Posts by Jose Arellano (23)

In January of this year, I wrote about “preppy” fashion, describing it as a style that “has demonstrated a longevity that surpasses that of recurring trends.” At the time, though, I also thought that the “mainstream embrace of the preppy aesthetic” had “reached a crescendo” in 2008. No sooner had I hit “submit” than I came across the spring 2009 fashion previews—preppy galore. “Preppy is back,” announced the headlines, back again.

What follows, the concluding segment of my Dark Knight commentary, is speculative at best and specious at worst.

During the past few months I’ve consumed cultural artifacts coming out of a period spanning the decades between 1945 and the present. It’s possible to try to trace a trajectory of sorts, a history of the intellectual and artistic production of this period, but what follows is not such an effort.

The hour is fast approaching when we must bid each other adieu. Until that time comes, though, I have a handful of posts that’ll go up, pieces that have been brewing in my head for some months.

I’ve been promising myself that I would post the last part of my The Dark Knight commentary, but life’s many contingencies keep getting in the way.

V.

“Criminals in this town used to believe in things... Honor. Respect. What do you believe, huh? What do you believe?!”

“I believe that what doesn't kill you simply makes you stranger.”

IV.

“I don’t want to become that which I hate.”

III.

“When their enemies were at the gate, the Romans would suspend democracy and appoint one man to protect the city. It wasn't considered an honor. It was considered public service.”

II.

“People are dying, Alfred. What would you have me do?”

“Endure, Master Wayne. Take it. They’ll hate you for it, but that's the point of Batman... he can be the outcast. He can make the choice no one else can face. The right choice. He must do what is right.”

Christopher Nolan, more than any other living director, forces me to think. A lot.

Today I’m posting the first of six (or seven) related sections that examine Nolan’s latest movie and its relation to political thought and philosophy. Everyday’s post will raise new questions and develop the argument. I'm asking a lot of my readers, I know, but I hope you will continue to tune in to see how it all unfolds.

“And here we go.”