This blog defines itself as “On definition of Morality.” I hope to be able to add some words to this description. To get this capacity I have to follow and sample many parts of what the modern society offers as morality. These samples appear in modern media in writing, and in performing art. As they say, I like to discover the structure based on these samples: the structure behind these efforts. I am curious to analyse if these structures are aimed to change to better for humanity or to worse.
I keep the right for me to edit to improve the semantic and grammar of the article but the idea remains as before.
The sample I discuss here attracted me much for the reason that later I am going to write. It is from the “The EastEnders” soap opera produced by BBC and this part belongs to December 2015.
Storyline:
Stacey (well conveniently) becomes pregnant out of a one night stand with Kush.
Complication is that that Stacey is in relation and deep love and living under the same roof with Martin on one hand and Kush is married or near to marriage with deep love relation with Shabnam. As I remember the latter is also pregnant from the said Kush.
Stacey and Martin are somehow Christians and Kush, Shabnam are supposedly Muslims.
There are as always hiding and concealment of truth and dishonesty between all participants and reveal of secrets by accidental hearing and revelations.
Leaving them for now, months were passed until it became near the Christmas. People are deciding on arranging a nativity performance with participation of all the children of Walford to be presented at the community centre.
However mother of Linda the pub owner’s wife has better ideas. According to her, Nativity is old fashioned and boring and it is better to arrange a musical show instead in the local Queen Vic. pub.
There are couple of opinions voiced against her idea insisting of a Nativity. The loudest voice belongs to Dot Cotton, an old church going lady who also has many verses of bible in memory and can recite them on the correct occasion.
To settle the situation, people in the pub are asked to vote (assuming the decision being made in a pub is not being considered as a decision “under the influence”). Ms. Dot Cotton wins the poll and everybody agrees to help to have a decent Nativity show, performed by children. Linda’s mom who accepts the result with grace agrees to become volunteer to be the director for the audition, coaching and performance of the children.
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| Modern version of Madonna and Child |
As time passes, Stacy and her secret of the love triangle between her and Martin and Kush, and her relation with Elizabeth (oops sorry, I moved fast forward, I mean the pregnant Shabnam) becomes the focus of the BBC popular soap opera just before the Christmas .
Meanwhile the mental health of Stacey who has a background of bipolar “disease” and does not take her pills regularly becomes more deteriorate. In one scene when she is asked who is the father of the expected baby she answers that it is the God. She says, “The God is the Father of the child” and camera dissolves on the face of Kush who looks regretful and sorry, knowing the child is actually his. She continues to attract the attention of her community and also fans of the soap opera to her long and supposedly mentally ill speeches and quarrels.
Where do you expect Stacy delivers her child. Your guess is right.
All the people including Stacy and Martin go to Nativity play performed by the children.
In the middle of the show Stacy goes into the labour pain. This is important: They move Stacy to the stage of the nativity where the decorations have been arranged like a stable. Stacy delivers, gives birth to her child and everybody leaves the stage. Those who remain are standing on the auditorium watching the stage where Stacy is resting on the arms of Joseph the carpenter (sorry, I mean Martin) while she has her head leaned on his shoulder and both looking down to the new born boy in her arms.
Well “they” gave the message clear enough. The Child (with the capital C) is a bastard, the result of a sinful disloyalty of one night stand and the deceived, but kind, Martin without knowing the truth is there, looking to marry Stacy and is over the moon for having his son earlier than he expects.
But they do not stop. They do not stop until that everybody even with lowest attention and “intelligence” swaps the “truth” of the show deep inside his mind, his conscious and subconscious with what he already might have got from the Story of Jesus Christ. How?
Stacy returns with the new born and his soul mate Martin to their home. But her bipolar madness flares and she relapses. She starts to believe that her child has enemies. She is inflicted with postnatal depression. Nurses, doctors, neighbours, Martin all believe that she needs to be cured.
She becomes confused and believes that his brother (/sister) is Satan and chases them to kill her son. Her brother cannot convince her that he is harmless.
Her sanity becomes more deteriorated with the passing of the days. She does not allow anybody to touch her son whom she is named Arthur. Nobody can convince her that the Son is not in danger. In the whirlwind of the drama Stacy takes Arthur to the roof at the top of the Queen Vic Pub. Thunder is roaring and lighting is bolting. Rain is whipping and gale is shaking them.
She has climbed aloft to be closer to God to offer Arthur and to pray that Arthur remains clean of the sin that she has committed. She says and cross her heart that Arthur is the son of god and he is clean.
Doctors and mental health agents come and promise her that if she complies with treatment then she and her son will remain clean.
If you are too dumb to swallow the reality then Shabnam comes to help you to face it. She comes to help poor Stacy. She tells Stacy that she has been informed of the affairs of her husband with Stacy. She adds that Stacy should know that as she feels guilty of disloyalty to her husband – Martin – and deceiving and lying and cheating to her best friend, that is, to Shabnam, as the result of these deep guilt, Stacy denies the reality and has become delusional believing that her new born is a sacred entity and the son of god.
The story plot and its message is clear: Only a lunatic who succumbs to her impulsive desire calls the child conceived so, son of the god. People should learn that the real truth behind the nativity is this.
However, there is a puzzle, behind the scene that only an inquisitive mind can understand: What is the role of Shabnam in helping to deliver the child and delivering the message of producers of this sequence of the soap opera just before the Christmas.
In next article I try to crack that. This story continues until denial of the Easter and repeats in other forms in the following years.
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