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i wanna know about the ring composition meta!

Ok, so, I am a bit unhinged about this 😂 I quite literally froth over all the parallelism, the foreshadowing and chiastic structure of these books, so I decided to put it all in once place and write a meta ... but the trouble is, there is SO much ground to cover that I am having difficulty breaking it down. Here are some of the main snippets and a few of my favourite points -

If something is characterised by chiasmus it denotes a structure in which words/events/stories are repeated in reverse order. For a Harry Potter relevant and more visual representation, it looks something like this -

PS, CoS, PoA, GoF, OoTP, HBP, DH

or refer to this excellent little diagram -

The chiastic structure and ring composition in Harry Potter can be broken down in a few main points -

The beginning (PS) and end (DH) meet - a story in which the beginning and end are at one point.

The 'big turn' or central line and Parallel halves - If the beginning and end are going to meet, the story needs a 'big turn' (a 180 so to speak) at some point to divide it into two halves, with the first half of the story being the outgoing and the second half, the returning. In the case of the HP books this is done by creating seperate sections (PS, CoS, PoA) that are placed against one another (OoTP, HBP, DH) across a central dividing line (GoF), thus making these halves parallels of one another.

Here are a few of my favourite examples of the joined beginning and end

The Forest Again: Harry's first encounter with Voldemort takes place in the forbidden forest, having stumbled upon the dead unicorn. This first encounter is echoed in 'The Forest Again' in DH which is to be Harry's supposed last encounter with Voldermort. 

Hagrid and Harry, together again (🥺): Hagrid brings baby Harry to Privet Drive on Sirius's motorcycle, Hagrid takes adult Harry away from Privet Drive on Sirius's motorcycle. Hagrid introduces Harry to the Wizarding World and is the one to tell him about Voldemort, Hagrid witnesses Harry's supposed death at the hands of Voldemort in The Forest Again and carry's his body to Hogwarts. 

Parents at Christmas (this one has to be my favourite): Little Eleven year-old Harry sees his parents for the first time over the Christmas Holidays, full of hope and longing, he is fascinated and absolutely entranced by their living reflections in the Mirror of Erised. On Christmas Eve in DH, Adult Harry visits his parents graves for the first time and, perhaps also for the first time ever, grieves fully. He sees his would-be home for the first time and experiences the murders of his parents through Voldemorts memories. 

The other Gryffindor champion (ahhhh another fav!): In PS,  Dumbledore awards Neville Longbotton, the decisive last-minute points necessary for Gryffindor's victory over Slytherin for the House Championship. Similarly, in DH, it is Neville's contribution in the final hour, his killing of the serpent Nagini with the Sword of Gyrffindor, that takes Voldemort over to mortality, thus ensuring victory once more. 

And some of the parallel halves

in CoS Harry takes a wrong turn in the floo network and ends up inside the vanishing cabinet at Borgin and Burkes where he spies on Draco Malfoy. In HBP, Harry once again finds himself spying on Draco Malfoy at Borgin and Burkes when he should be with the Weasleys, suspicious about what Draco is purchasing, which incidentally turns out to be, yep, the very same vanishing cabinet.

Both CoS and HBP have major plot points around the significance of a mysterious book, CoS - Tom Riddle's diary, HBP - the Half Blood Princes textbook.

In PoA Harry is introduced to his godfather, in OoTP (need I say more? 😭) he loses him.

In PoA we witness an authetnic prophecy made by Professor Trelawney, in OoTP we witness the authentic prophecy made by Professor Trelawney.

In PoA Snape is furious with Harry at the story's end, he is borderline unhinged because he suspects Sirius's escape has everything to do with Harry. in OoTP Harry is furious with Snape at the story's end, he is borderline irrational after Sirius's death for which he wants to believe Snape is responsible.

There are many, MANY more, but these will have to suffice for now, this is already turning into a thesis 😂

The last point where the ring composition in HP is concerned is -

The rings within the rings - What really takes this from interesting to remarkable is that not only is the series as a whole structured this way, but so is each individual book. Each and every book has its own joined beginnings and endings, an echoing midpoint and story turn, and chapters that echo one another across the story in axis. There are rings within the rings. 

Some super quick examples of this are (it's important to note that the chapters mentioned below are almost always each-others actual numerological parallel within the book) -

First and last chapters of CoS (1-2, 17): Harry meets Dobby on his Birthday, Dobby gives him a dire warning and tries to imprison him to keep him away from Hogwarts. In the latter, Dobby's warnings come to fruition and Harry gives Dobby freedom.

Chapters 4 and 20 of PoA: The trio frets over Scabbers failing health, mysterious longevity and about the ministry's efforts to capture Sirius. In the latter chapter, the trio corner Sirius, learn of Scabbers real identity and the true reason behind his seemingly ill health.

Chapters 8 and 30 of GoF: Harry sits in the top box with Barty Crouch Jr, Ludo Bagman, top Ministry officials and the Malfoys a the Quidditch World Cup. In the latter chapter, Harry finds himself sitting in spectator-full courtroom to watch the trials of Barty Crouch Jr, Ludo Bagman and other former Death Eaters by top Ministry officials.

Fourth and Fourth last chapters of OoTP (4, 35): In what is Sirius's first appearance in this book, we see him fighting with and pulling a curtain over his mother, an insane member of the Black family. In what is Sirius's last appearance in this book, we see him fighting with and being sent behind a veil by his cousin Bellatrix Lestrange, an insane member of the Black Family.

Again, there are many, MANY more but I think I'll stop rambling and save them for the meta 😆 sorry for the extremely long winded answer here!!

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!Live reaction! Rewatching HP and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry is just wallowing in happiness trying to "grab a letter" in the air. Doesn’t even care if he’s got any, he’s dancing! So precious!!!

Hagrid in gringotts whispering to the goblin he wants to withdraw “u know what” in vault “u know which” - such children literature mystery. Love it. 

Except I also wondered how Harry is able to hear a word he said, Hagrid is so massive it must sound like he’s speaking from 2nd floor lol

Also like, can’t Harry’s gold not be lumped and piled up with no decipherable order? At least put like every 1,000 together or something (yes I know, it’s to make Harry's fortune look like they’re endless hills and heaps) 

Olivander’s wand shop was since 382 BC. What’s the wizarding world’s relationship with religion anyways!! This has bothered me on many a sleepless night.

Harry buying snacks on the train, he bought everything without even knowing what anything costs just knowing that he’s got enough gold for everything lmao

Such a child’s dream, the first thing u buy after coming to an inheritance is sweets 

Boats towards the castle, such a classic shot. My heart swells seeing Hogwarts, it’s like coming home! 

That’s not Maggie Smith, that’s Minerva Mcgonegall. You know on first sight this is not a woman u want to mess with. 

Oh come on Albus you can’t be so obvious in favouritism! (Dumbles: oh yes I can. 500 points to Gryffindor!)

What a bloody cute and cozy dorm I wanna be here!!!! 

Fucking hell snape! U wanna break the door? 

Quidditch - slytherin plays so much foul??!!!! 

Hermione IS a know it all! Snape is jinxing the broom? Instead of telling Hagrid who’s a full grown adult next to her, she’s gonna take him on herself lol

Harry looks so surprised when he spit out the snitch, what? He didn’t know he just almost swallowed the ball?! 

Emma’s wearing large front teeth, that’s why she had to speak so hard. Awww

Harry meeting his parents in the Mirror of Erised the first time, I teared up and this isn’t the first time

Poor Ron. He looked sooo scared when he moved his knight to be sacrificed. Poor baby :( brave boy. 

Quirrell clicked his fingers and the fire lit up in the final room hiding the stone - windless magic! 

Children literature villain strikes again ;u; his way of being intimidating is just to shout and yell. 

Quirrell died, but the fire didn’t go out, must be a bug. Thought when a person dies the spell they cast would be broken as well. (Dumbles killed by Avada kedevra)

Oh but maybe because Voldy is still "alive" so the spell still works? Honestly who knows.

And my god, from Jude Law to Richard Harris, what’s happened to Dumbles’ fashion preference and hair!!

Dumbledore bullying Slytherin in front of the whole school at the year end feast. SMH. 

Also, from my memory being a teenager, having your name and deeds shouted out in front of the whole school (even if they’re good deeds and win your house points) is a supremely embarrassing experience!! Help!! 

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Oh my word. Seeing everything in a new light.

Richard Papen: The Master of Illusion

Why did Richard become an accomplice, how could he so easily be swayed to ''Allow'' murder? The answer is simple: He longed for the picturesque—at any cost.

Richard grew up isolated, and seen as an inconvenience; Nineteen-years-of-life and not a single mention of an old friend (Apart from an ex-girlfriend he was desperate to rid of)—It's why he idolises Hampden and the Greek Scholars to such a fictitious degree, they represented everything he did not have: Fundamental familial experiences with love, being cared for, and feeling wanted.

They were beautiful, but beauty cannot replace what he hadn't had.

The Motive: To sum it all up in a pretty bow for you; Richard left his morals at the door once Henry rescued him—All of his fears had not only been amplified in chapter 3, but realised; His Parents distain, his Teachers neglect, his lack of companionship, his very existence unperceived (tainted): All of which almost led him to his own grave, with nowhere else to turn.

The side-character to his own story, the man everyone felt passive-disdain for (Not even hatred, that would be too impassioned—To personal.) But for the first time, someone caught him when he fell. For the first time he was shown compassion, Henry stayed by his bedside when he was too ill to do much else other than lay in pain, and Henry made it clear he would recover within his own home and very bed—An action Richard could never forget—Of course he'd put Henry atop a pedestal, and become so agreeable for his Messiah; Richard had never experienced such guidance nor support in his entire life.

After a life of desperation for an escape—After everything which previously had been brimmed with dread, suddenly leaked beauty: Was it really a question of if once glanced, whether he'd franticly flail to grasp it again? Of if he'd insert himself into these people's lives, and make any sacrifice possible to return their tranquil silence once it had been so foolishly broken by Bunny?

Now the real reason I am creating this post: That's right I fooled you into reading my theory MWHAHA!—Richard Papen was the one to push Bunny, not Henry. I figured I'd get his motive out of the way before we'd delve into pure insanity.

The most notable part of the actual murder is it's never written who pushes Bunny. One of the general ideas for the reason is it didn't matter who it was, simply that they were all complicite... But that's a little boring, so let's pick at this wound. It simply couldn't have been Henry; He was thirty-feet-away, his shear distance keeps coming up too—But with Richard, Bunny was practically breathing down his neck, he was close enough to read the label on the bear bottle.

He describes being overwhelmed by Bunny's sudden appearance, but really it was anticipation: Because Richard realized he'd have to be the one to push him. If Henry had tried to push Bunny it couldn't of logistically worked, there is no element of surprise as Henry is too faraway and within Bunny's direct sight, he has his full attention. Henry may be large but so is Bunny, it's even directly mentioned here how he's 6 foot 3; Not to mention Bunny had fully been expecting Henry to attempt to murder him at some point.

You could argue he was just to stupid to fight back—However, Richard may never describe the push, but he does go into deep details on the shear surprise and shock on Bunny's face; He well and truly hadn't seen his emendate death coming. Dumbassery doesn't entirely dull out your reflexes nor does it suddenly make you the size of Francis scrawny ass.

Bun entirely trusted Richard, all Richards previous machinations of Bunny's jealousy for him he'd made up in his own mind and didn't actually match in Bunny's actions.

Richards within shoulder length, and Henry, who limps and is too far to seize the element of surprise: The push—The fall, Richard watches each and every moment of Bunny's death at an intimate proximity.

It just couldn't have been Henry, I'm sorry.

It all loops back to why Richard would've felt the need to commit this murder, because yes Henry manipulates Richard well and truly but it completely backfires due to Richards traumatic history: Ultimately he killed Bun out of his own volition, and selfish desire for the picturesque lifestyle he'd only so recently acquired.

And finally, Donna Tartts quote of The Greeks and The Irrational

Dionysus [is] The Master of Illusions, who could make a vine grow out of a ship's plank, and in general enable his votaries to see the world as the world's not.

We are reminded of who our narrator is, and then must listen to Richard try desperately to twist his language in order to fool us into believing Henry had well and truly committed the murder without implicating either of them.

But no man who was a mere witness describes a murder in the way Richard chose to, it is morbid and soaked in guilt. He goes on a tangent about murderers always avoiding telling the meat of their crimes, but really he was doing so to avoid telling us the true events of that evening; He goings in circles around the incident constantly, never landing on the mark.

God this post got long, if you made it through the entire thing oh my gosshhh hiiiiiiiiiiiiiii how are youuuu :)

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The Secret History: A Theories Guide

Richard Papen: The Master of Illusion

Julian Morrow: ''Honesty Is A Dangerous Virtue''

Henry Winter Wasn't In A Car Accident.

What Led To Henry Winters Death

Bunny Corcoran: Neglect In Plain Sight

When the Hare knows the Devil is out Hunting. [Bunny Analysis]

Francis Is The Worst Character (And Why You Should Think So Too)

Camilla & Henry: A Relationship Analysis

Stripping Back Richards Perspective—The Macaulay Twins

^Character Analysis^

The Mountain Lion: It Isn't A Theory

The Secret History's Dream Sequences.

The Secret History Isn't purposely Queer. (Richard Is Still Gay though, Here's Why!)

^Extras^

[ IF A LINK IS BROKEN, PLEASE COMMENT! ]

This post is officially completed, so I'd like to commemorate through shouting out my personal favourite TSH accounts.  Who may I add, helped me form a lot of my own theories.

Theorist/Analysis Peoplez

@estherdedlock On how  Bunny told Julian he should take Richard on as a student.

@miroana for this post “It is better to know one book intimately than a hundred superficially” (Tartt, 31).

@vivienlacroix For their ‘’Everything is cheap in hell’’ post (It's why my blog is titled that)

And of course, @henrywinterswife Who stopped posting long ago, but who I remember dearly.

Incredible Artists (Who you should comissions if their comissions are open cus their awsome)

@tovaperson I love their Bunny & Henry artwork, it's so fr.

These TSH cast headshots by qiornono Bunny & Richard are my favourites oh oh and this one too

@droptheguillotineplease One of legitimately one of my favourite artists on all of Tumblr. I mean, look at this shit.

I reblog posts so I can come back and reference them, so many of these are off my blog now because I won’t be making anymore more TSH posts. But I still wanted to thank these people and show my appreciation somehow.

Also let’s never forget my own post that ended up on reddit, and then was called thoughtless because it was a ‘’quickshot take.’’ Made me laugh, perhaps it was for the best the redditors didn’t find my other posts, they're deranged.

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Yeah, she’s a bitch, but she also has her iconic moments, let’s bffr

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of course he's read the secret history!!

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Lady Mary Sharma is a bad mother (to Kate at least)

There are many reasons to love watching Bridgerton, or even to defend it to haters - costumes and music aren't meant to be historically accurate, the show is known to be a frivolous escapade and audience should embrace it. But one thing I will never be able to get behind is how badly the characters are written. Let me start with an arguably fringe character - Lady Mary Sharma from season 2. Spoilers below.

What Lady Mary says about herself and her actions are completely at odds with each other, but the audience is supposed to accept the former and ignore the latter. It's not a problem for a character's words to contradict their actions, oftentimes that's how the depths of a character and a text is created. What Iago says and what he does are never in unison, that's how we know he's a snake, that's how Othello guides audience to read him as a villain. Same thing with Kate and Anthony - Bridgerton shows the chemistry and sexual tension between these two by having them spend over half the series saying how much they despise each other, while their eyes and actions show how they cannot help being drawn and eventually falling for each other. It is the spasm between their words and actions that forms the backbone of season 2, that deepens the delayed gratification which, when it is finally granted, is immensely satisfying because the odds between what these characters say and how the act are resolved. Are the audience to take what they say at face value? - "you're the bane of my existence", "you vex me" - the show itself suggests there is more than a mutual animosity. Were the audience to miss the longing gazes they constantly make at each other, they would have lost the plot.

Now back to Lady Mary Sharma - the tension between words and actions which forms the drama of season two is completely unaddressed when it comes to this mother of two. Despite her telling her parents that she has two daughters, her telling Kate that K doesn't have to do anything to make herself deserving of a mother's love, that she loves Kate as a daughter, when Kate needs her most, Lady Mary is absent. If Lady Mary truly treats both her daughters equally, why then was Kate tasked with preparing Edwina for the marriage market with so little of Lady Mary's assistance? Why was Kate enlisted by Lady Mary help raise Edwina "so [E] would never know [Mary and Kate's] struggles"? Throughout Edwina's childhood and adulthood, Bridgerton implies, Kate was a parental figure - a father figure even - as Kate acts as gatekeeper to Edwina's suitors, much as Anthony did for Daphne in season 1. Kate is older than Edwina by less than 10 years, she was going through the turbulence of teenage years herself, not to mention the pain of losing a father when she was tasked with raising her little sister alongside her stepmother. We are never shown what kindness and maternal guidance Mary has ever given Kate, the show simply has Mary say how much she loves Kate too and this is what the audience is supposed to accept.

Except Mary's grand speech is never shored up by her actions. At Kate's most vulnerable moment, she's not met with Lady Mary's protection but criticism and abandonment. When the Sheffields drag the Sharma women as gold diggers and put Kate on the spot, Mary immediately turns against her - her "what have you done" is uttered with such venomous coldness that it would be a brilliant piece of drama if Bridgerton could steer the audience to see this as a reveal of Mary in light of an evil stepmother. That of course did not happen and so it lost an opportunity to give its characters (esp. Mary) more depth, instead Mary remains on the fringes of society, suffering from being ostracized and bad characterization. Again, as Edwina fled the alter and unleashed her fury on Kate, Mary's reaction and attitude to her adopted daughter had zero maternal understanding or even concern, all she told Kate is to leave.

My problem with all these isn't that Lady Mary Sharma is a horrible mother to Kate, it is that Bridgerton is trying to suggest otherwise - we're supposed to accept that Mary, despite all her failures, loves Kate as much as she loves Edwina?! "I loved you the date I met you". "as a daughter, I never saw you as anything else". We're supposed to take her word at face value after everything that happened to Kate? (Keeping her emotions and longing to Anthony bottled up? Putting her younger sister before herself at all times? Having her heart broken believing that Anthony never loved her? Carrying the guilt of losing her family the Sheffields' fortune and sealing their fate of poverty and social expulsion? Lady Danbury whom Kate's met only a few weeks ago had offered more fatherly and motherly advice in one episode than Mary has done in the entire series.)

With the same lines, if Bridgerton truly possesses half the daring some critics have credited it with for its "colourblind casting", Lady Mary could have been illustrated as a selfish, calculating mother by changing the sentimental lighting and music when she uttered her grand speech of love, and she would have become a much more juicy and rounded (and frankly plausible) character. Her speech near the very end of the episode would have been bets she places after realizing that it is her elder "daughter" who might foster a link with the Bridgertons instead of Edwina, and the whole script would make so much more sense. Now that Kate tearily has lapped up her stepmother's great speech of love, Bridgerton only makes the heroine looks stupid and Mary an inconsistent character that doesn't even have real plot function. (Think about it - the Sharma sisters could have come to Lady Danbury, an old friend of their dearly beloved but deceased mama, and the whole plot of season 2 would not only still make sense but be even stronger).

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Also extremely annoyed at the way she made fun of Daphne’s wish to have a good marriage for two reasons; 1) that Eloise simply shits on her sister’s wishes. If that’s what the woman wants, cheer her on or at least let her be! 2) “you want to follow your heart I want to nurture my mind” is the cringiest line I’ve seen in quite some time. Sometimes bridgerton is all telling not enough showing.

also eloise bridgerton is conceptually the most hilarious character on the whole show. claims to be a feminist but every time her fellow women talk about their artistic pursuits or hobbies or interests or ambitions she’s like ugh you all fucking suck. not me though. i’m different. i want to be like my brothers. and then she has no real talents of her own. she’s not a feminist she’s still a reactionary turbohater AND a girlfailure. what she’s trying and failing to articulate is that she’s a lesbian.

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Reblogging my own art. It’s been 7 years, I have grown, but when I fall back to YOI… it’s the same love. The same purity.

Yuuri’s heart laid bare in front of the world. There are scenes in @kazliin ’s rivals au I keep going back to and this is inevitably one of them.

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Listen to this…History Maker 2021. We will set our soul on fire - don’t stop us now, the moment of truth, we are born to make history!

If you listen to this version, WHEN you listen to this version, it will sound sadder, and more somber. Because, well, it is. But I think I like this 2021 version better than the original.

I feel like the original says “We are here, watch what we can do when we believe in ourselves, now watch us make history,” But the 2021 version says, “Things have been bad, but we’re not giving up, in spite of everything, we’re still here, making history”

And I think that’s what we need right now, no? It sounds sad, especially compared to the original, which was a very upbeat song. But I think this one is hopeful, whereas the original is confident. And I do love them both.

But whether it’s fighting through what’s dragging us down, or pushing forward and powering us up - we are all born to make history.

When will Yuri on Ice return from the war?

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“He was quiet for a moment. 'We don't run much to looks in my family, you know, all knuckles and cheekbones and beaky noses,' he said.”

I think I’ve found Francis Abernathy.

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romance in film gif meme: [4/5] scenes

“what jack remembered and craved in a way he could neither help nor understand was the time that distant summer on brokeback when ennis had come up behind him and pulled him close, the silent embrace satisfying some shared and sexless hunger. […] later, that dozy embrace solidified in his memory as the single moment of artless, charmed happiness in their separate and difficult lives.” (brokeback mountain by annie proulx)

brokeback mountain (2005) dir. ang lee

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superior, arizona

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BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (2005) | DIR. BY ANG LEE

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“I wish I knew how to quit you”

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DERRY GIRLS (2018 - 2022) ↳ James Maguire once said...

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DERRY GIRLS (2018 - 2022) Season 2 | Episode 1