fandomhigh | Professor Chaucer's Office Hours, Tuesday

Angela drops in, looking a little sad. She's carrying a book wrapped in silver paper.

Kiki comes in, holding up her books. "Found 'em!" she says. "I'd left them in the assistant's lounge."

It's perhaps a little suspicious that it took her 2 full periods after lunch to find her books, a curiosity underscored by the redness around her eyes.

"Now, on to Frankenstein," Kiki grins.

Geoff's putting books into a box when Angela comes in. He smiles a little sadly at her. "Lady Angela, it's good to see you."

"Frankenstein it is," Geoff agrees, grinning a little more brightly and setting aside the box he was packing. He sits down in his chair and pulls out his class notes.

"All right. Well, for starters, we didn't really have a class discussion because we watched a movie. But...let's see. How about you tell me your impressions of the novel -- what you thought of it, what you like or didn't like about it."

"Good to see you, too," Angela said.

She forced herself to smile, to seem casual about this. There's enough emo in Fandom as it is, without me adding to it.

"I brought you something," she said, almost shoving the book at him. "Might help guide you on your next adventure.

"Honestly? I felt sorry for the creature. He didn't ask to be created, but as soon as he was, he was abandoned," Kiki shakes her head. "Frankenstein was so absorbed in whether he could do it, he never stopped to think as to whether he should."

[ooc: *Is totally channeling lines from Jurassic Park*]

Geoff accepts the package and opens it, his smile brightening as he flips through the book.

"Thank you." He forces himself to keep smiling as well, although he takes a minute to turn away and set the book with the others that he's packing. "I have some plans to do a little traveling, in fact."

Turning back, he leans against the edge of the desk and says, "You have a break coming up next week. Any plans for that?"

"That's an excellent reading, Kiki. I think...it seems to me anyway, that people forget sometimes that the creature isn't the villain. Victor Frankenstein is the real monster in the story."

He thinks for a moment, then nods to himself and says, "All right. There are two common interpretations of the story. The first says that she meant it as an indictment of industrialization, an argument against where science seemed to be leading. The second says that she was actually depicting women's fears about childbirth. What do you think?"

"I don't think it's a matter of an argument against science, per se," Kiki says, thinking, "Or against knowledge, education, or the advancement of reason, but it is a very strong reminder that science and philosophy are two very different things. Science, at this time, was making huge leaps forward, but philosophy and ethics and values were still in an 18th century mind-set. It will always take a while for those to catch up to the advances in science - what scientists discover has to be investigated and looked at from all angles before deciding whether to attempt to use it or to turn away from it as too dangerous, and it takes much longer to do that than it does to discover it in the first place."

"I'm traveling myself," she answered, blinking hard.

Maybe there was an eyelash in her eye. "I'm signed up for the school trip to England and France. It'll be my first time out of the country. I'm glad I got a passport for ~~handwavy, handwavy, handwavy~~."

"Good!" Geoff looks impressed, and maybe a little proud too. "All right...this one is entirely based on your opinion. There's a school of thought that says the monster is actually a figment of Frankenstein's imagination, and that he's actually insane and committing all of the atrocities himself. What do you think about that?"

"I guess it is possible," Kiki answers. "But doesn't he have an alibi for one of the murders? But if no one can bear out that alibi, I guess that, too, could be a fake."

"Really? That sounds exciting, Angela. I imagine you'll be going to London and Paris, then. Not much point in visiting England and France if you don't."

Grinning, he cocked his head in thought. "Avignon is nice too. And while you're in London you should be sure to go through the market. I'm sure a lot has change, but there has to still be a market," he adds, chuckling.

"I think it's possible to read things that way, although I personally feel that it would detract from the lesson of what happens to the monster. It think it's a lesser reading, myself."

He leans back in his chair. "All right. Now for your questions about the reading, if you have any. And then, I'm afraid, there'll be a quiz." Geoff looks very stern.

"I'm not sure about Paris," Angela said honestly. "But definitely London. I'm hoping to spend some time in the Camden Town market; I've heard it's really impressive."

She squinted. "Was the Tower built yet, when you were there?"

"Questions? How about, 'What's on the quiz?' Except that's not about the reading," grins Kiki. "I can't think of any, at the moment."

"Oh yes, it was there. Is it still standing? That would be a sight to see. And the palace, of course. You should definitely see that."

"Well, then you get your wish!" He grins and pulls out a piece of paper with five questions printed on it. "The quiz."

1. Renaissance humanist writers recommended that tragedies be written with five acts. Name another one of their recommendations for a proper tragedy.

2. Who is the central protagonist of Julius Caesar?

3. What is a "closet drama"?

4. What is the name of the demonic being that visits the title character in Faust?

5. Tell me which of the readings assignments covered in class thus far has been your favorite, and why.

Angela nodded, though she wasn't sure what castle Goeff meant. She was bound to see one of them, anyhow.

She paused, staring at her shoes. "Well," she finally said. "I should get back to the library and let you pack."

"Happy travels, Geoff."

"Thank you, Lady Angela. And good luck in your travels, too. It's...been an honor to be your friend."

Stepping over to Angela, Geoff takes her hand and leans down to lightly kiss her cheek.

Angela blushed, and drew Geoff into a hug.

It randomly occured to her that, if she ever wrote a book, they would be on the same shelf as Geoff's, alphabetically. The idea made her happy.

"Goodbye until we meet again," she finally said, awkwardly moving toward the door.

Geoff returned the hug, nodding as Angela spoke.

"Until we meet again, my lady," he said softly in return. "Godspeed."

[ooc: The books on the shelf thing? How sweet and sad!]

Angela raised a hand in a final wave and was out the door.

[OOC: it is, isn't it? And to you: Godspeed and I hope our paths cross again. My real journal is

lyrajane, should you have a drive to friend it.]

[ooc: I barely use my LJ anymore, but I will friend yours. And Godspeed to you as well. *hugs*]

1. The play should begin in medias res.

2. Marcus Brutus

3. Closet dramas are plays designed to be read privately, or aloud by only a small number of people, rather than played out on the stage.

4. Mephistopheles

5. Lysistrata. It was so hilarious!

Professor Chaucer's Office Hours, Tuesday

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