Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Vortex of Deception

"The truth, the truth. There is no truth. These men, they make it up as they go along." -- Alex Krycek, "Tunguska"

In a particularly witty moment, the writers of The X-Files have the double-crossing rat bastard Krycek utter these words of truth. While Krycek refers to the shadow government Syndicate, who layer narrative upon narrative, coverup upon coverup, never revealing which lies are truths and which truths lies, he unknowingly speaks for the creators of the series. This self-referential comment shows the ways in which narrative control both within the show and within the context of the show's creation determines power structures in the show. What information is available to Mulder and Scully? What information is available to the viewer? Is this how viewers should think of the truth, as constantly shifting and elusive, or as a beacon constant, as Mulder seems to view it? Does the show ask that the viewer determine a truth or make sense of it, or can we trust our heroes to find those answers for us? Or do we disbelieve Krycek, because he is, in fact, a terrible human being?

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