#kindness is not weakness

[is-today-tomorrow-in-nz]

YA authors and their failing protagonists:

YA authors more often than not butcher their female characters. These characters often range from utter passiveness to ultimate girlbosses or remain tragic victims. Even male characters are not spared from this idiocy but they suffer much less indignity than the female characters. Very rarely we see a well-written and balanced female protagonists in YA novels. In an attempt to make these characters 'relatable' the authors do them a massive disservice, especially in fantasy and chosen one tropes. YA authors create these massive, dystopian societies and then unleash a bunch of teenagers to handle its problems and then coddle them from their own consequences. And in recent times, I'm finding many readers, especially on the younger side, echoing the same idealogies which is truly disheartening.

A YA fantasy novel is not about the person undergoing the hero's journey it's about the cause they're representing. And while fulfilling the cause they also overcome their personal struggles and grow but ultimately the story is about the cause. A passive or undecisive female character can be relatable in a romcom or a high school world but not in a war-torn, genocidal universe. If these audiences find the passivity and ignorance of a character in dystopian worlds 'relatable' then I'm truly worried about the morals they uphold in their real lives.

Unable to raise to the occasion is not an adorable quality. Katniss, Primrose, Hermoine, Harry, Percy were all teenagers too but what makes them memorable and relatable even after 20+ years is their strong moral code, bravery and fierce need to do the right thing to protect the innocent. Their journey was filled with losses and sacrifices which ultimately made them kinder and they taught me, as a reader, to be braver when faced with an adversity. Which is why I'm hating this current trend of passive heroines and girlbosses and their 'relatable' audience.

The Grishaverse is ripe with such characters.

Alina:

Alina is a protagonist who is about as useful as a fur coat in summer heat. She is stagnant and has nothing going on in her life beside Mal. She has no morality in her and possess zero ability to think. She is at best a doormat and at worst a bulldozer wrecking havoc without a forethought. She is the only protagonist who starts her journey and ends it the same way without an ounce of personal growth. She starts as an orphan with no self esteem and ends up as a nobody with no self esteem. She has no higher purpose in her own story and for all the no nuance Nellys calling it being 'relatable', this is not Highschool Musical, it's a political fantasy with the Chosen One trope. Her biggest gripes in the whole series are- being away from Mal, not being attractive enough for Mal and not being able to be with Mal. The other characters around her literally has to push her from plot A to plot B.

While being a reluctant protagonist makes sense at the beginning she doesn't do anything to improve her situation beyond that. She is entitled, extremely judgemental, has no empathy for others(remember how she blamed Genya for her situation in book 1), doesn't connect with people and any minor improvements she undergoes in immediately undone. She had the whole library of books to educate herself, people to take help from and train herself better. And yet chapter after chapter after chapter she undoes any progress she makes. Not to mention how much of an unreliable narrator she is throught the whole series. I was beyond exhausted being stuck inside her head for 3 whole books.

Zoya:

To all the people people hailing Zoya as their queen, I ask of you to genderswap Zoya then you'll understand the issues with her character. She represents every toxic masculine trait that we hate seeing in typical male characters. Her 'tragic' back story( and ulltimate powerup) was a rip off from Danny from GoT which was only added to 'justify' Zoya's bullying nature because it's okay if an abused person abuses in return. The backstory did nothing to her character other than act as a point of appeal to the readers to ignore her toxic traits because she was hurt.

Genya:

Genya was the only female character I loved in the series besides Inej. Without glorifying her abuse, Genya had the potential to be Natasha Romanoff but LB tragically restricts her progress to be a tragic victim instead. She was brave, fierce, possesed the right amount of cunning and kindness. She had all the traits of a protagonist but LB ruins her character like no other. I've explained this before in several posts. She was reduced to a shock factor- scars, David's death etc. In LB's own words, Ravka is a war torn country with drafts starting at age 15. Grisha has to join frontlines or serve in wealthy households. So, Genya would have been sent to a household either way. It was trolley problem situation and Aleksander took a gamble. For those screaming that Aleksander did nothing, I suggest you read 'The Tailor' by LB. Anyway, LB had such a impactful character and utilized her so poorly in the name of 'relatability'.

I don't want to make an already long post longer. Many YA authors need to take a step back before building worlds with massive adult issues. If their focus is on being relatable to young readers then I suggest them to not use heavy topics like genocide, war and abuse. If they cannot handle such adult topics with the sensitivity and respect it deserves then they're better off not writing it. I'm strongly against using such topics as shock factor and making a fool of the readers ( looking at you dragon zoya climax and everybody clapped moment 🤢🤢🤢). For readers, who are unable to comprehend the authors true motives maybe heavy YA fantasy tropes are not for you.

[feisty-n-spicy]

Sprinkle it around like confetti 🎊

[starlightvld]

Inherently good characters are not boring. Characters who choose to sacrifice their own love and happiness to protect others are not cliche.

Kindness is not weakness, and in fact, it can be the most cruel thing in the world.

[sagetsukimura]

What do you see?

Eyes open wide

I know that when they taught you how to shoot a gun

they beat it into your head

'you do not close your eyes.'

So what do you see?

Because it cannot be the same thing I see

What kind of seed did they plant in your heart

that grew folliage so thick it blinded you to the tears

roots so deep it deafened your ears

and fruit so rotten you could consume it and think it salvation?

What do they tell you

To make you forget you are human?

I know it's hard to remember what being human is.

Conquest and craft, intelligence and inovation.

These are not the heart of us though.

They are the results of what made us different

that led us to survive.

Once upon a time

A man broke his leg

and still those around him slung his arms over thier shoulders

and carried him so long that

by the time he died

History could only look and see the truth of humanity

in the answer to why.

Once upon a time

The bodies found in a cave were declared

To be the result of a massacre

Until someone took at second look at the shape of the bones

and dug deep into thier DNA

and found it to be a family graveyard instead

tenderly cared for

not the resting place of two warring tribes

but proof of the union between them.

What makes us human is not

Our capasity for violence and cruelty

But how it can be outweighted

By truth buried in our bones

We would not have come this far

If we were all truly enemies

So I know it's there

It's written in your very DNA

So...

Can you tell me?

What it is they told you

To make you forget that

Once upon a time

You were Me

[musicalmaster]

Remember, in a society that perpetuates hate, anger, and loneliness the most rebellious thing you can be is kind

[itisdreamcatcher]

as somebody who grew up with Holly Hobbie and Friends and LOVED it, I can't understand why people (especially in my close circle) are weirded out/amazed by me liking cottage core and dark academia and being kind and friendly, even if I don't know the person. is it so weird to give the person a chance to understand them and see all their colours? is it a sin to do that? not immediately judge them and write them off? YES, I will give a random person a chance or smile at them, not because I think I should or am better than them but because I think people lack the kindness in this time of the world. I will be the person to just smile and emit warmth because I choose to. yes, I can judge everybody, everywhere but what is the point of that? it brings me the negativity and ruins my day, vibes and mood. is it not beautiful when you're at a cafe and you see that somebody might be stressed so you smile at them and tell them to take their time because OH GOD how many different people have been here before me and have you even taken a break and do you need a glass of water and just HOW ARE YOU? and when they hear you and register what you said, their shoulders are slumped and their jaw relaxes and they have a softer look in their eyes and they smile back and go to do their job and seeing them visibly relax makes you happy because oh god they might've needed that because have you ever had that one time when you were extremely stressed and you just couldn't deal with anyone or anything but you had so much on your plate and just AAAHHHHHH!!! I CANNOT ANYMORE!!! and then somebody, doesn't have to be anyone you know well or even at all, is kind to you or they talk to you for a bit and their energy recharges you so you're ready to continue with whatever you needed to do and you feel ten times lighter and you're just grateful and happy. is it so hard to be kind? or at least, refrain from being a jerk? if your day is ruined, you don't have to ruin other people's day. write about it. talk about it. draw it. go for a walk. drink water. or coffee. or juice. or sit outside and look at the clouds. or take a shower.

if you feel bad, do something for yourself that will make you feel better, instead of ruining the mood of other people. and if you like ruining the good vibes, then I'm sending you a hug and, please, for everyone's sake, GET A LIFE.

new cool is being kind.

[notyournightsky]

i’ll never understand why fandoms tend to view kindness as a weakness and cruelty as a strength

[abirdiejourney]

from those who are rude,

i’ve learned to be kind.

[animalsoutloud]

In a world where you can be anything, be kind. Make the switch away from animal products to plant based ones for a happier world.

[redeemedmillennial]

The JTBD #2

Kindness

Be kind to yourself

Be kind to your inner circle

Be kind to strangers

Be kind to enemies

Be kind to those who can do nothing for you

Be kind to everyone and everything, for it's your greatest strength

Be kind in public and private

I stumble with these, myself, but at least I stumble in the right direction.

Those are the jobs to be done today.

[observinghenrywinter]

[palatinewolfsblog]

"Being rude is easy. It does not take any effort and is a sign of weakness and insecurity. Kindness shows great self-discipline and strong self-esteem. Being kind is not always easy when dealing with rude people. Kindness is a sign of a person who has done a lot of personal work and has come to a great self-understanding and wisdom. Choose to be kind over being right, and you’ll be right every time because kindness is a sign of strength." U.N. Owen.

[mahi1313]

"When I was young, I used to admire intelligent people; as I grow older, I admire kind people."

- Abraham Heschel

[marciaillust]

trapped in amber

[screamingatmyfandom]

"The reward of doing good is that GOOD EXISTS."

the way this hit is so much harder than any morality or philosophy class ever could

All good children's fiction says you are going to have to shoulder responsibility even if you don't want it.

[nurs3lovl3y]

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