Also ice cream. furthermore, grilled otters. in conclusion, eleven. -Aaron Minton

That reminds me of what we studied in APUSH. American desire for western settlement pushed into the Native American's homeland, robbing them of the land and resources they had for centuries. The Dawes Act eliminated tribal ownership of land, and pulled apart ties and settlements that had been in existence since their ancestors first entered the plains

Plot!

My story surrounds the Gothic Detective Agency in London, England, and the two detectives who run it - Bob Skeleton and Russell "Macabre de Coiffure" Brand. The back story reveals that the pair previously had a case in which they were to retrieve a soul back from the devil. They succeeded,  but the devil came back with a vengeance, and tried to steal their souls. This final episode in the saga of the Gothic Detective Agency will be about the final confrontation between the devil and the detectives, as the devil wishes to finally steal their soul. The detectives know that they must finish off the devil once and for all, as their cunning wit seems to be matched by the devil's. The confrontation/fight will take place at a Mika concert - a popular British pop singer, and an example of all that the devil AND the detectives detest. This is a vital point to the story, as the three will discover how similar they really are. In the end, the detectives and the devil will unite together against the real antagonist - God. God in my story is an angry bigot who eventually gets defeated by the cunning wit and secret powers of Macabre de Coiffure, once all hope seems lost. In actuality, the confrontation between the devil and the detectives is revealed to be futile, as Bob Skeleton and Macabre de Coiffure never had any souls to begin with!

Bob Skeleton and Macabre de Coiffure, in a less serious moment

A very rough interpretation of the devil

Characterization of the Devil

     In my story, the devil takes on a persona more similar to Keith Richard's, in 'Sympathy for the Devil'. His dwellings in hell are elegant and dark, reflecting his personality. My devil is a 'cool' character, not often caught losing his temper, but always in control and on top of his game. He is very good at being evil, and used to succeeding against those blasted mortals with consciences. In regards to consciences, he clearly has none as his very joy in life is in stealing souls from unfortunate people around the world. Much like the detectives have their business of solving mysteries after dark, my devil hunts for souls once the sun goes down. He handles this all very smoothly and professionally, and keeps his business in line. As displayed in previous chapters of his story, he does not take well to those who try to undo his work.
     His appearance is dark. He normally wears a gothic style leather trench coat, more fitted, with cross straps and silver buttons. He wears Doc Martens, is clean shaven, and his hair channels the American 1950's - a tapered cut, long in the front. My devil is a cross between Blade, James Dean, and Sid Vicious.
     Circumstance has put the detectives and the devil against each other, and they use cunning to try and outsmart the other. The detectives truly are the devil's match. Despite the conflict between Bob Skeleton and Macabre de Coiffure and the devil, they later come to realize they aren't quite different after all. The detectives' loose moral compass and love for all things dark make them relate well to the devil. In the end, the devil turns out not to be so horrible, and triumphs over God to take the moral high ground - all in the name of freedom from such a tyrannical beast.

Setting

My story about the devil will revolve around the Gothic Detective Agency, located fittingly in London, England. This agency is the workplace of Bob Skeleton and Macabre de Coiffure, partners in the pursuit of unraveling particularly dark mysteries. It is a two-story building, inhabited mainly in the cellar and the first floor, leaving the above flat vacant. The building has an extremely gothic look and feel, hence the Gothic Detective Agency.

Minor scenes may take place in the devil's lavish private quarters, decorated with all things leather and hardcore, while remaining surprisingly elegant. (It is, after all, the devil.)

A main confrontation between the devil and the dark protagonist buddies Skeleton and Coiffure will take place at a Mika concert - the enemy of all things the devil and the detectives stand for. The detectives will cleverly use this to their advantage. The concert will take place at Royal Albert Hall - a very popular and large entertainment venue in London. 

The timeline of the story will be present day, although the feel will reference the the nineteenth century. This isn't a problem though, because Monsieurs Skeleton and de Coiffure do not recognize any time boundaries, as they are no strangers to the amenity of time travel and warped reality.

Legacy of Literature

For my Legacy of Literature project, the book I chose was In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. In Cold Blood is a non-fiction novel - one of the first that pioneered an entire genre. The story gives a detailed account of a quadruple murder of a wealthy Kansas family. A pair of parolees committed robbery and then killed the family of four. The book follows their psychological relationship, and the effects the crimes made on the lives of others. I saw the psychological aspect of the novel very relatable to that in Macbeth, and also clearly the theme of murder. The story is also simply a crime novel, which is a theme in itself that interlocks with the next work I chose.

The film I decided on was 'Double Indemnity', a 1944 American classic. Like the former work I selected, it relates very well to Macbeth. In the movie, a woman convinces an insurance salesman to help kill her husband. The man was easily swayed like Macbeth was, and the two met their fate as a result of their immoral choices. Both works are ones of crime, and underscore that misdeeds later result in punishment.

The Grudge!

I don't necessarily have a favorite ghost story, but one that has always creeped out is The Grudge, originally the Japanese Ju-On series of horror films. The story surrounds the a house where a man murdered his entire family after discovering his wife Kayako's love for another man. First, he murdered the family cat with his young son, Toshio, by drowning them in the bathtub. Second, he snapped his wife's neck, making her only able to release a croaking sound. Finally, he hung himself.

The house holds a curse, and anyone to enter it is followed by the victims of the man's wrath. Whoever the curse falls upon is killed, and the curse passes on like a virus, re-born in the house to afflict another. The victims of the original murder were wrongfully killed, and they harbor a rage that manifests itself in victims of the curse.

Macbeth killed Duncan and Banquo in this same way - with no justifiable cause. Macbeth later sees Banquo's ghost. Going on the assumption that this is not a display of Macbeth's insanity, it could be said that Banquo lives on for the same reasons that Toshio and Kayako do. In addition, just as Macbeth went after the innocent son of Banquo, Toshio was murdered despite no faults on his part.

Now, while not a fantastic movie in terms of screenplay, talent, or critic reviews, I like it regardless.

The Assassination of Leo Ryan

Leo Ryan

Leo Ryan's Assassin, Larry Layton

     Leo Ryan was a US Representative of California's 11th district from 1973-1978. He spent time in Newfoundland saving seals and spoke out for more Congressional oversight over the CIA. In 1976, the mutilated body of his friend was found, who was an ex-member of The People's Temple, a cult who had a colony in Guyana called the "Peoples Temple Agricultural Project." Leo Ryan was unsettled by the death of his friend, and went to visit the Temple in Guyana. He spoke out against the cult, and went there to conduct an investigation. There he found terrified people, desperate to get out. When he tried to help people escape, his airplane was ambushed by members and he was shot repeatedly and killed. That evening, the cult went on to commit a mass homicide, by convincing about 900 of it's members to drink grape Kool-Aid spiked with cyanide. While the situation in Guyana and the murder of King Duncan on the surface look like much different stories, they bear many similarities.


     Duncan was assassinated because he was getting in the way of the Macbeths' quest  for power. Lady Macbeth wanted her and her husband to rule, and thus she persuaded Macbeth to commit the heinous crime against his friend. Similarly, Leo Ryan stood in the way of the success of The People's Temple. He wanted to shut them down, and thus he was assassinated, along with several others he was with.


     Both Leo Ryan and Duncan did nothing wrong to make them deserve murder. Duncan ruled his land and people, and Leo Ryan was trying to save the people trapped in the Guyanese cult. A major difference between the two murders, however, was the effect on the assassins. Macbeth immediately began to see hallucinations, and was haunted by what he had done. On the other hand, it is not apparent that Larry Layton felt much remorse, as he had killed others before Ryan. Tragically, he was given parole just 18 years after these murders of innocent men.