#anyway search tuser traincat's blog for jewish guilt for more info. i think they explain really well. OR COME TALK TO ME ABT IT!!!!

[lvebug]

there's a bit of a misconception of the original "with great power quote." most comics and other spider-man media shorten it to be "with great power comes great responsibility" which is a fine way of shortening it, but the original quote all the way from amazing fantasy #15 is "with great power there must also come — great responsibility"

this has a lot to do with the jewish ideals of tikkun olam—healing the world, jewish responsibility, and jewish guilt and is probably the single greatest factor in andie's choice of being lovebug. going back to this quote is literally just the best way i have of explaining how it works idk idk.

jewish teachings say that all jews have a responsibility to help heal the world, which is done through many things including acts of charity, loving-kindness or compassion, mitzvahs, and helping others. this is baked into the jewish religion; it is part of the faith. being jewish involves being responsible for helping your fellow neighbors and helping the world. we should feel responsible to do these things. this responsibility is a good thing (even if it can also cause crushing guilt over if we're doing enough 👍)

the "must also come" part of the original great responsibility quote, for me, really hammers in this idea because there is a difference when you add this line. the shortened version imo implies an intrinsic connection between power and responsibility. "with great power comes great responsibility". it's just there. a lack of choice. that with one comes the other. but, it's not an inherent thing. when "there must also come great responsibility", the responsibility is something to be added on top of the power. when given power, one must choose to use that power for good. (that is the responsibility).

the key is that, it's a choice that isn't perceived as a choice. for andie (or peter, as the original quote is attributed to him) she does not feel that she has a choice. it is an obligation to use her spider powers to become lovebug to help save people; to help heal the world. she was raised on this belief and it's such a core part of who she is that it is a responsibility that she has no (perceived) choice in. however, it is a choice. because we all have the power to choose our actions, even if it doesn't always feel like it. this is the marked responsibility of a good person always trying to be better because she might view herself as just being her normal self and doing a normal amount, but there are people who don't choose to use their power for good—whatever amount of power that might be. for her and for peter it's a choice they have no choice in simply because choosing not to help others was never a choice they were going to make.