What would you wish for? We all know that wishing is more dangerous than it seems; literature has taught us this. Watching ‘WW84’, I wasn’t expecting it to reference W W Jacobs’ ‘The Monkey’s Paw’ once, let alone so frequently. I have just taught to this to Y8 and I hope they remember that if they see the film.
’The Monkey’s Paw’ and all its antecedents teach us the power and the danger of the wish. Whilst wishes outside of the world seem to be harmless, stories teach us that we must be responsible in and for our wishes and desires. Stories teach us that wishes have a cost. Each wish in ‘The Monkey’s Paw’ comes at a cost, as do the wishes in ‘WW84’. These wishes are imbued with the ‘greed is good’ culture of the 1980s. as older viewers will recognise. Max Lord (and names are always significant) encourages each person to want ‘more’,those of us who experience the 80s know the damage this did, and still is doing to the world. My 10 year old turned to me during the film and whispered, ‘Mummy he is Donald Trump, isn’t he?’
As Max Lord becomes the artefact which grants wishes, we may reflect on the greed not only our current world, but the greed which has been present throughout history as presented in stories across times and cultures.
The children I currently teach see the world more through TV and film, than through books, but both of these begin with the written word. Our duty is to teach our pupils knowledge of stories and story construction, the seven basic plots in as many iterations as possible and the foundational stories of cultures across the world so that they can access these references in the tv, films and books they meet now and in future.
What would we wish for? That all children have access to the power of story, that all children learn through the great stories to hold on to hope and love.
We are all wonderful everyday as we bring the wonder of stories to our pupils everyday.
HIND-SIGHTS 