About Romney

"Romney Wordsworth" is a fictional character created by the master of creative suspense, Mr. Rod Serling. The word "genius" describes the writer and the story with equal force. Superbly portrayed by veteran actor Burgess Meredeth, Mr. Wordsworth was a humble Librarian living out his last two days in a society that judges him to be "Obsolete". And like so many other sympathetic characters born into a time and place where tyranny of the worst sort reigns, this charge carries a death penalty with it. If he is judged to be Obsolete, the almighty State must execute him within 48 hours (prepare for sarcasm) -- but graciously allows him to choose the time and the manner in which he will be executed.

In the annals of great writing and screenplay for short stories acted out before us on television, I think that this one episode of the venerable "Twilight Zone" series is the most profound episode on many levels, ergo my tribute to the show with an entire blog dedicated to exploring the depths of these "levels".

There is so much that can be written about this story, that I don't feel like even a blog such as this one can elucidate all the ideas or enumerate all the words to describe it. Like classic literature, "The Obsolete Man" is chock-full of lessons to be learned to advance mankind from the depths of brute to the heights of literati. Anyone who seeks to know the true human condition must first believe that there is such a thing - and then motivated by that faith to seek the truth of that condition.

All human beings alike share the qualities of their maker and what they are made of - we are like God who expressed his creative will in designing sentient beings and limiting our range of capability so as to develop character - and we are like "the dust of the earth" in that we are severely limited and humbled by the reality of our limitations.

The humility of Romney Wordsworth and the nobility of his final days are the subject of this blog in hopes that the reader will consider the depths of these abstract and esoteric issues to the betterment of us all.