The Fault in Our Stars
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings.” Cassius tells Brutus in Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar. Cassius is urging his friend into action, telling him that there is no such thing as fate, that we are responsible for our own destinies. While the line suggests Shakespeare was of the opinion that we make our own fortune, the tragic nature of the play suggests otherwise.
John Green took this line, plucked it from the pages of history and made it the title of his young adult novel. The Fault in Our Stars in a novel about two star-crossed lovers stricken with cancer. The tragic teens don’t make poor choices or incur the wrath of God due to their hubris. Life simply dealt them a bad hand. Green sees the utter meaningless of their early deaths. Instead of buying into finding the Bright Side or create meaning, he takes a more existential approach. He turns the straight up Love Story style tragedy and turns it into a Shavian Tragicomedy. But perhaps the most interesting part of the book is the Italo Calvino like quest for the missing part of the book The Empire Affliction. I’m not sure why Green chose Amsterdam, but that made me think of Mark-Paul.
There isn’t much news on him these days. He and his 2nd wife had a baby. A boy. Franklin and Bash is still going, but Seasons 2 and 3 have yet to be released on DVD. I did discover that his paternal grandparents Hertog and Hester Gosselaar were killed at the Sobibor Extermination Camp during the Holocaust. Being a victim of the Holocaust is a prime example of meeting a fate you have no control over—a tragedy if there ever was one.
The Fault in Our Stars would make a good Star Wars title. This thought led me to post blogs on J.J. Abrams and George Lucas. Lucas sold his Star Wars franchise to Disney and hired Abrams to do the next movie. I was surprised to learn that Lucas finally got remarried. His wife is over 20 years younger than him, but that still makes her 45 years old. They had a daughter together via surrogate. He is semi-retired at age 70.
Me? I just published my 6th book. I got my copy in the mail not long ago. I wonder if my local Barnes and Noble would let me do a signing? I haven’t done one since Radiant Darkness some 14 years ago. I keep putting stuff out there, but I haven’t really been able to invest in it or publicize it like I want to. I’ve posted stuff online mostly.
The College Papers I posted get the most hits blog-wise. Though someone has frequented my post on Mark-Paul a number of times. Could it be Mark-Paul himself? Dare I hope? He’d be more likely to notice my blog than Lucas or Abrams. Though Abrams is computer and internet savvy. There is a chance that despite his busy schedule, he might have stumbled upon my blog. Lucas, not so much. My Mariah post has also had a number of views, but I’d wager it was a fellow fan rather than the Diva herself. Still, you never know.
The internet has given fans a voice and a way to interact with the celebrity world. A blog probably has a better chance at reaching the right person these days than a standard letter. Letters pile up and are waded through by Assistants. Blog posts may reach Stars via friends and family who stumble upon them first and then relay them to the Star themselves.
carilynn27 