Prompt 3
Gaspard Robertson’s “Fantasmagorie” happened at a tumultuous time. The French Revolution had just happened, the French Monarchy had just been abolished, everyone saw the king and queen get their heads chopped off, the new government wasn’t doing too well, and political dissidents and regular folk are getting their heads chopped off. In addition, there was a whole bunch of diseases to contend with; smallpox, typhus, cholera, dysentery, tuberculosis, syphilis are some of the more common ones. This is the time period where women had 13 children and they were lucky if 5 made it to adulthood. As such, death was a constant companion.
I’d venture that modern people are feeling what the 1797 French audience felt about their daily lives. US politics and economics aren’t looking too well. Two geriatric men are probably going to fight over the presidency next year. There’s a bunch of fighting going on at the international level. Important political reporters are getting unalived. COVID-19 is a fact of life that we have to live with at this point. A bunch of diseases (like measles) are making a comeback because of disbelief in science. Basic necessities (like water) is rare for some people. Technology is our constant companion.
So when Robertson rolls up with his “Fantasmagorie,” I imagine it is an escape. It’s new and scary in the same way technology is new and scary. There is genuine fear, but it is thrilling. Technology is developing so fast, and it’s always doing new scary things as much as it improves lives. Robertson’s spooky ghost show in a rundown church probably is most visually and aurally similar to horror movies, but today’s “Fantamagorie” is probably most closest to VR games today. There’s at least one game which requires the person with the VR set to diffuse a bomb, which probably summons a similar emotional experience to those who experienced Robertson’s “Fantasmagorie.”
