the past. Thirdly, over the sheep, wolf and sheepdog metaphors, the United States takes role of sheepdog as the police and saver of the world. It protects the sheep that is to say weak states against wolfs in other words hostile states. This sheepdog metaphor is realized over the character Chris Kyle. With this understanding, Islamic civilization, on the one hand, becomes a sheep that needs saving, on the other hand, it becomes a wolf that threatens Western civilization and must be overcome. Walking through the beach, Taya asks Chris that what he would do if he were to shoot a real person. Chris replies that he would not think about it and when that day comes, he hopes to do his job. For him people he had to kill is just a job to do. Besides, their military supervisor on sniper training says, “pulling the trigger will become an unconscious effort. You will be aware of it but not directing it”. In this context, Islamic enemy could be directly identified and be a part of the killing job. On his training day, he finds out that there is something alive close to shooting target. After shooting the snake, he says: “I shoot better if they are breathing”. The following scene is about September 11 that they watch on TV at home. When Chris goes to Iraq people he is about to kill would be like the snake he shoots on training. Therefore, people killed in Iraq dehumanizes and are deemed Others eligible to be killed. Chris is in a savior complex that is to similar the role United States is assuming in the world. When Chris asks Marc to help marines on the field Marc says, “House-to-house is the deadliest job here. You got some kind of savior complex?” and yet Chris cannot control himself and go to house to house search with the Navy Marines. This savior complex of Chris takes appreciation from a veteran ex-soldier: “I bet you missed your daddy when he was gone. But can I tell you something? Your dad is a hero. He saved 183

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my life. He helped me get home to my little girl. So thank you for loaning him to us, li’l man. I wouldn’t be here without him. My family thanks you for your service”. In the last part of it, Chris talks to a doctor about his going through in Iraq and his savior complex. Doctor asks him that there was anything that he did not want to see and Chris replied: “That’s not me… I was just protecting my guys. They were trying to kill our soldiers and-- I’m willing to stand before my creator and answer for every shot I took. The thing that haunts me are all the guys the thing that haunts me are all the guys I couldn’t save.” Doctor asks Chris that if he wants to save more guys, they got plenty soldiers need to be saving. This savior complex is a characteristic of sheep dog metaphor. These bunches of scenes are a kind of saving “us” from “others” and “others” from “others” that need our help. Chris tries to save American soldiers from terrorists in Iraq as well as helping veteran American soldiers casted out when he returns to America. Additionally, by killing enemy sniper Mustafa, he consolidates himself as “The Legend” which he takes due to his record-breaking account of kills during the Iraq War. Chris “The Legend” shoot better when target breathes and this is the reason why he could kill so many in Iraq. After flashbacks, Chris shot a woman with abaya and her kid. In the scene, woman hands over Russian grenade to her kid to throw it. He is shot by Chris and then the woman takes the grenade and starts running to American troops, when she is about to throw it, she is shot. Chris get back to his unit. Up to his bed, there is an American flag and his sniper rifles. He puts his sniper rifle under the flag. This is embodiment of American war machine. He has a little talk with his friend Biggles: Chris: Where is everybody? Biggles: We are just picking our dicks here, training those fucking haji soldiers…Marc Lee said you were on fucking fire out there. Chris: This kid didn’t even have hair on his balls and his mom hands him a grenade sends him running off to kill Marines. It was evil, man. That was hate like I’ve never seen it before. Here, two negative representations of Islam are standing out. Firstly, besides making every individual in Fallujah terrorists, Iraqi soldiers that US troops give military training are labelled as “fucking haji soldiers”. On the one side, Iraqi soldiers are to become trainees that are inferior to American soldiers and need to be saving, on the other side, over “fucking haji soldiers” statement creates a negative representation of Muslims. Secondly, a mother could hand over a bomb to her child and send him to death. That kind of behavior that a mother could do is an evil that Chris has never encountered before. In the context of Orientalist Islamophobic discourse that builds West-East and Islam-Christianity dichotomy, Chris and American soldiers is represented as followers of Christianity and God. On the contrary, the mother and child is represented as a part of evil and Islam. Mother is handing over a grenade to her child and send him to death is designated as an action that only believers of Islam can dare to do. Chris shoots a man with a bazooka trying to blow American soldiers. In a similar scene, a kid looking around tries to grasp fallen bazooka from the ground. Chris is watching him “don’t do it.. son of a bitch”. The kid suddenly drops the RPG and runs off. Chris is relieved of not having to shoot the kid but the situation makes him extremely disturbed. In the scene, the kid nearly at the same age with Chris’ son know intrinsically how to use RGB. It seemed that the kid had a nature to be a terrorist or insurgent. Thus, it is implied that for a Muslim being a terrorist or enemy of the Western World is not something to be learned, it is something a priori that all Muslims have even if they are just kids.

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Dogma Two: Abstractions about the Orient, particularly those based on text representing a “classical” Oriental civilization, are always preferable to direct evidence drawn from modern Oriental realities. Chris and his little brother Jeff come home early and he finds out that his girlfriend cheats on him. After sending her out, both sit before television and kill some time. News come out, giving details assaults on US mission in Africa. Announcer: This is a special report. Those explosions set to go off at the U.S. Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Nairobi, Kenya were clearly a part of someone’s war against the United States. More than 80 dead, more than 1700 injured in two bombs blasts today, which exploded just minutes and 450 miles apart. It is still unclear at this hour who our enemy is. Although the embassies were obviously the targets. Most of the dead and injured are not Americans. Still, eight Americans, including one child, are dead and five are still missing. This news is a turning point for Chris in his military career and on the road to Iraq. The news says those bombing attacks in US foreign missions is an initiative for launching war with the United States. Other essential question is that the enemy who perpetrated these attacks is not clear yet. Next day, Chris goes to Armed Forces Career Center to serve his country. Because he is from Texas and he is a patriot and not a quitter, he is directed to SEAL which is the most elite forces in the United States Army. Second turning point for Chris on the road to Iraq is that while at home with Taya, they witness September 11 attacks and Chris seemed pissed off like when he sees attacks on the US mission on television. His reaction towards two incidents is look-alike. Third turning point for Chris on the road to Iraq is that on his wedding day, their chief Tony says they got the call to war with Iraq and all guys barks “Hooyah” to show their encouragement and enthusiasm. Bombings at US mission in Africa, September 11 attacks, call to Iraq War shows that Iraq is held accountable for these attacks. However in reality, Iraq has no responsibility over September 11 attacks. The US’ main argument for invasion of Iraq is that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction but it could not find any and its argument for the invasion is falsified. Instead of leaning truth on Iraq war, the movie American Sniper builds a negative perception of Iraq and presents this perception as the truth through with some dialogues and images. The movie connects three subsequent events with each other and creates a reality and hold Iraq and people of Iraq responsible of deadly attacks carried out against the United States. Colonel Gronski explains the situation in Iraq to Chris and other soldiers and tells them elimination of Zarqawi is of prime concern. He says, “This asshole is right now the crown prince of al-Qaeda in Iraq.” It is an accepted fact that al-Qaeda is responsible for September 11 attacks. In American Sniper, American soldiers are on the chase of al-Qaeda militants. Therefore, Iraq has become perpetrator of 9/11 and harbor for al-Qaeda militants. This is nothing more than legitimization of the invasion of Iraq. The movie once again links Iraq with September 11. Additionally, Colonel says al-Qaeda in Iraq “they are waging the largest urban assault since Vietnam”. With this understanding, an analogy is built up both between Iraq and Vietnam invasion of United States and between North Vietnamese soldiers and al-Qaeda militants. It shows that United States’ perception of history has never changed and today how Muslims are labelled in the movie as “hadji soldiers or “muj”, it had been also said for Vietnamese at that specific time. Besides, one of the basic domestic policies of Reagan era was wiping the reminiscences of traumatic Vietnamese defeat from the memories of American nation. In this context, whitewashing of history and reevaluation of it can be observed when detail look is necessary.

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Dogma Three: The Orient is eternal, uniform, and incapable of defining itself; therefore it is assumed that a highly generalized and systematic vocabulary for describing the Orient from a Western standpoint is inevitable and even scientifically “objective”. American Sniper makes Chris Kyle “The Legend”, deadliest sniper in American history per contra makes Muslim Iraqis “savages” or “terrorists”. When first tour ends, Chris gets back home. While he is watching enemy sniper’s Mustafa’s broadcasted video showing the killing of American soldier, Taya enters the room and says she already watched the video and makes a harmless joke that she had to make sure he hadn’t have an Iraqi girlfriend. However, Chris takes it seriously and says, “that’s a sniper recording his kills. That is Mustafa. He sells that shit on the street. Those are American soldiers…They are savages…They are fucking savages.” When he comes back to Iraq for second tour, Colonel Jones says Chris “I want you to put fear of God into these savages and find his (Butcher’s) ass”. In Mark B. Salter’s Barbarians and Civilizations in International Relations, the difference between civilized, barbarian and savages are detailed in a tabloid. Table 1. The difference between civilized, barbarian and savages Civilized

Barbarian

Savage

Christian

Poly/monotheistic

Animism

Rule of law

Presence of laws

Absence of laws

Democracy

Despotism

Familial

European manners

Clothes

Nakedness

Cooked food

Spicy food

Humans as food

Adult

Adolescent

Childish

Masculine

Feminine

Childlike

Restrained sexuality

Exotic sexuality

Animalistic sexuality

Sovereignty

Indirect rule

Direct colonial domination

High culture

Low culture

Nature

Source: Salter, M.B. (2002). Barbarians and Civilization in International Relations. London: Pluto Press.

Americans see Muslims as savages and barbarians. Zarqawi’s gunman Butcher is kind of a person that could drill a child’s brain and cut women’s arms. On the other side, there are Iraqis that have animosity towards Americans. These are either “fucking haji soldiers” that helps Americans to combat with terrorists or a polygamist sheikh who loses his life due to his help to Americans in order to catch Butchers. One marine says when breaking into sheikh’s house “This Haji wants us all in here so he can blow us up.” Another marine says for women in the house “Found these bitches in the back closet”. Herein Chris “The Legend” and other heroic American soldiers constitute one side of picture as “us”, on the other side of the picture there are Muslim “savage” insurgents and terrorists or “fucking haji soldiers” as other. In both ways, Islam is humiliated and disgraced. Firstly, these “savages” fight in the name of Islam and take America and Christianity as their enemies. Secondly, there is “fucking hadji soldiers” trained by American soldiers who need their guidance. These haji soldiers have no capability than being American’s translator and gain no respect from American soldiers even if they help them in finding these “savages”.

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When Chris Kyle come to Fallujah for the first tour, Marc Lee explains the situation in there and if they see a “military age male”, they are there to kill them. Chris and his team is deployed in a house across the restaurant where they think Butcher might be. In the house, there is a small family, man, wife and a child. When they spy on the restaurant, “the military aged” statement is used for men coming to restaurant. This “military age male” discourse indicates that all grown up males are war-ridden militants that fight against the United States. This discourse eliminates innocence of Muslims and makes all of them enemy of the Western civilization. At the beginning of the film, Chris uses the same statement “I got a military-age male that’s on a cell phone, watching the convoy. Over.” These kinds of statements rule out different identification process. If there is a “military-age male” watching out American convoy, it should be known that he is there because he is aspired to kill Americans. Therefore, this tautology becomes a fact in the film as well as in the eyes of people seeing American Sniper. Chris and his team are invited to eid al-adha (the feast of sacrifice) dinner by owner of the house. When house owner bends over, he sees owners eroded elbow which is an indication of snipers and realizes that the owner is an insurgent and supporter of al-Qaeda. That he is an insurgent confirms the discourse of “military-age male”. Owner of the house invites the team to Eid al-Adha dinner and says on this day everyone has a seat at his table. This implies that to a much degree Islam and the concept of war are intertwined. After realizing that he is insurgent, Chris holds him and calls him “muj”. Muj is “a slang term amongst US troops, referring to Iraqi and Afghani insurgents. Derived from the overused Arabic Word, mujahideen, which means “one or a group of holy fighter(s) (urbandictionary, 2019). Owner of the house is either a “military-age male” or “muj”. In both ways, he bears malicious guilt and at last he is killed by American soldiers when he tries to shoot them as well. The team has a shoot-out with insurgents and kills “Butcher”. In the restaurant, they witness capitulated bodies, which verifies the concepts of “savage” used for Muslims. After shootout, the crowd gathers and holds up the dead body of house owner and chants slogans against America. When the team goes back to his establishment, it is seen on their vehicle Marvel’s character Punisher’s logo, which means that America is in Iraq to punish Muslims and Muslim World. Chris is informed about the insurgent crowd so everyone there is insurgent without discrimination. The only thing that American Sniper does not make a discrimination is that everyone is insurgent and terrorists. Homeowner’s wife calls sniper Mustafa. In Mustafa’s home, there is flyer on the Wall, which shows crusader cross and 180.000 dollars wanted for Chris’ head. Woman’s call indicates that not just a military-age male is American’s enemy; women and children share this privilege too. This crusader flyer implies that Muslim insurgents’ main struggle is against Christianity and the civilizations that it represents so Muslim and Christianity confrontation is clearly seen once again. Chris and his team deploy on a roof of a building in order to catch sniper Mustafa. Mustafa shoots an American soldier and Chris realizes that they set up in the wrong direction. However, other marine says, “Doesn’t matter. Hold your fire. We got uglies right below us.” Herein, insurgents are labelled as “uglies”. They are othered as “uglies” because their faces are covered and cannot be seen. This symbolical reflection of their identity makes them identical as faceless insurgents and prevents cinematic identification with characters whose death would be hailed by average audience. When Chris comes to Fallujah for the first tour, Marc Lee explained situation there: “Welcome to Fallujah. The new Wild West of the old Middle East. AQI put a price on your heads, and now extremist from around the globe are flooding the borders to collect on it…The city has been evacuated. Any military-age male who is still there is here to kill you.” In this opening scene of first tour, Marc Lee’s portrayal of Fallujah legitimize American soldier’s action there so along entire movie, Chris and other American soldiers have license to kill and evacuation of city farther means that military-age males are 187

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not only ones there to kill Americans, all people including women and child are potential candidates of terrorism as justified as seen in some scenes of American Sniper. In this context, generally Muslim standing against United States of America is terrorized and become monolithic. This leads to monolithic, single sided understanding of Islam. It is said that military-age male is there to kill Americans but it is never clear why American soldiers are exactly in Iraq. If a deduction is made, bombings of US missions in Africa and September 11 seem to be the logic of United States’ invasion of Iraq. Chris is watching American soldiers moving through the city and he kills more than the total of other SEAL snipers. Chris is reported by one of the insurgents’ wife whom he killed that his husband carries a Quran instead of a gun. Chris replies, “Look, I don’t know what a Quran looks like, but I can tell you what he was carrying. It was press metal, shot 7.62s and it looked just like an AK-47.” His saying he does not know what Quran looks like is an effort to make Quran something tangible and his following words proceeds with description of a significant rifle. Besides, he has not information about Islam. This means that Islam is not existent for him and what he represents for and it is an effort that make Christianity as the one true religion. Islam is implied as a religion of war, bringing Quran and war materials together. Additionally, allegedly mechanism of democracy seems operational when Chris is called to be questioned for the killing of a “military-age male”. It means in all this violent and inhuman situation, United States could hold accountable his soldiers because of their action. This leads to justification of killings in the movie. Dogma Four: The Orient is at bottom something either to be feared or to be controlled. American Sniper begins with sound of a Muslim prayer and it is accompanied by moving American tanks. American soldiers walk with tanks and patrols Iraqi streets. American tanks’ sound overtaking the sound of prayer indicates that Islam is the enemy of American war machine as suggested in Samuel Huntington’s “clash of civilizations” thesis that presupposed Islam as antagonist of the West. To sum up, the representation of Islam with sound of prayer is counterbalanced by military representation of the West and United States with sound of military tanks. This shows that the most proper way to deal with Islam is the way of war. Chris tries to meet his future wife Taya in the bar, there is a dialogue coming up when Taya says guys in SEAL are arrogant and self-centered: Chris: Why would you say I’m self-centered? I’d lay down my life for my country Taya: Why? Chris: Because it’s the greatest country on earth and I’d do everything I can to protect it. Chris states that they live in the greatest country in the world and he does everything to keep it safe so other countries, significantly countries with great Muslim populations are not that great and housing dangers for the United States. For this reason, many Americans like Chris become soldiers and go to war with foreign countries. Taya replied, “I mean, it’s pretty egoistical of you to think you can protect us all. Isn’t it Chris?” Taya’s words sum up United States’ world police role it has assumed in the aftermath of Cold War: defending everyone’s interest in the name of everyone and going to war in order to protect world order. In addition, expression “the greatest country” for America put other countries outside of the circle and marginalize them.

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Before joining SEAL, Chris was a rodeo cowboy growing up in Texas, joining rodeo contest. In these contests, the logic is that how much time you spend on a “wild horse” you win the competition and Chris win it doing that. He channels his skills from controlling “wild horses” to controlling his rifle and killing “savages”. His control and ride of “wild horses” as a rodeo cowboy is a metaphor reflecting US’ efforts to bridle and control the Muslim world. It seems the basic motivation of United States going to war with Iraq as a conversation between Marc Lee and Chris Kyle manifests: Marc Lee: That Bible of yours, is that bulletproof? Chris: What, the one I put in here? Marc: Yeah. I just never saw you open it I assumed. Chris: God, country, family right? Marc: You got a God? Chris: I got a God? You are getting weird on me? Marc: You know, growing up in Oregon, we had this electric fence around our property. Us kids would grab onto it and see who could hold on the longest. War feels kinda like that. Puts lighting in your bones and makes it hard to hold on to anything else. Chris: Hey man, you need to sit this one out? Marc: I just wanna believe in what we’re doing here. Chris: Oh, there’s evil here. We’ve seen it. Marc: Yeah, There’s evil everywhere. Chris: Oh, you want these motherfuckers to come to San Diego or New York? We are protecting more than just this dirt. Soon after, Marc Lee dies and for Chris “he let go and he paid the price for it”. Marc begins to question their presence in Iraq, his faith about what they are doing in Iraq blurs and he pays the price for it. Therefore, the lessons learned from his being killed is that if you question the justification of war and be shady about it you get killed. This tells the audience that it is a just war that does not need any disbelief and requires commitment. This dialogue between Chris and Marc shows that Islam is something to be controlled or feared. Just as God is with America, evil is a part of Muslim world and the Middle East as Chris says, “There is evil here.” One of the motivation behind United States’ Iraq invasion is to restrain fears about witnessing something similar to September 11. Chris tells that United States is the greatest country in the world. On the other hand, Iraq and Middle East are seemed as “dirt”. When he says about protecting more than just this dirt, its global meaning is that they are not just protecting America but also protecting the Muslim world even though they are not welcome. Therefore, it is understood that this kind of sacrifice is not just people in the United States and also people in the Middle East so this is not only justification of their action but also leads the way to think otherwise is impossible.

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FUTURE RESEARCH AND DIRECTIONS Having celebrated the 25th anniversary of Samuel Huntington’s clash of civilizations thesis in 2018, there are still many empty rooms to study and research to expose negative implications of this thesis.

CONCLUSION Celebrating the 25th anniversary of clash of civilization thesis in 2018, current developments in world politics bring out clash-based arguments between civilizations. The then head of the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff Kiron Skinner defined United States’ relations with China in terms of clash of civilizations (Musgrave 2019). In this context, existence of clashes between civilizations may find a ground in the recent political atmosphere. In this study, as it is seemed in United States’ international actions and discourses, clashes between Islamic and Western civilizations in Hollywood films have been analyzed and the movie American Sniper is taken for sampling. American Sniper tells the story of Chris Kyle, deadliest sniper in American history who has gained this title with killings in Iraq after United States’ invasion of Iraq. This title brings a nickname “The Legend”. The movie tries to build United States as sheepdog which is a metaphor addressing US’ patrolling role in the world over the character Chris Kyle. On the contrary, Muslims are represented either as “fucking haji soldiers” (sheep) or as “savages” (wolves). This kind of discrimination only helps continuing centuries-old inaccurate and biased images of Muslims and Middle Easterners. As “savages”, “muj”, “military-age male” which is a phrase implied to be more objective and scientific, “fucking haji soldiers”, “insurgents”, “terrorists” are some phrases used to create a monolithic Muslim and Arab World. Herein, abstractions are preferable to direct evidence. Extremists coming to Fallujah from different parts of the world have no distinct dialect, accent or a country to find out their identity. This serves to strengthen monolithic, abstract perception of Muslims and Arabs. It is an effort of Western thinking process to portray and generalize Islam and the Orient. In Black Hawk Down (2001), Somalians clashing with American soldiers are called “skinnies”. In American Sniper, they become “savages” Islamic civilization is to be controlled with Chris Kyle’s sniper rifle. Chris says, “You want these motherfuckers to come to San Diego or New York? We are protecting more than just this dirt.” The geography of Muslim world is not just described as dirt but also described as somewhere to be dominated through military intervention or invasion so as to protect US’ and Western soil. It is implied that no good comes from these geographies and people of these lands should be blocked from coming to West. This understanding of Islamic civilization is a denial of multiculturalism wherein different cultures may coexist. It is concluded in the movie that there exist clashes between Islam and Western civilization, which is represented by the United States and Islamic civilization is demonized as other. In this context, it can be said that discriminative cinematic codes of Hollywood have been operational to date. It should not be thought that one-sided Western thinking prevails when it comes to Islamic civilization. It leaves no doubt, there are some terrorist groups bringing their Islamic identity forefront, perpetrating bloody terror attacks in different parts of the world. However, emphasis should be placed on why the Islamic world is represented as an decontextualized enemy of the West. No violence is approved as Islam and violence has no common ground. Today, as how it is difficult to comprehend the political distance between Russia and United States without considering the Cold War, it is similarly difficult to understand conflicting

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issues between the Western and Islamic countries over differences between Islam and Christianity or Islam and Western civilizations.

REFERENCES Cold War. (n.d.). In History. Retrieved from: https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war Huntington, S. P. (1993). The Clash of Civilizations. Foreign Affairs, 72(3), 22–49. doi:10.2307/20045621 Huntington, S. P. (2005). Medeniyetler Çatışması ve Dünya Düzeninin Yeniden Kurulması. Okuyan Us. Khatib, L. (2006). Filming the Modern Middle East: Politics in the Cinemas of Hollywood and the Arab World (Vol. 57). IB Tauris. doi:10.5040/9780755695720 Kumar, D. (2012). Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire. Haymarkert Books. Lewis, B. (1990). The roots of Muslim rage. Atlantic Monthly, 226(3), 47–60. Muj. (n.d.) In Urbandictionary, Retrieved from https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Muj Nittle, N. K. (2019). Common Muslim and Arab Stereotypes in TV and Film. Retrieved from https:// www.thoughtco.com/tv-film-stereotypes-arabs-middle-easterners-2834648 Richardson, R., & Conway, G. (1997). Islamphobia: A Challenge for Us All: report of the Runnymede Trust Commission on British Muslims and Islamophobia. The Runnymede Trust. Said, E. (1979). Orientalism. Random House. Salter, M. B. (2002). Barbarians and Civilization in International Relations. Pluto Press. Shaheen, J. G. (2003). Reel bad Arabs: How Hollywood vilifies a people. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 588(1), 171–193. doi:10.1177/0002716203588001011 Smith, T. (2019). Qualitative analysis, Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/q/qualitativeanalysis.asp

ADDITIONAL READING Belton, J. (2013). American Cinema/American Culture. McGraw-Hill. Kellner, D. (2010). Cinema Wars Hollywood Film and Politics in the Bush-Cheney Era. Blackwell. Said, E. W. (2012). Culture and Imperialism. Vintage. Uluç, G. (2009). Medya ve Oryantalizm: Yabancı, Farklı ve Garip... Öteki. Anahtar Kitaplar Yayınevi.

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS American Sniper: It is a 2014 American war drama directed by Clint Eastwood. Clash of Civilizations: It is thesis that cultural differences will be the main source of conflict in the Post-Cold War world. Discrimination: Treating a person or a particular group in a different and unfairly way. Hollywood Cinema: It is the most dominant and productive cinema industry in the world. Iraq War: The Iraq War was an armed conflict that began with the invasion of Iraq by the coalition led by United States of America in 2003. Islamophobia: It is the hate and prejudice against religion of Islam and Muslims. Orientalism: It is a way of seeing that define, picturize, and distort non-Western cultures and worlds. Xenophobia: It is the fear and hatred of strangers or foreigners.

ENDNOTE

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This study is based on a Phd thesis “Hollywood Cinema and Islam in the Context of Clash of Civilization Thesis”.

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Chapter 14

From “Hero” to “Evil”:

The Movie Richard Jewell as an Example of Moral Panic Bilal Süslü Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University, Turkey

ABSTRACT The security guard, who was the pioneer to prevent the suspicious package left in the entertainment area, was primarily declared as ‘hero’ after the incident in Atlanta during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, and then he was vilified as ‘evil’ as a result of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and media representations about the incident. The incident was adapted into the movie Richard Jewell in 2019, directed by Clint Eastwood. The movie, in which Jewell’s devastating life is narrated in the screenplay, is regarded as to be worth analyzing because the media reflects the witch hunt that Stanley Cohen defines as a moral panic. Consequently, the moral panic creation of the media is tried to be analyzed through the movie Richard Jewell in this study.

INTRODUCTION Several events were organized before the Centennial Olympics was held in Atlanta in 1996, and a bomb attack occured in one of these events. The impact of the attack was weak thanks to the security guard, Richard Jewell who warned and mobilized the security forces against the suspicious package. Jewell was also declared as a national hero because he prevented a disaster that would happen. However, Jewell, who was declared a national hero by the media, suddenly encountered to be the bomber vilified by the same media as a result of information leaked by the FBI. Jewell was living an ordinary life with her mother and his life was mentally turned upside down due to the FBI investigation and media attention. The investigation, which was carried out about him on the basis of several motivations such as attracting interest and being a hero in social perception, was eventually closed due to the lack of concrete evidence. However, the moral panic initiated by the media evoked the ‘false hero’ phenomenon that already exists in the society’s repertoire, and this turned his life upside DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch014

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down. The capture of the real perpetrator of the incident removed not only doubts about him, but also opened debates about the role of the power of media (particularly with the effects of news selection, agenda setting, etc.) in shaping social perception. The obvious lesson learned from the Richard Jewell case is to avoid identifying people as suspects unless there is a really good reason (Alexander, 2013). The Richard Jewell case was adapted into the movie in 2019, and the moral panic initiated by the media and the FBI based on the ‘false hero’ myth in the social memory was demonstrated in the movie. As is known, the subject of the movie can be analyzed based on how it is shown in the movie rather than how it actually occurred. This is because the main effect on the minds of people is the narrative structure of the film rather than what actually happens. For this reason, narrative is the most appropriate way to persuade people. What actually happens can be covered up with this narrative (Alpay, 2020). Consequently, the movie ‘Richard Jewell’ was analyzed in this study as it was considered to be a production, which reflected the moral panic and dramatic elements support the narrative, by keeping in mind the narrative effect of cinema that might cause illusion.

THE CONCEPT OF MORAL PANIC Moral panic is the name of the process that emerges as a result of the reaction societies sometimes show against the internalized norms, the attitude patterns that keep their lives in order, or the behaviors, identities, styles they regard as a threat to their belief systems. The concept is associated with the work published in 1972, which Stanley Cohen tried to indicated the reasons for the reactions of the media and various control actors after the ‘Mod and Rocker’ incident that emerged as a new youth phenomenon in the UK in the 1960s and defined the whole process as moral panic. Cohen (2002, p. xxxiv), explains the reason for using the term moral panic in that the social reaction given is disproportionate to the actual seriousness (in terms of risk, damage and/or threat) of the event. In other words, according to him, the reaction is always more severe than the situation demands (hence exaggerated, irrational, and unjustified). Although the concept is generally used in reference to Cohen, Marshall McLuhan first used the concept in his book “Understanding Media” published in 1964, which he explained the problem of the era many people had difficulty in examining the issue that people affected by western values from the media without mentioning moral panic. Stating that he took the concept from McLuhan, Cohen uses the moral panic to explain the media’s attitude to reflect these incidents after the Mod and Rocker incidents in the British coastal town of Clacton and denotes moral panic as follows (2002, p. 1); A condition, episode, person or group of persons emerges to become defined as a threat to societal values and interest; its nature is presented in a stylized and stereotypical fashion by the mass media; the moral barricades are manned by editors, bishops, politicians and other right-thinking people; socially accredited experts pronounce their diagnoses and solutions; ways of coping are evolved or (more often) resorted to; the condition then disappears, submerges or deteriorates and becomes more visible. With this definition, Kenneth Thompson (1998, p. 8) lists the key elements (or phases) of moral panic as follows: (i) something or someone is defined as a threat to values or interests; (ii) this threat is depicted in an easily recognizable form by the media; (iii) there is a rapid build-up of public concern; (iv) there is a response from authorities or opinion-makers; (v) the panic recedes or results in social changes.

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Goode & Ben-Yehuda (1994, pp. 156-158) categorizes the concept of moral panic with five important criteria from a constructivist perspective: • • • • •

Concern; there must be a high level of concern regarding the behavior (or assumed behavior) of a particular group or category and the consequences that behavior likely causes for the rest of the society. Hostility; there must be an increased level of hostility towards the category of person who engages in threatening behavior. Consensus; in society as a whole, or in certain segments of society, there must be agreement that the threat is real, serious, and results from the misconduct and wrongdoing behavior of group members. Disproportionality; in the use of the term moral panic there is an implicit assumption that concern is disproportionate to the nature of the threat. Volatility; moral panics are volatile. They can outcrop suddenly or (although they may remain confidential for a long time and reappear from time to time) diminishable suddenly.

For Cohen and his colleagues, moral panics represented media events with journalists playing an important role in identifying abnormal behavior and mobilizing consensus and anxiety. Thereby Cohen’s theory of moral panic, emphasizes the role of media in shaping knowledge that mediating between reality and represented. (Walsh, 2020, pp. 2-13). For this reason, the media becomes prominent with the inventory provided in demonstrating the reaction that emerges in the moral panic, and activating the control mechanisms towards the reaction. To Cohen, media inventories consist of fantasies, selective delusions and deliberate news that do not reflect the realities. Therefore, the media inventory of each event is analyzed under three categories: (i) exaggeration and distortion (the seriousness of the incidents and the effects of any damage or violence are excessively exaggerated and distorted due to the use of sensational headlines, the preference of melodramatic words, and the emphasis of these elements in the story regarded as news); (ii) prediction (the implicit assumption which is avaliable in almost every news and means that something will inevitably occur again); and (iii) symbolization (a word can become a symbol of a particular status (delinquent or deviant), objects (hairstyle, clothes) can symbolize the word, the objects themselves can become symbols of the status (and the emotions added to the status). Moreover, the manipulation of appropriate symbols, becomes much easier when the object of attack is both highly visible and structurally weak (Cohen, 2002, pp. 25-226). For Critcher moral panics, indicates the common features of social problems that emerge suddenly, cause confusion among powerful institutions and seem to require exceptional remedies. According to him, moral panics reveal a lot about the workings of power, particularly who has the capacity to define a social problem and propose appropriate action. The groups that have the potential to have this power are; (i) the press and broadcast; (ii) pressure groups and claims makers; (iii) politicians and government; (iv) police and law enforcement agencies; (v) and public opinion. If these groups come together on an issue, their strength is truly magnificent (Critcher, 2006, pp. 2-4). Moral panics are ideological, because they generate rumours to justify doing something chastiser in general (Chiricos, 2006, p. 104). Thereby, increased social control as a result of moral panic leads to the protection and re-defense of hegemonic values and interests allegedly weakened by the folk devils (Young, 2006, p. 277).

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On the other hand, Cohen concludes that the role of the media in creating moral panic and public enemy is explained by Leslie T. Wilkins’s model of deviation amplification. In this model, which aims to understand how social response can actually increase instead of reducing or controlling the amount of deviance, the first act of deviation or normative difference is responded by punishment. The deviant or deviant group perceives themselves as more deviant and categorizes themselves with others who are similar to them; and this leads to further deviation in the deviant or deviant group. Therefore, this situation exposes the group to more punitive sanctions; and the system starts going round again (Cohen, 2002, pp. 11-12). Figure 1. Process of Deviation Amplification

Source: Jewkes, 2008

To sum up, it is possible to list Cohen’s findings about a simple period of moral panic as follows (pp. 50-281): • • •

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Moral panics depends on the formation of diffusive normative concerns, and owe their appeal to their ability to address greater concerns (it’s not only this, increased over the years as a part of a trend, will get worse if nothing done). The deviant is seen by society as having stepped across a boundary that is not so clear at other times. New kinds of deviance are always found to be much more disturbing (or threatening) than the forms of deviance that society had previously dealt with; because the media starts to emphasize the so-called new elements of the condition.

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• • • • • • • • • • • •

•

•

In times of moral panic, there is a state of hysteria in society. As a result of hysteria, the wrong stimulus is chosen as the object of attack or fear, and every innocent person or actions are labelled as a suspect. Scapegoats and other types of hostility objects are more likely to appear in situations of extreme uncertainty. The behavior that causes moral panic can be thought of as a symptom of another deeper problem or in connection with an existing social malaise. According to some understanding in times of moral panic, people are somehow infected by crime, which spreads from person to person, so it is necessary to treat the disease. To describe deviance in times of moral panic, a role or social type is assigned to the deviant, motivations are attributed, causal patterns are sought and the behavior is grouped with other behaviors thought to be of the same type. The police are a crucial actor in the labelling process, with their immediate reaction to deviance. The labels are not invented after deviation; there is a stock of images that labelers make use of. Deviants must not only be labelled, but also be seen sure that the label is stuck on them; they must be subjected in some sort of ceremony of public degradation. For the deviant to be successfully turned into an enemy of the people, it is very important that this event is public and visible. The deviant label does not get always stick. The individual can be ignore the label, rationalize it, or simply pretend to comply. The less the background, motivation, and context of the deviant comes to the fore, the easier it is to demonize. The media is an important carrier and producer of moral panics; and, shapes the populist discourse and sets the political agenda. The media appear in any or all of three roles in moral panic dramas: ‘setting the agenda’ (selecting those deviant or socially problematic events deemed as newsworthy, then using finer filters to select which of these events are candidates for moral panic), ‘transmitting the images’ and ‘breaking the silence’, ‘making the claim’. Even the media coverage of certain ‘facts’ can be enough to generate concern, anxiety, indignation or panic. When these feelings come together with the perception that certain values must be protected, the preconditions for determining new social problems and establishing rules are comprised. Moral panics may end due to lack of interest, the achievement of the purpose of social control, the putative danger fizzles out, restraining media, the emergence of newsworthy other phenomena, and the media or entrepreneurs their information is discredited.

Moral panics, occur in complex societies when deep-seated and elusive social concerns focus on symbolic phenomenons that can be easily targeted (Weeks, 2006, p. 80). Consequently, those who have different lifestyles, immigrants, AIDS and this kind of diseases, and those who are exposed to these diseases, drug addiction which can be indignant in the society and this kind of problems or incidents such as natural disaster, assault or terror are general phenomena at the target of the moral panic. The Richard Jewell case, which was adapted into the movie, is a typical example of the moral panic shown against Jewell as a result of the state of anxiety came from deep roots in social memory.

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THE MOVIE ‘RICHARD JEWELL’ The movie Richard Jewell released in 2019 and directed by Clint Eastwood is about the experiences of Richard Jewell, who worked as a security guard at Centennial Olympic Park at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, as a result of the bomb attack in the park. The screenplay of the film was created by Billy Ray based on Marie Brenner’s article American Nightmare: The Ballad of Richard Jewell and the book The Suspect by Kent Alexander and Kevin Salwen. The movie appears to be an important production in terms of reflecting how Richard Jewell was transformed from a hero into a public devil due to the media. This is because it seems possible to say that the incident, which is shown as a significant example of moral panic, focuses on this situation in the movie. However, some dialogues, incidents and characters were created to provide dramatization in the movie, though it is based on real historical events. The movie begins with scenes that show Richard Jewell’s (Paul Walter Hauser) past business relationship with Watson Bryant (Sam Rockwell) who later becomes his lawyer. We understand from the scenes which narrate Jewell’s work experience in a school’s security unit that he and Bryant did not see each other for a while after this episode, which can be evaluated as a reference point to the relation between Jewell and Bryant. These scenes also represent the starting point of the series of events that will affect Jewell’s later life because his chief coded him as a person tends to attract interest in his mind. Jewell, who was fired after complaints while expecting a promotion in his job, begins to work in the security unit because he sees the Atlanta Olympic events as a step to be taken about his goal to be a police officer. However, he finds a suspicious package in the area where games are held. The knowledge in his training that he attended to be a police leads him to warn the security units and the crowd about the suspicious package. Despite a huge explosion, a disaster was prevented thanks to Jewell’s warning. It can be identified as the development part of the movie after the explosion. Jewell was declared as a national hero through the media. In particular, he becomes the focus of interest in news programs. Jewell and her mother Bobi (Kathy Bates) are glad and proud of this interest. The FBI, which undertakes the investigation about the incident, considers the strong suspicions that Jewell’s chief in his previous job may think about him to be a false hero similar to his past experiences, and conduct an investigation about him. The Atlanta Journal reporter Kathy Scruggs (Olivia Wilde) uses her relationship with the agent Tom Shaw (Jon Hamm), who conducts the investigation, to obtain information on the FBI’s suspicion of a ‘false hero’. Afterwards, Jewell is declared as the main suspect of the investigation with the news in the headline of the Atlanta Journal, and his life begins to become dramatic with the publication of this news on other media channels. The media is reflected as the main actor that creates moral panic against Jewell. Jewell wants to overcome this situation led by the media by requesting his old friend lawyer Bryant for help. With the support of his lawyer and mother, he finally overcomes this difficult situation that the FBI blames him as the responsible of the incident without relying on any concrete evidence on the media and the public. We can examine the plot of the movie in four parts: (i) Richard Jewell’s work life before the explosion in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics; (ii) the explosion in Atlanta Olympics and his experiences as a ‘hero’ after bomb attack; (iii) his experiences as a result of the FBI investigation, and the leak of the information to the media that he could be a ‘false hero’ (iv) his attempt to overcome the moral panic with his lawyer, which is escalated due to media, and the result of his FBI investigation to prove his innocence. In the first part of the movie, we see Richard Jewell as a patriot who aims to work for the police or secret service, lives with his mother Bobi (Barbara), is keen on guns as a hobby, but he also respects laws and rules. Jewell, who considers to be admitted to the Atlanta Police Department or the FBI in the future, 198

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practices with guns and studies criminal law every evening because he believes in protecting people. In the movie, it is understood that Jewell is a patriotic citizen and believes in the necessity of the rules of social order from the expressions with his speech to police chief in his previous school: “I believe in law and order, sir. You can’t have a country without it”. Jewell sees serving as a security guard at the Olympic Games as a good step to become a police officer. In fact, in his interview with his mother, he attributes some kind of policing characteristics to this task: “It’s still law enforcement, ain’t it? Even if I’m just... watching over a bunch of stereo equipment and whatnot?” Jewell also thinks he can actually succeed a respectable identity as a police officer because people respect the badge according to him. Richard, on the other hand, says that the world owes his mother a better life, while his mother responds by saying that the world owes both of them. As it can be understood, his mother also mentions that he deserves to be a police officer, but for some reason he can not accomplish this goal. In the second part of the movie, we see that Jewell works as a security guard in the area where the concert organized for the Atlanta Olympic Games takes place and then the bomb attack occurs. Meanwhile, FBI agent Tom Shaw and Atlanta Journal reporter Kathy Scruggs are also in there. These scenes also give clues about long-term friendships of agent Shaw and the reporter Scruggs, and the connection between the media and the FBI, which will leak later. Jewell, who has the pioneer role in warning the crowd about the suspicious package before the explosion and is understood to prevent the disaster by mobilizing the security forces, is demonstrated by the witnesses and media inventory as a national ‘hero’ after the explosion. To Cohen (2002, p. 24), there is a relatively unorganized reaction period immediately following a physical disaster. This is followed by the inventory phase, which those exposed to the disaster evaluate what is happening and their own situation. Thus, most people acquire their judgements about perversion or the situation as a result of the frameworks the media initially interpreted and presented. In this context, Jewell is coded as ‘hero’ in public perception due to the media texts and becomes a significant figure in the media agenda. However, Jewell meets this hero image in a modest frame that cannot be attributed to him solely. Also, in the movie, live broadcast images of a television news bulletin that real Richard Jewell attended are included to create a reality effect. Jewell’s modest attitude to be declared as a hero in the program is also supported by these real images: News Moderator - With us now is Richard Jewell, the security guard who first spotted that knapsack that contained the bomb and began clearing people away before it exploded... A lot of people are calling you a hero. Do you feel like one? Richard Jewell - No, ma’am. I feel like, uh, I was a person that did the job that I was supposed to do. I was in the right place at the right time, and used my training in the way I was taught. The real heroes are the paramedics and the firemen and all the agents that placed themselves between the bomb and the people that were refusing to move, because they took most of the shrapnel themselves. Despite this, Jewell is now a character who starts walking on the streets as a ‘hero’ due to media inventory: “Hey, Richard!... Hey. Way to go, man... You made us all real proud”. Attracting interest from the public can also be read as a sign that Jewell is finally able to see the value world owes to him and his mother. Politicians and media elites react in terms of positions, statuses, interests, ideologies and values. Thus, even the most fleeting moral panic may reflect the interests of the political and media elites (Cohen, 2002, pp. xxxvi-217). In the movie, it is observed that Scruggs is created as a character that prioritizes

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her interests and is isolated from the social and human feelings emerged from the explosion. Consequently, Kathy Scruggs, reporter in the Atlanta Journal, is portrayed as the main actor who initiated the moral panic. For example, this is revealed in her words “Whoever did this, please let us find him before anybody else does. And please, whoever he is, let him be interesting”. This can also be examined in the context of demonstrating a general media profile in particular, Scruggs. In the third part of the movie, the scenes of the FBI’s suspicions about Jewell’s chief in his previous job that Jewell was fired before his duty in the Olympics (I wanna be clear, I haven’t accused him of anything. I just ... I see the attention he’s getting. It’s the kind of attention he was always seeking here. And harassing students, pulling people over on the highway. Just crazy behavior ...) become prominent. Therefore, FBI agents soon conclude that Jewell may be a ‘false hero’ similar to the past examples based on this suspicion. In this context, the FBI investigation in the movie paves the way for the moral panic campaign against Jewell and makes him ready for the media inventory by attributing to a false feature: FBI - Well, when I look at Jewell, I think about the bomb scare at the L.A. Olympics in ‘84. A bag left on a bus by the same cop who then discovered it. And the fires in Idaho this summer started by a firefighter who wanted the credit for putting them out. A profile emerges here. The false hero. In interviews, Jewell’s account of the bombing seems vague, and he looks uncomfortable discussing the victims. I also found that his mentioning on TV that he wanted to get back into law enforcement a bit inappropriate. There’s a lot here that’s troubling. And everything that Agent Shaw has learned about him syncs up with this profile... Let’s put eyes on him. In the deviation model that Cohen created based on Mod and Rocker samples, it is indicated that social reaction increases the action defined deviant by providing integrity within the group in the course of time. An interesting prototype of the hero is depicted in the movie ‘Richard Jewell’. The insight, which Jewell’s former chief told to FBI agents that Jewel could be a fake hero, is the beginning of his nightmarish days. Regardless of the Jewell case, the false hero prototype is a typical example of deviance amplification. The drive of the deviant person is the motivation that he will become a “hero”, which is formed as a result of the reaction of society, by doing bad actions. The FBI and the media’s use of the previous false hero cases, which are in the social memory but forgotten in the course of time, as the main argument in demonstrating Jewell as an enemy of the public, is the belief that Jewell accomplishes his goal of policing by imitating the previous false heroes. As a result, according to the FBI, Richard Jewell is a simple representative of the false hero phenomenon that increases gradually. In this context, the focus of the FBI’s investigation about the incident is directly based on the suspicion of Jewell and his motivation (false hero). To Cohen (2002, p. xxx), if offenders’ background, motivation, and context become less apparent, it will be easier to demonize them. However, the ‘false hero’ motivation attributed to Richard Jewell in the movie is revealed as a factor that accelerates the demonization process of Jewell. In other words, the ‘false hero’ motivation becomes prominent as the basic motivation of the demonization process. Realizing that he is a suspect by the FBI, Jewell finds the solution to look for his old friend, lawyer Watson Bryant, who he regards as one of the few people he can trust in his life, and demands to be his lawyer. On the other hand, it is reflected in the movie that the reporter Kathy Scruggs, who works for the Atlanta Journal, has a relationship of interest with the FBI through Agent Tom Shaw. The FBI and the media are shown as the main actors of a process that increasingly harms Richard Jewell in this network of relationships. Furthermore, reporter Scruggs obtains the information from Agent Shaw that Jewell is the FBI’s prime suspect: 200

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Agent Tom Shaw - We’re looking at the security guard, Jewell. You always look at the guy who found the bomb, just like you always look at the guy who found the body. But this guy, he’s got a bad past. Fits the profile of the hero-bomber to a T. Scruggs shares this important information from the FBI with the editorial team of the newspaper and her suspicious approach to the newspaper editor on whether the news is published reflects her efforts to force the editor to publish the news, especially due to her personal interests: “Richard Jewell, 33, a former law enforcement officer, fits the profile of the lone bomber. This profile generally includes a frustrated white man who is a former police officer, member of the military, or police wanna be who seeks to become a hero. Jewell has become a celebrity in the wake of the bombing, making appearances on The Today Show. (...) These are our Olympics. If we don’t lead on this story, what are we doing here?” The news in the Atlanta Journal is published by Kathy Scruggs and Ron Martz. Other news organizations cite this news as a reference and share with the public the FBI’s investigation that Richard Jewell may have personally organize the bomb attack with the desire to become a ‘hero’, as breaking news or front page news. After these shares, Jewell suddenly confronts being a ‘false hero’ in social perception. The ‘false hero’ phenomenon, which has already included in the past inventory of social perception, begins to affect him. Jewell is ready to become the new popular demon of the moral panic as the central interest of the large crowd of reporters with the questions that evoke pre-acceptance of this situation: “Mr. Jewell, why are the FBI here?, Mr. Jewell, what have they told you?, Are they letting you go back to work?, They’re letting you go to work?, You’re good to go?, Are the FBI investigating you?, Have they told you yet you can’t leave town?, Mr. Jewell, are you under arrest?, You’re free to go wherever you like?, You’re free to go wherever you’d like, Richard?, Who are you working with?, What happened out there?, What do you think of the appearance that people are saying that you are now the prime suspect?, What’s going on, Richard?, Why are you talking to the FBI?, Mr. Jewell, what does the FBI want with you?, Can you give us any more information?”. In Jewell’s house accompanied by the large number of reporters, mother Bobi watches the news on television with the subtitle “Richard Jewell Bombing Suspect”. In the news, which is reported that the FBI obtained enough evidence to arrest Jewell, mother Bobi feels disappointed when a reliable TV programmer talks about Jewell hopelessly. In addition, reporters waiting in front of his house ask several questions again when Jewell returns home: “Were you charged?, Richard, are you the FBI’s lead suspect?, Tell us something, Richard. Did you set that bomb?, Richard, what did they say to you today?, What did the FBI say to you, Richard?, How you feeling?, Did the FBI charge you?, Did you set that bomb, Richard?, Are you free to go anywhere?, What can you tell us about the FBI interview?, Are you free to go anywhere?, Where were you?, Richard, what did the FBI say to you?, Are you a suspect, Richard?” Jewell particularly approaches them with the pre-acceptance that security forces only do their job to enforce the law and he is raised as an individual who respects the authorities and laws. However, his lawyer Bryant reminds him to be mistaken: “Son, authority’s what’s outside that window looking to eat you alive”. Meanwhile, Kathy Scruggs, who is the reporter of the Atlanta Journal, hides in the car of Bryant, Jewell’s lawyer, to obtain information and offer cooperation, gets a strong reaction from Bryant. Bryant attends a TV interview about latest developments and answers questions. Bryant complains that they have to respond to the media and the FBI due to the information leak while the investigation must be conducted in secret: “I think whoever the bum was that leaked that Richard Jewell was the focus of this investigation, he deserves to be prosecuted or dealt with in some serious way. I don’t think that this in201

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vestigation should be conducted under world spotlight, if you will, like this... It’s his former residence, as I understand it. You need to understand something. I have barely had the time to take a breath in this case since it started the other night. We have been reacting to the media, to the FBI, and I have not sat down and conducted an in-depth interview about all these things that y’all are asking me about.” In addition, Bryant speaks to Jewell to try to prevent the symbols that may justify his FBI investigation and the reaction of media and overshadow his innocence: “(...) let me explain something to you. All you’re guilty of right now is looking like the kinda guy who might set off a bomb. But everything you do that promotes that image is gonna hang us. Sorry. Poor choice of words. Those jackals out there, they want your ass on a chopping block.” However, in the FBI’s house search, a large number of symbols are found that can escalate suspicions about Jewell and can be associated with the false hero profile. As is known, symbol is an important part of the moral panic. In the movie, the ‘false hero’ has replaced the deviant status. The discovery of Jewell’s hunting sports weapons by the FBI also strengthened his false hero status. Moreover, these weapons have also become the symbol of false hero status. On the other hand, during the scenes of Jewell’s house, FBI’s search about their private belongings makes Bobi Jewell upset, and mother Jewell describes this as an act of humiliation, and this occurs in front of reporters waiting in front of the house: Bobi Jewell - Hey! You have no right. Come back here... They went through my underthings. How much indignity do they want us to take? Watson Bryant - They found some really dangerous pantyhose, apparently. Journalist - What did they pull out of the house? Did he do it, Watson? Watson Bryant - No, he did not. Richard Jewell is an innocent man. He’s a hero. Humiliation emerges as an important feature of moral panic processes. Accordingly, those vilified as bad should be exposed, humiliated, and even dehumanized in public. Meanwhile, Jewell, who takes his dog for a walk in the garden of his house under the media blockade, has a short-term heart condition, but the reporters continue to ask questions: “Come on, Richard, you can’t hide anymore. Richard, one question. That’s all. Did you do it?, Richard, how many bombs have you made?, What did the FBI take out of your house, Richard?”. The film demonstrates a collage of strict headlines that Jewell may be a ‘bomber’ in the newspaper headlines, highlighting the moral panic that Jewell is subjected to: “Olimpic Bombing Surprise Bubba the Bomber?” (Philadelphia Daily News), “Saint or Savage?” (New York Post), “Bomb probe focuses on ‘hero’” (Billing’s Gazette), “‘Hero’ guard focus of probe” (The Daily Times), “Bomber’s profile shows ‘nut case’” (Atlanta Journal), “Strange turn of events: A hero becomes villain” (Atlanta Journal), “Guard had only low-level credentials” (Atlanta Journal), “Guard’s alertness in park makes him an unexpected hero”, “Guard’s quick thinking saved lives”, “Our office and this place are bugged”, “‘Hero’ Guard Is Now Bomb Suspect”. Moreover, reporters are now so sure that Jewell is a bomber, and they can ask him the following question as they walk into the polygraph machine at the request and accompaniment of Jewell’s lawyer: “Richard! Are you here to turn yourself in?”.

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The final part of the movie begins with the visit of Jewell’s lawyer Bryant to speak to the editorial office of the Atlanta Journal, based on the belief that the process has become complicated due to the irresponsible news created by media. The content of Kathy Scruggs and Bryant’s tense speech, who is reflected as the main actor to initiate the media phase of the moral panic, is shaped by some determinations that the media put aside human feelings and ethical principles for the sake of specific interests (such as circulation), fiction and doubt replace reality while creating news: Watson Bryant - We’re just about to go demand a retraction. This is, like, top-rate science fiction. “Bomb suspect sought limelight.” Are you kidding me? Who the hell do you think you are? Kathy Scruggs - Mr. Bryant, what I do is I report the facts. Watson Bryant - You lead the public, is what you do. Kathy Scruggs - I report the facts... What I do is, I hear the facts, I report them. That is my responsibility. Watson Bryant - The facts? What about the truth, huh? Kathy Scruggs - My guiding principle is to report the facts. Watson Bryant - What principles? This isn’t a principle standing next to me. This man’s name is Richard Jewell. He’s a hero. He saved lives. Do you have any idea what kinda wildfire you started? You’ve ruined this man’s life. Maybe you owe him an apology. After this speech, reporter Scruggs realizes that the nearest pay phone to the explosion area was not at a point where Jewell may reach during that period, based on the phone received 30 minutes before the explosion that the bomb is planted in the Olympic park. However, Jewell has already been coded as ‘false hero’ in public perception. Scruggs again finds the solution in a very simple media practice (as a manifestation of a mentality that do not (cannot) see what Jewell and his family experiences): “He didn’t do it... Fine. I’ll just write that the case against Jewell is starting to weaken. Bad facts, etcetera.” Lawyer Bryant organizes a press conference with Bobi Jewell to eliminate the misunderstanding created by the media inventory about Jewell and to convince the public that he is a true ‘hero’. In this scene, which a highly emotional atmosphere occurs, the psychological violence experienced by the family during this period is shared with the public: Watson Bryant - Next to me is Bobi Jewell... mother of Richard Jewell... Her son’s accusers are two of the most powerful forces in the world today. The United States government and the media. For the past four weeks, these horrific forces have combined to make her daily existence a living hell. As I speak, they continue to crush the very life out of her and her only son. Bobi Jewell - I do not think any of you can even begin to imagine what our lives are like. The media has portrayed my son as the person who has committed [the Olympic Park bombing]. They have taken all privacy from us. They have taken all peace. They watch and photograph everything we do. Like the media, the FBI follows his every move and watches my home constantly. And why? My son... My son is innocent. Richard is not the Olympic Park bomber. Richard is not a murderer. He saved people’s lives... My son is a hero. I think the FBI knows that by now... Mr. President... Please clear my son’s name.

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In the final part of the movie, there is a speech to indicate the meaninglessness that Jewell is treated as if he was guilty although there is no concrete evidence to be guilty in his meeting with FBI officials: Richard Jewell - Do you have any kind of case against me?... Like, any traces of anything on my mama’s Tupperware? Or did you find any bomb-making materials in her apartment?... I did my job that night, and some people are alive because of that. Do you think that the next time some security guard sees a suspicious package, that he or she’s gonna call it in? I doubt it... ‘Cause they’re gonna look at that and they’re gonna think, “I don’t wanna be another Richard Jewell, so I’m just gonna run.” How’s that make anybody any safer?... But I just know that every second you spend on me is time that you’re not spending on the real guy who did it... So, do you have anything you wanna charge me with? Can you? Well. I think it’s time to go. After this speech, lawyer Bryant sits in the café with Jewell and reads the resolution text that the FBI investigation was completed and he is not guilty. Meanwhile, Agent Shaw, who personally conducted the FBI investigation, is in the same cafe and approaches to Jewell and states his belief that he is a ‘false hero’. According to Susan Moeller, sometimes the media, ‘confronted with the images of putrefying corpses or swollen bodies bobbling along river banks they looked away –even when they believed that the story was important’. Moeller defines this as ‘compassion avoidance’ (Cohen, 2002, p. xlii). Agent Shaw’s belief, which Jewell was guilty, even though no evidence was found and associated to blame him, is actually a typical example of the ‘compassion avoidance’ attributed to the media. In addition, Howard S. Becker (1963, pp. 147-150) identifies two types of moral entrepreneurs, rule enforcers and rule creators: The prototype of the rule creator is the crusader reformer. He/she deals with the content of the rules. The existing rules do not satisfy him/her, because there are some evils that disturb him/her deeply. He/she thinks nothing can be right in the world until rules are made to correct it. He/she works with an absolute ethical understanding; what he sees is truly and utterly evil. He/she regards it as legitimate to resort to all means to eliminate evil. The crusader is zealous and righteous, mostly self-righteous. The moral crusader is more concerned with results than meanings. It can be said that Agent Shaw generally has the characteristics of a moral crusader prototype. Although no concrete evidence has been obtained, his belief that Jewell is guilty leads him to utilize almost all kinds of illegal methods. Consequently, Agent Shaw portrays a self-righteous profile without mercy in the movie. The movie Richard Jewell ends with Jewell’s encounter with his lawyer Bryant six years later while he is working in the Luthersville Police Department, and Bryant tells him that they find the real criminal.

CONCLUSION Media is one of the main actors to initiate the moral panic by shaping individual and social perception. As Cohen concludes (2002, p. xx), the media often sets the agenda by shaping the news discourse. In this study, it is tried to analyze the movie Richard Jewell through the moral panic creation of the media. The movie, which Jewell becomes the target of public interest and reaction due to the media inventory and is represented with dramatic elements, is a significant example in terms of reflecting the media effect. As it can be seen in the movie, the media, which rightfully pursue all kinds of newsworthy information, often act by putting aside human feelings, as in times of moral panic. In this context, it can be assumed that the media act with a sense of duty. However, the route of public interest and reaction can easily be

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determined by easily attaching some negative examples occured in the social memory to a new situation. In the movie Richard Jewell, we witness that the media transform the ‘hero’ myth into a ‘bomber’ myth, with the news headlines. Therefore, the media and the FBI are reflected as responsible for the moral panic in the movie, which the FBI investigation is portrayed in a framework that supports an extrajudicial and immoral execution and the media is featured as the actor that accelerates this execution process.

FUTURE RESEARCH AND DIRECTIONS Nowadays, some incidents, situations, people or groups can easily be the target of moral panics through social media despite the fact that moral panic becomes a popular concept in the process of describing incident that occured in the coastal towns of England in the 1960s. The fact that social media enables multiple communication processes compared to traditional media points out a situation that can be examined as both positive and negative in terms of moral panics. It is positive because social media also enables opposing ideas to circulate and therefore, allows the object of moral panic to defend her. It is negative because social media can escalate the moral panic more rapidly than before. Therefore, manipulated information can be much easier to remind prejudices or stereotypes that are embedded in social repertoire through social media. In this context, regarding the media is a power that creates moral panic and it is thought that the reactions of today’s societies result mostly from social media; it will be more efficient to trace and analyze the new goals of moral panics through social media in terms of observing the point that moral panics reach.

REFERENCES Alpay, Y. (2020). Tarihçiler Sinemacı mıdır? Boş Modern Sohbetler. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtBKIlcdksk Becker, H. S. (1963). Outsiders: Studies in the Sociology of Deviance. The Free Press. Chiricos, T. (2006). Moral Panic as Ideology: Drugs, Violence, Race and Punishment in America. In C. Critcher (Ed.), Critical Readings: Moral Panics and The Media (pp. 103–123). Open University Press. Cohen, S. (2002). Folk Devils and Moral Panics. Routledge. Critcher, C. (2006). Introduction: More Questions than Answers. In C. Critcher (Ed.), Critical Readings: Moral Panics and The Media (pp. 1–24). Open University Press. Goode, E., & Ben-Yehuda, N. (1994). Moral Panics: Culture, Politics, and Social Construction. Annual Review of Sociology, 20(1), 149–171. doi:10.1146/annurev.so.20.080194.001053 Jewkes, Y. (2008). Media and Crime. Sage Publications Ltd. McLuhan, M. (1964). Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. New York: Academic Press. RetroReport.org. (2013, 7 October). Richard Jewell: The Wrong Man. Retrieved from https://www. retroreport.org/transcript/richard-jewell-the-wrong-man/

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Thompson, K. (1998). Moral Panics: Key Ideas. Routledge. Walsh, J. P. (2020). Social Media and Moral Panics: Assessing the Effects of Technological Change on Societal Reaction. International Journal of Cultural Studies, 00(0), 1–20. doi:10.1177/1367877920912257 Weeks, J. (2006). AIDS: The Intellectual Agenda. In C. Critcher (Ed.), Critical Readings: Moral Panics and The Media (pp. 77–88). Open University Press. Young, M. (2006). Another Look at Moral Panics: The Case of Satanic Day Care Centers. In C. Critcher (Ed.), Critical Readings: Moral Panics and The Media (pp. 277–290). Open University Press.

ADDITIONAL READING Alexander, K., & Salwen, K. (2019). The Suspect: An Olympic Bombing, the FBI, the Media, and Richard Jewell, the Man Caught in the Middle. Hodder & Stoughton. Brenner, M. (2019). Richard Jewell: And Other Tales of Heroes, Scoundrels, and Renegades. Simon & Schuster Paperbacks.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Evil: Imaginary or tangible person, group of people and incident that is perceived to violate preestablished boundaries to protect social order and interests. Hero: A person or group of people who admit as their duty to warn and protect the society they live in against all kinds of danger or bad action – by putting aside their own interests. Media: General name of the organizations such as the press, radio and television which obtain all kinds of information that they regard as newsworthy in order to reach their target audience and create news by filtering this information within the framework of their ideological approaches. Moral Panic: The reaction process of societies against behaviors, identities, styles or beliefs that they perceive as threats to norms, attitude patterns or belief systems that enable them their lives to keep in order. Movie Richard Jewell: The movie Richard Jewell released in 2019 and directed by Clint Eastwood that depicts the real life story of Richard Jewell, whose life was turned upside down under the leadership of the FBI and the media following the explosion of the suspicious package found at the 1996 Atlanta Cennetial Olympic Games. Richard Jewell Incident: The incident that a security guard named Richard Jewell, who was in the 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Park and then alerted and mobilized security forces to a suspicious package that exploded, was declared as a national ‘hero’ after the explosion and vilified as ‘bomber’ due to the information leaked to the media by the FBI. Witch Hunt: The process initiated by the control actors of the society (such as police, media) against the person, group of people, incident or situation that is thought to violate the order of any society, and often legal mechanisms are put aside, resulting in various physical and psychological victimization.

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Discussing Abstraction of Evil in Concreteness of Murder: Elena (2011) Eşref Akmeşe İnönü Üniversitesi, Turkey

ABSTRACT Evil, one of the ancient problems humanity has faced, continues its existence within the intellectual occupations of modern people by discussing benefit-harm and means-ends as matters of debate and is addressed as an important theme with different perspectives in cultural areas. The film Elena (2011), directed by Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev, anesthetizes the evil in the context of material-moral interindividual relations within the structure of modern society, and opens it for discussion on the philosophical plane, allowing the evil to be the subject of abstract discussions in the context of concrete events. In this framework, the philosophical messages presented in Elena on good and evil are analyzed in the article, and the instrumentalization of evil to achieve the goal and the dynamics of doing evil for good are discussed in the context of subjective goodness thought.

INTRODUCTION “One still believes in good and evil and experiences the triumph of the good and the annihilation of evil as a task”, The Will to Power, F. Nietzsche Evil refers to an ancient problem that makes you feel its presence in interpersonal relationships. Evil, which is effective in all the relationships that individuals establish in social life, serves as a kind of control mechanism and evaluation criterion, especially as a measure of moral value and the accuracy and inaccuracy of actions in people’s interactions and relationships with other people. Evil as an ancient problem in human history is among the prominent discussion topics of disciplines such as theology, philosophy, politics and ethics and is given meaning from different perspectives. Different meanings have DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-4778-6.ch015

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been given to the problem of evil within the boundaries of different disciplines and the possibilities of understanding evil and coping with evil have been discussed for a long time. On the other hand, there is no universal and valid explanation of evil for everyone. This leads to the ambiguity of the difference between good and evil depending on the perception of evil and the relative meaning of evil. When it comes to evil, first comes to mind the devil personified as the symbol of massacres, great disasters, acts of violence and evil on the theological plane. This case becomes significant as a result of the perception created by the dominant cultural atmosphere on evil, which affects the further agendizing of the destruction and theological dimension of evil. On the other hand, the problematization of evil in relation to the choices made by the individual in his/her life is at the centre of the dilemmas and motivations for action experienced on the moral plane. In this respect, what can be considered evil or not is open to change to the extent that it involves subjectivity. In this context, it is natural to make evaluations on good and evil from very different perspectives about the events taking place within the complex structure of modern society. In this context, when people make judgments about an action and its consequences such as “should this have happened” or “should not have happened in this way”, the evaluations made fall within the area of the problem of evil. In this regard, the problem of evil continues to be an important dynamic of the actions and value judgments of the modern individual. The concept of evil, which makes people feel their presence in all the relationships they establish in social life, is among the main contradictions of individual actions and motivations as well as expressing a basic problem in the social relations plane in major fields such as theology, law, politics and morality. In this context, evil is a proper concept to understand the organizational dynamics of social life as well as a key concept in terms of understanding the existential stance and choices of the individual against life. The fact that individuals take advantages of and manage others for their own interests and, if necessary, harm them by killing them is one of the facts that humanity has experienced since before now . This case puts the arguments that evil is used as means for the ends and that gaining the ends justifies the means on the ground of discussion. These discussions often continue in the context of the struggle between good and evil and dialectical relations without reaching definitive results. Evil is an existential situation universally encountered in the experiences of humanity. Each person experiences evil in different ways and acquires a perception of evil. Human beings witness many events in different areas of life and find the opportunity to review their thoughts on some issues in the light of new experiences as a result of different encounters. In this context, cinema constitutes an effective area where people can experience various facts about life from different perspectives. Cinema, which is an impure art in this regard, is an important meeting area for thinking about the problem of evil and perceiving and understanding the truth of evil in different ways. In this context, the analysis of films where the problem of evil is originally and effectively aesthetized promises important opportunities for the perception, definitional boundaries and re-evaluation of evil. When evil is aesthetized on the fictional plane in cinema, the difference between whether actions such as killing are considered “evil” on a philosophical basis or not is carried to a different dimension. When evil is aesthetized in films, the dynamics arising from the nature of fiction carry the experiences of evil into an exalting dimension at violation level and the possibility of adapting them to the frequency of identification of the audience and taking them into a glorifying nature. In this regard, the aesthetization of evil performed on the fictional plane in films offers favourable opportunities for the re-discussion of real evil experiences on the philosophical plane and for the re-evaluation of evil. Evil experiences in films have features that can contribute to audience’s repositioning themselves about good and evil and giving meaning to their own lives. Accordingly, Andrey Zvyagintsev’s Elena (2011), which problema208

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tizes the malicious actions taking place on the individual plane by defining in the context of cause-effect with cinematic possibilities is a proper film that can be considered in terms of rethinking good and evil. The film directed by Zvyagintsev provides the opportunity to rethink about evil with its structure that avoids making a definitive judgement on evil and aestheticises the causes of evil with cinematographic possibilities. Within this framework Elena’s definition of the problem of evil in terms of concepts such as family, love, commitment, class contradictions and killing paves the way for questioning evil from different perspectives. In this context, the interpretation and understanding of the problem of evil in line with immanent arguments are discussed in the article in regard of the potentials of philosophical criticism. Accordingly, the intellectual arguments related to evil in the film are examined by trying to make sense of evil not as an essential category but as a relational category within the framework of a certain goal. Among the classic and modern explanations on the origin of evil, explanations about human nature, being affected by the environment, power-and power-based relations and free will, constitute the scope of the subject of the article, and in this direction, the film is evaluated on the basis of the human nature, free will, conditions and choices made. In this context, the article emphasizes that evil is experienced in regard of human relations by excluding supernatural metaphysical discussions and theological dimension of evil.

HISTORICAL ADVENTURE OF THE EVIL PROBLEM There are many classic debates on evil. Lars Svendsen, states that there are four classic explanations about the origins of evil and explains them as people being seduced and captured by a supernatural, malicious force, predisposition to evil, people choosing to act with evil motivation in line with the effects of the environment and free will (2018, pp. 14-15). The problem of evil, which found the platform for growth in this context, has spread to the secular ground by exceeding the boundaries of the metaphysical field in the historical process and continued to be an important intellectual dynamic of social relations. In modern intellectual understanding, evil is categorically based on the existence of a destructive and damaging desire. On the other hand, the problem of evil has not always been constructed on the basis of the intention, will and actions of the subject in the history of philosophy. The problem of evil emerging on the theological plane has been handled as a fact that threatens God or the sacred, from Plato to Immanuel Kant. With Kant’s radical evil theory, the idea of evil as a theological problem has been broken and evil has been defined as an immanent tendency to human nature. Friedrich Nietzsche struck the most prominent blow to the tradition of defining evil on the theological plane in the post-Kant period. Nietzsche explained the term ‘evil’ on the genealogical plane and suggested that what is described as bad is a moral value produced in the context of hierarchical social relations (Oranlı, 2017, pp. 26-27). In this context, evil has remained as a problem that cannot be overcome, but approaches related to evil have continued to be discussed in various planes from different perspectives. Psychoanalyst Erich Fromm makes a general but effective definition of evil as “Evil is all that stifles life, narrows it down, cuts it into pieces” (1973, p. 366). In the light of this definition, evil has qualifications that can contain everything that constitutes an obstacle to a good life. Fromm’s definition is explanatory in that it determines the extent of evil and the breadth of its domain. Accordingly, although evil, which narrows down life, tears it apart and makes it difficult to breathe, is explained and defined in different ways in dictionaries, it is not possible to frame it with clear and precise expressions. The main factors that make it difficult to define evil are that the boundaries of evil are unclear and each individual 209

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who perceives evil internalizes it in his/her own way. According to Jeffrey Burton Russell, who tried to concretely define evil in this direction, evil is the hurting of an existence that can feel and feel pain in its essence, such that the evil that should always be grasped on the basis of individual pain suffered by a person is never abstract (1997, p. 17). In this context, evil is the expression of actions embodied in the basis of the factors that cause human suffering. In this respect, when evil is reduced to a narrow semantic framework, it explains the humanitarian actions designed and performed by a thinking and feeling with the intention of harming others. Perception of these actions as evil is realized to the extent of the suffering of the people affected by the consequences of the actions. Evil problem is among the most interesting research and discussion topics with endless definitions and solution suggestions in the field of philosophy. A prominent area where evil is discussed is individual and the nature of the actions carried out by the individual’s free will. Each individual is shaped by subjective emotions, thoughts and personal experiences and becomes the subject of actions that can be described as good or evil by free will. In this respect, free will makes sense with the choices made between good and evil. In this context, it is known that the defence of free will against the problem of evil in the history of philosophy has been mounted as a functional argument. As Svendsen puts it, “The fact that an Individual is free means that in given situation they could have acted differently; it follows then, when we commit evil, that we can be accused for not having acted differently” (2018, p. 27). In this context, it is a necessity to evaluate the choices and actions of the individual based on his/her free will as a criterion in order to discuss evil on the moral level. Susan Neiman in her book Evil in Modern Thought, suggests that “Modern conceptions of evil were developed in the attempt to stop blaming God for the state of the world, and to take responsibility for it on our own. The more responsibility for evil was left to the human, the less worthy the species seemed to take it on. We are left without direction” (2015, p. 4) and emphasizes the compasslessness experienced by the modern individual about what is evil and what is good. In this context, the actions of individuals who are “freewilled ” but obliged to find their own ways without adhering to any given objective value can only be understood from their subjective positions on the basis of the social relations they enter into.

Elena: Film Plot Elena’s plot develops through on a loveless marriage between Elena (Nadezhda Markina) and Vladimir (Andrey Smirnov). This marriage of elderly couple from different social classes are depicted far from being an equal relationship based on love. According to filmic time, Elena and Vladimir’s acquaintance spans a ten-year period and their marriage spans the last two years. Elena meets Vladimir, an old businessman, while working as a nurse in the hospital and marries him within the process. Details about Elena and Vladimir’s lives and relationships before the marriage are not included, but the process that begins with the meeting at the hospital ends up with marriage. With marriage, a working-class woman Elena’s life, social status and class position are taken to a new dimension. Vladimir, one of the elderly couple from different backgrounds who met towards the end of their lives, is a cold and distant character. Elena is portrayed as a modest and devoted female character. Elena avoids questioning her unequal position in marriage as a docile and hard-working personality with the influence of her social environment and class position. The couple, who met and married in the old age of their lives, each had children from their previous marriages. Vladimir’s daughter Katerina (Elena Lyadova) is a carefree ‘hedonist’ young who has a distant relationship with her father. Elena’s son Sergey (Aleksey Rozin) is an unemployed and irresponsible man who cannot support his family. In the film, 210

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where father-daughter and mother-son relations are considered as a central problem, Vladimir and Elena experience difficulties of being parents in different dimensions. Being an unemployed and irresponsible father, Sergey has two children and his wife is pregnant again. Sergey, who cannot support his family, always asks Elena for money. Elena uses all her pension for her son and his family and visits them whenever possible. The train Elena gets on to visit her son and his family from her previous marriage displays the social differentiations and class gap in Moscow spatially. The route through which the train passes from a luxury apartment in Moscow city center to the area of collapsing low-cost three-to-five-storey buildings in the periphery of the city effectively demonstrates the socio-economic structure and cultural distance that exist in Post-Soviet Russia. The filmic narrative, which is built on the basis of class contradictions and sociocultural distances in Russia, puts Elena’s acceptance of marriage based on inequality on a rational basis. Elena makes a marriage that is not based on equality, which is the basis of love and the necessity of being a wife. The marriage process that she entered into in order to improve her son Sergey’s and his family’s financial conditions go through a crisis because Vladimir is not generous in helping and does not empathize with Elena. The crisis deepens when Elena asks for money from Vladimir in order to her seventeen-years-old grandchild Sasha (Igor Ogurtsov) goes to university. If Sasha doesn’t go to university, he will face to participate to military for the war that Russia is in the Caucasus. The only way to eliminate this possibility is the money that Vladimir can give. Elena’s money request for Sasha turns into an irreconcilable contradiction for husband and wife due to Vladimir’s attitude. Elena contribute to Sergey and his family devotedly with her own pension and little aids, but the emerging new situation requires a large amount of cash from Vladimir. Elena, who wants to save her grandson from the risk of joining the war and make a good life for him by sending university, brings up the subject. Vladimir, who does not like Elena’s son Sergey and refuses to empathize with Elena, gets angry and reminds to her of his previous helps. Recognizing the importance Elena attaches to the issue, Vladimir indicates that Sergey is an irresponsible parasite and as a father, the duty to solve Sasha’s problems is not his own. Furious at Vladimir’s insensitivity and his accusations of criticizing Sergey for being an irresponsible father, Elena says Vladimir’s daughter Katerina is also an irresponsible parasite, but Vladimir constantly gives her money. Accepting partially the criticism about Katerina, Vladimir argues that his problems with his daughter is another topic of discussion, so Sergey and Katerina’s situation cannot be compared and postpones his answer by stating that he will think about the help. Furious that Elena exemplifies her daughter but does not want to confront Elena directly, Vladimir holds her by the wrist just after breakfast and drags her into the bedroom and suppresses her anger through sex. After the tension with Elena, he goes to the gym. Vladimir, whose hard movements and thoughtful expression show that his nerves do not calm down, trains ambitiously and angrily in the gym. Vladimir makes challenging moves in the gym for his age, while focusing on an attractive young woman who trains in the gym. Vladimir, who started swimming after the treadmill, suddenly remains motionless and is taken to the hospital after first aid. Vladimir, who has a heart attack, wants to see his daughter Katerina at the hospital. Katerina does not want to come at first and she asks if it is necessary for her to come. Elena and Katerina do not get along. When Katerina comes to the hospital, she argues with Elena. Elena blames her, states that the crisis is partly her fault, throws up her irresponsibility and extravagance. Katerina accuses Elena of playing the anxious wife. Then, Katerina visits her father in the hospital and there happens a philosophical discussion between them. Katerina tells her father that he does not care about her and that his only reason to live is money. Vladimir objects and says that money is important for Katerina as well. Father and daughter both reproach, then Vladimir asks his daughter to 211

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have a child. According to Vladimir, having a child will bring Katerina to her senses. Katerina says that she has already settled down, indicating that she has only started using alcohol and drugs on weekends. The father insists on having a child, but Katerina states that she doesn’t have any intention by saying, “Painful, expensive and meaningless”. After reproaches and puns, father-daughter declare mutual love and embrace each other. After emotional intimacy between father and daughter during the meeting with Katerina, Vladimir makes up his mind about the answer to Elena. After leaving the hospital, Vladimir continues his treatment at home under Elena’s control. Elena is waiting for a definite answer from Vladimir because time is running out for Sasha. Knowing that he cannot keep Elena waiting any longer, Vladimir expresses with a definite attitude that he will not help her son and grandchild. Vladimir states that he realized that he is closer to death within the period after the heart attack and explaines his will to leave almost all of his wealth to his daughter Katerina. He tells Elena that she will benefit from limited payments as long as she lives. Elena is appalled by Vladimir’s words. Vladimir not only refuses to help Sasha, but also ignores the marriage bond by explaining that he will not leave anything worthwhile to Elena in the long term. Vladimir, who bases his decision on arguments such as principle attitude, Sergey having children irresponsibly, and that military service would be the best school for Sasha, positions Elena not as a wife but as a worker who serves him. Elena is at a crossroads due to Vladimir’s attitude and unexpected decision. Desperate due to her husband’s uncompromising attitude, Elena decides to implement her own solution since her efforts and loyalty during their marriage are useless. Elena’s decision would be to kill Vladimir, who was in recovery after a heart attack, by giving him a second crisis before he had a chance to recover. Elena, who did a little research for her murder, puts Viagra pills, which is inconvenient for people who have heart attacks, in Vladimir’s medications and causes his death by making him take these pills. Vladimir dies in his bed due to the drugs, his handwritten will written before his death are burned by Elena. After burning his will, Vladimir’s death is attributed to the unconscious use of drugs in the autopsy report, and this paves the way for Elena to inherit half of the legacy. The absence of a written official will necessitates the division of the legacy between Elena and Katerina according to legal legislation. Elena takes a considerable amount of money found in the safe at home shortly after Vladimir’s death and gives it to her son Sergey for her grandson Sasha’s education. In the meeting with lawyer, Katerina asks if there is money in the safe at home, but Elena says there is not. The film reaches the final with ordinary domestic life scenes of Elena’s son, grandchildren and daughter-in-law Tatyana (Evgeniya Konushkina) in a luxurious apartment inherited from Vladimir, where they moved to start a new life.

Elena’s Choice There can be no necessity that will necessitate an individual with free will to make good or bad choices, but the choices made by man are open to being affected by life experiences. In this context, the causes of the malicious event embodied by Elena’s act of killing need to be thoroughly examined not to produce valid reasons for the action but to clarify the motivations of the perpetrator and the victim. When the action is evaluated from a superficial point of view in terms of cause and effect, an illusion can be made that the act of killing Vladimir is based on justified reasons. Such an approach may justify Elena’s response to evil with evil by indexing the motivated purpose to good. In this context, the instrumentalization of evil by the act of killing for a “good” purpose can be defended easily. Such an approach can be supported by various arguments on the basis of the variability of ethics and moral parameters. Such that ‘good’ and ‘evil’, the indicators of morals and moral considerations, constantly change as values in this 212

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context ideas expressing good and bad values clearly contradicts depending on time and environment. The values expressed with the concepts of good and evil are changeable and relative but being moral and so doing moral acts require being a freewilled individual. As Annemarie Pieper expressed, “When an action is considered as good or evil, the moral value of that action contains only a derived meaning, in other words, the action itself is not good or evil in itself, on the contrary it’s good or evil in relation to the Good/Evil will that constitutes its source” (2012, p. 142). In this context, Elena’s action against Vladimir deserves the quality that can constitute the subject of moral debate within the framework of good and evil parameters on the moral ground in that of processing it with free will and in line with a certain purpose. Accordingly, even if it is not expressed clearly, the interaction between people is shaped by the effect of goals and objectives. As Felicity Haynes stated in her book The Ethical School, it is essential to get result for those who defend that the ends justifies the means, and it’s not a false step to use the methods that is disgusting, illegal or unconscionable in order accomplish the objective; such that this point of view is result-oriented and the loss of other people will experience do not pose an obstacle for the objective to be accomplished (2002, p. 45). Accordingly, when the message from the film is evaluated, the impression arises that the reasons justify the results or that the ends is important beyond the means. Killing is an evil act on a concrete level but trying to understand the motives of the killer and the dynamics of murder have the features of leading to intellectual complications and disappearance in the ontological dimension of evil in the process of transition from concrete fact to abstract field. The concrete evil in Elena’s murder, Vladimir’s approach to Elena, transforming his power into domination and not reaching out positively to the life of a young person at risk of being sent to war complicates evil from concreteness to abstractness. When class distinction, capitalist system and the sources of Vladimir’s wealth are factored in, the probability of concrete evil turning into chaos on the abstract plane increases. In this context, it is important to make sense of Elena’s malicious act without overlooking concrete actions such as the nature of the murder and the theft of wealth that Vladimir wants to leave to his daughter with his free will. An individual’s act of free will does not guarantee his rejection of evil, such that making choices freely includes evil as well as good. The main question to be emphasized in the film is to make sense of the feature of the dynamic that affects Elena’s choice made with her free will. From this point of view, Elena’s action motivation legitimates the act of killing because Vladimir rejects a little help for a young child’s future. Acting with this motivation, Elena decides, as a responsible individual who can comprehend the nature of the action to be taken, what kind of position her action can lead her to. Elena chooses to kill Vladimir even though she knows the malicious nature of what she will do for a subjectively good cause. Elena and Vladimir’s individual situations only becomes understandable when evaluated in a more holistic way. In his book Beyond Good and Evil, Nietzsche suggests as “Whatever is done out of love takes place beyond good and evil” (2002, p. 70). Elena’s action takes place in the dilemma of love and lovelessness. The intellectual and emotional ground leading Elena to the act of killing is Vladimir’s lovelesness and arrogance on the one hand and Elena’s love for her family on the other. Elena and Vladimir are depicted by the facts of love and lovelessness from different aspects. Vladimir does not have love for his wife Elena, but he has feelings for his daughter Katerina, whom he criticizes as being unlike him and irresponsible hedonist. Elena has unconditional love for her son and grandchildren. Elena’s moments of meeting Sergey and Sasha are depicted as rare moments when she smiles and is happy, as can be seen from reflection on her mood and actions, even though they do not show the same warm attitudes towards Elena.

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Nietzsche demands to look at human reality by being positioned “beyond good and evil”, and staying out of value judgements immanent to a certain sense of morality In this sense, he emphasizes that good and evil are components of the same reality by stating that “One is good on condition one also knows how to be evil; one is evil because otherwise one would not understand how to be good” (1968, p. 191). In this context, the framework and boundaries of evil do not refer to a fixed value or fact. As Svendsen puts it, “Evil is not a substance, a thing, but rather a characteristic of things, events or actions. Evil is not something definite and well defined, nor does it have an essence. ‘Evil’ is a broad concept we use to describe actions and suffering” (2018, p. 29). In this regard, evil only makes sense within certain conditions and contexts. As Jean Baudrillard points out, “Good or evil can only be mentioned within the framework of a certain end” (2005, p. 49). Malicious actions performed in line with a certain purpose gain meaning in rational thought on the pragmatist plane. Elena’s murder by her free will is the right action because it ensures the gaining the ends when evaluated from a pragmatic perspective.

The Bond Beyond Good and Evil: Mother&Son; Father&Daughter Relations Elena and Vladimir show unconditional love and commitment to their children for reasons that can be explained by the intrinsic characteristics and the influence of social instincts. When Vladimir meets his daughter Katerina, whom he rarely sees and criticizes for being a hedonist, in the hospital, he cannot curb his feelings and expresses his love openly. Vladimir, who rarely meets his daughter and cannot agree on almost anything, insists to his daughter for having a child and decides to leave all his legacy to her. Elena spends her whole life devotedly striving for her son Sergey and his family, eventually murdering for his son and grandchildren and confiscating a fortune that belongs to someone else. In the film, blood relations and parent-child relationships are processed as an important topic. In this context, people staying away from evil and even involving with evil are associated with people who are blood related on the filmic ground. This means that Elena and Vladimir cannot exceed their instincts and that they observe value judgments such as ‘good’ and ‘evil’ in their decisions and actions on the axis of the people to whom they are genetically linked. Elena looks unhappy and thoughtful when doing housework or being in the home environment. Elena’s thoughtful expression and mood changes only when she sees her son and grandchildren. Elena’s son is an unemployed parasite, and her grandson is a rover which is unsuccessful in his classes. Elena gives them material and moral support, but when Elena comes to visit them, the father and son do not treat her with the same warmth. Nevertheless, Elena sacrifices her for them in a way that can be explained by the blood ties and instincts. Vladimir, on the other hand, does not have good relations with his daughter and criticizes her for being hedonistic, aimless and extravagant, but instincts and blood ties guarantee love for his daughter and he decides to leave his entire legacy to her in the final stage. Elena and Vladimir criticize each other over their children’s weaknesses, but neither of them gives up defending their children. The main character of the film, Elena, is often shown in the close-up reflecting deeply on the future of her son and grandchild, looking at her own face in the scene where she had to make a decision and waiting for Vladimir to die after making the decision, and the photos hanging at the bottom of the mirror and on the wall appear in the film as indicators of Elena’s commitment to her family. The effects of family ties on human life are emphasized in the film. Although it is not as effective as the one-way commitment between mother and son, the bonds between father and daughter have an important function in the film as well. Although Katerina is reluctant to spend time with her father and conflicts with him in many ways, she feels very empty due to her father’s death. Katerina looks very sad when she attends 214

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to her father’s funeral with carnations in her hand. In the following plan, Elena sobs but looks around at the same time and continues to cry in guilt. In the scene after the funeral, Elena is shown thoughtfully in her bed, gets out of bed, sits at the make-up table and looks in the mirror, combs her hair as seen in the first scene of the film. In the next plan, Katerina is shown lying on the couch in a sad and thoughtful mood. Then Elena is shown in the close-up, jingles are heard and life goes on. After deep sighs, Elena takes the money from the safe and goes to her son’s house. Seeing the money, Sergey celebrates with the people at home. Sergey’s wife Tanya announces that she is pregnant with the third child. One’s death is the salvation of others. In the next plan, Sasha is seen drinking with her friends and then joins a fierce fight. The fight in the darkness of the night combines Elena’s challenging struggle in the metaphorical plane with the violent fight that Sasha got into. So Elena’s action makes sense in the sense of taking Sasha from darkness to light. The next plan is at Vladimir’s house. Sergey’s little boy appears in motion at Vladimir’s bed. Elena and her family continue their lives with the peace of moving and starting a new life. The film ends with the image of the tree in the opening scene to emphasize the circularity of life.

Doing Evil for Good Elena is the one who is seen to suffer significantly in the film from the frame of suffering caused by evil. Elena is disinherited by her husband, who made a great effort for, and on top of that her cry for help for her grandson’s future is rejected. In this regard, Vladimir’s exclusion of Elena and her reduction to a wageworker position rather than a wife is a clear indication that he is taking a bad approach. Vladimir’s attitude find meaning, the negativity of Sergey and Sasha’s personalities aside, as the embodiment of a malicious act aimed at Elena directly. Vladimir’s insulting behaviour towards Elena and leaving Sasha, a seventeen-year-old teenager, to face compulsory military service with risk of dying in the Caucasus war, causes Elena to suffer inevitably. Elena paints a ‘good’ and harmonious portrait with her diligence and modesty as a wife, but she is excluded and disinherited by Vladimir for mind-boggling reasons, apart from the fact that her kindness is not rewarded. Malicious approach to Elena while she is waiting for her relations with Vladimir to develop in a healthy way in return for her favours and to see the value she deserves as a partner leads to a break in her life strategy and when good does not work, she resorts to evil. For Elena, fighting evil with evil imposes itself as an option. Vladimir’s distant approach to love and compassion and the limited time for Sasha’s survival leave no room for hesitation in Elena’s decision. Combination of the actions Elena goes under on the personal level and her perception of the evil directed to her on an individual basis with different dynamics invites malicious retaliation. In this context, Elena painfully experiences that her favors are not rewarded and appreciated by her husband, and the expectation of peace leaves its place to grudge. Elena evaluates the individual evil directed to her in her own perception and concludes that Vladimir should die. In this context, Elena’s action gains meaning by describing the cause and effect relationship in the cinematic narrative. Vladimir prepares his own end by not including Elena in the limits of empathy as a faithful wife, suffering subject and anxious mother. Concordantly, Elena responds to Vladimir in a language he understands. Again, in the post-hospital process, Vladimir explains his will and disinherit Elena in a way that offends her. Elena does not object, she just asks if he will help Sasha or not. Vladimir says he will not help as a principle because the person that should help Sasha needs to be his father who is the reason of Sasha’s birth, and he refuses Elena’s help request. Elena gets angry at Vladimir’s attitude and says that he sees himself and his daughter as special people since they have more money and opportunities, but 215

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all this can change. When Vladimir asks what can change, Elena refers to the Bible and says, “... and the last will be the first.” Vladimir does not take Elena’s words about equality and brotherhood seriously, saying that they are fairy tales invented in the Bible for poor fools. Elena, on the other hand, follows the word of God herself, once she understands for certain that Vladimir will not help her and that he is openly arrogant towards her family. She doesn’t wait for God and realizes divine justice herself. Securing justice by her own hands, Elena, eliminates Vladimir and confiscates a good part of Vladimir’s wealth. When one chooses evil, one can always find sufficient justifications. There are reasons why every evil can be justified. Given Elena’s story in the cinematic narrative, the ‘right’ justifications she will need to do evil are depicted in a very concrete way. In its most obvious form, Vladimir ignores the life of a teenager by rejecting a request for help that would not be difficult for him and devalues her by ignoring his existing marriage to Elena. Vladimir, with his attitude mentioned and insensitive approach to Elena, offers quite “justified” reasons for the evil that will turn on him. On such a basis, Elena chooses a malicious method for her own subjective good purpose and kills Vladimir, but her action is not limited to the person she kills, and unjustly transfers more than half of the property that would be transferred to Katerina’s account. Thus, Elena’s response to evil with evil also affects a third person who is not involved in events. In this direction, it goes beyond the most obvious justification for Elena’s action which is getting Sasha out of the military service and perhaps Elena’s long term implicit goal of becoming Vladimir’s heir is accomplished as well, Elena’s cold-blooded and unwavering act of murder, destruction of the will by her, her statement to the doctor at the hospital and her cunning at the funeral suggest that her apparent innocence is a resourcefully performed role.

Portrait of a Devoted Woman Transforming to Femme Fatale There is no love, compassion, mercy and equality in Elena and Vladimir’s marriage. Elena is officially married to Vladimir, an older and wealthier man, but is more than a wife, she is a caregiver, cleaner, cook and a sex worker. As can be understood from the dialogues between Elena and Sergey, the main reason Elena married Vladimir is to improve the financial situation of her family. For this reason, Elena consented to and continued an unequal marriage. Elena’s focus on the well-being of her son and grandchildren and demanding money from Vladimir to free her oldest grandchild Sasha from compulsory military service lead to the couple’s unequal balance in their marriage being shaken. Elena does not use the card of break up against Vladimir in a marriage that doesn’t have attachment, exploit the emotions, and spend money unaware of her husband while he is alive. Vladimir’s lovelessness and cold personality make it meaningful that Elena did not resort to these methods. Elena, who cannot achieve the salvation she aims through marriage, goes to the church to pray in adversity she enters to save her grandson and wants to light a candle in accordance with the Christian faith, but is also experienced on the scene in the church that money is needed to pray as well. The church scene shows that Elena is not insistent on a transcendental solution because she has not had the experience to witness that goodness results in good. Elena’s relationship with Vladimir shows her enough that the bad, distant and unloved one is strong. From her aspect, Elena cannot get rewards comparatively for what she did during her relationship with Vladimir. Elena is disappointed due to Vladimir’s approach to her and rejection of her help request. Thus, Elena begins to question goodness of being good by effect of Vladimir’s approach to herself and his exclusionist attitude towards her son and responds to the evil expressed by Vladimir in the harshest way. Elena wins by responding evil with evil without hesitation Elena’s adventure in the film begins as a devoted mother, a hard-working wife, and an honest person, but the heaviness of the problems that life 216

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brings in regard of power-based relationships transforms her adventure into an original femme fatale11. Elena, forced to do evil for good, is dragged to become an original femme fatale candidate in cinema. In this context, the plot of the film and the cause and effect relationship in the film are quite clear. The topic is to question the concrete actions in line with good-evil dialectics on the abstract plane. From this perspective, it is not a new fact that journeys started with good intentions can evolve into evil with the effect of unexpected conditions on the road. As Baudrillard states, pursuing good can lead to deviant outcomes, and these outcomes are always interpreted badly; whereas talking about evil does not necessarily mean condemning something, and it must be admitted that evil can in a sense be some kind of good or bad fate that cannot be avoided (2005, p. 46). Elena married Vladimir in order to provide a better life for herself and her family, but the ‘good’ purposes she pursued in the process led her to commit murder. Nietzsche states that separating an action from a person and believing that there are good or evil actions in itself will be the detachment of morality from naturalness: “To separate the action from the man; to direct hatred or contempt against the ‘sin’; to believe there are actions that are good or bad in themselves” (1968, p. 165). In this framework, Nietzsche suggests that the good or evil of the action can be determined by looking at the person who performs the action. In this respect, when the murder committed in the film is evaluated based on Elena’s personality, making a judgment about the nature of the action constitutes a criterion to evaluate her action out of the stereotypes. The film is Elena-oriented, so the message presented on good and evil from the film makes sense when it is evaluated in regard of Elena’s actions based on her personality and life experience.

CONCLUSION Elena, embodies class differences and interclass income distribution gap in Russian society, which is capitalized rapidly following the collapse of socialism, through Vladimir and Elena’s relationship. The new social order inevitably reflects on human relations, and power relations in society also affect the reshaping of moral values. In the film, the life of individuals belonging to different classes, which takes place on the basis of social inequalities in Russian society as a sociological ground is centered and a philosophical message is presented for similar problems that may be encountered at the universal level by proposing a malicious murder as the resolution of contradictions. In the film, which takes place in Russia as space and time but gains value as a universal narrative by the aestheticization of human relations that can occur in any country or society where the uneven development acts of capitalism are valid, for Vladimir, the main issue that determines human relations is money, the symbol of power. Vladimir mercilessly uses his money-based power by refusing Elena’s help request for Sasha and shows that Elena is just a tool for him. Vladimir hurts Elena’s feelings by the rejection of her request for help, on the other hand he offends her by disinherison. Vladimir doesn’t value Elena as he values himself and his daughter Katerina and he shows a malicious approach. Offended and humiliated Elena responds to evil with evil for a ‘good’ purpose. Elena wants to prevent the misery of her son and grandchildren by choosing to do evil based on the arguments she thinks are justified, and kills Vladimir, but after this action whether Elena will find peace or not is subject of another discussion. Accordingly, Elena, who has proletarian origin and knows no boundaries in sacrifice for her son and grandchildren, performs a loveless marriage in order to rise to a more equal position on the basis of inequality dominated by capitalist relations. During the marriage, she fulfils her obligations as a docile, hardworking and loyal wife, but, she cannot get in the slightest what she expects from her husband and 217

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takes a malicious action to change her social status by deviating in a different way. As a result of the action, Elena prevents a teenager from going to the war, gives him a chance to study at university and saves his son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren from misery. The price of all these gains is the premature death of an old, insensitive capitalist. Moreover, the message of the film more strongly provides an argument for the justification of Elena’s action, given that Vladimir is indifferent to a young man’s participation in the war by ignoring his wife’s sake and prepares his own end. Although it seems easy in the first place to make a concrete analysis of a philosophical message supported by simple and strong arguments in this context, the argument of responding evil with evil defined in the film makes it difficult to draw precise conclusions by necessitating intellectual expansions from concrete to abstract. This is the fundamental determinant that demands thinking about evil in the film, but in the end a malicious act against evil is within the limits of evil as well. As a result, a pessimistic perspective on humanity is presented in Elena. The overlap of relations based on interindividual power struggles at micro level and domination with emerging conflicts of interest at the macro level reinforces the pessimistic point of view of humanity in filmic message. Human affairs without love, empathy, solidarity and equal relations inevitably lead to the resolution of contradictions with power in line with evil. Zvyagintsev manages to adequately represent such thoughts and messages within Elena’s plot, allowing the problem of evil on moral grounds to be questioned on a philosophical basis. In this respect, the events in the narrative plane of the film are quite clearly presented in the context of cause-effect relations, and the use of evil against evil as a method is aesthetized, paves the way for questioning such an action on the moral plane on the intellectual basis.

REFERENCES Baudrillard, J. (2005). Anahtar Sözcükler (O. Adanır & L. Yıldırım, Trans.). Paragraf Yayın. Fromm, E. (1973). The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness. Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Haynes, F. (2002). The Ethical School. Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203010464 Neiman, S. (2015). Evil in Modern Thought – An Alternative History of Philosophy. Columbia University Press. Nietzsche, F. (1968). The Will To Power (W. Kaufmann & J. R. Hollingdale, Trans.). Vintage Books. Nietzsche, F. (2002). Beyond Good and Evil (J. Norman, Trans.). Cambridge University Press. Oranlı, İ. (2017). Evil. Cogito, (86), 26-29. Pieper, A. (2012). Etiğe Giriş (V. Atayman & G. Sezer, Trans.). Ayrıntı Yayınları. Russell, J. B. (1977). The Devil Perception of Evil from Antiquity to Primitive Christianity. Cornell University Press. Svendsen, L. (2018). Kötülüğün Felsefesi (M. Hocaoğlu, Trans.). Redingot.

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ADDITIONAL READING Baudrillard, J. (1993). The Transparency of Evil: Essays on Extreme Phenomena (J. Benedict, Trans.). Verso. Eagleton, T. (2011). Kötülük Üzerine Bir Deneme (Ş. Bezci, Trans.). İletişim Yayınları. Kremer, E. J., & Latzer, M. J. (Eds.). (2001). The Problem of Evil in Early Modern Philosophy. University of Toronto Press. doi:10.3138/9781442682146

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Evil: Bad, worse, sinister, wicked. Free Will: Self-determination. Friedrich Nietzsche: A German philosopher whose works have exerted an important influence on Western philosophy. Goodness: Kindness, kindliness, beneficence. Interpersonal Relationships: It is a strong, deep, or intimate relationship or recognition between two or more people that can vary for a short or long term.

ENDNOTE

1

Femme fatale is an attractive and seductive woman who ultimately causes great distress to the men she has sex with. It is French for “the woman who caused the disaster”. See https://tr.wikipedia. org/wiki/Femme_fatale

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To continue IGI Global’s long-standing tradition of advancing innovation through emerging research, please find below a compiled list of recommended IGI Global book chapters and journal articles in the areas of media studies, art, and cultural paradigms. These related readings will provide additional information and guidance to further enrich your knowledge and assist you with your own research.

Adikpo, J. A. (2019). The Diffusion of Mobile Telephony in Popular Culture. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 311–327). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch018 Akar, B. (2019). “The Modern Daily Life” in Turkey in the 1950s in Popular Play Scripts of the State Theater. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 137–161). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch009 Amoruso, G., & Mironenko, P. (2020). Figuring Out the Interiors Through the Representation of Experiential and Interactive Environments. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 367–386). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-7998-2823-5.ch017 Anstey, J., & Roussel, R. (2018). Building Sensorium: Perceptual and Affectual Art Processes. International Journal of Art, Culture and Design Technologies, 7(2), 26–40. doi:10.4018/IJACDT.2018070103 Anzani, A., & Caramel, C. (2020). Design and Restoration: An Ecological Approach. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 68–84). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch003 Arık, E. (2019). Popular Culture and Media Intellectuals: Relationship Between Popular Culture and Capitalism – The Characteristics of the Media Intellectuals. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 1–10). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch001 Arisoy, E. (2019). Multiculturalism in Cinema in the Context of Popular Culture: Where Exactly Ferzan Özpetek Stands? In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 230–245). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch014  

Related Readings

Aslan, P. (2019). Popular Culture and Iconology: Reading Today’s Icons as Works of Art. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 174–187). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch011 Attiwill, S. (2020). Urban Interiors and Interiorities. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 58–67). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-7998-2823-5.ch002 Ayiter, E. (2018). Playing With Text in Space. In M. Khosrow-Pour, D.B.A. (Ed.), Enhancing Art, Culture, and Design With Technological Integration (pp. 114-130). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-5225-5023-5.ch006 Barneche-Naya, V., & Hernández-Ibáñez, L. A. (2018). A Vitruvian-Inspired Theoretical Framework for Architecture in Virtual Worlds. In M. Khosrow-Pour, D.B.A. (Ed.), Enhancing Art, Culture, and Design With Technological Integration (pp. 152-168). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-15225-5023-5.ch008 Birsa, E. (2019). Creative Realization of Art Tasks in Interdisciplinary Learning Process. In J. Vodopivec, L. Jančec, & T. Štemberger (Eds.), Implicit Pedagogy for Optimized Learning in Contemporary Education (pp. 141–165). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5799-9.ch008 Bittar, A. J., Figueiredo, V. M., & Ferreira, A. D. (2018). Brazil-United Kingdom Dance Medicine and Science Network as a Place for Poetic Preparation Research. International Journal of Art, Culture and Design Technologies, 7(1), 1–16. doi:10.4018/IJACDT.2018010101 Bolognesi, C. M., & Aiello, D. A. (2020). Through Achille Castiglioni’s Eyes: Two Immersive Virtual Experiences. In G. Guazzaroni & A. Pillai (Eds.), Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education, Art, and Museums (pp. 283–310). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-1796-3.ch014 Brusatin, M. (2020). Design Surrenders to Virtual Reality. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 308–314). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch014 Caeiro, M., & Folgado, M. (2020). Art Staging the Civic: From Rhetoric to Spaciousness. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 208–236). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch010 Campbell, D. M. (2019). Black Lives Matter vs. All Lives Matter in the Generation of “Hashtivism”: Constructing the Paradigms of Cyber-Race. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 287–310). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-5225-8491-9.ch017 Cañas-Bajo, J., & Silvennoinen, J. (2018). Experiencing Commercial Videos for Online Shopping: A Cross-Cultural User’s Design Approach. In M. Khosrow-Pour, D.B.A. (Ed.), Enhancing Art, Culture, and Design With Technological Integration (pp. 183-214). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-5225-5023-5.ch010

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Cavalcanti van Haandel, J. (2019). The AM and FM Radio Changes in the Multimedia Radio Emergence. In E. Simão & C. Soares (Eds.), Trends, Experiences, and Perspectives in Immersive Multimedia and Augmented Reality (pp. 171–191). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5696-1.ch008 Cipolletta, G. (2020). Ubiquitous Self: From Self-Portrait to Selfie. In G. Guazzaroni & A. Pillai (Eds.), Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education, Art, and Museums (pp. 93–115). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-1796-3.ch006 Clements, L., & Weber, R. (2018). Making Space for the Psychology of Creativity in Dance Science. International Journal of Art, Culture and Design Technologies, 7(1), 30–45. doi:10.4018/IJACDT.2018010103 Clini, P., Quattrini, R., Bonvini, P., Nespeca, R., Angeloni, R., Mammoli, R., ... Mandolesi, S. (2020). Digit(al)isation in Museums: Civitas Project – AR, VR, Multisensorial and Multiuser Experiences at the Urbino’s Ducal Palace. In G. Guazzaroni & A. Pillai (Eds.), Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education, Art, and Museums (pp. 194–228). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-1796-3.ch011 Cohen, C. (2019). Understanding an Enemy is Like Understanding a Poem: Art and Peace in Theory and Practice. In M. Lutfy & C. Toffolo (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Promoting Peace Through Practice, Academia, and the Arts (pp. 278–298). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-3001-5.ch014 Coralli, M. (2020). Public Space “Under Influence”: Rewriting in Progress in Africa. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 104–128). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch005 Crespi, G. (2020). Art and Space: New Boundaries of Intervention. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 191–207). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch009 Crespi, L. (2020). Designing Interiors: A Guide for Contemporary Interior Landscape Design. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 1–57). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch001 Crippa, D. (2020). Interactive Spaces: What If Walls Could Talk? In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 237–258). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch011 Dernie, D. J. (2020). Notes on the Spatiality of Colour. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 85–103). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch004 Di Prete, B. (2020). Urban Interior Design: A Relational Approach for Resilient and Experiential Cities. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 130–153). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch006 Di Sabatino, P. A. (2020). (more)SoftAssertions: A Progressive Paradigm for Urban Cultural Heritage, Interior Urbanism, and Contemporary Typologies. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 315–354). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-7998-2823-5.ch015

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Domingues, D. M., & Miranda, M. R. (2019). Affective Presence in Enactive Immersive Space: Sensorial and Mobile Technologies Reengineering Life. In E. Simão & C. Soares (Eds.), Trends, Experiences, and Perspectives in Immersive Multimedia and Augmented Reality (pp. 23–51). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5696-1.ch002 Doyle, D. (2018). Imagination and the Phenomenology of Virtual Practice. In M. Khosrow-Pour, D.B.A. (Ed.), Enhancing Art, Culture, and Design With Technological Integration (pp. 131-151). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5023-5.ch007 Ellington, L. M. (2019). Healing: Use the Power of Your Voice Through Your Stories. In J. Bopp, A. Grebe, & J. Denny (Eds.), Healing Through the Arts for Non-Clinical Practitioners (pp. 9–21). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5981-8.ch002 Endong, F. P., & Essoh, E. G. (2019). The Concept of Power in the Nigerian Religious Discourse: A Study of Advertising Copies by Pentecostal and Charismatic Churches. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 371–396). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch022 Ersin, N. (2019). The Effect of Popular Culture on TV Program Genres Within Globalization Process. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 76–93). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch005 Esiyok, E. (2019). How Do Cartoon Movies Construct Children’s Consumption Habits for “Special Days”? In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 94–104). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch006 Frogeri, R. F., Pardini, D. J., Cardoso, A. M., Prado, L. Á., Piurcosky, F. P., & Junior, P. D. (2019). IT Governance in SMEs: The State of Art. International Journal of IT/Business Alignment and Governance, 10(1), 55–73. doi:10.4018/IJITBAG.2019010104 Garip, S. B., Saglar Onay, N., & Garip, E. (2020). Re-Coding Homes as a Flexible Design Approach for Living Environments. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 284–306). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch013 Geronimo, G., & Giannella, S. (2020). Employing Real-Time Game Technology for Immersive Experience (VR and Videogames) for all at MAIO Museum: Museum of WWII Stolen Artworks. In G. Guazzaroni & A. Pillai (Eds.), Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education, Art, and Museums (pp. 263–282). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-1796-3.ch013 Goldfarb, D., & Merkl, D. (2019). Data-Driven Maps of Art History. International Journal of Art, Culture and Design Technologies, 8(1), 1–15. doi:10.4018/IJACDT.2019010101 Gouveia, P. (2019). Transmedia Experiences That Blur the Boundaries Between the Real and the Fictional World. In E. Simão & C. Soares (Eds.), Trends, Experiences, and Perspectives in Immersive Multimedia and Augmented Reality (pp. 1–22). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5696-1.ch001 Grebe, A. M. (2019). Healing Our Heroes: Creating an Arts-Based Intervention. In J. Bopp, A. Grebe, & J. Denny (Eds.), Healing Through the Arts for Non-Clinical Practitioners (pp. 22–43). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5981-8.ch003 237

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Guazzaroni, G. (2020). Role of Emotions in Interactive Museums: How Art and Virtual Reality Affect Emotions. In G. Guazzaroni & A. Pillai (Eds.), Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education, Art, and Museums (pp. 174–193). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-1796-3.ch010 Guerra, P. (2019). Ceremonies of Pleasure: An Approach to Immersive Experiences at Summer Festivals. In E. Simão & C. Soares (Eds.), Trends, Experiences, and Perspectives in Immersive Multimedia and Augmented Reality (pp. 122–146). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5696-1.ch006 Hafiz, D. (2020). Improving Occupants Comfort Through Qualitative Indoor Environments: A Case Study. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 387–404). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch018 Hitz, T. L. (2019). Collaborative Art and Relationships. In J. Bopp, A. Grebe, & J. Denny (Eds.), Healing Through the Arts for Non-Clinical Practitioners (pp. 193–213). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5981-8.ch012 Invernizzi, F. C. (2020). Dwelling in the Leftovers: Investigation on Design Experience and a Glimpse Into Cyprus Buffer Zone. In L. Crespi (Ed.), Cultural, Theoretical, and Innovative Approaches to Contemporary Interior Design (pp. 405–421). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-2823-5.ch019 Johansson, M. (2018). Soundscaping. In M. Khosrow-Pour, D.B.A. (Ed.), Enhancing Art, Culture, and Design With Technological Integration (pp. 169-182). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-15225-5023-5.ch009 Kang, Y., & Yang, K. C. (2020). Employing Digital Reality Technologies in Art Exhibitions and Museums: A Global Survey of Best Practices and Implications. In G. Guazzaroni & A. Pillai (Eds.), Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education, Art, and Museums (pp. 139–161). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-1796-3.ch008 Karabacak, Z. İ. (2019). The Reflection of Popular Culture on Calendar Photos. In O. Ozgen (Ed.), Handbook of Research on Consumption, Media, and Popular Culture in the Global Age (pp. 162–173). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-8491-9.ch010 Kargas, A., Karitsioti, N., & Loumos, G. (2020). Reinventing Museums in 21st Century: Implementing Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Technologies Alongside Social Media’s Logics. In G. Guazzaroni & A. Pillai (Eds.), Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education, Art, and Museums (pp. 117–138). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-1796-3.ch007 Kılıç, Ş. O., & Genel, Z. (2019). Impact of Social Media and Technology Companies on Digital Journalism. In E. Simão & C. Soares (Eds.), Trends, Experiences, and Perspectives in Immersive Multimedia and Augmented Reality (pp. 147–170). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5696-1.ch007 Köroğlu, C. Z., & Köroğlu, M. A. (2018). On the Transformation of Social Movements: An Analysis From the East-West Axis. In M. Khosrow-Pour, D.B.A. (Ed.), Enhancing Art, Culture, and Design With Technological Integration (pp. 50-74). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-5023-5.ch003

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243

About the Contributors

Eşref Akmeşe is a Ph.D. Research Assistant at the Department of Radio, Television and Cinema, in Inonu University, Turkey. He received his master and Ph.D. degrees in Radio Television and Cinema in the Graduate School of Social Sciences from the Ege University, Turkey. His research areas include film studies, cinematic philosophy, cinema and sociology, political cinema. Octav Sorin Candel, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Psychology and Sciences of Education, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași. His main research interests are in couple and family psychology and psychometry. Also, after a lifelong passion for films and popular culture, he decided to combine his interests and to discuss cinematic and other artistic creations from a psychological standpoint. Kemal Deniz was born in 1983 in Istanbul. He graduated from Beykent University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Cinema-TV and Graphic Design Departments. He completed his Master’s Degree in the Social Sciences Institute of the same university in 2009 in Cinema-TV Department. He worked in different positions in various media organizations till 2013. He worked as a Research Assistant at Istanbul University, Faculty of Communication, Radio Television and Cinema Department between 2014-2019. In 2019, he completed his PhD at Istanbul University, Institute of Social Sciences, Radio Television and Cinema Program. Since 2019, he continues working in Munzur University, Faculty of Communication, Department of Radio, Television and Cinema as a Faculty Member. His academic research interests include Communication Studies, Television Studies, New Communication Technologies and Film Studies. Alper Erçetingöz is a Ph.D. Research Assistant at the Department of Radio, Television and Cinema, in Aydin Adnan Menderes University, Turkey. He received his master and Ph.D. degrees in Radio Television and Cinema in the Graduate School of Social Sciences from the Ege University, İzmir. His research areas include film studies, cinema and philosophy, politic cinema. Aslı Favaro is Assistant Professor at the Radio-Tv-Cinema Department, Faculty of Communications, at Ege University in Turkey, İzmir. Her research interests include analyses of dystopian narratives through modern and postmodern approaches, postmodern narratives, technoculture in cinema, and auteur cinema. She’s also the co-translator of Baudrillard’s work “Le Système des Objets”. She speaks fluent English, French and Italian.



About the Contributors

Lale Kabadayı became a doctor with her thesis that she examined films made in the 1990s and focused on gender. L. Kabadayı, who has a Turkish book on film criticism, is an academician at Ege University. She teaches courses such as Film Criticism, Women in Turkish and World Cinema, and Film Genres. Onur Keşaplı graduated from Cinema and Television Department at Anadolu University, Eskişehir. Completed his master’s degree at Film Design Department at the Dokuz Eylül University, İzmir. He had his PhD degree from Radio, Television and Cinema Department at the Ege University, İzmir. Currently, he is a research assistant at the department of Visual Communication and Design at Uşak University, Uşak. Alongside his visual works as a director, he is also a film critic and the festival director of International Usak Winged Seahorse Short Film Festival. His academic interest combines cultural and political studies towards cinema with aesthetic modernism. Ayhan Küngerü is graduated from Radio Television and Cinema Department at Yeditepe University and received his master’s degrees from the Department of International Relations at Trakya University and the Department of Radio Television and Cinema at Akdeniz University. He finished his Phd degree at Radio Television and Cinema Department at Ege University and he is currently working at Bolu Abant İzzet Baysal University Communication Faculty, Radio Television and Cinema Department. Adelina Mbinjama-Gamatham received her Masters in Applied Media Studies in 2009 from the Nelson Mandela University (NMU) and became a media and communications lecturer at the School of Language, Media and Culture. While still teaching, she became the Head of Department of her academic unit in 2013 and in 2014 she obtained her doctoral degree in Media Studies. She serves on the Southern African Freelancers Association as an Executive Committee Member for the Western Cape Chapter in South Africa and is currently a Lecturer in the Department of Media Studies at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. Her teaching and research interests are in social media-communications, cyber-ethics, black feminism and representation of women in the media. Verónica Membrive studied English and earned a Master’s Degree in English Studies in 2011. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of Almería (2017) on Irish travel writers in Spain during the twentieth-century. She has delivered papers on Walter Starkie, Kate O’Brien and Pearse Hutchison and their travels in Spain. She is currently teaching English at the University of Almería. Her field of research is Irish Literature, with a special focus on the relationships between Ireland and Spain. She has been awarded the International George Campbell Award for her research on Hiberno-Spanish cultural relations (University of Málaga, 2018). Kadriye Töre Özsel, after graduating from the BA program of the Radio, Television and Cinema Department of Ankara University, received an MA degree on scenography in 2010 from DAMU (Prag), and a second MA degree on the Radio, Television and Cinema Department of Ege University (Izmir) in 2017. She has worked in numerous plays of the State Theatres of Turkey as a scene and costume designer and directed short movies and documentaries. She is currently a PhD student in the Radio, Television and Cinema Department of Ege University and works as a research assistant in Munzur University (Tunceli). Her research interests include cinema and philosophy, ideology studies and gender stereotypes on screen.

244

About the Contributors

Selvi Senel finished her college education at Communication Faculty of Ege University. She has Master of Arts and PHD degree on Communication. Tülin Sepetci was born in İstanbul. She studied elementary and high school in Istanbul. She finished university, at Akdeniz University Faculty of Communication. She also completed Master and PhD in the same university. She worked as a research assistant at Akdeniz University for nine years. She is currently working as an assistant professor at Abant Abant Izzet Baysal University. Bilal Süslü is Research Assistant at the Department of Radio, Television and Film of Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University, Turkey. His areas of interest include Media Studies, Communication Theories, Film Criticism, Normative Theories, Sociology of Deviance, and Political Psychology. H. Ekrem Ulus is a lecturer/instructor at the Dept. of Foreign Languages, School of Foreign Languages at Ege University in Izmir, Turkey. He has graduate degree in English Literature at Ege and Comparative Literature degrees at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. His research interests include secularism, nation-state, identity and mythology. His languages are English, French, Spanish and Turkish.

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246

Index

A

drive 9, 11-12, 14-15, 18, 20, 45, 200

Amenadiel 24 American Sniper 176-177, 181-182, 185-188, 190, 192 Andrzej Sapkowski 59, 64, 69, 75 Archeology 150, 153, 163 Attachment Theory 76, 80, 85, 87 Autonomy of Arts 112, 133-134

E

B banality 50-51, 54, 140, 164, 167-168, 170, 173-174 Baroque House 16-18, 20-21, 23-24 Binge Viewing 137, 149 Black Girl Magic 88, 103 Black woman 88-89, 91-98, 103

C catharsis 31, 33, 36-38, 53, 123-124, 139 cinema 2, 8, 13, 17, 24, 38-39, 41-42, 46, 51-52, 54-55, 57, 76-77, 84, 87, 90, 104-105, 108-109, 111-113, 120-124, 128-131, 134, 140, 168-169, 173-174, 176-177, 180-181, 191-192, 194, 208, 217 cinematographic ethics 112-113, 122, 130, 134 Cine-Philosophy 16-17, 24 clash of civilizations 177-179, 188, 190-192 Constructionist Sociology 76

D Darth Vader 14, 33-34, 38, 43-48, 50-51, 53, 57 Deleuze 16-18, 20-21, 23-24, 57, 131 Derry Girls 164, 169-174 deviance 76, 78-80, 82, 84-87, 196-197, 200, 205 Diachronic Theory of Evil 150, 152, 163 Diegetic Material 111 digital transformation 135-138, 147, 149 discrimination 179, 187, 190, 192  

empathy 7, 14-15, 67, 87, 112-113, 119, 122-124, 126-130, 134, 146, 215, 218 episteme 26, 30-37 Epistomology 26 evil 1-5, 7-10, 13-16, 18-19, 21-22, 24-26, 29-31, 33-35, 38-57, 59-69, 71-80, 82-97, 99-100, 102105, 107-113, 115-125, 128-129, 131, 135-136, 138-140, 145-174, 183-184, 189, 193, 204, 206210, 212-219

F fantasy 26, 30-33, 36-37, 63-64, 66, 74, 80, 106 fantasy genre 26, 31, 33, 36 Female Gaze 77, 84-85, 87 femininity 16-19, 23, 76, 79, 101, 110 free will 2, 5-6, 10, 40, 42-44, 47, 50, 91, 93, 95, 97, 209-210, 212-214, 219 Friedrich Nietzsche 48, 209, 219

G gender 16-17, 19-25, 76-78, 82-87, 99, 102, 141, 165 gender roles 17, 19-21, 76-77, 82-83, 86 Genesis Narrative 1, 15 genre 26, 31, 33, 36-37, 41-42, 54, 135-136, 138, 140-149 Geralt 59-60, 64-69, 71-73, 75 Geralt of Rivia 59-60, 64, 67, 75 goodness 31-32, 56, 60, 103, 112, 165, 168, 207, 216, 219

H Heist 135-136, 138-140, 142-146, 148, 157, 161

Index

hero 2-3, 8-9, 13, 26, 30-38, 43, 48, 51, 58, 60, 64-65, 73, 128, 144-145, 148, 165, 177, 183, 193-194, 198-206 history 1, 3, 10, 15, 17, 26-27, 31, 38, 52, 56, 72, 82, 90, 95, 102, 104-105, 109, 112, 115, 117-119, 124, 132, 150, 152-156, 159-165, 168, 172, 174, 177-178, 185-186, 190-191, 207, 209-210, 218 Hollywood Cinema 176-177, 192 HTGAWM 88, 92-93, 96, 98-101, 103

I imaginary 39, 46, 49, 51, 104, 106-107, 111, 169, 179, 206 Immanuel Kant 2, 8, 88-89, 103, 114, 209 Interdependence Theory 87 Interindividual Relationships 207 Interpersonal Relationships 207, 219 Iraq War 180, 184-185, 192 Ireland 164, 169-171, 173-175 Islamophobia 176, 179, 191-192

L Labeling Theory 78, 87 lesser evil 52, 59-69, 71-75 Lisa McGee 164, 169, 173 Little Children 112-113, 124-127, 129-131, 134 Lucifer 2-4, 6, 10, 13, 16-19, 21-23, 25, 57, 87

M malicious actions 1, 207, 209, 214 mask 12, 46, 50, 53, 95, 98, 102, 145-147, 150, 158160, 163 maternity 16-18 Mazekeen 25 media 24, 29, 36-37, 55, 60, 69, 71-75, 82-83, 88, 9192, 100-101, 133, 136-138, 141, 144, 146-148, 162, 168-169, 174, 193-206 memory 150, 152-160, 163, 168, 194, 197, 200, 205 Michael 3, 25, 50, 76, 80, 148, 169 Mirror Stage 104, 106-107, 111 modernism 26-29, 32, 36-37, 178 Money Heist 135-136, 138-140, 142-146 moral 8, 29-30, 32, 35, 37, 39-42, 44, 50, 54-55, 6063, 65-69, 71-75, 79, 88-93, 95, 97, 99-101, 103, 112, 114-120, 122-124, 128, 130-132, 135, 139, 143-144, 146-147, 151, 165, 167-168, 173, 193210, 212-214, 217-218 moral panic 193-206

movie Richard Jewell 193, 198, 204-206 multi-protagonist 135-136, 142-145, 147 museum 148, 150, 153-157, 159-163

N narrative 1, 3-4, 15, 29, 31-36, 38-39, 42-43, 52-54, 60, 63-64, 66, 71, 74-75, 85, 102, 108-109, 112, 118120, 123-125, 128, 130, 132, 135-136, 138-140, 142-143, 145-150, 152-158, 194, 211, 215-218 Netflix 59-60, 64-65, 68-73, 75, 135-138, 147-148, 164, 169 Non-Diegetic Material 109, 111 Northern Ireland 164, 169-171, 173-175 Nymphomaniac 113, 127-130, 132, 134

O Oedipus complex 1, 6-7, 10-11, 14-15 Orientalism 166, 176-177, 179, 191-192 Out of Category 59, 71, 75 Out of Category Characters 59

P pedophilia 112-113, 116-131, 133-134 pedophilia in cinema 112, 120-121, 129, 134 postmodern narratives 68, 72-73, 75 Post-modernism 26, 28-29, 36-37, 59, 75, 114 psychoanalysis 1, 6, 8-10, 15, 109, 111 Psychopathy 82, 84-87

R representation 1, 7, 10, 16, 18, 39-42, 47, 57, 88-93, 95-96, 100, 103, 117, 120, 126, 164-166, 169-170, 173-174, 180, 184, 188 Richard Jewell Incident 206

S series 16-19, 21-23, 33-35, 38, 43, 48, 54, 57-60, 6375, 90-92, 94, 96, 98, 100, 128, 135, 137-138, 141-142, 144, 146, 149, 168, 170-173, 198 Shonda Rhimes 88, 91, 98, 100-103 Sigmund Freud 6, 15 Star Wars 33-34, 38, 43-45, 47-48, 50-54, 56-58 Streaming Television 149 SVOD 136, 149 symbolic order 104, 106-107, 110

247

Index

T television 11-13, 15, 24, 55, 64, 72, 75, 84, 86, 88-92, 98100, 103-105, 135-143, 145, 147-149, 162, 164, 168-169, 172, 174, 181-182, 185, 199, 201, 206 temporality 150, 152-153, 159, 162-163 the force 22, 34, 38, 43-44, 46, 48-51, 53-54, 57, 79 The Love Witch 76-82, 84-86 The Mirror Stage 104, 106 the movie ‘Richard Jewell’ 193-194, 198, 200 The Troubles 164, 168-169, 171-175 The Witcher 32, 59-60, 63-64, 66-75 The Woodsman 112-113, 123-124, 129-130, 132 Turkish cinema 104-105, 108-109

violence 10, 12, 20, 45, 48, 52, 54, 71-72, 74, 82, 85, 87, 89-90, 96, 108-110, 117, 139, 143-144, 147, 150, 159-160, 162-164, 166-168, 170, 172-174, 180, 183, 190, 195, 203, 205, 208

W Witch Hunt 193, 206 Witcher series 59-60, 63-64, 66-67, 71-75 Woodsman 112-113, 123-124, 129-130, 132, 134

X Xenophobia 192

V

Y

villain 1, 8, 10, 13, 15, 26, 30-31, 33-36, 60, 77, 84, 104, 139, 165, 202 Viola Davis 88, 92, 99, 101, 103

Yenefer 59, 69, 71-72, 75

248