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sunnunderthesun · 5 months

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Fiction: Another Job Interview

In an overcrowded bus, Robi’s demeanour stands out. Anxiety appears to swallow him up. The fine arts graduate is on his way to take his eighth job interview that year after being rejected by uncountable employers in the last thirteen years. He gets off the bus when it stops in front of a private office building and heads towards its open gate. As he’s about to enter the premises, he feels lightheaded because his blood sugar level starts going down.

Three well-dressed men, standing at the gate, approach him. One of them asks Robi, “Here for an interview?” A shaky Robi nods. “Well, you must pay us a thousand rupees to be able to get in,” explains another. Robi rummages through his backpack, takes out a small bottle of sugar cubes and chugs them down with water. “Young man, are you listening to us? Pay us the thousand rupees and we’ll be out of your way,” says the third stranger. Regaining his vigour, Robi begins to explain to the men, “You have no idea how desperately I need this job. I am stone broke and in debt to a couple of relatives who funded my medical expenses five years ago. I don’t have any siblings to help me with anything. I beg you, let me go.” But the men remain unmoved by his story and tell him to give them the money or forget about the interview. Robi phones his friend who reluctantly sends the men money through a popular internet banking service. Robi is then let in for the interview. The receptionist at the office directs him upstairs to the boss’ chamber where the interview has been scheduled to take place. The boss, a lady in her early fifties who reeks of unimaginable wealth, welcomes him in and asks him to close the door behind him. There is no one else present in that sophisticated room besides her and Robi.

“You don’t seem nervous,” says the lady with a grin.

“No. I have been through this many times before. May I sit?”

“Yes, you may.”

She then takes two minutes to examine Robi’s physical appearance as he sits there in front of her, observing an awkward silence. “I have brought some of my best works with me today. Do you want to see them?”

She only smiles which Robi takes as a yes. He places before her his weighty file of traditional paintings done by him over the years and some photographs of his sculptures.

She clumsily runs through those and asks Robi, “What makes you think that I will be impressed by your drawings when I have talented digital artists producing attractive illustrations anytime I need?”

“Well… I believe digital art cannot ever replace traditional art’s aesthetic value. I think you agree with me on this because in your job advertisement you’ve specifically asked for traditional artists to apply. You definitely can’t find my kind of efficiency in a purely digital artist.”

“Your answer’s not too bad. For your information, I am an award-winning digital artist who just hasn’t found any inspiration to create new artwork in a while… Anyway, I was wondering how much you know about my company to be willing to work for it.”

“I read that this magazine was started over twenty years ago and it has been quite successful so far in producing meaningful articles and pictures that a lot of people care about.”

“Three years ago, one of our former female employees posted on her social media accounts that she faced sexism here. Were you aware of that?”

“No. I wasn’t.”

“You should have been. It is important to research into the place and people you are willing to associate yourself with. But, now that you know, what do you think of it?”

“I… I think… I don’t know about her experiences here. But, if hired, I will do my best to… to make sure that my behaviour or conduct never becomes the reason for anyone’s unhappiness in the workplace.”

“I like you. I do.”

“Thank you, ma’am! All I need is an opportunity to prove how valuable I can be to your company.” “Mr. Robi De, why don’t we go through the details of the responsibilities I’d like you to have here?”

“Oh… you have no idea how much I have been looking forward to this!”

For the next two hours, the boss slowly explains to him the duties of an illustrator in her company and enlightens him on its history.

Half an hour before lunch break, she tells a hopeful Robi, “I doubt you will be able to perform all these tasks and become an indispensable employee. I suddenly feel like you need to come to me after you have gained more work experiences elsewhere.”

“No, ma’am, you have to believe me. Just give me a chance to show you how much…”

“Look, young man, you have only worked as a freelance artist so far. You have no idea how things are done in a big workplace like ours. I cannot let anything… anything go wrong here. How much do you know about the corporate culture anyway?”

“This position I have applied for is supposed to be an entry-level one requiring minimum work experience… Did you… did you expect a newbie to know it all?”

“This room has only one door through which we enter and exit, and it’s right behind you. Thank you for being here. I hope you succeed someday.”

Why did you waste so much of my time just to tell me all about this damned place? Why didn’t you reject me earlier? I could have gone home to my sick old parents who need me often! I have left them alone with a new caregiver to come here for this interview, and now after tricking me into keeping you company for three hours, you’re telling me I am not needed here!”

The lady exhibits a calm smile during Robi’s rampage before heading out for lunch. Robi remains in her room for over an hour until she returns.

“I don’t pay people for keeping me company,” said she upon seeing the resolute man standing at her desk fifteen minutes past the lunch break.

“How much more do you need? Do I have to bribe you for this job?” asks a desperate Robi.

The lady sits down in her chair quietly, sips water from her bottle, and wipes her lips with a handkerchief.

“What do you mean?”

“Weren’t the men who made me shell out a thousand bucks earlier yours?”

“I have no idea about what you’re saying, young man. Listen, you need to leave before you get yourself into trouble.”

“Oh yeah? What are you going to do?” Robi, furious, inches closer to her.

“The chief minister’s nephew is a dear friend of mine. All I need to tell him is that you tried to rape me in my own office because I didn’t hire you.”

Upon hearing those words, Robi instantly breaks into a cold sweat and his heart rate rises. He can’t utter another word. Struggling to breathe, Robi grabs his phone from his pocket to dial some number in vain. The boss, still comfortable in her cushioned chair, watches him drop unconscious on the carpet in front of her.

Then she thoughtfully opens Microsoft Paint on her iPad. Using only her fingers, she attempts to draw the unmoving man to perfection.

#story #original story #creative writing #fiction #short stories

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beneaththetangles · 3 years

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Reader’s Corner: Silver Spoon, Solo Leveling, and the Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

Solo Leveling, Vol. 1 (novel)

The immensely popular webtoon, Solo Leveling, features a basic premise about a young man rising from the lowest of ranks of “hunting” to become incredibly strong. It’s most appreciated for its art, so the question is, if the story is mundane, does it’s forerunner, which lacks any illustrations, hold up? It does—surprisingly well. Volume one of Chugong’s novel series, originally published on the web and now being released by Yen Press, traces the story of Level-E ranked hunter, Jin-Woo, in mesmerizing detail as he “levels up” following an experience that should have lead to his demise. That opening is only one of a number of violent but engaging episodes in the novel, which also relies heavily on descriptions of game-like mechanics. As the rare anime fan that isn’t a gamer, my eyes usually glaze over such details, but Chugong’s vivid but spare descriptions kept me engaged, as the protagonist moves quickly along his journey, which still, is well structured, even if his characterization if less developed. That’s both a flaw of the series and a point of question: Is Jin-woo’s desire for “Money, honor, and power” meant to be admired, glossed over, or criticized? I’m not yet sure, and I wonder if Jin-Woo’s moral development will become a significant part of the story beneath the well-crafted verneer of fighting and powering up, which as imaginative as it is, can’t very well carry an entire series—can it? ~ Twwk

Solo Leveling is published by Yen Press, which provided a review copy.

Neon Genesis Evangelion: The Shinji Ikari Raising Project, Vol. 18

I did it (insert GIF of everyone applauding Shinji here). I finally finished reading Neon Genesis Evangelion: The Shinji Ikari Raising Project. And let me tell you something about it: While there are science fiction undertones and references to the original series throughout that give you genuine laughs, by the end, the series is primarily just an ecchi teen romantic comedy with Evangelion characters as window dressing. Every chapter is an opportunity for Shinji to mistakenly trip, fall, and accidentally grope a girl. Every other chapter, by the end, sees a character with exposed breasts—sometimes because of said clusiness, sometimes because the mangaka just decides to draw an extended group bathing scene. This volume gives the final actual reference to an Evangelion, but once again, there’s no actual use of it. This alternate Eva-verse is, in the end, a school harem romance and not a science fiction epic that discusses about real issues like depression. For some, that’s fine. For others, the blatant fanservice will be too much. For me, I am still so very struck by how out of character both Shinji and Gendo act in this series when compared to the original . I guess Yui Ikari being alive really made a huge difference! ~ MDMRN

Neon Genesis Evangelion: The Shinji Ikari Raising Project, Vol. 18 is published by Dark Horse Comics.

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

First released in the U.S. eleven years ago, and originally published in 2004, Yen Press has rereleased The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (along with all the others) to coincide with the new Haruhi Suzumiya light novel. After all this time, it holds up surprisingly well, and in fact perhaps takes on more meaning now in the booming light novel industry as a series that—as with the anime—inspired so many of today’s writers. A quick read—it tells just one longer tale instead of several shorter one, coming in at under 200 pages—every sentence is meaningful, every chapter tightly structured, and every emotion hits with precision and sharpness as the series at once returns to an older act, takes the story to new places (and new heights), and brings in questions from the future as Kyon wakes to discover that the SOS Brigade has disbanded, no one has ever hear of a Haruhi Suzumiya, and Asahina and Nagato no longer have their peculiar powers. The volume works so well because it depends on those preceding it, not only for it’s “return to the past” plot but also as it ramps up the nostalgia and emotions in both Kyon and the reader. Everything is predicated on how the reader feels about these characters, leading to a tale that’s simultaneously a love fest for the series and one that is satisfying in its own right. Disappearance proves to be, much like its characters, a light novel that surely is timeless. ~ Twwk

The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya is published by Yen Press, which provided a review copy.

The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt (Hey, How About Treason?), Vol. 1

What we have with this mouthful of a title is a more comedic (and non-isekai) take on the kingdom-running light novel. Prince Wein is appointed regent to run the country of Natra in place of his ailing father, but given how terrible the state of his nation is in financially, he would much rather just sell the country off and run away. Yeah, he’s lazy and a coward. The problem is, he’s also a bit too smart for his own good, and plans that he intend to go towards relieving his workload and avoiding confrontation only make people believe he can totally win wars and bring the country back to greatness. (It helps that the countries trying to deal with Natra have issues of their own…) The result is an amusing read as I had fun seeing Wein pull out plans that work a bit too well and have him suffering from success. I also liked how his relationship with Ninym, his childhood friend and primary aide, is framed in the story both as a teammate that Wein relies on to help run the country, and also a close companion (and love interest) whom he banters with but also trusts deeply and does not tolerate any insults toward her from others. Overall I’m definitely looking forward to reading more from this series and how Wein will continue to help his country more than he might want to. ~ stardf29

The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt (Hey, How About Treason?), Vol. 1 is available from Yen Press.

Dragon Head

Dragon Head was a horror manga series I picked up last year from a Kodansha Halloween Humble Bundle. Let me tell you—it is dark, earning its way into that genre heading. The first volume begins with three teenagers trying to survive in an underground subway tunnel after an earthquake event caused its collapse. As the story progresses, and effects on the surface world around them are revealed, the characters discover that the earthquake was no isolated incident but something that struck all of Japan. It is gritty and violent at times. Yet, the overall story and a desire to see how these characters survive kept me reading page after page. I finished the entire 10 volume series in about three days time as I had a hard time putting it down. The ending is is a hard one, and perhaps very fitting for this work, leading readers to consider how widespread the problems that struck and set the events of the series really are. Psychological horror indeed. ~ MDMRN

Dragon Head is published by Kodansha.

Silver Spoon, Vol. 1

With Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood continuing its tear through our annual AniMarch Madness tournament, I turn my attention to the other now-classic work from mangaka Hiromu Arakawa. Silver Spoon, which ended its run in 2019, is a fish out of water tale featuring high school freshman Hachiken, an academic-focused city boy who decides to attend an agricultural high school in Hokkaido. Volume one has fun with his inability to get used to farm life, though it also sensitively looks at his reasons for choosing this high school while showing that even early on, Hachiken is growing, such as when he condescends horses only to be taught how the majestic animals can show the rider a different perspective on life. It doesn’t take long for readers to grow attached to the series characters, like Aikawa, who is the determined to overcome his sensitivity to blood and death to become a veterinarian, and Nishikawa, who loves tractors and mecha. But most of all, Hachiken makes for a compelling character. Like Edward from FMA, Hachiken is easily frustrated but kind and open; it’s lovely to see him already developing among friends so different from what he’s used to, even while seeing him frequently fall (and slowly get back up)—a source of laughter page after page in this wonderful introductory volume. ~ Twwk

Silver Spoon, Vol. 1 is published by Yen Press, which provided a review copy.

#Manga #Light Novels #Solo Leveling #Neon Genesis Evangelion: The Shinji Ikari Raising Project #Shin Seiki Evangelion: Ikari Shinji Ikusei Keikaku #The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya #Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu #The Genius Prince’s Guide to Raising a Nation Out of Debt (Hey How About Treason)#Tensai Ouji no Akaji Kokka Saisei Jutsu: Sou da Baikoku Shiyou #Dragon Head #Silver Spoon #Gin no Saji #Reader's Corner #Articles #Author: TWWK #Author: MDMRN #Author: stardf29

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warlordgab · 7 years

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Analysis: Constructing a Potent Relationship

It’s not hard to notice One Piece success as a manga, especially if you live in Japan. This success can be attributed to several factors. One of them being the massive and highly creative world-building One Piece had, and how such a vast world is fit for near endless possibilities for fantastic adventures.

We could also mention how over-the-top the action/adventure can get. And how the story gradually escalates, greatly exceeding many readers/watchers expectations. Or the the obvious focus given to “Romance”

Confused? Don’t be. The series itself works with a less known concept of “Romance” related to dreams and adventure. Or to put it in other terms: the emotional appeal of adventure, idealism, heroism, and virtue. In fact, an insightful reader once perceived that One Piece works as an “adventure novel”, taking some of the best elements they have to offer. And Oda himself once stated he wanted his readers/watchers to get excitement from his work, something he pulls off by means of the crazy yet highly creative situations that arise throughout the story, along with the fun and/or drama they bring to the plot.

So naturally One Piece encompasses a wide variety of themes and subjects: comedy, tragedy, companionship, and even love in several of its forms. All of this strengthens the story and draws the attention and interest of readers/watchers.

Yet, another factor makes this manga so popular:

The Characters

Despite the fact One Piece is a plot-driven story, Oda had made a great effort to establish his characters with very solid backgrounds, motivations, and personalities. The sense of depth he adds to his character turns them into one of the elements that breathes life into the story.

Not everyone is capable of appreciating this since some people focus too much on how crazy and amazing the plot gets; along with the carefully put and well done action scenes (the manga often does this great; the anime has varying degrees of success in their attemps to capture what Oda conveys).

Nonetheless, the characters are one of the factors many readers/watchers greatly enjoy. And one thing that adds depth and substance to a character is how and why they form bonds with others, as well as the emotional narrative behind their actions. This makes them more relatable and helps readers/watchers to be more invested in their struggles.

In this regard, all the SHs share strong bonds. But we’re going to highlight one in particular, because of how much build-up and emotional development it got throughout the series, as well as the deep roots of this connection: Luffy/Nami.

Before elaborating on their bond, I must address one “obstacle” that prevent people from fully appreciating the amazing job Oda had done in this regard. This “obstacle” not only clouds the view on One Piece emotional development; at times it even encourages some people to seek and even expect a twisted version of what the story can actually offer, while making more reasonable fans and critics dread how this trend could negatively impact the story: “The General Shipping Mindset”.

This isn’t the first time such issue had been addressed. As it had been explained before, “shipping” proves to be poisonous to the way relationships and emotional bonding are to be written. But why does this happen?

While there are a few shippers who find enjoyment in the direction the story goes, many others promote ideas and delusions that could potentially ruin or at the very least damage its integrity and consistency.

This is something some people already heard or noticed. While there’s nothing wrong with fantasizing about something you like, It can still be seen how shipping motivates many fans to push their corny/clichéd fantasies into the story in spite of them being incompatible with the author’s works.

They rely on poor “logic” contrary to what natural development as well as emotional chemistry really are, by blowing out of proportion insignificant showings or even gags that neither the series nor the author take seriously. Sometimes they overhype what they perceive as "sexual tension", in spite of the story never elaborating on such exaggerated ideas. They even promote premises that depend on the characters going full OOC

A fine example of unrealistic shipping expectations

There are shippers who while being fully aware of this, still promote their delusions over anything that the manga has to offer, just because they’re aesthetically pleasing. Other shippers use the characters as self-inserts for their fantasies, some even go as far as selling the image of one or more characters whoring themselves to the highest possible number of “partners”. And there are those who only focus on characters’ personalities, while ignoring who they share with most meaningful moments and greater stress in their relationship.

Needless to say, there are many reasons why “shipping” is considered “toxic” by many non-shippers and regular fans

So, when we take the “general shipping mindset” away, when we discard what strays away from One Piece, we get to see a well-written and solid relationship. But just so people may clearly understand how this emotional connection had been developed and still holds the potential to grow stronger, we need to use something I posted before: The "Tiering System" for pairings:

When an author seeks to build a compelling well-written relationship he stablishes a "foundation" and later keeps building upon this very same "foundation" by means of meaningful moments, emotional build-up and development. Such premises must blend in both the story and the characters. By taking into consideration these factors we have...

* Crack impossible: Pairings that contradict other pairings with well-established canon material, and has zero context that can be most logically interpreted as romantic. And zero development and/or stress in their relationship * Crack Possible: Pairings that do not contradict well-established canon material, but have none-the-less zero context between the characters that can be most accurately be defined as romantic and no meaningful moments * Impotent Pairings: Pairings that do not have a high chance of developing into cannon, but nevertheless had some type of stress on their relationship at some point of the series. Romantic attraction can be a joke or comedic element of plot. This kind of pairings had become stagnant as the story (and possibly the author as well) doesn't bother to develop them any futher. This kind of pairing is constantly overshadowed by the next category * Potent Pairings: Pairings with a high chance of developing into canon, supported by multiple logical arguments, high degree of intimacy between characters, and significant/meaningful moments. This kind of pairing has constant development and stress on their relationship * Canon Pairings: Exactly what says on the tin. While the pairing does not have to be dating, or married, or whatever, the existence of romantic love must be there.

For a Potent Pairing I'd like to add that a natural growth must be there. It's a gradual yet consistent development. And as I tried to convey before, a likeable chemistry that must be based on a series of impactful moments

Some people might argue against this by claiming traditional "Romance" isn't conveyed in One Piece. Well, to get that out of the way I'll clarify a couple of points:

1) One Piece already conveyed traditional "Romance" without using clichés or corny stuff

2) The principles of this system can be applied to deep companionships; bonds potent enough to keep evolving within consistent writing

3) The person who created this system did it while having a male-oriented story in mind

Now onto the subject: there are several key lines I highlighted there to show how relationships based on gags or comic relief become less potent. That's something that makes sense given that chemistry is built through significant moments and details along with constant development, not through mere jokes and gags. The next line I highlighted is the "stress in the relationship". Even impotent pairings (and some cracks) had some sort of "stress" or "moments" at some point of the story. Their problem is: neither the story or the author keep building up said relationship. They remain "stagnant" in that regard

But this is where a potent pairing becomes different. Because it has constant stress and/or development in their relationship, by means of moments both large and impactful or small yet meaningful. This is something worth noting: both impotent pairing and potent pairings have moments. The difference would be the sheer amount of moments, the "stress on their relationship", what does the story builds upon such major interactions, and how the following moments continue what prior showings started complementing them likes pieces of a puzzle

To illustrate this, we could use the metaphor of a building process

An architect could intent to build either a house or skyscraper, depending on his vision, resources, or many other factors

Before he starts building the structure, he must lay the foundation. He can lay shallow foundations for small projects or deep foundations for more complex projects

In this case the foundation would be the impactful moments that solidify the chemistry of the relationship and serves as a base for futher development

Laying the foundation isn't just tracing a few lines in the soil; it actually means working the ground! So in a similar way, an author who's writing a relationship starts this building process by setting bases for emotional chemistry

How do we do this? The fastest way is through "conflict". Through opposite beliefs, opposite interests, and sometimes clashing personalities, we get the perfect scenario to build a likeable chemistry. Nami's character had a very clear distate for pirates and didn't trust people so much. Her viewpoint on life conflicted with Luffy's idealism when it came to dreams, adventure, companionship and the meaning of being a pirate. Yet, Luffy actively sought to overcome all of this and reach out to her; by means of his actions and his convictions, Luffy managed to gradually kickstar a change on Nami...

Despite getting many reasons not to trust her, Luffy put a blind faith on her. He didn't doubt her not even once (while he doubted Zoro during Whiskey Peaks and doubted Robin during W7). Here we have a progression that slowly lead us to a moment that catalyzes their developement. And this is where another aspect of "chemistry" comes into play: "emotional support". When a character helps their partner to regulate their emotions; when the distressed partner is willing to open up and express their anxiety and/or helplessness while their partner provides with strength, hope, and/or comfort. It was something strong, personal and touching. The resolution of this "conflict" and/or "challenge" turned Luffy into Nami's "emotional anchor".

Notice this is far more powerful and meaningful that giving roses to a woman or praising her beauty, like many clichéd corny stories; instead we get Nami's first major development as character: she realized she needed to rely on someone else; and once she hitted her lowest point, when she finally lost all hope, she relied emotionally on Luffy. After all his struggle, he finally earned Nami's faith/trust in one of the most memorable and impactful moments of the series But this is merely the "foundation" of the structure. And a potent bond doesn't rely only on a foundation. A constant stress on that relationship is needed to deem it as a potent bond. What would the architech do?

Keep building his project upon these showings. This can be acomplished by continuing the same themes highlighted for their bonding through meaningful details...

I know this is the movie version but the scene played out just like it appears in the manga

...and more impactful moments

In this sense, following scenes, interactions and moments, are born from those prior showings, adding up to the base already set by that very first catalyst from AP. They become the materials used to construct the "building". And the more material is provided and processed, the taller and stronger the structure gets. In such regard, this bond becomes a combination of several elements as well as meaningful details

How much material we got? Orange Town arc, Kuro Arc, AP, Drum Island, Skypiea, Water 7; where we got to see several nice details and a moment when Nami, while displaying her determination to save Robin, still pours her heart to Luffy to express her anguish and her distress and she tells him the truth behind Robin's actions. A subtle display of the emotional chemistry between them

We also got that jewel known as Strong World (written by Oda himself)...

...where we got to see more of the same "conflict" that catalyzed their emotional bonding, as we see how strongly Luffy feels about Nami sees him, and how much he values her trust/faith. As well as several other showings scattered all over the following arcs, adding up to the construction:

What most of those moments and details (that followed major showings) have in common is that they were built up from the structure that was constructed upon the foundation laid at AP. This is what means "stress on a relationship". When an author decides not just to establish a strong bond but he chooses to keep stressing that emotional connection throughout the story. And this is what impotent bonds as well as cracks lack; a long chain of meaningful moments (as well as nice details) building up to something greater:

A metaphorical skyscraper

This is what makes the Luffy/Nami relationship a beautiful skycraper. While most impotent bonds and cracks barely have some pieces of wood lying around an unworked ground; there's not a solid well-developed structure there. Some having a shallow foundation but no structure built upon it. And there are even some ships that are merely blank territories while shippers could say to each other: "Couldn't you imagine having a nice house here?"

However, none of the moments I highlighted or explained are anything explicitly "romantic" in the traditional sense of the word. But "romantic love" and a "deep companiship" share a base on the same principles of affection, mutual faith/trust, support, and so on. It's not like we're saying LuNa will be canon, but it's the pairing with the highest chances to become endgame as it blends perfectly in the story without altering the characters and possesses an unmatched amount of stress on their emotional bonding

Does it make sense for Luffy and Nami to be so close to one another?

Given what Oda originally planned for Romance Dawn, indeed it does. I briefly mentioned this in other analysis but there's a constant for Luffy's story in all versions of the Romance Dawn:

A Nami-like Character

And as we already know thanks to some interviews and suplementary information, Nami was supposed to be the first one to join Luffy in the final version of "Romance Dawn". Making her the person who would've bonded the most with Luffy. But her debut was postponed by Oda’s editor at that time; and yet the Luffy/Nami relationship gets the larger development and the greatest amount of significant moments

What makes this different from what other shippers promote?

Well, many shippers insist on this line of logic: "If the guy saves the girl, the girl should totally fall for him". But that's not how chemistry between characters works. For a likeable chemistry it should never be shown or implied that a character owes the other a relationship because of favors done. So merely saving someone is not enough to build a potent bond

Some even say that bickering is a sign of "sexual tension" and if there's not enough bickering, there's no potent relationship there. But mere bickering is not the kind of "conflict" that helps to build a good chemistry. Although Luffy and Nami do bicker several times:

Real chemistry between characters happens when they affect each other in big ways. Luffy being Nami's "emotional anchor", and how much he values Nami's trust/faith as well as her perception of his strength and capabilities, are factors far more powerful than just bickering quite often

So after considering all of this, what should we expect? Will the architech finish the structure he's been working on? Will he keep delivering great moments to nourish this relationship? Will he keep providing with meaningful details like the one from GOLD?

(Parallel between Tesoro & Stella [Lovers] and Luffy & Nami situation at the climax; this little bit was confirmed to be Oda's idea) Will we have what an insightful reader described as a "final decisive interaction"? Only time will tell. For now, I'll just end this with a simple conclusion: LuNa is that potent bond that's nourished by the biggest amount of significant moments and meaningful details, while having room for further growth... and I wholeheartedly support it

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fadedtoblue · 7 years

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I'd normally just message you about this, but I think it'd make some good meta. What do you think when folks say "Matt belongs with Karen and Daredevil with Elektra" ?

Sorry it took me so long to finish this, as you know with me…I ALWAYS HAVE A LOT OF THOUGHTS. I appreciate the question though and I enjoy the chance to think about this concept more deeply…I certainly made a lot of effort to make sure my reasoning felt logical? Disclaimer: this is going to focus more on DDS2 Elektra than post-TD Elektra because there’s a lot that isn’t entirely clear about where her characterization is meant to go from that storyline. I don’t want to muddy the waters up too much so I’m just drawing the line here now. I might write something separate regarding the end of The Defenders b/c I’m seeing some conversation popping up here and there around the motivations behind that ending but, yeah, not super relevant here. I also apologize in advance b/c I think I’m going to go off on a couple of meta tangents regarding both Karen and Elektra before I get back to addressing the crux of the concept so…bear with me!

Let’s start out by quoting some words from Mr. Cox himself, who was fairly consistent in falling back on some variation of this hypothesis in almost all the interviews I’ve read / watched with him during press for DDS2 – this quote isn’t quite exact to the question, but it’s close…I’m also sure there are better ones, but this was just the first one I had accessible:

With Karen, he’s Matt Murdock. He’s the kind of man he’s always wanted to be. She brings out of him a kindness and a generosity and a belief in law and order, and right and wrong. She taps into something that is the kind of person he’s always seen himself – the kind of person his father wanted him to be. But Karen doesn’t know about Daredevil, and that’s undeniably a huge part of his life.

With Elektra, it’s the opposite. She knows all about Daredevil. She accepts that, and encourages him in a way that no one else does. But she also sees a dark side, or she tries to draw out of him a disregard for law and order, a disregard for people and property, and those things which isn’t who he is.

On a super simplistic, superficial level, yeah – it makes sense. Karen and Elektra were already involved, in very different ways, with the two sides of Matt’s hyper-compartmentalized lifestyle. As a result, I understand why there’s this intrinsic pull to connect Karen with Matt’s ‘day’ life and Elektra with Matt’s ‘night’ life, and then draw the line from that to, “Matt loves Karen, Daredevil loves Elektra” and vice versa. I disagree, however, with the basic premise of Charlie’s statement / this kind of statement in general, mainly because while Karen and Elektra both make very useful props to further illustrate the trials and tribulations of one very confused and conflicted Matt Murdock, you can easily remove both of them from the equation and come to exactly the same answer: which is that Matt Murdock was already a kind, generous man, with a belief in law and order and right and wrong, coupled with an absolutely hypocritical flagrant disregard for law, order, people and property every time he runs out and pulls on that mask. If you look up the word denial in the dictionary, it might as well have Matt Murdock’s pretty face filling up the page. My point is…Karen didn’t make Matt better and Elektra didn’t make Matt worse. Matt was already the man he had chosen to be, and for some reason it seems easier to credit / blame either one of these women for his inherent character traits when in fact, this was the person he already was before either of them came into the picture.

Now, I think a better way to phrase this concept is that Karen is attracted to what Matt Murdock represents, and likewise, Elektra is attracted to Daredevil represents, and that is why Matt belongs with Karen / Daredevil belongs with Elektra. And to this I say….mmmm maybe, maybe not. Based on what we’ve been given so far on the show, one could argue that neither Karen or Elektra have yet had the opportunity to fully experience both sides of Matt Murdock and maybe neither of them ever will. But I think there is enough here to try to figure out whether the Karen –> Matt / Elektra –> DD line of thinking holds water, and whether either of them have a better shot of being the right fit for both sides.

Let’s tackle Karen first.

On paper, there’s a lot that should work between Karen and Matt. It’s sweet and innocent in a way that so many things aren’t in Daredevil’s world. They share a lot of similar qualities – real go-getters for truth and justice and light, stubborn and quite headstrong, but still caring and empathetic individuals. I can see why they get categorized as the nice / healthy / safe option. But the primary problem with all of that lies in the fact that the foundation of their apparent relationship might as well be built on sand – almost everything they think they know and love about the other are at best half-truths, at worse, straight up lies: Matt, a blind, super stand-up handsome attorney with a genuine heart for justice, lives quite the secret double life as Daredevil, crime fighting vigilante with a not-talked-about-enough rage problem, and Karen, sweet, strong, spunky secretary with a heart of gold, has a secret murder on her conscience and an as-yet-to-be-determined dark and tragic backstory that may completely turn our opinions of her on its head. My issue with this is less that they keep secrets – who doesn’t keep secrets in this universe? – but that the image they’ve built up of each other and have become attracted to are very incomplete versions of themselves, and thus renders their relationship sadly superficial in a way they weren’t even aware. Which means the ironic thing about them being the conventional, safe romantic option is that nothing about them is actually that conventional or healthy or safe at all. Their relationship can be summed up by them lying to each other and to themselves about almost…everything, which isn’t a judgement of either character, it’s simply facts.

Now to be fair, from a storytelling perspective, this doesn’t mean there isn’t some hope of salvaging a meaningful relationship even with the deceit (one could argue this is exactly what they managed to do with Matt and Elektra). It certainly wouldn’t be the first time a television show deploys that old trope: two people who thought they knew each other realize they didn’t actually know anything about each other, harshly re-examine everything they’ve built up about each other so they can knock it all down and start from the beginning, etc. But I think the show has laid some interesting track with Karen’s character development, and I question whether pursuing a romantic relationship with Matt would honor that development in a positive way. My interpretation is that Karen, despite her propensity to get herself into very questionable situations, doesn’t actually want the danger. Yes, she finds herself more often than not running toward it, and she has an incredible amount of empathy for those who do not operate fully in the light, but that doesn’t mean she enjoys being in these dark and dangerous situations. She doesn’t want to see people she cares about get hurt. She doesn’t want to see herself get hurt. I do think she accepts that danger is oftentimes an unavoidable part of the process toward uncovering the truth (something that she learned from Ben and I think a huge reason why she worked as hard as she did to get as far as she did with Frank) – that danger in service of that truth can be tolerable, sometimes even bearable to live with. I’m not sure the way Matt goes about it, however, is compatible with her newfound tendency toward self-preservation.

As poorly as the post-DDS2 revelations were handled in The Defenders, I can still appreciate the little character nuggets they did throw out at us to better flesh out Karen’s headspace and motivations. I know the way it played out frustrated a lot of people – it frustrated me too. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that her stance on Matt as DD was not really that far outside the realm of believability. She’s not an idiot or a wet blanket or whatever negative descriptor you want to throw in here. She’s someone who has gone through a shit ton of trauma and wants to feel like she has some control over her life. She wants to be doing something that gives her purpose and fuels her passion (which she has found, through investigative journalism). And here’s the kicker: she wants to survive long enough to do these things. I know, I know, she still gets herself into some pretty crazy situations but I think to her, these situations are worth it if they can fix the things about her that are broken? If they can right the wrongs that lurk in her past, and if they can give her life a sense of meaning and purpose. I just really and truly don’t know what a relationship with Matt would offer her except all of the danger without any of the personal payoff. To constantly wonder about his health and safety and what her proximity to him does for her own chances of survival. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that their relationship only gains positive momentum when there’s nothing else is happening to fuck shit up. But the second any sort of outside stressor gets thrown into the situation, it might as well be like throwing a grenade into their personal growth. And the big reason for the constant imploding of progress always boils down to Matt and his secret identity. Which is such a salient reminder to me that when Karen fell for Matt, she didn’t know about Daredevil and thus was never afforded the choice in whether she wanted to be involved in Daredevil’s shenanigans. Honestly, it’s also not like she knew him long enough or well enough to have him consider her in that part of his life anyway. But this only highlights to me just how damaging these lies and omissions have been and how confusing they are to untangle after the fact, especially in light of all she’s been through personally. This is why I don’t really blame Karen for being wary and self-protective post-identity reveal and why I have to wonder about what positives this could hold for her as a character other than to check off the canon love interest box for Matt Murdock*.

* A point that is interesting to me when compared to someone like Claire, who while not a comics canon relationship, was still meant to fill in that love interest role in DDS1. People have complained about her not getting her fair share of exploration as Matt’s love interest (a complaint I certainly shared back in S1) but regardless, once Claire had the information she needed to evaluate Matt and what this potentially could mean for the two of them, I think she made the very healthy choice to nope the hell out of there.

Karen may be “better” for Matt…but is Matt “better” for Karen?

And what about Elektra?

At first blush, Elektra represents every violent, id-driven impulse Matt Murdock tries to hide from the world and only chooses to unleash when he dons the Daredevil costume. Her introduction to Matt’s world is of a woman who exists as unfettered passion, of caution thrown to the wind, no thinking – just doing. It’s not surprising that this sort of encouragement leads to stolen cars, breaking and entering, damage of property, and almost-murder. Fast forward ten years later, and it seems that not much has initially changed, that present day Elektra still embodies so much of the young woman who first gave him the taste of pleasure through pain, and conveniently presents as an avatar for Matt’s darkest desires, the one who validates Daredevil’s actions and very existence. The fact that she comes to Matt looking specifically for Daredevil’s help, and ropes him into a crime-centered mission whilst unintentionally undermining the work that he does as Matt Murdock, lawyer, makes it easier to put Elektra in the “wants DD, not Matt Murdock” column. Some would probably take it farther and argue that nothing about Elektra is worth redeeming and that her influence should be kept away from Matt at all costs.

As with almost everything about Elektra, it’s not that simple of course!

I think the first step is looking past the bullshit storyline Elektra got saddled with regarding the Hand and the more superficial backlash toward her character because she had the balls to not only represent but encourage the other equally valid part of Matt’s life as Daredevil (and this can’t be said enough, but Elektra deserves ZERO culpability for Matt’s inability to balance and prioritize his own shit). When you do you’ll find there are quite a few fascinating insights into her character that develop over the course of DDS2, which may not serve to make her relationship with Matt any more “normal” or “healthy” (both terms that are laughable when used in relation to Matt Murdock anyway), but do provide a really crucial prism through which to examine what they could be together.

In my opinion, the thinking that Elektra is good for DD and not Matt is short sighted. Yes, she is an incredibly skilled fighter and appears to have a higher level of respect for Matt’s activities as Daredevil than she does for Matt’s work in law. But is this actually true? We know that Elektra likes to conveniently play up the femme fatale role, throwing in a bit of the enabler / bad influence for good measure. We also know she views the world with much more disdain than Matthew, and has a less stringent moral compass than…well, almost everyone. But as this wonderful post by @xtltokio highlights, at the heart of it (and I’m focusing on DDS2 here) Elektra is actually one of the good guys. And I quote:

Elektra was fighting a war, a bloody, messy and complicated war. But most of all she was fighting for the right side. In addition to being raise to be a Assassin, a weapon, she was also a soldier in a war she believed in. She hated and was terrified of turning a weapon to The Hand.

As a valued soldier in the Chaste army, Elektra is literally all about taking out the bad guys (yes, by killing them), rooting out evil and dispensing justice against the Hand. She’s just quite a bit more pragmatic about it than Matt. And it’s funny – we all know and acknowledge that Stick is an obnoxious asshole but no one ever questions whether he’s on the right side of the war while he’s cutting down ninjas left and right, do they? But I digress. Now, the flashback sequence in TD 1x07 in particular does a lot to put some of Elektra’s actions from 10 years ago into further context, especially this quote from Stick: “[Not killing] doesn’t make him good, Ellie…it just makes him weak.” What is it that makes Elektra’s moral code so much worse than Matt’s? That she has no hesitation in dispatching people she perceives to be her enemies so that she can keep the people on her side of the war safe? Is her sin that she sometimes enjoys the thrill of the kill (honestly, I still find this assessment to be a little questionable). And what does that say about Matt, who has a strict moral code about not killing, but most certainly derives a certain level of pleasure and willingness to embrace a lack of self-restraint when it comes to violently injuring his opponents?

When it comes down to it, Matt and Elektra are two people cut from the same cloth, coming of age in the wake of trauma and violence, trained by Stick to harness their anger into something deeper and darker and we know one of the only reasons Matt didn’t descend down to the same darkness was because his training was cut short. So we have to realize this is some absolutely crucial context to judge her character by. When we do, we know that for as much as Elektra exhibited unhealthy, and yes, sometimes toxic behaviors in her early relationship with Matt (though it was also in service of a mission and not necessarily indicative of what she would have done on her own), we also know that Matt changed a core part of her being, or if you don’t think it went that far, can at least admit he planted a seed of change within her. And the fact that this inherent goodness within her has been brought up so many times in show canon that I honestly don’t believe it’s incidental. I really believe that even in the wake of The Defenders, making sense of that potential goodness will be a core part of Elektra’s story should she reappear again in the future. And it is within this potential for light that I find possibilities for a successful Daredevil and Elektra pairing, and even more so in one for Matt and Elektra.

It’s funny to me when people say Elektra loves Daredevil and not Matt Murdock because she fell in love with Matt Murdock before Daredevil ever existed. She was the first one to know and embrace the duality in him. She also knows that Daredevil isn’t a separate part of Matt – Daredevil is Matt. Admittedly, it took him longer to understand the duality within Elektra, but for all of his self-righteousness, he never lost his belief in her. Even with the lies, they have never been anything other than themselves with each other. The way they viewed the world, their personalities, their abilities, everything was out there for each other to see and explore. The biggest thing Elektra hid from Matt was her work with the Chaste and relationship with Stick yet even that is the kind of lie that ultimately Matt would 100% understand because of own his history and familiarity with Stick and his causes. And I don’t think this can be said enough, but does anyone remember when Elektra actually develops as a character over the course of DDS2? Like how by 2x08 she has genuinely accepted Matt’s desire for the light, no strings attached? She is GLAD that she didn’t snuff out his darkness? And when Matt asks her to leave, she DOES. She is willing to walk out of his life because he believes they are corrupting each other and as hurt as she must have been in that moment, she does exactly what he asks of her. And remember how she is willing to be convinced by Matt that she doesn’t have to be a weapon for the Hand, and she makes the choice to fight on his side? And how she is absolutely frustrated with his desire to save the Hand hostages because she rightfully identifies it as a trap, but she knows how he is and she helps him anyway. Even Father Lanthom directly rebuts Matt’s statements at the beginning of Defenders, when Matt questions whether Elektra would be disappointed in him for abandoning Daredevil. Because he’s clearly heard enough about Elektra from Matt’s many visits to be able to piece together an image of this mysterious, damaged woman that isn’t just the coldhearted monster people seem to think she is, but the feeling woman who actually cares about Matt’s desires and wellbeing that exists underneath. It’s odd that all of these things seem so casually discarded in favor of highlighting Elektra’s darker tendencies, huh?

If you ask me, there seems to be quite more going for Elektra than initially meets the eye. I fall back on this Elodie on Elektra quote a lot, but I think it sums it up so nicely:

They seem to be very different, but maybe deep down, they are quite similar and that’s where their bond comes from. She comes across as being the bad girl and he comes across as being the good guy, but maybe they’re both somewhere in the middle. Maybe Matthew isn’t that good and maybe Elektra isn’t that bad. They complete each other.

So it all boils down to a few key factors for me.

Let me preface this conclusion by saying that I honestly don’t think Daredevil’s story, at least if they continue to follow the blueprint set up by his very long and robust comics history, includes any sort of Happily Ever After. The closest thing he’s got to any sort of safe and stable relationship is with Foggy and I do think in the end, Foggy will (probably) be the one left standing. But the question is whether there’s any truth / logic / weight in the concept of Matt belongs with Karen and DD belongs with Elektra. And ultimately, I say: no. I believe that just as Karen and Elektra both deserve someone who can fully appreciate them for who they are, Matt also deserves someone who can appreciate him for who he is, for both sides. If you were able to break Matt into two halves, then sure, each of these women would probably be more appropriately matched with one half over the other. But Matt isn’t two people. Matt is one. So if I have to consider which person would actually work best with Matt as Matt Murdock and Matt as Daredevil, Elektra will have the edge for me.

I don’t doubt that they’ll take Matt and Karen back down that road in S3 but as someone who may not ever love this character, but can still respect the changes they’ve done with her, I just can’t see how this is going to work without making Matt into a completely different person, or sacrificing a lot of the strides they’ve made with Karen’s characterization. They’ve done such a stellar job giving Karen stories that allow her to stand on her own, even when she stumbles and makes mistakes and forces me to curse under my breath for the umpteenth time. And it’s not that I feel like she doesn’t deserve to also have romance and softness and love, it’s just that based on all of the things we know about her, I’m not sure Matt can ever give her what she needs, or vice versa. Time and time again, Matt had demonstrated that Karen just isn’t that high of a priority in his life – given the choice between Elektra and Karen, 9 out of 10, he’s going with Elektra. And the sad thing is that I’m pretty sure there was absolutely zero active intent to abandon and belittle Karen, but his actions and his words were always in character, and the message was crystal clear. Sure, there are ways that Matt can certainly be a better person and friend and boyfriend, but there will be limits to that growth because Matt Murdock still has to be Matt Murdock. As long as Daredevil exists and Matt lives his life on the edge of some unpredictable danger, I think that’s just going to be one edge too much for Karen Page. I don’t think they’ll ever be able to eliminate that fundamental disconnect between the sweet Matt and Karen they hypothetically want to be based on the fronts they put on for each other – the one that seems so nice and healthy and safe – and the one that is reality, the frustrating and messy and confusing one where you acknowledge that maybe although they’re two people who have enough in common to be good friends and care deeply for one another, but the future just isn’t there, much like how it ended with Matt and Claire.

Most Mattelektra shippers will be the first to confess that this is no model relationship. We know it’s not healthy. We know it’s messed up. These two clearly have a bond that seems to defy reason or logic and sometimes, even sanity. But even so, at its core, their emotional connection is still rooted in a foundation of unconditional love, understanding, and belief in one another. It’s the sort of thing that leads them to give more to each other than they’d ever been able to give to other people. And because they know each other just that well, and believe in one another to such a degree, they are willing to run headlong into danger and death for it. This bond hasn’t always been used in the best way, nor have they ever had the chance truly be their best within it (I would say that Elektra’s death in DDS2 cut that potential tragically short for now), but I do think this quality gives them a very unique potential to bring out more from each other and to eventually become the best possible people they could be, within the context of their existing flaws and shortcomings. I think it’s more realistic (within the world of the show) to see Matt change himself enough to be a better partner for Elektra without sacrificing the things that make him who he is. And in turn, I can see a similar trajectory for Elektra, where she can also figure herself out and find a purpose for her life with a freedom that she was never afforded before, but also have someone who is supporting her and encouraging her along the way (mostly) without judging her.

*goes back to see what the ask was about* SO YEAH. Does this answer your question? Who the hell even knows.

But now you get to read my very long thoughts and you (and anyone else) can feel free to tell me what you think…I’m even open to some respectful discourse and disagreement as long as it doesn’t devolve into trashing my ship. I know I’m not as emotionally invested in Karen’s journey so maybe my reading on her is off…if I am, I’d love to hear some other takes. I’m just glad I’m done writing this thing :D.

#mattelektra #matt murdock #elektra natchios #karen page #matt x karen #matt x elektra #marvel's daredevil #daredevil meta #thegunlady #asks #answers #meta #my thoughts #text #lots of text #p talks about stuff #like i said #i tried to be somewhat objective even though my bias is obvious and i know i wasn't entirely successful #open to respectful replies / discourse :)

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theconservativebrief · 6 years

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One of the perennial debates around global warming has to do with the role of individual choices. What responsibilities do individuals have to fight climate change? Are people who advocate for political action on climate change hypocrites if they drive to work, fly to climate conferences, or have three children?

A study, published in July 2017 (we first published this story around then), has pushed that debate back to the forefront and, perhaps inadvertently, demonstrated why it is so goofy.

The study, from researchers in Sweden and British Columbia, analyzes 148 separate individual actions available to citizens of the developed world and, drawing on 39 different sources, attempts to calculate their carbon impact. This pretty infographic is the result:

(Environmental Research Letters)

As you can see, your lightbulbs and laundry verge on meaningless, carbon-wise. The only “high-impact” actions are ditching your car, flying less, switching to a plant-based diet, and, the biggie, not having a child.

That last bit — refraining from procreating — has totally dominated discussion of the study. The implication that people in rich countries should consider not having any, or any additional, children has sparked the usual outrage and counter-outrage, but everyone seems to be missing the point.

It is precisely this finding that exposes the silliness of the individual-choices framing. There are three problems with it, each worse than the last.

The premise of the chart above is that your kids’ carbon emissions go on your ledger — if you have the kid, you’re responsible for the emissions.

But a moment’s thought reveals that such an accounting scheme is utterly impractical. If I’m responsible for all my kids’ carbon emissions, are my parents responsible for mine? If so, and we don’t want to double-count, then I’m only responsible for my kids’ emissions, so I guess I’m doing pretty well so far. (They’re 12 and 14.)

Or is it that my parents’ parents are responsible for their emissions and mine? If we want to account like that, then we can lay global warming at the feet of the postwar generation. They had too much sex and created too many dang baby boomers.

Point is, it’s a kind of category error to compare not having a kid to these other actions. Unlike the others, it is a counterfactual. It would be like saying the best way to eat less is to not have a kid — you will thereby have avoided eating an entire lifetime’s worth of food.

I guess if I take this seriously, even though I have two kids, I can balance my carbon ledger by not having a third or a fourth kid. Maybe I won’t have a fifth or sixth either. I won’t have 10 more kids. I’ve just avoided 600 tons of carbon. I’m a hero!

Anyway. There is no reasonable system of carbon accounting that attributes people’s emissions to their parents. There is a point to be made about the connection between population and emissions, but reducing it to the individual-choice frame only distorts and unnecessarily moralizes that point.

It is true that producing fewer people — i.e., bending the United Nations’ population projections downward — is a powerful strategy to reduce future carbon emissions. Paul Hawken’s new project Drawdown demonstrates that, drawing on peer-reviewed science.

But if you want to slow population growth, the way to do it is in the developing world, through family planning and educating girls. The developing world is full of women who have more children than they want to have, because they fear losing children to illness, their husbands force them to, or they need help with manual labor. Giving them greater control over their family size — by educating them and providing them with family planning services, especially contraception — is the fastest route to slowing population growth.

More generally, what reduces family size is wealth. Across the world and within the US, wealthier people choose to have fewer children. But that brings us to our third problem.

By averaging out the impact of a developed-world child into one single figure, the study obscures the single most salient fact about individual carbon emissions, namely that wealthy people produce way more. That’s true not only between countries but within them as well.

This 2015 study by Oxfam illustrates the importance of inequality to carbon emissions with two important graphics.

First, the global view, which reveals that the wealthiest 10 percent of the population produces almost 50 percent of “lifestyle consumption emissions.”

(Oxfam)

It is rarely stated this way, but it is true nonetheless: Climate change is primarily being driven by the behavior of the world’s wealthy.

The same disparity holds within countries, none more so than the US:

(Oxfam)

Striking, no? This shows that the top 10 percent of the wealthiest people in China emit less carbon per person than people on the bottom half of the US wealth distribution — again, inequality between countries — but it also shows that the top 10 percent wealthiest in the US emit more than five times as much CO2 per person as those on the lower half of the income scale.

So wealthy people in the US produce 10 times more per capita emissions than the wealthy in China. That is pretty mind-boggling.

The point here is that not all individual choices are created equal, because not all individuals are equally capable of having an impact. The choices of developed-world citizens matter more than the choices of (say) Chinese citizens, and the choices of wealthy developed-world citizens matter most of all.

The rich, in other words, are the ones that should be getting hassled about their choices. For most working schmoes, this kind of moralizing of lifestyle is as pointless as it is off-putting.

If you want to reduce your personal carbon emissions, godspeed. It’s not that big a mystery how to do it: Fly less, drive less, and eat less meat. (And choose not to have a kid if you like, though not having a kid for that particular reason strikes me as sad.)

But if some earnest Gen X climate activist cancels the family vacation to see the grandparents over carbon guilt, the Earth is not going to give a damn. What will matter is if a business executive decides to fly back and forth from New York to London once a week instead of twice, or once a month instead of weekly. And it will only matter if all the wealthy travelers make the same decision, consistently, over time.

The very ones whose choices matter most seem least inclined to cut back on consumption. I mean, maybe you could persuade the developed-world wealthy to voluntarily downsize their lifestyles, but … have you met the developed-world wealthy? That doesn’t sound like them.

The obvious and most direct approach to addressing the role of individual choices in climate change is to tax the consumptive choices of the wealthy. For now, and for the foreseeable future, carbon emissions rise with wealth. Redistributing wealth down the income scale, ceteris paribus, reduces lifestyle emissions.

Discussing the role of individual choices in climate change without discussing income inequality is a mug’s game. It smears the responsibility evenly over everyone, when the responsibility ought to be concentrated where the emissions are concentrated: among the wealthy. And the only way to get at the individual consumptive choices of the wealthy, in any meaningful way, is through policy.

So if you’re rich, quit flying so much. But if you’re not, the best thing you can do to reduce carbon emissions is to get involved in politics and policymaking. That’s the only frame for climate mitigation that makes sense.

To be clear — and to forestall some of the scolding that this post has made inevitable — I should say that individual choices are much more meaningful with regard to local/regional environmental problems. Every individual, by driving less, eating less meat, and producing less consumer waste, can help reduce local/regional air and water pollutants and improve local/regional ecosystems. Being frugal with resources is worthwhile regardless of climate change. Also, those choices are good for your health.

It’s not that lifestyles don’t matter. It’s that climate change is utterly different in spatial and temporal scale from other environmental problems, and it is only the wealthy whose consumptive choices produce emissions that are meaningful relative to that scale.

Climate change just doesn’t fit the old do-your-part frame very well. But that frame is venerable and perfectly robust without climate change. Not everything has to be about climate.

Original Source -> The best way to reduce your personal carbon emissions: don’t be rich

via The Conservative Brief

#IFTTT #The Conservative Brief

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zak-graphicarts · 6 years

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FMP: Evaluation

“A walk is the first thing to do. Learn all kinds, cause walks are about the toughest thing to do right. ”- Ken Harris, legendary animator

The brief, Under the Influence, asks us to discuss what we find interesting and inspiring as artists, and craft an independent project based off these lines of inquiry. Throughout these last two years, I’ve found my interest in Graphic Arts to be animation - a medium that allows us tell stories through whatever lens we want, rendering impossible worlds and breathing life into larger than life characters.

My project, Exquisite Walks, explores the potential of a walk cycle in animation - challenging myself to develop as an artist, and grow as an animator through exploring a range of animation techniques and processes. In animation, a walk helps define a character’s personality - but it’s also one of the first exercises in animation training, as outlined by legendary craftsmen like Richard Williams and Ken Harris, because it requires an understanding of physics, organic movement and acting.

With the FMP, we were to develop our own project that allows us to not only showcase our skills but challenge them. The main problems posed by this would be planning our time properly, and keeping the motivation and drive throughout the project. Finding and sustaining research was an initial challenge, but I made an effort to use primary sources as a way of sustaining ideas and inspiration throughout.

I wanted to tackle more introspective, meaningful questions to evidence a critical thinking on a higher level, and I’ve been able to discuss some of these more heavier topics on my blog. I’ve asked why I want to be a graphic artist, identifying my interests and how surrounding myself with these artistic influences drives me to create something of a high standard, and why I’m always working to develop on my work. I’ve been able to discuss animation as a context, and explore my own personal reasons for choosing the medium, and why it’s so unique, comparing it to other visual art forms. With a project that’s influenced by classic animators such as mine, I felt I needed to discuss the social and political implications of classic animation, addressing the very politically incorrect past of the medium, but more importantly, how the future is looking much brighter in this regard. This was to evidence a critical understanding of the medium at large, to step away from my work and consider those not in the same position as my peers and I; it’s given me a much more educated and critical view on the medium, considering perspectives and ideas other than my own.

Research has played an important role in the development of my ideas and practical experiments throughout my FMP, having had the opportunity to explore a range of sources. This began by visiting the Isle of Dogs exhibition as a way to look at stop motion animation, at an industry standard. It was here that I established my interest in the medium, and this sparked off a line of enquiry into my later stop motion developments and exploration into the claymation works of Aardman Studios.

My FMP is about exploring the potential of a walk cycle, but within that premise I’ve been able to explore a range of concepts and theories from exquisite corpse to the history of stop motion, the importance of drawing from life and discussed the wider context of animation. I feel that my research pool has been suitably diverse, with me picking from a range of books, websites, films and attending various exhibitions to explore a range of ideas, concepts and perspectives throughout. Most importantly, this project marks the first time I’ve conducted my own artist research, chatting with artists over email about their process, thoughts and getting feedback on my own work too.

Richard Williams has been the most influential to my project as a whole, I think - it’s his teachings in The Animator’s Survival Kit that fuelled my project concept. I’ve explored a range of styles and aesthetics over this FMP, from the loose, expressive and confident observational comics of Sam Elston to the iconic, cut out visual language of Saul Bass, but it’s these quotes that have underpinned my entire creative direction throughout the twelve weeks.

Finally, I think one of the most important research sources was my own short reel of walks. In the early stages of my project, I asked several of my peers to walk in-front of a camera in various ways, and from this reference I was able to draw from observation, sketching not only characters but identifying the actual mechanics of a walk cycle. Instead of copying from William’s reference, I was able to create my own key poses, through a digital rotoscoping process of drawing over each frame of film footage.

Through detailed blog posts, I have been able to present my research and analysis well. I’ve found that a blog is a brilliant way of presenting research, allowing for an in-depth discussion and reflection on concepts, theories and art that is able to evidence more of a critical perspective on the work I’m looking at in a visually pleasing manner.

My research interests and conceptual discussions have evolved and developed over the FMP - I think this is natural and almost necessary for a successful graphic arts project. It shouldn’t be a linear path - we should experiment, develop and grow as artists over the time frame and thus our project should do the same. I feel like I have worked efficiently through each week of the project, experimenting and refining practical outcomes from every session and pulling ideas from these responses and research to inspire new ones.

The diversity of my practical experimentation has been something I’ve put a focus on, exploring a variety of animation techniques and drawing mediums. The project began through stop motion cut out sequences, but since then I’ve explored traditional approaches to the medium, historical techniques such as the zoetrope and my practical experiments into stop motion, producing a puppet and several animations. Additionally to this, I’ve challenged myself to learn new digital processes, specifically Adobe Illustrator, Character Animator and After Effects. From this, I’ve gained and refined skills across a plethora of platforms and processes that will be extremely helpful as I develop as an animator in preparation for higher education.

As a process, building a stop motion puppet was a real challenge, sculpting the head and refining the piece took time and effort but it resulted in a successful outcome. In the learning stages, After Effects was very difficult to grasp, due to the technical concepts and basic mechanics of the software being completely different from everything I’ve used before, but arguably resulted in the most exciting pieces.

I feel like I’ve used my time well to develop a body of work, keeping to a pre-written time plan for the most part and staying on track throughout the entire twelve weeks. I’ve put a focus on organisation throughout this FMP, writing lists and daily plans via digital checklists and following on from the actions described in each blog post.

The strength of my creative decisions lies in the processes I was able to explore, challenging myself to work in 3D producing a stop motion puppet and learning new digital processes. The strength of my creative decisions lies in my understanding of what I’m good at, and what I’m passionate about. I think this plays a large role in the strengths of my FMP- the brief is designed around letting us take the wheel in terms of concept, research and practical work which allowed me to craft a graphic arts project that not only showcases my skills, but challenges myself to grow as an artist using processes and mediums I haven’t explored before.

I feel that my final sequence is a successful and exciting response to the ideas outlined in my project concept. My intention was to explore the potential of the traditional walk cycle in animation, and what this can communicate to the audience, creating my own exquisite corpse - a singular animated outcome with contrasting visual styles and characters. The reel is exactly that: a creative cocktail of animation techniques and styles, with a colourful cast of characters stepping into the next with smooth transitions.

I was able to establish a context successfully with my reel, through a combination of film and audio, producing a sequence that opens the piece showing animator Richard Williams at his desk, discussing the importance of a walk cycle in animation training. With this quick sequence, I’ve established the core concept of my project, and given the audience a clear reason as to why this project exists.

The choices I made when creating the final piece were effective, with the pieces I selected being a handful of my most successful outcomes, with an interesting performance, smooth animation and exciting character design. Whilst my experiments into stop motion were interesting, they didn’t fit within the reel I was assembling. My intention was to have it be purely a showcase of my greatest hits, and removing this sequence evidences my ability to consistently reconsider whilst I’m working: not being afraid of cutting work, in order to produce a final piece that’s up to a higher standard. In terms of presentation, I produced a final edit that successfully establishes a context for my project, and assembled a sequence that features exciting animation, distorted and dream-like audio and an imperfect, retro-inspired soundtrack resulting in an entertaining exquisite corpse.

To get an objective view on the success of my work, I asked a few of my peers for their opinions on my final reel, who mentioned how it’s an exciting demonstration of skill and a celebration of animation, learning the basics of the medium as described by industry professionals. They were able to get a context from my work, which was an important factor in the overall success of my project, to me. Tutor and peer discussion and comparison has been extremely influential to a critical understanding towards my final piece, and my project as a whole. I’ve been able to discuss with my tutor the successes of my project, and most importantly, how to improve and progress. Having a tutor with a history in the animation industry has allowed my work to have a more refined, polished finish thanks to an experience and knowledge that I wouldn’t have otherwise. Speaking with peers about my final piece allowed me to realise the appeal of my work, and fortunately, I’m in a class of students passionate in a range of graphic art specialisms, from graphic design, fashion, architecture and illustration meaning the feedback I’ve received is from a range of creative ideas and perspectives, allowing for more objective comments and criticism.

Whilst the work I’ve managed to produce in my final project is exciting and artistically challenging, there’s a few things that I would change had I more time. I’ve discussed how my project is based around a fundamental exercise in animation training, but I would have liked to use this premise to explore a wider theme and message. This is something that I mentioned on my blog, exploring how I could add a commercial application to my project through encouraging walking in young people. If I did have more time, I would have liked to explore this avenue in more depth, producing an advertisement using the same exquisite corpse technique, but possessing more of a linear narrative working on my ‘Get Walking” storyboard. Producing a promotional piece for a charity, or walking event would have allowed my work to have a greater value - possessing an actual real-world application and thus a place outside of this brief. Not only this, but challenging myself to explore a more diverse breadth of research interests would have given my project more of a critical perspective on graphic arts as a whole, rather than just focusing on animation.

Over my FMP, I’ve been able to explore the potential of a walk cycle in animation, using this premise as an opportunity to develop my skills across a plethora of animation techniques and drawing throughout. Most importantly, I’ve been able to challenge myself to learn and grow as an artist, building a stop motion puppet and learning new intensive digital processes that result in a refined, polished final piece. With all the ideas and concepts I’ve explored over this FMP, it was a challenge to juggle them all, but I feel like I’ve produced a final sequence which is not only a successful response to my initial project concept, but also an exciting body of work showcasing my skills in animation, reflecting the progress I’ve made during these brilliant last two years on the course.

Ext. Graphic Arts Class of 2016-18!

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nofomoartworld · 7 years

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Bad at Sports Sunday Comics with Matthew Thurber

By Max Morris

I was first made aware of Matt Thurber’s work when the first issue of 1-800-MICE showed up at Quimby’s bookstore in Chicago. The style of screwball antics conflated with surrealist political drama (one plot point features an immortal bluegrass-star vampire streaking through space, and his apocalyptic approach toward the earth) was of immediate interest, and I recall being surprised that the heady brew of strange plot devices actually moved toward a climax. Today we present some selection from Art Comic, Thurber’s ongoing serial, and I was pleased get a chance to ask him a few questions on his work.

Max Morris: Back in 2014, you wrote this article for The Comics Journal Website , “Letter to a Young Cartoonist”, that stirred some controversy at the time. A bulk of the article dealt with the ramifications of posting comics work on Tumblr and Social Media, among other issues of challengers to the new generation of comics artists. This was in a time when that felt like the primary way to see new work being made by current creators. A little under 3 years after you posted that article, a lot has changed. Looking back at this article, what words do you have to say to the young cartoonist today?

Matthew Thurber: I feel more than ever that printed media contains autonomous power that is almost magical. All internet publication is embedded in and framed by another corporation. With print, as soon as it flies off the press it belongs, like the land, to “you and me”. The disturbing thing about social media is they change the terms of publication from one of total freedom, to one where you are being allowed to express yourself. Because they grant it… they can take it away. Social media echo chambers are destructive: look at what they have helped to do in terms of ripping our country in half, replacing everything with a simulation of reality. Is that what you mean by “a lot is changed”? We’re opting into 1984 because it feels good. It’s so seductive to feel like you’ve done something in pseudo-reality. We need to learn to live without the internet, to distribute artifacts in physical space, to know how to talk to each other again. It is so much more meaningful and beautiful. And guess what??? I’m part of the problem because I’m on INSTAGRAM (@mtshelves)! What a miserable hypocritical worm!!!! And the worst part is….I LOVE it! I love the ego pampering attention and the immediacy despite my complete conviction that it sucks!

MM: In your current ongoing serial Art Comic (which we are previewing in this article) you satirize High Art and all of its follies- your earlier work 1-800-MICE and Infomaniacs could be seen a parody of culture at large, but Art Comic seems to have a specific focus on the world of fine arts- what inspired this move?

MT: I didn’t know what I wanted to say exactly at first. It’s taking shape. I’m interested in how the art world functions as an industry steered by wealth and not by philosophy or ideas, despite the mythology that it is an idealistic pursuit, and how no one talks about the meaning of money in art or how that is never seen as the subject matter or part of the content of art. You’re just supposed to go to these gallery shows and ignore the context. The myths are stronger than the reality.

People wouldn’t go to art school otherwise the definition of art as wealth dovetails with the acceptance of craft as being obsolete, or in an outsourcing of craft or technique to make objects for the artist-manager-boss. Technical skill is replaced by verbal or conceptual dexterity, or of a performance of self, or just by the existence of celebrity. So that, and what the role of schools are in this, and what the role of narrative art and illustration is in all this. And how changes in the art scene reflect the overall development and gentrification of New York, since I moved here in 1996.

So Cooper Union gave up on its mission of providing free tuition in 2014 and I started to make a story based on my own experiences mixed with these absurd paranoid premises. Like that there was actually a conspiracy of artists to repress their students and that Matthew Barney’s Cremaster was taken away from him and became a symbolic representation of a real estate transaction.

Additionally to working as a cartoonist, you have worked as a multimedia artist in theater, performance, and other mediums. Do you feel that affects your work as a cartoonist, and vice-versa?

Yes… in a way it’s all the same energy. Increasingly it seems impossible to think of just doing comics. I’m dying to make an animated film- I just have to get this comic done first. I like to experiment and learning different techniques is part of my process, I guess, maybe even more important than the subject in a way.

I just worked with a group of 8 volunteer non-professional actors, and such, to perform what was basically a dance piece called “Terpinwoe”. We had one rehearsal and that was it, and the performance was great. The theater stuff started as an idea to do a puppet show called Mrs. William Horsley. But the idea of puppetry evolved into a general idea of ‘modeled experience’. Now Mrs. William Horsley has turned into a human puppet show, with actors. It’s more fun than being in any band!

But I think for me, the narrative impulse is behind everything. It’s always a kind of illustration of a story or something resembling a story. The idea of depiction. I would love to make comics that were more abstract, like dance pieces, maybe that’s what Yokoyama does, or Milt Gross. And after something happens like this theater piece I ricochet back into wanting to read and draw quietly and maybe that’s good. But I don’t know why more “Artists” don’t work in comics and why cartoonists get so settled into their medium. I think that is changing a lot actually. Any form is for any artist. I believe in “Amateur Enthusiasm”.

Much of your work utilizes psychedelia, visionary imagery, and absurdity- you also seem to enjoy intertwining plots and complex character development. When structuring a narrative, how do you consider resolving these two seemingly opposing themes?

I don’t know if I consider these tendencies resolved and that’s OK. That’s why novels exist, to embrace contradictions. I like very unexplained and strong imagery, like in dreams. Also, I like beautiful and complicated structures and plots. My favorite artworks are when you get both at once, like how “Mulholland Drive” messed with the logical side of your brain, but through the use of really subconscious imagery. Or Harry Stephen Keeler, whose crime stories are logical to the point where it makes no sense at all. Or Daniel Pinkwater, who somehow balances absurdity and very warm and human characters, or Raymond Roussel whose writing is all an attempt to make connections with the totally random subconscious imagery generated by word-play.

I worry about my characters not having any psychological depth. I wonder about emotional manipulation to get across my ideas. Is it even ethical? Elaine May is good at it- see “A New Leaf”. But if you try to do that it usually looks disgusting in the way that Hollywood movies make you want to vomit with their stupid emotional manipulation. I love ridiculous melodrama, or silent films where stuff just happens and humans are reduced to sacks of flour to be thrown around.

I guess that I think making a graphic novel is one way of keeping many unresolved, inconsistent elements together in suspension as in a soup where there are chunks of this and that floating in different shapes and sizes.

To order Art Comic, head to http://ift.tt/1UbRQOz. You can also find Matthew’s site at http://ift.tt/WuN0Vf.

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