#even though they're famous and important in the culture
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Magnum Opus or Great Work: Alchemical Codes in "Harry Potter"
"I've never wanted to be a witch, but an alchemist, now that's a different matter. To invent this wizard world, I've learned a ridiculous amount about alchemy." JKR. By the way, it seems JKR never became an alchemist because you can't be that evil an alchemist, Joanne. Something went wrong.
The first part about Lily and James
Voldemort – an occult alchemist, Lucifer. Snape – a Seeker who chose the wrong Path. Dumbledore – Keeper of the Tower. Hermione – Hermes Trismegistus. Harry, Hermione and Ron – the three principles for creating the Philosopher's Stone.
Alchemy is the universal path of spiritual transformation. In a literal sense, universal, this code is practically everywhere–from ancient myths and the Bible to the philosophy of Nietzsche (though in his understanding) and Jung's books. Harry Potter himself is a complete alchemist's path, but there's also a well-displayed second path–the path of the occult alchemist.
True alchemy tells us that God is in everything, like a seed present in every person. Through alchemical transformation, a person can be reborn – and become golden, divine, immortal.
Many famous people were fascinated by these ideas – from Newton to Goethe, from Walter to Mozart. Yes, Walter and Mozart were freemasons, but freemasonry is built on the Magnum Opus, it's its foundation. Who has seen the opera The Magic Flute? A completely masonic opera: the surface layer was for the people, and the deeper layer – for the spiritual elite of that time. In this opera, the power of love transforms people and makes them divine. Oh, it seems to resemble Harry Potter, hehe... Harry Potter also has two layers – one as a fairytale about a wizard for teenagers, the other – for those who can "feel" the symbols, even without knowing them.
Each symbol can be interpreted in several ways, that's the complexity of alchemical symbolism. For example, Albus Dumbledore. He symbolizes (in JKR's own words) Spirit ( he's white), and Rubeus Hagrid – Soul (red) – and they're both like two fatherly figures for Harry, distant and warm, judicious and understanding. But all this is at the character level. Dumbledore has other meanings – much more important ones. As I've said before, the symbolic level and the character level are different levels. In interpreting symbols, you don't need to interpret every line, you need to take the context as a whole. Characters operate on one level, symbols – on another.
So, alchemy is an extension of the universal idea – to be reborn, you need to "die." Like Jesus died on the cross, Orpheus on the banks of the River Gebre, and Osiris in the coffin prepared by Typhon, in alchemy, until all the elements (parts of the old personality) die, the work cannot be completed.
The stages of this alchemical process can be traced in the lives of almost all world "heroes" and in the mythology and legends of many cultures. This is a universal code.
“Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” John 3:3
Alchemy proclaims that without decomposition, the Great Work cannot be accomplished.
The past Self dies on the cross and in the retorts and becomes black during decomposition. The new Self rises from hell, like a phoenix. The phoenix is a pure alchemical symbol.
This is the creation of the Philosopher's Stone.
It is symbolically described in "The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz". The book presents an allegorical story divided into "Seven Days" or "Seven Journeys," which tells how its author, Christian Rosenkreutz, was invited to a castle full of wonders to help with the "Chymical Wedding" of the king and queen. Harry also receives a letter in a storm (like Rosenkreutz) and goes to the castle for 7 years, chooses one of the four paths (Gryffindor), and so on.
Alchemists called the creation of the Philosopher's Stone the Great Work – Opus Magnum. This process consisted of three stages: decomposition (nigredo), rebirth (albedo), and final perfection (rubedo). Each of these stages corresponded to a specific colour: black, white and red.
Nigredo. Albedo. Rubedo.
In Harry Potter, these stages correspond to Sirius Black, Albus (white) Dumbledore, and Rubeus (red) Hagrid. The end of each stage is marked by their death. In the seventh book, it's Hagrid who carries the "dead" Harry.
There is a fundamental difference between "true alchemists" and "occult alchemist."
Tom Riddle is an occult alchemist. For him, the Great Work is also self-creation, but what kind? For him, it is complete mastery of his abilities and his future, and especially the complete liberation of his will.
Tom is a will, but his will not submissive to the will of God. It's a Luciferian will. The will of a fallen angel who began to oppose his own free will to the influence of Divine Love-Light. Instead, he sought and loved his own power outside Divinity, in himself.
"Better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven" John Milton, "Paradise Lost"
Baphomet, or the Sabbatic Goat, drawing by Eliphas Levi, on its hands are inscriptions "Solve et Coagula." This is an alchemical principle. JKR, by the way, also has such a tattoo.
In occultism, it is believed that magic is control of one's will, and a will can control matter. After all, what did his followers choose for their motto? Magic is Might. Harry never defeated Voldemort with such magic. Because he doesn't need it.
What does Tom boast about? Tom boasts that he has mastered the deepest depths of dark magic. He went so far in it as no one before. Dark magic requires an iron will, and Tom achieved incredible heights in it. He even achieved immortality in this material universe, literally cursing his soul! Only Tom doesn't understand that Dumbledore (a true alchemist) is not interested in all this. Because true immortality is not there. True transformation is not there. Because their paths are completely different – Dumbledore is going to the "God and divine immortality," and Tom is going to "material immortality."
In general, fans of occult alchemy, the Left-Hand Path, and Nietzschean philosophy probably consider Tom a much more interesting character because here he is – the king of matter, a man of incredible will and strength who destroys the slave Christian morality and proclaims that God is dead, long live the Übermensch (homo superior)! (Nietzsche would have been proud of him…) By the way, Bellatrix is most likely symbolically – Lilith, Adam's first wife according to Kabbalistic apocrypha, who rebelled against Adam. God created them equal, and Adam wanted to have power over Lilith... In short, Lilith is the first feminist in human history, hehe.
The Fallen Angel by Alexandre Cabanel. Lilith.
In short, Tom Riddle is such an adept of broken alchemy. Where Tom is his own personal will, Harry is Faith and the will of the Spirit. Harry is also very strong-willed, but his will is different, it's not individualistic. It's a will of sacrifice, a will of love, a will of mercy, a will of trust. The main theme of the seventh book is a crisis of faith. And what kind of will does one need to show to continue the quest for Horcruxes and not go for the Deathly Hallows? Simply put, the will of Harry and Tom is completely different.
And Tom will never understand this. He's an individualist. He's a Nietzschean Übermensch. He's reached the limits of human capabilities. But for what? From dust you are and to dust you shall return, Tom...
Severus Snape — a Seaker who chose the wrong Path
And Snape, by the way, initially turns away from Lily (Lily is love of God, represented in the world). Because he's obsessed with becoming dark magic, his ego and desire for secret knowledge and being proud are very great.
Btw, Lily is a mudblood. In the sense that God is not in shining beautiful armor. This is Lucifer's mask – to be pure, to shine, to sparkle. But the real God can be found by seeking, under the feet of the poorest and "dirtiest" person. After all, for God, everyone is equal. It's the Devil who divides.
And pure-bloods, for example, the Blacks, are "false purity." Luciferian purity. Material purity, purity of shining gold. It's division. And where there's division – there's the Devil.
In short, Snape turns away from Lily because this path is difficult, he doesn't understand how to approach her, he already uses dark magic, has a lot of knowledge, and delves into various secrets, and shows what "bad" paths other seekers (the Marauders) take... (The seeker is not my term, it's from the Rosicrucian manifesto, alchemists call themselves seekers) But Lily still refuses to unite Spirit and Soul. And he calls her a "mudblood," insulting her. For Lily, this is a sign that this soul is almost lost. And there's no sincere regret in him when he asks for forgiveness. He asks her to forgive him, but his soul is still on the old Path. Lily isn't angry with him, it's not about anger or offense. Snape's soul is almost lost at this moment, closed to the divine spark and love. After all, for love to enter your heart, you first need to open yourself to it.
Only when Snape sees true face of Tom's "alchemy," in which Tom is ready to kill Love, the divine spark, essentially kill God in the souls of all people, then Snape, as a real Seeker, realizes that he's going the wrong way... And he runs to the main Alchemist, Dumbledore, to ask to preserve this love, this manifestation of God on earth.
But you can't preserve it without preserving the seeker of the right Path in your soul (James) and without preserving the possibility of the emergence of the transformed soul (Harry).
This is a very important moment, not only because you can't kill people in principle. Dumbledore literally tells him that you can't save love of God, the divine spark in your soul, if you kill in yourself the one who reaches out to God (the deer) and if you kill the POSSIBILITY of becoming this new transformed soul (Harry).
For Snape, this becomes a turning point, and he decides to switch sides to true alchemy. Dumbledore asks in return for Snape's soul, but not in the sense that the Devil demands it, he asks for loyalty to the Path. Below I'll explain the symbolism of Dumbledore and what he means in terms of alchemical symbolism (I don’t think he is God).
Snape becomes loyal to Dumbledore. But Lily is killed, as is James. The world, despite the fact that Voldemort temporarily goes into hibernation (and the Savior is alive), plunges into despair. Sirius (as a divine symbol of light) is in captivity, Remus (a symbol of a seeker with a "good but not brave" soul) is somewhere wandering the world, and Harry lives very poorly with the Dursleys... Harry doesn't know any God, and the seeker in him is also "dead". And Voldemort will soon rise again, he's just gathering strength.
Harry's path is the path of returning to God through Mother of God (Theotokos). Because it is Mother of God who is the true Spirit. That's why he meets Lily only at the end of the seventh book, when he's almost completed the alchemical transformation. For Christians, this is heresy, but for alchemists, it's not. The Son and Mother of God are one whole. The Virgin Mary is part of the Trinity, because only through the spiritual unity of the Mother and the Son is the salvation of humanity possible.
And who does he meet her through? Through Snape. Who dedicated his entire life to transforming his Soul, merging it with the Spirit, ultimately coming to God.
He spent his whole life hating James, as a Seeker of a different kind, not like him—Snape always leaned a bit towards Nietzschean stories. And James always hated Dark Magic and all dark things (although this doesn't make the souls of this type much better, they can also be egocentric). Snape teaches Potions, he knows how to bottle up Love, Death and Luck... So much power, so much pride in this...
Recently, I reposted a very interesting post. Snape wanted to recover his soul, because he was guilty of Lily's death. A very beautiful meta, but I see a bit different alchemical meaning. His soul is broken not only because Lily partly died because of him. His soul is broken overall because of the Path he chose - that of an occult alchemist, and he remains a "spy" to the end of his days, playing two roles, constantly "here and there". He dies at the hands of his former master.
Snape takes Lily's letter because he needs Lily's love (like people wear crosses), while there isn't enough understanding of where to go (Dumbledore is already dead)
Snape always yearned for Lily. And Dumbledore asks for us, the readers: "After all this time?" And Snape answers for us "Always." You must love God always. And that is salvation for the soul.
In general, Snape only understands towards the end that you cannot love Lily without Harry and even James. Only one Path leads to Lily - the same as James’s path. The path of Ego, pride, thirst for power, secret knowledge, occultism, malice, hatred must finally dissolve. Snape fully exposes himself to Harry, although he shouldn't have (he should only pass on information about death), revealing the good (and the bad) that he always hid. His revelation to him speaks of his complete acceptance. He shows him his soul, literally bowing his head to him - here I am, here is my soul, in some things I have no excuse, sometimes I have justification, but I've been seeking God, seeking love all my life.
Will you accept my wounded soul?
This is confession. The realest confession.
And Harry accepts. Of course, Harry accepts. He looks at him with Lily's eyes.
Because no matter how "bad" you are, if you truly love God in your soul, if you truly seek Him, there will always be a place for you in the City of God. Snape is the constantly replayed plot of the Prodigal Son's return.
At this moment, all the "black" in Snape dies – the nigredo. Tears - the white stage, purification – the albedo stage, purification. Blood – naturally, the red stage. The alchemical transformation for Snape is complete.
(But geniuses from TikTok will still say that Harry shouldn't have named his son Albus Severus, because Snape was baaaad. Ofc he was bad sometimes, that's the point!)
Dumbledore is the embodied Path and Plan
As I mentioned before, Dumbledore asks for Snape's soul in return, but not in the sense that the Devil demands it, he asks for loyalty to the alchemical Path.
Dumbledore, as an alchemist, besides embodying the completion of the albedo stage for Harry with his death, is also the embodied Path. Dumbledore is the highest Guardian of the Tower, who watches over the Paths of others, he is the Man of Spirit, he is the Principle, he is the Master. What is the difference between Dumbledore and Lily? Lily is a more important symbol, she is like pure divine power, God = love, as in what all souls dissolve. Dumbledore, on the other hand, is the Guardian of the Path through which everyone must pass. In short, Lily is the answer to the question "where", and Dumbledore is the "how". And Dumbledore is just a man who also underwent his alchemical transformation and who can also succumb to temptation. But Dumbledore is not GOD, imo. To personify God in a book is too much (even for me, although I’m not religious at all). I don’t like the idea of him being God and... really, where? God is transcendent and pure divine love emanates from Lily that’s why she almost an empty canvas. Dumbledore is a principle. He is the answer to the question "HOW". That's why he asks to believe in him, believe in the ALCHEMICAL PATH AND PLAN. FOLLOW THIS PLAN TO THE END. Ascend the tower, as I once ascended it. After all, he lives up there in the tower. He observes.
For Snape, Dumbledore is so important because Dumbledore is the Path, a new Path that he did not have. And Dumbledore's death is so important for everyone because now no one points them towards the Path. But they must find this Path within themselves. Because the answers are inside them. You cannot become a true Alchemist if you constantly rely on external help. It's time to see the Path independently.
"You must kill me."
There was a long silence, broken only by an odd clicking noise. Fawkes the phoenix was gnawing a bit of cuttlebone. (HP and DH)
After Dumbledore says that Snape must kill him, there is silence and a very clear symbol - the phoenix and the bone. It's time for their souls to go independently, to eat away all the old to come to rebirth. Meanwhile, they also need to save Draco, who, by "Lucifer's" order, is about to kill the Path (although you can't outplay God's plan...). And then Dumbledore reveals that Harry must die.
This shocks Snape. Like any alchemist on the Path. How so, to die? After all, we all do everything to become closer to God, to immortality, and you say – just die? What kind of Path is this?
"I thought…all these years…that we were protecting him for her. For Lily.”
After all, we were protecting Harry for Lily, because as I've already said, only through the spiritual unity of the Mother and the Son is the salvation of humanity possible. Snape is protecting the son for the mother, and Dumbledore wants to kill him? For what?
Simply put, Snape doesn't understand that no one can save Harry until he dies and is reborn. It's painful, but all heroes go through this path for rebirth.
Dumbledore knows that there is a "seed" of "evil" in Harry, as in any of us. After the fall, we all carry Luciferian part within us. This is the last thing that must die in Harry, and he himself must die for it.
No one promised that the path of the alchemist would be easy. It's understandable why not everyone loves Dumbledore, he seems too cold and manipulative, but there is no other way for Harry on the symbolic level.
The Great Work
There are three stages of the Great Work: decomposition (nigredo), purification (albedo) and ultimate perfection (rubedo). These stages for Harry culminate in the deaths of Sirius Black, Albus Dumbledore, and his own death, where he is carried out of the forest by Rubeus Hagrid.
And the result of his alchemical work should be Rebis — essentially the alchemical philosopher's stone, an androgynous being. In the collection of dialogues attributed to Hermes Trismegistus, God is depicted as androgynous. (Hermes Trismegistus is essentially the one who created the corpus of Hermetic texts).
Rebis is the unity of opposites. Day and night, Man and Woman, Good and Evil, Light and Darkness. All is one. There is no division. The wholeness of God. After the fall, we are all divided. And after the alchemical transformation, we can finally become whole and find ourselves and God.
In the form of merged men and women, sometimes depicted as the Virgin Mary and Christ, because They are one whole. As I have already said, for many alchemists, the Virgin Mary is part of the Trinity because only through the spiritual unity of the Mother and the Son was the redemption of original sin made possible. As I have already said, although Harry suffers more for James (his father turned out not to be as ideal as he thought), Lily is the main symbol in "Harry Potter".
The Nigredo stage literally means "blackness" - it signifies complete breakdown, decay, descent into the underworld, the trance of grief. It's a descent into the deepest fears, disbelief, denial, loss of self, anger, aggression. And through this - a return to the prima materia. This is what happens to Harry, "The Order of the Phoenix" is a very dark and depressing book, and with Sirius's death, this stage for Harry is completed. Sirius himself also undergoes transformations, but about this in the next part. The nigredo stage, during which a person's ego dissolves, is agonizing but necessary for further development. After the "I" meets its "shadow" and disintegrates into parts, it will need to be purified and recreated.
Albedo ("whiteness") symbolizes purification, transition to another world, change of life priorities, awakening, enlightenment. In alchemy, the transition from nigredo to albedo is achieved through the process of washing. The whole sixth book is misty, "white", "wet". "Washing" (albutio, baptisma) directly leads to whiteness (albedo). Purification. It's also silver, a lunar state. In Harry Potter, there is a character named Luna, which means moon in Latin. In different parts of the books, Luna also symbolizes this stage. With Dumbledore's death this stage for Harry completed.
Rubedo ("redness") - the final stage of the alchemical Great Work. The alchemist must establish a kind of sacrificial relationship with his inner essence. At the final stage, the so-called "alchemical marriage" takes place: the marriage of the Red King and the White Queen - Soul and Spirit. Harry (soul) and Lily (spirit) are united. With Hagrid carrying Harry this stage for Harry completed.
Bu the way, the Golden Snitch is an alchemical symbol also.
Firstly, Harry's position is called the Seeker. Alchemists also called themselves that. Secondly, the winged disc is a very ancient symbol, meaning the sun (God) and immortality.
The Snitch reveals to him the Resurrection Stone, and Harry "encounters" his main symbols, but the main one is Lily. It is her he asks not to leave him.
Harry's death here is read by everyone as the well-known plot of Christ's crucifixion. The path to this death is also a reference to the agony of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane before the Crucifixion. After all, Harry also wanted to end up somewhere, but Hogwarts is his home, and he accepts his fate.
My Father! all things are possible for Thee: take this cup of suffering away from me: and yet not what I desire, but what Thou desirest. Mark 14:36
He wanted to be stopped, to be dragged back, to be sent back home... But he was home.
Lily's Eyes
To be honest, I can assume that her green eyes was chosen at random. But what if they weren't? Her green eyes may seem illogical, as this is the colour of the snake, the colour of Slytherin, the colour of evil. But this is the occult Luciferian snake, the erroneous snake. Originally, green also dates back to Hermes Trismegistus – the god who gave the knowledge of alchemy. The most famous of the old hermetic-alchemical texts is inscribed on the "Emerald Tablet". According to legend, this document was left by Hermes Trismegistus on a plate of emerald in an Egyptian temple.
"The Emerald Tablet" is very important for alchemists." According to legend, a large emerald fell to the earth from Lucifer's head when he was cast out of heaven. From the same emerald that fell from the crown of the fallen Lucifer, angels made the Holy Grail (which is also the philosopher's stone, and the Snitch...). Emerald is a sacred green stone, and the heavenly divine world - the homeland of the emerald - a precious stone in which information about the heavenly homeland is encoded.
There is also the Ouroboros - a snake that devours its own tail - a symbol of infinity and immortality.
And the Snitch, which is a reflection of Hermes Trismegistus' staff (which has two battling snakes - two opposites, Spirit and Soul, Good and Evil and so on, and Hermes establishes unity between them with his staff).
Occultists, of course, interpret these symbols in their own way.
Hermione is Hermes Trismegistus. Mercury. Ron — Sulphur. Harry— Salt.
Hermione (Ἑρμιόνη [hermi. ónɛː]) is a feminine given name derived from the Greek messenger god Hermes. As I said, Hermes Trismegistus is the main figure of Hermetic teaching, he is also the one who predicted the coming of the Savior (traditional Christianity should not be confused with Gnostic teachings, the Church has always been against Gnosticism). In addition, Hermes is Mercury, and that is knowledge. Hermes Trismegistus shares "secret knowledge" with the world, which forms the basis of many Gnostic directions - from alchemy to Kabbalah.
Hermione is a little alchemist, she shares knowledge. It is Hermione who insists on complete trust in Dumbledore, it is Hermione who often leads Harry in the right direction when Dumbledore is not around. It is through Dumbledore and Hermione that "moral lessons" are often sounded, which often seem completely out of place. Like when Dumbledore says that James would forgive Peter. At that moment, I always want to say, "Are you out of your mind?!" although I understand that it is described on a symbolic, not personal level.
Mercury (Hermione), Sulphur (Ron), and Salt (Harry) were necessary in the alchemical transformation and were the main components. To create the philosopher's stone, all three elements had to be combined, and Harry is next to them throughout all the books.
Both Hermione and Ron are equally important in Harry's development.
Mercury is the more fluid primary principle, more rational, the feminine principle, while Sulphur is dynamic, expansive, unstable, acidic, unifying, masculine, paternal, and fiery principle. Sulphur is emotional, it is desire and passionate impulse that motivates life. Sulphur is desire. And according to Jung's reflections, it can also be foul and dangerous. Complete transmutation depends on the correct application of this variable principle. Sulphur must be of quality for transmutation to occur. And Ron achieves this quality.
Also, in mystical alchemy, Sulphur is crystallized inspiration of Mercury (Mercury).
Mercury and Sulphur are simultaneously antagonists, like the male and female elements, but at the same time Sulphur is crystallized Mercury.
So I have always been and will always be for Romione! Hehe. They were made for each other!
And as for Salt - that's Harry. It's the body. Sometimes it is called earth and body, salt is the essential body (corpus).
Alchemists say that salt was the first substance created by fire, emanating from God. In salt, all creation is concentrated, in salt the beginning and the end of all things.
Salt is associated with the ultimate elevation of matter - with matter that has acquired consciousness, achieved through the unity of opposites, including the unity of fire and water, the unity of what is above and what is below. Salt is the ultimate Philosopher's Stone, representing transcendence and ultimate knowledge.
Thus, salt symbolizes consciousness (thoughts, feelings, material, etc.), which must be elevated through alchemical processes of dissolution and recrystallization. Well, that's Harry himself.
Just love this stupid moment
Well, that's it, I think I've said everything, and from the next part, we can move on to the Marauders themselves :D
#i'm wondering if anyone but me is even interested in this at all#harry potter meta#harry potter#hermione granger#ron weasley#pro ron weasley#rubeus hagrid#pro severus snape#pro albus dumbledore#pro romione#hp meta#severus snape meta#lily evans#tom riddle#voldemort#tom riddle meta#bellatrix lestrange
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I also think- having recently seen a post that said Blue Eye Samurai isn't a queer story, it just has queer elements- that sometimes it feels like fans cannot make up their minds.
Do we or do we not want stories that treat being gay as a perfectly normal, perfectly common experience the same way straight people are depicted in every story to ever exist?
In BES, no one is outright stated to be queer. That's partially because in Japan, until Japan felt the need to sanitize itself to appeal to foreigners, it wasn't unheard of at all for men to be gay. Multiple famous samurai and swordsmen and nobles were either outspokenly gay or are commonly theorized to have been gay in modern historical readings. Abijah making multiple references to swinging both ways, Kaji's offer of a male prostitute, the various scenes we have of men being together in sexual positions, they're not met with surprise because homosexuality was an acknowledged thing that happened.
Taigen's erection while he's wrestling Mizu, even though he doesn't yet know her secret, is treated awkwardly because they're supposed to dislike each other and also he's supposed to be in love with Akemi, not because "whoa bro no homo".
(This is also why I keep saying that it's difficult for me to put into English words what I think Mizu's gender is, because gender and sexuality quite frankly did not work the way my 2020s American brain wants to contextualize it, and I think it's important to consider the cultural aspects here esp in a show so heavily leaning on a racial story)
However, compared to many other shows out there even regarding the same area and country, BES is significantly more queer than the majority of them produced in the last 30 years. Is Mizu herself queer? Well... maybe, depending how you define it. Back in the day, otherwise cisgender crossdressers and male-impersonators were still grouped in with those we'd call transgender nowadays. She seems to be exclusively interested in men, but also seems to be equally receptive to considering herself sexually as both a man and a woman pairing with men, than as a man or woman pairing with women which she has adamantly refused with zero interest on multiple occasions.
Is Taigen bi? I mean, maybe! He seemed more mortified that he had an unwanted erection in front of someone he wanted to impress and play with, than that he had it over someone he considers a man, using the excuse that he misses his would-be fiance.
Abijah certainly seems to be bisexual, considering we see him having sex with both women and men, and his various sexual references talk about both men and women as well. This is ignoring whatever weird sexual tension thing he's got going with Heiji, who seems both receptive and repulsed by it.
And, not to be remiss, but there is a reason I specified that homosexuality among men was pretty known. Due to the more rigid policing of women's sexuality in this era, homosexuality among women was less commonly reported (though I have heard stories of noble women and their handmaids, or the working poor women, or among prostitutes living together in the brothels, so also not unheard of but perhaps less accepted as women were largely bought and sold in marriage and sex trafficking) - but even with all of that, Kaji and Kinuyo have something together. Whether that is a mother-daughter thing, or if they were lovers, is up to interpretation. The implication that out of everyone at the brothel that Kaji genuinely cares for, Kinuyo was special, and that wasn't a particularly uncommon arrangement historically if I'm hearing about it 400 years later in a completely different country.
So this "well it's not a queer show" and "if I was told this was a queer story I'd be disappointed" is honestly just ridiculous hooey to me. Do you want characters who are able to explore their sexualities without looking over their shoulder out of fear of homophobia, or not?
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Any changes to Gullswoop in this? I love her so much and was so happy to see her given character this arc… I do try to ignore how disappointed I am that the Erins made her xenophobic in Sky. Strongly disagree that she’d be like that.
I'm sorry Anon, I'm completely and utterly in love with Gullswoop and where she's gone. For one it's good and healthy for the story for 'clan dynamics' to involve harsher characters, and for second, she's HILARIOUS, I love this gossip-obsessed queen and how she made fun of Shadowsight for being scared of a bee
For a background character I actually have a ton of backstory for her in BB!
[ID: Better Bones Gullswoop. She is white with black points, and red-orange eyes. She is resting her chin on her paw and grinning like a cheshire cat.]
Her name in Clanmew is Rewpiorru. Bird names are usually strange translations because of the fact that Clanmew has a TON of different words describing the flight and behavior of birds.
This is because they are a hunting culture and classifying prey behaviors, especially the way they escape capture, is extremely important.
Rewpiorru is "Black-headed-gull flying leisurely." This could have been translated as "Gulldance" or "Gullhover" or even "Gullflight."
It's a reference to her generally laidback nature. Heartstar has a love of dramatic and evocative names like this.
The ShadowClan family tree is NOT done yet, but it's so bad the entire thing is getting thrown out. Gullswoop is one of the only cats who I am 100% committed to something with.
She is the daughter of Ivytail, daughter of Fernshade and Wolfstep, niece of Blackstar.
And thank goodness for that, because having the OTHER well-known black-point cat as a famous relative is good cover for the fact her biofather was Darktail.
Ivytail joined The Kin happily when Yellowcough ravaged the camp, though she would come to regret her choice as people started vanishing.
Darktail was just an honor sire, though Ivytail wouldn't have been sure which of the Kin cats was the father if Gullkit hadn't been born looking just like him. Blossomfall's Stemkit, Plumkit, and Shellkit were in a similar boat.
For the record: Darktail was vaguely happy about this, but died when Gullkit was very young and so didn't have the time to explore those feelings.
I am still working out the Kin Drama of BB!AVoS and its related technicalities. I'm not sure if Ivytail survives the Kin ordeal or not, but I do know that at some point three litters of kits (Blossom's, Ivy's, Yarrow's) were separated from their mothers and had to be taken back.
Gullswoop is loyal to Heartstar more than ShadowClan. Even if she doesn't always agree with or understand Heartstar's choices, it takes a lot to make her loyalty waver.
She doesn't really "have political opinions" which basically means she leans Traditionalist, on the harder side.
More than anything, Gullswoop wants drama. She wants to know eeeeverything. She wants to taste all the tea.
I don't rewrite arcs until they're done, but Gull would make the perfect spy for Heartstar... which is probably why she's not involved in Berryheart's schemes despite being a bit xenophobic.
Conefoot and Frondwhisker might remain her brothers, but I can't say for sure yet. In any case, Gullswoop is FREE from Snowbird blood.
And that's Gull so far! Some of it is prone to change, especially since AVoS remains the most unsolidifed BB!Arc as of writing, but she's a background girlie I'm fond of.
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We need to know
In the ninja rpf universe
How many fans does each Akatsuki member have?
Like, from most fans to least fans, how would they be listed? Obviously Sasori and Itachi are going to be near the top if not ON top
yes yes i see. number of fans is very dependent on overall fame and perceived attractiveness of publicly available photos. i'm basing fandom attitudes on fandom culture in the ~2000s so being a conventionally attractive pretty boy is very important (i KNOW y'all are super thirsty for kisame but he would not do great numbers in the 2005 era of bishounen)
of the akatsuki, sasori definitely has the most fans. this is because he's famous and also because his photos from when he was in suna are like this
if we're counting him, i actually think orochimaru probably has a lot of fans? because like. listen. the sannin were famous as beloved war heroes, and i don't think the "child experimentation" thing was something konoha spread around. orochimaru is eccentric but he does take care of his appearance and i don't think "sometimes vomits up snakes" is very well known outside of actual ninja circles. so i think the rpf community sees him as the cool, handsome older man with a tragic backstory
itachi is next because, even though i don't think itachi's character design is actually all that attractive.... he's uchiha itachi. everyone is obsessed with him. this is just a law of the naruto universe. he's very famous because of the whole "killed his whole clan at 13" thing and it's very easy to wax poetic about his raven hair.
the rest of the members are either relatively unknown due to age (deidara, hidan), known but not conventionally attractive (kisame, kakuzu), or purposefully being secretive weirdos (konan, pein, zetsu, obito). i think the seven swordsman is probably seen a as a sexy concept, so kisame is next for number of fans but the gap is pretty wide. kisame fans are very dedicated but regarded as niche. kakuzu has some fans but they're considered kind of. weird. (also there's a rumor kakuzu hunted one down at charged them for using his image without his permission?)
hidan is maybe considered an up and comer in the community. he doesn't have a lot of die hard fans, but there's chatter about him because he's pretty generically handsome. deidara WOULD do fucking numbers in this sort of community, but it's funnier if people just don't know who he is :P
there's obviously other missing-nin people like to write about, but i think tori is very like "who the fuck is this? must not be important" which is one of the many reasons the rpf community is welcoming to her. :<
i think there must also be some interest in non-missing-nin shinobi, which is how sasori/kakashi becomes A Thing, BUT i think the politics around this is a little weird. like kakashi is considered a very cool and loyal shinobi is fire country, but the rpf community in earth country has a very different take. missing-nin though.... everyone considers them horrible traitors and that's equality <3 BUT also i think the rpf community doesn't have a lot of members who are ninja or even civilians living in ninja villages.... a special interest in missing-nin is one thing if you're shop girl in a little town or a farmer in the middle of nowhere, but it might be consider suspicious behavior inside of a ninja village, you know?
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hmm I wonder who I should ask you about /silly I am genuinely curious on your Barnham characterization thoughts
Pick a character I am likely to have Feelings/Opinions about and I will give and explain the top five ideas/concepts/etc that I believe are essential to accurately depicting them.
HEHEHEHEHE ZACH BARNNNN I love that guy so much. Hes been through so much shit and hes being so so so gaslighted but he genuinely thinks hes doing the right thing. Idk hes so so compelling to me I really do wish that his story was actually explored more in game- he has a character arc of someone who learns to go against the norm and figures out that what he is doing is not good and incredibly immoral, but because they bench him for case 4, he really doesn't have the resolution that I feel should have been given to his character.
1. One of the top concepts that I feel is essential to depicting this guy (especially post-PLvsPW) is regarding how he perceives his status as a person. Hes an authoritative figure (even though hes left out of the Storyteller and Eves conversations, he's still a prosecutor and has power over the townspeople) and hes also famous in his own special Barnham Way TM (the townspeople fucking love him), but regardless of his fame hes very much "I do this for the whole town, instead of doing things for his own personal gain". Post Case 3 Barnham is fascinating to me because hes taking down the wall of his perceived status and doubting the system that hes very much a cog in the machine with, but I also love really exploring how that effects his relationships with the townspeople and how he thinks of himself. Like- for example, I feel that he would have a shit ton of imposter syndrome, especially because for so long he was considered a celebrity and he was held in very high importance. Post case 3 Barnham would be an overthinker, whos morals and ideas are crashing into each other SO so frequently, giving him a sort of identity crisis (which also continues into post-PLvsPW Barnham's story, especially after Labrelum's experiments are shut down)
THEREFORE I feel that a crucial part of post-PLvsPW Zacharias Barnham is understanding the consequences of doing the work to deconstruct the monarchy that he's been under and a part of for all of these years. Now that he knows that he's been left out of SO many conversations with Eve and The Storyteller, as well as also being mind wiped like his fellow civilians, he deserves to be really really fucking angry. And ofc all Labryinthian civilians deserve to be fucking angry at the Storyteller, but I wouldn't be surprised if Barnham took it VERY personally, especially because his judgements that he was handing down to people was ALSO a cog in the machine that he did not understand to the extent that he should have. To be fair, I do feel like if he did know about what was actually going on, and wasn't mindwiped, he would have said fuck this shit im out a long time ago.
I do feel like post PLvsPW he would feel more of an obligation to stay, because everyone is getting their memories back after such a long time of not having them, and they all need a lot of support. Zach Barn, although he is an authoritative figure in his own special way, would definitely want to help with getting the townspeople back on their feet. However, I do very much headcanon that he does eventually leave several years in the future- he no longer has the authority that he had before, and honestly I dont think the connections he had with the townspeople (before and after) were incredibly strong given that he was perceived both with status as well as with a celebrity like guise. Sure, he stays in Labryinthia for a year after, but I do feel that he does eventually gets out of Labryinthia (it takes quite a while for him to do so, however. I'll talk about that later)
2. This man is so fucking uncultured. Labryinthian Culture is such a fascinating subset of English culture, especially given that they're living in a strange microcosm of British culture, which is, at the same time, entirely separate. Theres so many people from so many different places being put into this program, and of course we dont know the substats of how many people from how many different places are IN labryinthia, but based on accents, etc, they seem to be mostly British/French. However, BECAUSE of that, and also because they're being very mind wiped, Zacharias doesn't know shit about the outside world. This man has to be introduced to what English politics is, what different countries are, how different people interact with each other, etc. given that they have been all gaslighted that Labryinthia is its own separate thing and that there is NOTHING outside of the wall. I would also consider him really shit in regards to certain celebrities or historical figures- he wouldn't know, for example, who the Prime Minister is or who *insert famous singers are*, and would have to be told. Like I do think he GAINS knowledge about what things are over time, but learning about things and culture outside Labryinthia would be a learning curve for him.
I also love to HC that over time he loses his stupid lil knight "accent" (/affectionate) (also idk if its an accent but its certainly the knight like sentence structure) post-PLvsPW if he ever moves to outside Labryinthia, but when hes either stressed or angry it comes out. (but that's a smaller lil headcanon)
3. He has had a REALLY SHIT EDUCATION from this lady who has HORRIBLE ideas and genuinely all of her advice is shit. Therefore, I feel that whenever he goes back to average society, he'll have problems with mundane things that most other people wouldn't have problems with. I've always headcanoned that his sister is Rouge and that he was brought in with his sister because both of them were orphans of some way shape or form, and therefore (if Barnham was a baby), he would have all of his reading and writing skills taught by a lady that (arguably) does not know what shes doing (he also mentions that he was taught by her in the special episodes, but I also feel that its important to mention how young Barnham was when he moved to Labryinthia.) I also think that Arthur would also make the learning curriculum teach him how to specifically do things in a formal knight-like manner, which would also fuck up his vocabulary to a degree. Educationally, Barnham has soooo much to learn, simply just because of the way he grew up.
4. Also, on another side of this, I feel that he would get really really excited (and also really really nervous) when traveling. I dont feel that hes a guy that likes being outside of his comfort bubble (and for example, he went outside of his bubble when going against the storyteller) but once he gets his metaphorical feet wet into traveling his mind would be BLOWN with how much there is in the world. Hes been stuck in his lil Labryinthian-sized sphere for all of his life, and outside of that he really doesn't know much. The world is an intimidating thing, but also something that (when he learns and gets comfortable with it) he would be fascinated to learn more about. It'll take several years until he's at the point where he can travel, simply because he would be stressed out about the idea of going out of his social sphere. But eventually he'd get there!
5. He really needs therapy. This guy needs. so much therapy. Theres so much gaslighting that has gone on in his life and he needs so so much help and support post Labryinthia because (IMO) the feeling of your whole world falling apart at the seams (especially BECAUSE he decided to poke and prod at the idea that the Storyteller is a bad man) is not something that anyone should experience. Thankfully he has the support of some of his friends, and he definitely has his sister to talk to and get to know again but It'll definitely be a journey for him.
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ANYWAYS IVE RAMBLED ENOUGH I hope this makes any lick of sense (Im writing this somewhat quickly- that last point wasn't as good but you have a whole essay to read so I'll let you read all of that). Most of this is all post plvspw stuff cause I find post plvspw barnham FASCINATING and I wanna go into that a lot more in the future- Before PLvsPW Barnham feels so consistent, but post PLvsPW is a whole ball of Barnham trying to figure out his whole life and his whole personality and status all over again from the beginnning.
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The Great Western Way
Duck found "City of Truro" at the coaling stage.
"May I talk to you?" he asked shyly.
"Of course," smiled the famous engine. "I see you are one of Us."
"I try to teach them Our ways," said Duck modestly.
What is the Great Western Way precisely? We know it includes the polar opposite of the Wrong Way. However, that a whole separate character was created whose entire shtick is telling other engines to "do it right", we can assume that the Great Western Way is distinct from this alone. When Great Westerns speak amongst themselves, they recognize a collection of Ways, but neither the books nor the series ever give details. Nonetheless, we can make some extrapolations from what information their behavior.
Great Westerns do their work without Fuss.
This was expressly stated by Duck in "Duck Takes Charge". In the plainest sense, it means GW engines do not complain about, argue with, or shirk orders. In a broader sense, it may also mean that GW engines do not let interpersonal problems get in the way of work.
2. Great Westerns are not ordered about by other engines.
Duck also states this specifically. A considerable amount of Fuss is probably cut off at the pass by all engines, big and small, being created equal as far as chain of command goes on the GWR. No engine ever has authority over another.
Just a further assumption too, but if the the culture of the GWR includes this concept, it is probably because it relates to the fact that all jobs are important and necessary on the railway. It's also why you'll likely never see a GW engine complain about what jobs he's given.
3. Great Westerns observe chain of command.
Now here's the fun part! All engines are created equal, but not all rolling stock. Toad is also a GW, but he's a brake van. He refers to all engines with an honorific, implying a deference to authority. ("Implying" being the key word with Toad. He is obsequious to his engines at a base level, but is willing to put his brakes down if they're up to some bullshit.) Whether this is true of all GW brake vans is ??? (comparative brake van decorum is a whole other post) but there's further evidence that it might be.
In "Toad and the Whale", when Toad is singing in a way Duck does not like, Duck does not address Toad directly about it even though he sees Toad first. Instead, he takes his complaint to Oliver, who is pulling the train Toad is back-ending. It suggests that on the Great Western, issues with other engines' trains should be addressed engine to engine. One does not directly interfere with another engine's train.
4. Great Westerns address problems engine to engine.
When Duck and Percy make their stand on the points in front of the shed in "Duck Takes Charge", this was obviously Duck's idea. And at least in the book, Duck is clearly taking the lead which is why Hatt addresses him (in the TV show, Percy looks more forward since there's a turntable rather than points and only one of them can sit on it, but Duck is still the one asked to explain. However, when Duck speaks to Hatt, he repeatedly "begs pardon" and addresses Hatt as "Sir" three times in four sentences. He's nervous now. He did not anticipate Hatt coming down and getting involved. He thought this confrontation was just going to be between engines.
5. Great Westerns do not bring problems to their Controller.
"Did you say tell the Fat Controller?" ask Duck thoughtfully.
Even on a matter as important as that requiring the deputation, Duck would never have considered bringing a concern to Hatt directly. It simply isn't done on the Great Western. Of course, on the GWR they weren't scrapping perfectly nice engines either. He's thankfully not asked to do more than consider the possibility of asking Hatt to put it right since Gordon intervenes and assigns the task of actually doing it to Percy.
He also does not complain to Hatt when James steals the idea of using slip coaches. Hilariously too, when he and Percy go on strike in "Diesel Does It Again", he doesn't actually bring a complaint to Hatt then either; he waits for Hatt to come get it.
6. Great Westerns do not accuse other engines.
Moreover, a GW will not outright accuse another engine of wrongdoing to their Controller, even when given the opening to do so.
That's not to say they won't imply blame however.
"Certainly not Sir! No steam engine would be as mean as that."
"Of course! I used to pull them on the Great Western Railway... as I was telling James last night."
A GW will certainly point their Controller in the right direction, but to actually accuse another engine outright is too close to bringing a complaint. (And one might guess that Diesel picked up on this in "Dirty Work" because he uses that against Duck and Percy in "Diesel Does It Again": "Who's going to tell him, I wonder?")
It also counter-intuitively goes along with settling issues engine to engine to let the Controller determine on his own who the problem is rather than just tell him. If one did not explicitly lay blame at the wheels of another engine, having only given strict facts about the situation and naming no names, then one cannot be blamed when that engine gets found out.
7. Great Westerns close ranks.
Maybe part of the reason one never outright accuses another engine of being a problem is because when there is trouble, GWs expect to form a unified front. Cosa nostra and all. Toad states this outright in "Toad Stands By".
"I've a plan, Mr Douglas. May I stay here today and help him? We are both Great Western and must stand together."
Duck apparently objected to Toad's plan at first, but ultimately agreed to it - even going so far as to give Oliver advice about sanding the rails for better grip - because Great Westerns stick together.
And this is perhaps the most important of their Ways that Duck would want to bring to the NWR. All that other stuff ultimately works in service of the engines getting along and working towards a common goal of keeping that railway running efficiently. The other stuff never takes en masse, but the NWR does close ranks and form a unified front when it matters.
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Hi, I need to ramble about Korra villains and how terrifying and good they are.
First is Amon, a creepy cult leader who literally makes Korra's worst nightmare come true by taking away her power, all that she was - she never saw herself outside of her bending. He destroyed her. Then was Unalaq who manipulated her because he was her uncle and cut off her past lives (which must be devastatingly painful, by the way). Then the Lotus and Zaheer, who gave her years of trauma, and Kuvira, who Korra saw herself in.
My point is, they're all targetting and influencing her specifically. While Ozai just wanted to kill the avatar, as a figure, Korra's villains go after her specifically, using her personal weaknesses and psychologically torturing her. Because like, I remember seeing it at like 9, and Amon was fucking terrifying. The convulsions of people under bloodbending were scary, and so was his terror towards Korra. She had so much shit to deal with. And I love it! It makes the show psychological, esp s4, and I really saw my personal struggles in Korra so much it's insane.
Also unrelated but I actually love that Katara is not a famous warrior (no statues) but a quiet healer because 1. She's still alive and in contact with others so no statue and 2. She was fighting out of obligation, not hobby, and her main goal was always to help people in need. Nkthing wrong with her taking a more nurturing role as an old lady.
Also, mówisz po polsku?👀
I hear that! Tlok villains are one of teh highlights of the show. When i tell you that I had genuine nightmares about Amon... what a villain to start the show off with. Especially when Amon took Korra's bending and she was so obviously planning to kill herself.. like there's something so visceral about tlok villains
To Ozai, Aang was just an obstacle. But a lot of Korra's villains directly targeted her, to the point of her being the Red Lotus' main mark. I could ramble about tlok villains all day buy i think you said it very well.
And you're right about Katara, too. I know a lot of people hate how the Gaang was portrayed in tlok, but I really like it? Katara was a character who had a lot of rightful rage and pain in her from a young age, so seeing her just being able to do something that was so important to her, like healing people, is so sweet. She deserves to chill. Also I think, she may have a statue, or whatever, though she strikes me as the person who'd be least invested in having a statue. She's not dead or a world leader, technically. And Toph's statues was in front of the police station and in Zaofu, both places she had a lot of involvement with. Katara may have statues around hospitals, or in the southern water tribe culture centre. We haven't explored all of Republic City.
But even if she doesn't have a statue, that doesn't mean she isn't respected or revered in her own right.
Jasne, że mówię po polsku, urodziłem się i mieszkam w niej 🇵🇱
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COMPOSITE SUN SERIES PART 1
Composite Sun in Aries- Both want to or find the need to fight for the connection. The protective warrior side of each one comes out here. But be careful of the same, because they could have the tendency to turn against each other. A lot of "active" time is spent. The relationship could be very important to both of you and involves being extremely real with each other. You'll could fight a lot, but also get over them pretty quick. When you were getting into this connection, it was possibly headfirst and happened naturally because of the openness both have for it. This connection is independent of the opinions of the outside world. They both word hard, slay hard. Could involve quite a lot of fights and makeup sex.
Composite Sun in Taurus- This is one of my personal favorites. Your house is either well furnished with great woodwork, a fireplace, a bathtub, and a serene backyard or you could be planning to make a very comfortable place for you'll. Love is stable, neither of them giving upon the connection. Both want to earn for themselves/family. An aspect of traditionalism is prevalent, either related to family or culture. They find it very comfortable to be around each other. Perhaps that's also how they view it, "comfortable" and in love. They love to cook/bake together and shop together. Skin ship, slow dancing, wine, sex, and money all. Prefer to do things and show than be up all in their head. not much talking in my opinion. Both of them or one of them could be incredibly stubborn though lol. would make friendly next-doors. The food is top-notch too.
Composite Sun in Gemini- Communication is hugely important to keep the relationship afloat. Could go hot and cold. light-hearted energy. Things could move very fast, even if both are not used to it. could know each other's siblings well/ not at all. So many interests for each of you. Both are interested in varied things. "I like how you think" placement. Willing to " see where it goes". Both could buy or have a fascination for cars/automobiles. You could like exploring things together. one or both of you loves to learn languages and it reflects in your relationship. could joke around and about each other a lot. Could host gatherings of any sort. any disagreements are verbal and relied on logic. sudden overwhelming emotions.
Composite sun in Cancer- a very emotional connection this is. Always in each other's thoughts and they care a lott for the connection and the person both. Can seem sensitive. what else is possible with this placement? emotional manipulation and sabotage. The relationship could be a rollercoaster ride with constantly putting up and putting down the guards. Either there is full-on vulnerability or just a brick wall. please make sure you deal with this if this is the case because what lies beyond all this is absolutely beautiful. They Like spending time at home, dates at home, home food, and cooking. Comfy clothes play a part. close to each other's families or know a lot about each other's families.
Composite sun in Leo- The ones who catch your attention, either through gossip or just coz, they're famous. but pretty down-to-earth and affectionate people as a couple. would go to any lengths for each other. That's Leo's generosity. gifts, not just materialistic, but also pretty personal surprises. Might own or want to own a lot of branded stuff together, cars, clothes, shoes, etc. would make a wonderful couple to go on a double date together. they're the kind of people you want to be around in gatherings or invite because they just add good vibes.
Composite sun in Virgo- The reliable couple. They are the ones who make sure their relationship is growing in a healthy way. Always are open to talk about things that might need improvement. when they join forces, you know you gotta listen to them. Plans everything ahead and are always open to offer a helping hand. Getting on their bad side could either get you some dirty looks or a shit-don't-care attitude. They like to indulge and take good care of themselves. "Respect is earned". People might see them as those that think a lott(which shouldn't come as a surprise). Devotion is expressed in the relationship, maybe sometimes one doing more than the other. They are likely to educate their children a lot or would love to focus on it.
feel free to add your experience in the comments:))
Hello, I'm back:)). So I know I said that I'll be active but soo many things happened in the past three months. I felt like I was out of my true self for a long time. I needed so much time and with that mindset, this was no place for me to be. I've been focusing on realigning back and I've been trying for the past few weeks. Today felt good to come back. I'm so sorry for being off and finally, thank you for your patience
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Author Ask Tag
Tagged by a few peeps for this one!
@eponymoussquared here
@writeblr-of-my-own here
@gummybugg here
Thank you all so much! 💙
Tagging (gently): @sam-glade @theroseempress @squarebracket-trick @writingmaidenwarrior @writinglittlebeasts @mysticstarlightduck @elshells @tabswrites
1. What is the main lesson of your story (e.g. kindness, diversity, anti-war), and why did you choose it?
To be compassionate of one another. We're all different for so many reasons but we're more alike than you might think and at the end of the day we're all people doing our best and trying to get by. It's important to remember that and to know that we're all dealing with our own things along the way.
I chose it because it truly saddens me how much we as people hold each other back due to in-fighting and othering one another. I wanted a way to examine that and hopefully communicate to anyone reading AASOAF how harmful something like that is. It's no coincidence that the art and humanities have all but come to a standstill in Oepus and that's just part of it...
In short, be kind to your fellow man, dammit.
2. What did you use as inspiration for your worldbuilding (like real-life cultures, animals, famous media, websites, etc.)?
Lizards for sure haha. But a lot of my inspiration comes from nature, human history, music, movies, and foley design! Also, I have an intense curiosity about all sorts of different things so Google deep dives are very inspiring!
3. What is your MC trying to achieve, and what are you, the writer, trying to achieve with them? Do you want to inspire others, teach forgiveness, help readers grow as a person?
My MCs are trying to find their places in the world. They all kind of get confronted with some pretty harsh truths about their respective situations and are kind of forced to decide if they're going to keep going down their current path or if they are going to do something to change it.
As far as what I'm trying to achieve, I think I really want to drive the point that familiar =/= safe or "good". It can, but not always. I also really want to demonstrate that no matter who you are or where you come from, introspection, questioning the world around you, and deriving meaning to 'life and purpose', are something we should all engage in. I sincerely hope that it gives my readers the courage to do those things for themselves and grow into the versions of themselves I know they can be!
4. How many chapters is your story going to have?
As many as it takes.
5. Is it fanfiction or original content? Where do you plan to post it?
Original! AASOAF 3 will join AASOAF 1 & 2 on Wattpad when it's all finished! I have considered moving platforms recently but I'm not sure where yet.
6. When and why did you start writing?
My writing journey kind of comes in two parts. I started writing back when I was a teenager but only did it for about a year. I can't really remember why I stopped and I definitely don't have anything from that time, mostly because I didn't think to save it. I really wish I had though.
After that, I didn't get back into writing until late 2019 at the encouragement of my therapist that I journal my feelings. So I did that, but then somewhere along the way I remembered how much I liked stories and I started writing for fun!
7. Do you have any words of engagement for fellow writers of Writeblr? What other writers of Tumblr do you follow?
Just write, bro. Seriously. I think people get bogged down in a deluge of advice, technique, the "right" way to do things, etc, etc that they quite literally lose the plot. They forget why they started writing in the first place or build it up to be this thing they're afraid to engage with or even forget that under all of that they are just trying to tell a story. SO TELL IT. Stop putting up imaginary walls for yourself dude. WRITE. THE. DAMN. THING. You're not going to nail it on the first try, THAT'S FINE (and kind of the point, hello editing!) and you will get better over time. It's like jumping into a swimming pool and getting upset when you discover that you're not an Olympic level swimmer. Give yourself some grace and write the damn thing.
As far as other writers, I follow so many lovely peeps that this post would be longer than a CVS receipt if I listed them all LOL so instead, have some of my darling moots who have made being on this little corner of Tumblr that much sweeter 💙
@outpost51
@sam-glade
@elshells
@writingmaidenwarrior
@tabswrites
@crowandmoonwriting
@acertainmoshke
@captain-kraken (not around so much anymore but you had such a positive impact on me, dear captain, that it cannot be overstated)
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Throughout the months of April and May of 2022, the defamation trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard had taken place in front of the whole world. Depp sued Heard for defamation after she wrote an “opposite the editorial page” (Op-ed) on the Washington post titled “I spoke up against sexual violence - and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.” In that op-ed, she talked about sexual and domestic abuse that she experienced as a child but also in romantic relationships. She did not mention Johnny Depp. The trial was made public for the whole world to see.
It is generally believed that this trial made it possible for men to speak up about domestic abuse, however, I think the only thing it did was reinforce misogyny and further silence victims.
I have been on social media during the trial and everybody was talking about it. Compilations on youtube about “the best moments” or “funniest moments” of this trial received more and more views, and especially on the platform “Tiktok” the harassment against Amber Heard was the harshest I've seen a celebrity receive after getting “cancelled”. Short videos of her crying when testifying (in front of the whole world) about sexual abuse or rape she received from her ex-husband Depp were published with circus music in the background, “body language experts” (even though it is not an actual thing) all over the world calling her testimony acting and suspicious. People in the comments, did not deny Depp’s alleged sexual abuse on his ex-wife, instead, they “didnt see what he did wrong here” and “they wished that was them”. I, personally, was shocked by how the public acted when it came to Heard’s testimony on alleged sexual abuse: let’s imagine that she really was lying, it was still a description of rape, not just a normal intercouse, so those comments I read about rape, were disgusting to me, and i can't even imagine how rape victims felt reading comments romanticising such important accusations, just because the perpetrator is a famous actor. The way the general public reacted to violence and especially sexual violence shows that our culture has no problem and is ready to diminish and make fun of women’s traumatic experiences, more so if they are caused by powerful men.
Besides, Heard’s testimonies would be cut into short videos, would be edited with a written caption distorting her meaning and would be published. Us, users of the internet, would see the video cut, edited and out of context, and assume she really is crazy. In fact, by the end of April, she was already the narcissist, manipulative, abusive, money-hungry witch while Johnny Depp was this brave man who built up the courage to finally break his silence and face his abuser, who is very true to himself and innocent because he comes to court in sunglasses and eats candies.
When the verdict came out on June 1st, it was like Amber Heard’s death sentence was pronounced: she was humiliated in front of the world, and petitions asking for her removal from the movie she starred in “Aquaman” got millions of signatures.
A few months later, Brad PItt is suing Angelina Jolie and people are already taking his side, Evan Rachel Wood’s complaints are being questioned, even though it was already proven that she was abused in every way possible by her long-term ex boyfriend Marilyn Manson who dated her when she was 18 while he was 37, but his image got better because he is Johnny Depp’s best friend and everyone loves Johnny Depp. So it is safe to say that the Metoo movement has died because any woman speaking up now is accused of wanting to destroy the man’s life and career and faces diffamation complaints from her abuser.
What I noticed is that women are held accountable for actions they did and actions they didn't do, and are made fun of whether they're abused or abusive.
The petition of Amber Heard getting removed from her movie got millions of votes while a Chris Brown song was trending at the same time. Chris Brown was proven guilty of abusing and being violent against his ex-girlfriend Rihanna, but everybody still listens to his songs, in fact, jokes are made everyday about Rihanna being abused. Other people still defend that we should separate the man from the artist, defending the fact that abusers should still have a career despite their actions, however women's careers are destroyed for being victims.
In conclusion, my opinion is that the Depp v Heard trial should have never been public because it was treated like a reality show, and the way the general public reacted to it has made it easier now, not only to discredit women’s experiences and trauma, but also keep any other (female) victim from speaking out, fearing that she may be publicly humiliated and see her life shatter right in front of her. Amber said after the trial that she has never felt more removed from her humanity, and i completely understand her feelings, even I, who was on no one’s side during the trial, was shocked by the comments I read and videos I’ve seen of not only how she was not treated in a human way but also how grown people were threatening to kill her one-year-old daughter.
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Kirby and the Forgotten Lore: My take on KatFL’s relevance to the Kirby timeline.
Warning: This post contains spoilers for Kirby and the Forgotten Land, obviously.
Now that that’s out of the way, let me explain why I’m making this post. The general community census about the Forgotten Land seems to be that this world was where the Ancients originated; that they were the ones who experimented on ID-F86, whose powers then became the basis of the amazing technology we’ve seen from them. That the Ancients were the ones who left this world behind, to then establish themselves as that famous interstellar society.
To put it nicely, I find this theory incredibly weak and uninspired. Respectfully.
Here is why: The Ancients, presumably, have their name for a reason. Their culture rose to power a long time ago, then stayed in power for long enough to become as legendary as they are today, and then fell; so long ago that in modern times, they are only referred to as ‘the Ancients’ anymore. For something on such a grand scale, I would expect each of these intervals to have lasted several thousands of years at least. Likely much longer than that though, since many creatures in the Kirby universe seem to have freakishly long lifespans.
The ‘Forgotten Lands’, on the other hand? They look like they’ve been abandoned for a few decades at most. Just look at this place-
Sure, it's a little dirty and overgrown, but for the most part, everything in this world is still very intact. The buildings are still standing, their furniture is still there. Machines like cars and light switches are still working just fine. The water pipes are still intact. There's even still paper in many locations.
Paper! Which is always the first thing to rot. Any sort of moisture and humidity will do it in very quickly, as I'm sure you're aware. Yet here it is, looking quite alright still.
I feel like even just a few decades are already a far too generous estimate of how long this place has been abandoned; if I really look at this world, it feels like it can't have been left alone for much longer than a few years. But I'm willing to suspend my disbelief a little bit.
But not to the point where I can look at this world and confidently go "yep. These people left here, founded a civilisation somewhere else, then became highly advanced and legendary, then sealed away a god-like entity, then had a civil war and died out, and then became known as 'the Ancients' - all in the span of just a few years! Sounds legit!"... Just. no. Unless time travel was also involved, I absolutely refuse to accept this theory.
So let me offer you an alternative theory: instead of the people of the Forgotten Land inspiring the Ancient tech... What if the Ancient tech inspired them?
I know you want this game to be very important to the lore, and trust me, so do I - but maybe that's just not meant to be. This theory of mine will still tie it into the existing timeline and lore quite neatly - just not in a quite as important way as the origin of the Ancients would've been. But please. There are countless highly-advanced civilisations in the Kirby universe. Not all of them have to be directly related to the Ancients, even if they do use warp technology. Let me remind you that one of the most prominent items at Kirby's disposal is quite literally called the Warp Star - I don't think warp magic/technology is all that uncommon in this universe. It's very unlikely that they're all linked back to the same source.
Anyway, on to my actual theory.
When you enter Lab Discovera and ride the elevator, the tour guide gives you a nice little introduction into the history of ID-F86. How it arrived on the planet. How it was captured, and studied. How, at one point, an incident occured, one that caused our friend Elfilin to separate from the creature's main body.
"However, 30 years after our research began, a 'warp-experiment incident' occured in this facility", the narrator says. Very interesting. She doesn't go into any more detail, but this particular line reminded me of another piece of lore we've seen before. This one, from Planet Robobot.
When she was a child, a somewhat similar incident happened to Susie Haltmann. We don't know any details about this occurrence either, but we know that the Mother Computer - also known as Star Dream, a recreation of the Ancients' clockwork star Nova - was capable of creating wormholes of incredible power. We see this when it summons Galacta Knight in the Meta Knightmare bonus mode.
However, it also mentions that this particular action was specifically prohibited by its previous admin, Mr. Haltmann himself - perhaps because it was this function that caused Susie's loss in the first place?
We don't know exactly how old Susie is - she looks quite young, but she's also not even remotely human. So if we assume that her species ages as slowly as many of the other sentient species in the Kirby universe, these two "warp-experiment incidents" could very well line up with each other. They could very well be one and the same.
In other words, my theory is that the same incident that created Elfilin also brought a young Susie to the Forgotten Land. A young Susie, who, despite her age, had clearly been quite involved in the construction of Star Dream, and had a lot of knowledge to share. She must've been fiercely intelligent even back then.
Susie, who at some point inexplicably reappeared in Haltmann's company. Almost as if the place she had been sent to as a child had finally mastered the same warp technology that removed her from her reality in the first place, allowing her to return.
If you would like further proof, just compare Star Dream and the Eternal Capsule that was later constructed to house ID-F86. They look quite similar - almost as if they were based on the same concepts. Sure, it could be a coincide, but when it comes to HAL, few things ever are.
Yes, the central tube is a little wider, but it has that same flared out top, that same slanted pedestal. It feels like a similar type of technology to me - perhaps inspired by what Susie might have remembered about Star Dream's blueprints. Isn't it strange that this "Eternal Capsule" seems so much more high-tech and advanced than anything else we find in this world? It certainly seems strange to me. Almost as if it wasn't their own technology in the first place!
And then there's the tour guide herself - to me, the way she was speaking about ID-F86 felt eerily similar to the way Susie was talking about Meta Knight after she had modified him against his will and turned him into Mecha Knight, her own little roboticised servant. Both of them spoke with such carefree flippancy, with such utter lack of care or empathy for the sentient, suffering being they were experimenting on - like they were just tools to be used and exploited at will. If this was the culture Susie ultimately grew up in, that would certainly explain why she ended up being Like That.
So then what? 30 years after this warp-experiment incident (I assume they would've kept updating the time on their tour audio guide otherwise, since the Lab seems like quite the important place), the people who once called this planet home mastered their new technology and left the planet for a "land of dreams" - perhaps that was actually Dreamland, as the community was quick to assume, or perhaps it was a more literal dream world, akin to ID-F86's own Forgo Dreams. Perhaps if Susie really was among them, some returned to Haltmann Works alongside her. I can't say.
Regardless of where they actually went though, I don't think it happened very long ago. Everything they left behind is still in remarkably good condition. But whoever they were, I'm quite certain that they weren't the Ancients, or their ancestors. And I'll remain firm on that stance; unless Fecto Elfilis suddenly turns out to have time travel capabilities, I just don't think this lost civilisation is as relevant to the big events of the Kirby timeline as the community hopes it is. Sorry.
#Kirby#Kirby and the Forgotten Land#KatFL#Kirby and the Forgotten Land spoilers#KatFL spoilers#Planet Robobot#Theory#Analysis#the Ancients#Fecto Forgo#Fecto Elfilis#Elfilin#ID-F86#Star Dream#Susie Haltmann#Meta Knight#Mecha Knight#Kirby lore#Kirby theory#KatFL theory#Yep this is my hot take for the day#Thank you for coming to my TED Talk 🤗#Long post
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questions game!!
tagged by @songsofsomnia <3, keeping open tags :D
putting my responses under the cut bc ik i'm gonna ramble lol
(answering this one about Pulse Point, my sci-fi wip!)
What is the main lesson of your story (e.g. kindness, diversity, anti-war) and why did you choose it?
Honestly, I'm not entirely sure what the overarching lesson is. I think as I start actually writing more of the narrative (as opposed to just planning + writing snapshots of scenes), It'll be more clear? but some main themes, at least for specific characters, are dealing with grief, burnout, and attachment.
2. What did you use as inspiration for your world-building (e.g. real-life cultures, animals, famous media, websites)?
oh man i have sooo many small things. some governments/cultural groups have IRL inspiration, a lot of the characters are based off of myself or people that I know, and I have an entire save folder on instagram of cool things i want to include somehow, not to mention pinterest boards.
3. What is your main character trying to achieve, and what are you as the writer trying to achieve with them? Do you want to inspire others, teach forgiveness, help readers grow as a person?
As of rn, I'm set up to have multiple main characters, and i'm not suuuper hyped on how i've fleshed out all of their motivations/plot importance, but the main conflict of the story is trying to prevent a cold war from escalating. mainly, i just want to write it to prove to myself that i can, and hopefully make characters that people can relate to, enjoy reading about, and grieve :)
4. How many chapters is your story going to have?
I. well. hmm. at the moment, looking at like the entire stretch of plot that i could theoretically write about, it's like. multiple books, possible. definitely at least 20 for the immediate plotline ???? I've never finished any of my long-form writing projects so i really have no clue!
5. Is it fanfiction or original content? Where do you plan to post it?
original content all the way. I don't even know if i'm going to end up posting it (or where) because I don't know if I'll finish it! i'd like to, though, and if i do it'll either be free to read on my ao3, or i'll try and get it actually published.
6. When and why did you start writing?
i really don't know. I've kind of always been writing? When I was pretty young, i started writing down my dreams/daydreams because they were very vivid and I wanted to keep the details straight on their plotlines and characters. Started writing to post back in like 2021 with some fanfics for an old fandom.
7. Do you have any words of encouragement for fellow writers of Tumblr? What other writeblrs do you follow?
heck yeah two cakes!! that's the writing mentality i'm taking into 2024. Also, if you think it's bad and don't want to post it, just remember that there is without a doubt something much worse than that being posted by someone that fully believes they're the next shakespeare. you're fine. trust me.
blank copy:
What is the main lesson of your story (e.g. kindness, diversity, anti-war) and why did you choose it?
What did you use as inspiration for your world-building (e.g. real-life cultures, animals, famous media, websites)?
What is your main character trying to achieve, and what are you as the writer trying to achieve with them? Do you want to inspire others, teach forgiveness, help readers grow as a person? —
How many chapters is your story going to have?
Is it fanfiction or original content? Where do you plan to post it?
When and why did you start writing?
Do you have any words of encouragment for fellow writers of Tumblr? What other writeblrs do you follow?
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Do you think that the Hulu revival is going to correct any of the issues that the other seasons had, like the queerbaiting and "Haha Leela and Amy secretly hate each other because they're women!"? I have a liiiittle hope because the cultural landscape has changed so much. Unfortunately, I feel like the writers are a little set in their ways, and some of the fans definitely are. Can you imagine the meltdown if the show outed Bender? (Which would make it even better.)
I personally don't believe that Futurama had any queerbaiting. Like most other Western cartoons in general, I believe it has queer coding with many of its characters. Queerbaiting has a more negative connotation, while queer coding is much more neutral. And it's possible a lot of what I would consider queer coding is on accident, or me reading into things as a queer woman. The main reason I don't think Futurama has any queerbaiting is that it wouldn't make any sense at all. An adult cartoon that came out in 1999 for the more conservative Fox network would not try to market itself toward queer audiences at all. Hell, I would argue that one of the reasons Futurama got canceled back in the early 2000s was because it was too liberal for the network.
I would also like to consider Matt Groening's history as an artist. Before he did The Simpsons, he wrote a comic called Life in Hell. This comic was about funny-looking rabbit creatures, and I believe two of the characters lived as a gay couple (the rabbits cameo a few times in Futurama). Not to mention Smithers in The Simpsons who was clearly meant to be gay back when characters like these weren't portrayed in mainstream media. I just can't believe that they would put queerbaiting into the show with malicious intentions. I have to wonder if he wanted to put more LGBTQ characters into his projects like The Simpsons and Futurama, and was held back by Fox. However, there are a lot of people who worked on both shows, so I can't say for sure.
I don't even think that queer coding has any malicious intentions (for the most part). For example, when Fry acts as though Bender is cheating on him in The Honking, I don't think that the joke is that they are acting like a gay couple. I believe the joke is that Fry's reaction is so out of the left field for the situation at hand, to the point where it circles back as charming. I see this goofy, playful type of queer coding in a lot of cartoons, such as Wander Over Yonder or Looney Tunes Show. It doesn't bother me, but I also respect that it might bother others. The fanservice with Amy and Leela bothers me, but it would bother me less if they had a closer relationship like Fry and Bender.
I'm not sure if I would say the writers of Futurama are "set in their ways" as much as I would say that aspects of Futurama have aged very poorly due to the time it came out. That's not to say that these aspects shouldn't be criticized at all. I think that it's important to warn people when recommending the show, and it's important to discuss negative portrayals of minorities in fiction. I don't know much about the writers of Futurama so I have no idea what their beliefs are and I also have no clue how much freedom they were given with the show. It's possible that they had the best intentions and they fumbled with certain aspects.
Futurama is over 20 years old and it ended nearly 10 years ago. I think that this is a lot of time for the people who created the show to reflect and grow as writers. And I think every good writer wants to improve their flaws and listen to feedback. I've seen incredibly famous writers state that they could've done better. And then they take strides to improve on their older mistakes. I could definitely see the writers for this show reflecting on the way Amy and Leela's relationship was handled or the trans jokes made in very poor taste. Not to mention, it's very possible that they may bring new writers on board to get a more diverse writing room and a fresh perspective.
I admit that I have a great deal of respect for the writers of Futurama as an aspiring writer myself. Comedy is considered to be one of the most difficult genres to write, and Futurama has some of the tightest writing I've seen on TV. I think that can only be achieved by a great deal of effort and a strong writing team. The dialogue is fantastic; each character has a very distinct voice. I was impressed by the continuity in an episodic format, as well as the complex concepts they executed so well.
I adore how this show is "smart" but it never talks down to its viewers. I like how it can take jabs at itself from time to time without being too overt about it. I've always felt that even through all the dark humor, the heart of this show is kind, and you don't often get to see that with adult cartoons. There were so many instances when I finished an episode of Futurama and thought "I hope I can write like that one day." Maybe this is naïve of me, but I really do think the writers can fix some of the older issues that the show had now that time has passed. And maybe they will want to push for queer representation this time.
As for Bender being portrayed as queer; I definitely would like it if some of the more bigoted fans were pushed away from this show. I have to admit, seeing bigots get something they enjoy taken away from them always fills me with this vengeful glee. I would love it if Bender was confirmed queer; I fully welcome an unhinged and morally dubious queer character. However, the idea of backlash makes me incredibly nervous. This is mainly due to the way I've seen people talk about the LGBTQ community online and in real life, especially recently. I always want more representation in media, but I'm starting to feel worn down and depressed by the constant backlash anything remotely queer (or anything with minorities at all) receives.
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I Need Bookrecs but I can’t Just look any up cause all I get is booktok stuff :/
please help
Well I can recommend some things I/people I know personally enjoy! I don't know what you like, so I can't tailor them specifically to you, but hopefully it's still a helpful start :)
(and if anyone would like to reblog with their own additions, that's welcome to!)
A Chorus of Dragons by Jenn Lyons: A series I've talked about a lot recently. High Fantasy with incredibly complex and thorough worldbuilding, following Kihrin, a thief raised in a brothel as he discovers an unwanted royal heritage and the knowledge that he is destined to destroy the world. With an entire cast of engaging, unique characters (several queer in various ways) that drive the story, follow along as past lives are uncovered and these people who want nothing more than to live in peace are forced to fight for that right and figure out how to save humanity from the jealous hubris of people who have lost sight of what horrors can be justified for the greater good.
The Memoirs of Lady Trent by Marie Brennan: A series written like memoirs by Isabella Trent, the most famous and accomplished dragon naturalist ever who redefined the world and how dragons are understood with her accomplishments. But before she can be recognized, she had to establish herself in the field as a young woman in a time when women can't even vote--but she refuses to give up and travels the world for her passion, recounting the places she's been, people she's met, cultures she's glimpsed, and dragons she's studied. Very engaging and grounded, realistic in its depictions, isn't afraid to tackle topics like how harmful the "not like other women" idea is and how gender roles are detrimental to everyone.
I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself by Marisa Crane: I haven't read it, but my partner loves it. In this world, you gain a second shadow when you commit a crime, and Kris has one. And when her wife dies in childbirth, their new baby gains a shadow, too. Told as though Kris is talking to her dead wife, it examines grief, resistance, surveillance and prejudice, and is undoubtedly much better than I'm making it out to be with my vaguely informed knowledge.
The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd Jones: A standalone about a girl trying to provide for her siblings as a gravedigger, one of the only ones left in her small village who's still cautious of the supposed undead magic on its outskirts. But when a map-maker with an unclear past shows up offering money in exchange for guidance to the fabled locations, she can't turn it down. Explores death and grief and learning to live on without the people you care about, very sweet and introspective.
Ordinary Monsters by J.M. Miro: The beginning of a new series, following two boys, Marlowe and Charlie, as they're discovered and taken to a mysterious institution for their magical gifts that allow them to access--in their unique ways--the space between life and death. But there are secrets at this institution and misguided ideas of how best to save everyone from the shadowed figure hunting down little Marlowe, driving their new small band of friends to action to try and keep everyone safe. This book is slow and deliberate, but charming; the kids all act their age and there's no romance, but plenty of finding and choosing your family.
The Expanse by James S.A. Corey: Phenomenal sci-fi set hundreds of years in the future; people are colonizing Mars and a marginalized, oppressed class of people live in the Belt. Tensions run high between all of them, but James Holden is just getting by as an ice hauler before his ship is blown up and he and a few others find themselves at the center of a conspiracy. An important woman's gone missing and when she's found, the very foundations of their world are shaken as a physically impossible biohazard rewrites history and science, taking the story to places beyond where the characters ever saw themselves going. I haven't read it myself, but my dad has and I've seen the show (which is incredible) and I really want to read it myself. Cast of distinct characters and the show is one of the most scientifically realistic out there
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto: A short, bittersweet standalone about grief. Following Mikage as she processes the death of her grandmother, she becomes close with one of her grandmother's friends from a flower shop and his mother, finding herself again and learning to live with it. Notable for its casual depiction of a trans character (that mother) in this book from the 1980s. It's a lovely read, introspective and thoughtful.
The Black Witch Chronicles by Laurie Forest: I'm not caught up with this one, but it starts following Elloren Gardner, granddaughter of the last prophesied Black Witch--but she doesn't have a single spark of magic in her blood. So she's starting at a new University to become an apothecary, but there finds her beliefs about the world--and her people's superiority--challenged as she's forced to room with two winged icarals, who she doesn't think even deserve to be here. The world turns out to be much more complicated than she thought and she needs to figure out where she actually stands. A high fantasy with a more in-depth world building, but I've only read the first 2 books so far. And in the first Elloren has a lot to unlearn, so prepare to cringe at her actions and thoughts for a hot minute--but the magic and politics of the world I remember being quite interesting.
Babel by R.F. Kuang: I've spoken about this frequently; a standalone about colonialism and language. About the literal power of words and necessity of violence. Follow young Robin Swift, taken from China as a child and given a new name so England can send him to Oxford, where his language can be used to power magical silver bars and strengthen the empire. But this exploitation of him and the people he's come to think of as family rests heavy on him, and a series of experiences drive his thoughts towards revolution and pain. Warning, this is a heavier book, especially for those who have personal experience with language/culture loss and disconnect, with the effects colonialism.
The Martian by Andy Weir: A standalone about an astronaut who gets stuck as the only person on mars when his crew has to flee the planet when a storm hits. Trying his best to survive alone until someone can hopefully come get him, the story is told through his Log entries--and he is quite the little shit of a narrator. Surviving on humor and fuck it we ball mentality, he's either going to survive and be famous for it, or die on mars and also be famous for that. An incredibly fun read that touches on the bonds of humanity and what we'll do to help others, and how hard people will fight to survive and keep their hope alive. This was also turned into a movie, and not a bad one!
#book recommendations#book rec list#book recs#quil's queries#nonsie#long post#hope this helps!#if you have more specific kinds of books you want to read#feel free to specify and I'll try to tailor some suggestions#but for now here are a handful that you might not immediately know about?#i mean. i've talked about a few#but i tried to stay away from more well known books since you've probably heard of those already#but who knows! maybe you've read all of these before!#and of course. I can always think of some more if you'd like
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That Sappho's and Guido's poetry comparison article sounds like heaven or earth??? If you have a link would you mind sharing it? 👀
Awh I'm sorry but the article is in italian! It mainly talked about Sappho, the part about Cavalcanti was just a brief comment :( However, I can expand a little on the subject if you're interested :') (for what my analysis is worth...)
So, let's focus on the kind of love that Sappho described in her poems: it's a love that makes you suffer and long (sometimes with jealousy!) and that gives you no rest, as we can see, for example, in fragment I ("Immortal Aphrodite, on your intricately brocaded throne...") and in the famous fragment XXXI ("That man seems to me to be equal to the gods..."). In it, she describes the effects that this emotion solicits when she looks at the girl even for a short amount of time, which are: a fluttering heart, inability to speak, the skin feels on fire, inability so see and buzzing ears, cold sweat, tremors and becoming "greener than grass" with the result that she feels and looks close to death.
It's amazing how, even though in medieval western europe Sappho's poems had been lost (and generally speaking the knowledge of the greek language), we can see many similarities in Guido's poems! He talks about a love that is tragic, that originates from the sight of the loved one, who looks like an angel (but it's important to specify that they're not one), and it rips your soul into many little pieces (he calls them "little spirits", how cute) which results in a spiritual/metaphorical death. So, although with different meanings (behind Guido's poems is a complex philosophical belief), we can already see two similarities: love originates from sight, it brings you closer to death, and the person looks of divine nature.
Now, let's give a look at Guido's description of the effects of love (each taken from various poems): it makes your heart ache, you're unable to speak (you can only sigh), the mere sight of the loved one cannot be comprehended (which also means the eyes cannot see clearly), it takes away your vigour, brings tremors and makes you look pale like death and it feels like you're dying (which technically, according to him, you are).
Notice anything? Yep...
It would be interesting to also consider Catullus, who wrote a poem modelled on Sappho's XXXI, his carmen LI ("That man seems to me to be equal to the gods..." yep, same sentence), where he also talks about his senses being "ripped away" from him so he's not able to speak, hear or see, and I say this especially because in the middle ages poets could read Catullus, although it seems he wasn't very famous...but it's also known that Guido was really really cultured compared to most of his contemporaries (may I remind you, Dante was his best friend) so who knows if he read it or not! Personally, I wouldn't be too pessimistic...
Soo...this is all I can offer right now :] perhaps in the future I will develop thots™ on it, but for now I hope this can make up for the article! Have a nice day/night >3
#maybe thot number 1 is: Sappho is gay....Guido?? Is this another of your many signs that you're not straight? hmmmMMM?#stay tuned for my future essay on the subject#guido cavalcanti#sappho#medieval#ancient greece#poetry
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