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What do British actor Tom Mison as Ichabod Crane and
British corset-maker Tom Paine have in Common?
Sense and the Spirit of '76!
Both of them help Americans know that it's cool to fight for
Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness,
Liberty and Justice for All.
The first Pirates and Patriots Award of 2014 goes to Sleepy Hollow, the television series that grows from Washington Irving's story like a twisted tree, but which straightens into something resembling the Liberty Tree.
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| A Revolutionary Era Drawing of the Liberty Tree |
Writers took the names of Ichabod Crane and his sought-after sweetheart, Katrina Van Tassel, a spoiled rich girl, and turned them into characters from the American Revolutionary War. Ichabod (Tom Mison) is a former British soldier who joined the Continental Army and fought with George Washingon; Katrina (Katia Winter) plays Ichabod's wife, and is also a practictioner of witchcraft. The pair are set off with the new character of Lt. Abbie Mills (Nicole Beharie) who also has psychic abilities.
I reluctantly watched the season premier because a family member wanted to watch it. So, I sat down with some paperwork, and watched with amused detachment as Ichabod comes to life from the grave and runs into Abbie and other characters, including Irving's rebooted Headless Horseman.
However, my detachment was soon blown away by the dialogue spoken by Ichabod. Until the DVD and subtitles/captions become available, I cannot exactly provide the words, but Ichabod took a strong stand with the American Revolution, and forcefully restated the principles upon which the founders and colonists built our nation.
In an article titled "Sleepy Hollow's Patriotic Thrill Ride" , writer Mark Tapson elaborates on the character of Ichabod Crane:
"... a British soldier who accepted the rightness of the American patriots’ fight for independence from the King and switched sides...Sleepy Hollow’s pro-American Revolutionary spirit and unmuddied moral waters are a welcome change ...There is even a sympathetic nod to the Tea Party – not the protesters ... who dumped British tea in Boston Harbor, but today’s movement protesting big government overreach."
Ichabod is stunned at the modern tax rates, and asks Abbie:
“What’s insane is a ten percent levy on baked goods! You do realize the Revolutionary War began on less than two percent? How is the public not flocking to the streets in outrage?!”
This type of blending a fast story with facts from history make a great combination, offering both a history lesson and great storytelling.
The scenario offers metaphorical interpretations, with some slight allusions. For instance, the love triangle between Ichabod, his wife Katrina, and Abbie could hearken to Thomas Jefferson, Martha Jefferson, and Sally Hemmings.
Yet, digging deeper (pun intended), the raising of Ichabod Crane from his grave involves more than a typical fish-out-of-water plot.
The show's creators, actors, and production artists have metaphorically brought the Spirit of the American Revolution back from the grave, back to life. They have made this spirit accessible to millions of viewers in America and our Earth. Like the Battle of Lexington's April 19th, 1775 "Shot heard 'round the world," the Sleepy Hollow production broadcasts the Spirit of '76 around the world.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Minute_Man.JPG
There have been so many people and events that have ripped at the American spirit: 9 11 was the equivalent of domestic terrorism and violence, with bush/cheney et al caught in lie after lie, yet like a beaten spouse, many Americans appeared punch drunk from the 9 11 attacks, and slipped into deadly denial. Instead of removing and jailing the deranged pscyhopaths who seized our government and started killing people, many Americans dignified the slaughter and murder as being "politics" or "policy" and "hoped" that things would get better. Americans who saw the truth endured ridicule and attempted the gargantuan task of turning the tide of theiving, maiming, torturing, and gore.
There's another coincidence. It was British ex-patriot Tom Paine who came to America, and was able better than anyone to convince Americans that independence, liberty and justice for all were worth the effort. Paine's pamphlet Common Sense, published in January 1776, was an instant best seller, read and understood by American readers. Paine's catchy, engaging, uplifting prose turned American colonists from reluctant to passionate in their support of independence from Britain. Paine is credited for igniting the American Revolution.
A colonist wrote: "The country was ripe for independence, and only neded somebody to tell the people so, with decision, boldness, and plausibility." (via Editor's Introduction by Isaac Kraknick, page 29, from the Penguin edition of Common Sense by Thoms Paine.)
America needs people like Tom Paine. Too many Americans today lack the Spirit of '76. Too many Americans resemble sodden, buried corpses, watching with dull eyes as deranged psychopaths seize our government, steal our money, give our money to unethical banks and corporations, trash our beautiful America, and bomb and drone to death innocent infants, babies, toddlers, pre-schoolers, kids, tweens, teens, young adults, adults, seniors. This maiming and murder is done with a chilling enthusiasm, with the deadly chanting of "terrorists." So many people say, "There is nothing we can do. The government is going to do what it's going to do."
This corpse-like inertia allows a freeway for fascists and tyrants as Americans stand on the side of the road and watch the horror like zombies.
So, while Sleepy Hollow is an engaging show with engaging actors in a nifty script illustrated with special effects, there may be a deeper reason for the resonance with Americans. Listening to a Brit-turned-American soldier share the staunch, lively, and deeply-felt passions that ran like Franklin's electric current through the colonies, this is what Americans have needed. For too long, too many of US have done nothing to end the tyranny in our country.
The newly-risen Ichabod Crane brings with him the newly-risen Spirit of '76, both spectres staring at US and urging US to rise to our rights and responsibilities.
"Originally entitled
Yankee Doodle, this is one of several versions of a scene painted by
A.M. Willard in the late nineteenth century that came to be known as
The Spirit of '76."
“The Spirit of ’76” is a familiar image, used for decades in American history textbooks. Its artistic merits may be debated, but the heroic figures, conveying the spirit and determination that make democracy possible, are unquestioned. “The Spirit” remains popular for another reason.
Like the 18th century Brit corset-maker and protester Tom Paine, Brit actor Tom Mison through the unlikely mask of Ichabod Crane reminds Americans of Our Rights and Duties to Seek Liberty and Justice for All.
Can We the People learn from a British actor named Tom whose character embodies the American Spirit of '76?
Did We the People learn from a British pamphlet-writer named Tom who showed US how to kick-start the American Revolution of 1776?
References
Common Sense by Thomas Paine. 1776
via Project Gutenberg
An Interesting Day : President [sic] Bush's Movements and Actions on 9/11. By Allan Wood and Paul Thompson. May 2003.
http://globalresearch.ca/articles/WOO305A.html
"So why, at 9:03 a.m. - fifteen minutes after it was clear the United States was under terrorist attack - did President Bush sit down with a classroom of second-graders and begin a 20-minute pre-planned photo op? No one knows the answer to that question. In fact, no one has even asked Bush about it."
The common Sense Show – by Dave Hodges
