Nov. 1, 2024

Frankenstein and Politics

Frankenstein and Politics

A look at the original Frankenstein novel and movie and what they teach us about Politics

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A look at the original Frankenstein novel and movie and what they teach us about Politics

WEBVTT

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Looking at our world from a theological perspective. This is

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the Theology Central podcast making Theology Central. Good morning everyone.

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It is Friday, November the first, twenty twenty four. It

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is currently ten thirty eight am Central Time, and I

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am coming to you live from the Theology Central studio

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located right here in Abilene, Texas. Now, yesterday was Halloween.

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I don't know what you were doing for Halloween. I

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don't know if you celebrated, if you don't celebrate it,

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if you think it's good, if you think it's bad,

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whatever your opinion is. I don't know what you were doing.

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But I'm going to open the door and let you

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know what was going on inside of my brain on

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Halloween twenty twenty four. Right because on Halloween twenty twenty four,

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my mind started thinking about three specific dates. Threat specific dates,

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two in the past, one in the future, three specific dates.

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The first one was January the first eighteen eighteen. January

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the first eighteen eighteen. My mind started thinking about, oh Man,

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January the first eighteen eighteen. I wonder how people first reacted, right,

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That's what I was thinking. Then I jumped from January

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the first eighteen eighteen to November the twenty first, nineteen

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thirty one. January the twenty first, nineteen thirty one. I

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don't know if any of those dates have any significance

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to you. The first one January the first, eighteen eighteen.

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The second one November the twenty first, nineteen thirty one.

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Obviously I wasn't alive for any of that, all right,

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but my mind was thinking about those dates, specifically what

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was released on those days. So what was released? What

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was published on January the first, eighteen eighteen, What was

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released to the public on November the twenty first, nineteen

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thirty one. Do you know? Now, if you've seen the

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title for this episode, you have an idea. If you're

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listening live, depending on which platform, you may not see

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the title, so you may not know for sure, but

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those two dates. Write those dates down. January the first,

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eighteen eighteen, November the twenty first, nineteen thirty one, and

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then the third date, November the fifth, twenty twenty four.

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Now you know, November the fifth, twenty twenty four. I'm

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pretty sure you know what that is referring to. But

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three dates came to my mind on Halloween twenty twenty four.

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October thirty first, twenty twenty four. My mind was thinking

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about January the first, eighteen eighteen, November the twenty first,

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nineteen thirty one, and November the fifth, twenty twenty four.

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So what what is significant about these dates. Well, on

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January the first, eighteen eighteen, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was first published.

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This initial edition was published anonymously, right, so nobody knew

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who the author was. They definitely didn't know it was

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a woman. There was a preface to the original edition

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that was written by her husband, So there was a

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preface written by her husband, but the author was anonymous.

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It led some readers to assume that while her husband

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was the author. A revised and more widely read edition

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was later published in eighteen thirty one, with Mary Shelley's

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name on it, along with a new introduction in which

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she described the inspiration and process behind the novel. And

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remember when the novel was first written and people started

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reading it, there was some shock, There was some there

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was a little bit of controversy. Many people were felt

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very uncomfortable with many of its themes. They didn't necessarily

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like it. They felt it was a little sacrilegious. Maybe

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some felt it was a little blasphemous, but they basically

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handled it by publishing very negative reviews, very critical of it. Now,

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some people loved it and thought it was amazing and great, obviously,

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but there was obviously criticism of it now, which isn't

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surprising because it doesn't matter what you do. It doesn't

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matter if you're a musician. It doesn't matter if you're

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a podcast or it doesn't matter if you're a preacher,

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doesn't matter if you're an author. You do anything, there's

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always going to be someone like, it's no good, it's

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no good. There's always going to be critics, But there

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were critics. Now. What's interesting is on January the first,

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eighteen eighteen, when the book was published, there wasn't any

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major calls for banning the book, censoring the book, silencing

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the book, burning the book. There really wasn't anything like that.

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So there was some criticism of it, but most people

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found it somewhat fascinat intriguing because of its its of

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its great philosophical questions that were being asked in it

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a whole. But things would change because when you go

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from January the first to eighteen eighteen and we go

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to November the twenty first, nineteen thirty one. Oh boy,

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things were going to change because it was on that date,

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November the twenty first, nineteen thirty one, that the original

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Frankenstein Frankenstein movie that was released to the public January

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the first, nineteen thirty one. I was going to go

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into the name of the director and the main actors,

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but I'm not going to go into all of that.

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You get the idea. November the twenty first, nineteen thirty

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one and movie theaters, the original Frankenstein movie was released

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in the United States. This film adaptation became a landmark

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in horror cinema and helped establish Frankenstein as an enduring

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cultural icon. But the movie sparked some very strong reactions.

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Many and the audience got up and walked out. There

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was even reports of some fainting. There was like there

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was there was, I mean, the response was strong, and

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many conservatives and religious leaders said it was blasphemous and

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they wanted parts of it censored, and they didn't want

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it distributed, and it was like, we have to stop this,

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it's horrible. So we go from the novel, which sparked

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much more debate and conversation. We go to the movie,

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and immediately some people wanted it silence and wanted it

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to be like just wiped off the face of the earth.

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And that leads us to November the fifth, twenty twenty four,

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which is election day in the United States of America. So,

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how did my brain and on Halloween twenty twenty four,

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how did it go to January one, eighteen eight, November

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the twenty first, nineteen thirty one, all the way to

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November the fifth, twenty twenty four, an election day. What

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was the correlation? What is wrong with my brain? Well,

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I think my brain was doing this. I started thinking

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because it was Halloween. I just started thinking about some

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of the classic, you know, horror movies, and just started

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thinking around those things. In my mind was just kind

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of wandering, and I was thinking about the original Frankenstein novel,

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which I've always found greatly profound and that everyone should

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read it. And I started thinking about some of the

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themes within the movie and the book, and I was like, man,

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some of this really reminds me of politics in the

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United States in twenty twenty four. In fact, I feel

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like I feel like in some ways the Frankenstein novel

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and movie was kind of a symbol, a symbolic foretelling

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of what politics would look like in the United States

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of America, at least for the you know, for a

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very long time, for a very long time we could

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figure out where in it all started. But in fact,

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maybe maybe much longer than I would even care to guess.

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It's just I think it's what politics is. Politics is

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a lot like things that are put forth in the

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novel and the movie Frankenstein. So what we're going to

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do is we're going to take a little journey through

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the novel, through the movie, and then we're going to

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connect it all to politics, and then we're going to

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step back and see how theology should be. Let me

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stress this, theology and the Bible and Christianity should be

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a counterpoint to American politics, politics, which is very much

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like what we see in the book and the movie Frankenstein.

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Now here's what I would challenge you to do. If

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you've never done this, Please find a good edition of

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the original Frankenstein novel. You should read it. You really should.

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It's themes, philosophies, there's so many layers to it. It's

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very much worth your time. Right, just dedicate yourself to

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reading the original Frankenstein novel and then watch the nineteen

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thirty one movie. If you have a subscription to the

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Peacock streaming service, or get a subscription to the Peacock

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streaming service, it's not that much. You can watch the

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original Frankenstein movie. It's right there. You can watch it.

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You will note, obviously, the ending to the movie and

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the book. I won't give any spoilers. Let's just say

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they're very different. They're very, very, very different. So you

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definitely you'll be able to compare you and you'll see

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that the movie obviously doesn't go into the same depth,

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the philosophical depth. Even though you can see the hints

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of the themes, there's no real expounding upon them. And

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the movie's relatively short. I think it's just maybe I'm

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just going from memory. I think it's just a little

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over an hour. You can look a little over an hour.

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I don't even think it's a full hour and thirty minutes.

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I think it's maybe an hour, five hour, ten. It's

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not very long. But you should read the book, you

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should watch the movie, and then you should well consider

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maybe what it teaches us about American politics. So are

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you ready to kind of look at kind of what

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some of these themes that are in the book and

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in the movie. Here we go. If we consider both

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Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein and the nineteen thirty one film,

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you will see that it addresses society, mob mentality, and fear,

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though they do so in distinct ways and they offer

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a slightly different emphasis. All right, So I just want

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you to when you consider the movie and you consider

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the novel, they address society, how society is, It makes,

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it gives you, It tries to capture certain elements of society,

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tries to put a mirror up to our face so

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that we see society, maybe in a way we don't

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want to see. Sometimes we don't want to look in

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the mirror, right, And it shows this idea of mob mentality,

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which has always fascinated me and frightened me in some ways.

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And then the idea of fear itself and what people

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can do with fear. Right fear. Look, you put you

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hand the right people fear they can utilize it and

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manipulate you by it. And we will talk more about

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that as we move forward. So let's kind of outline

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the messages and how each version conveys certain themes. All right,

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so let's start with the novel, all right, Frankenstein by

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Mary Shelley. The novel critiques society's treatment of those who

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are different and explores how fear and prejudice leads to rejection, violence,

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and tragedy. I want you to hear that again. The

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novel critiques society's treatment of those who are different. So

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within the novel itself, she's critiquing society in many ways. Right.

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You may say, oh, it's about the monster, right, or

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it's about doctor Frankenstein and his creation of this monster,

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or it's something much deeper than that. And so many

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times people are very bad about doing this. They can

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do it with books, they can do it with movies.

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They sometimes miss the entire point. They just see the surface,

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and there's always so much beyond it. But the novel

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critiques society's treatment of those who are different and explores

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how fear and prejudice leads to rejection, violence, and tragedy.

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Shelley's monster and the novel is deeply sympathetic character who

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suffers not because he is in inherently evil, but because

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society rejects him based on appearance and fear. See, he's

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rejected not because of an inherent evil, but because of

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society rejects him out of there, because of an appearance

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and because of fear. Just think of that fear concept,

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fear fear. Now, if you watch the movie, there is

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a kind of a well, when I get to the movie,

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I'll mention it. I'll mention it there. I don't want

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to jump ahead. So in the book, the monster is

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deeply sympathetic, a sympathetic character, I guess would be the

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right way to state that. And he suffers not because

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of any inherent evil, but because society rejects him based

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simply on an appearance and because of their own fear

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and their own fear leads to well, some things. The

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novel suggests that society creates monsters by failing to show

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compassion and understanding. So the novel seems to say, society

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creates the monsters because we show that we show no compassion,

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we show no understanding, we allow our fear to just

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take control, which leads to a mob mentality. Within the book,

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societies will will Will break it down into really three

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parts within the book, within the novel, and there's far

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more to the novel than what I'm breaking down here,

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I'm I'm limiting my focus on things that obviously are

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going to relate to politics. All right, there, There's much

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more in it, and I could probably even expand the themes,

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but but I'm just trying, you know, I don't want

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to turn this into, you know, a six month series.

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So let's consider society's judgment. Society within the novel is

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betrayed as an unforgiving and quick to judge the monster

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that they are. The society has seen as being very

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unforgiven and very quick to judge the monster, whom they

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view as a threat solely because of his appearance. This

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judgment isolates the monster and leads him towards violence out

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of pain and desperation. So within the novel, here's society,

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and it's unforgiving, it's judgmental, it's condemning, it's hateful, and

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well this then has well very horrible, unintended consequences. So

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society is seen as being judgmental, unforgiving in the novel.

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The mob mentality in the novel, although there isn't a

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literal mob scene like we see in the nineteen thirty

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one film, right, but there are multiple instances of collective hostility,

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such as villagers attacking the monster with stones. They show

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how groups can act violently and irrationally when influenced by fear.

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All you got to do is you give them a

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little bit of fear. They lose their rationality, they lose

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they become violent. That you people will think and say

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and do some of the most crazy things. All you

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got to do is give them a little bit of fear,

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just a little bit of fear, and then just let

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irrationality let And since society can already be unforgiving and judgmental,

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you add a little fear to it, and they become

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well violent, they become they just lose all rationality. So

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the book shows society's judgmental nature, It shows mob mentality

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and what leads to mob mentality. And then the book

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definitely shows us the fear of the unknown. The monster's

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existence and Victor's creation challenge natural boundaries which frighten people

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and push them towards hatred and aggression. Rather than understanding

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Shelley's critiques, Shelley critiques humanity's instinct to ostracize what it

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does not understand the fear of the unknown. I'm going

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to read that again, because I think that's a good

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summary the monster's existence, just his mere existence and Victor's creation,

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challenging natural boundaries which frighten people. They're frightened by it,

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and it pushes them towards hatred and aggression rather than understanding,

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instead of seeking understanding, instead of trying to show find rationality, logic, thinking, no,

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they just turn to aggression, judgment, fear. Shelley, obviously in

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the book, critiques humanity's instinct. Here's humanity's instinct to ostracize,

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to condemn, to destroy what it does not understand. It

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doesn't seek understanding, it seeks well, I guess, feeling comfortable.

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So there's the outline of the book, and we see

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these themes mob mentality, fear, ostracizing, condemning, judging, All right,

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there in the eighteen eighteen novel. All right, So there

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we have it. So there's the novel. Now let's go

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to the movie. Let's go to the movie, the nineteen

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thirty one film adaptation of Frankenstein. Let's consider the movie

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right now. The film simplifies Shelley's themes into a more

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straightforward tale of fear and social response to danger or

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to a dangerous and I like this, putting in quote

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a dangerous other. How does society respond to a other,

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something other, something different? How does it respond? Well, we

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know how society responds to other because if you can

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create the other other, then you add a little bit

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of fear, and the next thing you know, you're gonna

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get judgment, you're gonna get condemnation, you're gonna get ostris,

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ostracizing it, pushing it, judge. It's just gonna lead well

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to a very irrational, unloving, a lack of compassionate response.

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And the movie simplifies these themes. It's a very straightforward

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tell the movie. If you look at the movie, it's

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a very straightforward tale of fear and social response to

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a dangerous other. I like the You can put those

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other and quotations the other, the other. It's not us,

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it's them. It's not us, it's them, the others, the others.

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They're a danger, they're a threat. Be warned, be scared.

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They're out to get us, they're gonna to destroy us.

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The others. Look at this point, if you're not hearing

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American politics, then you're not catching on yet. But I

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will make it more clear as we move forward now

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within the movie, the nineteen thirty one movie, the villagers

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collective fear. As the villagers theirselves, there's a collective fear

294
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of the monster drives them to violent action, culminating in

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the dramatic finale with the monster's supposed death. The film

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emphasizes society's urged to purge the threat it perceives, reflecting

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how fear can lead to morally questionable actions in the

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name of safety. The villagers lose their mind. And it's

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really bizarre because the villagers just like they just immediately

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I mean, now, there is a death that leads to

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their fear. So there is something bad that happens, but

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they don't seek understanding. I don't even really like the

303
00:21:01.359 --> 00:21:04.079
movie doesn't even really explain much. It's just like there's

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the death and the next thing, you know, they're like,

305
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get the torches and let's go. I mean like they

306
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just lose their minds. There's no pause to go let's

307
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get more information. No, they just go crazy and it

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happens quickly. It's almost like from a storytelling perspective, you're

309
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kind of like, wait, I'm missing something here. It's like

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00:21:24.640 --> 00:21:27.000
someone cut out a scene, but I think it's supposed

311
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to just well, first they're moving it along really quick

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in the pacing of the film. But I think the

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it's just shows how quickly a mob, a town, the

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villagers can go from joy, happiness, celebration, music, food, dancing

315
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to get the torches and let's kill something like. It's

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00:21:49.359 --> 00:21:53.920
so quick it's almost unsettling how quick it changes in

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the movie. You know, I will say something about the

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movie here that I think is important. In the movie,

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00:21:59.279 --> 00:22:01.680
there are just remember this, if you watch a movie,

320
00:22:01.680 --> 00:22:06.000
there are two jars, right, one has a normal brain

321
00:22:06.160 --> 00:22:09.119
in it, and the other one has an abnormal brain.

322
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The normal brain is like normal everyday person. The abnormal

323
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brain is supposedly from someone who is violent, who a criminal,

324
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criminally insane evil, right, And you'll notice which brain the

325
00:22:23.319 --> 00:22:28.640
monster receives. And you'll also notice that, well, the monster

326
00:22:28.720 --> 00:22:32.200
demonstrates that it's not that. So then the movie then

327
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is making an argument about inherent evil, which from a

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thiological perspective we may have some problems with. But you

329
00:22:38.359 --> 00:22:41.640
may notice that the movie doesn't it doesn't expound upon it.

330
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It doesn't expand it. It just kind of it's there.

331
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And then you're it's it's up to the viewer to

332
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do something with it. But it is interesting. We can

333
00:22:52.839 --> 00:22:56.559
have a long discussion about the what the movie it

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00:22:56.599 --> 00:22:59.319
demonstrates there, but I just want you to see the

335
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film simplifies the themes into a more straightforward tell of

336
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fear and social response to a dangerous other, and the

337
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villa villagers collective fear of the monster drives them to

338
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violent action, culminating in a dramatic finale with the monster's

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supposed death. The film emphasizes society's urge to purge. I

340
00:23:20.359 --> 00:23:23.720
want you to hear that society hasn't urge to purge

341
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anything any threat it perceives, whether the threat is real

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or whether the threat is imaginary. We want to purge it,

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we want to destroy it. And we love to state

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everything is us versus them. They are the others, and

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they are a danger, and they are a threat, and

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we must get rid of them. Now, in some ways,

347
00:23:45.680 --> 00:23:48.920
it sounds like I'm not talking about Frankenstein, the novel

348
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or the movie. It sounds like I'm talking about American politics,

349
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Which that's my whole point here. You'll see how we

350
00:23:56.039 --> 00:24:00.559
put all of this together. So let's outline sense those

351
00:24:00.599 --> 00:24:06.240
same three concepts society's judgment, judgment mentality, its mob mentality,

352
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and its fear leading to destruction. Let's outline it as

353
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this is demonstrated in the movie Did we outlined this

354
00:24:13.160 --> 00:24:16.079
and saw? It was demonstrated in the novel? Let's demonstrate

355
00:24:16.119 --> 00:24:20.440
it from the movie when it comes to society's quick judgments.

356
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Within the movie, the villagers react swiftly to the news

357
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of Maria's death. Now that's the little girl who dies.

358
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Who's you could say? Was she's murdered or was she

359
00:24:31.960 --> 00:24:34.960
accidentally killed? You can watch the scene for yourself. The

360
00:24:35.000 --> 00:24:37.880
scene was shocking in nineteen thirty one, right, you look

361
00:24:37.920 --> 00:24:41.599
at it. By today's standard, you're kind of like whatever.

362
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But in nineteen thirty one, the reaction was like, oh,

363
00:24:46.119 --> 00:24:49.079
and there are at least reports of some people fainting

364
00:24:49.200 --> 00:24:52.319
like they were shocked. They could not believe the Maria,

365
00:24:52.359 --> 00:24:58.079
the little girl dies. It was pretty shocking. But the villagers,

366
00:25:00.000 --> 00:25:03.079
they react swiftly to the news of Maria's death, assuming

367
00:25:03.319 --> 00:25:08.599
the monster's guilt without any evidence. This illustrates society's inclination

368
00:25:08.720 --> 00:25:11.759
to judge based on fear and appearance. They didn't care

369
00:25:11.759 --> 00:25:14.559
about getting any information. They didn't care about it because

370
00:25:14.599 --> 00:25:18.119
there was no one who witnessed what happened. She's dead,

371
00:25:18.119 --> 00:25:20.920
and they just immediately assume this is the culprit. And

372
00:25:20.960 --> 00:25:23.200
they don't care about facts, they don't care about truth,

373
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They just want action. Oh and again, does that not

374
00:25:25.799 --> 00:25:34.400
sound like American politics? Who cares about truth? Who cares lie? Misinformation, disinformation, misunderstanding?

375
00:25:34.759 --> 00:25:38.920
Nobody wants facts, and so they just they're ready to judge.

376
00:25:39.960 --> 00:25:44.039
Which this leads to a mob mentality. The iconic mob

377
00:25:44.160 --> 00:25:49.240
with torches represent the collective aggression of people who, who

378
00:25:49.880 --> 00:25:53.119
influenced by each other's fear and anger, become capable of

379
00:25:53.200 --> 00:25:58.359
violence that they might not condone individually. See, the villagers

380
00:25:58.400 --> 00:26:00.920
start acting in a way that they may never condone

381
00:26:01.079 --> 00:26:04.319
on an individual basis. But now the fear is all

382
00:26:04.759 --> 00:26:07.400
all consuming, and now they just rise up as a

383
00:26:07.440 --> 00:26:11.440
mob and they do that which any rational person should condemn.

384
00:26:11.519 --> 00:26:13.440
But no, no, no, no, no no. Now the mob

385
00:26:13.519 --> 00:26:16.160
mentality takes over. So guess what all you need in

386
00:26:16.200 --> 00:26:19.400
politics is you have a little bit of fear, point

387
00:26:19.440 --> 00:26:24.319
to the others, create a mob mentality, and well, the

388
00:26:24.359 --> 00:26:27.279
people can be manipulated, not only to maybe do things

389
00:26:27.319 --> 00:26:29.720
that they should never do, but they can also be

390
00:26:29.799 --> 00:26:33.359
manipulated to then put certain people in power that they

391
00:26:33.440 --> 00:26:36.559
will do what they feel needs to be done because

392
00:26:36.599 --> 00:26:39.359
of their fear of the others. And well, then all

393
00:26:39.400 --> 00:26:43.640
of the things it leads to. How about fear leading

394
00:26:43.680 --> 00:26:46.680
to destruction? So we have society's quick judgment in the

395
00:26:46.759 --> 00:26:50.119
nineteen thirty one film, we have mob mentality and action

396
00:26:50.480 --> 00:26:53.119
in the nineteen thirty one film. How about fear leading

397
00:26:53.119 --> 00:26:56.039
to destruction in the nineteen thirty one film, Well, the

398
00:26:56.119 --> 00:26:59.640
villager's fear of the monster, who represents the unknown and

399
00:26:59.720 --> 00:27:04.279
unknow natural justifies their pursuit to destroy him. The fire

400
00:27:04.359 --> 00:27:07.799
at the end symbolizes society's need to cleanse what it

401
00:27:07.880 --> 00:27:12.000
cannot understand or control, even if it means destroying a

402
00:27:12.119 --> 00:27:17.319
being who might not have been inherently evil. Once people decide, oh,

403
00:27:17.400 --> 00:27:22.160
we got to get rid of that, then it's just destroy, purge, burn,

404
00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:28.400
get rid of Now. If we put the two together,

405
00:27:29.319 --> 00:27:32.680
we take the eighteen eighteen novel the nineteen thirty one movie,

406
00:27:33.359 --> 00:27:37.640
we put them together, what do we take away from

407
00:27:37.960 --> 00:27:41.759
comparing them together? Here are the shared themes. Both the

408
00:27:41.799 --> 00:27:47.279
novel and the film highlight society's tendency to ostracize what

409
00:27:47.400 --> 00:27:53.359
it fears, demonstrating how fear can transform into aggression and violence.

410
00:27:55.559 --> 00:27:58.759
And when we compare the novel to the movie, we

411
00:27:58.839 --> 00:28:04.039
see the novel's death in the film's simplicity. Shelley's novel

412
00:28:04.160 --> 00:28:09.400
dives into complex ideas about humanity, sympathy, and social responsibility,

413
00:28:09.640 --> 00:28:13.480
suggesting that society itself plays a role in creating the monster.

414
00:28:14.960 --> 00:28:18.759
The film, while much less nuanced, focuses on the danger

415
00:28:18.759 --> 00:28:24.839
of mom mentality and the consequences of unchecked fear. Together

416
00:28:25.039 --> 00:28:29.640
the novel in the film present a cautionary message about

417
00:28:29.680 --> 00:28:33.359
the need for compassion and understanding. Where the novel offers

418
00:28:33.359 --> 00:28:36.920
a critique of societal flaws that lead to tragedy, the

419
00:28:36.920 --> 00:28:40.880
film illustrates the immediate dangers of mob violence and irrational

420
00:28:40.920 --> 00:28:44.480
fear in a visually compelling way. Both worn of the

421
00:28:44.559 --> 00:28:50.880
destructive potential of humanity. When fear replaces empathy, when we

422
00:28:50.960 --> 00:28:54.160
get rid of empathy, then fear rules and rings. And

423
00:28:54.160 --> 00:28:56.680
what is bizarre? Do you remember a few years ago

424
00:28:57.240 --> 00:28:59.960
there was like this, There was at least a certain

425
00:29:00.119 --> 00:29:05.359
elements of Christianity. This almost the condemning of empathy, that

426
00:29:05.440 --> 00:29:08.799
we should not have empathy. Well, when you get rid

427
00:29:08.799 --> 00:29:11.359
of empathy, you end up creating fear. And when you

428
00:29:11.400 --> 00:29:15.279
have fear, you have irrationality. And when you have irrationality,

429
00:29:15.400 --> 00:29:18.519
you get a mob rules mentality, and you create well,

430
00:29:18.720 --> 00:29:22.200
they are the others, and you start acting well in

431
00:29:22.279 --> 00:29:30.000
a way that is completely not even remotely close to Christianity. Now,

432
00:29:30.079 --> 00:29:33.039
when you take the eighteen eighteen novel and you take

433
00:29:33.079 --> 00:29:40.359
its nineteen thirty one film adaptation, they resonate deeply with

434
00:29:40.480 --> 00:29:44.039
American politics. You take, I don't know how you can

435
00:29:44.079 --> 00:29:46.359
read the novel and watch the movie and not go

436
00:29:46.720 --> 00:29:54.400
American politics. It is literally American politics. Especially if you

437
00:29:54.440 --> 00:29:57.000
look I'm just gonna consider American politics. Really, if we

438
00:29:57.039 --> 00:30:01.359
go to twenty fourteen to twenty twenty four, that time period, right,

439
00:30:01.640 --> 00:30:04.079
just that time, because everyone can remember that, right, that's

440
00:30:04.119 --> 00:30:08.640
all within everyone's memory. If I go further back, many

441
00:30:08.720 --> 00:30:10.759
of us wouldn't even be alive for some of us,

442
00:30:10.759 --> 00:30:13.279
So twenty fourteen to the present, if you just take

443
00:30:13.279 --> 00:30:16.400
that period of time, and if you look at this

444
00:30:16.480 --> 00:30:23.160
particularly concerning fear, the demonization of groups, and a mob mentality,

445
00:30:24.200 --> 00:30:27.720
if you take American politics twenty fourteen to twenty twenty four,

446
00:30:27.799 --> 00:30:29.960
you know what we get. We have fear, we have

447
00:30:30.039 --> 00:30:34.200
the demonization of certain groups, and we have a mob

448
00:30:34.359 --> 00:30:41.519
mentality that is frightening. During this period of time, fear

449
00:30:42.079 --> 00:30:47.359
has been a pervasive tool in American politics. You cannot

450
00:30:47.480 --> 00:30:55.039
deny that It's often used to galvanize support, vilify opposition,

451
00:30:55.920 --> 00:31:02.599
and polarize society. We become more divisive, more condemning, more unloving,

452
00:31:02.960 --> 00:31:12.240
no empathy, hate, fear. It's insane what has happened? So

453
00:31:12.319 --> 00:31:15.640
how can we apply these lessons from the eighteen eighteen

454
00:31:15.720 --> 00:31:21.559
novel the nineteen thirty one film to American politics? Well,

455
00:31:21.640 --> 00:31:24.519
let's break this down, ready, how can we We're going

456
00:31:24.559 --> 00:31:27.319
to so we've walked through the eighteen eighteen novel, We've

457
00:31:27.359 --> 00:31:29.599
walked through the nineteen thirty one film, just looking at

458
00:31:29.599 --> 00:31:34.039
a few basic concepts in both. The book goes way

459
00:31:34.039 --> 00:31:36.839
beyond the wall even the movie that there are far

460
00:31:36.920 --> 00:31:39.440
broader themes that we could discuss. We could have great

461
00:31:39.440 --> 00:31:42.759
conversations about it. I mean, I'm telling you, read the book,

462
00:31:42.799 --> 00:31:46.519
watch the movie. Okay, I'm telling you all right, But

463
00:31:46.680 --> 00:31:50.519
let's start here. The fear of the and you can

464
00:31:50.519 --> 00:31:53.599
put it in quotes other or the way I would

465
00:31:53.599 --> 00:31:57.759
state it. The fear of the others, the others the

466
00:31:57.799 --> 00:32:03.160
others are here, and social division. So we're going to

467
00:32:03.200 --> 00:32:06.000
put those two together. Fear of the others in social

468
00:32:06.079 --> 00:32:15.400
division and Frankenstein and the novel Frankenstein. Society's fear and

469
00:32:15.559 --> 00:32:19.920
rejection of the monster based on his appearance and perceived

470
00:32:19.960 --> 00:32:26.200
threat reflect a human tendency to marginalize those who are

471
00:32:26.319 --> 00:32:31.319
different or misunderstood. The novel suggests that the fear driven

472
00:32:31.400 --> 00:32:35.400
exclusion can turn individuals or groups into monsters in the

473
00:32:35.440 --> 00:32:38.799
public's mind, leading to tragic outcomes. I think this is

474
00:32:38.880 --> 00:32:42.640
very important. Who's the real monster in the novel? Who's

475
00:32:42.680 --> 00:32:46.079
the real monster? In the film? Is it the monster

476
00:32:46.680 --> 00:32:54.000
or is it society? Who's the real monster? And in

477
00:32:54.039 --> 00:32:57.920
many cases when it comes into politics, waly because of

478
00:32:58.039 --> 00:33:01.680
fear and rejection of what is different or what we

479
00:33:01.759 --> 00:33:06.359
may misunderstand or don't understand. While we condemn it, while

480
00:33:06.400 --> 00:33:09.680
we act crazy and say crazy things, we in many

481
00:33:09.720 --> 00:33:13.519
cases become the very monster, and we become the very

482
00:33:13.599 --> 00:33:17.720
evil that we are condemning, or we become even more

483
00:33:17.759 --> 00:33:30.680
evil than the evil we are condemning. In the novel,

484
00:33:32.319 --> 00:33:35.720
society's fear and rejection of the monster based on appearance

485
00:33:35.759 --> 00:33:39.839
and perceived threat reflect a human tendency to marginalize those

486
00:33:39.880 --> 00:33:43.400
who are different or misunderstood. The novel suggests that this

487
00:33:43.599 --> 00:33:47.640
fear driven exclusion can turn individuals or groups into monsters

488
00:33:47.880 --> 00:33:51.079
in the public mind, leading to tragic outcomes. Now, how

489
00:33:51.079 --> 00:33:54.359
do we apply this to politics? So there there is

490
00:33:54.400 --> 00:33:57.240
the fear of the other in the novel, the fear

491
00:33:57.279 --> 00:34:00.319
of the other social division in the novel. Now let's

492
00:34:00.319 --> 00:34:03.599
apply it to politics. Fear of the other has become

493
00:34:03.599 --> 00:34:08.599
increasingly prominent and American politics, with parties, politicians, and media

494
00:34:08.599 --> 00:34:14.599
outlets often framing specific groups, whether based on race, immigration, status, religion,

495
00:34:14.840 --> 00:34:20.239
or political ideology, as threats to traditional values or national security.

496
00:34:20.480 --> 00:34:25.280
This results in an intensified US versus Them mentality, which

497
00:34:25.320 --> 00:34:32.199
fuels polarization and widespread social divides. Politicians and media on

498
00:34:32.280 --> 00:34:36.119
both sides have used these tactics to mobilize their bases,

499
00:34:36.320 --> 00:34:42.760
but this also fosters misunderstanding, resentment, and hostility among Americans.

500
00:34:47.000 --> 00:34:51.440
The fear of the other drives American politics. I'm just

501
00:34:51.480 --> 00:34:52.840
going to go through this again. I want you to

502
00:34:52.920 --> 00:34:57.679
listen carefully. The fear of the other has become increasingly

503
00:34:57.880 --> 00:35:07.239
prominent and American politics with parties, politicians, and the media.

504
00:35:08.039 --> 00:35:13.519
And I'm going to even argue the church framing specific groups,

505
00:35:13.800 --> 00:35:19.599
whether based on race, immigration, status, religion, or political ideology,

506
00:35:19.760 --> 00:35:23.440
as threats to traditional values or national security. The result

507
00:35:23.519 --> 00:35:27.440
is an intensified us versus them mentality. If you go

508
00:35:27.519 --> 00:35:31.920
to the Christianpost dot com today, oh, Mark driscoll has

509
00:35:32.000 --> 00:35:36.400
now declared if you vote basically democrat, if you if

510
00:35:36.440 --> 00:35:41.559
you're pro choice, you're going to hell. And look at

511
00:35:41.559 --> 00:35:44.760
the sum of the comments underneath it. Oh wait, so

512
00:35:44.920 --> 00:35:48.519
now salvation even in the Christian mind, it's us versus them. You,

513
00:35:48.840 --> 00:35:50.639
if you're going to be a Christian, you got to

514
00:35:50.760 --> 00:35:52.840
believe what I believe, and you got to vote the

515
00:35:52.840 --> 00:35:54.840
way I vote, because if you don't vote the way

516
00:35:54.880 --> 00:35:59.360
I vote, you go to hell. Where is that? How

517
00:35:59.440 --> 00:36:03.880
is that? Christian Ritianity? Christianity? Salvation is based on my

518
00:36:03.960 --> 00:36:07.559
faith in Jesus Christ, not who I vote for. But see,

519
00:36:07.559 --> 00:36:11.719
we can't we can't just have Christians. We already separate

520
00:36:11.800 --> 00:36:15.079
Christians into philological groups. Okay, we already do that, and

521
00:36:15.119 --> 00:36:19.480
we marginalize and we demonize and we condemn others. Okay,

522
00:36:19.519 --> 00:36:21.719
we know we already do that philologically but now we

523
00:36:21.800 --> 00:36:28.360
got to add politics into it. And Christians constantly talk

524
00:36:28.400 --> 00:36:31.480
about us versus them, Us, Us, we're the good guys

525
00:36:31.480 --> 00:36:34.760
in the story and they're the bad guys. Who are they?

526
00:36:35.039 --> 00:36:37.679
Doesn't matter, it's anyone who's not like us? Can we

527
00:36:37.719 --> 00:36:42.079
marginalize and we demonize the Fear of the other has

528
00:36:42.079 --> 00:36:46.199
become increasingly prominent and American politics, with parties, politicians, and

529
00:36:46.239 --> 00:36:51.480
media outlets often framing specific groups, whether based on race, immigration, status, religion,

530
00:36:51.559 --> 00:36:56.119
or political ideology, as threats to traditional values or national security.

531
00:36:56.519 --> 00:37:00.199
The result has an intensified US versus them mentality, which

532
00:37:00.199 --> 00:37:06.159
fuels polarization and widen social divide. Politicians and media on

533
00:37:06.280 --> 00:37:09.800
both sides have used these tactics to mobilize their basis.

534
00:37:09.800 --> 00:37:14.719
But they but this fosters a misunderstanding, It fosters resentment,

535
00:37:14.840 --> 00:37:21.280
and it fosters hostility among one another. The fear of

536
00:37:21.320 --> 00:37:28.920
the other, them them, them on. Once you have fear

537
00:37:28.960 --> 00:37:31.920
of the other, then that guess what that leads to.

538
00:37:32.320 --> 00:37:35.039
Then now, because of your fear, you can be manipulated,

539
00:37:35.199 --> 00:37:37.760
and now you are a useful tool, a tool for

540
00:37:37.840 --> 00:37:40.639
what to get a certain party elected so that they'll

541
00:37:40.679 --> 00:37:52.719
fight the other supposedly for you. The novel shows this,

542
00:37:53.280 --> 00:37:57.639
and it's very applicable to American politics. So there's the

543
00:37:58.239 --> 00:38:03.000
fear of the other in the novel. How about the

544
00:38:03.159 --> 00:38:09.480
mob mentality? Are group thin now? In the film? In

545
00:38:09.519 --> 00:38:14.599
the nineteen thirty one film, it illustrates how a group

546
00:38:14.760 --> 00:38:18.239
or groups, I should say, or group can quickly descend

547
00:38:18.320 --> 00:38:22.360
into mob mentality, acting out of collective fear rather than

548
00:38:22.400 --> 00:38:26.559
individual reason or compassion. The villagers pursuit of the monster

549
00:38:26.639 --> 00:38:31.000
with torches represent a rush to violent action without understanding

550
00:38:31.599 --> 00:38:38.079
or evidence. That's very clearly illustrated in the nineteen thirty

551
00:38:38.119 --> 00:38:44.199
one film. It is clearly illustrated they act out of

552
00:38:44.239 --> 00:38:49.159
collective fear rather than individual reason or compassion. Forget compassion,

553
00:38:49.320 --> 00:38:58.159
forget understanding, forget reason, burn it down now? How do

554
00:38:58.199 --> 00:39:03.039
we apply this to American politics? American politics today often

555
00:39:03.039 --> 00:39:07.199
operates in an echo chamber, where like minded individuals amplify

556
00:39:07.280 --> 00:39:11.440
each other's beliefs and stoke each other's fears. Social media,

557
00:39:11.440 --> 00:39:15.679
in particular, has intensified groupthink, making it easier for political

558
00:39:15.920 --> 00:39:20.840
factions to rally around demonizing narratives from protests turning violent

559
00:39:20.880 --> 00:39:24.880
to online harassment campaigns. People in groups sometimes abandon critical

560
00:39:25.000 --> 00:39:28.400
thought in favor of collective rage, often aimed at those

561
00:39:28.559 --> 00:39:35.559
perceived they perceive as monsters or the enemies. And you

562
00:39:35.599 --> 00:39:38.599
hear this even in preaching. How we talk about people

563
00:39:38.679 --> 00:39:42.920
Christian radio, How them, them, They're the monster, They're the

564
00:39:43.039 --> 00:39:46.239
enemy them, it's us versus them. And then all you

565
00:39:46.280 --> 00:39:49.559
do is listen to the same voices, and you begin

566
00:39:49.599 --> 00:39:52.519
to eliminate any voice that would be critical of your perspective,

567
00:39:52.599 --> 00:39:55.039
and you're like, they're all liars. We have the truth.

568
00:39:55.119 --> 00:39:57.320
Everything we say is true. Everything's to say anything they

569
00:39:57.400 --> 00:40:00.119
say no, not true, not true, fake news. You know,

570
00:40:00.119 --> 00:40:03.599
it leads to this group think, this mob mentality. And

571
00:40:03.639 --> 00:40:06.639
if anyone tries to even raise a hand a hand

572
00:40:06.639 --> 00:40:08.599
and say wait, wait, wait wait, I don't think you're

573
00:40:08.599 --> 00:40:11.679
immediately told to shut up, be quiet, and go away

574
00:40:11.800 --> 00:40:22.559
because you will not question us. If you watch the

575
00:40:22.639 --> 00:40:26.960
nineteen thirty one film and you see all of those

576
00:40:27.039 --> 00:40:31.960
villagers running up the hillside with their torches, ready to destroy,

577
00:40:32.280 --> 00:40:35.440
ready to purge. When you see them, well, I won't

578
00:40:35.440 --> 00:40:37.800
give it all the way you when they descend upon

579
00:40:37.920 --> 00:40:44.639
the building and they set it ablaze. How do you

580
00:40:44.679 --> 00:40:47.519
don't see American politics? I have no way. I don't know.

581
00:40:47.880 --> 00:40:52.360
I don't know why you're not seeing it. Maybe because

582
00:40:52.400 --> 00:41:01.840
you're so in it. Mob mentality and group think. How

583
00:41:01.840 --> 00:41:07.679
about demonizing and the demonization of opposing views. Let's go

584
00:41:07.719 --> 00:41:11.360
back to the novel. Right, So we looked at the

585
00:41:11.400 --> 00:41:14.599
fear of others. How that's talked about in the novel.

586
00:41:15.039 --> 00:41:17.760
Then we talked about mob mentality. How that's talked about

587
00:41:17.760 --> 00:41:20.280
in the nineteen thirty one film. Now, let's go back

588
00:41:20.280 --> 00:41:25.079
to the novel for the demonization of opposing views. Shelley's

589
00:41:25.079 --> 00:41:29.639
Frankenstein critiques society's impulse to judge harshly and hastily, rejecting

590
00:41:29.679 --> 00:41:33.320
the monster without considering his true nature intentions. This can

591
00:41:33.360 --> 00:41:36.079
be seen as a metaphor for how society can create

592
00:41:36.199 --> 00:41:42.360
enemies by refusing to understand those who are different. Yeah,

593
00:41:42.440 --> 00:41:45.639
you think, well, how does this apply to American politics? Well,

594
00:41:45.639 --> 00:41:48.800
political rhetoric and the US has often focused on vilifying

595
00:41:48.800 --> 00:41:52.480
opposing groups rather than fostering understanding or compassion. Terms like

596
00:41:52.599 --> 00:41:56.320
the enemy of the people, deplorables, are radical left or

597
00:41:56.400 --> 00:42:01.400
radical right are used to de legitimize and de humanize opposition.

598
00:42:01.760 --> 00:42:07.079
We dehumanize other people, we dehumanize them we dehumanize them

599
00:42:07.360 --> 00:42:10.199
based off what we put them in a group. We

600
00:42:10.280 --> 00:42:14.159
dehumanize the group, and then we say it's us versus them,

601
00:42:14.440 --> 00:42:16.800
and then we create a mob mentality, and then it's

602
00:42:16.880 --> 00:42:20.039
fear and we must destroy them, and then we forget

603
00:42:20.079 --> 00:42:24.599
anything about compassion, empathy. Empathy is actually seen as bad

604
00:42:24.679 --> 00:42:31.760
by some Christians. Now that I mean, it's very clear.

605
00:42:31.800 --> 00:42:38.679
I mean, I don't know how else to describe this.

606
00:42:38.679 --> 00:42:41.800
This reflects the lesson of Frankenstein by showing how the

607
00:42:41.840 --> 00:42:45.840
demonization of political opponents can lead to a fractured society

608
00:42:46.239 --> 00:42:52.280
where collaboration and empathy are sacrificed for the sake of conflict.

609
00:42:54.119 --> 00:42:56.719
It's not about empathy, it's not about understanding, it's not

610
00:42:56.760 --> 00:43:02.440
about collaborating. It's about conflict. And what do we see

611
00:43:02.440 --> 00:43:19.480
in politics. It's about fighting and dehumanizing and attacking and destroying. Now,

612
00:43:20.320 --> 00:43:24.079
let's look at that. So we've looked at the fear

613
00:43:24.159 --> 00:43:27.440
of others and social division. We've looked at that, how

614
00:43:27.440 --> 00:43:30.320
that's in the how that's in the novel, and how

615
00:43:30.400 --> 00:43:32.880
that shows up in American politics. We looked at the

616
00:43:32.920 --> 00:43:35.199
mob mentality and group think, how that appears in the

617
00:43:35.239 --> 00:43:38.559
nineteen thirty one film. How that shows up in American politics.

618
00:43:38.719 --> 00:43:41.800
We've looked at the demonization of opposing views. How that

619
00:43:41.840 --> 00:43:43.800
shows up in the novel? How that shows up in

620
00:43:43.840 --> 00:43:50.320
American politics. How about the consequences of a fear driven society?

621
00:43:50.880 --> 00:43:54.239
What are the consequences of a fear driven society? Well,

622
00:43:54.280 --> 00:43:56.639
in this case, we're going to take the novel and

623
00:43:56.719 --> 00:43:59.159
the movie and we're going to put them together, because

624
00:43:59.199 --> 00:44:01.760
if you take both the novel and the film, they

625
00:44:01.840 --> 00:44:04.920
warn of the tragic consequence when society acts on fear

626
00:44:05.039 --> 00:44:08.440
rather than understanding. In the novel, the monster becomes violent

627
00:44:08.480 --> 00:44:12.519
after repeated rejection, a tragic outcome of society's inability to

628
00:44:12.519 --> 00:44:15.639
see him as more than a threat. The film's dramatic

629
00:44:15.760 --> 00:44:19.320
ending reinforces how mob action driven by fear can lead

630
00:44:19.360 --> 00:44:24.840
to destruction without achieving true justice or peace. Now, how

631
00:44:24.840 --> 00:44:27.199
do we apply this to politics. Well, in recent years,

632
00:44:28.639 --> 00:44:33.440
fear has been used to justify significant political and social decisions,

633
00:44:33.719 --> 00:44:37.840
from immigration policies to civil rights rollbacks to censorship efforts.

634
00:44:38.079 --> 00:44:41.079
These policies and actions, driven by a desire to protect

635
00:44:41.239 --> 00:44:44.320
from perceived threats, often result in the loss of rights

636
00:44:44.360 --> 00:44:50.800
and freedoms, impacting both targeted and broader populations. Frankenstein cautions

637
00:44:50.840 --> 00:44:53.880
that acting on fear rather than empathy or reason not

638
00:44:53.920 --> 00:44:57.519
only harms those feared, but can ultimately destroy the fabric

639
00:44:57.599 --> 00:45:06.079
of society itself. We saw this after September of the eleventh,

640
00:45:06.119 --> 00:45:11.920
two thousand and one, where you had many Christians calling

641
00:45:12.039 --> 00:45:18.400
for the removal of Islamic mosque or forbidding them to

642
00:45:18.440 --> 00:45:24.599
be built in their neighborhood or their city because of fear. Absolutely,

643
00:45:24.840 --> 00:45:27.039
because of what happened. Oh no, now they are the

644
00:45:27.039 --> 00:45:32.000
perceived right. It's us versus m not seeking understanding, but destruction, purge,

645
00:45:32.039 --> 00:45:35.199
and guess what if you remove their rights, you're removing

646
00:45:35.239 --> 00:45:39.960
your rights. The rights you take from the rights you

647
00:45:40.039 --> 00:45:43.000
withhold are rights you take and withhold from yourself. That's

648
00:45:43.079 --> 00:45:45.400
basic reason and logic. No, no, no, it did not

649
00:45:45.519 --> 00:45:51.199
matter because a fear. Now, sometimes there can be a

650
00:45:51.239 --> 00:45:54.440
certain level of fear that is justifiable, but what you

651
00:45:54.559 --> 00:45:58.360
do with that fear can then go to irrational levels.

652
00:46:03.639 --> 00:46:07.519
Both frank consign the novel and the film suggest that

653
00:46:07.599 --> 00:46:12.519
fear based politics is ultimately destructive, leading society to misjudge

654
00:46:12.559 --> 00:46:16.760
and alienate others. Applied to American politics, these lessons warn

655
00:46:17.000 --> 00:46:21.239
of the consequences of demonizing political opponents, embracing mob mentality,

656
00:46:21.360 --> 00:46:25.679
and allowing fear to dictate policy. Just as Shelley's society

657
00:46:25.719 --> 00:46:29.519
created a monster by rejecting a vilifying and misunderstood being,

658
00:46:29.800 --> 00:46:33.079
modern political culture risk creating monsters out of people and

659
00:46:33.119 --> 00:46:36.679
groups who may not truly be threats but are perceived

660
00:46:36.679 --> 00:46:39.679
as such. By recognizing these lessons, there is potential to

661
00:46:39.719 --> 00:46:43.719
foster a more empathetic understanding approach that values dialogue over

662
00:46:43.760 --> 00:46:51.320
demonization and healing over hostility. Well, yeah, that's too optimistic.

663
00:46:51.480 --> 00:46:53.280
I don't think that will ever happen, but it would

664
00:46:53.320 --> 00:46:56.039
be great if we could reach that level. But we're

665
00:46:56.039 --> 00:46:57.760
not going to reach that level. Things are only going

666
00:46:57.800 --> 00:47:00.719
to get worse and worse and worse. From mind, that's

667
00:47:00.800 --> 00:47:04.239
my you know, more, my eschatology coming into play there.

668
00:47:06.760 --> 00:47:09.559
So there's the movie or there's the book. There's the movie,

669
00:47:09.719 --> 00:47:14.440
and there's American politics. Now, how do we step back

670
00:47:15.920 --> 00:47:22.599
and provide a thoughtful and biblical philological perspective that would

671
00:47:22.639 --> 00:47:28.159
offer a counterpoint to the themes of fear, mob mentality,

672
00:47:28.639 --> 00:47:33.599
and demonization in both Frankenstein and modern politics. How can

673
00:47:33.679 --> 00:47:36.920
we offer a philological I mean this is called theology central.

674
00:47:37.119 --> 00:47:40.840
If we make theology central, can we offer a truly

675
00:47:40.920 --> 00:47:47.079
biblical philological counterpoint to these major problems? If we have that,

676
00:47:47.199 --> 00:47:51.440
if it's rooted in Biblical principles of law, of compassion, humility,

677
00:47:51.559 --> 00:47:55.039
and reconciliation, I believe a Biblical view can provide distinct

678
00:47:55.079 --> 00:47:58.360
insights that challenge the instinct to fear and reject those

679
00:47:58.400 --> 00:48:02.079
who are different or perceived as threat. Yes, here's some

680
00:48:02.239 --> 00:48:07.760
just basic concepts. How about we do this. How about

681
00:48:07.800 --> 00:48:10.119
we begin to see people as a Christian and I'm

682
00:48:10.159 --> 00:48:12.719
speaking to Christians now, if you are a Christian, how

683
00:48:12.760 --> 00:48:15.679
about you do this when you see other people. I

684
00:48:15.679 --> 00:48:19.840
don't care if they're democrats, I don't care if they're homosexual, transgender,

685
00:48:20.159 --> 00:48:22.480
I don't care. I don't care what. I don't care

686
00:48:22.519 --> 00:48:24.960
what they are. I don't care if they're a different religion,

687
00:48:25.119 --> 00:48:28.440
a different race, a different anything. How about you see

688
00:48:28.599 --> 00:48:38.840
people in the image of God. Scripture teaches that all

689
00:48:38.920 --> 00:48:43.280
people are created in the image of God, affirming the

690
00:48:43.440 --> 00:48:49.320
inherent dignity, worth, and value of every individual, regardless of

691
00:48:49.360 --> 00:48:54.360
how they look, where they're from, are what they believe.

692
00:48:57.159 --> 00:48:59.880
How about we start realizing when we speak about people,

693
00:49:00.079 --> 00:49:02.199
we see them in the image of God. How about

694
00:49:02.239 --> 00:49:05.760
instead of seeing their race, their country of origin, their

695
00:49:06.000 --> 00:49:10.599
political beliefs, their religion, before we see their sexual preference.

696
00:49:10.760 --> 00:49:13.519
They're sexual before we see any of that. How about

697
00:49:13.519 --> 00:49:15.800
we see that as a person created in the image

698
00:49:15.840 --> 00:49:19.360
of God. Instead of reducing them to a you know,

699
00:49:19.639 --> 00:49:23.400
one dimensional monster, we say that that's a human being

700
00:49:23.400 --> 00:49:25.519
created in the image of God. Can we do that?

701
00:49:27.639 --> 00:49:31.239
I mean, we say, oh, the sanctity of life. Well,

702
00:49:31.320 --> 00:49:34.679
the sanctity of life goes beyond just that. If you

703
00:49:34.719 --> 00:49:37.039
want to talk about that within the womb, then their

704
00:49:37.039 --> 00:49:40.639
sanctity of life goes to after the womb. Are we

705
00:49:40.719 --> 00:49:47.599
not to demonstrate that then as well? If we can

706
00:49:47.679 --> 00:49:51.639
recognize every person as an image bearer of God, it

707
00:49:51.679 --> 00:49:55.960
opposes the instinct to dehumanize or vilify others, which is

708
00:49:56.000 --> 00:49:59.280
often seen in fear based politics. This view calls believers

709
00:49:59.280 --> 00:50:03.679
to look beyond outward appearance and perceive differences, understanding that

710
00:50:03.719 --> 00:50:06.679
each person has God given worth and potential. Rather than

711
00:50:06.679 --> 00:50:10.119
making enemies. A biblical perspective encourages Christians to see those

712
00:50:10.159 --> 00:50:16.360
who disagree with us as valuable and worth understanding. Now

713
00:50:16.400 --> 00:50:18.679
that goes against our sinful nature, say our sinful nature

714
00:50:18.679 --> 00:50:23.280
says ah. Forget the image of God, enemy, destroy, vilify,

715
00:50:23.639 --> 00:50:30.440
to humanize, call names, throw them into hell. I mean Christians,

716
00:50:30.440 --> 00:50:33.519
we always have the hell card up our sleeve. Right,

717
00:50:33.559 --> 00:50:35.559
we can play the hell card whenever we want. Oh

718
00:50:35.599 --> 00:50:37.559
you do this, you go to hell. Oh you vote

719
00:50:37.559 --> 00:50:39.440
the wrong way, you go to hell. You do this,

720
00:50:39.639 --> 00:50:41.519
you go to hell, and you go to hell, and

721
00:50:41.559 --> 00:50:43.639
you go to hell? I mean our that's our that's

722
00:50:43.679 --> 00:50:47.480
our best play, is it not? You better agree with me?

723
00:50:47.519 --> 00:50:49.719
You better do what I say? Are you burn? As

724
00:50:49.719 --> 00:50:52.039
if we're somehow in control of who goes to hell?

725
00:50:52.599 --> 00:50:54.639
We think we're God. We think we think we have

726
00:50:54.760 --> 00:50:57.639
the keys to Hell. We think we own it. We

727
00:50:58.000 --> 00:50:59.880
think we get to open the door and throw in

728
00:51:00.039 --> 00:51:02.800
whoever we want. I wish Christians would stop acting like that.

729
00:51:02.880 --> 00:51:06.480
We almost use hell as a weapon to threaten people.

730
00:51:06.559 --> 00:51:08.840
Oh you think, Oh you think you're so smart. Wait

731
00:51:08.880 --> 00:51:11.880
do you burn in hell? Wait? Do you stand before God?

732
00:51:13.480 --> 00:51:19.159
We're not broken. We use it as a weapon because

733
00:51:19.199 --> 00:51:21.599
we disagree, we can't win it, and actually, I don't

734
00:51:21.639 --> 00:51:23.840
know have a n actual discussion. We just have to

735
00:51:23.880 --> 00:51:26.480
threaten them with hell, and it makes us feel superior,

736
00:51:26.519 --> 00:51:31.239
doesn't it Our torch is to just throw cast people

737
00:51:31.280 --> 00:51:35.559
into hell? How about set of dehumanizing everyone. We see

738
00:51:35.599 --> 00:51:37.960
people and that they're created in the image of God,

739
00:51:38.039 --> 00:51:41.400
and we see beyond the race, we see beyond the politics,

740
00:51:41.599 --> 00:51:48.159
we see beyond our disagreement. How about stop throwing everyone

741
00:51:48.159 --> 00:51:50.880
in hell because they disagree with Ooh, you vote Democrat,

742
00:51:50.960 --> 00:51:55.360
you burn That's nowhere in the Bible. Salvation is by

743
00:51:55.360 --> 00:51:57.719
grace alone, through faith alone, because of Christ alone. You're

744
00:51:57.719 --> 00:52:01.079
saved by an imputed righteousness. And that impute righteousness does

745
00:52:01.119 --> 00:52:03.119
not change who you are, because you're still a center.

746
00:52:03.199 --> 00:52:07.280
And guess what, it doesn't change how you vote. You say, well,

747
00:52:07.320 --> 00:52:09.440
the Bible should change how I vote. It may, but

748
00:52:09.519 --> 00:52:12.280
guess what you want to You want to make everything

749
00:52:12.519 --> 00:52:17.480
one dimensional, and because you can't because things we're very

750
00:52:17.920 --> 00:52:20.039
have a very difficult time as Christians seeing things that

751
00:52:20.199 --> 00:52:23.639
are not always so simple simplified. Things are not so

752
00:52:23.760 --> 00:52:27.440
one dimensional that there are multiple issues that could people

753
00:52:27.559 --> 00:52:31.400
lead people to vote for various reasons. Just like you

754
00:52:31.480 --> 00:52:33.800
vote for my team, or you are not a Christian.

755
00:52:34.800 --> 00:52:37.239
How about maybe being a Christian someone could go, well,

756
00:52:37.280 --> 00:52:39.400
I think there's more than just one issue. Oh no,

757
00:52:39.480 --> 00:52:41.599
there's only one issue. Okay, well let's look at that

758
00:52:41.599 --> 00:52:43.360
one issue, and then you can say, well, what about this,

759
00:52:43.400 --> 00:52:45.599
and what about this and what about Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no,

760
00:52:45.599 --> 00:52:48.760
no no no. I don't want any nuanced. I don't

761
00:52:48.760 --> 00:52:51.400
want any no. They want to make it simple. It's

762
00:52:51.519 --> 00:52:53.599
us versus them. Where the good guys are the bad

763
00:52:53.599 --> 00:52:55.599
guys they burn in hell. We go to heaven and

764
00:52:55.639 --> 00:53:06.360
we win. We've got to see people and the image

765
00:53:06.360 --> 00:53:18.800
of God, right, don't we don't we believe that, so

766
00:53:18.920 --> 00:53:23.440
see people in the image of God. Number two, we're

767
00:53:23.480 --> 00:53:26.800
supposed to love our enemies and pray for those who

768
00:53:26.840 --> 00:53:29.920
would even oppress us. I mean I thought that was Christianity. Yeah,

769
00:53:29.920 --> 00:53:33.440
I don't know, Maybe I forgot about it. Jesus commands us.

770
00:53:33.480 --> 00:53:35.039
This is a command. Now, we're never going to do

771
00:53:35.079 --> 00:53:37.360
this correctly. This is one We're always going to fall short,

772
00:53:37.360 --> 00:53:39.199
and we have to be saved by an imputed righteousness.

773
00:53:39.360 --> 00:53:42.360
But Jesus commands us to love our enemy and pray

774
00:53:42.400 --> 00:53:45.119
for those who persecute us. It's somewhere in the Bible.

775
00:53:45.199 --> 00:53:47.199
I think it's called the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter five,

776
00:53:47.280 --> 00:53:50.159
verse forty four. Now this goes against the instinct to

777
00:53:50.159 --> 00:53:53.280
demonize or destroy opponents. As said, it calls for radical

778
00:53:53.360 --> 00:53:56.000
love that seeks the good of others, even those who

779
00:53:56.079 --> 00:53:59.559
may be considered adversaries. Do you seek the good of

780
00:53:59.639 --> 00:54:03.760
others who you may even perceive to be your political adversaries?

781
00:54:03.920 --> 00:54:07.079
Do you seek their good? Do you love them? Do

782
00:54:07.159 --> 00:54:09.119
you pray for them? Or do you just call them

783
00:54:09.159 --> 00:54:13.199
your nice little names and you talk like well, a condescending,

784
00:54:13.320 --> 00:54:20.199
arrogant jerk. Do you sound like Jesus or do you

785
00:54:20.320 --> 00:54:24.440
sound like I don't know Trump's Twitter feed or Truth's

786
00:54:24.440 --> 00:54:29.719
social feed or any other politician who demonizes and call

787
00:54:29.800 --> 00:54:46.840
people's names. Love your enemy, go against the instinct to

788
00:54:46.880 --> 00:54:53.360
demonize and destroy your opponents. Pursue a radical love that

789
00:54:53.440 --> 00:54:56.400
seeks the good of other people, even those you may

790
00:54:56.440 --> 00:55:02.079
consider your adversaries. Now, this command challenges believers to step

791
00:55:02.119 --> 00:55:05.639
away from groupthink or mob behavior that encourages animosity towards

792
00:55:05.719 --> 00:55:09.119
perceived enemies, and said it fosters a counter cultural approach

793
00:55:09.280 --> 00:55:12.119
where believers are called to respond with compassion even to

794
00:55:12.119 --> 00:55:15.119
those who oppose them, praying for and showing kindness to

795
00:55:15.159 --> 00:55:19.960
others rather than joining in condemnation. It transforms both individuals

796
00:55:20.000 --> 00:55:25.719
and relationships, promoting healing and reconciliation. Love your enemy, pray

797
00:55:25.800 --> 00:55:29.840
for those who would oppress you, turn the other cheek,

798
00:55:32.639 --> 00:55:38.639
resist not evil. Already hearing Christian, But now this is

799
00:55:38.679 --> 00:55:41.320
the law of God. And guess what, Yes, you say,

800
00:55:41.480 --> 00:55:44.239
but it's impossible. Yeah, it is impossible. That's why we

801
00:55:44.280 --> 00:55:46.199
have to be saved by and imputed righteousness. But it's

802
00:55:46.239 --> 00:55:54.079
still what we are to pursue. So Number one, we

803
00:55:54.119 --> 00:55:55.760
need to see people in the image of God. Number two,

804
00:55:55.760 --> 00:55:57.119
we need to love our enemies and pray for those

805
00:55:57.159 --> 00:55:59.920
who oppress us and turn the other cheek. Number three,

806
00:56:00.119 --> 00:56:09.159
and brace humility and recognize your own sin. Scripture teaches

807
00:56:09.159 --> 00:56:11.039
that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory

808
00:56:11.079 --> 00:56:14.119
of God. That was you before salvation, that is you

809
00:56:14.440 --> 00:56:25.320
after salvation. Acknowledgment of universal human sinfulness fallibility calls for humility.

810
00:56:25.519 --> 00:56:28.440
It recognizes that everyone is need of grace and forgiveness.

811
00:56:28.840 --> 00:56:33.920
Have you need to be more aware of your own fallibility,

812
00:56:34.119 --> 00:56:46.599
your own failure, your own sin, your own bitterness, hatred, unforgiveness, unloving, lust, coveteousness, grumbling, complaining, hatred,

813
00:56:47.000 --> 00:56:49.400
all the things that are inside of you. You need

814
00:56:49.440 --> 00:56:51.880
to be more aware of those than you are about

815
00:56:51.880 --> 00:56:56.239
anybody else. Instead of worrying about everyone else, condemning everyone else,

816
00:56:56.599 --> 00:57:05.000
look in the stinking mirror at yourself, see yourself. We

817
00:57:05.079 --> 00:57:09.639
need to embrace humility and embrace and recognize our own sin.

818
00:57:12.719 --> 00:57:15.800
Stop talking about like you are somehow better than them.

819
00:57:16.360 --> 00:57:19.599
Stop demonizing them as being the bad guy. You're the

820
00:57:19.679 --> 00:57:24.599
bad guy. You're the monster. You're the sinner, and so

821
00:57:24.760 --> 00:57:38.719
am I. Number four. We need to pursue peace and

822
00:57:38.800 --> 00:57:44.000
reconciliation over division and destruction. Christians are called to be

823
00:57:44.159 --> 00:57:48.840
peace makers and to live peaceably with all, with all,

824
00:57:49.000 --> 00:57:52.079
as far as it depends on them. The ministry of

825
00:57:52.159 --> 00:57:55.840
reconciliation teaches the believers or to work towards restoring relationships

826
00:57:55.880 --> 00:58:00.000
and bringing healing to divisions. This is Matthew five nine,

827
00:57:59.559 --> 00:58:03.239
Roman twelve eighteen as Tewod Corinthians five eighteen through nineteen.

828
00:58:05.719 --> 00:58:09.719
Rather than fueling division, a biblical perspective emphasizes unity and reconciliation,

829
00:58:09.960 --> 00:58:13.800
seeking peace even amidst disagreements. This stands and start contrast

830
00:58:13.800 --> 00:58:17.280
to fear driven political approach that often divides and polarize.

831
00:58:17.400 --> 00:58:21.519
A commitment to reconciliation encourages believers to bridge divides, seeking

832
00:58:21.599 --> 00:58:24.719
understanding and find common ground with those who may differ

833
00:58:24.960 --> 00:58:36.679
from them. Pursue peace, pursue reconciliation, not dehumanizing, not demonizing.

834
00:58:37.639 --> 00:58:40.159
Love your enemy, turn the other cheeks, see people in

835
00:58:40.199 --> 00:58:43.119
the image of God. This is basic Christianity one oh

836
00:58:43.199 --> 00:58:46.679
one that the Church in America has lost because we

837
00:58:46.800 --> 00:58:51.880
have been infected with the evil of politics and we,

838
00:58:52.559 --> 00:58:55.360
as we are declaring everyone else to be the monster,

839
00:58:55.440 --> 00:58:58.280
and we want to grab our torches and burn them down,

840
00:58:58.599 --> 00:59:06.559
we have become the monster. We need to trust God

841
00:59:06.679 --> 00:59:10.920
rather than acting out in fear. Scripture repeatedly calls believers

842
00:59:10.960 --> 00:59:15.920
to fear not and to trust God's sovereignty. The fear

843
00:59:15.960 --> 00:59:19.039
of the future of perceived threat is encountered by a

844
00:59:19.119 --> 00:59:24.199
steadfast trust in God. A biblical view challenges fear driven

845
00:59:24.280 --> 00:59:27.480
responses by reminding believers that their security is found in God,

846
00:59:27.719 --> 00:59:32.519
not in controlling or eliminating all perceived threats. Trusting in

847
00:59:32.519 --> 00:59:35.079
God allows believers to engage with others out of love

848
00:59:35.199 --> 00:59:38.760
rather than fear, offering a calm and compassionate approach rather

849
00:59:38.840 --> 00:59:45.079
than one based on anxiety or suspicion. This perspective encourages

850
00:59:45.119 --> 00:59:48.440
believers to approach issues thoughtfully and with wisdom, rather than

851
00:59:48.480 --> 00:59:55.679
reacting impulsively with hostility. Christians talk about trusting in God.

852
00:59:55.880 --> 01:00:01.000
He's my rock, here's my refuge, He's my shield. I

853
01:00:01.079 --> 01:00:04.000
will not fear. I will not even though I walk

854
01:00:04.039 --> 01:00:05.800
through the valley of the shadow of death, I will

855
01:00:05.840 --> 01:00:08.199
fear no evil. We talk all a big game, and

856
01:00:08.239 --> 01:00:10.840
then we run around and oh, the end of the

857
01:00:10.880 --> 01:00:12.639
world is going to happen. We gotta do this, and

858
01:00:12.679 --> 01:00:14.480
we got to get rid of the democrats. Then we

859
01:00:14.519 --> 01:00:18.440
gotta do this. Then we gotta do this, and fear fear, fear, fear, fear, fear, fear, fear,

860
01:00:18.559 --> 01:00:21.519
and demonize and to humanized and the others. We got

861
01:00:21.519 --> 01:00:24.199
to get rid of the others. And we're and we

862
01:00:24.239 --> 01:00:30.360
act like we're scared to death. What we claim, Oh,

863
01:00:30.400 --> 01:00:34.719
we don't fear anything. We talk a big game, and

864
01:00:34.719 --> 01:00:38.400
then we're like, oh, we need fifteen we need fifteen

865
01:00:38.519 --> 01:00:41.639
armed guards inside this church. We gotta do this, we

866
01:00:41.719 --> 01:00:43.760
gotta do that. We got to get rid of these people.

867
01:00:44.320 --> 01:00:46.920
Because because we talk a big game. You see, it's

868
01:00:46.960 --> 01:00:50.559
easy to talk about not having fear. It's another thing

869
01:00:50.599 --> 01:00:54.000
to live as if you don't have fear. I can

870
01:00:54.039 --> 01:00:57.039
talk about not having fear living without it. That's a

871
01:00:57.119 --> 01:01:03.840
radically different approach. But fear is a tool used to

872
01:01:03.920 --> 01:01:11.400
manipulate you, to get you all discombobulated, that you give

873
01:01:11.519 --> 01:01:14.800
your vote to a party that then they get the power,

874
01:01:15.079 --> 01:01:21.480
and then you somehow feel better. A biblical and philological

875
01:01:21.519 --> 01:01:25.320
perspective offers a radically different approach to fear, demonization, and

876
01:01:25.360 --> 01:01:29.159
mob mentality by grounding interactions and love, humility, and trust

877
01:01:29.239 --> 01:01:32.719
in God. While the world may tend towards division, fear

878
01:01:32.719 --> 01:01:37.199
of the other, and reactivity, a christ centered perspective calls

879
01:01:37.199 --> 01:01:42.679
for compassion, understanding, and a commitment to peace. This approach

880
01:01:42.719 --> 01:01:47.280
does not ignore real challenges or dangers, but reframes reframes

881
01:01:47.320 --> 01:01:51.639
them within the context of faith, reconciliation, and grace, inviting

882
01:01:51.679 --> 01:01:54.360
believers to be agents of healing and unity and a

883
01:01:54.559 --> 01:02:11.440
very very, very fractured world. So January first, eighteen eighteen,

884
01:02:12.760 --> 01:02:19.639
Frankenstein the Novel is released. November nineteen thirty one, Frankenstein

885
01:02:19.679 --> 01:02:24.519
the Movie is released. In these classic works of film

886
01:02:24.719 --> 01:02:30.519
and literature, very important themes emerge, themes that should make

887
01:02:30.599 --> 01:02:34.519
us face ourselves and think a little bit about man,

888
01:02:34.639 --> 01:02:36.960
this is not right, and then we can see how

889
01:02:37.000 --> 01:02:41.039
these things have arisen within American politics. Now, if it

890
01:02:41.039 --> 01:02:44.119
would have just stayed in American politics, great, But this

891
01:02:44.199 --> 01:02:49.840
has entered inside the church. And this approach is not biblical,

892
01:02:50.039 --> 01:02:53.119
it is not godly, it is not scriptural. It is

893
01:02:53.800 --> 01:02:57.199
completely counter to everything Christians are supposed to stand for.

894
01:02:57.400 --> 01:03:01.159
But Christians have been pulled in, They've been manipulated, They've

895
01:03:01.199 --> 01:03:04.960
been led like sheep to the edge of the cliff

896
01:03:05.159 --> 01:03:08.960
and some pushed over, and they have abandoned biblical, historical

897
01:03:09.000 --> 01:03:16.119
Christianity for a political agenda. And they have been guilty

898
01:03:16.159 --> 01:03:23.039
of dehumanizing, unloving, condemning, and being almost hateful towards groups

899
01:03:23.079 --> 01:03:25.199
and people, instead of seeing them in the image of God,

900
01:03:25.280 --> 01:03:28.679
instead of loving our enemy, instead of doing these things

901
01:03:28.679 --> 01:03:30.440
that we know the Bible calls us to do. Now,

902
01:03:30.440 --> 01:03:31.880
I'm not saying we're ever going to do them perfectly.

903
01:03:31.920 --> 01:03:33.760
We're always going to fall short. That's why we have

904
01:03:33.840 --> 01:03:47.880
to be constantly aware and admit our own sin. Now,

905
01:03:48.280 --> 01:03:50.519
these lessons have been there for a very long time.

906
01:03:50.559 --> 01:03:55.400
We can learn these lessons, we can ignore them now.

907
01:03:55.440 --> 01:04:00.079
Just to show you how far things have gone today,

908
01:04:02.119 --> 01:04:07.000
you'll just open up your if you have your phone,

909
01:04:07.119 --> 01:04:12.239
if you have your tablet. Just go to drudgereport dot com.

910
01:04:12.599 --> 01:04:21.840
Drudgereport dot com. Look at the headline. That's all in red.

911
01:04:25.920 --> 01:04:42.599
Trump calls for Liz Cheney's execution. Now, I've seen how

912
01:04:42.639 --> 01:04:45.679
conservatives said, will he didn't actually say that, Well, he

913
01:04:45.760 --> 01:04:49.239
didn't actually mean that, and they've played all their little games.

914
01:04:50.480 --> 01:04:52.840
But I've seen the video of it. Some say, well,

915
01:04:52.920 --> 01:04:55.760
the context changes that I've heard the context. You can

916
01:04:55.760 --> 01:04:58.119
get into a debate. I'm just saying, whether it's Trump

917
01:04:58.159 --> 01:05:02.440
calling for another being's execution because he doesn't alike that

918
01:05:02.480 --> 01:05:07.239
she's his political you know, critic and criticizes everything from

919
01:05:07.400 --> 01:05:09.800
what happened on January the sixth, et cetera, et cetera,

920
01:05:09.840 --> 01:05:13.480
et cetera, his lying about the election being stolen, in whatever,

921
01:05:13.599 --> 01:05:16.039
he's calling for execution. And we can talk about people

922
01:05:16.039 --> 01:05:20.360
on all sides who've said absolutely outrageous and horrendous things,

923
01:05:20.480 --> 01:05:24.639
whether Republican or Democrat. But this is the story today.

924
01:05:24.719 --> 01:05:27.800
It's right there. It's all in red. I've seen it everywhere.

925
01:05:30.360 --> 01:05:35.159
Christians, stop it, get out of it, leave it, leave

926
01:05:35.280 --> 01:05:41.280
the political cesspool behind, walk away, wash your hands, return

927
01:05:41.360 --> 01:05:45.079
to christ return to the Bible, return to Christianity.

928
01:05:45.599 --> 01:05:50.719
Leave this political disease, this political cancer that infects us,

929
01:05:50.880 --> 01:05:53.480
that leads you down some path of just you get

930
01:05:53.519 --> 01:05:57.159
into some echo chamber and you start talking like politicians

931
01:05:57.159 --> 01:06:00.599
instead of talking like your savior. You've abandoned your savior.

932
01:06:00.760 --> 01:06:03.559
You've thrown the cross in the trash can to wrap

933
01:06:03.599 --> 01:06:06.400
yourself in the American flag so you can cover your

934
01:06:06.480 --> 01:06:10.360
hatred and your fear, and you're loathing and despising of

935
01:06:10.400 --> 01:06:21.159
other human beings who are created in the image of God.

936
01:06:21.840 --> 01:06:27.480
Enough's enough. I don't care what political party you are.

937
01:06:29.199 --> 01:06:38.599
I don't care what your politics are. Enough's enough. Maybe

938
01:06:38.800 --> 01:06:44.320
there's some answers, but there's some warnings that were given

939
01:06:44.360 --> 01:06:48.440
in eighteen eighteen, and a little book called Frankenstein showed

940
01:06:48.480 --> 01:06:51.880
up in a film in nineteen thirty one called Frankenstein.

941
01:06:52.360 --> 01:07:01.159
Maybe Frankenstein's monster can actually give us warnings that if

942
01:07:01.159 --> 01:07:03.960
we take to heart and we go back to our Bible,

943
01:07:05.679 --> 01:07:10.039
we can be like, there's a different approach. And it's

944
01:07:10.159 --> 01:07:14.800
not a Republican approach, it's not a Democrat approach. It's

945
01:07:14.800 --> 01:07:22.840
a Biblical approach. Now, of course I'll probably get some

946
01:07:23.360 --> 01:07:26.400
well meaning Christian. They'll say you're going to hell, and

947
01:07:26.480 --> 01:07:28.960
you can threaten me with hell. I mean, you know, hey,

948
01:07:29.280 --> 01:07:31.559
Mark Driscolls can tell people you go to hell if

949
01:07:31.559 --> 01:07:33.800
you vote Democrat, you go to hell. If you're pro choice,

950
01:07:34.159 --> 01:07:36.280
people can say all that. I don't really care anymore

951
01:07:36.280 --> 01:07:39.039
what Christians think, what Christians think are is irrelevant to me.

952
01:07:39.119 --> 01:07:42.400
You know why, because Christians just turn Christianity whatever they want.

953
01:07:42.760 --> 01:07:44.880
We want to throw anybody in hell. We don't. We

954
01:07:44.960 --> 01:07:47.719
forget about salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, because

955
01:07:47.920 --> 01:07:50.639
chryst no, no, no, no no. We now have just taken Christianity.

956
01:07:50.679 --> 01:07:52.440
We just make it into our own image. So you

957
01:07:52.480 --> 01:07:55.280
make Christianity your own image. Threaten me with hell, throw

958
01:07:55.320 --> 01:07:57.880
me into hell. I don't care, because you don't control hell.

959
01:07:58.079 --> 01:08:02.079
You can be a narcissist, stick condemning jerk. I don't care.

960
01:08:02.280 --> 01:08:07.039
Your Christianity is meaningless to me because the Church has

961
01:08:07.079 --> 01:08:14.199
abandoned Christianity. Salvation is a faith in Jesus Christ. I

962
01:08:14.239 --> 01:08:16.039
don't care if you're a Democrat. I don't care if

963
01:08:16.079 --> 01:08:18.319
you're a Republican. I don't care if you're a communist.

964
01:08:18.359 --> 01:08:20.279
I don't care if you're a socialist. I don't care

965
01:08:20.399 --> 01:08:25.039
what your political ideology is. Hope and faith or hope

966
01:08:25.039 --> 01:08:27.720
for salvation is found in the Cross of Jesus Christ.

967
01:08:27.960 --> 01:08:32.079
Believe in him and you will be saved. For God

968
01:08:32.199 --> 01:08:34.399
so love the world that he's in his only begotten son,

969
01:08:34.479 --> 01:08:38.439
that whosoever believes in him shall be saved, They shall

970
01:08:38.479 --> 01:08:44.239
have eternal life, they shall not perish. Faith salvation is

971
01:08:44.239 --> 01:08:47.600
found in faith in Christ. Now, once you have that

972
01:08:47.640 --> 01:08:50.520
faith in Christ and you pursue scripture, it may impact

973
01:08:50.560 --> 01:08:54.199
how you perceive certain issues within society. But you'll also

974
01:08:54.319 --> 01:08:57.399
note when you vote, you're not just voting on one issue.

975
01:08:57.479 --> 01:08:59.520
And even if you're voting on one issue, it's not

976
01:08:59.560 --> 01:09:08.000
always as simple as everyone thinks that it is. But see,

977
01:09:08.000 --> 01:09:10.640
this is what happens when you bring your Christianity into

978
01:09:10.680 --> 01:09:13.800
the political arena. Now, your Christianity. You know what gets

979
01:09:13.840 --> 01:09:17.399
messed up when you bring your politics or your Christianity

980
01:09:17.439 --> 01:09:21.279
into politics. You know what gets corrupted your Christianity. You

981
01:09:21.319 --> 01:09:27.920
know what gets infected your Christianity, not the politics. The

982
01:09:28.000 --> 01:09:39.239
politics will always remain relativistic. It's basically relativistic, immoral, deceitful, deceptive, pragmatic.

983
01:09:42.279 --> 01:09:44.880
Your Christianity is supposed to be countered, all of that

984
01:09:49.800 --> 01:09:59.039
Frankenstein politics. Hope something I said will be of some

985
01:09:59.199 --> 01:10:08.640
use as we fast fast approach this election. May God

986
01:10:08.680 --> 01:10:11.720
have mercy on all of us.