#edmund bertrum

[sailforvalinor]

Who doesn't like Edmund??????? HOW can they not like Edmund?????????? He's the best of the Bertrums!!!!

Well, to be fair, being the best of the Bertrams is not too difficult, lol.

But yes, a LOT of people dislike Edmund, like, probably the majority of the Austen community. I agree!!! It’s so frustrating!!!

Like, Darcy insulted Elizabeth’s family to her face and actively separated her sister from the man she loved, Captain Wentworth ignored Anne’s existence and courted other girls in front of her on purpose, Edward was engaged to another woman while courting Elinor, and we give them passes, but we come down so hard on Edmund for *checks notes* letting Mary ride on Fanny’s horse for too long.

Yes yes, obviously there was more to that incident, but the point still stands—Edmund has committed far less grievous mistakes than most Austen heroes, but he’s the most hated. Why is this??

There’s a couple reasons for this, I think: we never get to see him actually in love with Fanny, and, unlike most Austen heroes, he never gets to perform any sort of grand gesture to make amends for his mistakes. We know that he does fall in love with Fanny and that these amends must have been made (especially seeing how quick he is to apologize to Fanny when he realizes he's been neglecting her in other places in the novel), but Austen deliberately chooses to narrate these events without actually giving them to us directly. Admittedly, this frustrates me, but I understand why: Mansfield Park is not a love story. There is a romance in the story, but that isn't what the narrative is fundamentally concerned with--the narrative is fundamentally concerned with Fanny's development and strength of character independent of (you might even say in spite of) the other characters in the novel. Unlike Pride and Prejudice or Emma, Fanny's character development is not incited by the actions of the hero (which, to be clear, I don't have any issue with--Mansfield Park just has a different narrative formula). Fanny overall is what you might call a static character--not in the sense that she is not fleshed-out or well-developed, but in that she does not go through a lot of character change. Rather, instead of her arc being about changing to become a better person, her arc is about her struggle to remain the good person that she is in spite of outside pressure to change to become more like the rest of the world. (For a really good example of a static character arc, look no further than Captain America!) It's not that Fanny doesn't go through any character growth whatsoever, she definitely does, but this growth overall roots her more deeply into what she believed before, rather than inciting change. The more I think about it, actually, the more it seems like Mansfield Park is a typical "Austen" story told from the perspective of the love interest.

It is actually Edmund who goes through the more dynamic character arc that we associate with most protagonists--which is why I've been thinking for ages that a retelling of Mansfield Park from his perspective could be REALLY interesting. Because told from his perspective, Mansfield Park undoubtedly becomes a love story where it did not hold that status previously. And Edmund would make such a great protagonist!!! There is SO MUCH about his character that I find absolutely fascinating. He of course has a very strong moral compass, which is something I've always admired him for, and despite his attraction to Mary and delusion about her character, is never once even tempted to change his profession from a clergyman to earn Mary's love. We really don't give Edmund enough credit for coming out so well-adjusted and morally upright as he did, coming from a family like the Bertram's. He is also fundamentally very kind, but what's so interesting about him is that he is not, though he certainly tries, always the most attentive. He certainly never neglects Fanny on purpose and is horrified when he finds out that he has, but the fact still remains that he is not the most emotionally perceptive (I'm actually very tempted to draw some parallels between him and Catherine Morland here). Edmund possesses a lot of book-smarts, but is somewhat lacking in social intelligence--or, for lack of a better term, street-smarts. I don't know what textual evidence there is to support this, but I've always had the impression that up until the beginning of the novel, Edmund hadn't had much experience mingling in society, given how as soon as he finished college he was brought straight home to manage Sir Bertram's estate while he was away in Antigua. Regardless of whether or not this is actually the case, it's clear that Edmund is a terrible judge of character despite how morally upright he himself is, which is absolutely fascinating to me. (Again! Catherine parallels!!) Fanny makes a direct contrast to Edmund in this regard--she does not possess the same book knowledge or have the advantage of the education that he had, but she is, though unconsciously, the most emotionally intelligent person in the room and the best judge of character in the entire book.

It is this contrast, but with their shared beliefs about the world and what is right and good, that cements my belief in how well-suited they are for each other. Edmund does not challenge Fanny to change, but Fanny's steadfastness of character does motivate Edmund to change--when he realizes that she perceived what sort of person Henry Crawford was all along and that she was right to refuse him, it exposes to him just how blind he is to the character of others. Edmund basically goes through the same sort of arc that Austen's heroines go through, but this time the roles have been reversed! IT'S JUST SO COOL

Anyway, sorry for rambling. TL;DR, I'm not going to try to convince you that Edmund Bertram is on the same level as Mr. Knightley or Mr. Tilney, but PLEASE examine him critically before you write him off as trash, because he really isn't.

[lost-sandwich]

Tried out a new brush/style with some of the Bendy crew! It's nice drawing Sammys long hair and tail again, he feels naked without it even if no hair is his canon design.

I plan to do more after this, most likely the butcher gang, searchers, lost ones and maybe I'll even try Alice!

Design notes and character backgrounds (contains spoilers if you're going through my askblog! [i promise i'm working on the next part but animation is hard to get motivation for]) in the read more ^^

For Norman I made him a failed Bendy as he said he often lurked around the studio as a projectionist so he likely saw the demon or heard of him around the studio from Joey or Tom. Long arms, hands and legs reflecting that, he came out very animalistic and has a large bundle of thick wires from his projector and back gathering to make a tail. He was made soon after Buddy as Joey thought that after his success he'd get better results but Norman fought back and ended up dying before he could be put through the ink, a projector being knocked over and breaking over his head.

Buddy has a little less in common with cartoon Boris reflecting his different mindset from Boris and giving him more wolf-like legs and a tail. He is still mute but wanders the studio a bit more, trying to gather more for his bunker because he feels like something will happen soon, something bad.

An OC I made! His name is Edmund Murphey and worked in a gift shop that was added to the first floor of the studio. He resides in the city seen in the Dark Revival with a copy of his shop. A band of angry people stormed the studio one day and ended up killing Edmund, impaling him with metal rods found at the breaking down studio (pre arch gate) and his cash register bashed into his head. He now wanders his shop, docile to the player unless they steal items and food without first dropping some slugs on the counter where he will chase after them, angrily rattling his register and hitting them with projectionist-like strength.

The Ink Demon is the largest thing in the studio other than Bertrum and the hand in the ink rivers. Its long thin legs end in pig hooves, its imitation of a demon even failing to copy the usual goat hooves. His tail is long and thick, also failing to copy a demons tail. Machinery replace one of his ankles after Buddy and Dot cut part of his leg with an axe.

[yankeecountess]

“We have all a better guide in ourselves, if we would attend to it, than any other person can be.”   

Sybil x Tom 1920s!Mansfield Park AU

Tom Branson’s world is turned upside down when he learns that he is distantly related to the Crawley family. He arrives at Downton Abbey, hoping to learn a bit more about his departed mother (Cora Levinson’s 4th cousin) and is ultimately taken under the Crawley family’s wing, though more so as a “glorified servant” than a “true member of the family”.  The only person who treats Tom as an equal is Sybil, with whom he develops a deep friendship (and to whom he gives his heart).

But the quiet days of Downton’s past are shattered by the arrival of the Crawley’s newest neighbors: the Crawford siblings, Larry and Mabel.  Both are modern, flirtatious, and over-indulgent when it comes hedonistic pleasure. Mabel fixes her eyes on Tom, while Larry is determined to woo Sybil.

The Crawley’s think Mabel is doing Tom a favor by setting her cap on him, but Tom knows his heart, knows it’s for Sybil alone, and while Larry works hard to convince Sybil to give up her dream of nursing, Tom promises to devote every waking minute to her happiness...

**images not mine

[sidercal]

* & OOC .

i.. i opened my pkmn swsh in like months and i forgot i named everyone OLD NAMES. 

... send me a  💫 and i’ll show 5 of my pokemon