I don't think the problem with the dreamcatcher symbolism is cultural appropriation, exactly.
"Michael was researching serial killers who claimed insanity as a defense." Mulder tips his head at Kessler. "Will helped her set up some interviews at the state prison we drove by when we first got here. Those interviews formed the basis of her paper. It's how she obtained the grant to pursue it."
"I told Agent Mulder about the dreamcatchers I found, and he told me what they might have meant to her. About how they could have affected her."
Scully decides that following this conversation is a lot like watching a tennis match. "And that is...?" She turns to Mulder. This ought to be good.
"More than just a totem," Mulder begins. "The common belief that dreamcatchers trap the user's nightmares has a basis in Native American religion. There is a belief that the dreamcatcher summons an entity who not only traps dreams, but can make them come true-- and not always in a way the dreamer would like."
The two men have moved from their original positions to face, her standing shoulder to shoulder. Scully crosses her arms and studies their eager expressions for a moment before responding. "An entity. So... you're suggesting, what? That she was possessed?"
Two pairs of eyes fix on hers. Two heads nod. "Yes." They even say the word together.
One problem is that as far as I can find out there is no such belief in the Native American community. I find no mention of an entity at all, let alone one that is summoned and can influence dreams and make them come true. Attributing that nonbelief to a specific tribe wouldn't make a difference.
I think dtg wants to tie these serial murders into Michael's trip to New Mexico because of what happened to Mulder and Scully in New Mexico, and to the case from "Grotesque," which also involved serial murders where the murderer claimed to be possessed. Scully's memories have been altered. Mulder is having nightmares--comprised in part of flashbacks, fragments of memories of a life he no longer remembers. The psychiatrist who is allegedly treating him is using some form of hypnotic suggestion, to what end is unclear. Mulder is falling asleep, waking up somewhere else, not knowing how he got there--having blackouts. Maybe the psychiatrist is supposed to be like the evil entity in dtg's imaginary dreamcatcher mythology, manipulating Mulder's mind. The theme that our actions and choices are not necessarily our own runs through the entire saga. It works least well in "Dreamcatcher" because it's not as completely developed as it could have been. Apart from the dreamcatchers, there is no evidence of an outside influence on Michael. It's more believable that Michael is a stone-cold sociopath than that she is possessed, whatever Mulder might think.
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winterfish
Re: ARGH! CLIFFHANGER!
Date: 2016-06-14 05:37 am (UTC)One problem is that as far as I can find out there is no such belief in the Native American community. I find no mention of an entity at all, let alone one that is summoned and can influence dreams and make them come true. Attributing that nonbelief to a specific tribe wouldn't make a difference.
I think dtg wants to tie these serial murders into Michael's trip to New Mexico because of what happened to Mulder and Scully in New Mexico, and to the case from "Grotesque," which also involved serial murders where the murderer claimed to be possessed. Scully's memories have been altered. Mulder is having nightmares--comprised in part of flashbacks, fragments of memories of a life he no longer remembers. The psychiatrist who is allegedly treating him is using some form of hypnotic suggestion, to what end is unclear. Mulder is falling asleep, waking up somewhere else, not knowing how he got there--having blackouts. Maybe the psychiatrist is supposed to be like the evil entity in dtg's imaginary dreamcatcher mythology, manipulating Mulder's mind. The theme that our actions and choices are not necessarily our own runs through the entire saga. It works least well in "Dreamcatcher" because it's not as completely developed as it could have been. Apart from the dreamcatchers, there is no evidence of an outside influence on Michael. It's more believable that Michael is a stone-cold sociopath than that she is possessed, whatever Mulder might think.