#jane eyre because the end is a literal worst case scenario and completely at odds with the rest of the book especially when it comes to jane

[unionizedwizard]

thinking about pandaemonium again. the quiet horror of erichtonios "choosing" to remain there and study under his abusive father, even admitting that he has not changed at all and he merely "learned" to deal with him because "deep down" he loves him (even if that were true it wouldn't matter). even after all this time he's still trying to prove himself to lahabrea. 0 long-term significant change. they didnt even fire hegemone or anything and she's now (?) at least (???) erichtonios' ally (?? out of guilt? pity? genuine compassion?). ohhh my god

i'll be honest i think the doylist explanation here is lack of commitment and a writing quality that is not bad, per se, but got scared about the difficult themes it had been, so far, bravely and lucidly tackling, hastily wrapping it up in a kind of "it's alright now :)" "good ending" that just leaves a bitter aftertaste

but the watsonian explanations are plentiful. after all it is highly coherent with what we know of ancient society & its rules—duty to the star and your betters as an unyielding principle, with human feelings and emotional hurt being at best ignored and repressed. the loop..... you cannot escape the cycle.... jane eyre coded fr