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aratedfreyjablog · 23 days

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There is no such thing as “Good Guy”

A concept that makes WHB “charming” and appreciative is how there’s no true villain or hero. The line that defines evil and good, despite there being angels, dragons, demons, and humans, is nonexistent.

Disclaimer: Spoilers for Chapter 5, Events, Gamigin, and Lucifer!

We are put under an illusion such a line exists when we see the human MC get attacked by Gabriel, only to be saved by Satan. From that point on and all the way to Chapter 4, everything seems to be set in stone that the villains are the angels, whose goal is practically to assert their race as the only living race as a mean to receive all of “God’s” love since they are jealous that they aren’t the ONLY race to receive his love. This includes the whole issue of them targeting the MC as they are the descendent of the sole human who received most of “God’s” love (i.eSolomon). Hence, the MC and us, the players, are put under the impression that devils are victims since they are trying to protect their homes while owing them a debt for saving (reviving) Minhyeok.

Chapter 5, however, shows us that this isn’t the case and the situation wasn’t that simple. Though we learn of how the angels used to run a lab to experiment on a large population of devils, including Leviathan and Orias, the devils weren’t completely innocent. When discussing as to why the Seed of Knowledge would be in Tartaros, we learn of how said country used to do just the same as the angels where the devils of Tartaros had previously ran a lab and experimented on angels before Mammon, himself, destroyed it due to the experimentation posing as a threat to his people.

We also see from the two events, Requiem of the Survivors and the Life Investigation of Leraye, how Orias attempts to take Leviathan’s life just so he could consume Leviathan’s soul and obtain long-lasting youth while Astaroth is found by Sitri coming back from the human world after corrupting and ruining the life of a human. We would think the devils wouldn’t be like this as they are introduced as more of a pure and innocent existence especially when, according to Solomon and other devils, they can’t even lie. Based on these events and from seeing in Chapter 5 how the devils of Hades are able to lie, that’s not the actual truth.

If anything, it can be argued their nature and cruelty is almost closed to the angels. The few things that doesn’t make the devils from being on the same level as them is how they don’t intend to assert their race and commit genocide for said goal but exhibit consideration and sympathy towards their fellow and other races. From The Two Stars event, Gamigin’s comic, and Lucifer’s comic, we see how the devils show kindness even towards angels and dragons where the original Gamigin gives his life up to save dragon Gamigin while Satan’s camp and Satan, himself, show neutrality to Lucifer when he first arrived in Hell and takes down his fellow angels. In addition to this, the devils of Paradise Lost choose to follow Lucifer and acknowledge him as their king and “hyung” despite him being an angel.

All of this being said, there’s no “good guy” or “bad guy” in WHB. Instead, we see how war brings out both the good and bad sides of all beings that justifies reasoning for certain actions but not excusing them. There’s also emphasis that the POV of the MC can’t be completely relied on due to bias where they are mostly interacting with the devils on a normal and mutual basis. The concept of moral-grayness makes the overall story all more intriguing as more lore is revealed through interactions between MC -to- characters and characters-to-characters.

Hopefully PB will drop more content soon so we could learn more about the story and characters!

#whb #what in hell is bad #maple ramble #whb spoilers

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bones4thecats · 6 months

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Hi! So I saw your fic on H.P. Lovecraft for Hastur and I was wondering if you could do one with Nikola, Shiva, Brunhilde and Thor with a Azathoth reader? (If you could make reader fem it would be amazing and thank you :D) as reader is quite literally known for being the one that can not be denied in any form, not even by reality itself, everyone, god, human, demon, anything, is terrified of them, but reader is very sweet with their s/o and in their humanoid form their not intimidating, reader spends most of their day sleeping (because their dreams quite literally make up reality and because of their exhausting power) and whenever awake, they stay with their s/o, reader doesn't fight because they don't need to (from being able to erase people with their thoughts) , this next part is only for Nikola and Brunhilde, and them reacting to reader telling Zeus if they erase humanity, they will erase the gods

This is pretty long so I'm sorry and sorry if my english is bad, it's not my first language, but thank you very much if you have time to do my request :D

A/N: This was a very interesting prompt, and I hope to get more of these when my request box re-opens. Anyways, enjoy!!

●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・

●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・

🧪 Nikola didn’t understand why everyone was super afraid of you, you slept a lot, far to much in his opinion, and you were very calm and composed

🧪 But when he was watching the battle of Thor vs Lü Bu, you stood up and blocked the fights chances at hitting one another, in which he smiled, knowing exactly what you were going to do

“ Zeus, we may have been friends long ago, but, if you dare try erasing Humanity, I will erase you and the rest of your fellow Gods. Do NOT tempt me. “

🧪 Nikola watched as Zeus trembled, he trembled at your threat!

🧪 Zeus did not like to anger you, well, everyone God-wise knew not to anger you, as you could just stare at them and they’d be gone

🧪 Your husband smiled at you when Zeus announced Ragnarok would not commence and that Humanity was free to live for the next 1,000 years until the next Gods’ Council meeting

🧪 Brunhilde looked at Nikola and thanked him for having his S/O come in and help out

“ Your S/O was a major help in this, and I thank you for that, Nikola Tesla. “ “ Thank my S/O. We owe everything to them. Besides, watching Zeus tremble was quite enjoyable. “

●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・

🪩 Shiva wanted to fight so much, and so badly, but when Zeus decided to, in his words, steal his second round fight against Adam, the bloodlust he carried continued

🪩 You were known for sleeping a lot in the Hindu Pantheon, which you were a exclusive member, despite belonging to the Cthulhu Mythos Pantheon

🪩 Parvati, Kali, and Druga sat beside you and your husband with smiles plastered on their face

🪩 Parvati was messing with your hair while Kali was laying on your chest, and Druga? She was making sure Shiva didn’t burst a blood vessel at Sasaki Kojiro beating Poseidon

🪩 He couldn’t help but imagine you down there fighting that mortal, and erasing him with just a cold stare, the same stare that could make even the toughest and purest Gods tremble

🪩 Shiva wrapped an arm around you as your slept, and he couldn’t help but want one as well, thankfully, the days matches had ended and you all got to retreat to your home

🪩 You walked alongside your lovers before passing out, prompting Shiva to carry you

“ Y’know, for a strong and severely dangerous deity, they sure do sleep a lot. “ “ We could say the same about you. “ “ HEY! “

●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・

💙 Representing your Pantheon's side of chaos, you rested inside of your realm as the familiar sounds of footsteps awoke you from your mid-day nap

💙 You looked up and saw your girlfriend, Brunhilde, and her youngest sister, Göll, walk up to your throne, where you normally took your naps if your girlfriend wasn’t there

“ Ah, my Valkyrie, how did the Gods’ Council meeting go? I must have slept through it all. “ “ As per usual. “

💙 She was quite the tease when she wanted to be, but this time, she seemed to be quite stiff

💙 You normally didn’t attend the Gods’ Council meetings, deeming them a waste of your time, and something that your fellow Cthulhu Mythos Gods could handle

💙 Brunhilde looked at you before holding your face to look down at her, as your height was something that not even Thor reached

“ I have declared Ragnarok against the Gods. They wished to destroy Humanity, and I knew they deserved to keep living. “ “ I know. “

💙 You had told Brunhilde of your intervention, through sending a video message to Zeus, you warned him of initiating Humanity and how it would result in their deaths

💙 Brunhilde smiled as she hugged you, Zeus was scared of you, and this was perfect, with you by her side, Ragnarok would never happen, and Humanity would thrive without any cancellations in life

●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・

🌩️ The power couple of Valhalla

🌩️ You represented chaos of your pantheon while Thor represented thunder and lightning of his, and when you both mixed in rage, thunder and lightning would run wild in the sky

🌩️ Thor was tall, and so were you, and just your height alone scared people, but when they heard of what you were and who you allied yourself with, on death

🌩️ Despite the many legends surrounding you, only a selective few knew how calm you really were

🌩️ Whenever you and Thor weren’t busy, you’d either train your abilities while Thor trained physically, or you’d rest in a tree while Thor went on the hunt to find out where his S/O had gone

🌩️ You would float and watch his battles constantly, and during his match against Lü Bu you just smiled as he finally found his battle-mate

🌩️ Thor would ramble about him to you constantly, making you dream of a world where they were friends, and met under different circumstances, and you hoped that they did in another world

🌩️ He loves watching you fight, and he understood why you didn’t want too. The poor chump would die in two seconds, boring…

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dorotheaism · 7 days

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"celebrities aren't activists! she's a singer! she doesn't owe you anything" actually she does owe me quite a few things, because she is a human being and thus has moral responsibilities. i couldn't care less what job she has. if you are a human being, you should be talking about palestine. if you are a human being, you owe your fellow human beings compassion and selflessness. this whole "i don't owe anyone anything" culture is frying your brains. we all owe each other so very much, and right now we especially owe palestinians our time, money, and attention. it is laughable to suggest that some people are above this, especially when those people are ones with money and resources that can make a difference in hundreds of lives.

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yeehawtist · 6 months

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if you’re REALLY committed to not being ableist, then you need to put real effort into managing your annoyance and frustration with others. yes, this goes for fellow disabled people as well. it’s not your fault that you might be annoyed, but it’s not that person’s fault that they’re being annoying to you either, and all we owe to each other is to do our best. no, it’s not your fault, but it is your responsibility.

things that are ok to do for managing your annoyance:

asking for your needs to be met (ex: “could you please try to talk slower for me? i don’t understand when it’s too fast.” “could you please stop tapping so loudly? it’s hurting my ears.”)

setting a boundary (ex: “i won’t sit right in front of you, that makes me uncomfortable.”)

taking breaks

using sensory tools

feel free to add any other tactics you use in comments/reblogs

things that are not ok to do to manage your annoyance:

taking out your frustrations on the person (ex: yelling at them, touching or moving them without consent, being passive aggressive, berating and blaming them)

talking shit about them behind their back (this includes taking videos and photos of the person and posting them online to ridicule them)

please please please try to practice acceptance. it’s hard. i know it’s hard. i’m not going to sit here and tell you it’s easy. but it’s so damn necessary to learn if you want to be around disabled people. many disabled people might talk too loudly, softly, quickly, or slowly; they might not have good hygiene; might not have good spatial awareness; might not know what is socially appropriate to talk about; might look different than you; and many more things. and you can’t fix those things about someone. it’s imperative that you be able to either accept or cope with people’s harmless but irritating imperfections and oddness to be able to comfortably coexist in community. it’s imperative for you as much as it is for them.

it’s a normal, human emotion to be annoyed. you’re not in the wrong for that by any means! but you still need to learn how to deal with that.

#disability acceptance #actually autistic #actually autism #autism #disability #actually neurodiverse #neurodivergent #actually disabled #disabilties #disabled #conflicting access needs #shit i make and say

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silviakundera · 6 months

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another post-script on A Journey to Love and why I am ok with the Sad Ending™

what's truly messed up but also the reason the series even WORKS is that ultimately all of these characters could have lived if they stuck to their original agenda and outlook.

The delegation squad originally are like fuck everything & everyone, we are here and probably gonna die for ONE THING - clear the names of (Qian: avenge 🔪) the fallen Liudao Hall comrades. They don't care much about the emperor except for a means to an end, aren't expecting to fix anything for the Wu state by going thru this bullshit, and they hate everything about An, who they have been playing spy games with for years, which cost them family members, and they just lost 80K soliders from the war.

But in the last string of episodes they found the bodies & their brothers, gave the death rites, and THEY HAVE THE EDICT. The original goals, they're all done! They could pretend "I do not see it" and be just like the border city officials who aren't taking action with the excuse that they didn't see proof of any invasion threat, blah blah it was implausible. The guys and the cowardly Wu emperor could just go home.

Ning Yuanzhou always planned to do this 1 final act and nope-out. He could have left with Ruyi and let the geo politics play out as they may.

Ruyi had already achieved her empress revenge arc. She'd even gone a step further to free the White Sparrows.

But each character makes their final choice to fight & die because they are not the people from the start of the journey. Every episode we watched lead them to be the people who would make this choice. Opening the princess YY & Ruyi's eyes to the world opened the Hall squad's eyes as well. Being introduced to people from An as fellow humans who can hurt and laugh and want. Finding allies and commonalities. Questioning why. Mentoring a young royal who wants to understand what leadership means and what do we owe to each other. Modeling for Ruyi what partnership and teamwork means. Getting that damn edict because the Scarlet Guard leader returned an honorable act with his own, stepping back from guarding the Wu emperor. Sorta adopting a volitile An duke with violent attachment issues.

Following their original objectives would have lead to a bittersweet but happy ending as the core ensemble ride off into the sunset with their victory and let An & Wu burn, who had taken so, so much from them. But it wouldn't have been true to the characters we got to know & saw change from the experiences we shared with them. The intentional, ultimate sacrifices underline the lessons learned and lend greater meaning to its themes.

#a journey to love #cdrama

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transmutationisms · 22 days

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are you familiar with agamben / his ideas on bare life/homo sacer? i found it a compelling extension of a biopolitical analysis but he's a weird conspiratorial antivaxx adj guy now and i worry that the roots of this position run deeper in his analysis than i would like to believe

so i think a perennial spectre haunting a lot of academic analysis of biopolitics is a particular form of individualism that tends away from class analysis and toward right-libertarianism. i've said before wrt foucault that i have this problem, particularly where he tries to envision a political alternative or liberatory project (as opposed to just analysing / problematising the existing situation as he saw it). it's not that he's wrong per se when he talks about the 'massifying' effect of modern national politics and sovereign power. but, if the analysis over-privileges this distinction between individual vs [state / professional guild / institution] and doesn't investigate the relationship between the subjection of the individual and the subjection of the labouring class, then we end up with a politics that tends almost populist at points, and certainly tends liberal because it's unable to conceive of liberation as a project requiring class solidarity and action. this sort of writing is often appealing to western universities and academics for what i think are obvious reasons.

agamben is not someone whose career i have closely followed but what i've observed from a distance is a conception of biopolitics marked by the above issues and therefore pretty limited at the outset in its ability to do more than advance a negative (deconstructive) critique (which is not a bad form of critique by any means but is not, on its own, a political platform or call to action). plus i think, for someone who pays lip service to aristotle as much as he does, agamben is not very attentive to the valuation of human 'flourishing' or well-being or whatever you want to call it—instead the emphasis is almost always on (ironically) a pretty bare definition of liberty, a freedom-from forces of the state or institution or even the social body writ large, conceived as a kind of mob. in this framework (again, more than incidentally libertarian), you can see how things like mandatory vaccination or pandemic 'lockdowns' are prima facie bad. they are repressive, in the sense that they constrain individuals. the guiding axioms in the paradigm foreclose questions about what social living should protect or produce, and what an individual owes to their fellows and can expect in return. the position is that maximising individual freedom of choice is always better, and considerations like, yknow, not killing disabled people are simply not weighed the same.

in general this also comes back down to the point that it's not terribly useful to talk about biopolitics outside the context of a critique of capitalism. i think this critique was sometimes implicit in foucault's writing (& much of the biopolitics writing we have is lecture transcripts!) and is sometimes dropped entirely or avoided in certain academic circles. agamben is of course correct that the reason states 'locked down' when covid appeared was because they were trying to protect their biological capital—their workforces, militaries, and so on. he's correct that states do things like mandate vaccination for the same reason. like, we should be clear-eyed about this and not pretend that capitalist states are doing some kind of humanitarianism in any of their public health endeavours. that's not what those departments exist for and never has been. however, it doesn't follow that every action a capitalist state takes in the name of public health is in itself bad or useless, and if we form our politics around a reflexive oppositional impulse and a lack of class analysis then we end up saying shit like that the problem with vaccine mandates is the vaccines and not the character of the power doing the mandating.

i think this is an important distinction in general but especially germane to discussions of things like medicine. your doctor who exists in a system inextricably bound up with capitalist state power and its biopolitical interest in producing a labour force is not your friend and is not, structurally, protecting your interests. that doesn't mean that medical care is intrinsically bad (i hope it's clear that it is emphatically not) or that doctoring is transhistorically doomed to produce and depend on capitalist bio-exploitation.

i guess this is just a long way of saying i think agamben produced a few interesting analyses of existing institutions and structures of power, but relies on operating assumptions that make him really useless for theorising power in a way attentive to its (class) character. i think that whole milieu is more a politics of anti-sociality than anything else and that it has only limited, local points of overlap with communism (and then only when taken pretty far out of its theoretical context).

#agamben #foucault

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carmesi-butterfly · 7 months

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from me to you

vampire yang jungwon + human female reader. word count 2,3k. vampire au/fantasy au. warnings hurt/comfort, abandonment. &team's appearance. not proofread.

«From me to you. A letter for Yang Jungwon.

I miss you, Won. I don't know where you are, I don't know why you left me, and I don't know if I honestly want to hold that knowledge in my soul until my ends arrive.

Because unlike you, I'm just a mortal spirit. I desire to spend the rest of my life with you but I understand that you don't yearn for the same as me, and even if it hurts my heart, I accept it, by cause of my respect for you and your freedom, since I had the chance to meet you I noticed how you are an untied person and that's what attracted me of you, and that's why I always knew how this would end, I tried to ignore it but… such a free nature being tied to someone? The end was evident.

I'm sorry, at this point I'm just rambling about everything I can, I have sent so many letters this year and no one got a response which makes me feel a bit unmotivated, because of that I chose to start using a diary and set all my thoughts in there! I don't want to wait anymore for an answer that will never come, for a lover that will never come. A diary is for me, I feel it can help me to heal and cure my inner self.

It's my time to go, this will be my last letter meaning that is a definitive farewell for me, forgetting is not an option and even if it was I would never choose it, because ¿why would I forget you? The only man I loved, you opened my eyes to a new world full of beautiful things and a different perspective, and I will always be grateful for that. I love you Jungwon, goodbye.»

The body of a man lay on the ground of a big lounge, surrounded by an immense amount of envelopes and letters, all opened, his friends standing near him encircling the space.

"She sent fifty-five letters, those are at least one letter a week" announced Jake, impressed by the situation.

"I feel bad… maybe we shouldn't have left" followed Sunoo with a hand on his chest, slightly caressing it.

"Maybe? She was heartbroken, and this letter was from a month ago so who knows how she is now" answered Sunghoon trying to be honest, but slightly being a bit rude at the end.

All the voices resounded in Yang's ears but he didn't seem to notice.

"Guys, this is not helpful for any of us" The conversation was interrupted by Heeseung, who seemed worried about his friend's state and how the others managed the situation.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think I could cause more problems than planned" apologized the leader of the pack of wolves.

"Don't apologize, K" a soft voice echoed over the rest, comforting his friend who seemed a bit conflicted. Jungwon left the cloud forming on his mind, bringing his feet back on the earth. "It was my fault, I managed the situation poorly" his hand reached his head, messing his hair with frustration that tried to hide behind a tiny smile.

"I think it's our time to leave," offered the second oldest of the opposite group, holding his comrade's shoulder.

"Are you okay with that, Jungwon?" kei asked.

The relationship between both groups was clearly out of the ordinary, vampires and werewolves forming an alliance, it could even be considered against nature, two categories who faced each other since the start of their lineage collaborating in search of a common good: peace, not only for vampires and werewolves but for the humans too, because ignoring the amount of suffering humans caused to their people, there were a few ones with a golden heart willing to help any creature just in behalf of the mere wish of assist the fellows, precisely like you.

"Yes" affirmed, accompanied by a nod, "I think it's time to rest, especially for all of you," said referring to the predators, "we don't need sleep hours, but you do. Especially after this long trip, the best is to go rest right away"

They assented, and the head of the wolves talked again. "We owe you a favor, search for us when you need it"

By the time all the werewolves crossed the entrance their presence became undetectable, fusing with the big trees that make up the forest and blending into the darkness. With that, the vampires dispersed in the house choosing to mind their own business, leaving their friend alone to have his time for himself.

"Are you going to be okay, Jungwon?" Jay asked, preoccupied with his confidant.

"Yes, don't worry, I have to fix the mess I created" sighed, his tone became serious showing his friend everything he needed to know: determination.

Between vampires and other magical species that knew him, Jungwon had a reputation of the solve problems in his group, one that tends to be a magnet for problems as pure vampires with a high range tend to get into problems easier than other vampires with a lower status, adding to the mix the uncommon union with a few werewolves, it gives the perfect recipe of a disaster. Because of this, a case where Jungwon committed a mistake was unusual, and now in a position where he had to resolve his own problems the logic that characterizes him is pushed into the background and his heart takes the lead.

«Since I had the chance to meet you I noticed how you are an untied person and that's what attracted me of you, and that's why I always knew how this would end, I tried to ignore it but… such a free nature being tied to someone? The end was evident.» The words materialize in his mind, recalling the letter he read just a few minutes ago. "She thought I abandoned her," thought, feeling his heart break like a crystal shattering on his chest.

He has to search for you, no matter the late hours or the poor lighting because of the recent night arrival, he had a mission before and achieved it sacrificing your union in the process, his mission now was to rectify his mistake, even if that doesn't bring you back to his arms like you were before, knowing that you're aware of the events that lead him to fade away and giving the most sincere apology was enough for his soul.

As if someone dropped a spell over him his body began moving by itself, heading to a small cabin near a lake that was pretty well-known to him. It was your house, probably one of the places where he keeps most happy memories, and where a lot of new emotions blossomed on his inside.

Since the start of his long-lived life, Jungwon had the opportunity to experience what love is, the love for his brothers, for his life, for his home, for his hobbies, and the nature around him amongst a lot of other things, but the feelings unfolding in his chest caused by you were a new experience, a ton of butterflies hovering on his stomach directing to his heart, a heart that hasn't beat in a long time but now felt warm and alive.

His journey ended with your portico in front of him, a lamppost lit up the entrance that was decorated with bindweed hanging over the top of it, flower pots beside the door; red carnations, crimson roses, and few aloes. Like a final touch, baby's breath surrounded the area. All of those plants were new, there was no way you could keep a plant alive, because as you said to him once: «I always forget to water my flowers! This is the third time I have killed a cactus, why do I have to be so reckless?».

Without noticing, tears started to fall from his eyes, on a familiar place that felt distant, with flora that didn't have to be there and memories from a faraway moment that now felt overwhelming, the young Jungwon got off the deep end, crying intensely while all sorts of emotions impact him, the remorse and fear, he should have told you, even if it was an emergency, how long would it have taken to inform you about the recent urgency? He just needed to tell you, but he didn't, and now he probably lost you forever, and that's such a long time for a vampire. Despite his recent thoughts about not needing your love again and only wanting to deliver his apologies in search of your wellness, his body quivered just thinking about it, the suffocating feeling of knowing that he could lose the person who showed him what is love, was eating what he had left of a soul.

But the situation had to be confronted, he was the one who chose to appear, if he had to talk to you with his face full of tears, reddish eyes, and his nose dripping then he would.

Three knocks on the door were enough to wake you up, and distrust invaded you while thinking "Who is knocking on my door at this time?" it was suspicious not to say the least, at first you decided to not open it, perhaps whoever was knocking your door in the middle of the night would choose to just go and come back in the morning, but when the second banging started it worried you, what if someone is in danger? There were sightings of wolves near your area, it could be someone at risk of being attacked and searching for help in the desolate house close to the forest. As a precaution you approached the front door with a sword in hand, maybe it was a bit exaggerated for the situation, but the elegant weapon had sentimental value being a gift from an old lover who yearned for your safety.

"Who's there?" you asked, raising your voice as a try to make your voice clearer for the person on the other side.

"I-I am Jungwon…" mumbled, his weak voice exposing the crying session he had just a few minutes before.

The answer petrified you, it was him, it was his voice, after a year of waiting patiently, after months of feeling heartbroken, and after a few weeks of giving up on ever seeing your significant other again, it happened, Jungwon came back. Without a doubt, you opened the door desperately searching for your once-lover, dropping the sword in the process.

When the entrance opened, both maintained an ecstatic stand, you wanted to jump into his arms, searching for the warmth and comfort only Yang can give you.

Taking the initiative the boy said "Hi, y/n…" while collecting the courage needed for the words he was planning to say. "I know that maybe it's not the best moment to come and that it's egoistic on my own to show up like this… but I couldn't wait anymore, not after all this time".

The words unfolded through your ears like soft petals falling out of a tree, it was enough for your tears to start sliding over your cheeks until they reached the end of your jaw, and a gasp came out of your mouth "Did you receive my letters?".

"I wasn't here to read them, but I've received all of them. I never knew you could write so good" A tiny smile showed up on his face, emphasizing his soft cheeks and shrinking his sharp eyes.

"I thought I was never going to see you again" cried with a weak voice, "Where were you?... Why did you disappear just like that?" the efforts of the boy in attempting to make a more agreeable space for the conversation worked, in spite of your questions each one more intense than the other one, your body language demonstrated comfort, especially for the way your eyes searched his and your distance reduced discreetly with a few steps made by you.

"I can explain everything, that doesn't mean you have to forgive me" Delicately his hands cupped your face, brushing your cheeks softly.

"Why wouldn't I forgive you?" you asked, a smile showing up on your face while your hands took his and caressed them, also maintaining the embrace on your cheeks.

The question confused Jungwon, who didn't manage to formulate a question before you talked again.

"Even if you truly leave, I forgive you, because that's what you decided although my heart may not take it well," said with a giggle "I already forgave you, there's no bone in my whole body that can be mad at you" the happiness you tried to demonstrate was overshadowed by crystalline years balling through your eyes. "I love you Won, and love hurts sometimes, I'm willing to experience that pain for you" Your testimony shocked the vampire, who felt touched by your words.

"I don't desire to hurt you, not anymore" And with that, helping himself with the grab he had on your face, Jungwon placed a kiss on your lips, after a long time of missing this kind of connection. A few seconds passed and the kiss got intense, the result of more than a year of dreaming with any dose of contact now unleashing, but sadly, you need to breathe. When the kiss broke, with irregular breathing spoke "Maybe we should talk inside… so I can explain everything, and you can talk to me about your new hobbies" referring to the new plants that formed part of the environment, "I'm interested in reading your diary entries if you let me"

All the pages you had the opportunity to fill talked about him, from top to bottom without wasting any minimal space, and because of that the petition made you feel a bit embarrassed, but you agreed intending to show more from you to him.

#enhypen #enhypen x reader #yang jungwon x reader #jungwon x reader #enhypen fluff #yang jungwon #jungwon fluff #enhypen imagines #enhypen scenarios #enha x reader #jungwon imagines #jungwon enhypen #jungwon scenarios #enhypen jungwon x reader #enhypen au

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girlfriendsofthegalaxy · 2 months

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tuesday again 4/9/2023

the best photo i took this week

listening

i have not been keeping up with either the tuesdaypost spreadsheet or the tuesdaypost playlists so there's a strong possibility i have already talked about Joywave's It's A Trip! off the 2017 album Content. spotify

youtube

driving ten hours in one day is ideal for listening to albums and i listened to almost every joywave album on my way home from the eclipse. american indie rock band from rochester ny, i have loved them since early college. i think they were made in a lab to get to stuck in my head bc they tend toward lower register synthier tracks that deceptively amble cheerfully along and talk about dealing with fear. songs for a male protagonist to splash water on his face, look at himself in the mirror haunted by what he's seeing, linger in his children's bedroom doorways, and then drive off into the night for the finale.

i think i listened to this song for an hour on loop yesterday bc the chorus so perfectly got stuck in my brain

When you've gotten what you want (Maybe I should start over) There's nothing left to want (Up and at 'em again) You don't know what you want (Yeah, I'm thinking it over) Just tell me what to Want

they have spent a lot of time figuring out how to have longevity as a band: "The record kind of attempts to figure that out but it doesn’t end in a definitive place. For me personally, it’s just to create things that matter as long as I possibly can, and to make things that are going to outlive me that people can hang onto for at least five to six years after I’m dead." they are deeply cranky about virality/content churn, especially in this interview. i appreciate this in an artist.

could not tell you how i first found them. i think i would have to go back to the proto-tuesdayposts of 2018.

reading

when you're not sleeping well you can average a book a night!

Uprooted by Naomi Novik destroyed me. (image from here)

“Our Dragon doesn’t eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley. We hear them sometimes, from travelers passing through. They talk as though we were doing human sacrifice, and he were a real dragon. Of course that’s not true: he may be a wizard and immortal, but he’s still a man, and our fathers would band together and kill him if he wanted to eat one of us every ten years. He protects us against the Wood, and we’re grateful, but not that grateful.”

my best friend real-life influenced me into reading this book and i have since managed to convince four other people to read this book bc i won't shut up about it. the descriptions of the physicality of magic and how different kinds of magic and different families of spells Feel was only part of the coolest magical system ive ever read about. this is not a dark romance but it is a little brutal in a brothers grimm/this is how battles shake out sometime kind of way. i think a companion piece of media written from the Dragon's point of view would nicely parallel that post going around about how Howl's Moving Castle the movie is from Howl's point of view and Howl's Moving Castle the book is from Sophie's point of view. i would die for Agnieszka.

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik (image from here)

Miryem is the daughter and granddaughter of moneylenders… but her father isn’t a very good one. Free to lend and reluctant to collect, he has loaned out most of his wife’s dowry and left the family on the edge of poverty–until Miryem steps in. Hardening her heart against her fellow villagers’ pleas, she sets out to collect what is owed–and finds herself more than up to the task. When her grandfather loans her a pouch of silver pennies, she brings it back full of gold. But having the reputation of being able to change silver to gold can be more trouble than it’s worth–especially when her fate becomes tangled with the cold creatures that haunt the wood, and whose king has learned of her reputation and wants to exploit it for reasons Miryem cannot understand.

i don't know if i've ever read a book with seven points of view before? i think it was well handled, but it required significantly more brainpower than screaming through three of kingfisher's light fantasy/romances in two days and it threw me a little. saying this book is about debts cheapens it a little, i think. it is concerned with debts but also safety, and it is very much about cost in a very fairytale way and in the horrible everyday calculus of survival way.

Swordheart, Paladin's Hope, and Paladin's Strength by T. Kingfisher. god these go down So smooth. kingfisher has a niche and i respect that. i am reading the Saint of Steel tetralogy out of order bc even four library systems can only do so much, and i don't think you particularly need to read them in order.

i'm a bit cranky that the terfs took feminist fantasy from me, bc when the protagonist got her period in Paladin's Strength a little alarm bell went off in my head and i had to put it down and google some stuff (the answer is no btw). there is a way to write female-focused lightly historical fantasy without being terfy and kingfisher does it, but it's so rare that i was genuinely expecting some sort of. weird agenda to be at play.

these were all fun, fast reads and i don't have much else to say about them! not that they are better or worse than novik's books but they will not live in my head quite as long. there are fewer tantalizing hints about systems of magic that make me want to graph things out u kno

watching

kanopy has Animation April as their focus this month which is how i saw The King and the Mockingbird (1980, dir. Paul Grimault) which is a longer piece adapted from something he'd been working on since the 40s.

youtube

This animated fantasy tale follows the romance between a lovely shepherdess and a handsome chimney sweep. The land's imperious king falls for the beautiful woman and tries to thwart her relationship, but a kind mockingbird assists the lovers in evading the ruler. At the king's command, the chimney sweep and his bird friend are imprisoned, and they must escape in order to rescue the young man's true love.

GOD the animation in this. there are so many references to early animation and silent film. there are so so so many gadgets and methods of conveyance in an absolutely architecturally dizzying castle. there is a ROYAL MECH that plays its own theme music. the backgrounds have a very Chuck Jones quality in that they are exactly as detailed as they need to be for the gag to work. the castle is lush and beautiful but not dizzyingly, overwhelmingly lush. there is a clear vision to every shot and a clear path your eye is meant to travel, which i appreciate very much. i think a lot of technically impressive animation (i am specifically thinking of the Nimh movies) muddies itself by trying to jam too much on the screen. just a fucking delight of a film. a delicious confection

playing

nothing specific to say about genshin this week ur welcome

making

painted a frame (it was a dead basic michaels frame i got at a yard sale and it was giving little boy's room) and framed a thing. this is a poster that came as a freebie with a 1997 album, and i actually bought this CD case without the CD inside bc i was so delighted with the poster. scuff sanded the frame with 120 grit, i went with a matte black acrylic bc i felt that disguised how the poster did not quite fit the frame a little better? and also bc it was what i had in the house.

i did not bother with a mat, i just used the lining paper with the stock photo and painted the back of that. do not do this with particularly valuable or beloved pieces. i do not think this is necessarily acid free and there is some danger that the paint may transfer to the back of the poster over time.

#tuesday again #tuesday again no problem #Youtube

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dailyanarchistposts · 2 months

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A.2.11 Why are most anarchists in favour of direct democracy?

For most anarchists, direct democratic voting on policy decisions within free associations is the political counterpart of free agreement (this is also known as “self-management”). The reason is that “many forms of domination can be carried out in a ‘free.’ non-coercive, contractual manner… and it is naive… to think that mere opposition to political control will in itself lead to an end of oppression.” [John P. Clark, Max Stirner’s Egoism, p. 93] Thus the relationships we create within an organisation is as important in determining its libertarian nature as its voluntary nature (see section A.2.14 for more discussion).

It is obvious that individuals must work together in order to lead a fully human life. And so, ”[h]aving to join with others humans” the individual has three options: “he [or she] must submit to the will of others (be enslaved) or subject others to his will (be in authority) or live with others in fraternal agreement in the interests of the greatest good of all (be an associate). Nobody can escape from this necessity.” [Errico Malatesta, Life and Ideas, p. 85]

Anarchists obviously pick the last option, association, as the only means by which individuals can work together as free and equal human beings, respecting the uniqueness and liberty of one another. Only within direct democracy can individuals express themselves, practice critical thought and self-government, so developing their intellectual and ethical capacities to the full. In terms of increasing an individual’s freedom and their intellectual, ethical and social faculties, it is far better to be sometimes in a minority than be subject to the will of a boss all the time. So what is the theory behind anarchist direct democracy?

As Bertrand Russell noted, the anarchist “does not wish to abolish government in the sense of collective decisions: what he does wish to abolish is the system by which a decision is enforced upon those who oppose it.” [Roads to Freedom, p. 85] Anarchists see self-management as the means to achieve this. Once an individual joins a community or workplace, he or she becomes a “citizen” (for want of a better word) of that association. The association is organised around an assembly of all its members (in the case of large workplaces and towns, this may be a functional sub-group such as a specific office or neighbourhood). In this assembly, in concert with others, the contents of his or her political obligations are defined. In acting within the association, people must exercise critical judgement and choice, i.e. manage their own activity. Rather than promising to obey (as in hierarchical organisations like the state or capitalist firm), individuals participate in making their own collective decisions, their own commitments to their fellows. This means that political obligation is not owed to a separate entity above the group or society, such as the state or company, but to one’s fellow “citizens.”

Although the assembled people collectively legislate the rules governing their association, and are bound by them as individuals, they are also superior to them in the sense that these rules can always be modified or repealed. Collectively, the associated “citizens” constitute a political “authority”, but as this “authority” is based on horizontal relationships between themselves rather than vertical ones between themselves and an elite, the “authority” is non-hierarchical (“rational” or “natural,” see section B.1 — “Why are anarchists against authority and hierarchy?” — for more on this). Thus Proudhon:

“In place of laws, we will put contracts [i.e. free agreement]. — No more laws voted by a majority, nor even unanimously; each citizen, each town, each industrial union, makes its own laws.” [The General Idea of the Revolution, pp. 245–6]

Such a system does not mean, of course, that everyone participates in every decision needed, no matter how trivial. While any decision can be put to the assembly (if the assembly so decides, perhaps prompted by some of its members), in practice certain activities (and so purely functional decisions) will be handled by the association’s elected administration. This is because, to quote a Spanish anarchist activist, “a collectivity as such cannot write a letter or add up a list of figures or do hundreds of chores which only an individual can perform.” Thus the need “to organise the administration.” Supposing an association is “organised without any directive council or any hierarchical offices” which “meets in general assembly once a week or more often, when it settles all matters needful for its progress” it still “nominates a commission with strictly administrative functions.” However, the assembly “prescribes a definite line of conduct for this commission or gives it an imperative mandate” and so “would be perfectly anarchist.” As it “follows that delegating these tasks to qualified individuals, who are instructed in advance how to proceed, … does not mean an abdication of that collectivity’s own liberty.” [Jose Llunas Pujols, quoted by Max Nettlau, A Short History of Anarchism, p. 187] This, it should be noted, follows Proudhon’s ideas that within the workers’ associations “all positions are elective, and the by-laws subject to the approval of the members.” [Proudhon, Op. Cit., p. 222]

Instead of capitalist or statist hierarchy, self-management (i.e. direct democracy) would be the guiding principle of the freely joined associations that make up a free society. This would apply to the federations of associations an anarchist society would need to function. “All the commissions or delegations nominated in an anarchist society,” correctly argued Jose Llunas Pujols, “must be subject to replacement and recall at any time by the permanent suffrage of the section or sections that elected them.” Combined with the “imperative mandate” and “purely administrative functions,” this “make[s] it thereby impossible for anyone to arrogate to himself [or herself] a scintilla of authority.” [quoted by Max Nettlau, Op. Cit., pp. 188–9] Again, Pujols follows Proudhon who demanded twenty years previously the “implementation of the binding mandate” to ensure the people do not “adjure their sovereignty.” [No Gods, No Masters, vol. 1, p. 63]

By means of a federalism based on mandates and elections, anarchists ensure that decisions flow from the bottom-up. By making our own decisions, by looking after our joint interests ourselves, we exclude others ruling over us. Self-management, for anarchists, is essential to ensure freedom within the organisations so needed for any decent human existence.

Of course it could be argued that if you are in a minority, you are governed by others (“Democratic rule is still rule” [L. Susan Brown, The Politics of Individualism, p. 53]). Now, the concept of direct democracy as we have described it is not necessarily tied to the concept of majority rule. If someone finds themselves in a minority on a particular vote, he or she is confronted with the choice of either consenting or refusing to recognise it as binding. To deny the minority the opportunity to exercise its judgement and choice is to infringe its autonomy and to impose obligation upon it which it has not freely accepted. The coercive imposition of the majority will is contrary to the ideal of self-assumed obligation, and so is contrary to direct democracy and free association. Therefore, far from being a denial of freedom, direct democracy within the context of free association and self-assumed obligation is the only means by which liberty can be nurtured (“Individual autonomy limited by the obligation to hold given promises.” [Malatesta, quoted by quoted by Max Nettlau, Errico Malatesta: The Biography of an Anarchist]). Needless to say, a minority, if it remains in the association, can argue its case and try to convince the majority of the error of its ways.

And we must point out here that anarchist support for direct democracy does not suggest we think that the majority is always right. Far from it! The case for democratic participation is not that the majority is always right, but that no minority can be trusted not to prefer its own advantage to the good of the whole. History proves what common-sense predicts, namely that anyone with dictatorial powers (by they a head of state, a boss, a husband, whatever) will use their power to enrich and empower themselves at the expense of those subject to their decisions.

Anarchists recognise that majorities can and do make mistakes and that is why our theories on association place great importance on minority rights. This can be seen from our theory of self-assumed obligation, which bases itself on the right of minorities to protest against majority decisions and makes dissent a key factor in decision making. Thus Carole Pateman:

“If the majority have acted in bad faith… [then the] minority will have to take political action, including politically disobedient action if appropriate, to defend their citizenship and independence, and the political association itself… Political disobedience is merely one possible expression of the active citizenship on which a self-managing democracy is based … The social practice of promising involves the right to refuse or change commitments; similarly, the practice of self-assumed political obligation is meaningless without the practical recognition of the right of minorities to refuse or withdraw consent, or where necessary, to disobey.” [The Problem of Political Obligation, p. 162]

Moving beyond relationships within associations, we must highlight how different associations work together. As would be imagined, the links between associations follow the same outlines as for the associations themselves. Instead of individuals joining an association, we have associations joining confederations. The links between associations in the confederation are of the same horizontal and voluntary nature as within associations, with the same rights of “voice and exit” for members and the same rights for minorities. In this way society becomes an association of associations, a community of communities, a commune of communes, based upon maximising individual freedom by maximising participation and self-management.

The workings of such a confederation are outlined in section A.2.9 ( What sort of society do anarchists want?) and discussed in greater detail in section I (What would an anarchist society look like?).

This system of direct democracy fits nicely into anarchist theory. Malatesta speaks for all anarchists when he argued that “anarchists deny the right of the majority to govern human society in general.” As can be seen, the majority has no right to enforce itself on a minority — the minority can leave the association at any time and so, to use Malatesta’s words, do not have to “submit to the decisions of the majority before they have even heard what these might be.” [The Anarchist Revolution, p. 100 and p. 101] Hence, direct democracy within voluntary association does not create “majority rule” nor assume that the minority must submit to the majority no matter what. In effect, anarchist supporters of direct democracy argue that it fits Malatesta’s argument that:

“Certainly anarchists recognise that where life is lived in common it is often necessary for the minority to come to accept the opinion of the majority. When there is an obvious need or usefulness in doing something and, to do it requires the agreement of all, the few should feel the need to adapt to the wishes of the many … But such adaptation on the one hand by one group must be on the other be reciprocal, voluntary and must stem from an awareness of need and of goodwill to prevent the running of social affairs from being paralysed by obstinacy. It cannot be imposed as a principle and statutory norm…” [Op. Cit., p. 100]

As the minority has the right to secede from the association as well as having extensive rights of action, protest and appeal, majority rule is not imposed as a principle. Rather, it is purely a decision making tool which allows minority dissent and opinion to be expressed (and acted upon) while ensuring that no minority forces its will on the majority. In other words, majority decisions are not binding on the minority. After all, as Malatesta argued:

“one cannot expect, or even wish, that someone who is firmly convinced that the course taken by the majority leads to disaster, should sacrifice his [or her] own convictions and passively look on, or even worse, should support a policy he [or she] considers wrong.” [Errico Malatesta: His Life and Ideas, p. 132]

Even the Individual Anarchist Lysander Spooner acknowledged that direct democracy has its uses when he noted that ”[a]ll, or nearly all, voluntary associations give a majority, or some other portion of the members less than the whole, the right to use some limited discretion as to the means to be used to accomplish the ends in view.” However, only the unanimous decision of a jury (which would “judge the law, and the justice of the law”) could determine individual rights as this “tribunal fairly represent[s] the whole people” as “no law can rightfully be enforced by the association in its corporate capacity, against the goods, rights, or person of any individual, except it be such as all members of the association agree that it may enforce” (his support of juries results from Spooner acknowledging that it “would be impossible in practice” for all members of an association to agree) [Trial by Jury, p. 130-1f, p. 134, p. 214, p. 152 and p. 132]

Thus direct democracy and individual/minority rights need not clash. In practice, we can imagine direct democracy would be used to make most decisions within most associations (perhaps with super-majorities required for fundamental decisions) plus some combination of a jury system and minority protest/direct action and evaluate/protect minority claims/rights in an anarchist society. The actual forms of freedom can only be created through practical experience by the people directly involved.

Lastly, we must stress that anarchist support for direct democracy does not mean that this solution is to be favoured in all circumstances. For example, many small associations may favour consensus decision making (see the next section on consensus and why most anarchists do not think that it is a viable alternative to direct democracy). However, most anarchists think that direct democracy within free association is the best (and most realistic) form of organisation which is consistent with anarchist principles of individual freedom, dignity and equality.

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focsle · 1 year

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Were there folks back in the whaling days who objected to whaling on moral grounds? Or is this a much more recent thing?

It was rare, but there were some! It was very much a fringe objection, though as whaling was so much a part of the country's energy consumption and so many products were connected to it. There were people who warned that whales were a waning resource, but it wasn't exactly a moral objection to killing them. I always think about the baleen - plastic connection. Just as folks maybe try to reduce plastic consumption today, it's still unavoidably a part of everything--perhaps someone wouldn't want their corset busks and boning or umbrellas or storage boxes to be made out of whalebone, but it still was.

One way to get a sense of the cultural attitudes towards whaling in the 19th century was the cognitive dissonance when it comes to Quakers dominated the whaling industry in the beginning of the era. A core of nonviolence, but exceptions made for whales. I think that's an interesting way at looking at how whaling was considered as a whole.

Still, there were some people who, if not objecting, at least approached it in a kind of complicated way. Foremasthand William Stetson on the bark Arab, 1855, is someone whose whaling descriptions I sometimes have a hard time getting through because he often humanizes them in ways I haven't seen many other whalemen do. Calling them poor fellows, reflecting on and understanding the pain they're in, understanding what it means emotionally for a cow to consider her calf in danger and why she behaves the way she does, etc. But still, he ultimately wants them dead. He's ultimately excited to lower for them. Because that's his livelihood. But also does seem to highlight a more sympathetic understanding about how brutal his work is.

Melville is also interesting as a (brief) whaler, weaving his ideas of both the Nobility of Whalemen and the Nobility of Whales together, and he mused on the fate of whales beneath man's warfare upon them.

"But still another enquiry remains; one often agitated by the more recondite Nantucketers. Whether owing to the almost omniscient look-outs at the mast-heads of the whale-ships, now penetrating even through Behring’s straits, and into the remotest secret drawers and lockers of the world; and the thousand harpoons and lances darted along all continental coasts; the moot point is, whether Leviathan can long endure so wide a chase, and so remorseless a havoc; whether he must not at last be exterminated from the waters, and the last whale, like the last man, smoke his last pipe, and then himself evaporate in the final puff"

Like Stetson, he approached whales with a curious sympathy and understanding of their circumstance, but still was a whaler at his heart.

There were (inferior quality) substitutes for whale oil, such as lard oil, and one whaling newspaper once brought in a moral argument (albeit a rather disingenuous snarky one) about killing for oil, and which was more 'humane'.

This was reprinted from the Nantucket Inquirer in the Whaleman's Shipping List, May 2nd, 1843.

“We cannot help expressing our joy at this state of things [lard being considered inferior to whale], in behalf, we will not say of suffering manhood, but of afflicted swinehood, that so many of its porcine tribes are to be saved from a sudden, and (to them) inscrutable death. If it is replied that the getting of sperm oil is also attended by the cruelty and the taking of innocent life, we shall immediately annihilate the objector by showing that where the hardy whaleman takes one life the hog-butcher takes a hundred; for one decent sized whale will afford more oil than a whole drove of swine. So it will be seen that in advocating the slaughter of whales in preference to the slaughter of swine, we go for the greatest good of the greatest number—a principle at once highly human and “splendidly democratic”

But there is one exceptional article written in 1850 which is much more akin to attitudes about whaling today. This was published anonymously (which could perhaps speak to the unpopularity of the idea that someone was shy to put their name to it), in a Quaker magazine called 'The Friend'. They write on the industry from the perspective of a bowhead whale.

"Editors note: All attempts to discover the means by which this communication reached our office will doubtless be vain. Should it become known, it might lead to serious consequences! We are somewhat surprised that a member of the whale-family should condescend to make his appeal through our columns, inasmuch as we have ever aimed to direct whalemen to the best cruising grounds. We feel honored by the compliment, and shall feel bound on no consideration to betray the confidence thus reposed in us: —

A Polar Whale’s Appeal Anadir Sea, North Pacific The second Year of Trouble

MR EDITOR,—In behalf of my species, allow an inhabitant of this sea, to make an appeal through your columns to the friends of the whale in general. A few of the knowing old inhabitants of this sea have recently held a meeting to consult respecting our safety, and in some way or other, if possible, to avert the doom that seems to await all of the whale Genus throughout the world, including the Sperm, Right, and Polar whales. Although our situation, and that of our neighbors in the Arctic is remote from our enemy’s country, yet we have been knowing to the progress of affairs in the Japan and Ochotsk seas, the Atlantic and Indian oceans, and all the other “whaling grounds”.

We have imagined that we were safe in these cold regions; but no; within these last two years a furious attack has been made upon us, an attack more deadly and bloody than any of our race ever experienced in any part of the world. I scorn to speak of the cruelty that has been practiced by our blood-thirsty enemies, armed with harpoon and lance; no age or sex has been spared. Multitudes of our species (the Polar) have been murdered in “cold” blood. Our enemies have wondered at our mild and inoffensive conduct; we have heard them cry, “there she blows” and our hearts have quailed as we saw their glittering steel reflecting the sun beams, and realized that in a few moments our life-blood oozing out, would discolor the briny deep in which we have gamboled for scores of years.

We have never been trained to contend with a race of warriors, who sail in large three masted vessels, on the sterns of which we have read “New Bedford”, “Sag Harbor”, “New London”. Our battles have hitherto been with simple Indians in their skin canoes. We have heard of the desperate encounters between these whale killing monsters and our brethren the Right whales on the North-west coast. Some from that quarter have taken shelter in the quiet bays of our sea, others of the spermeciti species form Japan, have also visited us and reported their battles and disasters; they have told us it is no use to contend with the Nortons, the Tabers, the Coffins, the Coxs, the Smiths, the Halseys, and the other families of whale-killers. We Polar whales are a quiet inoffensive race, desirous of life and peace, but, alas, we fear our doom is sealed; we have heard the threat that in one season more we shall all be “cut up” and “tried out”. Is there no redress? I write in behalf of my butchered and dying species. I appeal to the friends of the whole race of whales. Must we all be murdered in cold blood? Must our race become extinct? Will no friends and allies rise and revenge our wrongs? Will our foes be allowed to prey upon us another year? We have heard of the power of the “Press”; pray give these few lines a place in your columns, and let the go forth to the world. I am known among our enemies as the “Bow-head”, but I belong to the Old Greenland family.

Yours till death, POLAR WHALE

P.S. I send this by the ——— of ——— Do’nt publish the name of the vessel. P.W.

#animal death //#animal cruelty //#long post //#awhalin #asks #pleasespellchimerical

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squiddosss · 11 months

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salutations fellow human being! if you are taking requests, may i suggest the aouv crew (there needs to be a better nickname for them) as children? idk just an idea

p.s. this is also a reminder that al had a bowl cut when he was 6-7 years old :) do what you will with that info :)))

I AM ALIVE! [insert 20 exclamation points here] ok but seriously sorry for dipping off the face of the planet :(

here’s the line up! i kinda forgot everyone’s exact ages. i’m going to go ahead and say the characters are in 3rd-5th grade right now. also isn’t elionor one of the oldest champions?? uhhh idk

additional headcanons:

we all know Reid is a huge nerd. he probably leaned into the nerdy-ness a lot as a kid. this kid wore starwars shirts every day. also glasses, (i believe this is canon)

Isobel was actually rather quiet as a kid. she preferred books over people, and liked talking to adults more than kids her age. she was still exceptionally clever and motivated, but she didn’t really learn how to be sharp-tongued and ambitious until she befriended Briony. she owes her people skills that got her through the months before the tournament and all the reporters to her best friend.

Briony basically coerced Isobel into joining a thing called spell scouts. think like boy scouts or girl scouts or any other youth program but for a magickal world. things like nature and survival skills were taught, but also the basics of spellcrafting and ethics of spell using. (just imagine them in their little uniforms)

Finley was pretty athletic and played a few sports, but didn’t fancy working with a whole team. he attempted junior league soccer (wait… football??? i am american help) but found that he preferred scoring points for his team rather than with his team. he did summer swim at first and running, but wouldn’t discover fencing until he was older (i believe he is the team captain in high school) oh, he also totally did summer theater camps.

Alistair TOTALLY had a bowl cut. unfortunately, he has curly hair. Marianne Lowe thought his curly hair (which he inherited from his father, whoever that could be) was unbecoming for an eventual Lowe champion, so Alistair’s mother would have to magickally get it to stay straight every day. this is part of why Al lacks freckles— whenever Al went outside, humidity would turn it back into a curly mess. so, under Marianne’s instructions, he just never went outside. he later stopped straightening his hair (and outgrew the bowl cut thank god) but the habit of staying indoors stayed with him.

Elionor experimented with dying the ends of her hair when she was younger. the blues and pinks never really showed through because her hair was brown, but she liked it, so that’s all that really mattered. she also wrote fanfiction and posted it to online forums despite technically not being old enough to use them.

after losing their father and having their mother leave them, it was hard for Briony and Innes to feel noticed within the large Thorburn family. they went about trying to feel accepted in different ways. Briony, obviously, was loud and learned to announce her presence to feel heard. Innes preferred a more subtle approach, learning a particular relative’s interests and schedules to find a way to slowly do little things to win them over. stuff like doing their chores or completing their hair.

Carby was like… basically a baby at this point. so… [insert toddler personality trait here]

Diya definitely did extracurriculars at school. she won the spell fair (like the science fair but… y’know… spells) three years in a row and was a member of the book club that included a tournament with other schools at the end of the school year (which she won, duh) she was pretty competitive with it, too.

Gavin… thinking about his childhood makes me so not ok. he realized pretty early on he was basically a sacrifice to a tournament his family would never win. Gavin knew about the tournament, and realized he would be the champion, and had always seen how distant his parents were, but didn’t realize what that really meant until a bit later.

OK BUT SERIOUSLY THANK U FOR REQUESTING THIS!

#all of us villains #aouv #all of our demise #ask #my art #gavin grieve #alistair lowe #hendry lowe #isobel macaslan #briony thorburn #finley blair #carbry darrow #elionor payne #reid mactavish #diya

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raven-at-the-writing-desk · 1 year

Text

PSA on sharing others' twst merch pictures + jp fandom etiquette

Okay guys, it’s time to sit down and have a serious talk for a second 😣

With the recent deliveries of 2023 Valentine Gifts to Japanese fans, I noticed that many had censored the text (whereas in previous years, it was much easier to locate uncensored letters). At the same time, I've also noticed many international fans reposting pictures (which do show the uncensored text) taken from Japanese fans' accounts to sort of "live react" or scream about the contents (rather than sharing and/or liking the original post they clearly took the images from).

Admittedly, this is an issue that moreso plagues TWST Twitter than TWST Tumblr, but I know that there are fans that frequent both platforms and are unaware of this issue. Here in this post, I'm going to talk about why spreading someone else's merch pictures looks bad for us (in the international TWST fandom), why you shouldn't do it, and what you can do instead.

First thing's first, let's think of it this way: this situation is similar to art/writing/translation theft. One can make the argument that technically since the work being shared around is "not original/not made by the OP" then it is okay to just take it and spread it. That's not the problem here; the problem is that someone else spent their hard-earned money to obtain this item, and some OPs even go out of their way to make elaborate set-ups to take pictures of their merchandise. The act of taking something that isn't yours but still posting it without crediting the OP (and thus taking the credit for yourself, even if not explicitly claimed to be "yours") still pervades. If you want to think of it another way, it’s like not citing your sources properly in an essay. What makes this behavior worse is that it's literally SO easy to just retweet and/or like the original post. But no, instead people are actively making the decision to take their photos without so much as linking back to the OP. What purpose does that serve, especially when it's considerably more effort than liking/retweeting? Not to mention the harm it does for the already shaky relations between Japanese and international fans 💦 I already mentioned before that the number of uncensored Valentine Gifts has gone WAY down in 2023, and I'd wager that this is, in part, due to international fans often engaging in this aforementioned "picture theft". It is seen as something done in poor taste, but it is not often overtly spoken about due to the language barrier and/or Japanese fans not being as outspoken as, say, western fans are. Japanese fans are sharing pictures of their merch to express their excitement and share the love of their favorite character(s) with others. It feels like a violation of those positive feelings to have someone else come along, snatch up the picture they lovingly took, and pass if off as essentially their own without permission or even acknowledging that the OP exists. We also need to consider the possibility that some Japanese fans may be uncomfortable with their pictures being spread around because it unintentionally spoils others. Their excitement should not impact others' experiences, so when this is done outside of their own control it can make them feel helpless. They are NOT posting these very personal pictures for clout, but to spread their joy to their friends and followers. That's why so many Japanese fans now feel discouraged from sharing something they love so much with fellow fans--because their boundaries and intentions are not being respected. We want to see the Valentine Gifts and other awesome pictures of TWST merch in the future? Then we need to give our fellow fans the courtesy they deserve. We should NOT act entitled to or feel owed for what is paid content that other people purchased. This should be a GIVEN act of basic human decency. Furthermore, PLEASE remember that in continuing to take pictures that don't belong to you, you're only going to make it harder for yourself to all to see Valentine Gifts moving forward (save for buying all 28 letters yourself, or hunting down the 28 individually on a platform now scarce of the uncensored versions). The OPs’ feelings are obviously much more important than international fans not getting their fix of merch pics, but if that’s how the situation needs to be reframed to make people reconsider their actions, then reframe it we shall. Merch picture theft, combined with international fans misusing the JP fandom's tagging system to increase visibility of their posts (even when the content is not relevant), acting entitled to translations of official and fan content, and instances of international fans acting aggressively and harassing Japanese fans has created an environment of distrust. It's only going to get worse if we can't draw a line in the sand here and now.

The intention in calling attention to this issue is NOT to gatekeep Japanese merch from an international audience. You have MANY options available to you where you can engage with OP’s post, still see and enjoy the content, AND be polite about it.

What's NOT okay to do?:

Taking OP's picture and reposting it with no credit.

Taking OP's picture and editing it (filters, drawing over it, etc.) before reposting.

Asking OP to uncensor the image(s).

Contentious to do:

Quote retweet! (Japanese fans are generally iffy with internet strangers in their mentions. This may vary from OP to OP.)

Commenting on OP's post! (Like QRTing, the Japanese fandom generally does not like comments unless they come from mutuals/people they are familiar with. Again, this may vary from OP to OP. It’s best to preface comments with an “excuse me”, “I’m not a mutual but”, or something along those lines to be polite.)

Linking or crediting the OP in a thread, especially if it is the second tweet or beyond (because not everyone will read the entire thread, and therefore they may miss the credit). If you’re going to credit OP in a thread, do it in the initial tweet or as soon as possible in your own post.

Asking for and getting OP's permission to share their picture in a public space. (I would advise against this one due to potential language barriers. This method may also put OP on the spot to give a certain reply.)

So... what IS okay to do?:

Liking OP's post!

Retweeting (or whatever the equivalent of sharing is) the OP's post!

Sharing OP's post or images in private spaces (ie DMs, among friends/group chats, etc.)

Sharing only the TEXT of merch items in public.

Sharing your OWN pictures.

Sharing your reactions to merch in your own post (without any pictures).

Sharing/referencing a database created by the OP (same person who took all the pictures in the database) for the sole intention of being shared.

Asking to see merch images taken by your friends.

I did my best to research this situation and to give appropriate advice on it, but please let me know if I flubbed up somewhere 💦

Anyway!! I hope that you found this post enlightening and that you take its message to heart 🙇‍♀️ Please, let's all try to be more mindful of how we share things that we're excited about in this fandom!! We can still have fun and scream about our favorite characters without souring the experience for other fans!!

#twst #twisted wonderland #twst merch #twisted wonderland merch #disney twisted wonderland #twst en #twisted wonderland en #twst valentine #twisted wonderland valentine #notes from the writing raven #advice #twst valentines #twisted wonderland valentines #twst valentine gift #twisted wonderland valentine gift #twst valentines day letters #twisted wonderland valentines day letters

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seas-of-silver · 9 months

Note

First Sentence, Then Scene: “I know your secret.” Lila said as she pinned Marinette to the wall.

Just a lil warning that I touch on anxiety and dealing with that... emotional feedback (I guess you could call it?) of being in a high intensity situation with your bully/source of anxiety.

~/~

'I know your secret,' Lila said as she pinned Marinette to the wall. Marinette wriggled, but Lila's grasp didn't budge.

'What secret?' Marinette asked, still trying to loosen Lila's grip. 'I don't have any secrets.' Lila tsked, shaking her head in mock disappointment before smirking up at her with a devious glint in her eyes. 'Playing innocent, I see...'

The Italian's tone sent shivers up Marinette's spine, but made sure she gave no indication of how the girl's words affected her.

'The only one "playing innocent" here is you,' Marinette spat. 'Everyone thinks you're so kind and sweet, but you're like the devil in disguise.'

'Hah! You flatter me,' Lila purred, 'but I am not the Devil- well, not yet, anyway.'

Marinette's eyes narrowed.

'See, the problem with you angelic types is that you're too honest for your own good,' Lila said, voice heavy with faux concern that made Marinette want to grind her teeth. 'Too kind, too generous, too self-sacrificing. You would do anything for a friend, and expect nothing in return.'

This was pressing on all of Marinette's buttons. She knew what the true purpose was of these words, and yet-

'And that is why you'll always lose to someone like me,' Lila finished with a devilish grin.

'You know what your problem is?' Marinette snapped. 'That attitude. Those lies. I know you can't help it, you're born this way, but the thing is you could be so much more than this.'

She couldn't help but take satisfaction in the way Lila's eyes widened ever so subtly.

'You have an incredible talent, and an even more incredible mind - you could be truly amazing if you wanted to be, but you don't, so you're not. You lie, you cheat, you play these twisted games, wasting your time and energy on things and people that do not matter to you - and for what? To get me down? To hurt me? We both know that you're targeting me with all this, for some minor disagreement long-since forgotten- which, let's be honest, doesn't justify all that you've done since then. I've tried to make amends, to help you, to do what I can to build bridges, but you burn them every time, turning away any offers I made so that you could keep that flame burning within you. You think that everything that makes me who I am makes me weak to the likes of you, but in reality-' Marinette forced her hands free from Lila's weakened grip, '-that's why you'll never win against someone like me.'

'Aaaand cut!' Nino cried, leaping out of his director's chair, his hand clutching his cap as his arms waving excitedly. 'That was electric! That was super tense and believable and ohhhhh, I knew this "angels and demons hidden amongst humans" theme was going to work! And you two! Man, I could not have cast more awesome people for these roles!'

'You're welcome, by the way,' Alya lightheartedly sing-songed from behind him, grinning happily.

'Yeah, okay, I owe you an Andre's ice-cream, but if this take is as good as it was in person, I am buying you ice-cream every day for a month!' Nino promised before dashing off to look at the take.

'Whew! It was sooo hard being so mean!' Lila fibbed, earning her some comments on how fantastic of an actor she was by their fellow classmates. With Lila sufficiently distracted, Marinette let out a shaky breath, the adrenaline pumping through her body making her fidgety and unsettled.

'Hey,' Adrien greeted gently as he approached her, placing a hand on her shoulder as he handed her a glass of water, 'you did fantastically out there.'

They both knew the real meaning behind his words.

'Are you okay?' he asked.

"I know your secret." Lila's line echoed in her mind, Lila's expression - and the way it scared her - haunted her. It was like she really knew...

'Yeah... but also... no?' Marinette answered. She wasn't entirely sure he'd understand what she meant, but he nodded like he did. 'The acting bit, I'm fine with, but her? It's... she's...'

'Overwhelming?' he prompted. 'Like suddenly, it's all too real, and it's hard to remember where you are and what you're doing.'

She nodded. He understood.

'I felt like that every time Dad was at a photoshoot,' Adrien admitted. 'Despite him being my father, he's this intimidating, powerful, incredibly critical figure that with one look can pull my performance- can pull me apart, and make me feel vulnerable in such a way that I feel like a kitten backed into a corner, trembling in front of this towering, snarling dog, and it always made me want to run and hide. But I had to fight through it, push through, pretend I had everything under control when I didn't feel like that at all, and let myself decompress once I was alone and safe in my room.'

Marinette's heart ached for Adrien, while also taking comfort in knowing she wasn't alone in feeling this way. Any other time, she might've felt guilty for taking comfort in such a painful thing, but she was too rattled right now. Instead, she silently hugged him, ignoring the stinging of tears forming in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around him, careful not to spill the water in the glass she was still holding as he hugged her back.

In his arms, she felt safe, and the world around them faded away as she let the adrenaline run its course and bleed out of her system, knowing he'd catch her if she fell. She ignored Nino's cries of a perfect one-take wonder, she ignored Lila's grandstanding to their peers, she ignored the clicking of phone cameras. She was in her own bubble within Adrien's arms, and all she could hear was the sounds of their breaths and his steady heartbeat against her ear.

~/~

Ask game: Give me the first sentence and I'll write a short piece for it!

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chambersandfogg · 28 days

Text

October 18th, 1921

My dear Mr. Fogg,

What wonderful news! Mister Ziegfeld is certainly unprepared for the competition you’re going to levy against him. Is the theater already fit for mounting productions? If I remember that building correctly, it has always housed a theater, yes? Though I’ve no doubt that you’ll wish to make your own modifications. Whenever it is ready and you premiere your first show, I’ll be in the audience opening night. Just send me the details the moment you have them.

I know you said you don’t have intentions toward making it a magic act, but before you give yourself over entirely to producing musical comedies, I’d urge you to consider a short run of your own. I know that Fogg the Fearless hasn’t performed in many years, nor would you—or should you—want to connect your face with his name at this juncture, but there’s nothing to say you couldn’t create a new stage persona. You were always a terribly talented magician, John, loathe though I am to admit it, and you would be astounded at what modern technology enables in illusion. I would very much like to see what you’d do with it.

That said, the old tricks are as prevalent as ever, and I do mean tricks. The world of entertainment—even the world of thought and discourse in some cases!—is full of mal-intented characters determined to convince his fellow man that spirits are real. While you’ve been busy re-entering the theatrical sphere as a producer with gold-lined pockets, I’ve also been dipping my toe back into our old profession, but this time on the side of the skeptic.

Perhaps you won’t be surprised to hear it. After all, we would get into long arguments all those years ago about the merits of belief versus cold hard facts, with myself always coming down on the side of ‘dullards and fun-killers’ as I believe you put it. Even after our little mishap, it took me many years to believe in anything even close to magic, as you well know. And this is not to say that I do believe in magic—I am as convinced as ever that what has happened to us is a matter of science we do not yet understand—but I do consider myself a more open-minded person. I would go on about how I owe that flexibility in gray matter to you, but I wouldn’t want to inflate your ego even further. I’m sure it is at risk of carrying your head up into the sky now that you own a building that occupies an entire city block of Manhattan.

All this to say, our peculiar circumstances and my willingness to be proven wrong aside, I no more believe in magic now than I did ten years ago. And, you would think, with science and progress moving forward as it does, that that would be true for the general populace world over. And yet the myths persist! Mediums, psychics, and fortune tellers abound. And they are as greedy and tricksome as ever. So, I have taken it upon myself to unmask them.

That’s right, I have made my fun-ruining an art and a job. I’m just getting started, but I’ve so far thoroughly enjoyed following in the footsteps of our colleague, Houdini. This is one area in which I do not mind that we’re both going after the same goal, as I think the endeavor is a pure and civic-minded one. I’ve attended countless séances and the like, and I do supremely hope that one day I shall bear witness to something I cannot explain away, but for now, I am getting great pleasure out of revealing the schemes and strategies these charlatans use to bamboozle those who are willing to pay to have some measure of comfort brought to their lives.

I do not know that I would be bothered so greatly by the falsehoods were they simply in the service of entertainment. But these people are preying on the tenderest emotions that human beings have—grief, hope, and love. A psychic cannot tell you with certainty that your future holds great things, even if it is heartening to hear so in low times. A medium cannot connect you with those whom you have lost, no matter how desperately you wish to speak to them again. If such a talent were real, I know I would pay no small sum to converse with my parents once more. It is only my experience in the art of illusion that prevents me from being taken in by this promise.

If you do include some magic in your new theater, I would implore you to leave out these more manipulative arts. I know that these kinds of gatherings are popular—I certainly get enough invitations to them—but I believe they are, at their core, cruel. And I have never known you to be cruel.

In any case, please write back what you do plan to mount on your new stage. I am eager to see it. Until that time, I am,

Sincerely Yours, CXC

[a letter received by J.S. Fogg]

[to read the pre-1917 entries, join Atypical Artists and get access to the archive of 24 entries (5,000+ words), as well as ad-free episodes of Atypical's whole catalogue. to receive future monthly missives straight to your inbox, sign up for free here]

#chambers #letter #chambers and fogg #lauren shippen #new year's day podcast

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astarlightmonbebe · 9 months

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episode 5 has left me considering the different - and similar - ways taeyoung and kwonsook think about themselves, and how they respond to pain/violence.

kwonsook calls herself a monster, someone who goes crazy in the boxing ring. that monster, she says, was created by her father, and her father used abuse, violence, and emotional manipulation to create that monster. he didn’t treat her like human, so it’s no surprise that the way she talks about herself when she boxes is as if she’s discussing an animal: she gets cornered, gets scared for her life, and lashes out to kill. she calls herself a monster with resignation; it’s not what she wanted to be, but she knows it’s what she was. she ran away to escape that monstrosity, to live as a human, doing good things, but that part of her never really died.

taeyoung, too, calls himself a monster. he’s a SOB, he does thing no one with an ounce of humanity would do. he seemingly has no qualms about what he does, perhaps because he can always justify it to himself, always has an exit prepared for when things really get bad (until, i’m sure, he doesn’t). like kwonsook, taeyoung accepts the label of monster, accepts his own inhumanity, even if they are inhuman in very different ways. whereas kwonsook wants to break away from that monstrous part of her - she’s only returned so she can free herself from that part of herself permanently (and if she finds a way to box without a monster, then...) - taeyoung embraces it. it’s through being a monster that he’s found success, how he secures futures for his athletes, and how he’s able to ‘solve’ their (and his) issues. monstrosity was not imposed on taeyoung, but (due to what we know so far) is something he chose for himself (although the factors surrounding this part of his past are decidedly murky).

in this episode, taeyoung and kwonsook also demonstrate similar responses to violence and (emotional) pain. when taeyoung upsets kwonsook by working with her father behind her back, he offers her an outlet for her anger by punching him. later on, after ahreum has already slapped kwonsook, instead of lashing out, kwonsook offers to let ahreum hit her again if it will make her feel better. in parallel responses, both ahreum and kwonsook debate taking that opportunity to hurt, but decide not to (kwonsook because she’s taking a chance on taeyoung, or moreso giving him another one, and ahreum because she decides that she doesn’t owe kwonsook that, that kwonsook is beneath her in terms of boxing, no longer on her level).

kwonsook learned to respond to pain at a young age. in boxing, you can’t flinch from the hit - you have to learn how to take the pain, absorb it, and get back up to hit again. outside of the rink, kwonsook absorbs the pain, but she doesn’t hit again. she’s experienced firsthand what her hits can do to people, and that terrified her. after all, she only boxed so that she could protect her mother. so when confronted with violence and pain, she takes the hit, because pain is what she knows and understands. it’s the emotions behind it that are hard for her. pain is easy for kwonsook, because she’s used to living through it, surviving it; beneath it, she’s always empty. she’s never really cared about boxing; it was what she had to do. the lee kwonsook that was a boxing genius was a monster she ran from, after all. but in order to break away from that monster, she has to come to understand the emotional investment of her fellow female boxers. before, they were just her opponents, never her friends, but now she has to face their own feelings about the sport, the passion they have for boxing that she never felt. like ara said, she didn’t feel happiness about winning, and kwonsook has never lost, so she’s never had to live with that humiliation, either. how her feelings will change in relation to boxing will likely be a reckoning for her.

taeyoung, on the other hand, is confronting his fair share of non-boxing sanctioned boxing. even though kwonsook is the boxer, it’s taeyoung who’s been touched by ‘true’ violence in this present timeline. his life is quite literally on the line, which has been shown again and again. he’s been ambushed by her father, threatened, blackmailed, and beaten up by chairman nam’s guys. he lives on the edge, anxious at every shadow, which is chewing him alive. to him, kwonsook’s anger is much easier to deal with. he knows she might hurt him, but his potential to hurt her is so much more (and if he does, in that case he’d find her anger justified, and probably let her beat him to death or something if what we’ve seen of his feelings for her is an indication of anything), and she might hurt him, but she’d never hurt him as much as other people in his life at the moment would (i.e. by killing him, or hurting the people he cares about). taeyoung is used to weathering the storm of other people’s dislike; he’s the scumbag, and he does bad things, deserves other people’s anger when it’s directed at him.

both taeyoung and kwonsook want to resolve things through violence. i think it’s telling that despite being two emotionally aware people, they both consider other people’s feelings to be so easily taken care of. they want the quick, instant pain, and then they want to get it over with. because the violence is what they’re used to, and to a degree it’s what they both think they deserve. however, what lies beneath that, what doesn’t go away with a single hit, is much harder for them to confront and understand.

#star stumbles #my lovely boxer #kdrama #my thoughts #in boxing you get hit and you hit someone else and whoever is still standing wins #and it's basically that way in the whole world of (physical) sports #and it's going to be so so good when they both end up embroiled in the very emotional situation that they both want to avoid at all costs #ie their feelings for each other / betrayal / broken trust / fear #i think i ended this poorly i kind of got distracted and honestly...honestly i don't KNOW what their response to violence really says #or how it's going to be played with throughout the drama #this text is the bare bones of what i can understand through what i've seen #and oh yes even though i know some people might argue that they're not emotionally aware i think they are...#both very emotionally mature. despite their actions they both know what's up in their hearts #and they're very adept at reading one another (or at least taeyoung is towards kwonsook i think she's getting there but she's also trying to #distance herself from him so. i do think she's ignoring some of what she'll probably reinterpret later on #nobody made taeyoung a monster he chose that path vs kwonsook left the path as soon as she was able to #and her getting punished for his bad deeds...even though at the end she admits they're both scumbags for going through with this deal #because she's understood that she'll hurt boxing whether good things come out of it or not #because she'll be disrespecting ahreum and everyone else by rigging the match and losing on purpose #which will probably add to her conflict later on #and taeyoung simultaneously struggles with not wanting to string her along vs stringing her along #because he's been upfront with her about how he's a bad person and she sees it too but ALSO #he can't bring himself to tell her some of the worst things because he wants her to see him differently #like he wants to act like a good person for her but also knows he needs her #honestly their relationship dynamic reminds me so much of my liberation notes #it's the ahjussi / disenchanted two people approaching each other and something ending up growing there where they thought nothing would #again

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