#part of it is irrational and part of it is genuine criticism

[skitskatdacat63]

God, I have such a hatred for that stupid f1 movie, everything about it gets on my nerves so badly. I hate to be this ultra salty person but I feel like I could write a whole essay about how dumb it is and how much it annoys me 😭

[sorcerersandskillusers]

Fyodor and the Devil: Analysis of Fyodor's motives and role in the narrative

Asagiri has stated that he based Fyodor not on Dostoyevsky the author but on a specific scene from one of his books The Brothers Karamazov where Ivan Karamazov confronts “the devil” in his room.

(It's a really good book, you should read it if you have time. Also. fun fact, Fyodor and the devil wear the same hat, “His soft fluffy white hat was out of keeping with the season.”)

Having read the book and gone over this scene, I realized that this could be used to find out a lot more about Fyodor as a character than we see in the story, including a potential glimpse at his real motivations.

A bit of context for the scene. Ivan Kramazov is a clever but deeply trouble man who has struggling with the concept of God and rationalising him with the cruelty of humanity, at one point while very sick, Ivan starts seeing a man in his room who claims to be “the devil”. Their conversation is a fascinating look at morality and why evil exists in the world, and if you look at it closely it reveals a lot about the role of a “villain” in a story.

This line from “the devil” is really interesting to me, and seems to explain a lot about Fyodor’s character, as well as align perfectly with how Asagiri has described Fyodor in interviews:

Before time was, by some decree which I could never make out, I

was predestined 'to deny' and yet I am genuinely good-hearted and not at all inclined to negation.

'No, you must go and deny, without denial there's no criticism and what would a journal be without a column of criticism?' 

Without criticism it would be nothing but one 'hosannah.' But nothing but hosannah is not enough for life, the hosannah must be tried in the crucible of doubt and so on, in the same style. But I don't meddle in that, I didn't  create it, I am not answerable for it. Well, they've chosen their scapegoat, they've made me write the column of criticism and so life was made possible.

Basically the devil is saying that he was created because without evil then good means nothing, if everything was perfect then nothing would happen or change, life couldn’t exist, so he was forced to be that evil even though he never wanted to be.

This is so similar to how Fyodor is described in the BSD exposition 2020:

Fyodor is the antagonist, he is the villain of the story, that is the role he plays. This explains why he chooses to commit so many atrocities in the name of  “following God's plan”. It even connects to his line in The Dead Apple, and his ability name. He is both crime and punishment, as “crime” or sin originates with the devil, but it's also the devil who punishes sinners.

(I mean the title of the episode he is introduced in is literally “My Ill Deeds Are the Work of God” by committing evil acts he is fulfilling God's purpose for him.)

And if Fyodor is really based on “the devil” it's very likely he also either does or used to wish for release from this role that was assigned to him, but he knows that he cannot stray from his path or the story will cease to exist. My evidence for Fyodor wanting to be free of his mission is just one interaction, when he kills Karma.

Look at Fyodor's expression here, this is the only time in the entire series where we see him look truly sad. This isn't an act, there is no one there for him to trick, he simply says a quiet prayer for the life of a boy who's only purpose was to suffer and die.

This next part of “the devils” speech actually seems to fit very well for Dazai, it's interesting since he is the narrative foil to Fyodor and clearly is a very similar character.

We understand that comedy; I, for instance, simply ask for annihilation. No, live, I am told, for there'd be nothing without you.

If everything in the universe were sensible, nothing would happen. There would be no events without you, and there must be events. So against the grain I serve to produce events and do what's irrational because I am commanded to.

For all their indisputable intelligence,men take this farce as something serious, and that is their tragedy. They suffer, of course... but then they live, they live a real life, not a fantastic one, for suffering is life. Without suffering what would be the pleasure of it? It would be transformed into an endless church service; it would be holy, but tedious. But what about me? I suffer, but still, I don't live. I am x in an indeterminate equation. I am a sort of phantom in life who has lost all beginning and end, and who has even forgotten his own name. 

This ties perfectly into Dazai and Fyodor’s debate on the nature of God in the sky casino arc.

Dazai here points out that it's not perfection and harmony that make the world move, it's the irrational, it's the foolishness and stupidity of humans who charges into life making a million mistakes but always finding ways to fight on through it. Here Dazai and Fyodor represent the conflicting sides of “the devil” with Fyodor embodying his mission to drive the world and Dazai embodying his secret love for, and wish to join, humanity.

“I love men genuinely, I've been greatly calumniated! Here when I stay withyou from time to time, my life gains a kind of reality and that's what I like most of all. Yousee, like you, I suffer from the fantastic and so I love the realism of earth. Here, with you, everything is circumscribed, here all is formulated and geometrical, while we have nothing but indeterminate equations! I wander about here dreaming. I like dreaming. Besides, on earth I become superstitious. Please don't laugh, that's just what I like, to become superstitious. I adopt all your habits here: I've grown fond of going to the public baths, would you believe it?

And I go and steam myself with merchants and priests. What I dream of is becoming incarnate once for all and irrevocably in the form of some merchant's wife weighing eighteen stone, and of believing all she believes. My ideal is to go to church and offer a candle in simple-hearted faith, upon my word it is. Then there would be an end to my sufferings.”

“"Why not, if I sometimes put on fleshly form? I put on fleshly form and I take the consequences. Satan sum et nihil humanum a me alienum puto."*

* I am Satan, and deem nothing human alien to me.”

This piece from the devil feels like it could be a description of Dazai’s character, his wish above all else to find happiness and love as a human despite believing he is a demon. Both Dazai and Fyodor have strong ties to the Devil, both of them are often described as demonic or inhuman, with emphasis placed on the darkness of their souls and the isolation they feel due to their minds.

But the difference between them is how they dealt with it, Fyodor chose to embrace it and fully commit to his role in the story as the ultimate evil for the greater good, but Dazai has always shown a fasciation with humans and has spent his life trying to connect to them and find meaning in his existence.

Finally, let's look at what we can learn about Fyodor’s motivation. Fyodor is the villain, he is the final obstacle the protagonist has to overcome, he is the driving force behind so much of Atsushi’s life and the reason so much of the series has played out at all. He sent Shibusawa to torture Atsushi as a child, he was an informant to the guild who put the bounty on Atsushi making the mafia turn on him, he was involved in the guild invasion, and obviously he was the master mind behind cannibalism and Decay of Angles.

If he is aware of his position as the antagonist, then he also is probably aware Atsushi is the protagonist, he knew he was the “envy of all ability users” after all, so he knows Atsushi has some significance to the world as a whole.

Atsushi is also the “guide to the book” which is seemingly Fyodor’s end goal, so even though Fyodor doesn’t seem to be focused on Atsushi, he has been indirectly influencing his whole journey up to this point. This also explains why Fyodor is only moving actively now, because the protagonist has appeared and his role as the villain can finally be fulfilled and he, like “the devil” can finally get the “annihilation” he asked for. Hence, Fyodor’s true goal is to erase himself from the narrative.

There is actually quite a lot of evidence for this. The obvious part is that Fyodor wants to rid the world of ability users while he himself is an ability user, he cannot exist in his perfect world. 

Then there’s the fact that in the Dead Apple, Fyodor calls himself “crime” if Fyodor is “crime” or “sin” then a world free of sin would not contain him at all

Even when Fyodor talks about sin, he says how humans are easily manipulated into killing each other, while he constantly manipulates characters into killing each other, he is the cause of the sin he fights.

A really strong bit of evidence is this interview with Asagiri and Harukawa

Not only does Asagiri reiterate Fyodors role as the person who moves the story, Harukawa specifically mentions that Fyodor might be trying to create a world without ability users because he thought it was a “bad thing to do” aka the action a villain would take that would lead to a hero stopping them.

“Dos-san is the biggest villain in the story so far, but I have continued to draw him with spaced out eyes that are neither righteous nor evil for a long time. The only time I drew his eyes completely white was when he said he would create a world without skill users. It was because, in reality, we would decide what is evil or not by our own scales, but I wasn't sure if he himself was doing it because he thought that was a bad thing to do.”

This also connects to how Fyodor was able to understand Gogol when no one else could, Gogol is chooses to fight against the way the world is to prove to himself that he truly is free. Fyodor, who is bound to play a part in a narrative, would understand that feeling and that longing to be truly free.

To be clear, I don’t think that Fyodor is really a good person whose just been trapped in an awful position against his will, we see many times that Fyodor revels in his cruelty and enjoys killing and torturing others. Its the same with “the devil” in the book, although he hates the job he was given, he tells Ivan stories of the people he’s corrupted and seems very proud of himself for it.

My personal interpretation is that the sadistic zelot personality Fyodor displays is a mixture of a mask and a coping mechanism, kind of similar to Yosano developing a sadistic side to help her deal with the guilt of half killing people in order to heal them. I think it makes sense that after centuries of cruelty and manipulation a person would become detached and stop really caring about the lives he destroys.

This analysis is partially unfinshed but I wanted to post it now and see what other people think of it.

[cultven]

could you possibly write general dennis reynolds dating hcs? reader is part of the group? ty 🫶

Dating Dennis Reynolds Headcanons

Word Count: 1.6k

• Dennis is certainly a special significant other, sweet sometimes, insufferable the next.

• BUT he’s your boyfriend and you love him and all of his quirks to death.

• I can see Dennis absolutely showing off your looks.

• You’re the pretty little thing hanging off his arm whenever The Gang finds themselves in professional or business settings, always playing the (not-so) fictional role of Dennis’s hot wife. (Mac is totally not jealous of this)

• What can Dennis say? He’s just so proud he was able to find such a hot person who was also able to handle his attitude.

• Definitely handsy in public; hugging, making out, anything to show others that you’re his.

• Although Dennis does not shy away from PDA, I can see him keeping the real emotional stuff behind closed doors.

• Dennis already has a difficult time expressing his feelings in front of you, the love of his life, he could not imagine showing even an ounce of affection or raw emotion in front of your highly critical friends.

• He genuinely believes you were tailor-made for him though.

• Dennis has never felt genuine care or affection towards a woman in his life, you were the only person in his eyes that is genuinely worthy of his love.

• While he perceives more women to be sluts or toys he could play with, he cannot view you in this light (Madonna-whore complex* if you squint)

• You’re more than that to him, one of the only genuinely good people he knows and can respect.

• You do have your moments though, you’re a part of the gang after all.

• He loves your bad sides as well, I mean he surrounds himself with those kinds of people for a reason.

• Every time you manipulate someone or give a real tongue-lashing to some idiot on the street he can feel himself getting worked up.

• Let’s be real; he’s a kinky man and we know this.

• Obsessed with hickeys, preferably in places that’ll show.

• LOTS of sex in the bar’s office.

• Or just the bar in general honestly.

• But back to the fluff, if you have a cat/like cats then I can definitely see him calling himself the cat’s “father”. Huge cat guy here.

• He is also an absolute drama queen

• He’s feeling even slightly under the weather? You are not a personal nurse, and if he really plays his illness up, maybe you’d even wear that tiny nurse Halloween costume he really loves on you.

• Wear it and he’ll act suspiciously better, trying to coerce you into bed with him. It’s almost as if he does it on purpose…

• But when he is genuinely sick all hell rises

• Mac would speed dial you after an hour of dealing with sick Dennis, begging for you to come over and coddle your whining boyfriend.

• Your relationship isn’t all fluffy and cute, however.

• You often feel anxious remembering Dennis’s promiscuous tendencies, especially remembering him telling you early into your relationship that he’s genuinely never considered settling down with someone before. Sometimes it feels like maybe your fears aren’t entirely irrational.

• When you vocalize these fears to Dennis passionate time in the bedroom usually follows. It’s one of the ways Dennis knows how to connect best with a person and a way for Dennis to demonstrate how he doesn’t need to seek out sex from other women when he has you, his cute little girlfriend, to bend every which way.

• And if that isn’t enough to soothe your worries, Dennis will then try to do some sort of grand gesture proving his love to you. (Imagine something akin to Dennis’s speech to Mac during The Gang Dines Out)

As for the gang…

• Although Dee is not a very great “girl’s girl”, she does appreciate having another female in The Gang.

• Whenever the other four are paired off respectively doing whatever the hell it is they’re doing, she’ll tend to rope you into her misadventures.

• Before you, she was often left alone as Charlie and Frank would do something gross while Mac and Dennis banished her from their side quests. But now, he has someone to hang out with other than animals!

• She isn’t the kindest friend you’ve had, but if it comes down to it she would defend you against a stranger with her life.

• She does question your taste in men, however.

• Dee understands better than anyone else her brother is not a good person, let alone someone deserving of genuine love. She is offended he was able to find someone as perfect as you before she could bag a man.

• Sometimes she’ll even make hints at you being “too good for Dennis” and that her brother doesn’t deserve you, which is honestly the closest thing to a compliment you’ll audibly get from Dee.

• Mac is totally not jealous of your presence in the group.

• Sometimes you’ll hear him make snide comments under his breath when you “steal” his roommate from him.

• How could he not feel envy when you stole his unhealthy codependency for yourself?

• You understand his frustrations though and try to make it clear you’re not trying to butt in on his and Dennis’s… special relationship, which Mac appreciates.

• I can see you two have a definite love-hate relationship with each other; constantly butting heads with one another but ultimately caring and protecting for each other when you need to. Almost like a sibling.

• Charlie more or less acknowledges you’re there.

• If you’re kind to him I could see him potentially inviting you to his frequently gross outings, but honestly, you’d never take him up on the offer if you were dating Dennis.

• As Dennis’s girlfriend, if you didn’t make an outright point to be his friend, he would just view you as another Dennis relationship.

• Although, as a member of The Gang, I can see you and Charlie having a lot of misadventures! You can’t hang around Dennis’s preppy ass all of the time, right? He has Mac when you’re not around anyway.

• If you do indulge in Charlie’s dirt-filled daily tasks just be sure to shower before you even attempt to touch Dennis.

• Frank also ignored you at first, knowing his ex-son's tendencies with women, but after seeing how you were more than a one-night stand to Dennis he was finally interested in you.

• He simply found it fascinating someone was able to crack Dennis’s sociopathic personality, at least to some degree.

• Dennis naturally would make a point not to allow you and Frank to converse for too long. He understands what Frank is capable of and he is not willing to subject you or your relationship to that.

• You do enjoy hearing old stories about Dennis from Frank, especially from his childhood. All of the old photographs and videotapes are also highly appreciated.

I wrote most of this half-high, which I think is on brand for IASIP

*This dichotomy says that people (majority cis-gendered straight men) with this complex see women as either a saint or a whore - but never both.

[twistyfish]

prompt~ rafayel fluff -> angst where he’s rude and apologizes after. requested by anon!

“Why did you paint my acne scars so clearly?”

“Because they’re on your face!”

While you were normally impressed by Rafayel’s attention to detail, today it was making you very self conscious. “Was there really a reason to include them, though? They’re temporary marks that aren’t a part of me. And you literally drew the individual pores on my nose- Raf, this is so unflattering.”

“Quit micromanaging me. Art isn’t supposed to judge itself, you know.”

You huffed at his response. “But art is supposed to be pretty. This is not pretty. It’s uncanny. It looks too much like me, I don’t like it.”

He chuckled. “You don’t like that the portrait I’m painting of you looks like you? You’re so interesting, cutie.”

“Stop, you know what I mean.”

He didn’t turn his head, but his gaze flitted to meet yours before returning to the canvas. “Just trust me. I know what I’m doing.”

You watched the brush flutter around the canvas like moth wings, leaving intricate strokes in its wake. As Rafayel became more engrossed in his process, you left him to work and went out with a few girls from your team.

You had a nice time catching up with them and getting coffee. Well, two of you got coffee and Tara got hot chocolate.

When you returned a few hours later, he was staring at the painting with a look of intense scrutiny. You walked up to him quietly.

A little too quietly, because when you put a hand on his shoulder, he tensed and his paintbrush created a small splotch on the canvas mid-stroke.

“Oh! I’m sorr-“ you started, but he cut you off.

“Are you kidding me? I just finished painting that section.”

Your heart sank a little. You felt genuinely apologetic. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“I don’t care what you meant to do. You ruined it. There’s a huge smudge over the nose.” His shoulders were tense, and he was holding himself more rigidly than he had been when you left.

“Raf, I think you should take a break.”

“Oh, so just because I’m upset that you interfered with my painting, I’m being irrational?”

“That’s not what I-“

“Don’t think I didn’t notice. The spot where you made me mess up is right on top of the part you didn’t like. If you’re that insecure, you shouldn’t have asked me to paint you.”

Your mouth opened slightly. “What?” You said harshly.

“You heard me. Why ask me to paint your face if you’re going to criticize me every step of the way?”

“Stop. I accidentally startled you and you made a mistake because of it. Are you seriously accusing me of sabotaging your painting because of that?”

“Maybe.”

You stared at him blankly. “I can’t believe you.”

“I can’t believe you either.”

You shook your head and picked up your bag, walking toward the exit. You weren’t going to argue with him like this.

Your mind spun. Why was he acting like this?

Fortunately, he seemed to come to his senses fast because you didn’t even make it halfway home before the phone rang. You accepted the call half heartedly.

“Hey,” his voice rang through the phone.

“Hi,” you said with a flat tone.

“I’m a dick.”

“Yeah, you are.”

“I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have called you insecure and I shouldn’t have accused you of anything. I’m the one who messed up.”

“It’s not a huge deal, but yeah, you shouldn’t have.”

“No, it was unnecessary. And what I said about me not painting you? That was stupid. I love painting you. I would paint you all day if I could. I can’t capture your likeness perfectly, but trying to recreate that radiance makes me so, so happy.”

Your lips spread into a smile hearing that. “Really?”

“Really. I got too defensive over my art of you, but that wasn’t cool because I snapped at the real you. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, Raf. I forgive you.”

“Yay!”

[hiraethminds]

This is a tangent, I'm here to entertain with needless rambling

The deep rooted hatred for taco I see in the II community genuinely concerns me. Especially since those people tend to be Mephone "apologists"(For lack of a better word, I love Mephone don't get me wrong) despite how taco is the "active" side of the coin to his "passive". The connections between them are there trust me Im connecting the dots. Ive connected them.

I understand that she's done bad things, but blaming her for her shortcomings when she doesn't and never had the same support group to change as Mephone did makes me a little ehh.. Getting upset because Microphone showed her support in the new episodes simply because you don't like the ship(I understand why people wouldnt but thats not an excuse to deny her anything), and because Taco doesn't know how to change yet and you refuse to see her as anything redeemable. I'm not big on shipping, thats not the point of this tangent, but Taco finally having someone to support her and help her change is a GOOD thing. Microphone was being the bigger person there, she was being mature and thoughtful because Taco clearly needs the help. The fact that people continue to deny Taco any kind of growth even if she goes about it in the wrong way makes me deeply uncomfortable. Because the moment any character does anything bad that isn't HER they don't say anything about it. She was shunned by her peers because she was playing the game and continued to 'play the game' so to speak.

Theres a deep rooted hint of misogyny in the way they treat her, but I wont yap about that you dont need to read allat.

I understand people have reasons for not liking characters! That's ok. But I've seen them actively go out of their way to harass people that DO like Taco and actively criticize enjoying her character.

They tend to take it as defending her actions. Which is not what's happening. I don't think oscommunity could handle vriska is all I'm saying.

Feel free to not answer this I just need whatever little imp is telling me to scream about it to get out. go draw a taco dis is driving me crazy

Thank you for dumping this in my inbox bigbarf200, I feel like a wise confidant.

okay so I don't interact/observe with the wider ii community (Mainly cuz i like playing with my touys without being bothered) So this information is so Interesting to me!!!

As you mentioned, the hate might stem from misogyny (and by the way, I’d love to read your essay—talk all you want, my friend!). This is a societal issue that affects every part of life.

That said, I also think some people might dislike her simply because she’s a hustler and stubborn. When she has a goal, she’ll do whatever it takes to achieve it, even if it means crossing into morally gray areas.

holding Mepad hostage > hijacking the show

lying and deceiving objects with good intentions > winning s1

seriously hurting Fan > winning Mic immunity

as you said in the greater scheme of things, she's genuinely done horrible things. But if you just accept that at face value you are missing out on such an amazing character. You have to consider her perspective and the circumstances of her birth (especially in a story like ii!!) to fully understand and come to an option on her. But I digress this is baby level analysis so ill move on.

people who think Mic being friendly towards Taco post e14 is out of character are misunderstanding Microphone as both a character and thematic device I think

that's literally the only rational reason I could think of as to why people would be mad about taco and mic being on good terms???

so yeah, these haters just sound like crazy irrational people who have a lot of pent-up emotions. crazy

anyways ty!!! I feel like I didn't have alot to add since, as stated, these people are just incredibly irrational. but its nice getting an earful of whagh the fuck the community is like. here are soem taco drawings for the occasion

[yuma-mukami-garden-god]

Heyy! How would the diaboys react to a s/o with BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder)?

Sakamaki Brothers

Shu – Quietly observant. He'd initially brush off the emotional storms with laziness, but over time he'd realize your fear of abandonment mirrors his own hidden insecurities. When you break down, he'd let you lay on him, play music to calm you, and whisper, “I’m not going anywhere, so stop crying, idiot.”

Reiji – Critical at first, trying to “fix” you with rigid rules and structure. But once he understands BPD isn’t something that can be controlled by etiquette, he becomes more careful, softening his tone and guiding you through outbursts like a stern yet reliable constant. He’d research it obsessively.

Ayato – Struggles with your mood swings at first and may lash out in return, but your dependence strokes his ego. He’d panic when you go silent or push him away. “Oi, Chichinashi, you’re not allowed to leave me either, got it?” He’ll eventually become oddly protective and clingy in return.

Kanato – Dangerous combination. He thrives on emotional extremes but also needs constant validation. If you cry or panic, he might spiral with you, making it worse. Yet he finds comfort in your shared volatility. With reassurance, he might cling to you like a lifeline, whispering eerily, “You can’t ever leave me. Ever.”

Laito – Surprisingly understanding. He knows how masks work and will recognize your fear of abandonment instantly. He’ll tease you when you split, but gently. “Bitch-chan, you don’t have to be perfect for me to stay. I like your chaos.” Expect both emotional support and sensual grounding.

Subaru – Deeply shaken by your outbursts, not because he’s scared, but because he understands. He sees his own self-loathing in you and won’t know how to help at first. But he tries. He’ll punch a wall out of frustration, then hold you like you’re breakable. “I’m messed up too, okay? We’ll figure it out.”

Mukami Brothers

Ruki – Cool-headed and analytical. He'd initially call your behavior "unruly" or "irrational" but would quickly catch on that it's deeper than that. He’d begin creating structure to help you feel safe. “Livestock, if you fear being discarded, then I will prove I am not like the others.”

Kou – Publicly cheerful but privately shaken by your pain. He relates to masking and hidden wounds. He’d panic when you split on him or feel you’re going to abandon him. “You’re not gonna leave me, right, M Neko-chan? You love me, yeah?” His support can become desperate but genuine.

Yuma – Rough on the outside but gentle underneath. Your intense feelings might confuse him at first, but once he learns what BPD is, he gets protective fast. “You ain’t broken, Sow. You just feel too damn much. So what? I’ll take all of it. Even the ugly parts.”

Azusa – Most naturally aligned. He understands emotional pain intimately and won’t flinch when you break down or self-deprecate. “It’s okay… to feel that way. I’ll stay… even when it hurts…” He’ll become your safe space, offering gentle touch, comfort, and complete emotional acceptance.

Tsukinami Brothers

Shin – Immature at first, he might mock your mood swings or call you “needy,” but once he realizes how serious your fears are, he softens (grudgingly). “Tch. You’re annoying… but I guess you’re mine. So stop acting like I’ll ditch you.” Protective tsundere vibes.

Carla – Distant and intellectual, he may not understand your emotional depth immediately. But he’ll grow fascinated by your psyche, treating your disorder like a delicate mystery. “You are… unpredictable. And yet, I remain. That should be proof enough.” He won’t say much, but his presence will be unwavering.

Kino – He’d be infuriatingly triggering at times—mocking your sensitivity, pushing buttons—but only because he’s terrified of being vulnerable himself. Underneath, he feels everything just as deeply. Eventually, he’d reveal it. “You think I don’t get it? That I don’t feel broken too?” Expect a turbulent but real bond.

Karlheinz – Complex. As a godlike manipulator, he might view your BPD as an interesting challenge or puzzle. However, if he truly cares, he’d offer calm, steady control to soothe your chaos. “You seek grounding, my dear. I will be your constant.” He’d create environments that subtly stabilize you.

Richter – Dramatic, passionate, and obsessive. He would love you deeply but might feed into your instability rather than soothe it. Expect big arguments, grand gestures, and possessiveness. “I would rather burn with you than live without your fire.” He’d never leave—but he might be too much.

[dearweirdme]

Not to drag out a tired conversation, but I think this whole situation says a lot more about human nature than it does about specific ships.

One thing I’ve noticed, especially within shipping communities, is that most people struggle to extend the same level of empathy and understanding to others that they naturally give themselves. We know our own intentions, why we believe what we believe, what we hope for, and what draws us to a particular dynamic. But when it comes to others, especially those who believe in something we don’t, we often assume the worst: that they’re delusional, biased, or willfully ignorant.

Jikookers look at Taekookers and genuinely can’t understand how they see something real in that bond. To them, it’s just not there. Meanwhile, Taekookers do the exact same thing baffled that anyone still believes Jikook is anything more than a friendship. Both sides act as though the other is completely out of touch, not realizing they’re mirroring each other in nearly every way.

And when it comes to information or rumors, most people don’t apply the same logic consistently. We all want to believe the things that support our hopes. A Jikooker is more likely to believe a random sighting of Jimin and Jungkook together because it aligns with what they want to be true. The critical thinking often takes a backseat to the emotional satisfaction. And the same thing happens with Taekookers. Look at how quickly many of them embraced the “Jimin went to London” rumor just because it opened up new narratives which they want which by extension robs the other shippers of feeling happy about what they want to be a moment. That rumor came from a prediction account, the same kind that most taekookers previously discredited when it said things they didn’t want to hear, like Jungkook being linked to Winter or Taennie being real.

It’s not really about truth for most people it’s about winning. About making sure the other ship doesn’t get to be happy or validated. That’s what a lot of these dynamics boil down to: competition, not connection. I think deep down, most people know the truth will come out eventually. whether Jimin and Jungkook are together or not. Both are real possibilities, and most are aware of that even if they won’t admit it.

But for now, a lot of people just run with the version they want to be true. Not always because they fully believe it, but because it gets a reaction. It’s more about frustrating the other side than actually seeking truth. At this point, it feels like more of a battle over who gets to feel validated, rather than a conversation about what’s real.

Like the last anon said , if it had been Tae and Jungkook at the airport, Taekookers would be celebrating and theorizing like crazy, while Jikookers would be calling them delusional while trying to find proof to debunk the upcoming theories. The roles just flip depending on who gets the moment.

At the end of the day, I think most shippers aren’t actually trying to be dishonest or irrational, they’re just human. And humans are hopeful, biased, and fiercely protective of the stories they want to believe. And sometimes too emotionally invested to see how alike they all actually are. Ultimately, each side would always believe they are better than the other.

Hi anon!

To a certain degree I agree. I myself have often said I think Jkkrs wouldn’t have grown as big as they have had it not been for Tkkrs prior existence. And I do also think for a lot of Tkkrs it’s become some sort of mission to ‘win’ from Jkkrs. In cases like this perhaps for some winning is also a part of it, though I think many also just are curious about what the situation actually is.

Recently I got an ‘neutral’ anon (the preachy one) saying Jkkrs just block and ignore things that go against their ship. My reaction to that was that they do this because they have no other choice. They don’t want to engage with critical thinking even when it’s their own side doing it. That’s not what we do on our side (at least not on here.. I can’t speak on twitter). We look into the things that come on our paths and that question our beliefs. We’ve discussed Taennie in depth. People correct each other when something wrong is said. People are generally open to discussion. In my opinion that’s how things are supposed to be, even though it’s hard at times. And maybe Tumblr isn’t reflective of tkk fandom as a whole.. I truly don’t have the best insight in this.

[ach-sss-no]

SH liveblog Ch8

First chapter & explanation | Previous chapter

I had then made up my mind that men were my natural enemies and that I must defend myself. Of course it is very different here, but who knows how long it will last? I wish I could think about things as you do; but I can't, after all I have gone through. - Anna Sewell, Black Beauty You people with hearts have something to guide you, and need never do wrong; but I have no heart, and so I must be very careful. - L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

After the I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream quote I was basically out of ideas, but epigraphs are fun and I didn't want to just drop it.

I scoured for these ones. I don't remember how I got to finding these two (what made me think of Black Beauty????), but I remember I decided I wanted them to be thematically similar by being in first-person.

I also considered quoting Stephen King's Misery (the bit where she eats the rat!) and rejected it partly for that reason.

I'm trying to engage with Gollum's real trauma and mistreatment, because it does happen in LOTR and it is psychologically interesting, but you can never make him into a suffering innocent because he's just not. That wouldn't be justice to the work or the character. So I have this 'I can't trust because I hurt bad :(' quote (from Ginger- a genuine tragic innocent, by the way, she's a horse, LOL) - and it's followed up by 'I have no heart, by the way.'

But there's extra connotations here to anyone familiar with the works:

Ginger bites (it's how she got her name. Ginger snaps.)

Ginger dies of starvation and overwork :( (spoilers for Black Beauty by Anna Sewell)

Ginger is a horse. Gollum just said he hates horses in the last chapter. Cinema sin counter go up

I quoted the Tin Man, and his 'thing' is that he DOES successfully develop empathy and kindness without a heart through intentional practice.

Ahhh and we're back in Sméagol's Pastville.

So, Shrodingerbinger's is divided into three parts; they're kind of divided into body-mind-spirit? Gollum heals physically, he heals emotionally and socially and then he reaches a place where he authentically seeks moral redemption. At the beginning of Part 2 he's feeling good physically and is now escaping into Minas Tirith to relationally and emotionally discover this new life he's found.

At the beginning of each part there's also a phase of his past and I was just going through them chronologically, but through serendipity they do kinda correlate with where he is in present day. Part 1 started with Baby Sméagol, who is a pathetic traumatized orphan who just needs physical care and patience. Not much can be expected from him because he's a baby. Part 2 is child and adolesecent Smeagol and his relationship with his village and family network. In part 2 present day, Smeagol's exploring the city and his new social network.

I stay away from the Found Family tag for reasons (I HAVE AN IRRATIONAL DISLIKE OF FADS EVEN WHEN THEY ARE GOOD THINGS IN AND OF THEMESELVES) but it probably would have fit here. Oh well.

When he did start to talk, his first word was 'Why'.

Jirt describes Sméagol as overridingly inquisitive.

"I don't know," Nettle would say, "and I don't know why I'm standing here explaining myself to you. Praps I'll ask you some riddles, Sméagol, my polliwog

Aha and we have another pet name which in future Eardwulf will also independently re-invent

For quite a long time, 'Why' was the only word he seemed to feel he needed. He would also use it to forestall criticism. Nettle would catch him about to do something he shouldn't, and he would stop and feign a ridiculous look of surprise. "Why?" he would ask.

Wow, he learned to be a manipulative liar early on.

The ''Why' and 'How' only stopped when he slept. He curled up like a kitten and dropped off for a few hours at a time and then he sat up and stared at her and started asking 'Why'.

This is how Gollum sleeps in canon. Curl up -> instant off -> he's staring at you suddenly

I did meticulous research for this fic. Not on Middle Earth's history or languages or anything like that, though, just on Gollum.

Nettle taught him to read and taught him the genealogies and all of the old stories she knew. After he learned to write he went through a phase where he walked around the village with his little slate, writing down things people did. He would come back in the evening and read it all off to her. "Aunt Petunia. Cheated Aunt Iris out of one penny. Saw her drop it and she didn't say nothing. Just picked it up. That was not nice. She picked it up before I could. Not nice at all." Nettle politely asked him to stop after the fifth day of this.

Sméagol wtf

He would also eat unripe berries, eggs from trees, and things off of the top of rubbish piles if he thought they were fresh enough- which was not unusual behavior for a growing boy that thought he was invincible to food poisoning, but a bit unseemly for one under the direct tutelage of the matriarch. (Although when he brought home eggs to share, she always accepted one.)

Smeagol's grandmother eating the eggs he steals IS ALSO CANON and NONE of this vital content was in the movies

"He wants to go away on an adventure," Sméagol barked. "I never heard anything so stupid! Goblins and robbers and monsters and who knows what else out there."

Ha! I forgot about the 'Sméagol is a confirmed homebody afraid of the wide world' shtick. It is here purely for purposes of irony.

"My parents thought they could leave. And where are they now, where are they? Not here."

I could have worded that better, I know 'not here' means 'dead' but it just sounds like they successfully left after intending to leave.

And he was meaner than anyone who might be teasing him, at that. But it seemed that this time he was correct about why he wasn't a favorite.

I think I'm trying to insinuate emotional abuse/neglect that Nettle doesn't realize she's inflicting. Of course you shouldn't write off your emotionally unstable orphaned grandchild as mean and useless. It. It won't help.

Meaner than he looked, too. And in a rough old world like this one, was that always such a bad thing?

Also it seems like she taught him to be a jerk to get ahead.

We're back to present day. Gollum assumes he can just find his way out of the city he was brought into unconscous.

He drew a deep, sharp breath, despite his desire not to make noise. A city ringed by walls! He turned, trembling, to look over his shoulder, and saw what he had not seen before, soaring over another wall far behind- the high tower. It must be Minas Anor, he thought. The Tower of the Sun. Anárion's city...

Shouldn't he already know that- *checks* no because the name is different now and Frodo used the new one. ok cool.

Gollum canonically knows about Minas Ithil/Morgul and would know about the twin city (by the original name)

In fact, this city and Minas Morgul had about the same faint, sick resemblance as the faint, sick resemblance between Pippin Took and Gollum.

I picked Pippin for the comparison because they share their insatiable curiosity and quasi-hobbit-nobility. Also because Pippin does a spot-on Gollum impression without even seeing or hearing the real thing. That wasn't in the movies either we were robbed.

(It was in the Bakshi version)

Gollum obligingly reflects on his dead family now that we know who they are! (It's supposedly triggered by realizing he's in a place he's heard stories about but c'mon. It's because I told you who his family is.)

Psychologically, what's meant to be happening here is that Gollum's been burying a lot of (very real and morally neutral) pain, with the Ring, and with other coping mechanisms such as Shelob (he walked with her 'away from light and regret') and his monster boogeyman persona. Ring = gone. Shelob = renounced. Monster boogeyman persona = slowly letting go of as more trouble than it's worth. So all of the pain those things were masking is beginning to come back, starting with the grief of outliving

ALL

of his relatives.

Next, Gollum discovers that Mordor is visible from the walls of Minas Tirith and we neatly transition from his past trauma to his recent trauma!

If the wall had been soft enough to yield to his nails he would have scored deep lines into it.

Well. OK. Anything is theoretically soft enough to have lines scored into it at any pressure. This is a clunker.

"What was that yelling?" Guards. Gollum hopped over the wall and scaled it as quietly as he could. He had been quick enough- he was not discovered, despite his outburst.

Aragorn's asked the guards to pretend not to see Gollum unless he's doing something they need to intervene in. But some of them probably genuinely don't see him slip past in this chapter.

Gollum does canonically go into screaming fits when he's supposed to be in stealth mode I'm not 100% sure how he's alive.

So- I think the Minas Tirith walls are PRETTY HIGH and Gollum's climbing them a little too easy but maybe for him it's the equivalent of a walk up a hill? I don't know. He's enjoying being out and about.

There is some genuine culture shock starting to happen! Gollum compares neat and orderly Minas Tirith to other places he's been where people did wherever they want and made a mess everywhere, and is flummoxed.

Teenagers walk past chattering about hobbits. They- oh come on, that's really coincidental. They're talking about Gollum. I could have probably made this better by including somethin that cues them (like Gollum himself!) (he is right here) (looking sketch). They might even have seen him and thought he was a normal hobbit and mobbed him like a celebrity and carried the conversation to 'did you see the Ringbearer's monster?' So this could have been an easy fix but I didn't think of it and I didn't fix it, oh well.

Gollum doesn't like his reputation so he steps out and says something awkward and leaves. Again, this would have worked better if they'd approached him, because he's shy and really shouldn't have initiated a conversation, just left in a panic. No rewrites to published fic! Not ever! This one bugs me particularly because I used it as an excerpt in the summary, though. Like a showcase. And it's logistically unsound. Uwaaa

What if one of the young Men told about having seen him? He considered this, and decided there was not much risk from it- first, they had not known what he was or that anyone should be told at all, so at the worst they would only say they met someone odd in the street. Perhaps the description they gave would be recognized, but by the time such a thing happened Gollum would be too far away for it to matter. He was already too far away to be easy to find. And they would not know whom to tell about him, and might not even be allowed to speak to that person if they did. Their kind had so many rules about who was allowed to speak to whom!

I'm enjoying the shift in prose to tactical, strategic Gollum. He's not always uhhh doing the best job but he's now analytically thinking about what he's doing and making more conscious choices than he was when he was in 'I was Reincarnated As An Invalid In A City Full Of Strange Giants???' mode.

Here's a cat. Gollum toys with eating it, but he's gone soft and decides to follow it instead.

Gollum made a quick tour of the outside of the structure, and found that all the windows were boarded, and so were the doors. An abandoned house- cities at war had many of them, yes. Such prize habitats were often already occupied when he found them. If a cat was making its home in this one, though, there was likely nothing any bigger than that inside, unless perhaps there was a human owner.

I should have been more specific, I meant owner of the cat, not the house. A squatter. Also 'human' isn't a canon-appropriate term. This whole chapter feels like it's not quite as well-edited as some others. I remember I had to abruptly move to a new house halfway through the posting schedule of this fic, and maybe this was when that happened?

*checks* Yeah actually this was posted the week I found out we were going to have to find a new house, I think. I was preoccupied. Oh well.

I did not use a beta reader.

Anyway. Violence! Gollum kills and eats a bunch of mice. The house is infested.

Feeling empathy with the cat, he feeds it part of his kill and then goes into a food coma in the wardrobe.

Gollum squinted into the darkness. He was lying tightly curled on his side. A ball of fur was tucked up against his back and it was purring. "Ach!" he said, startling the cat awake. "No. No, no, no!" He took the cat by the scruff of the neck, picked her up, set her outside of the cabinet and closed the door on her before she could either come back in or get angry and scratch him.

You're "supposed" to give progress checks on your character's arc every so often. Gollum is now at 'cuddly enough to feed a cat' but not 'cuddly enough to cuddle a cat'.

[star-arcana]

In defense of Kieran from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: The battle for Ogerpon!

Hello guys, and I am back to write a response to people who think that Kieran was nothing more but a whiny brat over the final parts of Teal Mask and that his overall character is unsympathetic! Here I am here to explain Kieran's mindset and why ultimately much of the criticisms are unfair, and why the final battle in Teal Mask(the first Story DLC of Scarlet and Violet) needs to be seen with more nuance, but first some history:

Why was Kieran so obsessed with Ogerpon

Ogerpon was a Pokémon he always admired; It was a strong, independent Pokémon able to defeat 3 other mons at once ( Okidogi, Munkidori and Fezandipiti) despite being outnumbered. He admired it for it's strenght and ability to stand on it's own feet, something he felt never was able to do in his life, as his older sister, Carmine, constantly smothers and protects him, much to his dismay. Ogerpon because of this is an idol and something he wants to be like, by his own admission; "I...wanna try to get stronger. So I can do things for myself, you know? I'm gonna become someone people can rely on. Then, just maybe...I could be that ogre's friend." From this we can see that his main goal is to become someone who can protect and help people, someone who can fight on his own and doesn't need to rely on anyone, and if he is ever to become a capable and strong person that people want to rely upon, Ogerpon would be his friend. Another facette is that he doesn't fear Ogerpon like the people of his town, as they think, per legend, that this monster killed the protectors of their town in a blind and sudden rage, weakening it by sapping it of it's 3 other mask and thus making the Ogre relent. Kieran however doesn't hold that view and even admits to have ventured to it's layer, only to have it not found Ogerpon and the only thing that scared him were the adults admonishing him for this. Because of what I mentioned, Kieran has a massive love for Ogerpon, it's a symbol of strenght to him and a friend he wants to make friends with. His love by this alone for Ogerpon is genuine and no one denies this fact about him that Ogerpon is a Pokémon he truly admired and loved; It was the mon that represented what he wanted to be like, and not the weakling he was, it was someone cool and badass, someone he wants to be friends with. This is why he was unwillingly to accept that Ogerpon favored the player over him, because he wanted to be the like the player, someone strong and capable enough to have people rely upon and thus was more worthy of Ogerpon than he is. The player is what Kieran wanted to be like and got what he wanted, which made him feel like a loser and someone who couldn't be strong and independent, something he wanted to be like.

2. How and why did he fail then?

His failure can be squarely blamed on the fact that he was just not as capable as the player when it comes to battling. He indeed wasn't better than them. Ogerpon's first sight of the player and Kieran was battling them, which did garner her attention, but ultimately the player peeked her interest the most. Another reason was that Carmine really did a numbers on Kieran's self esteem with her controlling and mean attitude towards others and especially towards Kieran, leaving him to feel weak and unreliable. Her constant attempts to keep him from harm led to her do with the player perhaps the most irrational and senselessly stupid thing in the entire story; Lie about the fact that she and the player met Ogerpon at the festival. Carmine's reason is at surface understandable; She doesn't want to make Kieran feel bad for missing out on Ogerpon, thus feeling left out, and doesn't want him to run after it...but this reasoning is bollocks, wanna know why? With Ogerpon being confirmed real, it will be a matter of time to find her, regardless of how much Carmine would attempt to keep the truth from him. The More she and the player tried to keep this away from him, the worse his reactions is going to be like, because despite Carmine's insistance on this being for the best, this ironically left him out on Ogerpon and made him feel like an outcast who was denied the one thing he wanted the most; Meet and be friends with Ogerpon. The second reason on not wanting to get hurt, as many theorize, is also really dumb,because Ogerpon showed no signs of aggressiveness and can be dealt with by the player, and Carmine and Kieran, if things to south, so it was not like as if there was anything to fear. This reasoning got then even worse as justification as time went one when it was revealed by Yukito, her and Kieran's grandfather, who knows more about Ogerpon than anyone, that it was the good guy in the story and that the Loyal 3 murdered it's partner and took away the masks from her. Despite him not wanting to tell him the truth, even he admitted that Kieran got the closest at finding the truth, due to being a highly sensitive boy who clearly can empathize and understand Pokémon well...but all of this would be of no use, because Kieran, who had listened to the whole conversation and was still after it being lied to by everyone, stole the mask and expressed his anger, only for Carmine to give the most insinsere and inauthentic apology of all time leading with "Sorry... I didn't mean to-". Anyone who makes such a apology isn't worth to be listened to, since that places blame on the hurt party for feeling betrayed and dismissing how they feel, especially when you just broke their trust with such a stupid lie. Kieran had every right to dismiss her and while the theft was wrong, he was still justified in his anger, hence the player later apologized, with Kieran apologizing for the theft too. Afterwards, Kieran and the others meet Ogerpon and he wanted to give it the mask, but Ogerpon didn't grew accustumed to him, and because of this, Kieran gave the mask to the player, who handed it over to Ogerpon...which ruined a perfect chance to bond with Ogerpon, as this allowed the player to earn Ogerpon's affection more, and had Kieran tried to reach out to her, and not felt he wasn't as capable as the player, he could have gotten closer to it. Then, instead of going after the Loyal 3, who once more took the masks, he went to the village and convince them that the whole story about the Ogre and the Loyal 3 was wrong, and Ogerpon was the innocent part here. This ultimately prevented him from impressing Ogerpon directly with his abilities in battle against the kidnappers, and thus the player is put under it's radar. Still, Ogerpon was thankful for Kieran for clearing it's name, and ultimately warmed up to him...but the player was the one Ogerpon liked better and we would be the one to capture it. Kieran, who wanted to show that he can be someone worthy of Ogerpon, has had it enough, and takes his final shot and challenges the player to battle for Ogerpon!

3. The battle for Ogerpon at Oni Mountain!!!

Kieran loved Ogerpon since forever and it was his dream to meet and befriend it, but do you remember what I said earlier what Kieran wanted to be like? Basically someone people could rely upon, being someone who is strong, and capable, and doesn't need to be pampered like how Carmine does it for him, someone who can be the hero of the story...and eventually befriend Ogerpon. That person is the player character however, not Kieran, and that eats his soul alive. He wanted to be like that, only for the player to come in, swooping through all battles with ease, and winning over Ogerpon with the very strenght he always sought. This made Kieran envious and jealous, and not without any reason; Nobody believes in him. Carmine and Yukito trusetd the truth about Ogerpon to the player over him, despite having it already intuited out. Ogerpon trusted the player more than Kieran, and ultimately even Kieran trusted the player over himself, because the player always bested him without helping Kieran to get up stronger than before, and instead pursue like him Ogerpon, and win, as the heroes of that story. Kieran, knowing fully well that this would be selfish of him, and understanding that this is against Ogerpon's wishes, insisted to battle the player anyway, despite having no faith in them winning this, only the faint hope that he would win and prove that he is the better trainer for Ogerpon, even if he knows it to be untrue, his own words:

"I know I'm bein' real selfish... But, <player>! Please! Let me battle you! I want to see which one of us should get to keep Ogerpon with them!""...I want to battle anyway." I know you're probably a better Trainer for Ogerpon, but I...I..." "I knew I couldn't win. But I just couldn't give up...""I'm sorry..."

This shows less of a person who doesn't get it, but more of a person who wants one final shot to prove himself and others wrong that he is not worthless, and indeed a trainer worthy of Ogerpon...but he isn't, and the trainer is just better than he is as a battler. The request to battle, while selfish, was Kieran's right as a trainer to show Ogerpon and us, who is the better trainer for this Pokémon, and we and Ogerpon accept it, as we like him as a friend, and want to give him a chance to show us what he got. In the end what this is all about is no diffrent than what any trainer wants, to capture Pokémon, no matter how bad the odds are, so in the end, I can't be too hard on him for this request, as he deserves this chance. Ultimately, had the writers wanted us to think that this was completely innacceptable, then Kieran would have been denied by us and Ogerpon and not given this match, but since we respect him and his abilities, we allow this challenge and maybe he could have proven us all wrong, and gotten Ogerpon, who grew to like him, and would have changed her stance on him. So in the end, his lack of skill and confidence doomed any chance to get Ogerpon, not simply his selfishness, because Ogerpon values a strong partner and that is not sorely tied to moral purity, hence Ogerpon wanted a fight afterwards with us to see, if we can be her partner. This whole battle with Kieran was a battle between trainers wanting to see who can capture a legendary, and while he lost, this should be respected as a match no diffrent from any other competition for Pokémon, thus I respect Kieran as battler and person, and say, he earned the right to challenge us. However the battle did have negative consequences, like Kieran becoming battle-hungry and obsessed with victory, and this will only be fixed, when something else happens!

4. Addendum, the solution to all of this! Afterwards, in the Indigo Disk 1, we meet Kieran as an hyperaggressive and joyless battler that wants to crush us after we destroyed his dreams and hopes, and wants to destroy us (metaphorically). We defeat him, but he doesn't snap out of this until we meet together Terapagos and captures it forcefully with his masterball and after terastalizing it, it went rogue, attacked and nearly unalived Kieran, if not for our Koraidon/Miraidon saving him. This made him feel now completely uselsss, and is now convinced that he cannot do anything for anyone, like he did in the Teal mask storyline, but we need his help, we rely on his, because he is the only strong enough to help us contain Terapagos, and he does, because now he realizes that he is strong enough to be this person he wanted to be; Someone people could depend upon...but he is still not THE MAIN HERO, but A HERO, and that is enough for him to work through his issues and move on in life. He then becomes our sole companion in the epilogue and helps us defeat Pechurant and afterwards remains our friend until, probably, the end of time. This goes to show that ultimately if you help to built up people, they will help you, if you don't do this, they seek to destroy you.

That is it, how did you find, tell me in the comments below!

[televisionsyndrome]

most of the arguments i see in favor of pro endos come from people who have no idea what they're talking about, have little to no basis in psychology showing that they haven't read too far if at all into other psych theories and other philosophies/religions/cultures/etc that propose the idea that a "singular, wholly unified self" is not all that realistic for humans and is in fact centered pretty heavily in western hyperindividualism. most of the arguments pro-endos have boil down to "i found this survey" and "you don't know what's going on in other people's heads!"

but i'll take that over anti-endos any day because they're just as irrational if not moreso, on top of being western psychology supremacists and absolutely authoritarian about what does and doesn't quantify a "valid" human experience, when psychology, sense of self and identity are all painfully subjective and inexact. most of THEIR arguments rely quite heavily on putting absurd amounts of trust into a system that cares more about making people behave normally than it does about making them functional, defining "disorder" simply by what they consider to be ~abnormal behavior~ and not by how that person feels or functions in day-to-day life, and makes it their duty to incarcerate as many people in mental health facilities as possible for the purposes of making money, where victims of psychiatric abuse are pretty uniquely disregarded when they report because they're already dubbed "crazy" by authorities.

like it or not, most anti-endo arguments rely very heavily on the authoritarianism of western psychology, where their biased views of normal vs. abnormal behavior are immediately dubbed as Scientific and Objective not because of evidence, but simply because they say it is objective, and the effects of western imperialism on academia and psychology in other cultures make it so within the "academic canon", for lack of a better term. their arguments disregard other cultures and philosophies because western styles of psychology have already determined that anything that doesn't fit within it is incorrect, including ~abnormal~ yet harmless behaviors and beliefs, spiritual and philosophical beliefs, cultural behaviors and beliefs, etc.

no amount of saying "oh but the DSM has religious/cultural exclusion criteria" is going to change the fact that in practice, people get their religious, philosophical, spiritual and cultural beliefs disregarded as "crazy" constantly. because the culture of psychology within the imperial core is focused on confirming its own biases and beating people into behaving the way they want much more than it is on being truly objective or helping people.

this isn't to say that therapy, psychology or psychiatry are all complete bullshit, it's a lot like medicine and doctors in general where you have to go about it very carefully to get the help you need, but trying to argue about the existence of endogenics without acknowledging the inherent authoritarian nature of psychology as an institution or without getting into the philosophies of other religions and cultures re: identity/sense of self, shows that you simply don't know enough about this subject to actually be arguing about it.

like, you're seriously going to tell me that a perfectly functional endogenic system needs to go to therapy or take medication for being ~too weird~ despite having no more serious issues than the average person and you honestly expect me to believe that you're not buying into authoritarian bullshit? are you fucking serious right now? you're trying to tell me what is and isn't a "valid" part of the subjective human experience and you honestly expect me to believe that you have any genuine criticism of psychology as an institution? hello?

[thesummerstorms]

WIP folder challenge: post something with Arsinoë and an NPC!

Okay, so one thing I really wanted to explore with Arsinoë is that one of the most pervasive things in her life is ambiguity. It's part of the reason she's Like That, but also why she tries so, so hard to come across as equanimous and accepting even when that's actually an irrational response.

If you can't understand why what happened to you happened then the only thing you have left is what you choose to do with it, and when your choices are exceedingly narrow, then they all matter.

It's also why she has such a hard time accepting that Viago gives a damn about her deep down. In the very early days of him being her mentor, he fit the same pattern and so when he did finally become more open about caring for her, Arsinoë couldn't or wouldn't see it.

Also why she tends to overcommit/take on more than she should while denying her own importance to whatever she's doing.

Two OCs I have specifically from her childhood:

Knight-Templar Veronica Gallard- One of the Templars who captured Arsinoë as a child

Antivan/Free Marches “border child”.

She and two other Templars captured Arsinoë. Speaking in Antivan despite the Templars with her only speaking Trade, she convinced Arsinoë not to fight by telling her that her caregivers' blood would be on her hands, as would their neighbors, if it came to a fight. Might have been genuine when she said it, but it was still a lot to tell an eight year old.

Arsinoë learned her first name because Gallard let her borrow a few terrible moralist novels and books of the Chant on their way to Ansburg that bore the name “Veronica Gallard” inside. However, Arsinoë only ever addressed her as “Knight-Templar Gallard” at the woman’s own insistence.

Gallard is the one who changed Arsinoë’s name to “Camille” when handing her over to the Knight-Commander of the Circle after mentioning that Arsinoë's mother was too well known.

The charitable version is that she didn't want Arsinoë to be a target because of her apostate outlaw mother.

The less charitable version is that she was removing Arsinoë from the bad influence of her Antivan roots/her apostate mother by giving her an Orlesian name common among Chantry sisters and genuinely thought this would help her be better.

The least charitable version is she thought Arsinoë's mother's network might actually have the means to find her even in the Free Marches and was attempting to hide her away from their possible rescue.

Filomena of Bastion- An apostate sympathizer who was one of Antiklea Zangari’s (Arsinoë's mother's) network and who ultimately turned Arsinoë over to the Templars

Arsinoë hasn't seen this woman since she was eight, but she still gets hung up on those possibilities despite accepting that she'll never know

Wife/Widow: Claudia of Bastion, also not a mage

Antiklea left Arsinoë with her for a month or so while "working", being left behind with strangers was a pretty normal pattern in Arsinoë's childhood

Filomena was a former lover of Antiklea’s and may still have held feelings

Not unkind, but generally unconcerned with Arsinoë beyond making sure she was fed, clothed, and out of the way.

Brother was a mage who was killed when they were children because he was too frightened to reign in his magic

Arsinoë doesn’t know why Filomena gave her up: to protect herself and Claudia, to protect just Claudia if Filomena had accepted her own fate, or because she feared worse things would happen to Arsinoë if they all resisted capture

Possibly Gallard gave her a similar talk as the one Arsinoë got

Filomena was executed by Chantry officials within days of Arsinoë’s capture

Arsinoë was very surprised when Gallard offered to let her spread Filomena’s ashes and asked if that meant Claudia was also dead. Gallard confirmed she wasn’t, but wouldn’t say more. 

As you can kinda guess... when Viago eventually picked her up and part of his way of showing he cared was by poisoning/punishing/criticizing her with the intent of making her stronger... it just kind of added to this pattern for her even when he was also openly protecting her and showing affection in other ways.

Thank you for the ask!

[trucygoose]

what's one thing you genuinely think you're really good at/what's one thing you feel smart while doing?

...puzzles

i thought about that for a while. puzzles 100% of the time but also explaining my criticisms on stuff i dont like to my irls who are my age sometimes or also having heated discussions with my mum trying to break down the irrational parts of her worldview

[heinzpilsner]

Tadadada! Here's the epilogue to my 'Overanalyzing beach Maiko' series.

Firstly, let's list some main conclusion theses:

1) Mai became interested in Zuko's problems after he directly mentioned his scar and his relationship with Ozai for the first time, so her final change of attitude does make some sense.

2) The basis for Zuko's irrational jealousy was Mai's annoyed facial expression after he criticized Ruon-Jian.

3) The context of Zuko's jealousy rampage actually leaves a loophole for not-possessive interpretation (yay).

4) Despite how badly Zuko screwed up, Mai somehow managed to screw up even more (yep, still sounds contr-intuitive).

5) Mai actually expresses herself all the time and her "childhood trauma" is a big bullshit.

6) Apart from his inner crisis, Zuko has to fix many problematic attitudes and personality settings before he'll become a decent romantic partner for anyone.

7) So does Mai.

Something like this.

And now, a bit of old good boring and inaccurate psychology lecture mistake correction.

I think that I misinterpreted Zuko's side of "bring me food" scene, actually. You see, I saw it as conscious submission in order to avoid conflict with Mai, but...

It actually looks more like Zuko genuinely didn't realize that Mai's demand was not okay. He wasn't exactly eager to please her*, but he also didn't see her attitude towards him as problematic.

(*Not catching Mai's "I'm hungry" initial hint is kind of an indicator of Zuko's cool-off towards her. I mean, acts of service is his typical way of showing affection, which makes his sudden cluelesness pretty notable.)

Basically, Mai and Zuko in this scene demonstrate opposite facets of locus of control problem. Simply put, they both believe that Zuko is responsible for something he really isn't - in this case, satisfying Mai's hunger.

Later, though, it's Zuko who believes Mai owes him something - namely, to give him affection and meet his emotional needs. In his head, he gives responsibility for his emotional well-being to Mai and scolds her when she "ignores her duty" by not being "passionate" enough.

(But while Mai doesn't owe Zuko anything formally, she made a mistake of severely underestimating Zuko's contribution into relationship and his real value for her. This resulted in her coldness and lack of gratitude in response to his affection, which is quite a big relationship screw-up.)

Okaaay, and with that part out of the way, it's time for my final personal reflections.

In general, I have no doubts I made lots of other mistakes during my analysis. I tried my best, but to dissect relationship conflicts correctly, you need to have good feeling of personal boundaries and empathy of your own. And... Well. It's not exactly my forte.

I compensate for some things with theoretical knowledge, but my mind is a mess, so... Yep.

I feel like I have to go and read more psychological theory after this.

Also, I kinda tried to do an entertainment out of this, and roasting format doesn't exactly mix good with being objective. So, yep. It seems I got some kind of useless Frankenstein monster in the end, lol.

And finally... Perhaps I had to make it clear much earlier, but...

I have nothing against Maiko shippers or Mai fans. Ta-da!

I'm sure they have a lot against me now though, pffft.

I realize what I wasn't exactly restrained in my roasting, so it's natural for you to dislike me. But my goal wasn't to tell you what your preferences are inadequate or something. I mean, I myself ship much more toxic problematic shit (and have a weak spot for all sorts of flawed characters). It isn't supposed to be about being rational. You like it, I don't, it's ok.

Dunno, maybe someone needed to hear this.

That's all, I guess. If you were reading this series - thanks for your attention. Despite everything, it was a rather interesting experience for me, and I hope you found something useful for yourself too.

I wonder what I should analyse next >:D

I ignore all notifications, but maybe I'll make an exception soon. Ta-da! What a cliffhanger.

[kindofcuntess]

kinds of kindness (2024) holds a mirror to society's treatment of abusers and victims/survivors alongside mental health stigmas regarding trauma and mental illness and some of y'all could stand to take a closer look at yourselves ... a small piece of commentary on the third chapter

disclaimer: emily and yorgos have both answered to the importance of active viewing, shall we say, stating that this film does in fact require engagement, which is their less hostile way of invoking media literacy and critical thinking. they're trying to show (and correctly frame as evil) injustices that go on in the (aptly summed) "disturbing" world. the world doesn't come with didactic narration and therefore, essential to allowing for the improvement of one's perception is the film's refusal to tell you what's going on. treat it like you're in the real world given they actually do show all the filth others like to hide to maintain a facade about none of this evil in the first place. one of the implicit biases this film gratefully challenged me on was "cult members just choose to be brainless" and i'll get into it more below, but if you can manage to find things you may have missed or ideologies you need to unlearn through the film, you'll be better prepared to act with an impact that matches your intention with regard to treating people fairly along with the knowledge of what atrocities take place that are intentionally concealed such that we might try to effect change and prevent them.

this scene never fails to break my heart. it seems many find it difficult to connect with her or deem her robotic, but her soul is always brimming over the rigidity (i suppose people equate to having no emotion, which is problematic, but i digress) she's been confined to in no small part due to being in a 24/7 trauma response. here, she's sombered by the distance she must establish given her circumstance but also expresses such a humble demeanor. she's not doing this- risking what's as close to safety as she can find while still being able to travel back and look after her daughter-for praise. she's doing it because she genuinely loves her daughter, who is led to believe that HE gave her the shoes by none other than the abuser himself. taking credit is never a question despite apprehension that her daughter may wonder if she still loves her what with her not knowing the reason she fled from the home.

at this time, i will remind that her daughter could far too easily (thank systemic enablement of violence against women) end up worse off if she told someone and they believed him over her, who'd easily be able to frame her as a woman who simply abandoned him and their daughter to flock over to a sex cult but sans the wretched act he perpetrated that catalyzed her uncontrollable circumstances. in fact, i've seen the same reviewers who protest kok's cruelty victim-blame with this vile line of rhetoric that in turn matches the cult's (rendered in the film to represent society with a focal point on rape culture) victim-blaming, so no wonder they retaliate against a proper framing of their action.

anyway, i'd implore you to look up the social paradigm of cults targeting vulnerable populations. hint hint: people who've just experienced SA are one such population. emily expresses resistance to the cult's social views and is a fiercely intelligent independent thinker who's only betrayal of logic may be hanging on to the seemingly irrational/supernatural belief that bounds the cult: their possession of water with otherworldly properties. as indicated by her trauma syndromes, she was in a state of disarray as she instinctively fled an unimaginable situation and needed something to believe in after that shock to her system, hence the beliefs about water rooting themselves in her psyche. returning to emily's intentions in the gif, it is clearly established that she genuinely loves her daughter and it's one of myriad expressions of vibrancy that is simply more subtle than, say, bella baxter. both are valid. bella isn't too over animated, as i recall being spat out in large part to discredit emily's (emma) beautifully rich portrayal of a neurodivergent-coded character with a larger-than-life personality whose sci-fi aspects of existence in her fictional world make for a wholly unique way of being, and emily isn't too reserved. y'all just seem to enjoy coming after women who don't act how you want them to or how you do, both of which are poisonous to feminism. thank god emily and yorgos' film theory is informed with the kind of feminism that recognizes women are a heterogenous group different circumstances forge different lived experiences. i rest my case. kok emily (and emily irl) oh how i love you <3

[pear1escence]

My mother has this layer of patience when she’s around my sisters which completely dissipates when she’s around me. I genuinely can not make a single criticism on her or how she’s raising my sisters cause no matter how calmly I’m speaking there’s always ‘an aggressive tone’ I never thought I’d understand my father but Jesus fucking Christ I’d kill myself if I was married to someone so set on never taking responsibility for shit and being a victim no matter the situation. It hurts so badly to see her raise my sisters with so much patience and understanding, seeing her encouraging them to speak about their emotions, all these things that she never, ever did with me which I’m sure is part of why I’m so unable to function and deal with anxiety.

I cannot speak up about how I’m feeling or about something that’s bothering me because no matter what I say she reacts how she would towards a person being irrational, loud and aggressive. Completely stops talking to be and just graystones me and it makes me feel insane. I’d pay someone to just sit by and watch us arguing for them to tell me I’m not crazy or irrational cause it’s some of the most frustrating shit I’ve experienced

[broodwoof]

since idk how many blorbos i'm gonna do this for yet, i'm gonna start by just linking to the question post -> here <- and when i'm done i'll link all the posts to that :')

so for now... halcor brosca:

your Warden/Hawke/Inquisitor's opinion on Orlais?

indifferent, kinda? he never understood orzammar's high society, he sure doesn't understand orlais'.

are they skilled in The Grand Game?

lmao. hell no.

opinion on blood magic?

initially very wary, then more or less ambivalent. all magic is freaky, but he gets close with morrigan and realizes that she has control over her magic, so his opinion shifts substantially. he's also naturally inclined to question authority/conventional wisdom, so that is an aspect of this

attitude towards Andrastianism?

indifferent. it's a faith. he doesn't get it. some of its practitioners are assholes, some are nice, all of them are people.

attitude towards the Chantry?

early on: indifferent. as time progresses, though, he becomes more wary about it. he's... not Big on controlling sociocultural mechanisms in general.

attitude towards the Qun?

at first, very, very ignorant, with only fanciful stories to give any context. after meeting sten and hearing a bit more about the culture itself, his opinion becomes more grounded and more critical. overall, he's not a fan.

if they had to choose one person most important to them, who would that be?

rica and morrigan are pretty well tied, actually.

who do they hate the most, and do they have an arch-nemesis?

um… hm. he’s not really one for hate? the way he is, being casteless and all, he grew up expecting to get the short end of the stick, and he grew accustomed to that. I think he was very angry for a while growing up, but then that anger began to poison him and he worked - hard! for a long time! - on letting it go. now it’s like… are you going to be angry at the cliff because you fell down it? that’s kinda how he views things now. because of that, people being genuine, trustworthy, and kind freaks him out a bit. he keeps waiting for the betrayal. the point where keeping him in their good graces costs more than it’s worth. it’s part of why he gravitates towards morrigan - her anger and condemnation are open, obvious, transparent. so when it stops being directed at him, he actually trusts that.

that all said… probably leske. because that was a betrayal, a real betrayal, one that cut deep.

what is their love language? 

hm. don’t rly buy into love languages, but he’s pretty open with his feelings. less “i love you” and more “i think you’re glorious” all starry-eyed

are they good horse riders?

ehhhh… it takes a bit to get used to, but he gets there in the end!

what are their religious beliefs, if any?

none. if he prays - usually before a battle and out of desperation - it’s to the stone, although sometimes he casts a wider net “the maker, andraste, elven gods if you’re listening, whoever the qunari worship-” kinda thing

attitude towards Mabari?

okay so they are Big Dogs and he’s not used to dogs and they freaked him out at first!!!! but then he saved that mabari and now he loves them.

their thoughts on the Grey Warden order?

little opinion on it prior to joining; after joining, very “wtf, this is it?” because it should NOT have been just him and alistair for so long

who are they closest to from their family?

rica! 100%

preferred weapon of choice?

two daggers

do they get sentimental about their weapons or armour?

nope, although he appreciates having nice gear and he maintains it very well.

what were they like as a child?

angrier, bitter. tried hard to reach his mother. 

do they have any irrational fears?

falling into the sky is still sorta-kinda there. he prefers forests or mountainous areas; flat areas freak him out

are they afraid of death?

no

where would they like to be buried?

doesn’t think about it. probably doesn’t want to be buried at all though. burned, maybe.

what is their biggest regret?

not being able to help rica more. he feels like he abandoned her to run off with the grey wardens.

have they ever been to Tevinter?

nope

do they have, or want to have, children?

kieran is his son, although he hadn’t ever thought about having children before. he ends up wishing he could be a father to him, but of course morrigan goes her own way and he does not pursue her; he respects her choice, even if he disagrees with it. he thinks about kieran often, though

what languages can they speak?

common

what did they plan for their life to look like before the events of the game happened?

nothing good. surviving until he was killed.

do they get a happy ending?

not… really? he finds happiness, but it’s always fleeting. still, it matters.