#anyway once again the opera librettos are too smart for me.

[leporellian]

wait a second given the leporello mention on this footnote this is suddenly fascinating. because in the opera, that description is specifically when the don (in disguise as leporello) is siccing masetto's group on leporello (in disguise as the don), and i Knew the description because i'm a pedantic little shit like that but i hadn't ever thought abt it from this angle before. this means the white feathers are a) a representation of the false sincerity/innocence that the don wields around others in order to get his way, and the sort of 'pretending to be meek' behavior he takes on when trying to manipulate others, but also b) a representation of leporello's own misplaced sincerity and (while not like... innocent-as-in-naive but yknow) relative innocence, which the don recognizes and then chooses to twist the knife into anyway... huh. Huh.