Oh no! What did young Mr. Potter do to deserve such a fate? Click over to my latest “Mything in Action” article on Jim Hill Media to find out:

http://jimhillmedia.com/guest_writers1/b/adam_berger/archive/2010/07/08/mything-in-action-potter-passes.aspx

And thank you for looking at my previous “Mything in Action” articles. Every click counts, since each pageview my articles get helps improve my chances of getting to post future articles on JHM.

Once you’re tuned in to the role of mythic storytelling in the world around us, you begin to notice its presence seemingly everywhere you look. Yet it still comes as a bit of a shock when you suddenly recognize the presence of mythic content “hidden in plain sight” in familiar and unexpected places. This was especially true for me during a recent visit to the Museum of Modern Art in New York City—despite the fact that the name of the exhibition in question should have been a dead giveaway: The Modern Myth: Drawing Mythologies in Modern Times.

Of course, you’d expect to find elements of classic mythology in the works of Pablo Picasso (think minotaurs—lots and lots of minotaurs) and Salvador Dali. But Paul Cézanne? Mark Rothko? Jackson Pollock??!! Such is the shock and delight of leaning in to read a descriptive label and discovering that an artist you thought you knew has all along been leading a secret mythic life behind your back.

The exhibition, which runs through September 6, 2010, is fascinating on its own (alas, there’s no accompanying catalogue). But while the wall labels are helpful in appreciating the several dozens works included, you’ll get a lot more out of your experience if you time your visit to take advantage of one of the fascinating one-hour gallery talks, as Julia and I did.

Our lecturer/guide knowledgeably explained how this exhibition features three types of modern mythologies. First, there are works that straightforwardly depict subjects inspired by classical mythology (that’s where those Picasso minotaurs come in). Then there are works more generally inspired by “Arcadian” ideals that were popular over the last couple of centuries (a sort of Utopian vision of a pastoral world in harmony with nature). Finally, there are works by artists whose own lives were—and still are—the subjects of extensive, self-generated mythmaking (you can see where Warhol and Rothko and Pollock come into play at this point). Once you know the stories behind these works, you may even begin to perceive the echoes of the Campbellian Hero’s Journey. 

Needless to say, if you plan to go, I strongly recommend timing your visit to coincide with one of the gallery talks. The remaining talks are scheduled for Saturday, July 10, 2010 at 11:30 a.m., Monday, July 19, 2010 at 1:30 p.m., and Saturday, July 24, 2010, 1:30 p.m. There’s also a “members only” gallery talk on Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at 12:30 p.m. 

MoMA is located in midtown Manhattan, New York City, at 11 West Fifty-third Street, between Fifth and Sixth avenues. General admission (which includes the open gallery talks) is $20 per adult. Tickets are also available online here. 

IS THIS MYTHIC?

Mark Rothko. Archaic Idol. 1945. Ink and gouache on paper, 21 7/8 x 30” (55.6 x 76.2 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Joan and Lester Avnet Collection, 1978. © 2000 Kate Rothko Prizel & Christopher Rothko/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

The Many Masks of ABC’s Lost

It’s now been a whole week since ABC broadcast the epic series finale of Lost. Some fans found the wrap-up satisfying, others felt frustrated or disappointed, and many felt a curious combination of all these emotions. Numerous articles and blog posts have already appeared all over the ‘net, intended to unravel the “real” meaning of the finale. And now it’s my turn. But that’s not what I’m going to do.

The show’s creators have always insisted that it’s the flawed and unusually complex characters in Lost that made the series so engaging (at least for them). So, rather than present a full-blown mythic analysis of all six seasons of Lost, I think the finale offers an opportunity to revisit the show’s heroes. And there were many of them—hence the title of this post (which I blatantly “borrowed” from a line in James Poniewozik’s informative and perceptive article “Life After Lost” in the May 24 issue of TIME Magazine).

What was particularly interesting for me about Season 6 in general—and the series finale in particular—was the frequency and rapidity with which many of the core characters changed and even swapped their mythic roles. And what, exactly, is that supposed to mean? (For some reason, I find myself hearing Sayid’s voice whenever I see that phrase. Go ahead—read that line again while picturing actor Naveen Andrews. See what I mean? Freaky, isn’t it? But I digress. Or maybe that was a flash-sideways?)

In his book The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers, Christopher Vogler advises that we look at mythic archetypes “…not as rigid character roles but as functions performed temporarily by characters to achieve certain effects in a story.” Citing the Russian fairy tale expert Vladimir Propp, Vogler points out that “[by] looking at the archetypes this way, as flexible character functions rather than rigid character types…” we can explain “…how a character in a story can manifest the qualities of more than one archetype.” He goes on to explain how these archetypes “…can be thought of as masks, worn by the characters temporarily…” that can be swapped for other masks, and even passed around among different characters to meet the demands of the story being told.

Vogler’s observation proved true throughout the run of Lost, and the final season represented a veritable orgy of mask-swapping. The character of Hugo “Hurley” Reyes is a good example. At the beginning of the season, in the “island timeline,” Hurley delivers a message to Dogen from the ghost of the recently murdered Jacob, thus serving the “herald” function. A few episodes later, in the same timeline, Hurley trades the herald mask for the mask of the mentor as he carries out Jacob’s instructions to lead Jack to the island’s lighthouse (an “illuminating” event for Jack and for us). The next time we see Hurley, he’s wearing the mask of the threshold guardian as he attempts to delay Jack from returning to the temple (which is under attack by the Man in Black/smoke monster).

A few episodes later, Hurley again dons the herald mask as he acts as an intermediary between Richard Alpert and the spirit of Richard’s wife Isabella, who warns her husband that he must prevent the Man in Black from leaving the island or else “…we all go to hell.” But soon Hurley is assuming the mask of the hero as he fully accepts the mission Jacob has given him. At great risk, he blows up the Black Rock—an act that persuades Jack to place his faith in him as a leader. Ultimately, Jack’s trust in Hurley is vindicated when Hurley (reluctantly at first) agrees to become the island’s protector, thus fulfilling his heroic destiny.

See what I mean? So how about Kate Austen? In her case, much of the Season 6 mask-swapping occurs in the “flash-sideways timeline.” There, we first find her wearing the mask of the trickster as she escapes from the federal marshal, cleverly eludes capture at the airport, and then hijacks a taxi carrying (a very pregnant) Claire Littleton. In the next episode, Kate lets Claire go and almost immediately dons the mask of the shape-shifter as she convinces a chop shop mechanic to cut off her handcuffs and then makes a quick wardrobe change. Later, after being apprehended by James Sawyer (a cop in this timeline), Kate again takes the trickster mask as she plays mind games with him while he tries to interrogate her. She finally accepts the hero mask from Desmond Hume (along with a stylish dress) when he sets her free from the police van and invites her to join him at a fateful concert that night…leading to her eventual reunion at the church with her island colleagues.

Meanwhile, in the “island timeline,” Kate firmly accepts the hero mask as she leaves Jack and Hurley to embark on her own on a dangerous search for Claire. In the process, she survives a harrowing encounter with the smoke monster in the Inmost Cave of the temple. Later, while attempting to escape Hydra Island aboard Charles Widmore’s submarine, Kate is shot and experiences the “death and resurrection” stage of her personal Hero’s Journey. By the finale episode, Kate has fully absorbed the lessons of her Journey on the island, and it is therefore she who delivers the fateful gunshot to the no-longer-immortal Man in Black during his climactic struggle with Jack.

Other characters—especially Sayid, Sawyer, Charles Widmore, and Desmond—also experience their share of mask-swapping in Season 6. Even the Man in Black/Not-Locke/the smoke monster—the ultimate shadow figure of the story—gets to occasionally wear the masks of the mentor, the trickster, the threshold guardian, and (in a very literal way) the shape-shifter. Only Jack Shephard, having tightly embraced his heroic destiny during the previous season, is portrayed as a one-mask character.

Okay, I realize all that was pretty wonky and geeky. But isn’t that the beauty of Lost? That it allows us to release our inner nerd…to the infinite annoyance of those unenlightened non-Losties who have to put up with our incessant analyzing and theorizing about the series? Indeed, few TV series have taken as much delight in getting audiences to wonder and speculate in such a far-ranging way…to boldly ask (as Sayid might put it): “What, exactly, is that supposed to mean?”

By the way…if you’d like to watch a hilariously rapid-fire recap of the entire series by TIME’s James Poniewozik, click this link: ABC’s Lost in 108 Seconds.

Namaste!