#while she has bodily autonomy | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

queerfables · 5 months

Text

'Wilson' as an episode fucking slaps. I'm obsessed with Wilson's complete lack of boundaries and I'm obsessed with the way he acts out to express resentment while still being completely incapable of saying no. He gave a patient part of his liver!! The man is in no way hinged.

For all the emphasis that gets placed on Wilson's failed marriages and infidelity, we don't ever actually see it directly on screen. This is a narrative choice I love, for the record. We see Wilson's relationships through House's eyes and it allows us to understand Wilson as a deeply flawed person without ever making him unlikable, because Wilson's flaws and contradictions are what make him irresistible to House. It's so effective, the way these failed relationships say so much about Wilson's character while being constructed largely out of inference.

In this episode, though, we watch his inability to self advocate play out in real time, and I guarantee that this is what every one of his relationship meltdowns looked like from the inside. On some deep fundamental level, James Wilson doesn't believe "I don't want to" is a valid reason not to do something. You know the fantasy trope of an obedience curse, where the victim is inescapably compelled to obey other people's requests? Wilson casts that spell on his own damn self, and he'll hold true to it even to the point of violating his own bodily autonomy. When you lack boundaries like that, it becomes almost impossible to even know what you truly want, let alone to act on it. So Wilson says yes and yes and yes until it breaks him, and then he still can't say no.

When saying yes feels like surrendering to torture and saying no feels like committing murder, the only option left is escape. So Wilson goes out drinking to trash the liver he's going to donate. He gets dinner with the pretty nurse instead of going home to his wife. All of it is him scrabbling at the bars of his cage. And the irony is that the cage is unlocked, he just has to walk through the open door, and that's the last thing he could ever bring himself to do.

I'm pretty sure that when he went to Cuddy and told her his plan to donate, he wanted her to say no. She almost did! And I think she should have, because her first impulse was right, it is insane. Unfortunately this is the Insane Lack of Boundaries Hospital, and she can't actually be expected to guess when her employee's mouth is saying yes but his eyes are saying dear god no. By the rules of universe that House MD operates within, this doesn't even break a 7 on the "unhinged measures to save a patient" scale, and Wilson invoked the power of friendship. What was she supposed to do?

And through all of this, House is the person Wilson lashes out at. I love, love, love that House is the person Wilson lashes out at. Wilson can't even admit to himself that he's angry about the position he's in. How can he be angry when he's the reason the patient needs a new liver? But House sees right to the heart of everything going on with him, and he says all the things Wilson wants to be true and can't afford to believe. Because if he lets himself believe this wasn't his fault then he might not be able to say yes. And he's going to say yes. And he hates that he's going to say yes. And he hates that House knows he's going to say yes.

So he gets angry with House, because it's safe to get angry with House. He lashes out, because with House, he can. He tells House he's wrong about him, and demands House move out, and that's not at all what he really wants but he feels helpless and coerced and he desperately needs to exercise some kind of control over his own life. The fact that he can let go like this with House is in part about knowing House isn't ever going to leave him - the closeness of their relationship is always defined by what Wilson wants, House has never once pushed Wilson away and fights to reconcile when Wilson wants distance. But it's also about knowing that he can't hurt House by setting boundaries with him. Mostly this is because House will walk right over any boundaries he considers unacceptable, but in fairness, the fact that House is kind of a terrible person is part of his appeal. If Wilson had issues around other people violating his stated wishes, House would be the last person in the world that he should have anything to do with. But Wilson's issues lie in the fear that not being compulsively available and accommodating to everyone around him might permanently fuck up the life of someone he loves. House's fucked up life is never going to be Wilson's fault and even if it was House would still kind of deserve it, so Wilson's anxious people pleasing compulsion can chill the fuck out for five minutes at a time.

I don't want to idealise, there are times in their relationship when Wilson absolutely makes fucked up sacrifices for House. I don't think it's the case that he earnestly wanted to every time. But it's also true that House brings out authenticity in Wilson that few other people manage to. House knows him. House allows him to give in to his selfish impulses without guilt and consequences, and for all the people who love the best in him, House knows and loves his worst. While Wilson is caught up in trying to bend himself into whatever shape someone else needs him to be, what House wants more than anything is the truth. For Wilson, who is so out of touch with his own desires, being an object of fascination to someone obsessed with drives and motivations must be a rush. And if we accept the throughline of this episode, it might just be the case that House's boundary pushing and obsession is something Wilson needs.

#house md #fable talks

640 notes · View notes

achaotichuman · 1 month

Text

Acotar Rant

So I had to reread the scene that Rhysand threatens Nesta's life to write a oneshot and I am fucking disgusted.

For starters Cassian spends the majority of the previous page cursing himself for not violating Nesta's privacy by barging into her bathroom because if he had he would have been able to keep her locked in the House and not allowed her to go down the ten thousand steps to the River House, which is the only way out of the House and the thing that Pro IC people say is the reason she was not 'locked up'.

So already, he was mentally taking away her ability to leave. Quite literally wishing he had actually imprisoned her.

The next thing which stood out, was when Cassian went to the River House. He found Feyre GIVING RHYSAND A REPORT.

Instead of, I don't know, telling him he shouldn't have fucking hidden the fact she could have fucking died. She was sitting before his desk, like a lackey, giving a fucking report on what happened. A. Formal. Report. About the fact that she was informed that she was going to fucking die.

It is fucking disgusting. Rhysand made her give a report. She gave a fucking report to her husband AS IF SHE IS LOWER

I don't know what idiots are still pretending Feyre has any kind of bodily autonomy in the Night Court, but she has none at all. She gives a report. A report that she was told what was going to happen to her. She gave this report while sitting before Rhysand's desk like an employee.

It is awful. It is poorly written. Feyre has no choice. No autonomy. She is a toy to be fucked, bred and shown off. She is everything she never wanted to be. And it is disgusting.

#acotar #anti rhysand #anti feysand #anti cassian #anti acosf #rhysand acotar #feyre archeron #pro feyre archeron #nesta archeron #pro nesta archeron #anti everything that happened in silver flames #anti baby plot

191 notes · View notes

neversetyoufree · 14 days

Text

I've been thinking lately about Vanitas and Noé's first "what is salvation" fight at the bal masqué and what it means about their individual definitions of the concept, and I've realized something about Vanitas.

Noé's definition of salvation is the obvious one. It feels natural. To save someone is to keep them from dying. But in a way, his understanding of salvation is also almost selfish. Noé's foundational trauma is the constant loss of his loved ones. He is the eternal sole survivor. So of course he wants to keep people alive—he wants to "save" the people he cares about in the way that keeps them by his side this time.

It's not wrong to want that, of course. I don't mean "selfish" as a condemnation. It's just that the definition of salvation that Noé starts the series with is inarguably the one that best serves his own happiness.

And it's the same with Vanitas.

When Vanitas kills the little girl Catherine by restoring her true name, he tells Noé he doesn't know what salvation is. He might be lying there, or he might be telling the truth in that he's never put his definition of salvation into words or acknowledged it on a conscious level. Either way, though, I do think he has a definition of salvation somewhere in his mind, and it's a very personal one.

Vanitas sees salvation as the preservation or restoration of one's true self. You're saved so long as you can preserve your essential self, uncorrupted by outside forces. Even if the price of that selfness is death.

While Noé's foundational trauma that informs his worldview is the loss of his loved ones, one of Vanitas's foundational traumas is the loss of his bodily autonomy. Through Moreau's experiments and Luna's mark/bite, he has been transformed into something no longer fully human, and he hates it. From the moment Luna told him he was dying, he said he wanted to die as himself rather than live as their kin, and he has been denied that opportunity.

Nothing is more important for Vanitas than being able to dictate the destiny of his own body, and malnomen are the ultimate corruption of bodily autonomy and selfness. Altering one's true name warps not only their physical body, but their very being on a metaphysical level. The curse takes everything a vampire is and changes it, and doing that to an unwilling victim is the ultimate horror for Vanitas.

Given that context, of course Vanitas thinks that killing a child to restore her true name counts as saving her. He's restoring her essential self and un-corrupting her body and being, and even if her self is only returned for an instant before she dies, it's preferable to living on as something warped by an outside force.

Vanitas absolutely starts the series with a definition of salvation, and like Noé, it's the one that best serves his own happiness. He wants to be saved. He wants to be returned to his human self, and failing that (since he knows it's impossible), he wants to wipe out all traces of the force that changed him and then die without going any further down the path of inhumanity.

Vanitas might not be able to admit that definition out loud (or even to himself directly), but it's there, and it guides him early in the series as much as Noé's own definition of salvation guides him in turn.

#and perhaps noé will learn to see death as a form of salvation when life is corruption #and perhaps vanitas will learn to see the value of preserving (his own) life #and perhaps they'll both find a definition of salvation that is neither of these things 👀#but that's not the point of this post #anyway this is one of those concepts that I've been orbiting around and maybe gestured toward before #but I don't think I ever quite put it in words or thought about this connection so directly #so here we are #vnc #vanitas no carte #the case study of vanitas #vanitas #vanitas my beloved #english major hours

184 notes · View notes

squgs · 8 months

Text

The general assumption around Criston and Alicent's relationship is that it's some toxic, unhealthy thing that they both settle for because they have no one else to turn to. This is an interesting reading of them, but based on the few scenes of them together that we have they seem to be the healthiest partnership in the show.

Of all the partnerships between men and women, Criston and Alicent's is the only one with a genuine balance of power. In every other pairing the man is in control and does not allow their woman to make decisions for the pair or for herself. We see Corlys ignore Rhaenys's input and wish's about betrothing Laenor and Rhaenyra and about disinheriting Baela and we can assume from her discomfort that she rose similar ignored objections about pushing Viserys to marry Laena. We see Viserys abuse both his wives and ignore their wishes for bodily autonomy. We see Daemon murder one wife, ignore the wishes of another and then belittle and assault his third wife until she complies with his wishes.

In sharp contrast to those dynamics, Alicent is clearly the one in charge in her relationship with Criston. However Alicent is not overbearing and controlling with Criston. On driftmark he is able to tell her no. He decides what he is willing to do for her and seemingly does not fear any retaliation for his decisions. The exact reasoning behind Criston's decision not to try to take Luke's eye are up for interpretation, but we don't really see any other partnership on the show where the subservient party's refusal is respected.

The only maybe comparable relationship is Rhaenyra's relationship with Laenor and Harwin. We see so little of the three of them that its hard to draw conclusions, but Rhaenyra does seem to be in charge. However she's clearly frustrated with Laenor's failures as a husband and is unable to get him to perform his duties. It's fairly clear that the planned partnership they had in episode 5 has failed, to the point that Rhaenyra gets rid of him in episode 7. Alicent and Criston's partnership on the other hand seems to be going strong after over 15 years.

There are a variety of ways that people say that the Alicent Criston dynamic is toxic. The most common is the view that Criston holds Alicent on a pedestal and doesn't actually know or see the real her only an idolized view of the Madonna in contrast to Rhaenyra the whore. I don't think that reading fits with what we see of their interactions. Criston is unflinchingly at Alicent's side in her ugliest moments. Alicent is willing to rant about Rhaenyra's bastards to him, showing her neuroticism and anxiety and anger. She shows no fear of being judged for what she says and I think we're meant to assume such venting sessions are a common occurrence for them. Alicent's behavior in that scene does not in anyway resemble an idolized divine image of the mother and yet Criston is not at all surprised or resentful or disturbed, in fact he's comfortable enough with Alicent being like that that he gets similarly petty (and misogynistic). Again on driftmark Criston sees Alicent at her lowest, most human and angry. While he is unwilling or unable to take Luke's eye he rushes to her side the moment she goes to attack Rhaenyra. Again this is Alicent at her least stereotypically motherly, least divine, most violent and angry and we don't see Criston be bothered by her not fitting into the image of her that he's created. The idea of Alicent needing to play the role of divine mother to maintain support is very interesting, but it doesn't really fit with her behavior around Criston. Playing that part is extremely difficult, it's literally an impossible standard that women are held to, and it takes constant effort. If Alicent was doing that with Criston we would see that effort and her fear at the moments when her facade slips, but instead we see Alicent trusting Criston with her most vulnerable and human moments.

Another way people say Alicent and Criston are toxic is to say that Alicent is afraid of Criston and only keeping him around because she can weaponize his hatred of Rhaenyra and point it at her enemies. Their is certainly some truth to Criston having a violent streak that he struggles to control. However in episode 9 it is very clear that Alicent doesn't need to fear him or manipulate him, and that his loyalty to her has nothing to do with hating Rhaenyra. Criston shows his loyalty two notable times in the episode. The first is after he kills Beesbury (which to be clear was bad. Murder is wrong), when Westerling and Criston are facing off. Alicent tells him to lower his sword and he does so. When one of the only comparably skilled swordsmen in the world has his blade at Criston's throat and Alicent tells him to lower his sword he does so without question. He unflinchingly trusts Alicent's judgement with his life. There is every possibility that Westerling will just kill him there, but he doesn't hesitate or complain or do anything but obey his queen, trusting her attempt to deescalate the situation. The second time is when Alicent asks Criston to find Aegon for her. Criston was at the council meeting, and since he's not an idiot he understands that the stakes of the search for Aegon is Rhaenyra's life. He is actively choosing to do something that he knows will save Rhaenyra's life because Alicent asks him to. That completely destroys the idea that his loyalty and relationship to Alicent has anything to do with hating Rhaenyra. In fact if he was motivated by hatred of Rhaenyra he would be the obvious choice to lead the assassination trip to dragonstone. Otto would obviously know that, but he still thought he had a better chance asking Westerling who has been protecting Rhaenyra since she was a child than he did asking Criston.

(Side note: the whole idea of Otto asking a knight who is loyal to Rhaenyra to do an assassin's job is absolutely ridiculous. Given that Otto is competent at his job and has known this would be happening he should absolutely have actual assassins lined up to do what they're best at. However I'm ignoring that for this analysis to view the episode as written.)

A final way that people say Alicent and Criston is toxic is that they enable each other with the delusion that they are good people because they follow the rules of society. While I do think that they enable each other in some ways. It's not that they let each other pretend that they're good people, they let each other be good people, by being good to each other. Alicent protects someone she barely knows, in a way that is actively detrimental to her political goals, simply because Criston does not deserve to be scandalized, have his family's name ruined and then be tortured to death. Criston serves an honorable queen, being a father to her children and respecting her when seemingly no one else does. The lie that they enable isn't that they're good, it's that being good means anything. They can convince each other that 'in the end honor and decency will prevail' even when they are each others only evidence of that fact.

Now with all that said, I'm not arguing that Alicent and Criston's relationship should only be viewed as wholesome and healthy and lovely (though it can be). They are both traumatized as fuck and are products of their terrible society that they can't escape, and may not even understand well enough to want to escape. There is so much stuff to dig into without resorting to a simplistic terrible version of their relationship, especially when thinking about them attempting to have a romantic or sexual relationship.

So yeah people should view alicole as more than just terrible Alicent's punishment for not defeating the patriarchy and being liberated like Rhaenyra.

#alicent hightower #criston cole #alicole #platonic or romantic #hotd

486 notes · View notes

lost-in-beacon-hills · 5 months

Text

I think at this point everyone has different opinions on each of the Districts and honestly I love that. It's so fun to read people's thoughts.

(I'm sure I'm not the first person to think or say this but) I have a theory on why District One/Two win so many of the games beyond just being Volunteers in a game full of people going in blind.

It's something I've thought heavily about and even incorporated into my own fanfics.

But District One, I think, they win by raising their volunteers to be pretty. They train them to fight, yes, but I think they pull sponsors by making their kids "sexy." In both the book and movie, Glimmer is heavily sexualized. In the book, she's in a sheer gown that shows everything. In the movie, they tone it down but still show quite a bit of her body during the interview. Even the two victors we get to hear a little more about (Cashmere and Gloss) are mentioned to be pretty. Despite being a sibling duo, they're incredibly popular within the Capitol.

But even after they get 'popular' they don't turn down their attractiveness. She still dresses pretty with make up and smiles like she's been taught to do. He's still beefy and hot. You would think if they had any bodily autonomy they would start to tone themselves down in order to get away from the sex slavery.

I think sex appeal is what makes them a victor. Literally. People 'sponsor' them in the hopes of getting to fuck them. They get told that these people are who they're indebted to and most likely are forced into sex as a way to 'repay' them. Everyone says if Glimmer had won she would become the next Cashmere. Which is true. But no one points out how this is planned and a tactic that one consistently uses. Once they win they realize how fucked they are. They don't know they shouldn't want to win until it's over. It's too late to back out. Part of why Cashmeres life is devastating is because Gloss knew what was coming and he wanted better for her. But it happened away. And now they're stuck repaying the Capitol with their bodies.

In Two I think they raise fighters. They put all their effort into skill, endurance and survival. Out of all of the districts I think they do the best at giving them a chance. They make sure they send the best trained, the most skilled and the smartest. Clove is such a good example of this. She never missed her target. (Except for when Katniss moved the backpack making her miss). She was brilliant. Cato too. He was strong and a fantastic fighter. They only lost because the story demanded Katniss win. Hell there's so many moments where Katniss almost dies at their hands only to **magically** get away. (Thresh owing her, tracker jacker nest, not seeing her a few feet away) all of it. They weren't stupid meat heads. They were warriors. Children raised to kill.

I think they delbrately send plain victors. They don't want want to send "pretty" kids. They tone down any sort of beauty their tributes have. One of my favorite examples is Enobaria. She's pretty. And I think that's her downfall. It's mentioned in the series that she wins by ripping another tributes throat out with her teeth. (A popular theory is she was raped and used the very last thing she had in order to get away.) But she ends up getting her teeth filed down. While a lot of people think it was the Capitol, I believe it was her mentors. They filed them down, knowing she wouldn't be able to be raped again. I mean, who would have sex with her knowing one wrong move and you could be dead? She can bite your dick off in seconds if she wanted to. (Not to say she doesn't get booked) It would sway a lot of people away. I think much like Haymitch fighting against Katniss's breast implants, her mentors fought to get her teeth sharpened.

If they're able to I believe Two will alter the victors in order to make them less desirable. One plays it up, Two tones it down winning off skill and merit alone. Any sponsors they get isn't driven by sex.

It's why they win so much, and why the other districts have such a hard time getting sponsors.

I also think that District Four, the last of the career pack, has it's own way of creating victors. They send tributes like the rest but I think they do something different from the rest. My own headcanon is that they send orphans. It's fucked up but if I remember correctly they never mention Finnick having family.

I think they take the kids with nowhere else to go and put them in a training center. Whoever scores the best goes that year. Unluckily for Finnick, he was picked at 14. He was attractive, and part of me thinks Mags played into that to give him the advantage, thinking he didn't have family to leverage. It would have been fine, but then Annie happened. They use her as a control tactic.

I also think Finnick is the reason it was a one and done on leaning into the sex appeal. It fucked him over. Annie was pretty too but she wasn't used. (No one has ever said ah yes she's crazy let's just not rape her, fuckwads do it anyways.) But I think Mags learned from her mistake and played Annie down. Made her less pretty like they do in Two.

It's fucked. The entire system is fucked. But I think each 'career' district creates winners any way they can. No one in Four would volunteer they're disillusioned unlike one and two. So why not send the kids who have nothing, no one to come back to? In Two why not train them and maim them after to keep them safer? In One why not make them fuckable to win? They won't understand until its too late?

Maybe I've overthought this. Probably have. Idk. Just a thought.

325 notes · View notes

neil-gaiman · 2 years

Note

Dear Neil.

There's a tragedy happening in Iran, we're being shot in the streets, my brothers and sisters are dying, my government is committing war crimes and as a fellow human being I'm desperately asking for your help to raise awareness.

Mahsa Amini was a 22-year-old woman who was brutally murdered by the Islamic Republic of Iran's so-called "morality police." Her crime? Showing hair in public and "dressing inappropriately." Any human being with a pair of working eyes who has seen pictures of her prior to her murder can see that not only was her dress not inappropriate, but also that she (and a lot of women in Iran) had covered herself more than any other woman in any other part of world is obligated to.This sparked fury among the people of Iran and a wave of nation-wide protests broke out as the result. But don't get it wrong. This was only the straw that broke the camel's back and was the result of 43 years of unmitigated oppression and cruelty that the people of Iran have been subjected to. Every Iranian is branded a Muslim from birth and they're not given a choice. You cannot identify as an atheist and other religious minorities are treated horribly with a lot of their rights stripped from them. There's been a long history of cruelty against Bahai people in Iran, for example. We're not forced to be muslims in name only. We're also forced to act like muslims and learn all the muslim teachings, hijab being one of the many ideals shoved down our throat. And of course, converting from Islam to other religions or no religion is punishable by death. This savagery is not part of our culture or law; it is not part of any humanitarian law to kill women for showing hair and exercising their right to bodily autonomy for that matter.Up until now, the government forces have been violent and ruthless in their attempts to stump out our protests. They've shot people from a 63 year old woman to a 10 year old girl, killing them all without mercy. The Internet has been cut out in several places and reportedly, they've brought out tanks and used military-grade bullets in the city of Sanandaj, where the Internet has been shut down for two days as of September 21. Meanwhile, president Ibrahim Raisi is giving a lecture in the UN, babbling about saving the people of Palestine and justice in the world while his own forces are brutally murdering ordinary people and protesters in Iran.At this point, we're in danger of being cut off from the world when the whole internet finally shuts down. This is not a speculation. The same thing happened in the nation-wide protests of 2019 and the government proceeded to kill all the protesters in absolute radio silence. A lot of protesters were found with cement blocks tied to their ankles and thrown in the river after the successfully stumped the protests out. We don't want the same thing to happen to our children and people again. If you hear no more news from Iran, things haven't settled down. We are being silently killed off and executed.You might think you don't have anything to do with this, but think again about why you all involved yourselves in the war between Ukraine and Russia. This is not any different. Our people have waged a war against their government and none of them are people who willingly chose violence. They are normal people who want nothing more than a normal life, which is what the Islamic regime has taken from them. If you have an ounce of humanity and empathy within yourself, you'll spread the word around and not let this injustice go unanswered and unpunished.There's nothing more to be said.

As an Iranian woman who always read your books and who always raised up her voice, I need help now. We can Breathe anymore! I fought for poc, I raised my voice for ukraine. Now I need yours. I'm a young author. I can have a future... a free one! but my government took it from me. Please be my voice ... our voice!!

I'm happy to let people know, yes. And it's heartbreaking.

Here's the BBC on what's happening:

3K notes · View notes

decolonize-the-left · 7 months

Text

It's really important that terfs and radfems make men out to be the ONLY representatives and perpetrators of patriarchy because if anyone found out that women could aid the patriarchy too, it'd be so obvious that's exactly what TERFs and radfems are doing.

"girls can only be victims" "women need to be protected" "men should know better than to date a 25 year old girl child" "only biology and sex based oppression is real" "being a submissive tradwife is empowering despite what TRAs want you to think" "women are biologically weaker than men" "feminism isn't about womens rights it's about how men treat women" "how is that woman supposed to know better, a man should have helped!"

These are all things my misogynist grandpa would say.

And let's be real a lot of TERFs/radfems are white. And also het. Just like he is.

Which is very, very important because for a lot of them gender based oppression is the ONLY way they're oppressed.

And the way white women are oppressed is Different. White women have organizations and foundations and speakers and get invited to the WH. Look at Amber Heard. A white cishet victim of patriarchy with a new movie coming out and So Many other women supporting her bravery. Let's look at the Karens who use white womanhood to play victim and successfully get black men murdered over it.

They have the privilege of being able to do that while having no knowledge about the Indigenous Women's Network or the Loveland Foundation. And when were either of them ever invited to speak or propose a new bill?

Their feminism doesn't need to be intersectional because white supremacist men are willing to listen to a cishet white girl. She doesn't need us because our shared oppressors listen to her without us.

But where does her victimhood go if she admits that to us?

Their entire belief system is based on the idea that you can't be feminist unless they experience oppression. Which probably has a lot to do with them believing "men aren't allies cuz they're all our abusers" and "women are just victims"

White women victims are afforded a certain amount of power and authority the rest of us are not.

Wouldn't you want to maintain the little power you have?

That's why they're "gender critical" until you actually criticize their ideas on gender. It's why you MUST hate women if you criticize them.

It's the victimhood they benefit from and their need to maintain it.

Like how are they supposed to justify being transphobic pieces of shit if they admit trans women are NOT men? If they can't be victims of trans people that would have to mean they're just victimizing trans people, wouldn't it? If they, as white women, admitted race factored into feminism a Lot wouldn't that just make them racist for telling black women it wasn't?

Wouldn't that make them oppressors?

Because if they're doing that then they are taking part in systematically oppressing people they have power over. Silencing them.

And that's not possible because women are just so weak and helpless right? They can't be oppressors. It's men. Men built this system. Not them. Women were helpless. Just like right now while a wave of anti-trans legislation is sweeping.

If only men didn't have all the power and women could do something to help. If only trans women and men were oppressed. But they don't count and they just wanna steal spotlight from "sex based oppression" so they're actually oppressing women so women should not help them.

Because by fighting for gender discrimination rights and bodily autonomy just like radfems and TERFs, trans ppl are stealing the spotlight from "real" victims apparently. And we all know increasing white woman victimhood automatically makes you evil with no need for nuance or critical thinking about it.

....Even though trans ppl are are fighting for the same exact rights that TERFs and radfems are fighting for.

Do you see the ridiculous stretch they have to make?? How superficial it is?

Convenient the justification for a bunch of white cis women to sit around doing nothing again while their keepers call inhumane shots, isn't it?

I'm telling you, what TERFs and radfems Believe in is not feminism and it won't serve any cis people or even them in the long run.

They don't want equality of the sexes or anyone else.

What they want is an excuse to sit around doing nothing and ensuring their own safety AGAIN at the cost of everyone else's.

Because in truth what they want isn't actually that much different. They're the favorite for a reason.

But again....where would that leave these so-called feminists if they admitted that?

And then you have the queer TERFs and radfems which is just wild to me.

Do you have any idea how many radfems are trans lesbians? Or even just trans? Way more than makes any goddamn sense.

Coincidence?

I think the fuck not, mon frère.

TERFs made victimhood their personality by villainizing men and trans women and you couldn't help yourselves when you saw how they used it to position themselves could you.

Radfems even frame it like they're the good bigots because their ideas of women being lesser than men is trans inclusive. Like they're more "valid" as victims so they're Real feminists.

Don't be fooled.

None of that is progress or feminism. That's just Patriarchy's favorite doing what they do best; parroting the same exact rhetoric then looking away while Patriarchy and White Supremacy pass legislatation against the rest of us.

#TERFs #radfems #gender critical #radical feminism #feminism #misogyny #analysis #patriarchy #reproductive rights

241 notes · View notes

genderkoolaid · 9 months

Text

^ lets deconstruct this post

So. Look. If you want to define transmisogyny not as "transphobia targeting transfems" but as the intersection of transphobia and misogyny, that's fine. Honestly, I'm for differentiating between anti-transfemininity and transmisogyny, while acknowledging that transmisogyny is fundamental to anti-transfemininity (and fundamental to anti-transmasculinity, and sexism/genderism based in male stereotypes ("misandry"/"antimasculism") is also fundamental to both, but I digress).

However. If we are seriously defining transmisogyny as the intersection of transphobia and misogyny, then it makes no sense to say that trans men can be transmisogyny exempt. If its just about the intersecting oppressions and not identity (or perceived identity), then it makes no sense to center transmisogyny entirely on transfeminine experiences. Under this definition, trans men are transmisogyny affected not only when we are perceived as transfems but all the time because its a fundamental part of transphobic rhetoric against us. The best example would be how transmascs experience the intersection of anti-trans bigotry against "unnatural" modification of bodily sex/gender status and the misogynistic obsession with controlling pregnancy and the bodies of those who can become pregnant.

For example: a trans man is outed to his family, who then force him into a marriage with a cishet man where he is maritally raped and impregnated. Its inaccurate to say that this is just transphobia or just misogyny; this is about punishing him for threatening the patriarchy on two levels: taking autonomy over his "female" body, and transgressing the gender/sex boundary.

But if "transmisogyny" refers exclusively to the intersection of misogyny and transphobia which targets transfems, then it only makes sense that we need another term to describe that which targets transmascs. You can't both complain that transmisogyny isn't "transphobia targeting transfems", so there doesn't need to be a transmasc equivalent, and argue that transmisogyny only targets transfems and transmascs are capable of being TME.

The rest of this is just the same shitty takes on transandrophobia discourse:

"Its a term made in retaliation against transfems!" No it isn't. It was and has always been a term made for transmascs so we have our own language to center our own experiences. Your obsession with making everything we do about transfems says more about you than it does us.

"Its just used to say "when transfems are mean to transmascs!"" No it isn't. For one, personally and from what I've seen from others, we tend to complain a lot more about self-identified TMEs than about transfems because honestly? Other transmascs have been the most annoying in this discourse. But two: it is disgustingly reductive to say this shit when we discuss the very real issues of suicide, rape and sexual assault, forced pregnancy, forced marriage, the way criminalization of T criminalizes transmascs and especially TMOC, the murder of transmascs and how we are erased after death. Again, this is your obsession with making everything we do about transfems.

"As it seems to be used only on this site" No it isn't. Multiple academics, including the literal coiner of the term, are doing research onto this concept & terminology.

EDIT: OP was not aware of the ongoing sexual harassment. I still think saying "trans women taking the piss" is downplaying a lot of the lateral transphobia that takes place, but she's not referring to anything specific I believe.

#m.#examples of transandrophobia #rape tw #forced pregnancy tw #forced marriage tw

363 notes · View notes

vidavalor · 8 months

Text

Lindsay isn't just Heaven. She's Lucifer.

Going to mention here that this has discussion of abuse, including sexual assault and PTSD and recovery, in case you do not wish to read further.

So, Maggie & Nina are blended parallels of Crowley & Aziraphale, right? They're each a bit of both of them. Story-wise, personality-wise, paralleling-wise, vibe-wise, etc., right? So then can we talk about how Lindsay isn't *just* representing Heaven's abusive relationship with Aziraphale but also then how a blended parallel means that Crowley has a Lindsay, too? And that the show seems to suggest pretty heavily that it's Lucifer/Satan?

S2: Crowley triggers a blackout in the area that brings down mobile phone networks in London, trapping Maggie & Nina in the coffee shop and keeping Lindsay from being able to reach Nina through an electronic device. When the connection is restored, Nina is overwhelmed by the torrent of abuse sent to her through that device and we get confirmation that Nina's partner is emotionally and verbally abusive. This mirrors...

S1: Crowley brings down every mobile phone network in London, which keeps him from reaching Aziraphale (his Maggie) for a time to tell him about the antichrist... but it *doesn't* keep his abusive partner from reaching him through an electronic device (his car radio) and then abusing him in a metaphorical-to-human-rape demonic assault. It's mind control. It's forcible and against Crowley's will. It's literally taking away his own sense of bodily autonomy and control of himself while he's driving (the epitome of navigating your own surroundings under your own power)-- and he's driving the car that is an extension of his consciousness, no less.

FWIW, this is *really* why Crowley has a complete meltdown over Aziraphale wanting to drive The Bentley in S2. It's a much more light-hearted group of scenes but the themes of a sense of autonomy for Crowley are still there. ("*We* don't have a car. The Bentley is *my* car.") Trusting Aziraphale to drive the car when Crowley can feel every bit of it and has no control over what Aziraphale is doing is analogous to a rape survivor with PTSD, who is now in a healthier relationship, having to learn how to trust that person enough to relinquish some control-- both in and out of bed-- to build a life with that someone. To be vulnerable around them and learn to trust that they can feel safe doing so and that everything will be okay. It takes time, no matter how much you trust your partner, and Crowley does trust Aziraphale.

See, Crowley? He's qualified.

#ineffable husbands #good omens #crowley #aziraphale #crowley x aziraphale #aziraphale x crowley #nina good omens #maggie good omens

220 notes · View notes

zenkindoflove · 11 days

Text

Elain Archeron and Sansa Stark: A Comparison

I’ve been wanting to make this post for a while because I have seen a lot of similarities between Elain’s character and Sansa Stark (ASOIAF/GOT), not only in their mannerisms and narrative but the way that the fandom unfairly undermines and outright despises them. So, this post is going to be a bit of an exploration of both of their characters, speaking mostly to the ACOTAR fandom, to try and give some predictions I have about Elain’s narrative journey and lessons learned from Sansa’s narrative.

Elain and Sansa fit a very similar female character archetype in fantasy (and other fiction genres), which is that they are more traditionally feminine characters that conform to their roles as women in their patriarchal societies as compared to their counterparts who buck gender norms often by learning to fight. In particular, Elain and Sansa are often directly compared to their sisters who fit the more beloved sword-fighting, sassy, smart-mouthed heroines. What is important to this post, is that these characters are almost always heavily maligned and criticized by fandoms at large with critiques that are often rooted in misogyny, which fundamentally undervalues expressions of femininity and feminine roles.

Both characters also have a lot of other similarities when it comes to their personalities, characteristics, and narratives. Both Elain and Sansa are obedient daughters who are described as sociable and make friends easily. They both are well-skilled in navigating courtly politics, and they begin their journeys as deep romantics, dreaming and wishing to fall in love. They’re both betrothed to men for political gain, and both undergo tragic and heartbreaking violations to their bodily autonomy. They are also both frequently undermined by characters’ in their stories, often underestimated in their strengths and abilities, and in both stories, those assumptions are proven wrong.

Now, we do not know where Elain’s journey is going, but we do Sansa’s, at least from the show. Sansa eventually finds her independence and her strength, taking back her ancestral home and being declared Queen in the North. She did not do this by becoming a warrior or a great battle commander. No, she did this by leaning into her political skills, inspiring nobles and armies to fight for her because of her name and what it represents. And when she had some power, leading her people and putting their care first, a narrative journey I hope to see for Elain coming into her own leadership position one day.

One of the ways I wanted to outline drawing some of these parallels, is to break down some of the criticisms that Elain faces now that Sansa Stark also faced by fans. And if you are reading this and these criticisms are ones you have expressed, hopefully you reconsider your assumptions about Elain and where her story is going.

Elain is boring.

This accusation is often ascribed to Elain based on her interests and hobbies and refusal to participate in more traditionally masculine roles in the narrative (fighting, swordplay). Elain is often described as gardening, baking, helping with domestic duties, and purposely kept away from the political and adventurous parts of the narrative. And yet, this does not mean that in order for Elain to be interesting, she suddenly needs to be thrust into her own version of a training montage to start learning to use swords and daggers. Elain is a powerful Made Fae. She has one of the rarest abilities, being a Seer. She is deeply connected with the Koschei plot, as she was the one to see a vision of him, Vassa, and the other cursed women, which brought about Lucien’s journey to the continent and connecting that overall plot to what is happening in Prythian. It’s very likely her story will focus on her exploring her magic more, likely with Lucien, to figure out how to break Vassa’s curse and destroy Koschei once and for all - none of which requires her to actually become a warrior.

Elain will become evil.

Sansa too was often criticized as being boring by fans. They saw her struggles, being passed from cruel husband to cruel husband, as signs she was weak. Sansa was often directly compared to her sister Arya who was learning to fight with a sword and training as an assassin. But Sansa was undergoing a very different sort of training. We see her shed her sheltered POV of the world, and instead, became deeply involved in the politics of the game of thrones. She learns from several characters how to play the game and play it right, as she is one of the few characters to survive until the end, having a true hero’s journey of ascension. We see that she uses people’s assumptions that she is stupid and naive to their disadvantage, allowing their underestimation of her abilities to make them turn away from how she outsmarts them in the end. Elain is also hinted at being deeply intelligent, in ways that even her sisters seem to ignore. She is also described several times in ACOSF as being sneaky, foreshadowing that she will surprise her family based on their assumptions of her. Ultimately, I foresee Elain leaning into her courtly knowledge and social skills, much like Sansa, to push forward her own journey.

Elain and Sansa are also both very inward characters. When they are struggling, they are more quiet and unassuming, to disarm others and draw attention away from them. As we know from Sansa's POV chapters, she was constantly strategizing her pretty words to save her skin. And I think Elain similarly shows the world one side of her, but hides a rich and complex inner world that we won't see until we get her POV.

This critique - which is also not always presented as a critique but sometimes as a wish for Elain to become a villain so she might be more interesting to those who find her boring - is one that I really dislike. And one of the biggest reasons I dislike it is because I saw the exact same predictions thrown at Sansa crash and burn. Often fans would revel in the idea that “finally, Sansa can become interesting” if she were to turn into the next Cersei or Littlefinger. But we did not see that happen. Instead, we saw that Sansa clung to her compassion, empathy, and her Stark morality, while shedding the blind trust that put her father and brothers into so much danger. She took lessons from Cersei and Littlefinger, but rather than becoming them, she bested them. Especially Littlefinger, where she outsmarted him when he tried to turn her and her sister against each other, and ultimately is the one who passed his execution sentence, achieving justice for all the crimes he committed against her family and Westeros. Sansa did not let the brutalization of her body and spirit turn her against her family. She never betrayed them, even when she was wed to their worst enemies. Instead, she made it her priority to serve and represent the North and its interest in all things, including standing up to Dany, because she understood to hold the North, she must not bend to other rulers and respect all that the North had sacrificed for the Starks.

Similarly, I do not see Elain betraying her family. There are several times she asserts her loyalty and insists that she wants to help them and their interests. I think her story will be more about being underestimated by her family and overlooked for leadership roles and her insight (as was Sansa) and this will push her to branch out on her own to discover who she is outside of her family and the expectations they have of her. But I do not think she will become the antagonist to them. Instead, I see her using her own strength to “save” them too in ways they would have never imagined that Elain can do. Sansa was not an outright antagonist to Jon, for example, though she often challenged him (which upset many fans, more on that later) because she believed her perspective was valuable. I see Elain's difference in how she sees the world and what she values being in similar disagreement with the Night Court, and her having to "prove" herself to them that she needs to be taken seriously.

Elain and Sansa are also very similar in that they both are described as abhorring violence. Sansa, in the end, does sometimes use violence as a means to an end, and even is shown enjoying Ramsey’s brutal execution by being eaten by his own dogs. Yet, Sansa is never shown to enjoy moments like these again (and of course this moment is most understandable given all the torture Ramsey put her and others through). Sansa does not lead with anger or brutality like Cersei. Rather, she shifts from a bright, sunny girl to an authoritative woman who ices out her enemies and shows kindness and warmth to her friends and subjects. To me, in keeping with character archetypes, I do not see Elain straying from this core feature of herself as well. I don’t see her desiring to follow in the footsteps of others who use torture and violence to extract information or to hurt others who have hurt her. I do think should Elain come into a position of political leadership, that like Sansa, she will care for the people (as she is already shown to do in Velaris and was known to do in the human lands) and when needed, show her steely, authoritative voice that is unbending (much like the infamous quote from Sansa in the books “my skin has turned from porcelain, to ivory, to steel”).

Basically, female characters do not have to be either warriors or evil villains to be interesting. Sometimes, female characters who are kind, compassionate, intelligent, and full of hope can still have badass stories and stand as heroines in their own right while maintaining all of those characteristics.

Elain is two-faced/bitchy/spoiled/selfish.

Of course, the classic, when the feminine character does anything SLIGHTLY unsettling to the reader, she is hated and tons of stereotypically misogynistic insults are thrown at her.

I will first off start by saying that when people say this about Elain, it is when she is essentially displaying behaviors that counter their first argument - that Elain is boring. When Elain is being compliant and nice to the other characters, she is called boring. When she very briefly, pushes back on them at all, these insults are hurled at her. I don’t even want to waste time breaking down why these are just comically unfair. Because the fact of the matter is is that every character in the book displays moments of being two-faced/bitchy/spoiled/selfish. And yet, it is Elain who is given these monikers as if they are core features of who she is. Other female characters in ACOTAR are also called these names. However, Elain faces the unique situation of only ever being boring or bitchy to those who dislike her. She can't win either way.

Sansa, of course, had all these insults hurled at her too. She was a traitor and two-faced for having a girlish crush on Joffrey when she was 13 (11 in the books) and literally betrothed, by her father, to a prince. When Sansa at all stands up to characters like Jon or Dany and disagrees with them or argues with their logic about how to handle different choices, she is bitchy, even though Sansa is often proved to be correct in her logic, hesitancy, and how she thinks politically. And of course, in line with the previous point about becoming evil, it was assumed that Sansa would be two-faced with her family. And yet, we saw, time and time again, Sansa was loyal to House Stark. Even the ultimate “sin” of Cersei guilting her to write to Robb about their Father being a “traitor” to the crown - Sansa did it because she thought it was one way she could save her father’s life. Basically, Sansa’s crime was being a girl who didn’t win the audience over by being spunky like her sister. Sansa’s crime was her naivete early on - when she was only a child, and it haunted her throughout the entire series and how fans saw her. Even though, out of every character in the books/show, Sansa at her core, is the one who represents the audience the most. She is the most removed from the magical storylines. The way she lives her life is closer to our own modern way of living than any of the warriors or magical characters in their world. Sansa represents who we would be if we were suddenly thrust into a fantasy story - defenseless and easily abused. But most readers and watchers want to see who they are not, rather than follow a story of who they actually could be and what strength might follow.

What I want to see from Elain’s story:

Following the lessons of staying true to my girl, Sansa, I hope that Elain, like Sansa, finds her own way in the empathy, kindness, and social skills that she has - along with exploring her powers. Now, as Elain is in a romance, and not a dystopian fantasy like Sansa is, her ending will have a HEA with her love interest. Sansa became Queen in the North, it’s true. But she has no love interest. Her family is all scattered. And there is a bit of a coldness to her now. Many suspect that she will play more of a Queen Elizabeth I role in her rule and never marry, as to keep House Stark as House Stark. But if she were to marry, it will likely be a political alliance, though, my hope is she will find love in it. Because while Sansa might have had her dreams dashed at an early age, I truly hope for the sake of that little romantic girl, she can find love after all the hurt she had to experience.

Elain will end up with a romance at the end of her story. And I think harkening to her character archetype and who suits her narrative best, it will of course be with her mate, Lucien, who mirrors her characteristics, values, and morals the most. I imagine for them a story where they act as courtiers, helping piece back together Spring, working on alliances with the human lands, and eventually, once Lucien learns of his heritage, finding another home in the Day Court (though I do imagine them to be life-long travelers, making many friends and allies across Prythian and the continent together - as Elain always wanted to travel). Similar to how Sansa used her political intelligence and compassion for her people, I see Elain and Lucien as well using their courtier/emissary skills and knowledge and devotion to serving the people of the courts, putting diplomacy first, to heal a broken and divided world. I think especially the alliance with humans will be so important for Elain’s journey. Where Elain has struggled the most with no longer being human, Lucien has been immersing himself in human culture and political interests. And once they are ready to start their journey, I think both putting their heads together will be invaluable in representing both the interests of the Fae and the humans. I also think Lucien has more invested interest, as her mate, to push her to explore her powers rather than dismiss her ever exploring them like those in the Night Court do. Lucien’s connections through the world can also help her find ways to find the information she needs to learn more about being a Seer and whatever else is going on with her. He also has his own personal experience with exploring and learning of his multitude of powers as well, including what it means to suppress and hide them, as I suspect Elain has been doing. Where Sansa had to prove herself to every character in the story to take her seriously and respect her, I think the one person who has always and will always believe in Elain is the person who has a soul-to-soul connection with her. Who puts her and her needs before his own, and will serve as her devoted sworn shield (cries in Sansan) to fight for her if need be.

Also maybe I wish and hope for the unlikely Lucien and Elain as High King and High Queen narrative which would fit so perfectly to Sansa’s own rise, but I suspect SJM won’t go in that direction.

Anyways, if you made it to the end, thanks for reading my desperate need to get all these parallels out of my head. I have adored Sansa since I first watched the show in 2011 and fell even more in love with her when I read the books in 2013. I have been defending her to nasty people ever since, and when I joined the ACOTAR fandom, the way people criticized Elain felt SO familiar. Which of course it did. These kinds of criticisms do not stop with Sansa and Elain. Most characters like them are disliked for being soft women with big hearts who are vulnerable to cruel people in their worlds.

#elain archeron #pro elain #pro elain archeron #acotar #sansa stark #pro elucien #elucien

60 notes · View notes

hastyprovocateur · 3 months

Text

I have seen many calling Akemi an annoying brat for running away from her father's guardianship. And I laud their critical thinking abilities on this because really, why would a girl whose father is forcing her to marry a stranger openly known for being a sadist and killing his first wife over an unhappy marriage want to do anything but jump gleefully into the union, right? Especially when all Akemi's father has to say for her life-or-death situation is "Hey learn these sex positions and keep him happy like your dead mother kept me happy lol."

Akemi loved Taigen for a set of reasons. First and foremost, he was the path she chose and finally got her father to agree with in part for his honorable stature, aware that Taigen, though imperfect, isn't as cruel or selfish as men in said period typically were. You have to understand that women were rarely afforded the choice to love without having underlying motivations. They have to choose the lesser of evils. Which in this case, is Taigen. Akemi has far greater chances of survival with him than any other man she knew. Marriage wasn't a tic-tac-toe game for her, she was ensuring her survival. To ensure she wouldn't get violated or killed or tortured or forcefully impregnated for not falling into the narrow set of rules aristocratic women especially had to follow.

Come to Taigen and Mizu's duel following which he loses his honour and possibly his engagement. Akemi stayed undeterred because regardless of what Taigen felt about his honour, Akemi didn't have a backup option that she knew would ensure her security as much as being with Taigen would. She tells him that his chonmage being cut is no obstacle as he can style it to suit other noble men, that she will convince her father to maintain their engagement and that his honour was intact as Mizu hadn't officially challenged him. Her sexual advances are a calculated move, she narrates to him a version of events where he defeats Mizu to massage his bruised ego. And while Taigen is her singular route out of her imminent marriage to a stranger, Taigen, ignorant of the same, claims he'd rather commit seppuku and sets out to trail Mizu.

With Taigen gone, she is in deep water, and naturally, her father quickly sets her up with a fresh suitor from a family he chose for the sake of furtherance of his political expansion over any concern for his daughter's life. When she tries to escape, Seki sees it as another funny haha situation, making it a teachable moment where he profoundly tells Akemi, already fearful of her bodily autonomy and life: that a woman has 2 paths "to be an improper whore or a proper wife." To which Akemi very wisely responds that they are one and the same thing, only one is shrouded with aristocratic niceties and huge houses that women are an extension of. Regardless of her (father's) wealth, status, and relative comfort in life, no woman deserves to be put in a position of ownership under a man, vulnerable to assault, coercion, intimidation just because "at least she'll be assaulted on a nice bed."

Akemi wasn't enjoying her round trip searching for Taigen, selling herself out to flesh traders and getting betrayed by Seki, her confidante, for funsies. Seki had seen her plight and only given her the singular choice to be a proper wife to a stranger after Taigen had already left her to her own fate. She was still determined to do right by him because she wanted to live. Her seeking out Mizu was key to saving her marriage. Thereby trying to drug and bring Mizu to Taigen so she could restore his honor and go back on their engagement and live somewhat peacefully. Which we now know wasn't going to ever be because Daichi Tokunobu had already schemed to compromise the Shogunate by wagering his daughter as an alliance.

I am convinced that most people can't understand complex female characters outside of "ruthless. fighter" or "perfect victim." Akemi's fault, it seems, that through her process of running from a dangerous marriage, a callous father, getting brokered by Goro, joining Kaji's brothel, seducing her first client, trying to subdue Mizu is that she didn't get brutally violated in any of scenarios. Because I'm sure if she had, not half of y'all would be crying about her being annoying and bratty or "having it too easy." As for her trying to attack Mizu, what else was she supposed to do? Be told that this stranger robbed her fiance's honor, ruined their engagement, and killed him, and what? Pat him on the back? Or was she supposed to have a prophetic vision that Mizu is going to save them from Hamata's men?

And no she did not resort to name calling, abusing, threatening after she was tied down, she was far more benign in assessing Mizu's disposition as opposed to Mikio or Taigen who straight up called Mizu monster, dog, beggar, scavenger and what not. Mikio sold Mizu's favourite horse to get back at her, abandoned her for the bounty hunters to get her, killed her mama. Taigen was a bully who accused her of digging through his trash and near damn killed her with a rock with his friends. Yeah, him being a kid makes no difference to the one who was traumatised because that'll last Mizu a lifetime. In both cases Mizu posed no threat to them as opposed to Akemi who truly believed that Mizu had killed her fiancé.

Taigen continued to be a bully in the present time (growth in latter eps aside), calling Mizu a dog, monster boy, whore mother, scavenger of Kohama's gutters, reminding her of her house burning down. He stalked her, threatened her to duel, gave her consistent trauma reminders. Oh btw- Akemi called Mizu "nothing special" and "angry" and yall decide she has mentally abused this woman after knowing her for a good 3 hours. Yall fr just hate women.

She didn't know about Kinuyo either, or anything about Mizu's past. Despite only knowing her in the worst way, she largely softens towards Mizu knowing she's helping save Kaji's workers. She could've easily stayed tight and comfy in the cellar. She doesn't know a thing about fighting yet stands by Ringo and later saves him. Not for her sake because she says "Now they have to get through the both of us." She didn't fear death either, only being helpless. "I'm not brave" she said "I've been a captive my whole life. If I die today, I die free."

She didn't stop there "Mizu can't possibly hold them all off" and then goes up to save Mizu when the assassins attested that "The samurai has been cornered." And yes Mizu was unconscious from being choked until Akemi intervened. She just had to stay low like the others and not give a FUCK, especially not Mizu, someone who shittalked her as far as she knew, but she did because she saw the honour in Mizu's actions.

Unfortunately, Akemi didn't magically mind read Mizu's ptsd and all the flashbacks she's been getting about her past betrayals, what happened with Kinuyo and made the mistake of trusting Mizu, WHO SHE THINKS IS A MAN, to fight for her when the guards come. All but 3 men. This isn't about numbers because Mizu totaled an army and has the plot armour of Jesus, it's not about being innocent, because Mizu killed that clawed dude she spared initially, not to mention Kinuyo who was just a means to get to Fowker. And some people talked about Mizu not wanting Daichi's men coming after her... um... are you sure you're watching the same show because as far as I know Mizu doesn't give a flying FUCK about being careful or who comes after her because she's recklessly creating collateral all down her path of revenge. That's the wholeass point.

Akemi wasn't ordering Mizu around, cuz she asked "I'm not going anywhere, right Mizu?" She wanted her approval, her support in that moment. To fight for her because she doesn't have the agency to fight for herself. What did Mizu do in this crucial moment? She doomed Akemi to an arranged marriage and made her choice FOR her. Especially being someone who's always been shown to do exactly what she wants and then fight whatever consequences come her way.

Mizu "thought" Akemi's better off with being married to a stranger because "atleast the abuser is rich, not everyone gets a rich abuser." And yes she assumed hella things because Akemi's reasons for chasing Taigen are literally so she can live by an iota of her choice and not because she's "begging to eat trash." And Mizu didn't consider the reputation of the Shogun's son, regardless of if he's a horrible person, how is being forced to marry a stranger justified?? Another day, another man Akemi trusted, dooming her to a path with no cognizance of how much apprehension of death or joyless life she actually faces in that position.

Mizu was no different from Daichi, Seki, Taigen in that moment. Akemi had no one. Despite doing all in her power to turn her fate, she was unsuccessful because she wasn't able to physically fight for herself and no one chose to step up for her. She was about to solve her own problems by throwing herself off the balcony, evident in how much she didn't desire the marriage. Takayoshi not being an outright brute chauvinistic killer is no justification for "hey didn't turn out to be so bad, huh." Would you rather she have gotten brutalised? Been treated like absolute shit? Would you then believe how scary the marriage could have been for her? Kaji herself told Mizu that "if you killed every man I've seen who couldn't come till someone bled... you'd wear your blade to a stump."

Ringo was justified in criticising Mizu. While Mizu doesn't care about anyone in her path of revenge, Eiji, her own father figure struggles to teach her that she NEEDS people to fight. To strengthen her blade and resolve. Mizu did return to save Akemi as her conscience would have it, Seki also came around and Taigen was finally ready to pursue a life with her over his honor and greatness but it was too late. I don't blame Akemi for asserting twice to Mizu that "We're not friends which Mizu showed too in her actions prior. I don't see it as Akemi being ungrateful but asserting the truth before Mizu slams it in her face. Mizu doesn't want friends so she doesn't get any.

I also don't blame her for rejecting Taigen, I too wouldn't ever wish to be blindsided like that again. It's better to choose your own reality than rely on love or friendship only to get betrayed. As for Akemi's new venture, I laud her for taking Kaji's word and to fight with the agencies she has even though I feel that Kaji shared Mizu's tone deafness in terms of seeing Akemi's (father's and now husband's) wealth as a neutralizer to the abuse she could face which could've been much worse than it was shown to be.

I do agree that having free choice, even after Seki tells her to pursue her own path, is a tad too idealistic for the place and time. She basically just complied to the choices Seki, Taigen, Mizu's made for her. So I loved seeing Akemi make the best of the cards she was dealt, choosing to use her body and mind to seduce, manipulate and progress. To make her choices whether she is loved in the process or not. . To exploit her meek husband's position, to subdue her scheming (now hopefully crispy) father and be great.

#don't speak on my girl unless it's praise #bes akemi #akemi blue eye samurai #mizemi #mizu blue eye samurai #mizu x akemi #blue eye samurai #blue eye samurai mizu #taigen blue eye samurai #hasty loves bes

95 notes · View notes

3mcwritingmcuhcs · 8 months

Text

How the Avengers Would React to You Falling Asleep on Their Shoulder

(Includes: Thor and Natasha, was gonna do more but i got tired lol, gonna be a part 2 posted later with other Avengers)

Now, we all know Thor is a huge himbo.

He's huge on physical affection--hugs, ruffling people's hair, patting them on the back--if he has adopted you as his friend, you are now subject to being bombarded with pure, wholesome, himbo interactions.

Now, let's say that one night, during one of the usual movie nights (bc you can't tell me that they didn't have any), you sat down next to him. Well, as we've established, he is very physically affectionate, which means that whoever ends up next to him pretty much volunteers to be his personal teddy bear.

One week it was Steve, the next it was Tony (though if ever brought up, he'd only pull up a video of when Thor did it to Steve), honestly, almost everyone had been in that position.

But this night, you were more tired than usual. Training had been harder that day, you hadn't gotten a great amount of sleep, and you were just exhausted.

Enter Thor's natural cuddliness.

You scooted up next to him on the large couch, leaning your head back against his side. Before you knew it, the comfortable warmth combined with him shifting to where your head was cushioned against his rather voluptuous pecs, had meant you were entirely too comfortable.

Five minutes into the movie and you were out.

Thor didn't notice until Natasha pointed out, too entranced with the strange Midgardian performance on the screen.

"Huh, I guess she wasn't exaggerating when she said she was exhausted," Natasha had commented, making Thor look to his left, only for that movement to cause you to slide.

Luckily, you didn't wake up, and instead only curled closer into his side.

Thor just looked down at you in awe.

You looked so pretty.

He stayed entirely still for the rest of the movie night, determined to let you rest as long as you needed.

He succeeded, but at the cost of him also dozing off on the couch.

The rest of the team saw the content expressions and let you two be, though a certain someone was very tempted to draw mustaches on the both of you.

Natasha isn't a super touchy person.

After years of being nothing but a weapon for other's use, her bodily autonomy was something she couldn't bear to lose.

That's not to say that she couldn't be autonomous while still having no problem with touch, but she had used her body to get what others wanted for years.

She couldn't just forget all that and be able to hug people like anybody else. She had to work through it. And though she spent years reclaiming herself, making things right, things still stuck.

With the people she genuinely cared about, she was comfortable with physical affection, but she also didn't feel pressured into giving it. She didn't have to act like nothing phased her.

With you, she could just be Nat, not "the Black Widow" or "Natalie Rushman" or even "Natasha Romanoff". She wasn't an Avenger or a spy or an agent.

She was just her.

Given how close the two of you were, you had grown to understand her unease with sudden physical affection.

You respected her boundaries, only giving her that type of affection when she specifically said that it was okay.

One day though, you broke your rule of asking first.

It was dark out, the two of you were on the roof of the compound, looking up at the sky.

You were both sitting up, talking quietly, the occasional laugh exchanged.

But you had severely underestimated how tired you were.

Natasha felt your head rest on her shoulder, being faintly surprised just because you hadn't asked as you usually did.

But when she saw that your eyes were closed and your breathing was slow and even, she smiled softly.

Sure, touch wasn't her forte, but you had never made her uncomfortable, you had never pressured her, you had always stood close (but not too close, because you understood her need for personal space), and smiled at her sincerely no matter what.

Having you fall asleep on her shoulder, well, it just felt like the most pure affirmation that you trusted her.

And maybe she wouldn't let most people do it.

But you weren't most people.

#natasha x reader #natasha romanoff #black widow #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x you #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha romanoff fluff #thor x reader #thor x you #thor x y/n #thor odinson #avengers x reader #the avengers

289 notes · View notes

emoelrics · 10 months

Text

How Asa Captures the Experience of the Modern Teenage Girl

I truly have to applaud Fujimoto for his writing of Asa Mitaka. It’s been a while since I have seen such an inspired character and truly excellent writing of a teenage girl in shonen manga. In most shonens, the experience of a teenage girl is reduced to stereotypes like the tsundere or a love interest for the protagonist. *cough cough Naruto* But Fujimoto really shines bright among writers by turning his previously teenage boy led manga to a part led by deeply troubled and melancholic teenage girl.

Part 2 opens with a loss of autonomy specifically bodily autonomy which is something teenage girls are all too familiar with. Teenage girl’s decisions are made for them without any consideration of their own feelings and opinions. Parents, guardians, and other authority figures feel the need to make decisions on behalf of the overly emotional and volatile teenage girl. Teenage girls are never taken seriously and no one really cares to sit down and listen to them. It is a prison -- to be caged in a body and mind that no one cares to pay attention to.

Teenage girls also lack their own bodily autonomy both physically and sexually. Teenage girl’s bodies are policed heavily and overly sexualized. Despite the over sexualization of their bodies, teenage girls are not empowered to make their own sexual decisions. While Asa is not overtly sexualized in the way she is drawn, we can tell that her body and other teenage girl’s bodies are deemed for consumption by authority figures. The teenage girl is never safe even if she is respectable, conservative, and demure; grown men and authority figures will still be tempted. As is exemplified by her teachers budding relationship with the class president and lust for Asa.

I thought that it was so fascinating that the direct cause of Asa’s death is her male teachers lust and her classmate’s jealousy. It echoes true for many cases of grooming and it is an experience many girls are all too familiar with. Girls who are groomed lash against their peers due to the lies spoonfed to them by their adult male groomers. They will never find solidarity amongst fellow teenage girls instead they seem them as sources of competition.

Not only does Fujimoto capture bodily autonomy and sexual desire perfectly, he perfectly embodies the inner monologue of teenage girls. Puberty for teenage girl’s is a pivotal moment in their lives. Childhood and innocence remain so far out of their reach as they are forced to mature quickly due to the nature of our society.

These facts make it unsurprising that teenage girls exhibit high rates of mental illness. In a CDC survey, it was found that more than 57% of high school girls “persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness.” Asa completely exemplifies this. She is lonely, sad, and isolated. With no one to trust or turn to for support, she is prone to destructing coping mechanisms.

One of which is suicide as is covered in the falling devil arc. The crushing loneliness leads to an inability to trust peers/adults which further contributed to Asa’s suicide attempt. And in our modern day, 30% of the girls surveyed reported seriously considering suicide and 13% attempted suicide one or more times in 2021.

Young people in our day are struggling with the crushing fate of the world -- climate change, capitalism, and social upheaval. This contributes to mental illness. Asa too faces a similar fate -- a world marred by violence, lack of accountability and support from authority, and destruction left and right.

All in all, I am just so happy with how Fujimoto has written and dealt with Asa’s character. It’s real, raw, and respectful. And I’m sure so many teenage girls who read Chainsaw Man must find some sort in Asa and the struggles she deals with.

#commentary #csm #asa #asa mitaka

265 notes · View notes