📖 Read Frozen II (Midwest Film Journal) by Aly Caviness

I was going to write a whole blog post about Frozen II and why I like it better than Frozen (which I both loved AND only saw once, because TOO MUCH CRYING) but then I found this film review and can simply point to it and add a few notes.

The main thing here is that, as this review points out, this sequel is Elsa’s story in a way the first one wasn’t. I think many people, in light of the juggernaut that is “Let It Go,” don’t realize that Anna is the protagonist of Frozen. Yes, Elsa has an arc, but Anna is the one who goes on a journey, gets assistance, experiences betrayal, etc. The climax flips it a bit, but if we’re looking for Campbellian narrative, Anna is the one who gets it in the first movie. In one sense, Elsa is a MacGuffin as much as she’s a character.

Frozen II works beautifully in parallel with Moana.

“The call isn’t out there at all; it’s inside me.”

“You are the one you’ve been waiting for all of your life.”

I could go on at length about how people don’t give Anna the credit she’s due, how love is a power that’s not as impressive as manipulating ice but seems to me much more valuable. And maybe sometime I will.

(In one sense, Elsa is her parents’ love incarnate, but her magic renders that love inert in a way that is the opposite of Anna’s openness to love, Anna being, I feel, her parents’ love incarnate and activated.)

Anyway, I’ve just gone on longer than I meant to and will probably have more to say later. But really, read the linked review and you’ll get a good sense of how I feel about Frozen II. 🕸️

Hey guess what I passed my comps. Taking a post-comps hiatus. See y’all Monday.

It’s remarkable how chill I am about my comps oral exam tomorrow. I guess I’m just… ready.

This little comb-bound packet represents a year’s worth of work.

Today I finished my dissertation proposal and sent it to my committee. I sent them the literature review for my comprehensive qualifying exam at the end of October. On Tuesday, I’ll take the oral examination part of the comprehensive qualifying exam. My advisor and I are trying to find a way to expedite my proposal defense, because I’m ready. The proposal defense is the last milestone before I submit and defend my dissertation (expect to submit & defend spring 2021). If you have supported me in any way in the four and a half years it’s taken to get here, thank you so much.

NOW I’ve finished my dissertation proposal, and even sent it to my committee ahead of my comps.

Candidacy, here I come!

How did I not know that it’s not just me, but rather the entire Internet, that refers to Carrie Fisher as “space mom”? Miss you space mom. Love you space mom.

NPR’s Book Concierge is live and Tumblr’s Fandom Year-in-Review is out. It is truly the most wonderful time of the year.

This morning, when W. and M. were sleeping in, I could have chosen to do one of many different things, whether I wanted to spend that time productively or on leisure. I chose to play the visual novel Choices, which is one of Tumblr’s top gaming-related tags right now. When I wasn’t able to do any more chapters there, I switched to The Arcana: A Mystic Romance. I’ve also got a vampire one installed, but I haven’t tried it yet.

It should surprise no one who knows me well that I like these games. I got obsessed with the Ace Attorney series for a while and pretty much treat all Bioware games like they’re otome with combat. Don’t get me started on Dream Daddy and how I can’t bring myself to choose between Goth Dad and Barista Pun Dad. (In real life, I married gothish barista pun dad.)

I read a piece a while back about how young women are making businesses out of writing stories and developing them for some of these games. I’m definitely keeping my eye on this as a potential area for research.

I… think I’m almost done with my dissertation proposal?