#but shes prolly gonna be like 'its fine!!!!' and seven chapters later kats gonna be like 'yo i havent seen red in awhile whats she up to?' | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

buttonlessgirl · 7 years

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okay i now we are all worked up about whether red should have said what she said and thats valid

BUT

WE NEED TO DISCUSS THE LOGISTICS OF THE FAERIES

we know when they get a name, they also get their own clothes and their own job- ive seen some people wonder if red is now in a different class from ayilu, but im pretty sure she actually ‘graduated’ and is presumably working for the court in some capacity, tho who knows as what ??? the only other fairie/woods folk we’ve seen in the court’s employee is bugsy, who is a teacher and supposedly only because she wasnt suited for anything else?

based on tom’s comments, it seems they are presented with clothes to choose from, but who decides their job (assuming they are eligible for multiple positions?)

if fairies prefer dull colors in the physical world, why did bugsy chose a pink outfit? is there something special about their ‘own’ clothes that allows them to decorate them in the ether, or do the kids in the class just not embellish their school uniforms?

does everyone who comes from the woods need a name to transition to ‘adulthood’? we’ve only seen fairies (bugsy, red, ayilu) get names, none of the animals? and for that matter, how are names earned for those in the forest? *snuffle* already has a name (apparently one she mostly kept a secret), and while she seems to a fairy of some sort, she does not resemble the suicide/regional fairies in either physical or etheric appearances? if she decided to become a human, would she have to give up her name and earn a new one? would coyote need to remove her soul as he did for bunny, assuming her situation is different from the regional fairies?

the anwen people already have names, even their young seem to- their culture seems distinct from that of the other forest creatures, and as much as i can recall, we have only ever seen them interact with annie or with jeanne. are they truly loyal to coyote, or do they hold some resentment for his presence and his creation of the divide?

shadow is an oddity in the court according to Jones, which suggests that none of his brethren have ever made the forest-to-court change. again, is this option only offered to small mammals and the ‘hollow fae’? speaking of the hollowness of said hollow fae, WHY and HOW did the court get ahold of their souls? what if one of the hollow fae did NOT want to go to the court- would they be forever cut off from their etheric form?

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY

fairies can name each other ??????? this was a sticking point for me at first- if red missed her friend and was sad the naming had seperated them, couldnt she just have named her herself? (or, because that would be sappy, tricked someone else into doing it maybe?)

but on reflection, i think the answer is NO. that likely never occurred to red, because getting a name is A BIG DEAL™ to them, unlike to our court characters. i reckon that within fairie society, you have to EARN your name- perhaps with brave deeds or accomplishments, or by virtue of having navigated the horrors of ‘school’. so when annie had a dangerous quest, that fulfilled the requirement that ayilu have to work for her name

but as we can see, that turned sour- after all, red didnt have to earn her name at all, did she? annie just messed up, and BAM, red got a name and new clothes and a new job and a whole new, awesomer life!!! because annie has that power- she exists outside their culture, and so possesses the ability to hand out diplomas and medals and all sorts of things

so i think fairies CAN name each other, they just usually dont, unless the occasion allows for it- i don’t award my friend an ‘a’ in her class unless im the instructor, and i don’t bake her a cake that says ‘happy birthday’ on it just any day of the year

and i know i said i didnt want to to get into the right or wrong and appropriate or not with what red said this chapter

but i do think that annie- almost certainly unwittingly- offered something to ayilu that had ENORMOUS value to the recipient and NO value to the giver, and placed conditions on it that had not been needed for the past recipient (red)

which i think just highlights that, despite being their medium, annie (and the readers) has a lot of misunderstandings about the culture and society of the forest, and those misunderstandings are going to have consequences

#gunnerkrigg court #button rambles #im still a bit on the fence about this chapter #and would LOVE to see annie talk it through #but shes prolly gonna be like 'its fine!!!!' and seven chapters later kats gonna be like 'yo i havent seen red in awhile whats she up to?'#ANYWAYS #but basically #i agree that annie should NOT have made that offer #but i also agree she was not intentionally being terrible #annie can be a manipulative lil shit lord knows i love her for that #but shes rarely cruel without intention #and weve seen that she likes and respects the fairies and i dont think she meant any harm at all #in sum: this chapter made a lot of people feel a lot of things #BUT IT MADE ME QUESTION MANY THINGS AND I NEED PEOPLE TO TALK ABOUT IT #WHAT PERCENTAGE OF FOREST POPULATION HAS A NAME #AAAAAAh #TOM SIDDEL ANSWER ALL MY QUESTIONS AND EXPLAIN THE ANWEN BECAUSE I AM SUSPICIOUS AS HELL #not of the anwen i should clarify #but of their presence in the story

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