Outrageous Fortune is the first in a Western icon themed “Ecstasy and Eyerolls” series.
Its underlying question is what it means to be enlightened. Using Hamlet’s “slings and
arrows of outrageous fortune” line from his “to be or not to be” soliloquy as a jumping off
point, the piece examines our reactions to personal challenges. Unfair circumstances
beyond our control are inevitable, but our response to those “attacks” are what
produces ripples. The icon’s halo, which can also be interpreted as a target,
represents either those outward ripples produced by our actions, or the inward reception
of enlightenment. The real question is whether the ripples flow in or out.