THEBEASTS

    1TheGooseinMooseis,orsotheysay,theHamletofanimalroles,introspectiveandmoodyasonlyacostivebirdstrainiseggmightbe.ThereisafullgamutofemotionintheGooserole--loyaltyaioher;joyanddelightatherowy;heartbreakatlossofegg;fearandtremblingatthewidevarietyofgruesomepossibilitieswhichmightoccurif,intheinfiercouplingsofpossibletextswhichoccurallthetimeinthepromiscuityofPantoland,ooryeffortlesslyseguesintoaory,sothatMoosetwinsupwithJadtheBeanstalk,involvinganegg-hungryogre,orwithRobinHood,incorporatingagoose-hungrySheriffofNottingham.theGoose,liketheDame,isafemaleroleusually,thoughnotallayedbyaman.ButtheGoosedoesnotrepresenttheexaggeratedandparodicfemininityofaheGoosesfemininityisreal.Sheisallwoman.Withetralityoftheegginherlife.SotheGoosedeservesaninterpreterwiththesophisticatedteiqueahyfeheonnagata,thefemaleimpersonatorsoftheJapaneseKabukitheatre,whomakeyouweepatthesadnessiinthesleevesofakimonoastheyquiverwithsuppressedemotionatawomanslot.

    Becauseofthis,andbecausesheistheprimefocusofallattention,theGooseinMooseisthepremieranimalrole,evehan...

    2DickWhittingtonsCat:DickWhittingtonscatistheScaramoucheofPantoland,limber,agile,andgoingontwolegsmoreoftenthanonfourtostresshisstatusasintermediarybetweentheworldoftheanimalsandourworld.IfhepossessessomeofthechthonicambiguityofalldarkmessengersbetweendifferentmodesofbeihelessheisneverlessthanaperfectvalettohismasterandhopsandskipsatDicksbidding.HisisthereforelessofastarringrolethantheGoose,evenifhisrat-catgactivitie