Love & Romance, Hollywood Style [Period 4, Class 5]

[carpe_demon]

Drake was playing some somewhat creepy music when the students arrived for class. "Today we're going to take a trip to the dark side," he said. "No, don't go running for the nearest witch with a vanquish potion, I'm talking about obsessive love. I've got two examples for you today."

A snap of his fingers, and the projector started rolling. "In meta for Sleeping with the Enemy," Drake began, "Laura is married to an abusive, controlling, possessive husband. So she fakes her own death and runs away to start a new life. Of course, psycho hubby hunts her down. He beats up her new boyfriend and tells Laura that he loves her, he can't live without her, and he won't let her live without him. But Laura's built up a spine in the meantime, and she grabs a gun and blows the psycho away.

"Now, in Fatal Attraction," Drake continued, "the sexes get reversed. Dan cheats on his wife with Alex while his wife and daughter are out of town. When wifey comes back, Dan cuts things off. But Alex doesn't want to let go. She makes a suicide attempt and then starts stalking Dan and spying on his family. She even boils the pet bunny. Eventually she decides to kill Beth, Dan's wife, seeing her as the obstacle between her and Dan's love. Dan attempts to drown her and then Beth blows her away."

Drake stopped the clips and turned his attention back to the class. "Alex claimed to love Dan, and Laura's husband said he loved her. Was that really love? What would you do if you were caught up in those circumstances? And why do teenage girls sometimes think sparkly controlling, suffocating engine-stealing boys are so dreamy?"

Comments

Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

"Alex claimed to love Dan, and Laura's husband said he loved her. Was that really love? What would you do if you were caught up in those circumstances? And why do teenage girls sometimes think sparkly controlling, suffocating engine-stealing boys are so dreamy?"

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

"That's crazy possessiveness, not love," Dinah said, "And hey!" She folded her arms, disgruntled. "Maybe because they have no experience, and those guys are intense. But still. Hey."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

Drake nodded. "No experience seems about right," he said. "I mean, some people are totally into the possessive thing, but most teenagers hardly know better. And Uncle Drake will come beat anybody who treats his kids like that with a hardcover volume of the sonnets of Shakespeare."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[blondecanary.livejournal.com]

Dinah relaxed a bit, and grinned. "We'd return the favor. Seriously." She shook her head. "Those are movies about crazy crazy people, not love."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[brat-intraining.livejournal.com]

Kennedy's comment was possibly entirely predictable. "Why do girls think boys are all that at all, anyway? Never got that."

Not the point, young Potential. Not. The. Point.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

"That's an entirely different class, my young apprentice," Drake said. "Sex ed was last semester."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[brat-intraining.livejournal.com]

Hey. Hey, so not apprenticed to a demon, thanks, and even as a joke it freaked her a bit; Kennedy's eyebrow twitched.

By way of covering it up she spread her hands and held them up. "Hey. Know all I wanna know about that part, don't need the refresher course." Ew. "Just saying, I never saw the big deal."

The girl had been out for eleven years, which was honestly insane; you'd think she'd be over making gratuitous statements like this by now. Oh, no, wait. She was sixteen and obnoxious, so... not really, no.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[joan-notjane.livejournal.com]

"Why do you think girls are?" Joan asked.

She figured it was a fair question and her exhaustion meant her filters weren't up.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[brat-intraining.livejournal.com]

See above re: sixteen and obnoxious; Kennedy's smug expression was probably at least a little annoying. "Duh. You are one, right? I mean, you should see the awesome there."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[joan-notjane.livejournal.com]

"It's not about love," Joan said. "It's about control. And those guys are really good at breaking down any sense of self esteem a woman has so she thinks that she doesn't deserve to be treated any better."

Someone had listened to her father's rants about domestic abuse one too many times.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

"Do you think they think it's love?" Drake asked. "The controllers, I mean."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[joan-notjane.livejournal.com]

Joan shook her head. "Not most of them at least. Maybe a few are just misguided, but I think most of them just think of other people as their possessions."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[mississippiqueen]

Emmett's eww-face was... expressive. "A little controlling is fun. I mean who doesn't want to be thrown up against the wall and f--" Right, class. "--ondled now and then? But the bunny-boiling and dirty towels thing is right past hot and into restraining order."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[wwiii]

"I think the 'hot' factor is pretty much dependant on who the one doing the 'fondling' is, too," Warren offered. "It's one thing to be attracted to someone. It's another thing entirely to actually consent to a relationship, which is a point that the characters in these movies seem to be missing entirely."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[mississippiqueen]

"Well, it was her husband in the one movie," Emmett pointed out. "But I'm with you. I may not say it very often--" Ahem. Hi, hot blond dude. "--But I sure as hell know what no means."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

Drake nodded. "No bunnies should die for love," he said gravely. "That just ain't right."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[awakestheghosts]

Chloe had never really understood the possessive all-controlling partners -- of any gender.

"Why would anyone want that kind of behavior in their lives?" She asked in firm -- for her -- voice. "Love and living is hard enough without someone like that."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

"Some people like handing over the decision making to other people," Drake said. "And that's fine when everyone involved knows what they're getting into and what the boundaries are. But some kids don't understand that love isn't about living entirely for another person and their whims, and it kinda sucks when you see that kind of behavior romanticized on the big screen."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[awakestheghosts]

"Nothing is like it is in the movies," Chloe said, playing with a piece of her hair. "Especially love and relationships."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[oops-mbad.livejournal.com]

"Saying that they love their partners is like saying that they love their cars. They see them as property, as something that's theirs to obsess over and have and cuddle and call Bob." That sentence ran away from her, yes.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

"Or sometimes George," Drake said, nodding in agreement.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[awesomebigsis.livejournal.com]

"That is not love at all. It's more about control and emotional manipulation," Ellie said firmly. "And teenagers, including boys, are young and impressionable. That's my only explanation."

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

"Oh, good, one less girl I have to worry about," Drake said, beaming at Ellie.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[she-sheds.livejournal.com]

"That certainly does not sound like love to me," Joolushko said. "And I imagine the teenage girls find these boys to be 'dreamy' because they don't know any better." Because they were an inferior species. Obviously.

Re: Class Discussion [L&R: Class Five]

[carpe_demon]

Drake agreed. "You can only hope they learn better soon," he said, "or at least convince the boys to take a shower."