Freaks, continued

In class today, we discussed a particular passage from the piece "Cultural Fixations of the Freak body: Coney Island and the Postmodern Sideshow" by Elizabeth Stephens.  our group's specific passage focused on Eak the Geed, a sideshow performer.  we discussed how Eak the Geed talks about the fact that the act that these people are performing can only be seen on the sideshow stage; the way that these performers perform is usually due to audience participation, because the audience will usually egg these performers on to prove that they really are "freaks".  outside of the sideshow, the term "freak" should not be used. these people act like freaks for the sole purpose of entertainment.  there is a lot of history behind the word "freak" and the ideas it brings about.  

the passage that we read relates to the film "Freaks", especially the ending, when the "freaks" are viewed as "normal" people, rather than the opposite as they are in the beginning.  also, it is made clear that you never see outside of the backstage area of the sideshow, as the term "freak" isn't to be used outside of a sideshow setting