Here are a couple of papers I wrote while a student at Seattle Central Community College. For the Lynch piece, you will need access to his art book Images. Both were written in the fall of 1996, so in the case of the Lynch piece, Lost Highway had not yet been released (hence its omission), and in the alien essay, a plethora of info has been written since then on the phenomenon by very respected people; if it piques your interest, you should check it out further.

David Lynch, director of such films as Blue Velvet, Eraserhead, The Elephant Man and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, has presented a twist on the art of filmmaking through surreal, sometimes disturbing imagery, and the presentation of things being much more complex and possibly, less pristine than they may seem. His unusual style has resulted in a surprisingly large fan base, as his films are relatively accessible; yet they are much more thought-provoking and open to debate than average American movies.

Thus, Lynch's admirers are people who enjoy having their minds prodded; they desire being shown the dark possibilities within themselves, and applaud his view of the underlying significance in seemingly mundane activities and conversation. Most fans follow Lynch's work religiously -- and have been pleased when he branches out into other artistic arenas, such as his work in illustrative art -- a comic strip called "The Angriest Dog in the World," and his contribution of lyrics, score (and sometimes instrumental accompaniment) for Julee Cruise, an ethereal vocalist who provides soundtrack material for him. Therefore, when Images, a 1994 art book, was released, followers of "Lynchian" art forms were excited to have yet another means by which Lynch was expressing his artistic genius.

Images, a work of primarily symbolic and deeply personal observations (while also containing many stills from his films), is comprised of photography, mixed media, painting and sculpture, with Lynch's photography being the primary artistic focus. The better part of the work is an assortment of images which are organized into sections, with such varying titles as: "Industrial," "Organic Phenomena," "Snowmen from Boise," "Post Modern Mood Structures," "Nudes and Smoke," "Distributors," and "Dental Hygiene." Lynch explores each topic with arresting insight, often showing either the ordinary, yet poignant elements, or dreamy possibilities of each subject -- even intermingling the two at times.

One such section is "Snowmen from Boise," which features a selection of snowmen ranging from playful to downright odd, and even somewhat disturbing (see featureless, almost translucent one on bottom of page 130). Behind the snowmen are lower middle class homes, which summon the trademark vista of many of Lynch's films -- the seemingly simple, innocent environment -- which actually cloaks covert activity. Also, the emotion evoked from these photographs could point to Lynch's early life remembrances, as Boise was his home for some time. Interestingly, there are no people in any of the photos, raising the question of whether their absence was intentional, or that Lynch was commenting on the fact that the snowmen themselves appeared to be the only inhabitants of Boise that day.

"Industrial," a part of the book highlighting Lynch's admitted fascination with mechanical apparatuses, is an enthralling glance at the beauty of objects normally seen as prosaic, or even dirty and undesirable. His depiction of the cooling towers (pages 98 and 99) in soft focus black and white, relays the almost feminine contours of the stacks. Combined with the shading of the background edifices, the contrast of the thin, horizontal power lines, and the hazy emissions, the view of the normally polluting, ugly structures suddenly becomes artful.

Lynch's obsession with the female body (a recurring theme in films such as Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me) is shown though his photograph of the mechanism featuring uniform appendages (page 103). Each protruding object gives the distinct impression of a highly accentuated breast; perhaps even the stylized shape of a nipple for a baby bottle. The photograph is taken from beneath the structure, which (probably due to the height of the machine, but nonetheless) could point to Lynch's impression of the female role, as one of high status. Yet, remembering the medium in which the breast is presented, one could also see his view as one of utilitarianism; the breast as machine for the life cycle.

Lynch also gives prominence to the feminine form in the section "Nudes and Smoke." The model presented, while sometimes featured facially (yet always highly exaggerated and only in part, pages 138-147) is most usually represented by those elements which make her "feminine" - breasts, genitals and contoured legs (pages 142 and 143). In one piece (page 145), the model's face is masked by a haze of cigarette smoke (a recurring element in Lynch's film Wild at Heart, which draws parallels between smoke -- and fire -- with sex and danger), which makes her both an object of sexuality and anonymity (important factors in the character development of Laura Palmer in Lynch's Twin Peaks).

In Lynch's other mediums (painting, sculpture and mixed media), one again finds a bizarre meshing of surrealism and mundane detail. In his two paintings "Ointment-Monkey-Bug" and "Hellgamite-Fish-Flies" (page 180), the overall sparseness of the pieces, combined with the scrawly print, gray coloring and the presence of imposing or distorted images of the title subjects, calls to mind the work of a disturbed child or an adult who is dysfunctional (familiar to those who have seen Eraserhead).

Lynch's sculpture "Clay Head with Turkey, Cheese and Ants" (page 185) reflects Lynch's endless fascination with the process by which ordinary tasks are carried out. In a television interview with Jay Leno of The Tonight Show, Lynch described the motivation behind creating the piece (which subsequently was photographed and used for the cover of Julee Cruise's album The Voice of Love). He wanted to see how quickly an ant colony he found in his apartment could find and utilize the turkey and cheese he had stuffed inside the clay head. He described watching the ants systematically climb up the wire on which the head was impaled, taking the food bit by bit, ultimately collapsing and decimating the art work itself. During the interview, Lynch seemed very excited by this and other works which featured process and organization. In one of his works from "Ricky Boards and Bee Boards" (pages 90 and 91), Lynch's elaboration on his purpose for the "Bee Board" is actually integrated into the artwork itself, making it (somewhat) easier to analyze.

Lynch has always been viewed (whether unintentionally promoted by himself or not) as somewhat of an enigma. All of his art forms reflect the very unusual manner in which he views the world, a view with which he is very comfortable. Richard Corliss of Time magazine, refers to him as "proof of the notion that every artist is a scientist, obsessed with discovering how things and people work" (Corliss, 34). Perhaps that is why his fan base is so loyal, because they know with Lynch, no subject matter is taboo, even if it's bees, incest (Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me), fish parts cut up for an assembly game ("The Fish Kit," Images), or the objectification of women (virtually any Lynch film or the above art works).

When once asked about how his films were to be interpreted, Lynch responded with: "It's better not to know so much about what things mean or how they might be interpreted or you'll be too afraid to let things keep happening. Psychology destroys the mystery, this kind of magic quality. It can be reduced to certain neuroses or certain things, and since it is now named and defined, it's lost its mystery and the potential for a vast, infinite experience." (Dunn, 2). This response could apply to Lynch's final art work in Images (also on the cover): it features an empty couch with a suspended puff of smoke hovering above it. One could again tie in Lynch's enchantment with 'smoke is synonymous with sex and danger,' but now the predictable element of sex (the model from "Nudes and Smoke") is missing. Is Lynch saying she is not necessary for the sensuality of the piece? Or is she still there, only she has become as elusive to us as the meaning of Lynch's work?

One can assume that Lynch's statement on the mystery of his filmmaking applies to his illustrative art and photography as well - even though it can be analyzed (and is quite interesting to do so), one must avoid trying to pigeon-hole Lynch's intent, because it undermines a possible interpretation of the work that Lynch himself probably hasn't even fully realized.

Works Cited

Corliss, Richard. "The Czar of Bizarre". Time, 1 Oct. 1990: 32-37.

Dunn, Mike. "Peachy Keen". Internet resource on David Lynch. www.mikedunn.com/images.html.

Lynch, David. Images. New York: Hyperion. 1994.

Kaleta, Kenneth. David Lynch. New York: MacMillan. 1993.

Shaviro, Steven. The Cinematic Body: Theory Out of Bounds. Ed. Sandra Buckley, Brian Massumi and Michael Hardt. Minneapolis: Minnesota Press. 1993.

For centuries, humankind has asked the question, "Is there other life out there, beyond our realm of existence?". While the possibility has been debated, and attempts at contact have been made (an example being NASA's radio telescope installed at El Cibo, Puerto Rico, programmed to receive transmissions of extraterrestrial origin), we have generally remained content with the passivity of occasional "sightings" and after dinner philosophizing in regard to the existence of extraterrestrial biological entities (E.B.E.s).

Yet, in the last ten or so years, more attention has been drawn to a correlating phenomenon of life on other planets or U.F.O.s; only this time it has a direct effect on reality as we perceive it -- alien abduction.

Abduction, a phenomenon which was actually first documented in 1961 by Dr. Benjamin Simon, a reputable psychiatrist (and UFO skeptic) who relayed the cse of Betty and Barney Hill; they consulted him after being disturbed by recurring dreams of being taken aboard a craft and subjected to tests following a shared UFO sighting.

These tests, a consistent feature in virtually all abduction testimonials since, are characterized by such bizarre elements as extensive orifice/cavity searches, the placement of "implants" or tracking devices into the body, and even the insertion and/or removal of fetuses, which are often believed to be alien/human "hybrids." The conductors of these tests are obviously believed to be of alien origin, most usually appearing as the "gray" type --typically 3 1/2-4 1/2 feet tall creatures with gray or pallid skin, spindly limbs and wholly black slanted eyes (much like those in Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind).

Because of the increasing number of abductions being reported, respected clinical and scientific professionals are taking an interest and are beginning to investigate. Nevertheless, those professionals choosing to maintain their skepticism without proper investigation voraciously refute any and all data that is organized in support of the possibility of the phenomenon being authentic.

Nonetheless, respected individuals who will listen and weigh the evidence and credibility of the abductees are courageously offering their encouragement and anre actively seeking answers to the questions raised by the advent of the abduction experience. One such representative is Dr. John Mack, a clinical psychiatrist and professor of psychiatry at the Cambridge Hospital, Harvard Medical School. Mack was introduced to the abduction phenomenon in 1990 by Budd Hopkins, a New York abduction researcher who had been working with abductees for over ten years. Intrigued by the consistency and earnestness of the stories Mack was hearing, he branched out his practice to assist the expereiencers in investigating what had been happenings to them. His studies resulted in the publication of a book, ABDUCTION: Human Encounters With Aliens (1994), which supports the theory that the abduction experience is a legitimate phenomenon.

Predictably, this created a backlash in the academic and scientific world, as it is rare that someone of such prestige would take such an improbable stance. In ABDUCTION's revised 1995 edition, Mack tackles some of the criticism which was hurled at him (and the study of the abduction experience in general):

1. As an investigator, his interest in the subject matter would be likely to influence his subjects.

Mack counters this by stating that he has had other professionals observe his methods of examination, and even cited one colleague's personal testimonial to his dedication of not swaying his patients (426).

2. Hypnosis is an inaccurate method of retrieving information.

While Mack admits there is always a chance for false memories to emerge, his experience has been in treating patients who are initially skeptical and less susceptible to suggestion to begin with. Most come to him wanting to explore all other possibilities which may arise from hypnotic regression before settling on abduction as the cause of their distress (429). Also, Mack attests the "intensity of affect and expressed bodily feeling that occurs during the regression sessions of abduction experiencers is so powerful that even the most determined skeptic would be hard pressed to conclude that something quite extraordinary and reality shattering did not occur" (430).

3. The explanation of other phenomena being responsible for the experience, such as neurological disorders (especially temporal lobe epilepsy) or hidden childhood traumas, such as sexual abuse.

Mack concedes that these can be possible factors; yet, he mentions that many of his patients were tested for neurological disorders before ever coming to him in their effort to rule out all possibilities. Additionally, he has his own battery of tests potential clients must take in order to "weed out" false claims or people of obvious emotional instability. The case studies in ABDUCTION were clients Mack judged as having the highest level of honesty and least of suggestibility. In those instances where an experiencer was an abused child, in-depth analysis was performed to assure the alien memories were not acting as a screen (431-32). (In support, UFO researcher and Temple University history professor David Jacobs says: "What is incredible, is that although virtually all therapists immediately think the abduction phenomenon is a screen memory for sexual abuse, they have never been able to produce one single case of this. They have not put forward even one case which unequivocally shows that abduction fantasies are caused by repressed memories of sexual abuse." [Bryan, 440]).

4. (Most importantly) lack of physical evidence.

Mack contends there is evidence, such as unexplained scoop marks, scars, bruises, and nasal/rectal bleeding which appears after the alleged experiences. Family members and friends have reported the professed experiencers missing at the time of the purported interactions with the E.B.E.s -- as in the case of Travis Walton, on whom the film Fire In the Sky was based. In addition, miscarried fetuses ahve been known to correspond with memories of removal of the baby during the experiencer's abduction.

Mack elaborates on implants, one of which he was given by a client who dislodged it from her nose following an abduction experience. While Mack does not assert this evidence alone proves the existence of E.B.E.s and abductions, he does comment it is solid enough to warrant further investigation.

Similarly, Budd Hopkins has encounted related anomalies during his research. He claims he possesses x-rays of client Linda Cortile; the first of which shows a coil-and-cylinder implant embedded in her nose, and the second showing no aberration (she believes the implant was taken by the entities two days after the initial x-ray). Also, he reports evidence of a young female abductee in Italy having an analogous experience, with the implant suddenly disappearing following her abduction (Smith, 6).

With such fantastic claims, one would assume the desire in the scientific community would be to conduct research; to discredit the accounts and evidence, if nothing else (and granted, a few people like renowned astronomer Carl Sagan have attempted to do so). M.I.T. physicist David Pritchard comments, "...there is not currently any physical analysis of implants, missing fetuses, (or) trace minerals that might be strongly suggestive of an alien presence or technology. I think at the core we really need volunteers from forensic labs, radiologists, chemists (and) material scientists to handle properly the small amount of evidence we have on hand." (Bryan, 235). However, the popular response seems to write off abductees and researchers as a group of mentally unstable or misguided individuals.

Often, the personal credibility or motivation of the persons involved is challenged in lieu of weighing what scientific professionals consider inconclusive evidence. One such case of that is the criticism of Whitley Strieber, best-selling author of such books as The Wolfen, War Day and The Hunger.

Strieber began noticing unusual phenomena such as marks behind his ear and disturbing dreams back in 1985. After a laborious exhaustion of doctor and psychiatrist visits, hypnosis and meditation, he finally came to the conclusion he had been (for the better part of his life) an experiencer of abduction. His realizations resulted in the non-fiction work Communion, which explored his recovered memories and how they were affecting his life.

While the book became an instant hit, Strieber's integrity as viewed by the literary world was lost. Accused of being either a crackpot, or someone who was trying to cash in on a hot-button issue, he became quite the pariah. Out of the furor emerged a biographical analysis of Strieber, called Report On Communion (1989), written by Ed Conroy, a veteran journalist for the San Antonio Express-News.

Conroy's book, an exhaustive look at Strieber's character through friends, family members, opponents, old school chums and Strieber's own correspondences, examines every "nook and cranny" of the author's life, including results from EEG, MRI and lie detector tests (he elected to perform these in effort of supporting his authenticity and to prove he didn't have temporal lobe epilepsy, as was believed by several well-know UFO "debunkers," such as Phillip Klass, former senior editor of Aviation Week and Space Technology).

While Conroy's initial impression of Strieber was rather tentative, his ultimate conclusion was that he was earnest in his assertions, and he even went on to relate Strieber's encounters as very similar to that of other abductees, thus reinforcing the phenomenon as a valid one (368).

Strieber and Mack are just two of the many individuals who have striven to overcome the intense repercussions associated with their outspokeness and interest in the E.B.E./abduction phenomenon. What critics fail to admit is that Strieber and Mack are an example of the growing number of credible people who are either reporting or are interested in exploring contact with other life forms. Even former President Jimmy Cater made a vow to "make every piece of information this country has about UFO sightings available to the public and scientists" way back in his 1969 election campaign after experiencing a sighting himself (Good, qtd. in Bryan, 117). Additionally, Carl Sagan (besides being an astronomer, he's an avid UFO debunker) admits, were contact to be make, "it would be an absolutely transforming event in human history" (Nova, 1).

The evidence presented, along with the increasing credibility of experiencers and researchers of the abduction phenomenon, logically points to its importance and relevance to the human experience. It does not have the transient characteristics of a "New Age" movement or a passing religious phenomenon. As well, it is difficult to believe that so man people would disrupt their lives and make themselves targets for ridicule simply for fifteen minutes of fame. The small faction that might be apt to do that is parallel to the fringe subset of any controversial group, be it Fundamentalist Christians, abortive opponents, etc. One cannot judge a unified voice of believers by that of a few unstable individuals.

If people do open up enough to listen to the accounts, then the next counter against the possibility of the abduction experience being physically tangible might be the "well, if they're real, why don't they beam down onto the White House lawn?" approach. If we are indeed being monitored by intelligent extraterrestrial life forms, they would only have to look at our history to know we would most likely snatch them up and ship them off to a laboratory to "study," either resulting in their death or irreparable damage. Furthermore, the comment that the conduction of human/alien hybrid experiments in such a primitive form (the old-fashioned method of artifical insemination) cancels out their possibility of existence (after all, if they're so advanced, why don't they just take out our sperm and egg samples without our knowing?) is faulty. Just because a life form is advanced, that doesn't mean it is infallible. Additionally, there are claims which point to the entities attempts to cover the trauma of the experiences with screen memories. Perhaps as well, their schema requires human subjects to be an active part of the process.

Similarly, all of the questions raised by the lack of knowledge concerning the purpose of abduction creates doubt. What could the implication of being taken in the middle of the night, subjected to physical examinations, shown "films" of environmental devastation, and presented with alien/human hybrid children mean? According to most of Mack's subjects, a popular interpretation is that the entities are showing us our impending doom, and are scrambling to create a new "race" of beings which will replenish our choking planet once complete environmental collapse occurs. Hopkins' clients are apt to believe in a more malevolent set of entities, who in tandem with the governments of Earth, are conducting "secret" genetic experiments. Regardless of the interpretation, the fact that the abductions are occurring is enough to warrant further investigation. Only then can the mysteries of motive become less cloudy.

In Dr. Bruce Cornet's (palentologist, researcher, writer) submitted defense of Dr. John Mack's position at Harvard University (Mack was almost kicked off the Harvard Doctoral Committee due to his work with abductees), he presents evidence of his own abduction experiences through the perspective of scientific objectivity as a validation for keeping Mack. Were it that all academicians were as open to the possibility of this phenomenon occurring.

If the sentiment of Mack's assertion: "if what these abductees are saying is happening to them isn't happening, what is?" (Mack, qtd. in Bryan, 4) isn't enough to spur the scientific community into looking more seriously and intently into the phenomenon of abduction and alien contact, then the existence of extraterrestrials and the questions posed by the abduction experience will continue to remain intangible to humankind.

Works Cited

Bryan, C.D.B. Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind: Alien Abduction, UFO's and the Conference at M.I.T. New York: Knopf, 1995.

Conroy, Ed. Report on Communion: The Facts Behind the Most Controversial Story Of Our Time. New York: Morrow, 1989.

Good, Timothy. Above Top Secret: The Worldwide UFO Cover-Up. New York: Morrow, 1988.

Mack, Dr. John. Abduction: Human Encounters With Aliens. New York: Ballantine, 1995.

Nova Online: Kidnapped By UFO's - Carl Sagan. 29 November 1996. Online/Internet. http://www.pbs.org:80/wgbh/pages/nova/aliens/carlsagan.html

Smith, Shannon and Sara. 2nd Annual Gulf Breeze UFO Conference Oct. 1994. 10 December 1996. Online/Internet. http://www.spiritweb.org/Spirit/abduction-mack-cornet.html

Whitford, Marc. Abduction and Present Psychology. 10 December 1996. Online/Internet. http://www.spiritweb.org/Spirit/abduction-mack-cornet.html