Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Journey to Babel...Con

This weekend (March 19-21) will feature the Babel Con SF/Fantasy/ Horror convention in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It’s being held at the LSU Cook Hotel, and the webpage link is HERE! It’s much, much earlier this year than last, but I think they wanted to have it happen while regular school was in session so as to attract more visitors. You can click on a flyer at the web page.

If you’re in the area, feel welcome to drop in. And bring your kids if you’ve got ‘em. It should be a lot of fun. I won’t be there Friday but will be there all day Saturday for several panels, and will almost certainly be there some on Sunday as well. My panels will be talking about Dreams, where they come from and what they mean, about the “Paranormal, Supernatural, and Science,” and about Parapsychology.

In the meantime, I’m going to eventually do a post on “borrowed” titles, titles that have been used on books or stories that originated elsewhere. These are often very effective because of the resonance they generate. Some examples that hit me off the top of my head are: “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and “The Sun Also Rises” from Hemingway, which I believe he borrowed from the Bible. I know there’ve been plenty of titles borrowed from Shakespeare. Can you think of any such “borrowed” titles yourself, from books or music or anything else?

The title of this post is one such borrowing. Extra credit if you know where the first three words of this title come from.
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42 comments:

ArtSparker said...

There have to be a lot from the Bible, to signal that the work attached is serious/portentous. Are all of these from the Bible?
Look back in Anger
The Naked and the Dead
Through a glass Darkly (that one, definitely)

Angie said...

Journey to Babel

Star Trek, of course. This was the first time Mark Lenard appeared playing Ambassador Sarek, Spock's father, although it wasn't his first appearance on Star Trek; he also played the Romulan commander in "Balance of Terror." This was also the episode where we (and the rest of the characters) found out Spock is only half Vulcan.

(Why yes, I am a major Trek geek. :) )

Angie

Shauna Roberts said...

Not being a poetry reader, I miss most titles that allude to another work. I even miss some of the Bible allusions, with no excuse. I'm looking forward to your post.

Have a great Con

laughingwolf said...

have fun at the con, charles... way too far for me to attend

in the dumps for the past month, so can't relate to any titles...

SzélsőFa said...

what a great event for fans!
hmm.

Charles Gramlich said...

Artsparker, Look back in anger and through a glass darkly. I'm not sure about the naked and the dead but it sounds like it.

Angie, your Trek credentials are firmly established with that treatise! :)

Shauna, I used to miss them because of my relative unfamiliarity with Shakespeare. I'm getting a bit better.

Laughingwolf, sorry to hear that, my friend. I hope things perk up a bit for you in the near future.

Szelsofa, there are going to be a bunch of fan events involving Trek and Battlestar Galactica, as well as Star Wars.

Richard Prosch said...

"Journey to Babel" is just about my favorite episode. Trek used lots of Shakespeare (The Conscience of the King, By Any Other Name, Whom Gods Destroy). I like THE BONFIRE OF THE VANITIES, which is more a metaphor from real life. How about Graham Greene: THE POWER AND THE GLORY, Bible again.

Steve Malley said...

Seems to me a certain Candice Proctor is fond of Shakespearean quotes for her titles... :)

Charles Gramlich said...

Richard, yes indeed. Trek had some great titles. Thanks for these.

Steve Malley, indeed! And close to home. I'll have to check all of hers. Maybe she'll comment here.

Travis Cody said...

Journey to Babel was a great original Star Trek episode, one of my favorites in fact.

Piers Anthony used puns as the titles of his Xanth novels, such as Crewel Lye and Isle of View. And the first title in his Incarnations of Immortality series is called On A Pale Horse.

X. Dell said...

"Journey to Babel:" wasn't that a Star Trek (TOS) episode?

If I thought about it at any length, I would probably come up with a title that originated from the Bible or Shakespeare or from other source. Problem is, I'd have to run through thousands of titles in my head to find that one. I can think of movie titles (e.g., Al Pacino in And Justice for All) but I can't think of books right at the moment.

Have fun at Babel Con. I always wanted to go to such things, but never got around to them. Maybe someday.

Cloudia said...

Folks used to be so knowledgeable of the bible that quoting a phrase from it brought a whole train of associations to the reader. Same with Shakespeare....today it's advert slogans & pop culture, alas!


Aloha from Hawaii my Friend!


Comfort Spiral

Erik Donald France said...

Star Trek, but earlier commenters way beat me to the punch already.

I do this for many blog post headers, or make variations on them. "We All Know the Story of the Prodigal Son" (which is pretty true) was adopted from/an homage to Anne Sexton's "We All Know the Story of the Other Woman." Given time, scores of examples would reel off the spools.

Here's to a great time! Happy St. Pat's Day! I love titles of things!

the walking man said...

No credit at all for me...never even considered a title may be borrowed from somewhere else, you trekkie you.

Have a good week end Charles.

ivan said...

Oh, there are probably fifty titles taken from the Apocalypse of St. John, certainly the word apocalypse itself. And from Proverbs and from the first four books of the Bible.
It is no wonder the Bible remains a bestseller no matter who or what upstart comes on the scene. New York Times Best Seller list? Punks.
To some extent we are all punks, and probably a little effete.
The Satanic Purses?

I think God has got it in the bag.

laughingwolf said...

thx bud, hope so, too...

Charles Gramlich said...

Travis, I remember that "on a pale horse." Love that line from The Bible. They used that in one of the Clint Eastwood movies too.

X. Dell, Yes, the original series. A good episode. I know an SF book called "The Wine of Violence," which is from the Bible. Lots from there and Shakespeare. I've enjoyed the cons I've gone to.

Cloudia, you're right, and that's pretty sad. an impoverishing of the culture.

Erik, I'm a big fan of titles too. I don't know why but they are very important to me.

Mark, I've borrowed a few here and there myself. Thanks.

Ivan, oh yes, revelations has probably gotten the most. And maybe Ecclesiasties. "A time for....this or that."

Lisa said...

I wish I could contribute but I can't think of any, maybe because I do not know the Bible phrases. Or Shakespeare for that matter. But I do look forward to your post. That would be interesting.

Chris Benjamin said...

Some friends of mine have a comic coming out called "Kill Shakespeare", which is a great take from the Kill Bill series, but also borrowing the characters of the bard himself.

Leigh Russell said...

Rosencrantz and Guildernstern are Dead
The Rest is Silence
Goodnight Sweet Prince
The Lady Doth Protest
Murder Most Foul
My Prophetic Soul


...in fact, almost any phrase or line from Hamlet...

This is going to plague me all day, now, trying to think of more...

And what about books based on fictional characters?
The Young Sherlock Holmes
Wide Saragasso Sea
Flashman
Rosencrantz and Guildernstern are Dead

Mary Witzl said...

I've always liked 'The Sound and the Fury'. But my personal favorite is 'A Fire of Indignation Kindling Within'.

Charles Gramlich said...

Ocean Girl, I wonder if other relgious traditions lead to titles being chosen from their great books.

benjibopper, lol. That sounds inventive and fun.

Leigh Russell, trust you British, with your better education in the classics, to be able to generate some. Good ones. Thanks. Murdur most foul! Love it.

Mary Witzl, The sound and the fury is a great one. I don't even know the other one. Sounds interesting.

Middle Ditch said...

I wish I could be there. A little hop by plane I imagine.

As to borrowed titles, yes, I believe loads come from phrases from the bible. A great 'novel'.

I was planning to call MD 'The Village' but then I googled the name and found that a spooky film with such a name already existed and thus it's now what it's called.

BernardL said...

I loved the comic cons in San Francisco in the nineties. Man, there were some real bargains there. I imagine the same is true for the Babel Con.

Spy Scribbler said...

The Sun Also Rises was also used for a song by the Fleet Foxes. I think they even used it for the album. They rock.

Star Trek, but then I thought Star Trek took it from somewhere else. No?

I really miss Star Trek.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Seems like more titles are borrowed than not. Three of my daughter's titles come from songs, for instance.

nephite blood spartan heart said...

Wish I could make it, but I am all travlled out this week. have a good one there.

Aimlesswriter said...

Have fun at Babel Con!
Sounds like great time.
I usually go to my kids for titles. I give them the gist of the story and they can usually come up with something good.

Charles Gramlich said...

Middle Ditch, I saw the movie "the village," which was pretty good, I thought. I'll forgive you for not coming over. ;)

BernardL,you definitely find some interesting and usual things at the cons. And meet some unusual people. I always have fun.

Natasha Fondren, I've never heard of the Fleet Foxes but I believe you. It's a good title. Could be Trek took that title from elsewhere, although I don't know where that might be.

pattinase, King uses songs for titles too. And there were a bunch of these in the Horror collections of the 80s and 90s.

David J. West, it should be fun.

Aimless Writer, thanks. I love making up titles. I've got a whole file of them that have yet to be used.

X. Dell said...

D'oh! I just remembered a book title: Let Me Take You Down, Jack Jones' bio of Mark Chapman.

Vesper said...

Your panels seem soooo interesting! Have fun, Charles! :-)

AS for the titles, I didn't know they were from the Bible. I'm looking forward to reading your post.

jodi said...

Charles, I wish I could be there! I borrow all my blog titles from songs--does that count? Have a great time and knock em dead!

Charles Gramlich said...

X. Dell, sometimes they don't leap out at us even though we're pretty familiar with the topic.

Vesper, Lots of stuff in proverbs that have been used as titles. I think the panels will be fun.

jodi, I have some song titles I've used as well. Thanks.

Greg said...

sounds like the convention should be fun. good luck with the panels!

i didn't know either of those hemingway titles came from the bible... interesting.

j said...

Of all things, I remember my mother using the phrase "Et tu. Brute?" Unfortunately (!!!) I can't for the life of me remember why. This doesn't go along with the topic of borrowed titles though - sorry.

Have a great time at Babel Con!

Charles Gramlich said...

Greg, I'll have to verify those but I'm pretty sure. Hemingway loved using those kinds of things for titles.

Jennifer, et tu brutus, was supposedly what Julius Ceaser said to Brutus, when Brutus joined in his stabbing. "You too, Brutus," is the meaning.

Rick said...

Have a great con, charles!

And I agree with Cloudia- resonating titles are now from advertisements and tv promos. Like in the movie "Demolition Man," where everyone in the future loves golden oldies, which are really old advertising jingles.

ivan said...

Star Trek might be from the Afrikaans, but I haven't trekked with a Boor for a while.
Or maybe I have. I certainly get the odd one on my blog.

Charles Gramlich said...

Rick, I remember Demolition man. It was kind of funny, but a bit too close to truth. Idiocracy shows something very similar.

Ivan, Something about the word Trek always resonates with me.

Mary Witzl said...

'Et tu Brute?' was one of my mother's favorite expressions too. We knew it was really 'Brutus', but in the quotation it was always 'Brute'. Something about the ides of March.

'A Fire of Indignation Kindling Within' is from Thomas Clarkson's anti-slavery speech: http://www.brycchancarey.com/abolition/clarkson.htm -- if you're interested. (It's an incredible story and one of my favorites.)

Lana Gramlich said...

Wish I could've gone with you. I'm glad you had a good time.

Charles Gramlich said...

Mary, thanks for the link.

Lana, thankee sweety