regarding the nutcracker example--i know this argument doesn't hold a whole lot of water because of hegemony and centuries of intolerance and all that, but on one hand, the "eight crazy nights" and botched greeting are about as representative of the "true" chanukah as the rest of the play is of the "true" christmas.
actually, come to think of it, it all brings up an interesting question of cultural representation in art; the nutcracker is full of slightly odd, scratch-your-head-and-go-hmmm examples of cultural appropriation (the "arabian" coffee dance, chinese tea dance, and so forth), but of course those were all part of the original ballet, which was composed over a century ago and, well, a product of its time. so, is this new addition just following in those artistic footsteps, so to speak? does the context excuse it? well, of course not (though it is an interesting thing to ponder).
anyway, it seems pretty clear that it's more a case of shallow, feel-good quasi-multiculturalism... underscored by the fact that the nutcracker really has nothing to do with a religion at all, aside from a christmas tree and party to set the scene. which really is just reiterating your original point, i guess. (:
JN,
regarding the nutcracker example--i know this argument doesn't hold a whole lot of water because of hegemony and centuries of intolerance and all that, but on one hand, the "eight crazy nights" and botched greeting are about as representative of the "true" chanukah as the rest of the play is of the "true" christmas.
actually, come to think of it, it all brings up an interesting question of cultural representation in art; the nutcracker is full of slightly odd, scratch-your-head-and-go-hmmm examples of cultural appropriation (the "arabian" coffee dance, chinese tea dance, and so forth), but of course those were all part of the original ballet, which was composed over a century ago and, well, a product of its time. so, is this new addition just following in those artistic footsteps, so to speak? does the context excuse it? well, of course not (though it is an interesting thing to ponder).
anyway, it seems pretty clear that it's more a case of shallow, feel-good quasi-multiculturalism... underscored by the fact that the nutcracker really has nothing to do with a religion at all, aside from a christmas tree and party to set the scene. which really is just reiterating your original point, i guess. (:
nkw