#ahh a question for the philosophers

[den-ai-d]

Finally found some time to get back on the stardew valley portrait pack; it's WIZARD TIME 🧙‍♂️

Taking a little bit of a different approach from my original on the corner there. Like, what if he's an elf actually??? A pretty, dilfy elf 🤔

[hearth-and-veil]

Heart and Veil - Cult of Eternal Hera - Shadow and Flamethrowers Shutdown

Hey y'all 🪷 I don't think this is going to come as a terrible surprise, given how little I have been on tumblr and how little I have been posting about witchcraft and Hellenic Polytheism. I'm going to lay this out nice and clear.

The past 18 or so months of my life have been a lot, if I'm being honest. The roots are strong, but the branches were sickly. As they have regrown, they have grown differently. I am still me, perhaps more myself than I have ever been, but the me that I am with all the external influence stripped off looks very different.

I finally understand the meaning of "The Way that can be named is not the Way."

I no longer consider myself a Hellenic Polytheist. I still worship the Greek Gods in a certain capacity, but my philosophical bent has changed directions. I will always love our Gods, and I will be grateful to (some of) the HelPol community for their place in helping me find a life I could be happy to live.

I also made the decision this past weekend to remove my veil. For six years, I have worn it with pride and devotion. I no longer feel like I need it, at least not all the time. I have finally learned to be my own veil. I'm going to find a local cancer charity and donate most of my scarves.

I have come to see in recent months that social media isn't really conducive to my happiness; at least not the way I have been using it. I'm deleting most of my social media (though I'm only deactivating IG) and will be away from it all long term. I do intend to come back to tumblr in the future, but it will be in a completely different capacity.

Some will look at this and think, "ahh, see, it's just a phase," and so fucking what? If something I devoted a fifth of my entire life to is a phase, then call me Luna. It's a woman's prerogative. But I am the Magnolia Grandiflora - strong roots, a steady trunk, swaying branches, continually replacing leaves, and long-blooming flowers. I am more than content with that.

I am permanently logging out of all of these tumblr accounts on September 30, 2024. If there was ever a question you wanted to ask, I recommend you get it in before then because once I delete my passwords I am fuck't. I don't even know which email address I used to sign up for hellsite.

Remember: I am proud of you. That little kind thing you did today that nobody noticed? The win you're too humble to brag about? The accomplishment no one else cared about? I am so fucking proud of you. So endlessly proud. You have within you the incredible capacity to be a phenomenal human being. All virtues are just something you practice, not something you are - so go out there and practice the virtues you admire most. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't, because Auntie said that you can.

Thank you all for sharing this space with me for the past few years ❤️

In the wise words of Lester Holt: Take care of yourselves and each other.

[crumblinggothicarchitecture]

I read what the French anon said and I'm sorry but I laughed so much! I too study philosophy in France, granted mostly political philosophy of the 19th and 20th centuries, but I stil have the basic in ancient Greece philosophy. And I'm sorry but, Socrate, a nice guy who just ask questions and try to understand others??!? Does the person knows about "l'ironie socratique"?!

Also how pretentious of her to says what philosophy is supposed to be about! For some philosopher it's supposed to be the quest for true, for other it's the quest to "individual" happiness, for other it's the quest of the best or the better society possible / social organisation, etc.

This person sound so pretentious! Anyway, no way in hell that Taylor Swift knows who Aristote is! And I totally understand your anger in you're post as an ex-fan who was so disappointed by the album, the matty Healy thing and the jet!

Ahh, wonderful, fellow philosophy person. :) Wonderful. 

Honestly, when I got to the Socrates part of that person's ask, I was the physical embodiment of a question mark for a solid five minutes. No clue how to approach answering someone who apparently thinks Socrates was just a nice guy who was just asking some simple questions.  

Obviously, that Anon should go back and read him again because Good Lord Socrates was out for blood sometimes. He suffered no fools, and, truly, neither do I.  

I didn't even address the pretentiousness part, because I felt I had made my point well enough in all other aspects. You are so right though. It's incredibly pretentious to tell someone else the exact intentions of all philosophy ever. Does Anon know philosophy is the oldest, most diverse discipline of study of Earth? LOL. Truly the only thing that unites all philosophers is a deep love of humanity. Why else ask a question, right? If not to seek an answer to some problem befalling humanity. Anyway, that's just my silly poetic take on it, and I think I said something similar in the other ask. 

Not only that but the Anon tried to tell I’m wrong about literature too.

 But, to that other Anon, to come onto to my blog and tell me I'm wrong for literary criticism, it's honestly just strange. I thought everyone knew that Philosophers are like the OG's of artistic criticism. Do they know that Aristotle wrote the first literary criticism to ever exist? Aristotle’s Poetics? Probably not ringing a bell for the other Anon, though it’s one of the most famous books in history. 

Anyway, thank you for your time and understanding. I truly am just upset about the Album being bad, and the fact that I must learn about all this terrible shit Swift hides from the headlines. I feel so bamboozled because I never seek out celebrity news or gossip, so it's all coming as a rapid-fire surprise.  

Very much a bummer for the girl that I was who bought "Fearless" back in 2009 and excitedly played it in my first car on the way to my first job. Strange to say goodbye to some good memories.  

[kill-your-fics]

Part 2 for biker willow and nerd Wilson😳🥺

"Like this?"

There was a long moment of silence. This was the longest he'd held her gaze- one could even call it staring. She kept her hand where it was, feeling the warmth in his cheek pass to her fingertips.

Finally, he blinked, and slowly lifted his own hand upwards. She was curious, almost surprised, until he gently grasped her fingers with his own and pulled them away from his face. He looked at their hands, then, instead of her.

"Ahh... not quite. Well, maybe in a certain sense? It's biological. You see, uh... it's the result of dilated blood vessels- that means they become wider, allowing more blood to pass through. But our body and blood is warmed by chemical reactions, yes."

"I didn't know that- I didn't pay much attention in school, I guess. So are those reactions like.. very small fires, by chance?"

Wilson had a very curious look on his face. "Do you know why we breathe?"

That sounded like a philosophical question to Willow, but he was a chemist- chemist in training, that is, not a philosopher. So.. he was probably being literal.

She cocked an eyebrow. "We need... oxygen? Like fire?"

"Yes! Fundamentally, we use oxygen for the same reason a burning fire does- it's the same chemical process our body uses to generate energy from food, but of course that happens in a more deliberate, controlled fashion." He was smiling, but paused then, let go of her fingers, cocked his head questioningly. "Do you like fire? You've brought it up twice."

Willow grinned in response. "You could say that. Wanna see a party trick?"

[clemymimi]

Hello, hope you’re having a nice day. Do you have any thoughts about Kaigaku?

Hello! Ahh You're too sweet <3 i hope you're having a great day yourself! and to answer your question.. I tend to focus a lot on kokushibo in general so I must confess on not being an expert when it comes to a lot of other characters apart from some light exceptions (well tbh with how deeply I dive into kokushibos psyche I might be underestimating my opinions on other characters depth wise but still!) I'm fairly neutral on kaigaku.. I don't hate or dislike him but neither is he one of my favourites. I mean.. I muse kokushibo and so I always enjoy interacting with kaigaku muses but it's just that I love to see everyone's rendition of him so my perspective on him is very flexible because everyone carries a different interpretation of him.. the fandom itself tends to struggle when it comes to settling on one verdict of him so..

I think he's a very well-written and intriguing character and that the reason why he turned into a demon and why he did the things he did is very fascinating (having the mindset that as long as he lives he can win one day. that's such a fascinating life motto to have!) it's like.. he's the living embodiment of endurance (or one form of it) as long as he is alive he still has the chance to come out on top one day. I think kaigaku has many negative qualities but this one I absolutely adore (and it's also one of the reasons why kokushibo likely recruited him. he saw this fire in kaigaku.. to never give up whilst he is alive.. and he respected that kaigaku was willing to bow to kokushibo - the enemy - to acknowledge that he stood no chance of survival and to surrender his fate into kokushibos hands. that is some really strong symbolism) I think kaigaku is the kind of character that one could discuss and dissect for hours and never grow tired of!

most of all, kaigaku is a survivor and you can tell. I think much of his behaviour comes from this survival mindset. it doesn't excuse his actions but it's a beautiful display of how survival mechanisms can manifest. I must confess to not being very well versed with the whole zenitsu kaigaku conflict so perhaps I am misjudging kaigaku here due to me missing parts of the information but alas it doesn't change the fact that kaigakus background (orphanage) explains a lot about his behaviour and thought process and that I don't shun kaigaku for saving himself by ratting out the other children. Doesn't mean that I condone it but I understand why he did it. Kaigaku isn't inherently evil or inherently good (if you've studied morality you might notice how there is not really such a thing as morally good or morally bad. Nothing about morality is painted in black and white. If you are convinced otherwise consider the fact that you can't easily create a maxim and apply it in practice for any and every situation. The concept of defining something or someone as good or evil is cute, because it just isn't that black and white. Many philosophers have driven themselves crazy over how to define 'good' and 'bad' behaviour. Now this is a topic I could make a deep dive about but I don't think you'd want me to go off on a philosophical tangent that will make you question reality, I have michikatsu to have this existential crisis for /silli)

-> All in all, kaigaku is a very fascinating character, do I like him? well I'm fairly neutral, he does have a rather unpleasant attitude after all. But he is very very fascinating to me - especially on a philsophical plane and although this wasn't very deep divy I hope I could answer your question in a manner that is satisfactory to you! I always love discussing characters and their motifs so never shy away from asking me things :3 thank you very much for the question!

[arianeoftheglade]

Alphinaud: Ahh... few things compare to the simple pleasure of sitting beside a crackling campfire of one's own making. Estinien: Hah! So speaks the "great explorerer." Until recently, you wouldn't have recognized firewood if it came with kindling and a flint. Alphinaud: 'Tis well you instructed me so patiently, then! But yes, left to my own devices, I would have been compelled to signal to Ysayle with a pile of damp leaves. I was born the pampered son of a Sharlayan dignitary, and, alongside my twin, became the youngest student ever to be accepted into the Studium. How proud I was to match wits with scholars and philosophers... How ignorant of mine own shortcomings... That hubris invited manipulation and betrayal... and led to the downfall of the Scions.

Ysayle: We all of us are guilty of similar ignorance. How many men lay down their lives, never knowing what it is they fight for? Never questioning that which they have been taught to believe? 'Twas only upon meeting Hraesvelgr that I learned the truth hidden within our history. Were it not for that chance encounter, I would never have vowed to tear down the Holy See, and expunge the falsehoods with which it fans the flames of conflict. I would have lived and died in ignorance. That the truth has driven me to do terrible things, I cannot deny, but I would rather sin in the pursuit of peace than imagine myself virtuous for perpetuating a needless war. Alphinaud: If this journey has taught me anything, it is the importance--and difficulty--of holding to one's convictions in the face of failure… of striving always to replace one's ignorance with knowledge. Estinien: You are well on your way, Master Alphinaud. At your age, I was but a fool swinging a spear, with scarcely a thought in my head. Even now, I struggle to acknowledge the misconceptions under which I have labored.

Waiting for the Wind to Change

[i-fucking-hate-radqueers]

hi! i have a question about trans race stuff. (I'm gonna preface this with i am not pro or anti trace, i want all the info before i say anything on it.) so the main argument I'm seeing is that a privileged person can't transition into a group that is not privileged. but I see the same argument with trans women. women were historically raped, beaten, ect way more than men, and trans women are fine. (i am pro trans women obviously.) is there something I'm missing? you seem like a pretty reasonable person and i haven't yet found a comprehensive moral/philosophical guide on anti t-race. so idk. I'm wondering what makes trans women different. trans-abled people are different imo because they're directly saying "I want to transition into a group that is only categorized by their suffering." whereas trans race and trans women aren't directly doing that. idk

(AGAIN, NEUTRAL TRANS-RACE, AND PRO-TRANS WOMEN.)

Okay so! I can't speak much as a white boy but I am trans. I do absolutely see your POV. It's just like... gender isn't real, it's a social construct. Race is a lot more convoluted than that, I see a lot of people saying it is and some that it's not, idk.

The main blight is as you said "transitioning" from a privileged status into non-privileged. I've seen a few people say POC who are transrace to white often are that because of racism and wanting to not be hated. I feel like white -> POC is definitely rooted from internalized racism and often fetishisation of other cultures and races (take "transjapanese" transition tips just being "bow a lot" and say "ahh!" or "transblack" is "say the n word to give yourself euphoria!" (I havent seen any shit on transblack but transjapanese ive seen both of those examples))

I'm tired so just,, yeah. If anybody else would like to add on please do. Any other questions are welcome ^^;

[kimwexlers-brownhair]

Omg its literally been ages since I checked in with you. My favorite Meg x Erik shipper. Some questions for you from a fellow Merik fan.

Do you think we've evolved over the years as shippers? In the sense that maybe our perception of the ship evolved or has it stayed the same.

If Hollywood did a modern remake of the phantom of the Opera musical (like they did with Wicked). Who would be your fancast and would you want some more Merik undertones in the new movie or is it good just as it is?

Do you think Erik and Meg would have a chance if they lived in the modern world? What would that look like?

Ahh hi buddy! Thank you so much for dropping by! The following got super duper long and probably a little off topic, oops!

So first thing, I'm going to answer your second question first:

HOLLYWOOD REMAKE! I'm going to do different eras, because I can:

1920s/1930s -

Meg: Jean Harlow

Erik: Bela Lugosi (RIP Lon)

Christine: Mary Astor

Raoul: Leslie Howard

Madame Giry: Judith Anderson

90s (Aka, closer to the Phantom's original run)

Meg: Brittany Murphy

Erik: Michael Crawford

Christine: Jean Louisa Kelly

Raoul: Ewan McGregor

Madame Giry: Donna Murphy (ooh, same last name as Brittany! Perfect!)

Today:

Meg: Fernanda Muniz

Erik: Lucas Steele

Christine: Denee Benton

Raoul: Leslie Odom Jr

Madame Giry: Tais Viera

I know they're too old now and not famous enough for a Hollywood movie, but down with Hollywood's obsession with extreme youth and established movie stars in every musical role!

Hm, I don't think I would put any Erik/Meg slant per se into the movie, but maybe just put extra emphasis on her picking up his mask at the end, and maybe when she's screaming "He's Here!" We could see her looking into the rafters and staring straight at him. Just little hints there may be something kind of sexy in the fear. (Meg's fucked up like that, poor kid, more on that below.)

As for your evolution question - this gets long.

Very interesting question. I can't speak for the Merik fandom as a whole, but I can definitely answer for me. Yes, I think I've evolved in my perception of Merik. It's easy to spot if you go from my first Merik fic Yellow Rose to my current (somewhat of a trainwreck) fic The First Movie Star.

I've become more compelled by the potential darker shades of the pairing without going down the exact route of Love Never Dies. I'm enamored with the idea of an incredibly resistant Erik, someone who's made his obsession with Christine his identity, so when he feels Meg threaten that by revealing her feelings, he turns against her for a long time before even considering the possibility he might feel something for someone not Christine.

There would also be a fair amount of self-loathing for him to contend with about the very idea of anyone actually developing feelings for him. Even Christine he tried to keep from knowing the true Erik; first there was the guise of the Angel but even when he revealed that falsehood he still hid his face. In the musical specifically, he goes out of his way to wow her into believing him some dangerous but sexy godlike figure, a lustful Hades with her as Persephone. Erik has always been more comfortable in fantasy than in reality, which is very understandable given his past.

Here's how I put it in Ch 6 of TFM:

Many years would pass until a great twentieth century philosopher refused to belong in any club that would have him as a member. Yet that same sentiment of intense self-loathing projecting out on others beat now in Erik’s heart. Although all his life he’d yearned for love, to the point of kidnapping and terrorizing the woman who rejected him, there was something in him that was repulsed by the idea now. He was appalled, disbelieving. He deliberately dismissed Meg the helper, Meg the business associate, Meg the friend. He forgot how vital she was in researching the different beaches at Coney Island when they first arrived, scouting out the perfect location for the Phantasma. He forgot her gathering for him the requested blueprints and designs of nearby theaters, so that he could build the exact opposite. He discarded those memories and in his horror at her confession, constructed a new Meg Giry. Well, several new Meg Girys, that is, as he formulated different theories as to why she would have said what she did.

So whereas once I was definitely more on the fluff side of the Merik fence, I've found myself in a darker but frankly more intriguing place with them. Trope wise, I'm at a weird combo of (Relative) Strangers to Friends, then once Meg confesses her feelings, Friends to Enemies to Eventual Lovers.

Now pair this conflict with a Meg I headcanon fiercely as becoming a 19th century It Girl, the equivalent of Clara Bow or Jean Harlow, and you have a big LND reversal and the potential for Erik to convince himself he hates Meg because she's stolen Christine's rightful place as world famous star. He has to contend with the fact Christine's career goes the same path as Evelyn Nesbit after the strange scandal of the Phantom of the Opera, and it is because of him his protegee, his Galatea, has to flee the spotlight.

(So do I still have a tendency to Mary Sue Meg a little bit? I mean, Clara Bow and Jean Harlow...calm down, me...still, I like to take this opportunity to explore the downsides of that kind of fame, and how it tests Meg's ultimate good character.)

With all this, it might be hard to see how Merik could be endgame, but here's where the unrealistic romantic in me comes out. Detesting Meg from afar is problematic, sure, but Erik is still healing from a lifetime of trauma. He's projected so much onto Christine that any perceived attack on her is a personal attack to him. He never thought he'd fall in love; he never thought he'd be kissed or wept over. Then came Christine. A lifetime of fear and hatred, and then this angel shows him kindness.

It's understandable with the fragile state he's in emotionally, he wouldn't be able to handle another pretty girl showing him the same kindness, and this time out of actual romantic feelings for him. That tarnishes it, in his mind. That's not how his life's opera should end. It should end with the kiss; end in a bittersweet tragedy of lost chances.

And now here's this other girl, who may be pretty and charming in her way, but she is a very human girl. Where Christine was ethereally beautiful, this one is merely very cute. While Christine sang with the voice of an angel, this one squeaks like a mouse. Where Christine was dignified and angelic, this one traipsed around in nothing more than a leotard and occasional tutu, and didn't mind revealing more onstage. She's not the one to make his song take light. So why is she setting the world on fire? Why does the public obsess over someone so...commonplace?

Here's where I crucially differ with Meg going down the LND hole. Meg may adore Erik with all her heart, but she's not going to let his contempt ruin her life. She has plans, ambition, and talent, even though she struggles to find herself with Madame Giry controlling her career (I still worship Madame G, but I've taken to exploring her potential darker shades as a character, as well).

Meg might just well end up in some form of sex work (I explore photography in TFM, but I can also see her as an escort). But Madame Giry, I headcanon, has lived her life trying to shield Meg from that, as she's internalized a lot of anti-sex work bias from her days working in a carnival, having to dodge that reputation to become ballet mistress. And so I actually see that as a potential conflict between mother and daughter, where Madame Giry is firmly opposed to sex work and Meg being like wtf is the big deal, I don't care about going topless, I don't like wearing clothes anyway (Jean Harlow is really influencing my conception of Meg these days).

(I also headcanon Meg as developing Imposter Syndrome when she comes to terms with being a nepo baby at the opera house).

So I don't see her where she is mentally at the end of LND, with that being a version of Meg that Erik merely builds up in his head. Especially as her fame grows and he starts to miss her being a ballet rat frightened of him, he casts her as someone degraded and pathetic at best, and homicidal at worst.

Yet as Erik continues to sort out his personal issues, would he be able to overcome that image, and trust that Meg's love for him is a good thing, a very good thing indeed? That's the dynamic I'm interested in, even if it's far more intense and unhealthy than what I explored in Yellow Rose.

Wow, okay. That went on.

Question three: I absolutely think they would have a much better chance in modern times! The world is far from a perfect place, but we do have better language now and knowledge, and maybe Erik could have had a better life or at least access to mental healthcare. That would definitely make him at a better place mentally for a potential romance, and I think he'd be more accepting of affection if he saw that there were indeed girls out there into him, he'd just never heard of Monster Fuckers in the 19th century.

Meg? She's a monster fucker.

She's like poor Tina Belcher sexually. Her fear of Erik bled into her sexual awakening and so like Tina with zombies, she has the hots for and fear of the Opera Ghost.

[laitoslittlemacaron]

Hello ! I just wanted to say that Your content is so cute 😍

Besides, I wanted to ask you how come you love Laito so much, (of course he is super cute in his chibi version 🤭) I hope I can enjoy your beautiful photos with Laito 💚🌹

Ahh hello favourite mutual<3 and thank you!!😭🫶💖 oh dear i love this question, makes me giggly, but its so hard to answer- 😂💚

uhh just in case youre really interested and because otherwise this will turn into a huge essay again: this one is my little birthday essay to him on what i love about him and here on a recent post, i digged a bit around my brain, trying to answer the why and how 😆💖

also hes bby, chibi or not 😔🙌🫶💚 mind you it took me a few months to develop that huge crush amd then it just got worse haha, i hope that i can someday find a person in rl i will feel the same amount of luv towards!<3 and thank youu haha i will try to take more💕

(and also..there is just so much! Be it cds, bonus cds, the game, manga, comics, bonus stories, tweets, letters, etc.. and everything gives you many hints and insights as well. Imo hes one of the most interesting characters with an amazing character development and i enjoy getting to know more and more about him, be it his actual philosophic thoughts, his favourite dating places, pranking his bros, the demonic side, his cute & caring side or just cute daily things like him trying out smoothies, stuff like that, its so adorable-) just makes me happy!!💚 (best personal hyper fixation ever for me, i wish they could finally solve the seiyuu issues and release House of Vampire and moree-)

[pricelessemotion]

i'd love to know about only sundowns, sundays, and christmas & first love, late spring! 💗

WIP GAME

ahh!!! okay so both are obviously inspired by the songs from rainbow kitten surprise and mitski respectively. also im just realizing that both of them have quite a bit of religious imagery... that's what I get for putting ethel cain on repeat dskjfhkdsjh 💀

'only sundowns, sundays, christmas' is going to be a matt murdock x reader fic. it's definitely bc the holidays are coming up but I wanted to kinda explore my relationship w catholicism through this fic? and matt is the most catholic character ever LMAO. but the premise is basically that matt meets reader at church while she's planning the funeral for her estranged parent. it's gna be super duper self-indulgent because ofc it is. it's mostly an outline so unfortunately i don't have any snippets to share 😖

‘first love, late spring’ is the prequel fic to old friend. it's an eddie munson x reader fic that'll focus on the whirlwind romance that's referenced in old friend.

“Do you believe in god?” You do this a lot. You ask him philosophical questions that he has no idea how to answer. You’re a thinker, it’s in your nature. That big brain of yours is going to get you somewhere. It’s taking you away come the first of September. Meanwhile, Eddie is going nowhere fast. He’s driving full speed down a dead-end street and he hates himself for wanting you in the passenger seat.  Wayne is catholic, though calling him religious is a stretch. They don’t say grace before meals and Eddie can’t remember the last time they went to church. But every Christmas, Wayne still pulls out the ceramic nativity set. It’s pristine after all these years. There’s a slight chip on the foot of one of the wise men, a casualty from Eddie’s first Christmas with his Uncle. He expected Wayne to scream, yell, and start throwing things. Eddie braced himself for a strike that never came. He still ended up flinching when Wayne put his hand on his shoulder and told him that it was alright. 

old friend is one of my fave fics ive ever written so ive always wanted to expand on the universe. im hoping maybe one day?? that itll be a complete trilogy and ill be able to give reader and eddie their HEA bc im a sucker for happy endings 🫶.

[sarah-ankh]

Ahh, Plato. A surefire way to make me reblog.

At first, the philosopher is fixed in place, unable to even turn his head, trapped in the rigid structures of the beliefs and ideas of his society. Even of his fellow man he sees only the shadow, the outline.

Then something happens and his bonds loosen, he is able to turn his head and see the other prisoners, the priests carrying the items, the fire that casts the shadow. And he sees it for the puppet show it is.

Some people cannot handle this, they choose to reject the nuance and the depth of the real world and instead retreat to the simple, easy shadows of curated pseudo-reality.

Of course, many never even get as far as turning their heads, of looking sideways at the world and questioning what they're taught. but the philosopher, he breaks free of his bonds, rises to his feet, and explores the cave.driven by curiosity and a need to understand, He meets the priests. He examines the fire, he tests the objects.

Some who get this far choose to join the priesthood, to use their rudimentary understanding to become a part of the puppet show and control what others see.

But the philosopher sees that the fire itself is but a manmade construction. A flawed and pale reflection of something greater, so he searches for a way out of the cave. And on the surface he sees the sun.

--------------------------------------

Comparing this to the exploration/presentation of gender, from my position as only a poor philosopher myself

So many people never see beyond the surface presentation. The pink and the flowers, as OP said. They are locked into that rigid understanding our society raises us with, albeit perhaps a little more flexible than in decades past. They never even question it.

Some of us stop to question our own identities, and perhaps we see flaws. Ways in which we don't line up with 'the way things are' and so we try to conform, suppress the ways in which we think we fall short of the expectations placed upon us. I know I've run afoul of that many times. Even now that I've begun transitioning, I'm still trying to conform, just to a different set of standards.

Some people though, they push back against the social construction. They rebel against the strictly delineated gender roles and in so doing, change them. Of course there are those who instead seek to change them back, to constrict instead of expand. These are the priests, deciding what shadows should be cast on the wall. Controlling what the prisoners see.

What it means to see the sun, I do not yet know. But I can speculate. Gender is a construct. An inexpertly crafted set of rules and conventions assembled by group consensus; What it means to be masculine or feminine. What makes a person attractive. What their proper place and role should be. And I've seen these things shift and change even in my own lifetime, almost unnoticed.

And I've met people who have revelled against the very core concept. Who dress and act and present entirely for their own comfort and happiness, and not for the benefit of society's judgement. I aspire to that.

the more i try to explain gender to cis people the more i understand plato's allegory of a cave

[jomamaas-decent]

yanny or laurel?

Ahh yes the old philosophical question, I personally believe that Yanny cannot exist without laurel, and vise versa. They are inseparable, you cannot have one without the other. Both bound to one another by soul. To chose is to go against the will of the gods, forcing this is nothing more then a childish attempt to defy the natural order of life itself.

[roselightfairy]

Year in review fic writer asks 1 and 10, please! :)

Ahh thank you!! (From this list, which I am happy to still answer for.)

What’s something new that you tried in a fic this year? How did it turn out and would you do it again?

Something new . . . Um, honestly, plot! The splinter sect Star Wars AU contains the most plot-heavy stuff I've ever written, I think, and it's been a really fun challenge but also a huge stretch for me! Especially the most recent story, Diverging Paths, which I'm still posting - this fic is really plot-driven above all else, and it's been a real challenge sometimes. I'm trying this thing in the chapters coming up where the ensemble cast is split up and there are two different narratives going on at the same time and the story switches back and forth between them, which I don't think I'm executing quite as smoothly as I'd like to, but it does feel like a first step! I would absolutely do it again, and I'd hope that the next time it would turn out a little better. ;)

10. What fic made you feel the happiest to work on?

That's gotta be Only Through Surrender, the first story in the AU. This story came together like a dream for me; it was pretty much the only thing I did during the month of June this year and it was also the only thing I wanted to be doing. It was so much fun to mix the character/philosophical exploration I was doing with the start of some challenging plot stuff, and I just had such a good time writing it.

Thank you for asking these questions; it's a good feeling to relive a lot of this! <3

[eodiablo]

/returns and elaborates hi hello

This is very long and I have the eep and I had to directly wrote it in google translator cuz I was (am) so sleepy I cant get myself to translate this long ahh complicated text. warever, please enjoy

So, a friend of mine and I have this headcanon (or idk if it's implied enough?) where Wilson Mad Scientist and Triumphant skins are, yes, an AU in a way, but also something perfectly realistic and possible under the right circumstances. Wilson with a low sanity and a bad idea in his head? Mad Scientist, Wilson with a little more time on the throne, or Charlie's influence? Triumphant.

And I'll start by explaining this because I feel like parts of The Normal Album and SELF-iSH overlap in some ways, which fits my little "theory" well, and also because it was this same thought + a TNA song that made me create this whole rant. Let's see.

— FIRST AND FOREMOST, Mad Scientist Wilson is, aesthetically and in terms of vibe, Everything is a lot. I know EIAL is a varied album, but its best-known songs, as far as I know, deal with substance abuse, legal issues of all kinds, and are generally frenetic songs. Unleashed. Sounds, screams, and a general feeling of roughness for which it makes no attempt to apologize. God, LOOK at the portrait of Mad Scientists listening to Chemical Overreaction and tell me it DOESN'T FIT.

WHICH, YES, IS SOMETHING ELSE—I KNOW what Chemical Overreaction is talking about (substance abuse), but look, again, listen to the chorus and tell me it doesn't sound like an absolutely unhinged Wilson because he's not just a scientist, he's THE scientist. He IS science and whatever it's made of. AH.

— This is a pretty self-explanatory argument, but the other two, as I mentioned, overlap a bit, so first I'll explain why I feel Canon Wilson is, in fact, The Normal Album.

It's actually not that… scientific (pun not intended). Vibe-wise, it seems to fit him well; of the three, it's the most… chill overall. I think the correct word would be stable, but even with its high (chaotic) peaks. The Normal Album is literally a constant questioning of what is considered normal in our society, or what is considered "normal" in general. I think it's very appropriate for Wilson, the way this album seems to want to "fit in," but at the same time, he wouldn't be willing to do so if it meant ceasing to be himself. Songs like Memento Mori, Outliars and Hypocrates and especially and Laplace's Angel, and 2econd 2ight 2eer not only "sound" a lot like him, but narratively, they feel very close to him. In a way.

Memento Mori and that constant reminder that we will all eventually die, so it's best to live as we please, Outliars and Hypocrates, and how what is considered "abnormal" (Wilson and his experiments, perhaps) is often just a slight deviation from arbitrary social norms. Characteristics, again, abnormal, can be either virtues or defects depending on the social context.

And those that serve as a transition to the next album, 222, basically talking, again, about how embracing the abnormal things one has can be a form of liberation from a more chaotic and intense point of view, comparing "madness" as a conscious choice to be authentic. And we have my sweet, sweet Laplace's Angel, which is IN FACT inspired by an articulation of causal determinism (which is a philosophical doctrine blah blah [please consider that I'm translating this with google traductor so it may not be accurate]) that is Laplace's Demon. This articulation and the attempts to confirm or refute it were what motivated, in a way, the development of thermodynamics. If all this detail isn't scientific enough, Laplace's Angel talks about MORALITY. We're already entering gray area if we're referring to Wilson (at least during his time on solo DS), but on top of that, this song speaks from the point of view of someone who has done bad things and tries to justify himself by saying that "anyone in his shoes would have done the same" because, in fact, no one ever taught him the alternative of being better than the bad things that happened to him.

I remember very, very vividly this headcannon by @///mxboxblocks, I think, in which they mention that Wilson could have ended up like Maxwell with a push in that direction. I read somewhere that the only difference between these two, according to someone at Klei, is that Wilson is capable of jumping into danger to save a person, but what if we pushed him in the opposite direction?

— Well, we're entering SELF-iSH and The Triumphant territory. This album isn't just this version of Wilson, it's this version of Wilson in his ENTIRE journey from canon to this point.

It's an album that talks about the "ego" (in spanish, el yo), the concept of the self, and I can't think of a better album to represent this almost possible facet of this man. The whole idea of ​​losing himself, all the references to living in shadows and darkness in Dr. Sunshine and Cotard's Solution. The intensity and melancholy with which he recounts how he'll never be "himself" again, which then turns into a violent embrace of what he already is… GOD, IT'S REALLY THE Triumphant. How Wilson, having reached a certain point in the wrong direction, would shed his little (or much) remaining humanity to become a powerful (terrifyingly attractive) and completely, absolutely cynical and brazen being (things I think are made clear in solo Ds he can be).

Just as the two songs feel intertwined on the same album, I feel they would go together in this transition between Wilsons. Dr. Sunshine is literally Will Wood leaving behind an artistic identity, so it remains, but after that, in Cotard's Solution, it's not that he "kills" the old identity; he loses it, shatters it, it ceases to exist. ALSO ALSO ALSO, in the title, apart from Cotard's Delirium, three Buddhist terms are also mentioned: Anatta (non-self), Dukkha (suffering), and Anicca (impermanence). I don't know if I need to keep repeating how much this album speaks of losing oneself, letting go of the ego of who one was before in order to be reborn in a new way, because I don't deny that perhaps Wilson had a hard time accepting that who he was at that moment wasn't going to take him anywhere and detaching himself to become the being that the shadows told him was better, the being that suited him best.

ye thats it gn

/post and refuses to elaborate

[kebriones]

What's an underrated event that should be discussed more about Ancient Greece and what's an overrated one that people constantly talk about? Also, who do you think is an underrated greek figure and who is overrated?

I think I'm way out of my depth with this question, I don't feel like I know enough of history to reply properly.

I think people should stop talking about classical sparta as this super warrior state and acknowledge how horribly messed up it was. And stop using it in videogames and movies. just stop. Also less about classical athens itself, more about how the ancient greeks colonized nearly everything they could reach by boat but didn't care at all for the north or large expanses of land (before alex that is). I also think not enough attention has been given to the battles of Philip (alex's dad) across greece. He was the one who obliterated the sacred band of thebes and paved the way for alex's unbridled ambition. Without his reform of the macedonian army and his victories, alexander wouldn't have inherited such a huge power to command. I guess these aren't rly events but ahh.

My first instinct for overrated figure is alexander but I also get it, impressive war things and imperialism etc etc, so I'm not gonna say alex even though I'm sick and tired of him. And I'm not gonna say alcibiades is underrated bc I already talk way too much about him and it will go to his head.

Instead, I'm gonna pick my favorite underrated guy, who isn't even greek, but a hellenized syrian, Lucian. His stories are insane. Definitely would love to see them as psychedelic animated movies. Love u Lucian <3 .

Oh also the only spartan with rights, Brasidas. More brasidas. We have even found his potential remains.

Also epicurus and other lesser known philosophers and sophists. Gorgias my boy. Also how crazy and culty the pythagoreans were.

oh oh also Pausanias the guy who travelled all over the place and documented everything like an extremely dedicated vlogger, we know so many crazy things thanks to him. He's underrated too. I don't see enough pausanias love.

ALSO ARCHIMEDES. HE BUILT MACHINES. RLY COOL GUY.

okay im done

[askcharaandfriends]

I'm not sure the analogy fully holds up. Not killing someone doesn't mean there are no consequences. If a trial is so important, you can't forget that those end with punishments. AFAC has a history of characters getting off free. Gaster tortured inmates and children and was not punished. Asriel killed people and wasn't punished. Chara did the stuff they did and were not punished. Asgore turned himself in and his allies got the punishment removed. Unless things changed, it should be the same here

Goldy: Ahh, I love philosophical quandaries within Undertale! Brings me back to when I used them to make Grade-A research papers! Mia's given me the honor of responding to these.

WARNING: TEXT WALL AND SPOILERS FOR AFAC/POTENTIALLY FOR ACAF BELOW!

I'm really glad you've brought up the issue of consequences, because that's actually the answer to the questions you're raising about mercy here. Instead of "Why are they not punished," let's ask "Why CAN'T they be punished?"

Let's start with Gaster. Humoring what would happen if he were punished for his crimes, the fact that some of the kids were tortured would be an angle that wasn't brought up when the world's attention was on Asgore over the kids' fate in the Underground. That, on top of the fact that Gaster was Asgore's employee, would've led to people and officials to believe that Asgore knew about it and withheld information. Asgore would be tried for perjury, there'd be no plea deal this time, and the sovereign status of Monster Town would be imperiled, along with Monsters' legal status. Frisk would suffer the most; at the very least, they'd never see their found family again, and at worst, they'd fall back into Susan's clutches.

And I'm glad you brought up the kids too. It IS worth noting that in AFAC, we haven't seen any resolution YET. Which was honestly, IMO, a mistake on TQ's part in regards to proceeding with the story. We really should've focused immediately on the emotional fallout with the kids coming back and the fact that did so many bad things, instead of... proceeding to a wrestling match over a petty conflict that seems insignificant by comparison.

...Plus, there's no real way to punish the kids that doesn't seem too cruel, or doesn't match the magnitude of their crimes. What would work? Disowning them and leaving them out in the cold to die? How would that sit with Frisk, given what they've been through? Or... Imagine Chara and Azzy going up to everyone they hurt and going like "Hi, I murdered you ala-Saw, I'm sorry." At best, it would be treated as crazy BS, and at worst, it could cause them to recall it all like you've pointed out. It's just better to reform them and help them come to terms, trust issues be damned. After all... "restorative justice," right?

Finally, it's worth noting that practically NO ONE in Undertale is completely innocent. Papyrus threatening Frisk with death traps. Toriel doing literally nothing when she could've done SO MUCH to stop the war effort, or even just destroy the Door to Snowdin long before the second kid fell down. Sans doing absolutely nothing to honor his promise to Toriel. MTT exploiting his workers and abandoning his family. Alphys committing fraud and unethical experiments of her own; come to think of it, we forgave Alphys, so why not Gaster?

And finally, the fact is, every single Monster is more than happy to live on the Surface, enjoying a freedom that was bought with six counts of infanticide. Undertale is a metafiction that makes the player question our justice, and when we imagine the aftermath, we realize that not only is it not perfect, but that pursuing it can even lead to unjust ends.

Imagine that for a moment. Justice being a bad thing. Something that would necessitate an "escape clause" to knowingly subvert, pervert, or even avert its course. The ends do not justify the means, they simply outweigh them. Which is why I am inclined to say "So what?" to the myriad crimes we see before us in the story, callous as it may seem.

And that's why I love this game so much. I live for this. In the end, there is no justice. Only endings, and the resolutions we seek.

Hope this answers your question. TLDR: Justice itself would've been the biggest antagonist of all if we hadn't stepped in and swept it all under the rug.