Biblical Metaphors in "North and South"?

I was enjoying the old Patrick Swayze movie "North and South" on my ride back home from Virginia.

Cuddled in the back seat with the DVD player, call me an intense thinker but... I found a few alligories that could be used other ways.


These may or may not have been the intentions of the film makers, but nonetheless they make great illustrations for me to come up with some sort of good-feeling post.


1)
The love story between Orry and Madeline.

Orry loved Madeline at first sight. Madeline was forced into a marriage with an abusive man. Orry saves her life, after being beaten himself and the bad guy dies.

Orry then is called to fight in battle, leaving Madeline on the plantation.  Orry has two sisters- a good one, and a bad one.  The bad sister finds Madeline at night and lies to her about how Orry does not truly love her because of sins her parents have done, also he is off in battle.  Madeline believes these lies and runs away. When the war is over Orry returns and finds her in the slums of Charleston, he looks into her eyes and tells her he will always love her. No matter what.



2)

James Huntoon was a (fictional) secessionist politician. He was influential and well-known in the Confederacy. Although his views were controversial, he had a kind heart always ready to forgive. He marries Ashton (Orry's bad sister) in hopes he can turn her good. Orry warns him about Ashton, but Huntoon pushes through anyway. Time and time again Huntoon reaches out and offers her a pardon for her wrongs and sins. Ashton pretty much does them anyway, laughing at Huntoon pretty much.

Then in the words of Ashton "Judgement Day" came. Huntoon and Orry found Ashton with Bent (another villain) in an abandoned farmhouse storing illegal guns, after a lantern fell the farmhouse goes up in flames. Orry grabs Huntoon and Ashton and they duck behind a log-- Bent goes in and dies in the flames.   Ashton then is in shock announcing it was "like Judgement Day", Orry banishes her from his sight. She then begs James Huntoon for forgiveness, Huntoon rejects it and says; "It is too late Ashton... too late."

Huntoon's voice is full of pain, he did what he had to though.

We can't just live our lives ignoring Christ's forgiveness, then on judgement say ask for it. It really will be too late. A sobering thought.....

States Rights

To clearify my views.
  The states formed the federal government through the constitution. The constitution only gives the powers specifically stated in the constitution to the federal government.  Anything not specifically stated through an amendment is reserved to the states or the people.

The federal government sadly can not stop a state from doing a wrong..... it has no power to.


States can ignore federal rulings through nullification. This power is hinted at in the 10th amendment.

Overall I seem to have John C. Calhoun's states rights views, making me not a Hamiltonian but not a Madisonian.

9/11/2001

During 9/11 I was 7 years old.   I was in school (I was public schooled then) and a kid came up to us saying; "the Twin Towers fell!!!" we did not believe him, because he was known to be a jokester. My mom heard from a lady at the doctors office; "a plane crashed into the towers!!" she did not believe her either...

By the time we got home, the TV was completely out, it never came back until we got a satelite and special cable.  However we were able to adjust the TV and caught a little about the tragedy, although it was very fuzzy. My parents were watching the extremely fuzzy, poor-no reception TV for every little bit of news we could get.  It was a beautiful clear day... my mom said.


I remember when I heard there was going to be a war, I was thinking of the American Girl books and worried all the men I knew were going to be fighting in the streets... and wearing Continental Army uniforms.  I also found Iraq on a map.