How to read about dead Ducks...

Lars Jensen lpj at forfatter.dk
Sun Apr 4 00:40:23 CEST 2004


This whole so-called discussion about whether or not Don Rosa is
"raping" the Barks universe has left me with a bad taste in my mouth, so
I've elected to stay out of it. However, I do have a few comments on
something Dan Shane wrote:

>> "This is the truth. The holy truth. And everyone who disagrees should
>> be assassinated, because they are not worthwhile enough to be part of
>> this kingdown of truth." I find it scary. What if their mission
>> succeeds, one day?
>
> That would be truly scary, I agree.  But so far I have only seen
> evidence of that in the fertile mind of the paranoid Rosa non-fan, not
> in actual practice.

The word "assassinated" is an exaggeration, but you may recall a few
times in 2002 and 2003, where anybody who brought up a non-Rosa Duck
"fact" were met with a categorical "WRONG!" from a certain ex-member of
this list...

>> I'm afraid that day would get known as "The Day the Ducks Died".
>> We're living in the year 2004. So, at least according to this holy
>> truth, most of our cherished Disney characters are as DEAD as a
>> door-nail by now.
>>
>> Grandma is dead. Scrooge is dead. Donald is dead or almost-dead. The
>> nephews have grown up...
>>
>> What an awful, horrible future to look forward to.
>
> Guess what?  Davy Crockett is dead.  Robin Hood is dead.  King Arthur,
> Guinevere, and Lancelot have all passed off this mortal coil.  And
> somehow I still manage to enjoy reading stories about them.  There
> must be something wrong with me that I can read a story and imagine
> myself in a literal past instead of existing in a worm-hole where
> nobody ever succumbs to the effect of the passage of time.

An honest question, and one I hope you'll answer:

Davy Crockett was a historical person who lived in the 1800s, if I
remember correctly. It's only natural he would be dead by now. Robin
Hood, King Arthur, Guinevere and Lancelot (whether historical or not)
all had their deaths built into their legends, making these all the more
powerful. In which way does the death of the Ducks work to enhance these
characters' mythology?

Lars





More information about the DCML mailing list