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gimme-mor · 3 years

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ACOTAR THINK PIECE: ELAIN AND THE CONCEPT OF CHOICE

*DISCLAIMER*

Please take the time to read this post in its entirety and truly reflect on the message I am trying to send before commenting. My goal is to use my background in Gender and Women’s Studies to deconstruct the behaviors and comments I have seen on Tumblr and Twitter, and, more importantly, bring awareness to the ACOTAR fandom. I WILL NOT tolerate anyone who tries to twist my words and say I am attacking people and their personal shipping preferences. In fact, I AM CRITIQUING THE ARGUMENTS THEMSELVES NOT THE PEOPLE USING THE ARGUMENTS.

As someone who has been a long time lurker on all sides of the ACOTAR fandom, the growing toxicity and hostility has become more apparent to the point that civil discourse is, for the most part, entirely lost. More times than not, the cause of the communication breakdown centers around Elain and the relationships she has with those around her. Before and after the release of ACOSF, I’ve noticed that when the fandom expresses its opinions about Elain and her development as a character, whether in a romantic light or generally, the conversation wholly hinges on the concept of choice. Common examples I’ve seen include:

Elain has been stripped of her choice for a majority of her life

Elain should be able to make her own choices

The King of Hybern took away Elain’s choice to be human when he had her tossed into the Cauldron

Elain did not choose the mating bond for herself, instead it was forced upon her

Elain feels pressured to choose Lucien

Elain should have the choice to stray away from what is expected of her

Elain and Azriel being together represents a different and stronger type of love because she’s choosing to be with him

If you ship Elucien, you’re not Pro-Elain because you’re taking away Elain’s right to choose who she wants to be with and forcing her to accept the mating bond

Elain chose to accept Azriel’s advances in the bonus chapter

When Rhysand called Azriel away after catching him and Elain together, Elain was stripped of her choice to be sexually intimate with Azriel

When Azriel and Rhysand are talking in the bonus chapter, Elain’s choices aren’t at the center of their conversation

If you suggest that Elain should leave the Night Court, you’re stripping Elain of her choice to remain with her family

If you suggest that Elain should be friends with someone else, you’re ignoring Elain’s choice to be friends with Nuala and Cerridwen

Why is the concept of choice exclusively tied to Elain and everything surrounding her character while simultaneously ignoring that other characters in the ACOTAR series have, to varying degrees, been stripped of their choices at some point in their lives? And why isn’t the concept of choice connected to these characters in the same way that it is connected to Elain? For example:

Did the High Lords strip Feyre of her choice to consent when they turned her into a High Fae?

Did Tamlin and Ianthe strip Feyre of her choice to consent when they started to control every aspect of her life in the Spring Court?

Was Vassa stripped of her choice when the other Mortal Queens sold her to Koschei, which resulted in her being cursed to turn into a firebird?

Was Feyre stripped of her choice to know the risks involved in the pregnancy?

Did the King of Hybern strip Nesta of her choice to be human when he had her tossed into the Cauldron?

Was everyone stripped of their choices under Amarantha’s rule?

Was Feyre stripped of her choice to just be a daughter and a sister when the Archeron family failed to contribute to their survival, which resulted in Feyre being the family’s sole provider?

Did Lucien’s family strip him and Jesminda of their choice to be together when they killed her because of her status as a Lesser Faerie?

Are Illyrian females stripped of their choice to consent when their wings are clipped?

Did the Hybern general strip Gwyn of her choice to consent?

Did Ianthe strip Lucien of his choice to consent?

Did Keir strip Mor of her choice to consent to her engagement to Eris?

Universally, femininity is synonymous with weakness and women often face discrimination because the patriarchy is part of an interactive system that perpetuates women’s oppression. Since the ACOTAR universe is set up to mirror a patriarchal society, it’s clear that the imbalance of power between males and females stems from sexism. The thing that sets Elain apart from other female characters in the ACOTAR series is the fact that SJM has portrayed Elain as a traditionally feminine character based on her actions and the ways in which Elain carries herself. Compared to them, Elain is inherently held to a different standard because her femalehood takes precedence over other aspects of her character in fandom discussions. These conversations indirectly place Elain on a pedestal and hail her as the epitome of traditional femininity; and when her character is criticized in any way, it’s seen as a direct attack against women, specifically women who are traditionally feminine. Also, these conversations fall back on Elain’s femaleness when analyzing her character since it can be assumed from a reader’s perspective that Elain, despite being the middle sibling, is coddled by those around her because her ultra-feminine nature is perceived as a sort of weakness in need of protection. However, the fact that the concept of choice is used as an argument to primarily focus on Elain’s femalehood highlights the narrow lens through which Elain, as a character, is viewed. It implies that Elain’s femaleness is all her character has to offer to the series overall and insinuates that Elain’s character development is dependent on her femaleness. To suggest, through the choice argument, that ACOTAR’s patriarchal society constrains Elain’s agency and prevents her from enacting her feminist right to choose while failing to examine the patriarchal structure of the ACOTAR universe and its impact on the female characters in the series, the choice argument ultimately falls apart because it shows that it’s only used to focus on Elain’s femalehood. Furthermore, the implication that Elain’s right to choose is, in itself, a feminist act in the series indicates that the concept of choice as an argument is used to promote choice feminism.

Feminism is a social movement that seeks to promote equality and equity to all genders, and feminists work toward eradicating gender disparities on a macro-level, in addition to challenging gender biases on a micro-level. Historically, feminism prioritized the voices of white women, specifically white women who were cisgender, able-bodied, affluent, educated, and heterosexual. But over the decades, the inclusion of women of color and other marginalized women’s voices has broadened the scope of feminism and caused it to take an intersectional approach when discussing social identities and the ways in which these identities result in overlapping systems of oppression and discrimination. On the other hand, choice feminism, a form of feminism, greatly differs from what feminism is aiming to accomplish. In the article “It’s Time to Move Past Choice Feminism”, Bhat states:

“Choice feminism can be understood as the idea that any action or decision that a woman takes inherently becomes a feminist act. Essentially, the decision becomes a feminist one because a woman chose it for herself. What could this look like? It could really be anything. Wearing makeup is a feminist act. Not wearing it is also a feminist act. Shaving or not shaving. Watching one TV show over another. Choosing a certain job over another. Listening to one artist over another. Picking a STEM career. Choosing to dress modestly or not. The list goes on. At first glance, there does not seem to be an apparent negative consequence of choice feminism. A woman’s power is within her choices, and those choices can line up with a feminist ideology. For example, a woman’s decision not to shave may be her response to Western beauty standards that are forced onto women. Not shaving may make her feel beautiful, comfortable, and powerful, and there is nothing wrong with that. Women making choices that make them feel good is not the issue. The issue lies in calling these decisions feminist ones. Choice feminism accompanies an amalgamation of problems‒the first being that this iteration of feminism operates on faulty assumptions about said choices. Liberal feminism neglects the different realities that exist for different women‒especially the difference between white women and women of color, transgender women and cis women, etc. Not all women have the same circumstance and access to choices, not all choices made by women are treated equally, and not all choices are inherently feminist” (https://www.34st.com/article/2021/01/feminism-choice-liberal-patriarchy-misogyny-bimbo-capitalism).

Just as white feminism ignores intersectionality and refuses to acknowledge the discriminations experienced by women of color, choice feminism and arguments supporting choice feminism have, by default, made the concept of choice exclusionary. The individualization of choice feminism glorifies the act of a woman making an individual choice and, by extension, gives the illusion that women’s liberation from gendered oppression can be achieved by enacting their rights to make personal, professional, and political choices. Herein lies the problem with choice feminism: it (the argument of “But it’s my choice!”) stifles feminist conversations from exploring the depths and intricacies of the decision making process because it’s used as a way to shut communication down entirely, shield arguments from criticism, and condemn those who criticize choice feminism for its disconnection from a larger feminist framework. Contrary to what choice feminism advocates for, it lulls the feminist movement into complacency because women’s individual choices do nothing to alleviate gendered oppression. Choice feminism’s leniency towards choice fails to address the limitations of choice in regards to women’s intersectional identities and enables society to shift the blame of women’s oppression away from the societal and institutional structures in place to women themselves for making the wrong choices that ultimately resulted in their circumstances. Choice is not always accessible to every woman. For instance, choices made by white women are, in some way, inaccessible to women of color, in the same way that choices made by cisgender women are inaccessible to transgender women. Choice is one of the founding concepts of the feminist movement and it “became a key part of feminist language and action as an integral aspect and rallying call within the fight for reproductive rights‒the right to choose whether or not we wanted to get pregnant and to choose what we wanted for our bodies and lives” (https://www.feministcurrent.com/2011/03/11/the-trouble-with-choosing-your-choice/). When choice, in a feminist context, is framed as something that is solely about the individual as opposed to the collective, the feminist foundation on which it stands “leads to an inflated sense of accomplishment while distracting from the collective action needed to produce real change that would have a lasting effect for the majority of women” (https://www.jacobinmag.com/2017/03/i-am-not-feminist-jessa-crispin-review/).

By linking the choice argument with choice feminist rhetoric and extreme acts of progressiveness, it plays into today’s negative understanding of a social justice warrior and normalizes fake wokeness. In its original conception, a social justice warrior was another way to refer to an activist and had a positive connotation; nowadays, the term carries a negative connotation and is:

“. . . a pejorative term for an individual who repeatedly and vehemently engages in arguments on social justice on the Internet, often in a shallow or not well-thought-out way, for the purpose of raising their own personal reputation. A social justice warrior, or SJW, does not necessarily strongly believe all that they say, or even care about the groups they are fighting on behalf of. They typically repeat points from whoever is the most popular blogger or commenter of the moment, hoping that they will ‘get SJ points’ and become popular in return. They are very sure to adopt stances that are ‘correct’ in their social circle” (https://fee.org/articles/how-the-term-social-justice-warrior-became-an-insult/).

Today’s perception of the term social justice warrior is directly tied to fake wokeness because both are performative in nature, fueled by the drive to be seen as progressive, and derail necessary conversations from taking place by prioritizing toxicity. According to the article titled, “Three signs of fake ‘wokeness’ and why they hurt activism”, it states:

“. . . social media did not create activism: it did, however, create a legion of hashtags and accounts dedicated to issues . . . Sadly, fake woke people will use these hashtags or create these accounts, see that as contributing to a cause, and just call it a day; these same people tend to shame those without the same level of interest or devotion to a given cause . . . Ironically, as open-minded as the fake woke claim to be, they struggle to deal with opposition. More often than not, those who fit the fake woke bill will ignore, misconstrue, or shutdown anything remotely opposing their stances . . . Now yes, human nature often leads us to possess a bias against that which contradicts our views, but human nature should not serve as an excuse for irrational behavior. Opposition to our stances on issues helps activists more than it harms: it allows them to look at the causes they champion from a perspective they possibly ignored before, further enlightening them. More importantly, by discovering information that may refute what they believe, they can find and eliminate any flaws in their reasoning and strengthen their arguments. Activism involves opening up to change, something one stuck in an echo chamber can never achieve” (https://nchschant.com/16684/opinions/three-signs-of-fake-wokeness-and-why-they-hurt-activism/).

Rather than critiquing ideas, thoughts, and theories about Elain and her character development with textual evidence, the concept of choice as an argument is used to silence opposing viewpoints. This is similar to choice feminism because the conversations start and end with the concept of choice, leaving no room for a critical analysis of Elain’s character. Although the concept of choice as an argument is intended to shed light on how ACOTAR’s patriarchal structure limits females’ agency to some degree, the fact that it’s only applied to Elain invalidates the point of the argument because it doesn’t include the experiences of other female characters when examining the impact of sexism in the ACOTAR universe. The failure to do so calls the intent of the choice argument into question. As it stands, the concept of choice as an argument frames Elucien shippers and those who are critical of Elain as woman haters, misogynists, and anti-feminists, especially if they identify as women. The belief that a woman is anti-feminist or a woman hater any time she dislikes another woman suggests that women have to be held to a different emotional standard than men. If men are able to dislike other individual men without their characters being compromised, why can’t women? Feminism and what it means to be a feminist do not require women to like every woman they encounter. One of the many things feminism hopes to accomplish is granting women the same emotional privileges afforded to men.

Terms like “oppression”, “the right to choose”, “feminist”, “feminism”, “anti-feminist”, “anti-feminism”, “internalized misogyny”, “misogyny”, “misogynist”, “sexist”, “sexism”, “racist”, “racism”, “classist”, “classism”, “discrimination”, and “patriarchy” are all used in specific ways to draw attention to the plight of marginalized people and challenge those who deny the existence of systems of oppression. Yet these words and their meanings can be twisted to attack, exclude, and invalidate people with differing opinions on any given topic. When social justice and feminist terms are thrown around antagonistically and carelessly to push a personal agenda, it becomes clear that these terms are being used to engage in disingenuous discourse and pursue personal validation rather than being used out of any deep-seated conviction to dismantle systemic oppression. The personal weaponization of social justice and feminist concepts is a gateway for people who oppose these movements to strip these terms of their credibility in order to delegitimize the societal and institutional impacts on marginalized people.

It’s important to question how an argument is framed and why it’s framed the way that it is to critically examine the intent behind that argument: is it used as a tool to push a personal agenda that reinforces dismissive, condescending, and problematic behaviors, or is it used as an opportunity to share, learn, enlighten, and educate? The concept of choice as an argument is extremely problematic because: it limits fruitful discussions about Elain within the fandom; enables arguments that oppose opinions about Elain and her narrative development to masquerade as progressive by pushing social justice and feminist language to their extremes; normalizes the vilification and condemnation of individuals who are either critical of a ship, Elain as a character, or prefer her with Lucien; encourages an in-group and out-group mentality with differing opinions about Elain’s development resulting in politically charged insults; exploits social justice and feminist terms; ignores that harm done on a micro-level is just as damaging as harm done on a macro-level; and cheapens Elain’s character and her development.

There is more to Elain than her being a female who is traditionally feminine. Elain has the potential to be as complex of a character as Feyre, Nesta, Rhysand, Lucien, Cassian, Azriel, Amren, and Mor, and to reduce her character to her femalehood in fandom discussions is a disservice to Elain as a character, the ACOTAR fandom, and SJM’s writing. So I ask this: is there a reason why the fandom heavily emphasizes the concept of choice when discussing Elain that goes beyond a simplistic analysis of her as a character (i.e. using the concept of choice as an argument to reinforce Elain’s femaleness), or is the concept of choice used as a shield to prop up one ship over another?

gimme-mor library

#elucien #elain archeron #acosf #acotar: fandom critical

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delightful-mystery · 3 years

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The Taylor Swift problem

In which I get to speak about both Taylor Swift AND Twilight in the same post.

2020 was the year Twilight came back. Sure, for those of us who never deleted Tumblr (guilty), it never really left – and we got to see the Renaissance creep up and take over the discourse first hand. But for the majority of the population, Twilight was a late 00s phenomenon which returned in full force in 2020 with the publication of Midnight Sun, bringing with it a reappraisal in critical thinking about the original texts which were originally panned universally by everyone but their target audience – teenage girls.

With the release of lockdown albums folklore and evermore, as well as the re-recording and re-release of her first few studio albums (Fearless is out today you guys!!), Taylor Swift, in a way, conducted her own renaissance – not necessarily in terms of popularity but in critical appeal.

For the purpose of this essay, I am going to divide her career into three separate and significant eras. First, the teenage girl era. This is everything pre-1989, i.e. before she went mainstream-pop. Then, there’s the pop era, which is 1989 to Lover. And then, the renaissance era, the reappraisal of her music which came with folklore, evermore, and everything else to the present day. I think these three eras follow the way I interacted with her music (she lost me somewhat during the pop era) but also follows a few significant moments of her career – most notably, critical success in the “muso” world, and the rise of streaming.

I’m going to look at the differences between these eras, specifically the ways in which her music was received and judged by music critics and the world around her, and what the reasons for those judgements may have been.

THE POWER OF FANDOM

Similar to Twilight, Taylor Swift’s music was very much aimed at teenage girls. Hell, Swift was a teenage girl when she wrote those songs, having been hired as a songwriter since the age of 15. It doesn’t take much to see how hated teenage girls are, from all walks of life – the pressure to be attractive and adhere to the male gaze is something you can be aware of since the early ages of 9,10,11, and it’s as a teenager you begin to be expected to perform femininity. This leads to insecurity, which makes the age group an easy target, which perpetuates the cycle more.

We can see this happen with the release of Taylor Swift’s first four albums – albums which broke records, sold millions, and won over the vast majority of the population, except the more serious muso blogs, who largely dismissed her as commercial pop nonsense not worth reviewing. In massive interviews with Ellen Degeneres, she was dismissed as a boy-crazy girl, known in memes the internet over as a serial dater, and slut shamed just as often as she was belittled and patronised. She wasn’t taken seriously as a person, nor as a songwriter.

While her empire seemed to grow throughout the pop era, it was only mainstream success that she found – something superficial which was connected to the sheer numbers she managed to turn, Grammy awards for Album of the Year, but with next to no support from the smaller and more serious critics in the industry.

I kind of hate this dress ngl.

RENAISSANCE, REAPPRAISAL

But that all changed with the release of folklore and evermore. The star who had (at least) a year off of trying to fill stadiums was able to retreat inwards and create indie folk albums which were universally loved by critics and fans alike. However, it was Pitchfork who surprised me the most (and inspired this blog post). On the release day of folklore, the critical juggernauts decided to have a ‘Taylor Swift Day’, wherein all of the singer’s previous releases were given the Pitchfork treatment, treated like a serious release for the first time in their history. It may be that this is the mark of how far we’ve come as a culture in accepting what used to be classed as embarrassing and juvenile, but to me the gesture smacked as something utterly insincere, a hasty rush to right a wrong which should never have happened in the first place.

It’s not just the songwriting, the times changing, but it’s also the context in which this album was released – lockdown brought a plethora of weird emotions, but one of the biggest stars in the world retreating into her own little fantasy world instead of the lavish romances she was usually acting out was exactly what the world was craving at that time. We’re also, as a culture, less afraid to admit to what we like. This article discusses the death of the guilty pleasure in music, and it’s something which has, in part, led to more and more pop music gaining critical appraisal in recent years, something which was not always around at the beginning of Swift’s career. The slow-but-steady dismantling of internalised misogyny, alongside the rise of feminism in the mainstream has led to more solidarity between women.

SO WHAT NOW?

But to praise her now, at the point of her career when her songwriting is more “mature” sends a message that Swift’s teenage songwriting still wasn’t worth our time at the point of release. There’s still a long way to go. But Taylor Swift suffered at the hands of the press cycle for so many years so that artists like Carly Rae Jepsen and her brilliant bubblegum pop can be taken seriously and become an indie darling of the industry. And she sings about boys all the time! The re-release of Taylor Swift’s back catalogue is, I believe, a crucial moment for the work of and for teenage girls to begin being taken more seriously in the music industry and in the world as a whole. And it’s a chance for Taylor to get the love and respect she’s always deserved.

Thank you so much for reading! Now let’s all go dance in the rain in our best dresses.

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram @thebechdelbitch for more shenanigans.

from The Taylor Swift problem

#The Taylor Swift problem #personal #mylife

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thealpacalypse-archive · 5 years

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A handy guide to avoid accidental transphobia

For cis people in the Druck fandom who write fic, headcanons or meta and don’t wanna mess up

Including questions like: Is David trans? Is he beautiful? Is he wearing a binder this whole damn time?? What’s his story?

hey everybody, I’ve debated making this post for a while now because I don’t want to seem ungrateful to the people who are already trying, and I know that there are other trans people in this fandom who are already doing a pretty good job educating people, but then again, why not share my thoughts as well.

In this post, I’ll collect a few headcanons, meta, and other discussions that i’ve seen around here and that made me personally uncomfortable - now be aware that i’m only one trans person and that other people can have other opinions on this, but also i’ve done trans activism for a few years now and i’m a gender studies major, so I definitely know what i’m talking about. also, a fair warning: this is gonna get long as heck. okay, let’s go.

Is David trans? The truth is: We don’t know yet. We only know that the actor who plays him, Lukas Alexander, is a trans guy. Now I’ve seen various people speculate if that automatically has to mean that David is trans as well, and obviously, no. David could be cis for all we know, and yes, casting trans actors in cis roles can be a pretty cool thing. However, if you’re cis, it would be cool if you reblog trans people’s opinions on this instead of shouting loudly about your own opinion, especially if it is that David should be cis for whatever reason. Why is that problematic? Trans activists are currently fighting for representation in media. There aren’t many trans characters we can look up to, especially not such young characters in a show that has such a big impact on a generation of young people. Many trans teenagers have never seen themselves represented in media, and many trans adults like myself are still craving for that good, good representation. Most of the time when we get trans characters, they’re played by cis actors - and because it’s mostly cis men who play trans women and cis women who play trans men, it perpetuates the idea that trans people are just especially well dressed up men and women who trick people into believing they’re ‘the other sex’. (ugh) Even though that’s a different problem, it links to this one as well, because trans stories in media are rare, and it’s even rarer to have them portrayed by trans actors. Yes, it would be revolutionary and gender-redefining if trans actors could play cis characters (or just characters whose cis or trans status is never brought up in the first place), but that’s one step ahead of the game in my opinion and tbh, cis people saying that they want David to be cis for whatever reason is just... suspicious.

Is David beautiful? Well, I’m sure we can all agree that this boy is a sight for sore eyes, and i’m pretty proud of this fandom for weeding out the transphobic assholes who called him ugly at the beginning of the season. I’m sure by now they’ve all seen the error of their ways because HECK, in levels of attractiveness, David is a king. Though it might not be the best to call him ‘beautiful’, ‘pretty’ or other usually female-gendered words when you’re cis and describing him. Why is that problematic? Listen, there’s absolutely nothing inherently bad about calling boys pretty or beautiful or whatever - I personally am an absolute goner when it comes to soft boys™ and their aesthetics, and I also think that denying boys to be soft and pretty is misogyny in a way, because it’s implying that female-coded things are bad. However, there are many trans boys (and other trans and nonbinary folks who were assigned female at birth) who feel uncomfortable when these words are used for them because it can be linked to misgendering or remind them of times before they were out. Trans people are often highly aware of their body and looks, because the way we look is heavily observed, judged and policed by society, and most of the time, being seen the (gendered) way we identify is the only way we get respect and basic decency. We don’t know yet if David personally has a problem with being called beautiful or whatever, but we also don’t know how the actor who plays him feels about that, and there are a couple of trans boys in this fandom who’ve already expressed their discomfort with these words. So in order to protect them and make this fandom safe for them, it seems like a small price to pay to consider our choice of words more carefully when we describe David, and try to avoid female-coded words.

What about David’s chest? Now this one is tricky. I’ve seen discussions about it a lot: Does David wear a binder, did he wear it the whole time he was with Matteo, does he maybe not even bind, did he have a mastectomy? The underlying tone of these discussions is worry - we all want David to be safe and comfortable, and seriously, let me tell you once and for all: a binder shouldn’t be worn longer than 8 hours a day, it shouldn’t be worn when sleeping, and it shouldn’t be worn when doing sports (also relevant for our jock boy). It’s not safe and it can heavily damage the breast tissue, ribs, and lungs - it can be literally life-threatening. It’s perfectly fine to worry about this, but it still feels uncomfortable to watch cis people debate the state of a trans boy’s body in such detail. Why is that problematic? Trans people’s bodies have always been scrutinized and judged - by medicine, by the state, by society as a whole. We always have to prove ourselves and our bodies, and convince people that we’re not just tricking them into believing we’re someone we are not. A lot of ‘true womanhood’ or ‘true manhood’ apparently revolves around genitalia, at least cis people seem to think so. Which is why so many trans people (and let’s be real here, especially trans women) have to deal with the question: “Have you had the surgery yet?” - meaning, did they already undergo the one surgery among the various ones trans people might consider, that reshapes their genitalia in a way that is acceptable to society. Cis people often use these questions about our bodies and the way we change them to delegitimatize us and take away our status as a ‘real’ man or woman. Other than that, trans people’s bodies often get portrayed as something freakishly exotic by cis people; there’s a certain voyeurism about it, and it often gets sexualized - just look at the way trans women are treated in mainstream porn. Cis people examining our bodies, theorizing about what kind of operations we’ve had or haven’t had yet, and possibly sexualizing or belittling/dehumanizing us for it, that will always be very thin ice, because it comes with a lot of emotional baggage for trans people individually and as a community.

What’s David’s backstory? We’re all wondering that, especially since Druck is mixing up the whole Skam setting so much and we really don’t know what they have in store for us. Obviously I’m just as thirsty for theories as the rest of the fandom, but I’ve also read a few things that kinda irked me. Here’s what to avoid: Referring to David as a girl or female in any way, speaking about him in the past with “she/her”-pronouns or coming up with a deadname for him. Oh lord please don’t. It’s nothing but misgendering and it’s so, so wrong. If you’re cis, also please reconsider posting headcanons for his backstory that contain heavy transphobia. Not only can that trigger trans people in the fandom (please use trigger warnings for that stuff, okay?), but there’s also a long history of cis people taking trans narratives away from us and making them only about suffering and pain. Sure, dysphoria sucks, the discrimination sucks, but me, a trans person, complaining about these things is WAY different from a cis person fantasizing about a really painful, possibly violent life for a trans character. Sure I want realism and I want a platform where we can discuss the truly awful experiences many of us have because we’re trans, but I wish that cis people would boost trans voices for that instead of coming up with their own fucked up fantasies about how badly a trans character might have been treated. If you’re writing fic or meta and you want to find an explanation why David changed schools so close to the end of the school year, you don’t have to dig deep into the trans pain to explain it. It’s not that uncommon for trans people to change schools, work places, etc. once they’ve transitioned far enough to feel comfortable - a new start makes the stuff like name changes, new gender presentation, etc. easier. And even if David’d move is related to transphobic experiences, I don’t really need to read detailed descriptions of it. You wouldn’t want to obsess over someone else’s trauma in vivid detail in front of them, so please be cautious when writing about something that’s seen as traumatic by many trans people.

Other useful pointers: There are trans people in this fandom who voice their opinions - seek them out, listen to them, boost their voices, don’t speak over them when they talk about trans experiences. Don’t focus too much on the fact that David is (or might be) trans. Like sure, include that in your writing, but make sure you know that it’s not the only and not the most interesting thing about him. In most regards, he’s just a boy, and he has a lot of character traits that tell us just as much about him, like the fact that he’s really closed-off, competitive af, artistic, a music lover and a complete emo dork, seems to have an active flight-or-fight response,... you see what i’m getting at. Let’s obsess about David on these terms, and I’m sure we’ll get a whole lot of new and interesting meta and fic about him that all of us can enjoy.

#druck #david schreibner #datteo #davenzi #mavid #my posts

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blkmxrvel · 5 years

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Haven’t Forgotten My Way Home - [7] (CONVERTED)

Pairing: Kara Zor-El x Female!Reader

Summary: In the D/s society of National City, men and women abandoned by their Dom/mes or otherwise deemed unfit for life “outside” end up at the Mount Overland House for Orphaned Submissives. It is here that Kara Zor-El finds Y/N Hastings, broken and fearful from mistreatment at the hands of her former Dom. Can Kara coax Y/N back into the world that once so terrified her, and show her the true meaning of care and submission?

Warnings: Domestic Violence (Flashbacks, Mentions and Descriptions), Misogyny, Domination/Submission.

A/N: This is really one of my favorite stories. I’ve it so many different times in so many different fandoms and wanted to put it in another one! In this, Kara and Alex are not sisters, Kara isn’t an alien which means she isn’t supergirl. Just wanna give another note that this story is NOT mine. I did not come with the plot, I just switched out the names of characters and places, that is all. Credit goes to itsfaberrytaboo on Ao3!

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Masterlist | Fandom List/Who I Write For

To a casual observer, one not involved in their society (and indeed there were a few groups around the country who did not embrace the way they chose to run) National City could appear just like any other that had existed long before. The city prided itself on being a private society, for the most part, and the more solid, formal routines of a lifestyle were left behind closed doors. As Kara walked along the mall shops with Y/N, only a few things would tell a person of the different ways members of their society interacted with each other. Only a person who knew what they were looking for could see it.

A certain tilt of the head. A chin lifted in the role of Dominance; eyes cast to the floor with the deference of a submissive. A girl following two steps behind, always, carrying the purchases of the day. A young man with a glittering silver collar stopping to ask his Miss if she was tired and needed to sit for a moment. A Dominant holding up a dress to his boy with a merry, evil glint to his eyes. The quiet dance of the question-and-answer, in a language all its own.

“Hold this, pet.” “Yes, Master.”

“Did I tell you to speak?” “You did not, Ma’am, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t let me forget to buy milk.” “Milk, yes Sir.”

It was mundane, really. At home there might be people on their knees or all fours, games, punishment, a driving sexual dynamic… but in public it was all about remembering the milk and the pet food, and where to go for lunch.

Kara stopped in front of a restaurant that was advertising Italian food. “This might be…” She stopped, reading the sign.

No Leash, No Lunch.

… Some places were less subtle than others.

“Moving on,” she said, rolling her eyes and slightly behind her, Y/N giggled. Kara giggled herself and moved back to Y/N so that she could push the wheelchair. They’d decided not to risk Y/N walking all day, though Kara had decided that she could at least walk in any of the clothing stores they visited, so that Y/N could get some of her practice in, and try on some of the clothes.

As mundane as their society could be, though, there were still those who felt like they had something to prove. Perhaps they’d just entered into their new relationship, or perhaps there was an underlying sense of inadequacy that sent them over the top. Kara shook her head as a man walked by her and Y/N, a girl crawling behind him with a gag in her mouth.

“Come, slave!” he barked, just as he passed them, and Kara sighed.

“Newbie,” she said to Y/N, and gently patted her arm, because Y/N’s face was white and nervous as her eyes scanned back and forth between the Dominant and his girl.

Kara had woken up first that morning, and it had taken her a moment to adjust to the unfamiliar surroundings of her guest bedroom, and to remember why she was there. And then she had glanced down, and seen Y/N’s fingers wrapped in hers. She’d stared at their interlocked hands for the longest time, before her gaze wandered over Y/N, slowly. She realized that she’d never really taken the time to just look at Y/N. To notice her blonde hair, the way the strands shone with the sunlight filtering in through the window. The long eyelashes that fluttered against her cheeks as she slept. Her pink lips were parted in a little smile, and the fingers of her other hand, long and graceful, were still held tightly around the teddy bear in her arm. Y/N’s face, her form, was so graceful it reminded Kara of actresses in her favorite black and white movies. She wanted to trail her hands over every inch of Y/N, to memorize every dip and curve and manipulate each part of her until Y/N was a quivering, undone mass beneath her. She wanted to touch her, to taste her, to claim her…

Kara got up to make breakfast instead.

She wasn’t in the kitchen for ten minutes before the frantic call had her back in the guest bedroom.

“Miss Kara?!”

Y/N was sat up in bed, looking around for her, and Kara cursed herself for being so thoughtless. Immediately she sat down next to Y/N.

“Hey there,” she said, her voice light and reassuring. “I should know better than to go where you can’t see me, especially when you’re just waking up, shouldn’t I?”

“I’m sorry,” Y/N said, and Kara realized she was beginning to hate those two words. “I just panicked, it was dumb.”

“No, hey.” She reached out and put her hand on Y/N’s knee, glad that the girl wasn’t flinching as much when Kara touched her. “I know you’re used to waking up alone at the House, but here I should pay more attention to what you need, all right? No apologies, except from me. I’m sorry.”

While Kara was stood making their breakfast, Y/N had ended up on the floor of the kitchen playing with Arnie. Kara wasn’t sure she liked that arrangement, given what Y/N had told her the night before, but she couldn’t help admit that Y/N seemed happy, even comfortable, at her feet. Of course, part of that could’ve been Arnie. He was completely, madly in love with Y/N, that much was clear. Kara was past being jealous about it. Almost. The smile on Y/N’s face helped.

Twenty minutes later, Kara sat at the table and giggled as Y/N had devoured a plate of bacon and eggs. Gone was the timidity with food, at least for once, and it made Kara happier than she’d been in a while, just that simple action of enjoying breakfast. “I should fix you bacon more often,” she’d teased, and Y/N had just grinned at her, a mischievous look in her eyes that had made Kara’s heart skip a beat.

“Miss Kara?”

Lost in her thoughts, Kara had been walking absently along when Y/N’s voice called her back.

“Hmm?” she stopped and turned. Y/N was looking into a shop from the doorway. A bookstore.

“May we-“ Y/N shook her head. “What shops would you like to go in?”

Kara stepped back over to Y/N, her hand coming to rest on the girl’s shoulder. She looked into the store. It was your average bookstore, with comfy chairs and benches scattered throughout. People sat on them, laughing and talking, or milled about the shelves, drinking coffee and tea from the little coffee bar set up in the back.

“Do you want to go into the bookstore, Y/N?” Kara asked.

Y/N shrugged.

“No,” Kara said, her voice firm. “Use your words, Y/N. Would you like to go into the bookstore?”

Y/N was looking at her, wide-eyed and once again biting her lower lip. “Y-yes, Miss Kara.”

“Good girl,” Kara said, her tone softer. She smiled. “Let’s go see what we can find.”

They wandered slowly, stopping here and there, with Kara paying close attention to which sections seemed to catch Y/N’s attention the most. They paused at the art section, Y/N’s hand lingering over the spines of books on how to draw human anatomy, books on cathedral architecture, on famous artists. Next was the classics section, Dickens and Carroll and Poe. Y/N glanced casually at the magazines, but somehow they didn’t hold her interest, and Kara found herself scanning through the books on New York in the geography section, but there wasn’t anything new that she desperately had to have.

“Where are we going next, Miss Kara?”

She looked up in surprise. “But you haven’t picked any books.”

Y/N shrugged again, and it was on the tip of her tongue for Kara to lecture her again, but she was stopped by Y/N’s voice. “I don’t need anything, Miss Kara.”

Kara nodded to herself. “But is there anything you want?”

“I-I don’t have the money, and I don’t need any books.”

“Come with me,” Kara said suddenly, and she walked quickly back to the art section, with Y/N following behind. She pointed at the shelves. “Do any of these books interest you?”

Y/N looked at her, confused. “Yes, Miss Kara?”

“Which ones?”

Y/N hesitated, before her finger reached out and tentatively pointed to one of the architecture books, and another on drawing for comic books. Huh, Kara thought, comic books. “I like those two…”

“Then ask for them.”

“I don’t need them.”

Kara sighed, and took hold of Y/N’s chair, pulling her off to the side. “Y/N,” she said gently, “You wanted to come into the bookstore, and you clearly want books. Now, I could make the argument that everyone needs books, and it would be a very effective argument, substantiated by visual aids with evidence to prove my point.” Seeing Y/N stare at her with a dazed expression, Kara hastened to explain herself.

“You may not need these particular books, but you want them. You want something, and that, Y/N… that’s perfectly fine. That’s okay. It’s okay for you to want something, and it’s especially okay for you to ask me for it.”

“But you shouldn’t buy me-“

“Y/N, that is somethingI want to do.” Kara squeezed Y/N’s arm gently. “I can buy you a couple of books, and some clothes, Y/N. I want to.”

Y/N hesitated, and it seemed like she was going to object. But Kara waited, and finally Y/N nodded. She took a deep breath. “Miss Kara, may I have those two books? I-I want them.”

Kara smiled, recognizing what an effort this was for Y/N. At that moment, she couldn’t be more proud of the girl. “Yes, you may, Y/N,” she said. “Good girl.”

She pulled the two books off the shelf and tucked them under her arm, looking up at Y/N, who was staring at her. “Are we ready?” Kara asked, feeling a little unsettled under Y/N’s gaze.

“I…” Y/N hesitated. “Miss Kara, those posters you have in your living room?”

“Yes?”

“They’re Broadway, right?”

“Yes!” Kara exclaimed, excited that Y/N understood. “Wicked and Funny Girl, my favorites.”

Y/N nodded, seemingly lost in thought. “May we go back to the New York section? I’d like… I want to get a book on Broadway.”

“You want a book on Broadway?”

“T-to know what you like,” Y/N said, panic beginning to cross over her features. “So that we can talk… about it and I can know what you like, it was a stupid idea, I’m sorry…”

“Whoa, whoa,” Kara said, her hand once again coming to rest on Y/N’s shoulder. She couldn’t believe that Y/N wanted to research musicals, to learn about Broadway, so that she’d know about something Kara loved so much. No one else had ever done that, except for maybe Alex, but he was a Broadway addict much like herself.

“Y/N, I’m not angry, I think that’s incredibly, terribly sweet.”

“Really?” Y/N said, looking at her through long lashes.

“Really,” Kara said, patting her back. “But believe me, I have enough books at home to give you a very good education on Broadway and musicals. When we get back I’ll let you pick a couple out to read. For now, let’s pay for these and then find you some clothes.”

There was a smile on Y/N’s face as they left the bookstore, the bag with her new books swinging from the back of the chair. It didn’t take long before she stopped in front of a clothing store, and turned to Kara.

“May we go in here, Miss Kara?” she asked, her eyes as wide and excited as a child’s at Christmas.

The clothes in the store seemed casual but dressy at the same time, full of light spring and summer colors that Y/N would look perfect in. Kara smiled.

“This is a very good choice, Y/N,” she praised. “We’ll go inside and see if there’s anything you like.”

Y/N’s gaze flew to her shoes; her face flushed pink once more as the corners of her mouth quirked up a little. “Thank you, Miss Kara.”

They left Y/N’s chair with one of the salesclerks, with instructions that they’d come back for it once they were finished. Kara was excited, glad that Y/N could at last get some clothes that weren’t borrowed, or issued from the House. She’d be able to feel more like herself. But as they made their way through the store, with Kara stopping here and there to suggest a dress or shirt she thought Y/N might like, Kara noticed that the girl with her seemed to wilt, to curl inside herself and keep her distance. Kara thought she had a good idea why, but she decided to wait for Y/N to tell her on her own. She didn’t have to wait long.

“You should try this on,” Kara said, holding up a dress. “The green matches your eyes.”

“No, I don’t think so,” Y/N said, barely even glancing at it.

“But you didn’t even look.”

“It doesn’t matter, I’ll still be ugly.”

Kara hung the dress back on the rack, and turned to Y/N. “I’m sorry, what did you just say?”

The air around them seemed to still, and Y/N hung her head. She mumbled something, and Kara stepped forward, closer to her.

“Y/N. Answer me.”

When Y/N met her eyes, Kara’s heart lurched to see that her own were filled with tears.

“I’m too fat.” Y/N’s words began to come out in a rush. “I’m too fat; my b-butt is big. My breasts aren’t that great and my thighs are huge, a-and my face is just average.”

It occurred to Kara, listening to Y/N speak, that the girl was reciting a litany of herself. A long line of things that she perceived were wrong with her, things that had been said and repeated so often that Y/N had memorized them, taken them deep inside herself and now she could offer them back as if they were a prayer.

When Y/N had finished, Kara stepped even closer, and though her eyes became a little fearful, Y/N didn’t step back. Kara raised her hands to lock them carefully on Y/N’s shoulders.

“He was wrong.”

Y/N blinked. “W-what?”

“He was wrong,” Kara said again, firmly. She sighed, and cupped Y/N’s cheek with her hand, thumb running lightly over the skin. Y/N flinched, ever so slightly, and Kara pulled away. “Y/N, you are beautiful. You are beautiful, and I am so sorry that he ever made you feel like you weren’t. I know you don’t trust me right now, because you don’t see yourself the way I do, but you will. I promise.”

Kara moved back, and tried to smile reassuringly at her, even though she was struggling not to cry herself. “And we’re going to start by getting you some new clothes, all right?”

Y/N nodded, watching her. “All right, Miss Kara.”

Y/N tried on a few outfits, and by the end she was even having a little fun, buoyed by Kara’s praise and happiness at seeing her in ones she liked. At one point she twirled around, the dress spanning out around her waist and she laughed, and then grabbed Kara in a tight hug. She’d let go almost as quickly and both girls smiled awkwardly at each other, once again blushing to the tips of their ears.

Kara was stood at the counter, paying for Y/N’s clothes, when Y/N’s voice reached her ears, high pitched and frightened.

“No, I don’t want to, g-go away.”

“I’ll be right back,” Kara said to the sales clerk, and quickly went in search of Y/N. She found her in the jewelry, nearly pressed up against one of the racks, a taller woman next to her with a smirk.

“Why not? I don’t see a collar on you, pet.” The woman leaned closer. “But I could put one on you…”

“I think not,” Kara said, coming up next to Y/N. “Leave her alone now, please.”

The woman glanced at Kara, and then turned back to Y/N. “You don’t own her. Like I said, I don’t see a collar. Mm,” she breathed, “What I wouldn’t give to get my hands on you.”

Kara had had enough, and stepped in front of Y/N. She froze momentarily, because Y/N had gotten as close as she possibly could to Kara, and was now clinging to her. She recovered herself quickly and fastened her gaze back onto the woman, glaring.

“I have asked you nicely,” she said, in a tone so sharp that even the salesclerk witnessing the exchange shivered. “I will not ask you again. If you proceed in this manner you will need to decide how you will get your hands on anyone after you have lost them.”

The woman stared at Kara, and then snorted. “Whatever.” She turned to go. “I don’t need a fucking head case anyway.”

“Ugh.” Kara turned to look at Y/N, who was still holding on to her. She could feel her shaking, trembling violently as she held on. “Y/N,” Kara said, but there was no answer. “Y/N,” she tried again.

“Y-yes, Miss Kara?”

“Okay,” Kara soothed, quickly jumping into comfort mode. “It’s okay.” Taking Y/N’s hands in hers and looking around, Kara met the eyes of the salesclerk, who was staring at them with sympathy.

“Might I borrow-“ Kara tilted her chin at the dressing room, and the salesclerk nodded. “Thank you.”

Holding on to Y/N’s hands, Kara maneuvered them both into the dressing room and closed the door. She hesitated, then sat on the bench and without thinking, pulled Y/N onto her lap.

“All right,” she whispered, holding her close. “You’re all right.” It was awkward, the two of them scrunched together in a dressing room made for one, but it would have to do, and anyway, Y/N’s face buried in her neck felt really… wonderful.

That probably wasn’t what she should be focusing on right now, Kara thought.

She rubbed Y/N’s back gently, talking softly to her, until gradually the trembling began to subside. Soon Y/N looked up at her, a little fear still in her eyes.

“I’m sor-“ Kara placed her finger over Y/N’s lips, and Y/N smiled slightly. “I-is she gone?”

“She’s gone,” Kara confirmed, and hugged Y/N tightly. “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

Will you ever stop saying stuff you’re not supposed to? Kara asked herself with annoyance.

“Sweetheart…” Y/N mumbled, and then nodded. “I’m all right, I just…” She trailed off.

“You just what?” Kara prompted, trying not to think that as awkward as it was, it was also the nicest thing she’d ever felt, to be sat with Y/N on her lap.

“I just feel stupid.”

“Well, you’re not,” Kara declared. “She overstepped her boundaries. You might not be collared, which yes, it means you can be approached, but you said no. Y/N, look at me.” When she did so, Kara continued, softly. “I’m proud of you, for saying no.”

“Proud of me?”

“Yes.” Kara hugged her again. “You can always say no, sweetheart. Just try to remember that.”

Kara paid for Y/N’s clothes and retrieved the wheelchair; once Y/N was seated back in Kara noticed she looked tired. They’d had a big day; perhaps it was time for them to get back home.

As they made their way towards the exit, Y/N said, “Miss Kara, wait.”

Kara stopped. “What is it, is there something wrong?”

“No, Miss Kara, but can you… wait here?”

Kara watched as Y/N wheeled herself over to a vendor, one who was positioned in the middle of the mall selling flowers. She was confused, her head tilted while she saw Y/N speaking to the woman, who smiled and handed Y/N a selection from the bunch on her cart. Kara frowned.

What was she doing? Did Y/N like the vendor? Maybe she thought she was pretty. She was… reasonably attractive, Kara decided. Tall and with dark black hair. Good bone structure, and a perfect nose. Kara sighed inwardly. Her nose was always her undoing. Well, if Y/N liked her, that was good. She was getting better, she could like whomever she wanted to, and if she got the vendor’s phone number… Kara could just watch movies while they talked. Or something…

“Miss Kara?”

Kara’s head whipped back over to Y/N, who was wheeling over to her with a shy smile on her face.

Yeah, she liked her. Kara fought back the wave of disappointment. “I see you have a flower.”

“No,” Y/N shook her head. She plucked the flower out of her lap and held it out to Kara. A gardenia, its white petals soft and alive.

“I-it’s for you.”

Kara stared in shock. “What?”

“I don’t have any money…” Y/N fidgeted, seeming uncertain. “But I talked to the vendor and she gave it to me, since I-I told her there was someone special I wanted to have a flower. Y-you’ve done so much for me, and this is the only way I can say thank you.”

“Someone special…”

“You don’t like gardenias.” Y/N’s face fell. “I can choose something else.” She started to wheel away, but Kara grabbed the chair, stopping her.

She leaned down and pulled Y/N into her arms. Y/N had given her a flower. Y/N thought she was someone special.

“I never thought about gardenias before,” Kara admitted, still hugging Y/N. “But now I think they’re my very favorite. Thank you so much, sweetheart.” She didn’t care that she probably shouldn’t keep calling Y/N that; she was just so happy that Y/N wasn’t interested in the vendor, that she had given her a flower. “Thank you.”

She pulled back up and smiled at Y/N, who was now beaming at her. “Come on, let’s get out of here, you need to rest.”

“Yes, Miss Kara.”

Once home, Y/N quickly fell asleep on the couch in her brand-new jeans and white top, with Arnie at her feet. Kara covered them both with a blanket and glanced at the gardenia, now in a vase on the coffee table, and went to find some Broadway books for Y/N. #hi

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thebluelemontree · 5 years

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I didn't really realize how narrowminded a certain segment of tumbler is. What work of fiction would they consider as not problematic. According to them then Emma, Sense & Sensibility, Little Women or Jane Eyre will be considered problematic (15+ age gaps). And those are considered as classic works of literature, written by moral women (both Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte were daughters of preachers) which isn't even as dark as ASOIAF/GOT.

I did some googling, and I hate to break it to you, but you can pretty easily find pieces on why all those classic works of literature are problematic. That’s fine, though. That isn’t actually the problem. We shouldn’t leave classics unexamined because they have achieved a certain status in literature. It was mostly “can this book still be considered feminist in our time?” Nothing about age gaps, though maybe it’s an issue for some readers out there, idk. Some of the takes were good, and some were stupid; however, I didn’t read anything that went as far to say that these works are actually bad for us and you suck if you enjoy them (thank god). I have no issue with pointing out things that are problematic for analysis purposes, whether I agree with it or not. Interrogating and being reflective of media is generally good advice, but no one is obligated to approach everything they enjoy that way. “Let a bitch live” is also good advice too. I think where things go off the rails is when stuff like this happens:

Believing and encouraging others to believe that problematic art is automatically bad art from a bad person/artist. I mean, it doesn’t make it automatically good either, but that’s a whole other discussion.

Believing and encouraging others to believe that the media you enjoy is a window into your soul or a statement of your politics. You don’t want other people on social media to think you’re a terrible person, do you?

That we should demand and consume art only by artists that send the correct moral or ideological messages as if this is the only reason to make art or its primary purpose.

Not being able to tell the difference between media that, for example, shows the negative consequences of misogyny and misogynistic media.

Believing and encouraging others to believe that problematic characters and themes are insurmountable issues that the narrative cannot work through to a positive conclusion (i.e., the redemption arc discourse) If it does, then it’s bad art because it sends the wrong message.

Pointing to the problematic elements in the service of an anti crusade. This goes beyond just explaining your reasons for not liking something or having a squick. This is where people on Tumblr can be really gross and dishonest. It’s dishonest when people dress themselves up in concern for serious real-life issues like abuse and victims of abuse. They can use progressive or activist rhetoric to sound like they have nothing but the purest and noblest of intentions. But what they actually care about and their real goal is to deter people from enjoying things they don’t like for pretty shallow reasons. Just read a bit more of their blog, and they’re usually: A) a stan with such strong personal headcanons that they hate anyone or anything that violates those headcanons. B) they are a soldier in an active ship war. I mean, it’s not always about that, but it’s not hard to figure out when it is really about that.

I’m going to be 40 this year, and I’ve been on Tumblr for ~ 3 years. I sure as hell did not expect to see a rigid purity culture embraced by younger people who also think of themselves as progressive and inclusive. It feels bizarre and so different from my teenage/early adulthood experience. I’m not saying we never had any misguided beliefs because we totally did. But I know we enjoyed problematic things because they were usually cool, dangerous, and exciting knowing full well what we were doing and getting into. Maybe we didn’t always notice all the things we should have, and perhaps we weren’t all that critical, but I think we turned out okay all the same. I mean, if I had said to one of my friends “you know that thing we liked because the main characters had such a great story and chemistry? Well, we should actually hate it because there was an age gap and that makes it an inherently abusive power dynamic” they would have looked at me like I had. Lost. My. Damn. Mind. Thank God social media wasn’t really a thing then and shitty fandom discourse wasn’t so constant and prevalent. Depending on the people you follow, it’s really easy to get stuck in an echo chamber of purity wank, anti culture, and bad takes at a point in your life when you’re trying to figure out your adult identity by comparing yourself to the people around you.

That’s when we need real friends, in RL or online, who will be honest with us when we’re trippin’. I really hope some of these people have a real good friend that will look at their Tumblr one day and be like: “Dude, wtf? What is this? ‘Age gaps between fictional characters are inherently abusive power imbalances, and you are an abuse apologist if you think they’re okay.’ Is this what you do for fun? Okay, you’re coming with me. We’re going to get out of the house, go do some normal young people shit, and learn how to relate to other human beings again.” XD

#anonymous #fandom discussion #fandom culture #anti culture

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wellthatwasaletdown · 6 years

Text

Just a mess but post whenever you're bored lol. Great blog btw.

My advice to Harry for HS2 (this eh… got away from me)

First would be head over to Sweden to Max Martin and beg him to write songs with a kind of racketing Northern UK 80s vibe (think Jessie’s girl), some rollicking early George Michael, and a little bit of Tom Jones cheese on top. No hair metal, no 70s dreariness, no bombast. (Stop trying to reincarnate FM and GnR through a British xfactor contestant Irving – its making everyone look silly!). Second he should head back over to Nashville for some nice country song songs he can pour his wee heart into. It’d be a mixed bag but so were Midnight Memories and MITAM and they’re great albums imo. ‘Girl name’ songs and hook-up songs are mostly banned because HS1 has forever tainted Harry singing songs like that with a truly nasty level of misogyny. Instead the songs should be as follows but in no particular order:

‘A boat from an Island up my Own Arse’ (James’ song) : about what happens when you fall for your own follower count and start acting the arse – relatable for loads of kids in these days of social media notoriety.

This song could be deep and introspective and Harry could get Kodaline to help him write it (they already have a good one on this called The Answer) or it could be a fun rocking slap up his own head, a tongue in cheek send up of his own hype. His choice, artist input is important. You could have loads of fun with this video but Jaffsen (James, Jeff, Ben) are banned from any involvement, except they can cameo as themselves maybe.

2 ‘Look At You Now’ ; continuing on from the theme of 1. This song could be a counterpoint, fast where the other is slow or vice versa. Its not a love song, it’s about that one friend you took for granted, and mean-girled in front of your cooler friends just because they were all awkward laughing and train-track braces but now they’re all grown and fit and you’re looking a bit past your sell by date. Also relatable in a post high school sort of way to a lot of people. Perfect chance for a bit of open-ended homoeroticism - like a love song to how fit and thick your former best male friend has gotten and how you kinds wish you were him.

4. ‘Guess I’m just a Tool’ ; about what happens when the only friends you have, only met you when you were already famous and all your old mates got sick of you. Not a ‘waah haterz abe jealous’ song (the world has had enough of those) – a little insight and something new to say will be required. Sloppy lyrics or ideas not accepted.

5. ‘Looking at me, looking at me’ ; this could be Abba-esque, and the. one. song. where Jeff is allowed to adlib, with ‘Ah-Haaa’ (he must dress as Alan Partridge for the video though that’s non-negotiable). This one is about narcissism in the present day when you realise even on other people’s birthdays you’re always just checking out yourself in the selfie. Could be all deep and sorrowful eiher – but then no Jefe, no adlibs. It would be most fun as a joke song though. We’ll leave it to Harry and his hopefully new therapist to figure out where the song goes.

(Corden would almost certainly want to do the video but he’s banned, along with all the Kardashians. Jefe could cameo as above but not contribute any ideas at all. This could not be Kendall does Protest levels of bad, it’s a song about narcissism, not an exercise in narcissism)

6. ‘You’re to coo-ool for meee, in all the ti-ings you beee’ ; this is about what it’s like when your best friend always looks like Apollo fcked a Disney princess and sent the child to be brought up by the ghost of Jimi Hendrix. Also a good chance for open ended homoeroticism. Every piece of clothing you own looks better on him and he just does everything so much cooler. You hate him but you love him, this love is tainted. A mea culpa for the dark sided shit team Azoff have almost certainly pulled on Z.

7. ‘Don’t you wish you could be Louis’ Girl’ ; a straight up rip off of Jessie’s Girl really. This sounds bad but in a surprise twist it would actually be a paean, a celebration of the string of fit girls Louis has loved, in the best tradition of Northern UK rock. It would be updated to include an element of empathy for, and celebration of, the millions of us who aren’t size E.

The song would also have a note of the longing that comes from your best friend always being in long term relationships along with lots of nice non-misogynistic celebration of women of all shapes and sizes and family types. A mea culpa for Kiwi and all the other nastiness of HS1. Girl Almighty but raunchier music and better lyrics.

Larries will be happy thinking it’s about Harry wishing he was Louis’ girl, but the kindness in the lyrics will cut off the nastiness they tend to spew. Harry will pull on his big boy pants and reiterate the need for fans to stop trashing other women in interviews, while humbly admitting the song is a rip-off, a tongue in cheek homage to

8. ‘Untitled’ ; this is about what happens when your best friend gets on a leetle too well with your love. They have all the same interests, they start to finish each other’s sentences, they get each other’s jokes when you don’t…. they touch each other alot … ‘jokingly’. You don’t wanna act Zealous but fucks sake! …. Cue 1 million Zouis fan vids and Zourry triangle angst fics! I live for them!

9. ‘I got caught up in the wrong kind of love’ ; this one could be serious, country and western vibes, that pulls together a lot of the earlier themes. Its about what happens when you let down the love of your life because you get too caught up in loving your own career. That hot friend from song 8 ends up being their shoulder to cry on and they end up comforting each other in all kinds of ways. You’re all wronged but you all did wrong. Everybody hates everybody but no one can move on. There is potential for two more songs looking at same situation from different angles.

Ssshh, these don’t have to be real - cue aaall the fics, this fandom runs on them after all.

10. A cover of ‘I can’t help falling in love with you.’ Don’t … touch me.

11. Bonus Track: Harry, Liam and Tinie Tempah cover Don’t Worry, Be Happy. It is released as a single and they donate the proceeds to a shelter in Thailand that rescues trafficked girls.

TLDR: Harry ceases to be as ass about 1D and himself and remembers that he got famous by being fun and light and bringing a little joy to people’s lives. He doesn’t have to abandon attempts to write his own deep and / or experimental album, he just has to postpone it until he has the groundwork done, musically, intellectually, spiritually.

Promo: Jaffben are not allowed anywhere near the recording process except for Jefe on song 5. Jefe does not go to RS or NME for promo. He goes to Closer and OK. Harry goes on Loose Women and Elvis Duran and Jonathan Ross and gives intelligible answers about the end of 1D, his last album, his new direction etc and doesn’t act all disingenuous like he doesn’t know why the interviewer would want to know. He gives 0 long-form masturbatory interviews to glossy magazines.

He can draw whatever lines he likes around his personal life as long as he states it clearly, gives a reasonable explanation on his take on privacy now vs the family feel of early 1D, and then sticks to it. Jefe does not use the gossip rags as promo. If he’s being all private then his mother and sister are 100% silent on him too, no backdoor gossip mongering, no nepotism, no encouraging invasive stalkers. He ceases to let all and sundry use him to shill their shit. This fandom has been bled dry enough already. He gets his passive aggressive tendencies under control and only uses them to silence the nastier elements of his fandom.

There is no perfume ad, no docuwank, unless Jaffben want to film themselves actually jerking off to their HS shrines - they can put that on pornhub at their own discretion. Basically Jaffben and Apple are not allowed to monetise the shit out of this fandom. Harry puts himself out there and sells his music. The End.

Or y’know he carries on as is, lets Jefe bag him some more film roles, maybe a romantic ‘comedy’ with the same nasty misogynistic undertones as his album and the shitcom? (Think Apatow but worse) Does another derivative album, gets Irving to pull strings so its praised no matter what, rinse repeat.

#harry styles #submission

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