Positive Depiction of Communism in Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV Series E

Red Revised In a recent article concerning the political movement behind followers of Garabandal, journalist Barry Hanratty reports â€Å"to speak of communism today almost seems anachronistic† (Hanratty). Communism today does seem to be an oxymoron. The United States’ Cold War politics have trapped communism in a different century and attached to this word those negative feelings once associated with foreign Communist powers. Americans have now forgotten the actual definition of communism, relying solely on the propaganda fed to America during its wars against communist nations and particularly Joseph McCarthy’s time in Congress. However, some individuals in America are moving past the propaganda and looking at communism at the root of its definition, seeing it - not as a totalitarian form of government, but rather as a system which distributes all property of a community equally among community members, making social class nonexistent and all individuals share equal economic status. Fran Rubel Kuzui proved to be one of those individuals by directing the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer which shows communism as something positive rather than threatening. The episode that exemplifies this most is â€Å"Normal Again.† In this episode, Kuzui uses the two realities Buffy finds herself in to contrast communism with capitalism, showing not only a preference to communism, but also that it has a place in a new generation. Each form of the two economic systems are established in their respective realities through camera angles. In the reality where Buffy is a vampire slayer, the camera shoots everything at a level angle. When her friends help Buffy up off the bench in the graveyard, the camera follows Buffy in a way that... ...ording to his need. Our nation’s history with communism has clouded this economic philosophy, thereby preventing the youth of the United States to weigh communism fairly. â€Å"Normal Again† gives a new generation a new perspective. This episode opened up the possibility that the capitalism that rules America may be just as constricting and frustrating as a mental institution; that the only escape may be the equality-centered community communism offers. Works Cited Page Hanratty, Barry. â€Å"Garabandal’s Prophecy about Communism.† The Workers of Our Lady. Bishop Roman Danylak. 27 Oct. 2007 . Trbic, Boris. â€Å"Dark is the Night.† Australian Screen Education 41 (2006): 34-8. Whedon, Joss, prod. â€Å"Normal Again.† Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Complete Sixth Season on DVD. Twentieth Century Fox, 2004.