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lady-harrowhark · 1 year

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Hello! I saw you mention that Pyrrha remembers pre-resurrection, and I totally missed that!! Do you have any theories as to why?

I have a few thoughts!

Just for context - because I didn't catch that on my first read either until I started going back through! - there are a few instances that seem to suggest Pyrrha remembers at least some of her life pre-Resurrection. Off the top of my head, I know there's one point where she refers to G1deon as G--, just like John does. Nona also says that Pyrrha calls her "Hairy Maclary", which is referring to a series of children's books by a New Zealand author. Here's a link to a picture and some info about Hairy Maclary... I can definitely understand why Pyrrha would call Nona that lol. This one's super interesting to me in that it's such a fantastic example of the way Tamsyn uses memes and references so skillfully! In the previous books, most of the references are fairly organic in that they're things that could conceivably be, you know, just things the characters say; the readers catch it (if they also know the reference! otherwise they're fairly unobtrusive) but the characters themselves aren't intentionally making a reference. This would be the things like "You can't just ask someone why they want to be a Lyctor" and "a hunger that only thumbs could satisfy," etc. The exception, though, is John. The "none Houses with left grief" particularly is SO fun from an exposition perspective (but if I start on that one I'll never stop), and then of course we have Commander Wake Me Up Inside. The implication here being that John remembers these specific things and is intentionally making those references within the context of the story. Pulling that same expository trick with Pyrrha sets them up as both remembering... at least to some degree. The hints that we get from Pyrrha are such that it's pretty unclear to what extent she remembers, leaving a lot of room for juicy speculation :)

I initially touched on it over on this post where I rambled about names, memory, and the Eightfold Word, but I'm copying over the Pyrrha-specific paragraph so that you don't have to dig for it:

When assisting with Harrow’s lobotomy, Ianthe tells her, “If you push your brain too hard, any surgery could simply heal over.” And in NtN, Pyrrha tells Palamedes, “You should be draining and replacing her fucking brain fluid... When Gideon and I designed that trial, I used to crack his skull and sieve it myself, just as a control variable... The only other people I put through that damn trial were Mercy and Cris, because only Cris didn’t mind being trepanned on the regular.” I don’t know exactly where the threshold is for pushing one’s brain too hard, but I suspect frequently draining and replacing one’s brain fluid is in that ballpark. Which is to say, it’s very possible that Mercy and Pyrrha (and potentially others) could have healed over from anything John had done to their brains.

Also, I don't know why this didn't occur to me as I was writing up that other post, but when Pyrrha's telling Palamedes about how dangerous their uhhhhh living arrangements are, and how they're risking brain damage... Pyrrha and G1deon were operating under somewhat similar circumstances for thousands of years. Cumulatively, it's possible that G1deon's brain was racking up damage that eventually eroded away whatever John had done. Another thought is that maybe the fact that G1deon died and Pyrrha didn't is at play here.

It could very well be less dramatic than that, though. We don't know much about how Lyctorhood impacts the brain, although to be completely fair, we also can't say for certain how a typical human brain would function after ten thousand years of runtime either. Our brains are constantly wiring new neural pathways and rewiring and revising old ones. After thousands of years, might we be reaching a Ship of Theseus situation with regard to the neural circuitry impacting pre-Res memories? Which is a fancy way of saying, "Maybe it wore off."

It could be all of the above, too. Assuming that Lyctor brains retain plasticity like we see in typical human brains (and I'm not letting myself think too hard on implications either way, because in sci-fi/fantasy make-believe land, neuroscience can be whatever you want it to be), we'd probably see that effect happening with the other Lyctors at roughly the same rate, but at least as far as we can tell (and that wording is intentional because I'm not taking anything off the table with this series), the others don't seem to remember. So that might be contributing, but not sufficient on its own. BUT perhaps ten thousand years of rewiring PLUS ten thousand years of cohabitation PLUS however long of being "trepanned on the regular" PLUS G1deon dying might override John's meddling.

We've still got so many open questions here regardless of what the specific mechanisms are. Like, I'd love to know when Pyrrha started to remember exactly. And did G1deon remember anything, then? It seems like he was Straight Up Not Having a Good Time so if he did remember, he might not have been relying on those memories much. Whatever's going on, I'm sure it's just as bonkers as the rest of the series!

#'in sci-fi/fantasy make-believe land neuroscience can be whatever you want it to be' i whisper repeatedly to myself #after spending like two hours this afternoon formatting datasets from the neuroscience lab i work in #nah but for real i have zero issue with that kinda stuff being. you know. fictional. i just need to not go down that rabbit hole lol #also sorry about sneaking a little bonus ramble about meme usage in there #believe it or not i had more about that but took it out because it wasn't directly relevant lol #also to the other anon that's sitting in my inbox: I PROMISE I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN #it's just... you opened a hefty can of worms and it's gonna take me a while lmao #ask #anonymous #tlt meta #pyrrha dve #nona the ninth spoilers #tlt #long post

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willowser · 10 months

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trying to hide your plagiarism isn’t a good look bestie

okie !! taking this moment, for the first and last time, to say, overall: if you're coming into my inbox to be hateful, it will be deleted outright 😌 i am a grown, adult human being and this is my little space and !! i won't allow anyone to poison it 😌 thank you !!!

to you specifically, anon-dear !! you have come to visit me and left me hateful messages just about every day for going-on three weeks now !! so i will finally acknowledge you publicly and give you the attention you so desire !! 😌

you have yet to supply me with any evidence whatsoever that i've plagiarized, as i asked you to do in my first response, and that proves to me that there is none ! you claim that i locked my blog to delete evidence, but — again, i ask you — what evidence ? if you would be so kind as to give me even a smidgen of an idea, i would be glad to pull it up for you ! bc i didn't, in fact, delete anything while i was private.

again, i offer you the opportunity to message me privately, if this is a real concern of yours ! which i don't believe you will do, but ! i will be waiting ! if you're still insisting that i've stolen the "love island bakugou" concept, then i urge you to understand what plagiarism really is.

you've also called me a "white, racist piece of shit" that "steals from woc", which is hilarious, considering i'm hispanic.

and finally !! this will not continue 😌 please understand that every message you send to my inbox with no other intention than to be hateful and ugly, will only be seen by you and i and it will die there because that's what i've decided 😌 you will not exist here in my lil safe space, because, again, that's what i've decided 😌

genuinely, i wish you the best, and i hope that you will grow from this ! if you would ever like to come into my inbox to talk to me about the things you love or whatever head-canons you have for your favorite 2d men or any other thing that belongs in this place — i would love to have you 🩷✨️

#genuinely i am so sorry for all of you that have to see this #but i want to once and for all say to — anyone: if you're coming here only to be ugly i will not acknowledge you #i willingly gave this person the reaction they wanted ! but it will not happen again #and i'd be glad for anyone to test that theory bc i may be kind and small but i will not be walked over #not in my own home #i want nothing but kindness and sincerity here #and AGAIN: if anyone ever has any concerns about the authenticity of something i've written on — please reach out to me #i an adult human being that is open to discussion and clearing the air and owning up to any mistakes !!!! please believe that !!!!#but i have not intentionally or purposefully plagiarized anyone #and while i dont believe in this anons sincerity — i take these accusations very seriously #✿ ask willow

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fuckmeyer · 11 months

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I saw a post about racist Jasper stans bitching bc they’re not able to enjoy shitty J*sper content bc of tags or whatever lol and someone said: “What is there even to enjoy?”. I had to laugh and I thought if you bc it’s so true. Most Jasper content isn’t even that enjoyable. It’s mostly the same boring white-supremacist garbage that I’ve seen before; even the jalice stuff is played out.

The only J*sper content I enjoy is content where he is worshipping Maria, thinking about Maria, talking about Maria, loving Maria, doing anything for Maria tbh. Is that bad? XD I owe it to you and your writing! idk something about a 19/20 year old dumbass confederate falling madly in love with a native brown woman and literally seeing her as a god-like figure as she’s basically handing him his karma for his racist crimes sends me. Ppl act like he was this awesome person before Maria and that it’s her fault he’s gutter trash now with the C*llens but he was gutter trash BEFORE he met Maria. She honestly made him so much better, stronger and MUCH more interesting. She literally created the man these stans thirst over so much. She is the blueprint.

the thing anti-María Jalice stans don't get is, without María, you do not have Jasper. for everything Jasper is, María is the catalyst ❤️

canonically, all we know about Jasper Hale pre-change is 1) he was born in Texas, 2) faked his age to join the Confederate Army* where he became the youngest major in Texas, & 3) was persuasive

beyond that, María made Jasper into the man the fandom adores. you like that he's an empath? guess whose venom made him one. you like that he's a warmonger? guess whose war he fought for. you like that he has a troubled past? guess who put the trouble in it. you like that he's "soft" "empath" "baby" (tbh i don't see it but ok)? guess who made him want to be that way. you like that he's submissive to Alice? guess who broke him in first.

you want Jasper with Alice but wish the María era didn't exist? lol just say you want the hot faceless Confederate to get with the psychic Mississippian & go

as for me, MARÍA ALL DAY BAYBEEEEE

here we have a woman who has suffered all her life at the hands of colonizers. born "1800s or earlier," we can suppose she has firsthand experience with colonization (at least Napoleon's invasion) & lived through Mexico's War of Independence. i.e., she has a deep familiarity with what it means to have your way of life ripped from you by invaders. PLUS she was a victim of Benito's army in the Southern Vampire Wars; her entire coven including her mate was killed.

& despite her losses, she rallied to take back her land & drive out her oppressors. baseline, she is a strong, cunning, powerful indigenous woman with a deep love for her community and her people. HOT

now let's look at Jasper, a bright leader in the Civil War who suffered defeat at the hands of the Union army. yes, María changed him. but did she force him to stay? to go to war? the newborn vamp with the strength & speed to overcome a "grown" vamp chose not to do so. the empath with the power to make anyone disregard him chose not to use it. some say María was "abusive" & "manipulative," but few acknowledge that Jasper had a choice.

why didn't Jasper leave? because he's submissive to anyone more powerful than him. because he was a loser. because the Southern Vampire Wars gave him a second chance at victory. because "empath" or no, he wanted to play war & win.

that's what's compelling about Jasper/María. as wrong as Jasper was for fighting for the Confederacy, he believed he was fighting for the same thing as she. he saw his way of life destroyed by "invaders" & fought back. it's a sick & twisted parallel between oppressor & oppressed that becomes subverted as their relationship goes on... & one that can heal them both.

María's experience with colonizers gives her a visceral picture of what it means to be oppressed... but her relationship with Jasper gives her the victory & emotional reflection she needs to move on. Jasper's military training gives him the hunger & knowledge for war... but his "curse" of empathy provides him with the tools he needs to recognize & address the horrors of his problematic past & move on.

tbh, i find Jasper & María are perfectly suited for a delicious character-driven narrative. Maria's story is that of a traumatized indigenous woman on a path from colonization to decolonization, & the sacrifices & destruction she endures realize that vision. Jasper's story is that of a troubled man on the path from self-hate to self-love, & what it means to undo the societal teachings/traumas & forge a life of empathy & forgiveness.

& that is something Alice alone can never give Jasper.

tl;dr all hail Queen María

#*non-americans: the Civil War (1861-1865) was a battle between Northern (Union) & Southern (Confederate) states...#...over whether to permit slavery in new U.S. territories.#maría my beloved #anon i'm glad you like my María writings (when i used to post them)!#anon thank you so much for giving me this ask and allowing me to just rave about María you are so wonderful <3333 thank you come again #twilight #twilight renaissance #the twilight saga #jasper hale #jasria #jasría #asks #(disclaimer: i don't hate jasper. i do not think of him. no hate to jalice stans either. lichrally i do not care. i simply love maría)#god i love her so much #most underrated character of the whole saga tbh #honestly if i didn't have this rewrite going on i would DEFINITELY LOVE to take a crack at writing The Jasría Story #i just see this gorgeous gothic horrific bloody strangely uplifting & bittersweet vampire novel #it's got death and sex and horror and blood and everything Twilight should've been but Worse (and Better)#ok fuck it fuck it FUCK IT I'M DOING IT. I'M OPENING A DOC. I'M TAKING NOTES. I'VE GOT TO WRITE THIS. SHE DESERVES IT #the-most-pathetic-edge wya bestie #let's change the renaissance. For Her #su-angelvicioso #i hope you see this & i hope you're doing well & if i write this series it's for you & i will get this story to you somehow

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zilodak · 1 year

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Wait omg Spring's BPD coded?

Well he's unnamed-mental-illness-that-I-struggle-from-which-i-am-85%-sure-is-BPD coded

#asks #anon #i need to get a proper diagnosis but the more i research abt BPD the more im like 'ah this makes sense'#Sim Spring rlly started as a way for me to try to deconstruct what and how i feel rlly its sort of an allegory of my mental state bc i #dont know how to describe this emptiness that i have been feeling ever since i was a little kid + no one taking me seriously #my anger issues + violent impulses at times #why my relationships fall apart why i have these rapid mood swings #+ some other things im not really keen on opening abt and would rather let drawings illustrate it #and then i was like 'fuuuuuuuck thats just BPD innit?'#its about more now obviously #but this is how it started

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friendsim-more-like-lovesim · 1 year

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hello hello! i hope you’re well <3 i’m into vintage fashion and burlesque and was wondering how the trolls would react to that on alternia ? have a nice day 🥰

Hi for the love of god hello

Scrolling through old asks to get writing inspo don’t mind me

General:

• I think they might not understand it too well? But the more open-minded trolls would be supportive of you having a unique style!

• recent-ish Alternian history (in my hc) isn’t as diverse and broad as human history, since they’ve existed for far longer than us; and most of their early development was many millennia ago

• yes I’m making this slightly about alternia and it’s culture again. I have hyperfixation brain fungus ok

• So their development (and by extension culture and history) has been stagnant since the condesce took over so to speak. Which has been… for a while.

• anyway, I’ll save this for another post if anyone’s interested, back to the ask!

• as for vintage fashions and specifically burlesque I’m thinking corsets and stuff. I don’t think corsets really exist there outside of medical and fashion use, like it was never common to see and it isn’t really part of their culture

• think about it, alternian standards love their version of femininity, the Big Strong Broad type troll (what we on earth associate with hyper masculinity. Love me some role reversal, one of my fav things about alternia) and so cinching your waist to get an hourglass figure should have never been a thing, as an hourglass figure has never been idealized in their society

• I’m going off rails again I’m literally insufferable

Galekh:

• Galekh isn’t afraid to admit to you his nerd-like interest in your (our) human culture and history, he wants to learn as much as possible!

• totally cool with you having a unique style, he thinks the aesthetic of it is really intriguing and attractive

• he’s not one to fight or cause a stir, but if anyone looks at you weirdly or says something rude he is ready to throw hands, no questions asked

#I hope this is ok; as always I love getting feedback and asks about alternia and stuff #my inbox is always open even if it takes literally a year for me to answer #rip I guess #ask #anon #homestuck #hiveswap #friendsim #troll culture #kinda

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thepavementsings · 1 year

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you think pierre will be forgotten about next year?

This has been sitting in my inbox for a HOT minute, I think based on some tags I may have made a few weeks ago? And now that i'm done finals I'm finally answering it lol what a treat for me.

I think the thing about Pierre is that in the larger fandom, he's already served his big narrative purpose™. The whole narrative arc of getting beat down and shoved away by Red Bull, and pushing through that? Persevering despite everyone telling him "you're as good as done"? Becoming lost in all of the personal and professional tragedy of 2019 and then finding himself again? Becoming a fantastic teammate and someone trusted to lead and then finally finally breaking out of the mold that has shaped him for so long? He's had his little hero's journey already.

Even this year, I think so much of him got... maybe flattened out is not the right word. But I think there was something genuinely SO interesting about the way Pierre rubbed up against everything this past season that was TOTALLY missed under the media-pushed Yukierre and shit car of it all. IMO it was HARD to dig into the meat of it when so much of it was presented like, candy coated rotten apples lol. Especially if you aren't like... in it like the Pierries are. A lot of it got missed (like that 5-10 minutes before people realized what was actually happening in Japan was a perfect microcosm for this season w Pierre LOL but but let's not get into that). I also just think how Pierre was this year hit less of the broad strokes big dynamic and character interests of the fandom than he did in 2020/2021 maybe!

So I think the popularity of him as a character continues to go down at Alpine too, yeah. Because the new story is about chipping away at a new thing. It's not as sexy for him alone: people who don't care about Pierre's story and only care about the narrative will watch for it to blow up with Esteban and thats about it. So much of I think the actual compelling stuff for him happens behind the scenes now, in these next few months before the season starts. It'll be about someone who is so strict and used to routine and one structure and has pre-existing expectations for a lot of usually goes on around him being thrust into a completely new environment and having to figure out how to swim after so long. It's the "Red Bull is the longest relationship I've ever had", and now what? Have you really learned have you really grown etc etc? But so much of that we wont be able to see!!

He's never really been main character compelling to people, which I get. Cause I think his typecast is harder to get into or even figure than the Maxes Or Charleses or Daniels of it all for example. He's often a useful secondary character to a slash or a gen pairing but a hard primary!! God gives his hardest tests etc etc.

The question is really what is the next big arc? And I dont know if there is one thats super clear. Which is fine for me because unfortunately I like it better when less people talk about the people I like because they dont know the lore! or whatever lol you know what I mean. But anyways I think he's just filled his narrative purpose in wider fandom. I am ok with him being put back on the proverbial doll shelf for now though!

#to be like: oh yes your fav is not as compelling to everyone else as you think he is. is hard but true!#unfortunately I CAN admit that I am like. not a good member of fandom #but there are for example ships or characters that i used to like that i see other people do things with #and it can completely ruin an entire facet of fandom for me and it does take me a minute to like. check myself #and like claw things i enjoyed back from the edge and just. like what i like in my own little space #instead if engaging with other people's versions of it that i know i will hate. especially with the way dynamics catch on in this fandom!#if its something you dont like. you just have to like. go sit in the corner and play with your dolls on your own for a bit lol #like recently ive noticed this happening SO much more #especially w the pierre of it all #maybe part of the reason I cant open a single kink meme that isnt piarles that i can almost tell who wrote them but the summary lol #if i see something is pierre pov immediately click out lol thats my toxic reader trait #im like: dont talk about him lol #which these tags have nothing to do w your question but are also just my feelings overall on it lol #anyways sorry anon if this is not what you thought u were getting!#asks #anon

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gingerbreadmonsters · 7 months

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ginger, cracking an eyelid and thinking about opening requests for a little bit? its more likely than you think 👀👀

#redacted asmr #i never say it in as many words but my askbox is almost always open 🥳🥳#to be honest i am rubbish at actually filling reqs so its probably not a good idea #im so fucking picky about what to write and the kinds of things that appeal to me #plus like....... most reqs that come in tend to be for things that im either not great at and/or dont particularly vibe with yk #its nobodys fault that writing david feels like pulling teeth its just the way it is you get me #hence why in my pinned it makes it clear that i take Suggestions rather than Requests #thing is i could do reqs or we could do like another ask game or smth #yeah another issue w me and reqs is that my little goblin brain just CANNOT stay on track and it fucks me up Every Time 😭😭#the prompt will be like 'uhhhh elliott sunshine beach day fluff uwu' and i will get 100 words in and #think 'wait what if they were actually dead/imprisoned/doomed the whole time that would be so fun' and then thats all i can write #i mean i started what was SUPPOSED to be DAMN crew cute halloween fluffy stuff and all of a sudden they're all dead so #not a great track record on my part #i cant stand a close plan there has to be room for improvisation #which is awkward when someone has asked for smth specific 🫣🫣#ginger rambles #oh also anon is off bc i am not putting up with any more ridiculous horseplay in my inbox no sir #fuck around in my askbox and..... actually don't find out bc surprise! i deleted it already sorry who are you again

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shrimpmandan · 11 months

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do you mean you feel alienated around self diagnosed autistic people? (aka 99% of the online autistic community) because if so I completely agree. I'm not sure if you have access to it but I go to public therapy for disabled adulta (if you're over 18) and in my group there is a bunch of autistic/adhd people. we usually talk about medication, funny stories about therapy and experiences with growing up autistic and such. it's pretty relieving, and completely different from speaking to autistic people online, which just feels like talking to neurotypicals

No I feel alienated around autistic people. And people in general. It's for a lot of reasons tbh, not JUST being autistic, but I've definitely have had grievances with the autistic community online for some time now. This is because there's this prevalent idea that what does or doesn't work for one autistic person must be true for every autistic person, which inevitably leads to alienation. I'm considered weird and offputting even by the standards of other autistic people. This isn't an uncommon experience for me.

Also, part of my alienation comes from the general politics of the online autistic community. I call myself Asperger's and high-functioning, which while I totally get why other people don't call themselves that, it's just kinda what I grew up with and what works for me. Also being trans on top of that, and hearing so many autistic people talk about how they personally don't understand gender, whereas I didn't have much of an issue with it (I view it through a strictly neuroscientific lens; I don't do well with metaphors and vague feelings). Being told I can't say "retarded" even though I've been CALLED retarded, not to mention directly threatened (I was nearly shot lmao) over being autistic. A mixture of oppression olympics among autists, and also 'higher-functioning' autistic people speaking over 'lower-functioning' autistic people. My stims also don't get represented much (I don't really flap, I've always been more of a rocker/bouncer/vocal stimmer) and I don't fit into the "good autist" role that a lot of people-- both neurodivergent and neurotypical-- want out of me. All this to not even mention how I get alienated for my other forms of neurodivergence, with people in general being extremely ableist towards those with OCD and dissociative disorders.

All I'm saying is it's not self-diagnosed autists who make my life harder. Not when me and most of my family has had to resort to self-diagnosis due to doctors not listening to us or just a simple inability to even see a doctor due to a lack of money and time. Actually, most of the people I click with are the self-diagnosed "I think I might be neurodivergent" people-- whether that's autism, ADHD, or some other various neurodivergence. The self-diagnosed people are my immediate family, as well as my friends who had to figure out they're neurodivergent because nobody else told them, or gaslit them over it. We're pro-selfdx here, and honestly therapy is the least of my concerns right now, at least when it comes to autism. I don't need therapy for being autistic. I don't need therapy to teach me how to be normal. I need therapy to teach me how to live. Y'know, tackling my ACTUALLY problematic disorders, like my severe OCD and CPTSD and what I believe to be some form of OSDD. ADHD... yeah I just need meds for that, it is what it is. But I've been in therapy SEVERAL times for my autism, with people who were supposedly specialized in it, and even they didn't really know what to do with me. So shrug lmao.

For the record I am professionally diagnosed with autism. I'm actually self-diagnosed with most of the other mental health issues I occasionally talk about here (ADHD, OCD, OSDD, et cetera). I'd LOVE to get diagnosed but we're just not in a financial situation where we can rn. I don't like throwing self-diagnosed people under the bus-- more often than not they're just trying to understand themselves and genuinely don't have the ability to access proper resources. I don't really think of the cringe "faking disorders for attention and spreading misinformation" people when I hear about self-diagnosis, personally. I think about people who have been gaslit and told either that they're weird/bad children their whole lives, or even the reverse where they're told they're gifted, before they begin to struggle and then are promptly abandoned. I went through the latter more than the former.

#anon #asks #tw r slur #this is all okay to reblog btw I'm fine with being open about my mental health #I could've been a lot meaner in this response I have some fucking choice words but tl;dr #I'm pro-self diagnosis. I wasn't bitching about self-diagnosed people. You can't thrust this onto some nebulous boogeyman.#And I don't like when people do that with my personal posts and take them as some way of validating their own opinion.#I don't like other autistic people. Other autistic people have been ableist and alienating towards me. Many of which were diagnosed.#And I don't like other people *period* because I have various other mental illnesses both related and unrelated to the trauma of growing up #in neurotypical society.#Okay? ok

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fagkermit · 10 months

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Wip

#it’s not anything dirty hes just gonna be like bloody but I’m still nervous about whether or not it’s too far #I mean I didn’t start finishing it with that idea and people can take it how they like but it’s SOO hard to find boundaries or whatever on #this silly show since I only have tumblr #I even looked on youtube ergghh #and I can’t even try looking on Twitter since the new rules there with the whole needing a account now #I’m gonna give him a spiked collar though I think he deserves one #a leash may be too far even if I find it top tier funny #felix yaps #my sketches #sorry I turn off reblogs on my wips now #no particular reason I just realized I probably should?#although some people may have input when they use a side blog oh shoot well my asks are open and anon is on #I also have my previous art there so I can actually try and keep his face constant (a struggle for me really)#consistent**

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brother-emperors · 1 year

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Could you please write some more facts/thoughts about ascanio&ludovico's relationship? (or really any other sforza-related thing - that is if you want to, ofc)

I also adore your blog, I was so happy when I found another sforza enthusiast! And your art is gorgeous as well :)

yes yes YES 👏👏👏 I absolutely can, I spend. a lot of time thinking about the Sforzas/Ascanio. (also tysm anon!!! 💓💖💞)

A General Preface: at least half of the texts I'll cite are going to be in italian for obvious reasons (and for less obvious reasons, on the absence of english scholarship on Milanese history: here), and I do not translate*, so where I can, I'll try to provide english texts discussing the event as an attempt at a middle ground

I will be sticking to Ascanio and Ludovico (and probably mostly Ascanio) because if I start talking about the Sforza family as a whole, I'll dive really deep into Leonardo da Vinci's time in Milan, or the impact they had on the arts, or Galeazzo Maria Sforza and tennis, or I'll get started on Milan's history of plague protocols and how they came to the conclusion that illnesses were spread through contact and created an early form of contact tracing on top of everything else. Shout out to the Viscontis, I would LOVE to have you in charge of the country I'm living in right now bc I sure do hate it here.

Contagion Theory and Contagion Practice in Fifteenth Century Milan, Ann G. Carmichael

so. Ascanio and Ludovico are interesting. Ascanio is his mother's son in a couple of ways: in 1448, Francesco Sforza was in Pavia, and Venice attacked Cremona, so Bianca Visconti put on parade armor, pulled together the some troops, and defended city, and later would go on to handle the administrative affairs of Milan when Francesco was either away or ill. (there is a set of armor out there that is may have been commissioned by Ascanio, but either way it's attributed to him

(this link goes to a power point pdf from the University of Milan because, and I cannot emphasize this enough, it is Difficult to get a hold of italian books where I live without paying an arm and a leg for shipping)

Now! if we look slightly to the left at Ascanio. Here's someone who path in life has already been more or less set in stone on the basis of his birth (second youngest son in a set of 8 children): getting married to the Catholic Church. (There was a brief moment where he was considered for a political alliance marriage, but it fell through) One time he declared he would rather be a military captain, but. well. it's Cardinal Ascanio Maria Sforza for a reason.

Popes, Cardinals and War: The Military Church in Renaissance and Early Modern Europe, David Chambers

Politics and Dynasty: Underaged Cardinals, 1420-1605, Jennifer Mara DeSilva

And I'll now put the rest of this under a cut because this gets long.

Okay, so: didn't work because Ludovico still married him off to the Church (there was a good reason for this, since Milan's power structure was shaky after Galeazzo's death, and having someone in a position of power with Milan's interests at heart in the Vatican would be a good strategic move since a lot of Italian politics played out in Vatican rooms)

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

but not before Ascanio decided to go in with the father-son relationship comparison. so. that was something.

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

Ascanio did go on to raise and fund armies for his brother's causes as cardinal (king shit tbh, since the cardinalate was supposed to function as an extension of the pope) in direct opposition to the Church's position and in defiance of the pope, and also worked the political scene in favor for Milan constantly (there is a definable faction of cardinals that are associated with Ascanio, and by extension of Ascanio, Milan), so in a way he did get to play at being a military captain, on top of everything else he was doing.

Popes, Cardinals and War: The Military Church in Renaissance and Early Modern Europe, David Chambers

anyway, Ascanio traded his compliance with Ludovico's wishes for a fuck ton of money.

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

on the topic of Ascanio and Money, the Marco Pellegrini biography talks about Rodrigo Borgia won Ascanio in the conclave vote with money and it's. Interesting.

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

(It also goes on to say that Ascanio played literally everyone in the Vatican court like a fiddle, so that scene in Showtime's Borgias show where della Roveer talks about Ascanio playing the cardinals against each other before taking down the one left standing without breaking a sweat was accurate, actually)

There is something™ Gender Adjacent to being Socially Othered

Popes, Cardinals and War: The Military Church in Renaissance and Early Modern Europe, D.S. Chambers

and while we won't forget that Ascanio was a rich motherfucker and Milanese nobility on top of being a cardinal prince (Catholic cardinals existed in a similar function to a secular Prince for reasons of politic, since the Church was (is) a political entity), regional prejudices, city-state-kingdom bickering, and like. uh. well all of That with Ascanio and della Rovere. did exist.

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

and now to jump to the year 1497, which sure was a year that happened! Ludovico's wife Beatrice d'Este dies, and within a very close time frame, his brother Ascanio falls seriously ill**.

Like, ill enough that he tries to change his will, and Rodrigo Borgia refuses to finalize it because he's betting on Ascanio dying and being able to seize his assets on his death to fund Cesare's adventures (there is a letter in which Cesare complains that the two cardinals they were hoping would die did not, in fact, die).

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

A Companion to the Early Modern Cardinal

Rodrigo wasn't exactly wrong to hedge his bets on Ascanio dying, it was pretty bad! Everyone except the Sforza family thought he was dead for sure

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

That said, I'm still killing Rodrigo with my mind. It's not enough that he's already dead, I need to go Doom Guy on him in hell.

Ludovico sends a physician from Milan to Rome, and the King of Naples sends his own personal physician.

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

While Ascanio's fate is unsure, Ludovico begins making plans to have Ascanio's body brought back to Milan to be interred in Santa Maria delle Grazie, which is where Ludovico's wife had been buried. And if you just. look a little to the right. Ludovico's reaction to Beatrice d'Este's death. Was A Lot. As in Ludovico spent more time in the Santa Maria delle Grazie than he did in his own home. There is a definitive before and after with Ludovico as a person, and the event that marks it is the death of Beatrice.

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

Great news, unless you're Cesare or Rodrigo Borgia! Ascanio doesn't die!

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

After, when Ascanio began recovering/Ludovico heard his brother was on the mend, they respectively poured a truly spectacular amount of money into the arts, donations, charitable works, and so forth.

Ascanio Maria Sforza: la parabola politica di un cardinale-principe del Rinascimento, Marco Pellegrini

This is....getting very long so I'm going to end it here, before I start talking about Ascanio's relationship with Bernardino Lonati, with my favorite piece of Ascanio trivia (besides his entire life): he had a baton of command that had a hidden dagger built into it, which was very sexy and fun of him!! also he was considered a prime suspect in the murder of Juan Borgia, Duke of Gandia. and----

*Ah! you might say. Cardinal! haven't you said you're translating the Ascanio biography? Yes! it's not good! since it's largely for my own reference, it's very clunky and blunt, like oh my god I cannot emphasize how clunky it is. professional translators deserve to have stacks of cash thrown at them.

**So several scholars attribute this to syphilis on the grounds that Sanuto writes that Ascanio was afflicted with the French Disease, and there are a number of problems with this assumption, starting with the fact that Sanuto wasn't one of the physicians or doctors attending to Ascanio and that we have records from those people that should be treated as a primary source before fucking Sanuto. Also the immediate assumption that the French Disease automatically is syphilis is problematic because the diagnosing process of the time period meant that several other illnesses could all be diagnosed as the French Disease without it being syphilis. The physical signs of syphilis weren't mysterious or unknown either, and the timeline/symptoms/length of time Ascanio was ill and spent recovering vs the conclusions scholars have reached citing only Sanuto isn't enough for me. But also take all of this with a grain of salt, I went to art school and all I have on my side is uh. like a decade long obsession with how plagues and diseases spread throughout history, coupled with an interest in historical medical practices, which does not make me an academic or a historian or scholar by any stretch of the imagination.

Gender, Sexuality, and Syphilis in Early Modern Venice, Laura J. McGough

#anon 🤝 me: sforza enthusiasts #anon im sliding you a piece of cake 🍰 thank you for giving me an opening to talk about the sforzas/ascanio #long post #LONG LONG LONG LONG IT IS LONG #ask tag #rec tag #anyway!! the sforzas!!!! i love them!!!!! they take up a truly impressive amount of space in my brain #i want to go to milan someday and see the archives for myself and also visit pavia

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sanhaoche · 2 years

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thank you @insideline for the tag! i love reading about you all and also talking about myself :)

Rules: tag 9 ppl you want to know better

Last song: unsure and can't check on spotify as i've since listened to an episode of you're wrong about but i'm currently obsessed with maggie rogers' new album so i'll say horses off that bc like. horses. running wild. i wish i could feel like that for just a minute! alt pop needs more women who wail and maggie gets it. thank you maggie for your service

Last show: last show i finished i think was abbott elementary? which was very good. last show i got at least mildly obsessed with was superstore before that. by that i mean i think i read almost all of the superstore fic on ao3 in like one night. my last concert however was carly rae jepsen at a lovely outdoor venue and it was an extremely beautiful experience :)

Currently watching: only murders in the building season 2! the finale is out on tuesday and i'm so excited and happy to be watching something that comes out an episode per week again instead of all at once lmao god. i haven't been into some of the choices this season (cara delevingne my parasocial enemy) but yeah. fun mystery and a bit of peril wrapped in an overall very comfy vibe. i also started watching the sandman bc i remember being into the comics like a decade ago (😩) but i'm less confident i will finish that. other than that unfortunately i think i've watched every good video essay on youtube at this point but i'm still making my way through some of the wait in the wings videos about musical theatre productions. and i am WAITING for michael's microphone to tell me about gossip girl!!!!!!!!

Currently reading: vagabonds by hao jingfang! she said NFTs suck and she was right (idk actually i'm only a third through lol). i've also been halfway through a place of greater safety by hilary mantel for hmm over a year but i WILL finish it. one day. anyway idk why i keep sabotaging my goal to start reading more again by choosing books that are a million pages long and slightly hard to get through.

Current obsession: um scotty james and the daniel ricciardo bottom agenda. let the man get fucked by his guypals for god's sake he needs it. rotating my WIP in my mind instead of writing it even though i am mostly making myself finish it to relearn how to write fiction after not doing it for like a decade. fantasising about buying a sewing machine instead of finishing my 2 ongoing crochet projects. going for dinner with friends as often as possible before it starts getting dark early and cold again. finding new recipes to try while i'm on leave from work before i start getting sick of having to cook in the evenings again. thinking about sinophobia, as always. fantasising about going back to china again.

i always come to these late so i feel like a lot of people have done this already lol. @nottiinrosso @20timesisay @maidenpole i don't think you have yet? but also no pressure. and anyone else who hasn't done it but wants to!!!!

@undetectorist YOUR TIME HAS COME ALSO. @dorothywilde as well x

#sorry this is so long i love to chat so much lol.#and i am not very good at starting or maintaining online relationships but i'm trying to get better and i am always open to talk!#so like if you ever want to message me about anything please do lol #just don't send me anon asks about specifics of f1blr drama i have mistakenly waded into pls bc despite all appearances #i don't actually like to stir shit. any more.#i actually desperately need to finish and post this fic so i can commence my career change from occasional tepid take haver #to wholesome harmless and fun content creator #i restrain myself on tumblr so much actually would you believe i am probably the least deranged here than i've been anywhere else #no more takes! fanworks only! i want a quiet life!#ANYWAY. i'm going back to work next week so i'll probably be on tumblr more lmao. though i work in higher education so. maybe not #unfortunately. shit sucks huh #tmi

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