OT: watchmen on trial

James Wynn · 09 Apr 2005, 11:57 · from 2005-April.txt.gz

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From: thewynns at earthlink.net (James Wynn)
Date: Sat Apr  9 11:57:28 2005
Subject: (urth) OT: watchmen on trial 
References: <20050409153409.57921.qmail at web54405.mail.yahoo.com>
Message-ID: <004701c53d35$f864be00$60a3f63f@wynnhouse>

>I never once thought that
>Ozy was meant as a persuasive tool or that Dr. Manhattan was enlightened. 
>Those of
>you who did think so: are you also convinced that 1984 is a propaganda 
>piece written
>by that minister of totalitarianism George Orwell?

Nathan, you are coming in a late and I don't want to restart this 
conversation since I have already said that Dan'l and others have a point 
(but only if "The Watchmen" is deeply flawed in its storytelling). But you 
are the second person to make this analogy with "1984" and while I didn't 
respond then, I'll say now that I consider this analogy flawed as well.

"1984" is pretty obviously an intended Tragedy. If "The Watchmen" was meant 
as a tragedy then it was verrrrrry subtle and quite ambivalent one. Also, 
I've sense remembered that it was not Mr. Manhattan that justified Ozy's 
plan (he only murdered the only common man hero in the story), it was Night 
Owl who was the character with the primary narrative perspective. If it was 
a mistake to take Night Owl's summation of Ozy's plan **at the climax of the 
story** as the author's own, then I think it was a forgivable mistake ~ and 
I hereby absolve myself. ;-)

~ Crush

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