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jolyne-jolyne-jolyne · 3 years

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The Impact Of Jotaro’s Neglect On Jolyne’s Character

When I first read Stone Ocean, I felt that Jolyne's hate toward Jotaro was a bit extreme and unjust. At 14, she stole his car and went joyriding just to get his attention. She also whined and complained about how terrible of a dad he is in the middle of their fight against Johngalli A. I think many readers didn't like her in the beginning because of her spoiled attitude. Upon rereading though, my feelings have become a bit more mixed.

In the first chapter, she told her lawyer that when she was six, she had a 42 degrees Celcius fever and her dad couldn't be bothered to come home and see her. If you live in the US like me, you're not familiar with the metric system. I googled it and it turns out 42 degrees Celsius is a whopping 107.2 degrees Fahrenheit. Anything above 105 F is dangerous already, but once you hit 108 F, you could very well die. So, with her 107.2 F fever, little Jolyne was literally on the verge of death.

A fever doesn't sound all that deadly when it comes to mind, but have you ever had one before? I haven't in years, but I remember it being awful on so many levels. Your entire body feels hot and cold, and you're sweating and shivering at the same time. Your head is pounding, and just mustering up the energy to even move it takes a lot out of you. Opening your eyes burns for some reason. And that's a fever that's below 42 C/107.2 F.

Imagine being six-year-old Jolyne. I like to think that Jotaro was a good father and husband when Jolyne was younger but then maybe a stand user attacked them or he realized Dio's followers were still out there and watching him, so he decided it was best for his family if he didn't bring those stand users to them. Further, he didn't want to let on to how much he cares for them, as they could be used against him. Out of the blue, with no explanation, Jolyne suddenly lost her father's love. She still remembered a Jotaro who used to spoil her and play with her (all those Dadtaro and Smolyne memes) and now he suddenly wasn't home all the time anymore. She probably tried different tricks, small things, to get his attention and reassure herself that he indeed does still loves her and is just caught up with work or something important. Maybe her small efforts worked and maybe sometimes they didn't.

Then the fever happens.

This is it. Little Jolyne is in critical condition, probably in some hospital, hooked to some tubes and fluids working toward stabilizing her sickness and fighting it off. No one tells her that she's dying, but she could very well guess it on her own since she's on a hospital bed. Her mom is most definitely there for her, maybe stroking her hair or holding her hand while keeping her own sobs and tears at bay in order to stay strong for her. Right now, this is what little Jolyne needs, her loved ones by her side when she needs them the most. She probably hasn't ever loved her mom more than she has right now. But it isn't enough. One hand is tightly gripped by her mom, yes, but the other is left empty, trying to grasp for that sturdy reassurance her dad is supposed to provide for her. She doesn't care whether or not he no longer plays with her; she just wants him to be there. Now it the chance to once and for all put her doubts to rest.

Where is daddy? she asks.

Her mom puts on a fake smile and assures her that he's coming, just a little late. What else is she supposed to do? Tell her daughter that he's too busy to come right now? Jolyne believes her for a bit, but like the impatient kid she is, keeps asking when he'll come. Again and again, her mom makes excuses, but it comes to a point where Jolyne realizes he's not coming. As to why that is, she doesn't know. Her heart breaks when she realizes that she might not get to see him one last time before she closes her eyes again. She innocently wonders if something bad has happened to him, and her mom makes up a new kind of lie to not break her spirit. She survives through the fever, but her heart is tattered with deep disappointment.

Later down the line, years maybe, she learns the truth that her dad just chose not to come and see her when she needed him. At this point, Jotaro's already long been a pretty absent father and negative feelings have been culminating within her. She still had good memories with him from her early childhood so she stayed optimistic. But hearing this shakes her world. She's probably at that age where kids are figuring out who they are. Finding this out makes her question whether the reason her dad keeps leaving her is that he no longer loves her. Why? Is there something wrong with her? What did she do for him to suddenly hate her?

And then the divorce happens.

It's like a nail in the coffin. We know why he did it, but in her head, it frees Jotaro of all responsibility aside from child support and cements the notion that he wants to rid her and her mom from his life. Jolyne can't and won't accept it, so she pulls a bunch of stunts to get a reaction out of him. Even if he comes to shout at her or lecture her, it's still better than complete neglect and at least shows that he cares, right? However, by now, Jotaro has already steeled himself to distance himself from his family to give them a better life. Whether or not it was right of him to do so is irrelevant. The fact is, his actions start to push Jolyne over the edge. If he were always like this from the very beginning (like Giorno's mom), maybe she wouldn't have cared about him at all. But she can't forget those days where he cared for her and miracles happened when he was around (Star Platinum's stand magic). Having her mom alone just isn't enough. She wants her dad, whom she still loves and who's so strong (and could literally beat up all other dads) too.

There will come a point where she stops trying to figure out why he doesn't love her and just thinks maybe the problem isn't with her but instead lies with him. Maybe she talks about him to her pre-prison gang friends, like that biker gang, and they tell her that she's perfectly in the right. They encourage her rebellion and egg her on to do wrong in order to defy him. These petty crimes build up on her record and blacken her reputation. Jotaro's enemies take advantage of that to finally make a move and frame her in order to lure Jotaro over. And thus, Stone Ocean and Jolyne's journey as a Jojo begin.

She might look whiny and be taking her hatred for Jotaro a bit far at times, but if the above speculations are actually correct, his love for her and what he thinks of her mattered so much to her that it literally shaped and defines her character.

All things said, Stone Ocean might not be the best part or most people's favorite, but I love that Araki actually took the time to flesh out Jolyne and even Jotaro here. When this gets animated, I hope DP will maybe give us some childhood flashbacks to get a much better understanding of this aspect of her earlier on.

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