Horror 101, Monday

[chosehumanity]

"Persecution is not new," Mitchell began. Why, yes, the Raven-Max thing had been resolved, he'd picked that up, but he was still in a mood. "...and as to how this applies to the previous lessons, see this as your first witch class." See? That worked. "Persecution," he began again, "Is hardly new. Fears, horror, it causes people to behave in strange ways. Something odd happens, someone gets killed, someone gets hurt, and suddenly everyone's jumping at shadows. The people who wind up suffering, are those of us who are strange. Off, somehow. Away from the norm."

Mitchell had no issues. None at all.

"The witch trials are the easiest example of this," he said, nearly poking a hole in the blackboard as he made notes. "It's funny, because in the 8th century, belief in witches was actually outlawed, you see? But it never kept anyone. Something would happen, like the plague, and someone else would see some political gain or something, and whip everyone up into a frenzy. They'd run around and devise all kinds of bizarre tests, like throwing women into the water, just to see if they were witches. And then of course they'd be burned at the stake."

He took a moment to eye that particular note on his blackboard. "...Anyway," he started, "how this links back to horror in fiction is that people are always terrified of chaos," he marked that word big time, "While at the same time they all fall into it. I mean, what is persecution but organized chaos? You pinpoint someone to blame and then rip them out of the house. And then another one. And then another one. It's this cycle that keeps feeding itself. Hence the Monster from meta for Frankenstein being forced to flee from monsters himself. It's a common theme, that way."

He dropped the chalk and turned around. Listed off a couple more movies that ended in or featured running someone out of the house with torches and pitchforks. "...You can even pull it into perspective with today. You know, stars and the papparazzi and that sort of thing. People spiralling into chaos after every incident." He dusted off his half-gloved hands by wiping them off each other. "So we'll be talking about persecution. Who knows what it feels like to be persecuted? Have you ever been drawn into a mob, or felt the need to? How did it feel?"

At least he was getting less overcompensate-y about it all?

"And we'll watch some film, of course." Meta for Monty Python's Spanish Inquisition sketch. Oh yeah. He was on a roll today.

[[ ocd up, have at! ]]

Comments

Discuss

[chosehumanity]

Have you ever been persecuted? What did it feel like? Have you ever been drawn into a mess where you singled one person out? How was that?

Discuss with each other!

Re: Discuss

[bitten_notshy]

"I'm Jewish," Jack said. He could have mentioned a lot of other things, but that was the one he didn't mind bringing up as part of a class discussion. (Well, he wasn't exactly shy about being -- in modern terms -- bisexual, but his Victorian background made that a harder personal fact to share. Discussing Sebastien's status would have been more relevant, but it was simply unthinkable in this context.)

"Which doesn't seem to mean much of anything here, and I'm ... about 40 years before your second World War so there's not much official persecution at the moment. That doesn't mean people have been kind to me about it."

A dry pause as he decided to keep understating the case.

"It makes me angry."

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

"Mutant, darlings," Emma replied with a wave of her hand. "For some reason, the majority of humans in my world aren't too fond of those of us with the odd genetic twist or turn."

Re: Discuss

[fratboybitch.livejournal.com]

"Aww, but some abilities are so much fun," Alex teased from his desk, looking smugly content. "Obviously, the majority of humans in your world are idiots who don't want to have fun."

Of course, he didn't know about all the different kinds of mutations but he did like hers for a variety of reasons.

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

Emma just laughed and blew Alex a kiss. "Sadly, not everyone is as enlightened as you," she teased. "Would you believe some people -- at this school even -- find me and my talents terrifying?"

...stop trying to look sweet and innocent, Emma, no one who knows you is going to buy it.

Re: Discuss

[fratboybitch.livejournal.com]

"I didn't but it doesn't really surprise me," Alex said, making his words serious but his tone mostly light and amused. "I think you'd find that everywhere. I'm sure some people consider you a threat because of what you can do and that scares them. Easier to lash out then learn, right?"

He shrugged and then said, "But I am very enlightened. All part of the package, you know."

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

"It's why I'm upfront about it," she admitted. "If someone really thinks I'm some sort of freak, then I don't want anything to do with them. Of course, it's tacky to open a conversation with 'Hello, my name is Emma and I can kill you with my mind, but don't worry, it's not contagious.'"

<<And I'm not discussing your package in public, darling.>> Emma's mental tone was amused, and she gave him a slow smirk, seriously tempted to review some of the reasons Alex enjoyed her gift so very much.

Re: Discuss

[fratboybitch.livejournal.com]

"I don't know a lot about persecution of mutants because I've never met any before this place but maybe it's the whole change is bad, change is scary and if you change, you're abnormal thing that gets people?" Alex guessed, shrugging.

"No offense, Emma, but you're not normal and that scares people, up front of not," he said easily. "Of course, it's their fault for not opening their minds, though. And for thinking you're only around to use your power to hurt people. Humanity thinks the worst of humanity."

<< Behaving yourself today? Miracles do happen! >> Alex sent back, trying not to grin too much. He was aware of who else was in this class and he'd promised.

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

That totally earned Alex a few of those dirty images he liked so much as Emma grinned back.

"I'm plenty scary without my powers," she retorted cheerfully. "I'm a Frost. We devour the babies of lesser Fortune 500 companies for a snack. I don't need telepathy to hurt someone."

Re: Discuss

[fratboybitch.livejournal.com]

"Funny, you don't scare me," he replied, smiling lazily and trying valiantly not to pay too much attention to those dirty images. Being good, being good, Effy was in the class, being good, being good. "So, what's that say about you? Or me?"

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

A few more dirty ideas and -- wait. Why was Effy in there? Effy shouldn't be in there. Well, lots of people usually had thoughts about other people, but 'Effy was in the class, being good, being good,' should not be the dominant thought when you were being plied with telepathic bribes.

"Possibly that you're insane," she mused aloud. "Or that I'm too adorable for most people to be suitably frightened."

<<Is there something you want to tell me, darling?>> Buuuuuuusted.

Re: Discuss

[fratboybitch.livejournal.com]

"You're very adorable," he said, sucking up smirking a bit, "but I also know what you can do can be dangerous. Maybe I'm just more adaptive. Or maybe humanity really is screwed. If we can't tolerate different religions or sexualities, pretty sure mutants aren't ever gonna be accepted, sucky as that is."

<< How so? >> He could play dumb for a bit. He wasn't lying. << I want to tell you lots of things. >>

Re: Discuss

[fratboybitch.livejournal.com]

"Not that I can remember," Alex said, shrugging a little lazily. "I don't tend to outwardly have a lot of things people can persecute for unless they're going for ridiculously good looking."

He was allowed to be full of himself, thank you.

"Other things, people would have to work harder to find," he added. "I don't think there's anything superficially that people are going to grab onto so they can make me feel like a second class citizen. Nothing doing."

Re: Discuss

[wantstodirect]

"I'm gay," Tony said. "I mean, I know it's not as bad as in the old days," a glance at Jack there, "but when you're a kid and the other kids figure out why you're so fascinated with the cutest guy in the class, it's not easy." His parents' reaction was too personal to share with the class, but it was at the front of his mind and easy for any psychics to read, if they chose. "Plus there's all these American groups producing commercials about how two guys getting married will bring on the apocalypse. Doesn't really make me want to stay in this country."

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

Emma's head snapped around to look at Tony as she caught his mental tangent.

Outwardly, she made a rather un-ladylike sound. "Not easy is the polite way to put it. You should have seen my father when my sister outed our brother," she agreed. "I had known forever -- " a little tap to her head indicating why Emma had known. "-- but Winston flipped. It's just 'not appropriate' for a scion of the Frost line, and he'll never forgive me for covering for Christian for so long."

And there was a laundry list of other Issues between Christian, Adrienne, Emma, and Winston, but nothing she was going to share with the class.

"I'm not sure if all the fuss over the 'mutant threat' rather than the 'gay threat' in my world is a better or worse situation to be in."

Re: Discuss

[wantstodirect]

Tony glanced over at Emma, giving her a thoughtful look. Huh. Emma had depth. Who knew?

Well, Jack, if what Tony'd heard on the radio the other night was true.

And she could probably overhear him thinking this. I mean it in a good way!, he added hastily, just in case she was listening.

"My family didn't have a reputation to maintain, but my parents weren't all that into the idea, either." Understatement, since they'd thrown him out of the house. "These people on TV try to stir up trouble to get ratings and politicians go with it 'cause they can scare people into voting for them. Guess if you can get a big group to hate a little group, it's easy to control them."

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

<<Busted, Mr. Foster.>> Oh yes. Totally overheard that.

"Mob mentality," she agreed. "Whip them up enough, and they'd set fire to their own mothers. But the flip-side is that they'll turn on their leader viciously, if they feel they've been manipulated."

Re: Discuss

[wantstodirect]

Tony slunk down in his seat a little. You are a delight to the eyes and a pleasant - aw, fuck it. It's my brain; I'll think what I want. Did your brother tell your parents to stuff it?

"Any way we can make that happen?" he responded out loud.

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

"I can change their minds for them!" she replied brightly.

...not helping, Emma.

<<He did, in his own melodramatic manner,>> she replied dryly. Soooooo not getting into that with Tony, especially not in class. <<I think it was the first time anyone had ever successfully told Winston 'no' and gotten away with it.>>

Re: Discuss

[wantstodirect]

Good for him, Tony thought at her. If Emma didn't sound all that cheerful about what her brother had done, well, when did Emma ever sound cheerful?

"No," Tony said, wistfully. "Well...." He imagined his parents welcoming him home with open arms. Because Emma had messed with their heads. He frowned. "No, that's not the right way to do it."

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

<<I can still he~ar youuuuu!>> She was cheerful when she was tormenting Tony, apparently.

"And it only takes a teensy tweak." Emma held up her thumb and forefinger barely an inch apart. "A non-verbal reminder that we're all supposed to love one another."

Re: Discuss

[wantstodirect]

Then stay out of my head! What would make her stay out of his head? Naked pictures? Probably not. Then he had an idea. He thought about eating one of Karla's cookies. He focused on the taste and texture and the whole experience and tried as hard as he could to send it at Emma. He wasn't sure if she could pick up taste and all that, but it was worth a shot.

"Wouldn't work," he said out loud. "You'd get people trying to 'fix' their family and friends to save them from Hell. Because they love them."

Re: Discuss

[icecoldfrost]

Pick up taste? Not so much. But Tony probably wasn't expecting Emma to burst out in telepathic laughter as she picked up the overall experience.

<<Oh, that's fantastic,>> she sputtered, trying to not completely crack-up in giggles. <<Most people just fall back on singing 'row row your boat' or 'itsy bitsy spider' to make me go away. Ten points for creativity, Mr. Foster. Although next time I am put-out with you, I shall simply slip Karla-cookies into rehearsal.>> And, well, anyone else who ate them would just be collateral damage.

"Then turn me, or someone like me, loose where we can do the most damage," she said, wriggling her fingers at him. "I'm a finder and keeper of secrets, but maybe their leader has been siphoning funds, or has a deliciously illicit liaison. There's more than one way to spin a mob in another direction."

Re: Discuss

[awakestheghosts]

The discussion question caused Chloe to pull a little within herself as she was not comfortable talking about what was going on with her and her world.

Re: Discuss

[anarchist-queen.livejournal.com]

"Back in Bordertown there are certain parts of the city where Elves simply do not go. It's extremely bad for our health. On the flip side there are places where it's not a good idea for humans to go." She squirmed uncomfortably.

"At my last school I was accused of being a half-breed because of my height." She would not be offering any details as to just what they had done to her. Or what she feared they might have done to her had Crystaviel not come to her rescue.