Blog Task 2 - Superheroes & Supervillains

Background for the scene: Goldie has been in the attic for a week or so now, and her and Baby Bear are starting to become friends. (Goldie being an agent and Baby being a 10-year-old Austrian kid who looks heaps like her).

We first meet Louie; a 13 year old, working class kid from the Western Suburbs. He loves sport and action movies. His mother left the family when Louie was young and it’s clear he has been left with a sense of abandonment and constantly seeks external validation particularly from his father. He also lives with his brother, Jack, 18, who is a bookish teenager who never really fit in and is a constant source of disappointment for his father; a warning of what not to be for Louie. The old man is a gruff, hard-as-nails type who keeps a cold emotionless house.

ROUGH PLOT

·       jed patterson arrives at café in his porche.

·       on phone; snippet of conversation – he will not do a promotional football video with his father; early establishment of fractured relationship.

·       meets friend bel baker inside café

·       two more friends arrive soon after, chase and indicah.

·       all three annoyed at jed for his absence/being bad friend/fame going to head

·       they state he is coming with them for a night volunteering at a soup kitchen.

·       they pile into bel baker’s car but it will not start. no other option but to use jed’s porche to transport vegetables and tins of soup.

·       as they dish out meals to the homeless people, bel unleashes on jed, questioning the changes in him after he started playing league football.

·       interrupted as young woman with bruises comes up to them for food

·       jed particularly rattled about the domestic violence

·       later: bel, jed in storeroom—consider their friendship/relationship

·       jed morose; bel unsolicited tells him he’s not his father.

Character Building Blocks

Propose a Flawed Belief they might have that stems from the Wound: “If I just do this then I’ll never be wounded again.”

“If I just work harder I’ll never make the same mistake again”

Eugene is determined that the fatal miscalculation of his last, disastrous experiment was a fault of not working hard enough, rather than working too hard.  

Proposal an Irrational Fear for the Protagonist: “If I just avoid doing that then I’ll never be wounded again.”

“These test subjects are dangerous and uncompromising. I must never treat them as anything but a threat. I have learnt that the hard way and I’ll never make the same mistake again”

The carnage of his last failure has bred a deep fear and mistrust of all contained paranormal subjects. He now treats all contained subjects as both subhuman and a potential threat - even the friendly ones. 

Propose a potential Deeply Held Longing – the thing the character needs in order to be a better person and lead a better life. It heals the Wound, destroys the Flawed Belief, and exposes the Irrational Fear.

There’s a void within Eugene - a disconnection from external world he thinks he can fill through scientific research. In reality, it’s a connection to others, and an understanding of empathy that Eugene subconsciously longs for. The longer he chases the ever-illusive ‘final scientific breakthrough’ the closer he comes to wounding himself again.

Which of the Three Classic Ways to Create Empathy might be utilised in creating your protagonist?

Sympathy (victim of undeserved misfortune)

We should feel sympathy for the both physical and mental isolation Eugene finds himself in, particularly because it is self imposed. At the beginning of the story this takes the form of his lonely job in Archives.  As the plot progresses it will take the form of Eugene’s scientific disconnection that bleeds into his daily interactions. 

Jeopardy (placed in a threatening situation)

Eugene will find himself in particularly dangerous situations when dealing with a dangerous rouge subject. 

Which of Five Additional Ways to Strengthen Empathy might be drawn upon in creating your protagonist?

High level skills

Eugene is an incredible problem solver and very hard worker. Although, often, he will work himself to the bone, you can guarantee that whatever he produces will be perfect.

Familiar flaws and foibles

Eugene is typically awkward with social interaction. He does his best to be friendly to his co-workers however, he often misreads social and emotional cues in conversation. He’s the kinda guy you have to explain the punchline of a joke to.  

Thematic Statement

Thematic idea: The abuse of others …

Transformative action: … for the sake of scientific advancement …

Manifestation or result: … is ultimately dehumanising for all involved.