WHO KNOWS THE KING OF THE CASTLE

Television documentary on a once famous rock star

produced, directed and narrated

by

JAMES ROAPER

MAY 1933

for

INTERDEPENDANT BROASCASTING LTD. HISTORY SECTION

James Roaper appears on the screen, dressed in a long black robe with an embroidered sun on his breast. He holds a mask over his face. He speaks:

'The stage was set. The moon was full and high. The sounds of the night pervaded the cold and misty air. We could see lights and hear voices coming from an ancient castle hidden deep in a dark fearsome forest.

Let us go back in time and see what happened there.

The young red cloaked figure of the new king was standing, his legs wide apart on an old oak table. He thundered at his court:
"Let the feast begin!"
And the feast began.
The wine from bottomless barrels flowed like rivers of blood down the throats of the King's savage court whose thirst became greater with every mouthful they swallowed, and whose appetite for sport consumed them like a forest fire.

They made music, heavy then light.

They told stories, fantastic, then strange.

They smoked dope in hookahs and in skins.

They played head games, they used magic.

They did all, with such animation that the new King became fascinated at their behaviour.

They attacked each other with everything but physical violence. Their eyes smoldered with delight when they found someone with a weakness, and blazed with triumph when they completely crushed that someone down.

James was standing in the main gallery. This time he was robed in red and purple. He turned and pointed at a huge cauldron hanging inside a fire place.

"They made their potions in that thing", he said.

Everyone drank some, and by early morning, the king had laughed, wenched, smoked, played, and generally debauched himself into a royal frenzy.
But as you know, a frenzy is a weakness, and weaknesses were not allowed by the Court, which in a matter of seconds turned into a tribunal.
Suddenly he felt as if the eyes of everyone were burning into him, mocking at him. Little by little he became nervous, awkward. He tried to speak, but his words sounded superficial and unreal. He felt trapped, suffocated, his senses began to reel, his face became dark, his eyes were wild and frightened.

Someone said: "We've gone too far. He's falling apart. I don't understand how, we didn't mean that to happen.”

Jimi slowly got to his feet, looking extremely calm. Everyone was relieved. Then he suddenly snatched his electric guitar and in a second threw himself at the Court with the fury of a mad demon.

It took five men to hold him down for the doctor to administer an injection, and it took five minutes for the ambulance to arrive at the hospital where they found he was suffering from mental shock.

James Roaper had dropped his mask and revealed his face, the face of a man about 35 years old. He smiled and continued:

"But were they right when they said it was my mind that dragged me down, or, should I say, pulled me up?

Good night, ladies and gentlemen."

QUESTIONS AND STUDY

1. James Roaper (Jimi) uses the medieval period to depict something that happened recently.

1. Are there similar structures between the middle ages and our time?

2. In what way can a middle age story clarify something of our times better than a story from another era?

3. If you were James, which period would you choose to put the story in? Justify your answer.

2. The King's fascination with the behaviour of his Court shows he has a certain kind of innocence and lack of experience.

1. Is innocence a weakness in such a world?

2. Will innocence make understanding such a world easier? Justify your answer.

3. Should innocence be killed to be part of this universe?

4. Is innocence the same as open-mindedness? Why (not)?

5. What is the opposite of innocence?

   Justify your answers
   
   
   

3.

1. What kind of King do you think Jimi's Court wanted him to be?

2. What kind of person do you think the King wanted to be?

3. Did the King want to be what he choose to be?

4. Did the King choose to be what he wanted to be?

4. Jimi lost himself in the end, but has found himself again. How do you think he overcame an identity crisis of that magnitude?

5.

1. What does James Roaper (Jimi) mean when he says at the end of the broadcast: 'Or should I say, pulled me up?'

2. How do you think he felt?

3. How do you think the audience felt?

4. What do you think he thought?

5. What do you think the audience thought?

6. What do you think he did after his mind had pulled him up?