Event Analysis-Max McLaughlin 10/17/12

"Give It Your All"

        Today I attended the showing of "Playful Poe" by The Playwrights Group of Baltimore.  This event took place in the 3rd Floor Reading Room right above the Loyola Bookstore.  During "Playful Poe," seven short 10 minute plays were performed.  Each one of them had different plots but they were all based around and inspired by the short stories of Edgar Allan Poe.  With all of the seven short plays, only one related to the readings: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Formula by Langston Hughes, and Old Walt by Langston Hughes.  The theme surrounding the play and readings was "Giving your all, to something you love".

        First, in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Victor creates the monster for having and obtaining pure greatness, both in regards to his name and literally.  Victor throughout the novel, had become absorbed by his own quest for that level of greatness.  In addition, Victor wanted to be known as that man who had created life a different way than everyone else.  He wanted to be unique.  Although things didn't really go his way in the end, Victor still gave it his all in doing the thing he believed in, which was being the best doctor and scientist in the world.  Victor proved a point and it showed others that reaching that certain dream takes time and 100% of ones soul.  

        Second, in Langston Hughes' Formula, the speaker overall loves poetry.  The speaker also goes into saying that poetry is all about special thoughts and creativity being provided by that certain writer.  Poetry, on the whole, is something people should put themselves in.  The poems should try and reach the stars when the reader is reading a certain poem.  Lastly, the speaker states the heart and soul will combine forces to create a masterpiece on paper.  The readers will have certain questions after reading the poem, leading to the happiness of the writer.  Writers should give their readers and audience questions to think about and look forward to in the their own futures and other works created by the same writer.  If a certain writer, of a certain poem achieves this greatness, than he or she will know deep down that 100% was given into creating the masterpiece they had in mind from the start.

        Third, in Langston Hughes' Old Walt, the speaker talks about Walt Whitman's poetry.  The speaker than states that Walt Whitman is completing poetry the right way.  Walt is always thinking, finding, and creating, which leads to a better poem than any other writer out there in the end.  Walt also uses his soul deep down to come up with certain topics to write off in a certain poem he created.  With Walt Whitman's imagination and detail, a person would say that 100% of his soul is being used, while leading to that masterpiece of his.  

        Lastly, in tonights "Playful Poe" short plays, one matched up with that theme of "Giving your all, to something you love" and also matched the readings.  This play came last and I was very excited when this placement came.  The name of the short play was "Headlong into the Abyss", which was inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's Descent into the Maelstrom.  The setting of this play took place during the time of Hurricane Katrina back in 2005.  A mother and son were trapped in their house and everyone around the town was being airlifted to the New Orleans Super dome.  The mom tells the son to go without her to the super dome, and the kid refuses.  The son wants to save both himself and overall his mother.  The son is being a leader and really giving his all into saving his mom.  He tries everything and pushes and pushes until, a helicopter arrives and safes them both.  The son achieved his goal of saving his own mom and they both lived happily ever after.  

        In conclusion, if a person wants to create a monster to prove a point, write great poetry, be just like Walt Whitman, and save his own mom before himself, than that theme of "Giving your all, to something you love" applies.  In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Formula by Langston Hughes, Old Walt by Langston Hughes, and "Headlong into the Abyss" by The Playwrights Group of Baltimore, 100% of the soul is needed to achieve greatness.