#NO MORE PERFECT VICTIMS LET EVERYONE BE ANGRY AND VENGEFUL AND HATEFUL

[starlightandetherealshadows]

more author rambles!

I’m excited to write the Memento Mori characters (including MC, because to me, MC is a complete character) doing manipulative/toxic/potentially evil things because sometimes traumatized people are bad people!

Sometimes people that have suffered can be the catalyst for the suffering of others!

They can make emotional, impulsive decisions that have negative consequences for themselves and the people they care about.

I like characters that have complicated, conflicting emotions and actions because that represents real people! They might have motivations that make no sense to anyone but themselves.

I wanna explore all of that with MC, the RO, and all the side characters. No one in the story is 100% good or evil, but they’re all heavily flawed like humans (and aliens in this case) are 🩵

[shieldofrohan]

I agree with you on that subtextual trauma is something that this jackass fandom unable to pick on but also how in some way it emotionally scars them and encourages some unhealthy way of coping that we see in Sansa and Daenerys' POV.

One thing that bothers me is that the only woman who calls out on the abuses that were inflicted upon her and intends to take vengeance upon her abusers is Cersei and she is purposefully written as a villain by GRRM .

I wouldn't be surprised if Sansa forgives Sandor Clegane in the end and the narrative would frame it as gentle empathetic good girl Sansa who is able to forgive versus angry vindictive bitch Cersei who can't see the good in people.

Hello @sassywitchmaker ,

Previous asks about this:

Sansa being nice to her abusers: X1

About Cersei (and Lysa): X2

Trauma in subtext: X3

Martin's sexist text: X4

Sexual trauma as a plot device: X5

Well, what can I say more? ...

Yes, author chooses to write trauma's effects on characters in subtext and average fans can't read it. This is why I always tell people to read other books too. Asoiaf is not some literary perfection but still it is not for "green" readers.

I find Martin's sneaky writing style remarkable but also sometimes unnecessary, wrong and insensitive. He has a brilliant skill but I think his writing ethic should hold him back while writing heavy issues like sexual/mental trauma, racism, slavery etc.

I believe that Sansa is a foil for Cersei and Da*nerys both. But this shouldn't mean: Sansa should forgive her abusers or she should stay passive in her life.

And also it's interesting that Cersei and Da*nerys are both parallels and foils. One hated her r*pist husband and killed him and the other fell in love with her r*pist husband and killed him.

Cersei chose to hurt other women after her trauma and D*ny chose to ignore other women (we can see it when she tries to reason Drogo's men raping women by saying that this is the price of Iron Throne or her ignoring Mirri's rightful wish to stop Drogo etc). There are many parallel-foils between these two characters.

In one hand it is interesting to read a little girl becoming the villain (D*ny) but in the other hand it is distasteful to read a woman being villainized for being bitter against her abuser (Cersei).

Well I think Martin makes sure that Cersei was always cruel to everyone so we can't say that she is like this just because of her trauma but still I wished there was a character who is a GOOD person but also BITTER against her abusers. I want that character to be Sansa. She is not vengeful but she doesn't exactly like her abusers either. So she is opposite of Cersei/Dany.

But Martin still doesn't let her be bitter without writing her whitewashing her abusers. HE NEEDS TO STOP THIS. Because not having a character who deals with her tauma in a healthy way hurts the story and it makes you question author's motives.

Being nice, forgetful and forgiving towards abusers can only open more doors for them to keep being abusive. And the victim can't survive her trauma like this.

I don't think that books should teach us right and wrong but if Martin doesn't agree with nihilism criticism than he should make his statement by giving us a right example.

Thanks for the ask, have a nice day.

[12housescorpio]

The signs stereotype vs how they actually are

Aries stereotype: violent, angry, loud, harsh, brass, immature

How Aries really are: to a point, their stereotype isn’t completely wrong. They come off as violent because they aren’t afraid to express their brutality as loudly and passionately as they see fit. But Aries also have a very noble, surprisingly wise and patient side to them. They don’t recognize when they’re being “too-much” or if other people are uncomfortable in anyway so they may seem rude but really they’re just in their own Aries bubble.

Taurus stereotype: obsessed with food, cozy, home bodies, aesthetic lovers, warm, soft patient, stubborn.

How Taurus really are: Taurus love money. Power. They are practical for sure and extremely good with money and adult related things, but they are extremely impatient when other people are not. Taurus are venusians so they love aesthetics the same way that libras do but the difference is that they want people to be the aesthetic, which can make them extremely superficial. They want themselves and the people around them to be beautiful and are often not comfortable unless those around them are attractive or at least dress nicely. They are very stubborn, but at the same time they are extremely open philosophically, they love hearing other people’s opinions and learning new things. They can be homebodies but mostly they just don’t wanna go anywhere out of their comfort zone. If they try something new it’s only after doing research that it will be fun for sure, due to their practicality.

Gemini stereotype: evil, two faced. (I haven’t really seen any other Gemini stereotypes aha)

How Gemini really are: Gemini’s are jumbled messes, they are notorious for being anxious, hyper, jittery, all over the place especially mentally, they have a high standard for the people they hang out with, they really want to surround themselves with interesting, funny and entertaining people. I by no means think that Gemini’s are evil anymore than I think any other sign are evil. I honestly don’t even know where that came from. As for two faced I don’t really see that either, they definitely won’t tell you what they’re thinking but that’s mostly because they don’t see a point in doing that, they’d rather just move on and hang out with other people if you upset them, but they’ll still be nice to you. They always have a lot of friend—they like to collect people.

Cancer stereotype: cuddly, emotional, motherly, kind.

How Cancer really are: very true they are easily the most emotional signs and they can definitely be cuddly and motherly, they can also have issues with being pathological liars, and having a victim mentality. While they have the potential to be the kindest, most thoughtful and understanding people you’ve ever met, they can also be vindictive, vengeful, secretive and manipulative. They can have issues with dependency on other’s for validation or just being near other people. Sometimes they can be guilt trippers, especially when it comes to being taken care of. They want to take care of other people, but if they don’t deal with their issues with needing other people, they can take care of other people with the intention of being taken care of in other ways or will kill themselves to take care of someone who doesn’t do anything for them or willingly stays in toxic situations because they don’t want to be alone. Can be suspicious, jealous and clingy.

Leo stereotype: courageous, brave, attention seekers, loud, all-about-me, spot light stealers.

How Leo really are: Leo’s are just less flashy, people pleasing Aries lmao. Leo’s are doers, they live for moments, and happiness. They love to make people laugh, they want everything to be perfect and because of this can be perfectionists. Extremely people pleasing, hates negativity and will actively ignore it which can lead to not dealing with problems that need to be dealt with. Can for sure be spot light stealers, but usually they don’t notice this and also love to make sure other people have the spotlight as well. They love moments, and are very sentimental at times. Can be selfish and self absorbed but can also be extremely kind and healing towards others. They inspire, uplift, support and direct others who need it.

Virgo stereotype: workaholics, snobby, loves homework and chores

How Virgo really are: the truth about Virgos is that they are fixers. They are constantly trying to improve things, fix things and do things in general. Depending on what placement the Virgo sign is in, the Virgo will be critical, and perfectionistic of that thing. So for example, Virgo risings will be critical and perfectionistic of how they are viewed and may be critical of how others appear as well. This deeply affects the Virgo if there are things they cannot make perfect within themselves or within their lives, they are constantly troubled by not being able to control the things around them which could be why they are stressed or nitpicky a lot. But this is not all they are. They also want to help, support and fix their friends problems, which is why they offer so much love and assistance. Sometimes this is unwanted, but it is truly how the Virgo expresses love.

Libra stereotype: airhead, indecisive, superficial, shopaholics

How Libra really are: I’ve spoken on why I think libras being airheads is just plain stupid, because they are literally the sign of law, government, analysis of decisions and all things equality. They are balance scales because they weigh the options. They want things to be fair, so they often play devils advocate. They see both sides. They are people pleasers, they want to do what’s best for everyone. They are excellent communicators and debators. They often have level headed opinions that are unique and unlike any other. Not to mention, there’s a reason that libras are part of the Air - triad. The air element represents analytic ability, communication and going with the flow. It’s true that libras love to surround themselves with aesthetics but in no way shape or form does that have anything to do with superficiality, they love all walks of life. It’s true they can absolutely be indesisive, but would you rather them rush into a decision that they end up not wanting to make? Exactly. Let them take their time.

Scorpio stereotype: evil, manipulative, vengeful, dark, brooding

How Scorpio really are: I could really go on and on with this subject. I’ve said a million times how much I hate the Scorpio stereotype, luckily it’s died down the past few years since I first started tumblr. Scorpios are by no means evil. Scorpios are understanding, loving, empathetic and misunderstood creatures. Just like EVERY water sign, Scorpios can get in their head and lash out. So can every other person on the planet. Scorpios are the rulers of over thinking, self reflecting, looking back on the past, putting patterns together and all that tends to apply to relationships especially since Scorpios tend to have rough childhoods and difficult past relationship—they develop trust issues. Either a Scorpio will enter a relationship with you and constantly pay too close attention to your body language (seeing if you’re going to pull some fuck shit) and they also tend to be destructive because Scorpios again, are the rulers of death and transformation (Pluto)

Sagittarius stereotype: adventurous, philosophical, bubbly, travelers, honest, cheaters, commitment phobs

How Sagittarius really are: honestly those stereotypes are pretty true lol the only thing I want to mention is that the honesty Sagittarius have isn’t necessarily your typical honesty. They choose what information to hide and which to choose. If you ask them out right they won’t lie to you, they might sugar coat it but usually they’ll tell you the blunt truth with a smile on their face. But they aren’t idiots, they know what’s going to upset people and what isnt, and they also know what information to get out of you and how to do it. All innocently, usually. Usually Sagittarius just wanna know the gossip. Although there are always bad eggs. Also, they aren’t commitment phobes, they just love to experience and have fun and go out and not be tied down, usually people don’t understand that so they choose not to date until they find someone who gets it.

Capricorn stereotype: workaholics, the sad version of the Virgo stereotype, sex obsessed, evil

How Capricorn really are: yeah I mean Capricorn’s are definitely ambitious and career focused, they don’t fuck w the bullshit of romance and tend to have an apathetic outlook. But no one ever talks about how moral and sarcastic Capricorn’s are. They’re so much more than just work-work-work I mean come on guys Capricorn is such a complex sign. Capricorn’s are sarcastic, extremely critical of others and themselves, they have high standards and feel that everyone should meet those standards especially themselves. They’re also SO fucking funny. They’re moral, always say exactly what’s on their mind (lowkey more honest than Sagittarius but you didn’t hear it from me) but tend to be pessimistic and sometimes down right cruel. They’re calculated, and logical.

Aquarius stereotype: cold, detached, obsessed with the occult. aLiEnS

How Aquarius really are: I really don’t think y’all have ever met an Aquarius. Aquarius are fun, full of life, and yes they adore the unknown and tend to be the most intuitive sign (next to Pisces) and they don’t fuck with close minded people. They love all things weird, eccentric, unique. They LOVE people. They are just intuitive enough to know who not to fuck with, even if they don’t know it’s their intuition. They can be detached only when they know they can’t trust someone, when they feel as though they can trust them, they let down all their walls are are the kindest, best friends you could possibly have. Aquarius are smart, funny and just plain the best. Enough said. Like there’s no other way to explain Aquarius other than better than you lmao

Pisces stereotype: innocent, weak, soft, emotional, pReCiOuS lItTlE bEaNs, psychic

How Pisces really are: completely capable of handling anything that comes their way, beautifully creative, intuitive, truly intuitive but it’s only because they’re stuck in the 5D and unable to see the 3D so they’re looking at people thru a distorted fishbowl, unable to see things how they really are. May see people as x when they’re really y. This is why they tend to see good people as bad or bad people as good. Or more commonly, innocent actions as malicious.

[fae-fucker]

Shatter Me: Chapter 20-21

Chapter 20

Nothing happens in this chapter aside from Juliette whining about having to wear a dress and her and Warner Bros. having yet another conversation about how evil-but-not-evil Warner Bros. is.

Juliette: I HATE YOU I WILL NEVER RESPECT YOU

Warner Bros.: Nobody has ever loved you and I’m the only one willing to treat you with decency and respect.

Juliette: I HATE HOW RIGHT YOU ARE

That wasn’t a joke by the by. If you think “Surely Warner Bros. wouldn’t take a page right out of Emotional Manipulation 101, he’s supposed to be the good guy eventually!”, what are you even DOING on my blog?

Here’s what he says:

“The world is disgusted by you,” he says, his lips twitching with humor. “Everyone you’ve ever known has hated you. Run from you. Abandoned you. Your own parents gave up on you and volunteered your existence to be given up to the authorities. They were so desperate to get rid of you, to make you someone else’s problem, to convince themselves the abomination they raised was not, in fact, their child.”

[...]

“And yet—” He laughs openly now. “You insist on making me the bad guy.” He meets my eyes. “I am trying to help you. I’m giving you an opportunity no one would ever offer you. I’m willing to treat you as an equal. I’m willing to give you everything you could ever want, and above all else, I can put power in your hands. I can make them suffer for what they did to you.” He leans in just enough. “I can change your world.”

But it’s ok, because [insert your common excuse here]! Boyfriend goals! 

He’s wrong he’s so wrong he’s more wrong than an upside-down rainbow.

Does Tahereh Mafi know about the concept of tone? 

“I’ll just write this supposedly intense moment of confrontation and then make the reader conjure up bizarre and silly visuals! Makes perfect sense!”

“You might find yourself enjoying this situation a lot more than you anticipated. Lucky for you, I’m willing to be patient.” He grins. Leans back. “Though it certainly doesn’t hurt that you’re so alarmingly beautiful.”

Of course she fucking is. Bitch has been starving for 200+ days but she’s still bangable as ever! How convenient that all these YA heroines look fuckable even when they shouldn’t! But we can’t have a dirty uggo as a protagonist, can we now? Can’t have someone who shows signs of what’s been done to them physically, that’s just gross! All young girls need is more pressure on looking attractive despite feeling like shit for reasons outside of their control!

FEMINISM! 

We also find out that Warner Bros. is ... nineteen. 

Aight.

Chapter 21

A week passes and Warner doesn’t allow Juliette to speak to anybody but him. 

Boyfriend goals!!! I literally orgasmed when I read that, guys. He’s just so HOT. 

I CAN FIX HIM, MAMA. 

One day Juliette asks Warner to remove the cameras in her room so she can talk to Adam freely, and Warner says that she can’t be trusted to be on her own. 

*shaking violently, frothing at the mouth* BOYFRIEND GOALS!!!

Warner Bros. reminds Juliette of that time she accidentlaly murdered someone and she has an angsty flashback. 

It happened at a grocery store (idk how Juliette got there without supervision or who would bring her with them on a trip to the grocery store) and there was a shitty young mother there with her child on a literal leash. The boy falls over and Juliette drops her stuff so she can help but ends up murdering the kid instead.

How very angsty. Let’s not question any of this (because boy, do I have questions) and just move on, because I’m tired of this crappy book and I want it to be over. 

Juliette murdered a kid, sad sad cry cry angst angst, over it.

Juliette manages to get over it too, because she insists on having the cameras removed, which makes Warner Bros. really happy. He says some more of his typical manipulative shit about how she’s burning with hatred and power and how they’ll make a wonderful team. 

I mean ... he’s right, isn’t he? Isn’t that basically what happens in the end? 

So not only is this abuser not properly portrayed as one, he probably turns out to be right in the end. If not that, then Juliette will eventually learn to control her powers and accept them as tools for domination in one way or another, because that’s the power fantasy this book is peddling.

Who wouldn’t want an attractive, powerful person telling them how attractive and powerful you are and how amazing you’d be together? Juliette’s resistance at this point is just there to stretch out the conflict, it’s another thing that needs to be corrected before she and Warner Bros. can become the ultimate #relationship goals. 

Ugh, we get more of the same damn conversation that they’ve had every goddamn chapter (”I’m not a monster!” “Yes you are!”) 

He tightens his hold around my arms and I can’t squirm away from him. He leans in dangerously close to my face and I don’t know why but I can’t breathe. “I’m not afraid of you, my dear,” he says softly. “I’m absolutely enchanted.”

See how hot he is! Don’t you feel powerful, presumed straight teen girl reading this? A hot, dangerous man telling you how enchanted he is by you?

Fuck off.

“You’re absolutely delicious when you’re angry.” 

“Too bad my taste is poisonous for your palate.” I’m vibrating in disgust from head to toe. 

“That detail makes this game so much more appealing.”

Juliette is disgusted, but the reader is supposed to find this endearing and even appealing (”Look how kinky Warner Bros. is, teehee!”), since we know she falls for him eventually.

Warner Bros. says he’ll remove the cameras if she touches him. Juliette is all wah-wah, I can’t do that! 

But like ... why? You know if you hate him so much, touching him could mean killing him, and I know that you’re all sad about what a meanie meanie murderer you are and how that would make him right and you can’t have that, but you know what it could also make him? Dead. 

I’m so fucking tired of female YA characters klinging to their cheap and ultimately pointless morals instead of showing some stone-cold pragmatism. But that would make them heartless bitches, wouldn’t it? Women always have to be pure and good! 

If there was a man holding me hostage, torturing the one person I cared about, I wouldn’t care how much he wanked on about how evil I am, I’d murder him dead the moment he offered. (If I were in Juliette’s shoes, I mean.)

And in this case, she literally has nothing to lose. Either he dies, or he gets rid of the cameras. But nooooo. Juliette is not a murderer! She won’t let Warner Bros. be right! She hates this man so much that she’ll rather suffer to keep her moral high ground instead of fucking getting rid of him forever or at least hurt him a bit for shits and giggles.

Because women are pure and good, you see! They should suffer to be pure while the men get to do all the questionable stuff, because men can get their hands dirty and get shit done!

Juliette has a spine, I’ll give her that, but it grows in the wrong direction for the wrong reasons, and it makes her weak and stupid. 

Warner says that Juliette will have to torture people eventually.

“Inflicting pain, you see, is an incredibly efficient method of getting information out of anyone. And with you?” He glances at my hands. “Well, it’s cheap. Fast. Effective.”

*long, tired sigh*

Torture is the least effective method of getting information out of anyone. LITERALLY LESS EFFECTIVE THAN JUST NOT ASKING AT ALL. 

You know why? Because people lie to stop the pain. They will tell you what they think you want them to hear just to make you stop.

Here’s a great source of info on torture if y’all want to read about why it’s ineffective and here’s info about the effective ways of getting information out of someone (hint: pain ain’t it).

I’M HOPING YOU’LL BRING THIS UP, TAHEREH. I’M REALLY HOPING THAT THE NARRATIVE WILL PROVE WARNER BROS. WRONG, FOR YOUR SAKE. 

Torture is typical in fictional stories because it’s so shocking and dramatic, and because writing interesting dialogue and persuasion is hard. In real life, things aren’t that simple. 

“I”—I swallow—“I am not—I’m not—I’m—” 

“A murderer?” 

“NO—” 

“An instrument of torture?” 

“STOP—” 

“You’re lying to yourself.”

I’m ready to destroy him.

Except you’re evidently not, so I guess you are lying to yourself.

Warner Bros. does some more manipulative shit that’s actually pretty intriguing and would be kinda frightening except he’s supposed to be her future LOVE INTEREST, so this just all comes off as abusive and gaslight-y as fuck. 

He’s of course right about every one of his assumptions about her personality and the state of her mind. 

“You think I don’t have a heart? You think I don’t feel? You think that because I can inflict pain, that I should? You’re just like everyone else. You think I’m a monster just like everyone else. You don’t understand me at all—”

I want to praise Juliette for actually standing up for herself, but at the same time, I’m just so fucking tired of female characters constantly being treated like shit but always expected to take it, to accept it, to keep their hearts pure of hatred and resentment. 

I want more women to be angry, to be resentful, to be vengeful and furious and ready to unleash their wrath on the world. We have so many Juliettes already, in the real world. And yes, it takes strength to be kind despite everything that’s been done to you, but female characters are so rarely allowed to be angry. Women aren’t allowed to be angry. 

Now, I’m not saying I want Juliette to go full Rambo and start murdering people for shits and giggles. What I am saying is that I want her to be mad. I fully understand why she hates herself, but I’m tired of the fact that she seems to think that those people, who hated and mistreated her, are somehow innocents and she’s the monster. 

I want her reluctance to kill/torture people to just be ... normal. Of course she doesn’t want to kill people, that’s just basic human decency dammit. But here, it’s presented as if she cares about all her potential victims, as if she doesn’t want to hurt those good good people who deserve better than to be tortured by such a disgusting and unworthy creature like herself. 

She’s supposed to be this beacon of goodness, look how strong and loving she is towards the masses despite the shit they’ve done to her! She values them above herself!

“I value human life a lot more than you do, Warner.”

See?

That’s what pisses me off.

If I were writing Juliette, she’d be like “No, fuck off, I hate everyone but I won’t kill or torture people because I don’t wanna. It’s shitty and it’ll destroy me and the victim mentally and I just don’t want that, ya know? Deal with it. Bye.”

“There is a soldier living in my room.” I’m breathing hard. “If you want me to be here, you need to get rid of the cameras.” 

Warner’s eyes darken for just an instant. “Where is your soldier, anyway?”

“I wouldn’t know.” I hope to God I’m not blushing. “You assigned him to me.” 

“Yes.” He looks thoughtful. “I like watching you squirm. He makes you uncomfortable, doesn’t he?”

Boyfriend goals! 

Anyway, turns out that Warner Bros. assigned Adam to her because Adam volunteered, which I guess isn’t suspicious at all, Adam, you idiot.

Apparently, Adam remembers Juliette from when they were kids! Oh joy, more shit for Juliette to angst over. I don’t even know why this is so important to her. I don’t know why anything that’s important to her is important to her, to be fair.

Juliette concludes that this was all a trap, and Warner reinforces it by saying some shit about how Adam talked about wanting to see what happened to the “freak” she’s become.

Juliette of course believes this man she supposedly hates and who knows how to push her buttons, and gets pissed and asks Warner to take off his shirt.

Because obviously we need to remind people that Warner is a love interest, when he could’ve just taken off a glove or let her bitchslap him to death. 

Warner drops his clothes to the floor and looks at me almost intimately. I have to swallow back the revulsion bubbling in my mouth. His perfect face. His perfect body. His eyes as hard and beautiful as frozen gemstones. He repulses me.

Oh yeah. We can totally tell how much he repulses you. 

Ain’t that right, reader? Don’t you just hate how hot Warner is? 

Very, very manipulative, Tahereh. Very disgusting. 

Warner acts all sexy and Juliette is angsting that she’s “contemplating torture”. Except she’s not. He’s literally asking for it. At most she should be angsting about satisfying his kink.

Juliette flips her absolute shit again because she’s a huge, useless fucking wimp and Tahereh doesn’t know how to plot, somebody introduce Tahereh to plot, so she has to stall and move one step forward and two steps back before she lets anything fucking happen.

Adam is there to catch her in his strong arms at the end though, and Warner does remove the cameras and bugs, saying he’s expecting her to uphold the end of her bargain.

I hate this fucking book.