Adaptation and Appropriation in Postmodern Literature and Media

Adaptation and appropriation are essential components of postmodern literature and media. However, when these terms come to mind, adaptation often conjures an impression of originality and positivity, while appropriation is generally linked to plagiarism and negativity. This is a rather unfortunate side effect of elitist thinking in the literary world.

Like most terms, adaptation and appropriation have needed redefining for quite some time. Adapted works and appropriated works can both have their quality gauged with equal merit if we look with an open mind. Due to overwhelming abhorrence over plagiarism, and the increasing rate at which works are adapted and appropriated, the importance of redefining literary adaptation and appropriation is more critical than ever.

Adaptation is a natural part of humanity and life in general. In nature, bugs who live in trees have often borrowed the pigmentation of the leaves for survival, bats are able to catch food in near black dark by using echolocation, and one of the only reasons that humans can read and write is because of our biggest evolutionary gain: bipedalism. Sometimes we think of adaptation as starting and stopping in scientific fields, but it is beneficial to keep an open mind when discussing adaptation in entertainment.

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Literary adaptation is simple: take a work of literature and adapt it to another form of entertainment. Often times we think of novels being adapted into movies (e.g. The Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and many more). This is arguably the most popular form of literary adaptation as it is also the most financially stable. On the other hand, we may not think of novels being adapted into something as different as a video game or even as a musical, but these mediums are equally as useful to people with an affinity for adapting.

But why does literature adapt in the same way that humans do? This is not a hard question to answer, as the question states the answer. Literature adapts because humans, and therefore culture, adapt around it. While it is quite easy to read Romeo and Juliet, recent generations often find the plot boring and unrealistic in a modern world. Fortunately, younger audiences have been able to experience this paradigm of literature through a modern lens with Romeo + Juliet.

This is one of the most successful examples of adapting Shakespeare and adaptation in general (the movie grossed approximately 133 million dollars and is often shown in classrooms as a prime example of adaptation). However, the relationship between Shakespeare's original, Romeo and Juliet and the modern adaptation, Romeo + Juliet brings us closer to making a fine distinction between adaptation, appropriation and plagiarism.

It is necessary to evoke the definition of intertextuality when discussing adaptation and particularly appropriation. Intertextuality is the broader term that houses both adaptation and appropriation. It means the relationship between texts and often refers to the acknowledgement that most texts invoke, rework and/or enhance other texts. While this term is clearly necessary for grasping adaptation, it also helps to increase the gap between appropriation and plagiarism. We live in a society that culturally shifts more and more often; therefore, it is important to accommodate for these shifts in literature and make the fear of broad plagiarism (e.g. calls of plagiarism on culturally adapted stories) affect us less and less.

Sanders describes appropriation as the, “decisive journey away from the informing source into a wholly new cultural product” (26). Appropriated literature generally takes a recognizable or significant text and recontextualizes it into something that requires the reader to reevaluate the original work. Most appropriated texts make clear homages to the original that would be hard to miss, but not all appropriated texts explicitly reference the original. This is a problem faced by postmodern writers: is it plagiarism or is it a supplement?

In most cases where the author is open about their influences—people seem to have no problem with appropriation. As long as the text is a good improvisation to the original, there are very few moral questions raised. Is Romeo + Juliet a plagiarism of Romeo and Juliet? The modern version veers ever so slightly away from the original in terms of theme, but creates a massive cultural shift. It is no longer families feuding but gangs fighting. It is no longer fear of the sword but fear of the firearm. We look at these shifts and we see a supplement. Romeo + Juliet as aforementioned is often a supplement to the original Romeo and Juliet in the classroom. It provides a near direct adaptation from the original, and an appropriation to a new audience. Even though the story is practically identical, few critics would call this work plagiarism.

On the other hand, the book Last Orders by Graham Swift made little to no effort to directly reference the original, As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner but instead opted for homages that only readers of the original would catch. Suddenly, his appropriated work was under intense scrutiny; clearly his Booker Prize—a prize based upon originality—needed to be retracted for such a shocking work of plagiarism. Graham Swift openly admitted Last Orders was a homage to Faulkner's work, yet critics still raged on about Swift's inauthenticity.

So, in the case of Romeo + Juliet, we have a clear cultural adaptation that is shockingly close to the original and is praised for this reason. Yet, in the case of Last Orders, we have a clear cultural adaptation that is clearly inspired but very much original being torn apart for not making clear, direct reference to the original. The trouble with these cases is that sometimes revisionary/allusion-filled writing is celebrated and other times it is torn apart for the same reason.

A postmodern way of thinking about literature is to go into a book or movie with the thought that there is no new story to tell, but simply varieties of stories, plots and themes which we may or may not have read previously. The great thing about this process is that it lets people judge works on the basis of their merits instead of the merits of their predecessors. Appropriation is not only a part of this thinking process, but defined by it. Instead of appropriation triggering thoughts relating to plagiarism, stealing, or copying, it should bring words like contemporizing, updating, transforming, or reviving to mind.

Another difference between adapted and appropriated works is that while adapted works are often true to the source, appropriated works often have a plethora of influences. Creating a melting pot of diverse themes/situations through different methods of subverting, transposing or inverting can create something that is not only original, but brilliant. Music is a good example of this type of work. Many artists—especially electronic musicians—sample, remix or update otherwise outdated music to create a contemporary piece of art. Even bands like The Beatles made it clear who their influences were.

After hearing musicians like Buddy Holly or Chuck Berry, there is a clear connection between their styles and the style of The Beatles. However, few would dare call The Beatles much other than revolutionary. In fact, many bands start up by covering songs (adaptation) and end by merging their influences together into one highly original, but inspired, song (appropriation).

Upon examination of these terms in their respective and combined forms, it is clear that adaptation and appropriation have needed a thorough update. We live in a world that is increasingly globalized and therefore undergoes cultural shifts at a rate in which could never have been imagined in the past. It is important to remember that while examples of adaptation and appropriation may be easier to come across in the past couple of centuries, works have always played off other works.

Everyone is inspired by someone else's accomplishments: all books come from other books, all songs come from other songs, all art comes from other art and all thought comes from thoughts of others. Calling adaptation and appropriation plagiarism takes away the opportunity for aesthetic reconstruction and cultural enrichments. Using and building off the works of other authors is not robbing them; it is a form of honorific commemoration that humanity should celebrate.

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