O brave new world! (Of Endings and Beginnings)

[mistletoe]

We all were sea-swallow'd, though some cast again
(And by that destiny) to perform an act
Whereof what's past is prologue; what to come,
In yours and my discharge.



The Shakespearean quote is from The Tempest a play about Magic, exile, betrayal and renewal of faith in humanity.

Magic was a controversial subject in Shakespeare's day. Not all "magic", however, was considered evil. Several thinkers took a more rational approach to the study of the supernatural, with the determination to discover the workings of unusual phenomena. Both Agrippa and Dee two of Shakespeare's contemporaries, describe a kind of magic similar to Prospero's: one that is based on 16th-century science, rationality, and divinity, rather than the occult. Shakespeare is also careful to make the distinction that Prospero is a rational, and not an occultist, magician. He does this by providing a contrast to him in Sycorax. Sycorax is said to have worshipped the devil and been full of "earthy and abhored commands". She was unable to control Ariel, who was "too delicate" for such dark tasks. Prospero's rational goodness enables him to control Ariel where Sycorax can only trap him in a tree. Sycorax's magic is frequently described as destructive and terrible, where Prospero's is said to be wondrous and beautiful. Prospero seeks to set things right in his world through his magic, and once that is done, he renounces it, setting Ariel free.

Rather a long-winded introduction there, but this show has been a journey of countless steps which has culminated in a controversial ending to Season 5. However, I am here to tell you that for once subtlety has been given free rein and we have been offered little Amuse Bouches to tickle our palate and leave us panting for more.

It may be stretching the metaphor to see Brennan as Prospero, but in a sense she is a modern day magician, however much she would balk at the comparison. Her ability to seek goodness through rational and scientific examination of the evidence does seem like magic to the uninitiated. Like Prospero she has been withdrawn from the real world, he through being forcibly exiled, she though preference for pure science as a way to seek the truth of the human condition. However, life does not exist in a vacuum so each must accept change if they are to grow and prosper. *giggle*

Each brings the shift upon themselves: Prospero by causing his enemies to be ship-wrecked on his island; Brennan by going out into the field to apply her science to the real world. Each is surprised by the result and forced to change their world view. However, whereas Prospero renounces his magic and returns to the world of his former life allowing the young people to live happily ever after, Brennan finds that there is no happy ending in a world dominated by murder and pain. Not unsurprisingly, she chooses to move from her island into a brave new world found in the far distant past.

To turn to Wikipedia for the style of The Tempest we find:

The story draws heavily on the tradition of the romance, a fictitious narrative set far away from ordinary life. Romances were typically based around themes such as the supernatural, wandering, exploration and discovery. They were often set in coastal regions, and typically featured exotic, fantastical locations and themes of transgression and redemption, loss and retrieval, exile and reunion.

So we arrive at The Beginning in the End. I am not going to bother with the meta of the clocks or the symbolism of the case I am just going to cut to the chase, or in this case, the lack of one. I expected that there would be a parting of the ways, perhaps not one so significant as this in terms of the time apart, but nevertheless a halt in how the journey was progressing. It has gone as far as it could and it was time for everyone to get off the merry go round and draw breath.

Brennan has been feeling like a fish out of water all her life. (not a cold fish) Booth came along and dropped her back in the pond to swim around with the other fish and see if they were souled or otherwise. She found she had more in common with them than she thought and Booth helped her to communicate. He danced around her offering advice, bickering, making her think about fish and herself in a new way. Then he dropped a great big rock in the pond and told her he was more than a lover of fish; he wanted to tangle her in his net. She found this idea suffocating so she told him no. She wanted to join him, but he wasn't a fish like her. He would be stung by her poisonous spines that would get under his skin and hurt him. She wanted a new pond away from him.

In this episode, Booth lets her go. He goes off to shark infested waters to try to save a few mackerel.

This separation is a good thing. It is the way forward if our two protagonists are to find love through transgression and redemption, loss and retrieval, exile and reunion.

I applaud Hart Hanson and Stephen Nathan for having the courage to send the show down this route. I could see that there was no other solution for the way things have been set up since #100 and even before. All of this season has been about progress, but there is only so far that it can go. I said over at BGA that this finale was redrawing the line, not between them, but under the relationship as it stood. There was no way forward without a break and starting again.

That is true for everyone. Angela and Hodgins need to go to the archetypal romantic city of Paris. Sweets needs to stand on his own two feet: he can't be a baby duck all his life; Daisy needs to learn the difference between enthusiasm and hysteria. Bones needs to see that by studying the link between related but different species we can see how homo sapiens became the people of today who needed elements of both to be the complete person. Booth, well Booth needs to come home safe.

I look forward to Season 6 with renewed hope and without spoilers. I have enjoyed all of the key episodes in this season because I had no expectations of what was to come. As such I am pleased that I was not surprised or disappointed by the finale. I was satisfied.

Finally, this show has had an inconsistent relationship with musical choices over the years but this song this episode was just right.

The other song I wanted to look back on is not Hot Blooded, but the one that Brennan shared with her Dad. I have Booth in my head now when I listen to it.

Keep On Tryin’ lyrics

(timothy b. schmit)

I’ve been thinkin’ ’bout
All the times you told me
You’re so full of doubt
You just can’t let it be
But I know
If you keep comin’ back for more
Then I’ll keep on tryin’
Keep on tryin’

And I’ve been drinkin’ now
Just a little too much
And I don’t know how
I can get in touch with you
Now there’s only one thing
For me to do, that’s to
To get home to you

And I feel so satisfied when
I can see you smile
I want to confide in
All that is true, so i’ll
Keep on tryin’ I’m
Through with lyin’
Just like the sun above
I’ll come shinin, trough
Oh yes I’ll
Keep on tryin’, i’m
Tired of cryin’
I got to find a way
To get on home to you

I’ve been thinkin’ ’bout
All the times you held me
I never heard you shout
The flow of energy was so fine
Now I think I’ll lay it on the line
And keep on tryin’
To get home to you

And I feel so satisfied when
I can see you smile
I want to confide in
All that is true, so I’ll
Keep on tryin’ I’m
Through with lyin’
Just like the sun above
I’ll come shinin, through
Yes I will
Oh yes I’ll
Keep on tryin’, I’m
Tired of cryin’
I got to find a way
To get on home to you

Comments

[mistletoe54.livejournal.com]

Thanks. It comes to a pretty pass when Shakespeare and 70s songs can say something about a tv show!