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mj-dev · 3 months ago

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Long Post

I recently completed all the books in A Court of Thorns and Roses series and the first one in Crescent City. Both works are praised for their strong female leads and feminist characters which is the sole reason I decided to give them a try. And now, I have opinions.

Though the female characters show promise on the surface, it’s not the case when we look closely. Most of this analysis is based on the former series as it has the most varied range of female leads.

Feyre

In the beginning, Feyre heavily radiates masculine energy from her choice of hunting as occupation to the tired breadwinner mentality. She lacks empathy for her sisters and expresses her disdain clearly in her attitude and inner monologues when it’s clear they do the household chores, which translates to her disregard for the feminine work. She falls under the ‘not your typical girl’ archetype with her preference of pants over dresses and apathy towards her appearance. She makes an exception when she intends to please Tamlin. In the first book, it’s a one-time occurrence but over the course of the series, this becomes more prominent once Rhysand enters her life.

A woman, who refuses to be controlled, willingly plays Rhysand’s whore wearing the same dress he forced her into Under the Mountain when he sexually assaulted her. In Spring, Feyre expresses her fear of getting dolled up and reduced to a broodmare. While in Court of Nightmares, she takes pleasure in flaunting her body and putting on a sex act in front of an entire court. This transition apparently marks her taking back her power. She describes in great detail in her inner thoughts how she enjoyed kneeling to Rhysand as part of the act and the power he held over her and the room. This is the same woman who refused to bow to any fae in the first book. She feels empowered being reduced to a sex object for Rhysand and enjoys the discomfort it causes to the court, which she radiates as she walks down from the throne. Moreover when Keir disrespects her for it, she is offended by the insult but not for being put in the position. This becomes a role she actively and pleasurably plays in their court for the rest of the series.

None of her femininity translates to her emotional state. Except for the one scene in the mountain cabin where she heats a soup for Rhysand, she’s not portrayed indulging in womanly activities or mannerisms. Moreover, Feyre only embraces this side when she pleases a man. Tamlin, Rhysand, Tarquin. Despite her overtly masculine traits, she is equated to a goddess in Cassian’s monologue the moment she’s pregnant and paraded like a ‘breeding mare’ in Court of Nightmares.

Feyre’s story heavily pushes the idea that being feminine is only acceptable when it satisfies a man and his desires. Over and over again, a woman who doesn’t appreciate this way of living only ever embodies it to please her partners.

Nesta

Nesta is raised and groomed to be a housewife but she sheds that part of her life to become a warrior. This isn’t a choice of hers but thrusted upon her by the ones, mostly men, in her life as this is seen as the most contributing or ‘healthy’ way of living. Where healing through softness and compassion is an option and most needed given Nesta’s trauma and history, she’s subjected to more and more violence.

Nesta begins as someone bound to be a lady using her wits and charms as her weapons. But as the story progresses, she becomes a sword swinging warrior who becomes a close enough reflection of Feyre. A woman who won’t wear anything but dresses as it’s not lady-like becomes someone who only wears pants and slays demons for a man. A woman who wants to travel and read and enjoy simple life with her girl friends finds purpose becoming a weapon.

A woman who’s taught to treasure her body and never has sex for the same reason until she’s into her mid-twenties turns to it when she’s hurting and becomes sexually hyperactive to the point it’s considered an embarrassment. What’s interesting here is she’s forgiven for this when her sexual energy is focused towards the man(Cassian) everyone approves of.

Nesta enjoys reading romances, a classic hobby associated with women, which is either dismissed or joked about by Cassian. But the moment she trains to fight, he starts appreciating her. The same is seen during Eris’s seduction. Nesta’s dancing skills are known even before that and Cassian doesn’t acknowledge it until he sees her dancing with another man. Everything Nesta does or indulges in are somehow appreciated when they align with Cassian’s interests or what he desires in a woman.

Elain

The one character who is highly feminised in the series is Elain. She loves gardening, small talks and connecting with people, and surrounds herself with beauty. She learns to cook and enjoys feeding/nurturing her family. She’s often described as ‘kind’ and ‘delicate’. Even in Feyre’s thoughts, her body is sensualised and described in ways that imply sexual allure while her emotional traits are equated to child-like innocence. She’s the epitome of femininity and she’s the damsel that needs to be saved and protected by everyone at the end of the day. Sure, this could change in her book but the bottom line is her womanliness is very much in parallel with the misogynistic standards of what and how an ideal woman should be.

Morrigan

Morrigan is very in touch with her feminine side as her interests are wearing red dresses and painting her lips red and having sex (please hear my sarcasm). Her expression of liberation is lording her promiscuity over her parents and wearing provocative dresses in her court. In order to hide her true sexuality, she uses men to the point of using one of her close friends as personal flirting companion and leading the other on who’s been pining over her for five centuries. She’s the classic ideation of femme fatale with a heart of gold, yet has a childish, bubbly personality.

Amren

Throughout the series, Amren is more masculine than the male characters in some ways from her talks to behaviour. She’s an ancient creature trapped in a fae body. She’s so disgusted by it that she can’t grasp the need for eating specific food or relieving oneself. But what she truly understands and embraces in this body is her sexual urges. It is ultimately the one thing that helps her to bond with another person in her long life. Even if sex is considered as a universal act among all creatures or whatever, she should feel the same about eating and shitting which she doesn’t.

Bryce

Though she fares better than the A Court of Thorns and Roses (except SF) women, Bryce still falls victim to this pattern. She’s introduced as someone who parties and has sex without regrets which is sign of her independence. It forms most of her personality that everyone perceives her as such. This soon changes but the idea often lingers. She’s always found in her underwear (which could be considered a character quirk but I highly doubt that was SJM’s intentions) and all the male characters tend to love her or be attracted to her body at first sight. Over and over again, her sex appeal is brought to reader’s attention and one of the ways Bryce claims her feminine nature is being very confident with her sexual prowess.

There are several common themes and patterns in these books that heavily contradict the foundation of feminism.

Equality

Feminism, in simple terms, is equality of genders. In this series, it’s anything but that. Again and again, the words are mentioned but there’s simply not enough proof of it.

The Archeron sisters have no true autonomy. Feyre shares three different connections with Rhysand the majority of the time which gives him control over her thoughts and emotions to some extent. In Nesta’s can, Cassian transforms her into his ideal partner when she’s at the lowest in the name of healing. He often sees her as an animal to be tamed, and so far, he’s succeeded. In the end, Nesta becomes someone who questions her choices until Cassian or IC affirm it. Moreover, she has no financial independence or agency to choose how to live. And Elain is playing courteous guest in Rhysand’s house as she has no home or life of her own.

In Spring, Feyre who explicitly expresses her desires to be an equal to Tamlin complains when the opportunity is given to her to shoulder the responsibilities—socialising with the people serving her, dressing to be part of her court, and sitting through a tax collecting ceremony. While in Night, she becomes Rhysand’s soldier and goes on missions where she kills and maims in the most brutal ways possible. Though she is a ruler, her training and life is always focused on the arts of warring rather than administration which was requested of her in Spring. And once the wars are over, she complains about answering letters which are again tasks expected of a ruler. This shows what Feyre truly sees as equality is the chance to be violent.

Strength

The female leads are considered equal to their male counterparts only when they are progressively aggressive. Except for some side characters, almost all women prove their strength through their fighting abilities—Feyre, Nesta, Bryce, Morrigan, Amren. Elain, who has been a bystander until now, had her moment of courage when she embraced violence and initiated Hybern’s killing. This has brought many speculations about her future adventures mostly involving training like her sisters and becoming a spy, thereby proving the point.

Also, Feyre is only considered an equal to Rhysand after she inherits the powers of other High Lords. The same is seen in Nesta’s relationship with Cassian when everyone accepts her as his equal after she becomes a warrior. All this implies the strength of the men is the standard to which these women have to aspire to be, while none of the men are expected to change or challenge themselves to reach the level of their partners.

Appearance

They all possess extraordinary beauty that every male character is charmed with at the first sight and they either directly pursue these women or it’s implied. And at some point, their partners relish or wield this desirability against the said men—Rhysand against Tarquin, Cassian against Eris. This is prominent in Silver Flames as we get only some of Rhysand’s inner thoughts through Feyre. Cassian objectifies Nesta even when she’s emaciated, when she’s not fit—physically or mentally, after she’s sexually assaulted and almost dies. The value of these women are reduced to how appealing they are to the male gaze.

Sexuality

Most of these characters come with a sheltered view of world about how a woman should be or behave. When they finally step out of that bubble and embrace themselves and their new world view, they also become sexually proactive.

Every female character at least at one point describes being seen as a prey by their male partners. This can be attributed to the fae’s primal nature although it is a recurring theme in every relationship. Especially for Feyre, where she describes Rhysand’s gaze as predatory. She revels in this objectification to the point she derives pleasure by entertaining and putting on a show for him.

All these women exhibit hyperactive sex drive and have multiple partners with no emotional attachment which is seen as a sign of their empowerment. They always use sex as a means to ease their emotional trauma and they all have endured one variation of abuse at the hands of a man, mostly sexual, which they eventually explore and overcome by being sexually active—Feyre with Rhysand, Nesta with Cassian, Morrigan with her multiple partners. Elain’s attraction towards Azriel could very well fall under this category with her struggle to accept her fae life and mating bond with Lucien (and SJM loves trauma dumping).

There’s nothing wrong with owning one’s sexuality and putting one’s pleasure first but seeing it as the only path to empowerment is absurd, which is common theme in all theses women’s growth.

Life outside their romantic relationships

The female characters either come with a set of girl friends who are her ‘ride or die’ as in case of Bryce, or bond without much depth like in case of Feyre, Morrigan and Amren. The Valkriyes are the only exception to this where the women organically grow and build genuine friendships. Given the 4.5 books are dedicated to the Archeron sisters, there is no bonding among the three except for the blame shifting and one minute heartfelt conversation where their life-long trauma is erased and forgotten.

These women have hobbies which only exist to offer that touch of femininity to them—painting, gardening, reading smut, dancing, dressing themselves in pretty clothes (while male characters have no hobbies except for Tamlin and Lucien, and in case of Crescent City, all the men are into the same sport). Their ‘softer’ traits only rear its head when the narrative calls for proof of their kindness or empathy and mostly reserved for their partners but not in the way of living or their character itself.

Here’s the bottom line. Feminism in these books is masculinity masquerading as female empowerment. Throughout the series, what makes these women powerful is their ability to match the men in their lives. They are equal because of the brute force they embody on par with them which is basically the masculine ideal of strength. The faux feminism propaganda is blatantly obvious with the woman’s value constantly reduced to how much she is desired by men and her hyperactive sex life. These books are nothing but a mockery of feminism.

#this was a fucking trip!#book analysis #character analysis #reading #bookblr #I am more critical of the author than the characters #but adding tags to avoid pros/stans #acotar critical #sjm critical #rhysand critical #feyre critical #cassian critical

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sisyphusrequiem · 5 months ago

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AFFOGATO COOKIE ANALYSIS! +some art

Affogato cookie, my favourite in the game and one of the most underrated… and hated, for decent reason.

He also stands as one of the most mysterious, with little to nothing being given regarding his core motivations or past. As a result, this is my psychoanalysis of Affogato Cookie, and what his past may look like!

Starting off with evidence we can draw from the main quest, we can easily surmise that:

- Affogato is intelligent, cunning and manipulative. He knows what to say to sway people to his side, and make their opinions into his. He holds a subtle disdain for Dark Cacao through his dialogue when conversing with and about him, as if he has to force himself to say the words ‘My Lord’ and such.

- He shows an apathy towards the people of the kingdom, and yet also shows respect. He is quick to turn away villages desperately seeking need, but quick to reward those who follow him. Despite his cruelty regarding everything, he states his wish as a ruler is to “Make all cookies in this Kingdom able to spend their days happy and free.”

- Regarding his past he says, “Most of my life I was down on my knees. Even the moments I was allowed to sit in a chair, none of them were spent in comfort.”

- And, when sharing delicacies, he seems to favour the priests most.

Evidence outside of main quest:

- His description says: Affogato Cookie spent restless years without a place to belong until he came up with a simple solution: to create a land of his own once and for all! He appeared out of nowhere on a frigid night in the Dark Cacao Kingdom and has been busy earning the trust and favour of the locals with the help of his strange concoctions and mysterious chants.

- One of his ascension quotes is: "The Coffee Village? I barely remember my time there... "

- And his loading screen trivia reads: "After leaving his home, Affogato Cookie wandered the land and learned a lot about magic and witchcraft."

With all this evidence compiled, this is my theory for his past and motives!

It can be believed he grew up in the coffee village, spending his childhood years there. Since, however, he hardly remembers his time there, it can be assumed it was destroyed long ago, from a rough timeline of Affo’s pre-teens to young adult years. The description for its place on the map says ‘the only known home location has been left abandoned and in disarray.’ This means the villagers must have left in a hurry, so it can be theorised that something must have attacked, possibly some wild animals, especially since something similar happened to the Milk Tribes village.

He said he spent his time without a place to belong, suggesting he was travelling alone. Because of how destroyed the coffee village was, and how little we’ve seen of other coffee tribe residents, we can make the assumption Affogato cookies parents, caretakers, and/or other family died in the attack, if they weren’t already dead prior to the destruction of the village.

My belief is this event made him want to become ruler of the kingdom, so he could prevent it from ever happening again, and could protect all other tribes and villages in the area. I also believe that as time went on, this belief became distorted, until he began to prioritise his own role as leader as the most important thing. I still do believe he desired prosperity within the kingdom, but we’ll discuss that later!

Following his travels we know he learned many things about magic, witchcraft, and manipulation tactics. However, there aren’t many other specifics to fill this large gap of time in his life. From comments such as “Most of my life I was down on my knees”, his knowledge of ‘mysterious chants’, his favour of the priests, and even his decor, where he burns incense and prays, it can be surmised he was a priest or at least performed religious rites. Whether or not this is something he did as a kid, and then continued to do as a way to make money or simply devoted himself to such a thing, or if it’s something he picked up along his travels and then decided to utilise is unclear, but we know it’s a talent he picked up. It also suggests his ‘strange concoctions’ may be a form of apothecary, and that this may also be a job he picked up or pursued, perhaps even both at the same time to make ends meet and further his skills?

Finally, his lovely entrance into the Dark Cacao Kingdom itself! It says he appeared on a frigid night, quite possibly using a vulnerable day as a way to make himself appear as a sort of angel, helping them at their most desperate, and earning their trust. He probably started as a helper, earning the affection and approval of the locals (which was probably easy even without manipulation, because he had first-hand experience of the difficulty of surviving without security!), before working his way up as an apothecary, priest, (these are both implied in: ‘busy earning the trust and favour of the locals with the help of his strange concoctions and mysterious chants’) and finally becoming the king's right hand man. Then it continues on with the events we already know from the main story.

From my theory of his past, these are what I surmise as his motivations: Following the destruction of his village, he wished he could become ruler so other villages could stay protected and be safe forever. Along his journey of furthering his skills, he began to lose sight of this goal and instead wished to become ruler of the land and have everyone under his rule. However! My belief is when he became ruler, he looked back on his previous wish of safety, and thought while safety is important, comfort should be valued above all. Spending his life on his knees and in discomfort, he wishes for everyone who went through similar things to no longer have to suffer the way they always have. He begins to slow the security of the walls surrounding the kingdom because he prioritises his subjects happinesses before their security, the complete opposite of Dark Cacao.

Dark Cacao and Affogato parallel each other in a way no one else seems to realise, with Affo growing up in harsh environments and wishing for no one else to experience the same, sacrificing their security to do so, and Dark Cacao, following the dark flour war, became so terrified of losing his citizens that he put all his focus into security, sacrificing their happiness to do so.

It’s sort of tragic, two people who at their core want what’s best for the kingdom, but can’t seem to find a mix between protection and comfort like they should. I genuinely think if they worked together they could make the kingdom as great as it could— (gets dragged off stage) “”HEY HEY!!!! I WASN'T GOING TO RANT ABOUT AFFOCAO— DON'T BOO ME????””

Regardless, I really hope they do expand on Affo’s character!! If you have any alternate theories or headcanons you wanna add on feel free to hit up my inbox or add your own tags to the post!

#crk #cookie run kingdom #cookie run #crk art #cr kingdom #crk affogato #affogato cookie #affogato crk #crk theory #affocao #slightly #but I’m adding it anyway #also. special headcanon! affogatos very scared of wolves because of what happened to his village #he actively avoids crunchy chip cookie at all costs for this reason!#I’m back hello to the 7 other affocao fans

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