#i know i have linguist bias but still

[rolandkaros]

not to throw a hissy fit but i’m fed up with commentators mispronouncing player names like it’s really not hard at all sorry

[dropthedemiurge]

Love for Love's Sake | Things You Didn't Notice #9

(okay it's not an episode number this time i just still have many details to point out oops pls let me go)

I swear. I thought I'd stop mentioning small details because I already wrote like 10 posts on Tumblr translating and explaining all the cultural stuff regarding this show and the obsession is already becoming embarrassing, but I rewatched the last episodes again and I've got tiny. Little. Details. That I can't help but point people to once again. Because damn, the amount of thought put into this show!

(trigger warning: first part talks about suicide and depression, next ones are linguistic and cultural)

The Black Suit & The Sea

I would've asked Koreans I know about the significance of such symbolism but they are celebrating Seollal (New Year) today and I don't wanna ruin the festive mood asking about "how would people dress for suicide" x)

But after watching this scene, I recognized some strong parallels in Korean media depicting depression, suicide and one's decision to end their life. One of it is bridges and jumping (if you don't know what Bridge of Life is, ask me and I'll share, so this post wouldn't become too long) but another one is sea.

My interpretation - Koreans wear black suits to funerals, so if someone is headed to the sea in a black suit, it might mean this is the character's attempt to "have" their own funeral before finally ending their life. Why do I think this combination is somehow significant?

Because I remembered a music video one of K-pop artists I like (Kim Hanbin) made, after he experienced the downfall of career, extreme hate and rejection from the public, and severe depression. His whole album Waterfall tells Hanbin's personal story, dark thoughts and his battle to survive during the time when he was gone for 2 years, but in the music video for this album (illa illa) he is seen emerging from the sea in a black suit – metaphorically regaining his music and, most importantly, desire to live. Watch with lyrics!

If we think, this is how you depict suicidal thoughts/attempt in Korean media (of course, Love for Love's Sake was even more blunt in telling us the meaning), then Myungha wearing black suit wasn't just for the pretty or dramatic picture. More than that, we see him wearing the black suit for the whole last evening – especially when he goes to finally meet his mother.

Which tells us Myungha has already decided to disappear from this world, and was determined to do it on that day, and his mother rejecting him and pretending she doesn't know her son might not have been just the last straw... but it definitely could've been Myungha's last attempt to find anything in his life worth staying for, worth not going through with his plan.

Anyway, what a scary but beautiful symbolism.

Let's talk about something happier! More heartwarming!

Do you remember when we talked about the carefully placed movie posters in previous episodes? I payed more attention to the background this time when in Episode 8 Yeowoon ran to the cinema searching for Myungha in his world. And what an amazing discovery! When Myungha starts existing again and calls Yeowoon, the movie poster behind Yeowoon says "Guardian" (보호자).

And I already said in another post that Myungha in previous episodes admitted himself being Yeowoon's "guardian, protector" in the exact same word. But now this word is shown next to Yeowoon! As Yeowoon is the one who changed the main mission and has now declared himself Myungha's guardian and protector and will do his best to make him (his favourite pereson/bias/blorbo) happy. They have now both become guardians for each other. This. Goddamn. Show.

And I also want to shout out the VFX & Production team for this show – all the visual effects are very down to earth, gentle and not over the top but enhancing the series to the max. Like, maybe you wondered where on the screen does it say "Monday, August 14" and "Saturday, August 12"? Well, as expected, you see it on four monitor screens above the box office – the date, the ongoing movies (yep, still our favourite two fake movies) and available dates etc.

But when Yeowoon and Myungha agree to meet each other in the exact system time, they are facing each other without a barrier, and the screens are now counting down the time until the Game End. Instead of normally showing movies, like in the previous shot, it says "Time remaining: 3 hours, 23 minutes, 15 seconds". It was either done with VFX or practically, but still, the thought of incorporating system messages into the actual background is insane and I'm always happy to discover such details.

I don't know how many of you have motivational stairs at your schools, we definitely didn't have this but it's quite a popular thing in Korea. They put popular and uplifting sayings for students on each stair, sometimes they even quote motivational phrases from idols, like this:

And it's interesting that when system gets broken and Myungha is about to disappear, we see the deep cracks coming through the stairs, we see ruined school BUT at the same time the quotes in the show are so obviously in our focus. And they are already written (see screenshots above) in Korean and English, but I'll still write down: one is saying "Stay hungry, stay foolish" and "If you dream it, you can do it, you will succeed". So, perhaps... motivational quotes from sunbae?

And the last moment isn't heavy on translation but I still want to talk about it because cool Korean culture!xD You see the gang grilling meat on the roof (it's called samgyeopsal and it's very popular to have for gatherings), and then Myungha makes a "ssam" and feeds it to Yeowoon – but Sangwon steals it.

Ssam is a wrap, you grill meat then put it on the salad leaf, add other ingredients (like mushrooms, sauces, garlic, green onions etc, there are many side dishes) and then you wrap it in this sort of salad sack and eat it. It's very tasty and unusual combination. But the thing is! There is no way to make it for someone else and leave it on their plate so if you make a ssam wrap for someone and want to give it to a person, you literally have to feed them (like Myungha does with a very fond smile). This is why it's often seen as a romantic gesture (aka feeding someone from your fork etc) and why it's hilarious that Sangwon steals this ssam from Yeowoon (because he wants and he gets Myungha's affection and he's not above being a brat about it!)

I'm sure you can already sense it anyway without me telling you about romantic/close-friend implications, but I thought you guys might wonder why are the guys fighting over the salad leaf.

Another funny thing – Sangwon mentions "There's a saying, 'Don't scold dogs while they eat'". This is a Korean proverb "밥 먹을 때는 개도 안 때린다" ("You don't hit even a dog when it eats") which means that, no matter how annoying you find someone, no matter how angry you are, you can't scold this person while they are eating. Eating is a very important cultural thing in Asia, of course, so do not have arguments at the dinner :D But it's funny how Sangwon uses old proverbs to be mischievous and steal Myungha's love without consequences xD I adore him

I swear, this gotta be my last post about all the details in Love for Love's Sake. There is one more scene with the mirror and a caption, and I'm very curious if it means something because it was seen twice, during system breaking down scene as well, but it's either in Chinese or Japanese and I can't read it.

Anyway! Hope you enjoyed your everyday magazine, I love reading all your tags and thoughts and comments, and if you want to read all my previous translations and pointed out cultural details in Love for Love's Sake, go read this tag!=)

[curtwilde]

i have a genuine question, what is arab colonisation? Is it a real thing? The context where I have read about it was a bigoted islamophic hindutvabadi page so I don't know if it's true or just part of their larger lie. Do you have any readings, sources on it?

According to Marriam Abboud Hourani, Arabization is a sociological process of cultural change in which a non-Arab society becomes Arab, meaning it either directly adopts or becomes strongly influenced by the Arabic language and culture. After the rise of Islam in Hejaz, there were a series of conquests in the Middle East and North Africa, after which the Rashidun Caliphate, the first Muslim empire was established. Arab culture spread through the Middle East and North Africa along with the spread of Islam, and in some places pre-Islamic religions and cultures were violently suppressed. These days, most Islamic countries have reconciled elements of their older traditions with Islam. The older religions survive among minorities in some places - Christians, Kurds, Ezidis and Mizrahi Jews for example and are still oppressed under some Islamic fundamentalist countries, like Iran.

Often, the term Arabization or Arab colonialism is used interchangeably with Islamic fundamentalism. On paper they mean entirely different things. However, in reality Islamic fundamentalists revere Arabic culture because the Quran was written in Arabic and events of the Quran are set in Arabia. The difference between the two is a slippery slope and I will let you decide on that.

The term colonization is such a red herring these days and is used to fit a lot of problematic narratives. It is a favourite with zionists, which is probably where these hindutvadis picked it up. And if you come across it on the internet I'd advise you to re-examine the source as they may have an anti-Muslim bias. That said, Islamic fundamentalism is very much a real thing and I wholeheartedly believe that any form of religious fundamentalism, and especially those fundamentalists that try to gain administrative and jurisdictional power for themselves, are a problem. All government and administrative bodies, across the world, should be compulsorily secular.

Now, in the context of South Asia, Arabization in it's strict meaning of the word, has nothing to do with our geopolitical history. Our Muslim rulers were all of Turkish, Afghan, and Central Asian origins with no connection to Arabia. Even culturally, elements of Indian Muslim culture can be traced back to Persia rather than Arabia; and linguistically the Persian influence on Hindi/Urdu is obvious. The term Arab colonization is often used by hindutvadis to mean the spread Islam in the subcontinent but of course they see the Islamic world as a monolith and I doubt they have the reading comprehension to know the difference even if they bothered to look it up.

Books:

The History of the Middle East by Peter Mansfield is a great place to start.

Islam, a short history by Karen Armstrong - very quick read + unbiased take on the Arab conquests.

The Arabization of Islam by Al Mubarak Nadir Shabaz

History of North Africa by Charles Andre Julien

From the holy mountain: a journey among the Christians of the Middle East by William Dalrymple

The Kurds: a contemporary history by Patrick S. Clancy

The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon for a general idea of colonization.

Mutuals if you have any other recommendations please feel free to add.

[weolucbasu]

So, @da-proti-toku-grem kind of inspired me to make a lengthy post, sharing some positive vibes across the fandom, listing the reasons why I love each member of Joker Out and why I would go full mom-mode on them and cook for them and bake them gluten-free cookies.

Anyway:

A Joker Out, brain-rot, appreciation post

(members listed in alphabetical order)

Bojan

First up - as someone who had the chance to see them live, he is an insane performer

His ability to enchant the crowd is insane and you can tell really well that he has great acting abilities too

Watched him in Gospod Profesor too, spot on for someone who is a so-called amateur

His singing voice is... amazing to say the least, it feels really unique

Also, the way he talks, the sound of his voice, the words he uses, his pronunciation, if there were awards for talking he would get one

The languages he speaks, I want to study him, linguistically, he is truly a phenomenon

We of course love a bilingual king

He looks like he has his priorities straight

I also respect him so much for how open he is about his mental illness

I might relate to him a bit too much at times whoops

And the fact that he can somehow befriend literally anyone??? Love that

His friendship with Jere is the main one of course

Oh yeah and the fact that he literally helped people who collapsed at their gigs a few times

Bless him, he deserves all the rest he is hopefully getting

Jan

First things first, I have a soft spot for math guys

And the way he talks about math is fascinating (but you still won't get me to like it Jan)

Cat dad???? We absolutely adore Igor and a man loving cats is such a green flag

I know people say he mumbles a bit and it's hard to understand him at times, but idk, he talks nice and slowly, so it's still really easy to understand him

He comes from my home region, so I am very biased haha

Also, every band needs a guitarist with luscious locks

He absolutely owns the colour red, that colour was invented specifically for him

The nose ring suits him so well too, this man KNOWS what fits him

And if that ends up being jackets with nothing underneath when he performs, THEN SO BE IT

I know people call Kris the lesbian icon, but from what I've seen lesbians are very drawn to Jan as well

Oh, and he gives me Klaus from the Umbrella Academy vibes (I blame the hair and the pink boa)

Jure

Holy shit, sunshine in human form????

The most underappreciated one in the band imo

His surname literally means 'cat' and I am so normal that Jan has called him 'muca'

He also comes from my region haha, bias again

He's really good at filming, he actually shot a few things for RTV (national TV station) and edited them as well, god, talent

Also playing drums... I have sang, I have played guitar, played bass, but drums is something I feel like I could NEVER do, so hats off to you

As @da-proti-toku-grem pointed out, THE MOLE ON HIS LIP? weak knees, yes

He also reminds me of a good friend of mine and I vibe with him so much, I feel like I would vibe with Jure as well

I really don't like the fact that drummers tend to get ignored and I just wish there was more Jure performing content

Though I love it how every time, during Novi Val, he comes to the front and hangs with the others

His hair also looks so soft and fluffy aaaaaa

Again, biased but he resembles my bf the most out of everyone so hmmmm

Kris

The baby of the band! (and the only one in the band I could actually call 'mulc')

In case you didn't know yet, he's half Dutch

And he speaks Dutch, which, as someone who speaks Dutch (in theory, not in practice) makes me really happy

I wish to study him linguistically as well

Also his parents' story feels very close to me, as I'm dating outside of my culture as well

According to him he was menace as a kid and I think we should normalise the fact that you can become a better person as you grow up

But pls don't honk at me on the road Kris, pls, I will cry

The songs he wrote??? NGVOT and Vse kar vem??? Oh boy, I love them, adore them

His holey sweaters are also a vibe

Dutch fans, if you don't shower him and the rest of the band with gifts at their Dutch concerts, I will be mad

Also gotta honorably mention Maks

They gotta be my fav nepo-but-not-really babies out there

Kinda like Maya Hawke?

I am ranting

He also looks like the only member of the band that I would fight, and idk why

Also, I must know if he supports Max Verstappen haha

Minus points for chemistry though, I cannot with that

Nace

Okay everyone

Here we go

We have reached my beloved

I love all of them, but Nace just a bit more

It was love at first sight, I cannot lie

I have a soft spot for bassists and he might actually convince me to try and play bass again

He has been playing it for so long too??? like wow

Oh and of course; THE TATTOOS, BLESSETH BE THE TATTOOS

I will always go feral about his tattoos

At every concert

I know he was the last to join the band but it looks like he fits in so nicely, it's beautiful

Strong mom-codded dad friend vibes

He kinda is the dad of the band haha

And he looks like he gives amazing hugs (lucky all of you who had managed to get one already)

A nice addition to the band

Oh and he's apparently shit at sports which is like... felt

Plus the fact that he wanted to be a vet?

Me too boo, me too, but neither of us is there now

Anway, I'll stop now. In conclusion, this band has my whole heart and they deserve every good thing that happens to them and so much more.

[mythical-fangirls]

Now, for my own safety because people don't know how to simply scroll past salt. I'm gonna say it now if you like Dragons The Nine Realms Scroll Away now. This is a rewrite of the series because of its wasted potential and god-fucking awful ending.

Now that the Nine Realms is over, I can talk about a rewrite my brain has been brewing up since the show began.

Now, there are two ways a rewrite can go after I witnessed the finale.

A series of episodes that showcase dragons being found again and again by humanity, and in the end humanity always deciding to leave the dragons alone once again. Because after that ending, my brain immediately thought of it happening before, of humans and dragons always meeting and bonding again and again and again, only for humanity as a whole to prove unkind that the humans who care for the dragons have to hide them once more

A general rewrite of the series. I'm bias to an OC I crafted when the series started, but to keep things simple I'm going to be using the same characters and just tweaking their stories to better fit the whole idea the series was trying to get to

The cast is first aged up to be around young collage age, and they're at the Icarus base as part of an internship as per their varying majors. This would explain Alex's skills with tech and hacking and shut because she's majoring in it.

Tom's studies would be more general sciences, with a focus on ecology. It's only a coincidental plus that he's working with his mom since she's a geologist. Tom's here to study how the opening of the fissure has affected the environment around it as whole

Jun's studies are history based, with a focus on archology. As the fissure is around a historic site that she was already interning at. Jun is also a bit of linguist due to needing to translate the old texts they find on digs. The fissure opened up more potential dig sites in the shockwaves after it first opened

Alex is a cyber security major currently at the site as an intern to help manage the base as she also has varying tech classes and certifications under her belt

D'Angelo is a biology major, with plans to eventually become a veterinarian. He's there to study the flora and fauna within the fissure and how the opening of the fissure has affected the plants outside of it

Eugene is currently on a gap "year" and has been simply working during it. But a company he's working for offered him position to basically be in charge of Icarus' food supplies and the like as, due to the uniquely somewhat confidential nature of the project, it would be easier to have someone who already knows the people within the project and thus someone trustworthy to the people within the project, to handle their supplies

The kids are mainly here to help the people they're interning under analyze information the proper project team acquires to do more menial tasks for them. Except Eugene who's main job is to basically ensure stock of mainly food supplies but also other things the team might need

Tom isn't related to Hiccup, he's actually related to the Twins for pure Comedy

Jun is still incredibly fond of myths and folktales, its the reason she's a history major because those tales are a window of how society was at the time (if that makes sense)

Eugene and Jun are still siblings, and their parents are still divorced, but Eugene was left in their mother's primary custody and Jun was left with their father. Eugene was coddled too much by their mother, which left him indecisive over his path in life

D'Angelo's desire to become a vet is because of a pet his dad got him before he would've had to leave for another military assignment. That animal was his best friend, and it died due to an illness that they didn't catch because his dad just got home after months of being gone. Out of grief he could never bond with an animal like that again. Out of a bit of guilt, he's aiming to become a veterinarian

Now I always had an image of the Nine Realms within my head before the show aired that I refuse to let go of

There's a biome of shadows and storms where dragons like the Skrill, Night Terrors, and Night Furys live and thrive within

(Yes, Night Furys. I always thought it would be amazing if Toothless wasn't truly the last of his kind but rather the last of his kind to join them in the Hidden World)

Animals from ages past live and thrive in the Hidden World alongside the dragons. Mammoths, Dodo Birds, Saber Tooth Tigers, Giant Sloths, Eurasian Aurochs, and so many more. The environment of the hidden world is borderline fantasy in how it operates and thrives despite the lack of sunlight

There are eight realms within the hidden world, as the nineth would be where the Icarus base is. Each realm is unfathomably vast with so much nature and creatures living within it. What makes the Fissure so special is that its basically Yggdrasil in that its the point where all of the realms connect

Dragoncite, as a rock, has no use to dragons. At least to dragons in the modern day. When dragons first went completely underground, many of them missed the feeling of the sun against their scales. One day, a Rumblehorn, after consuming a specific diet that only happens in the heart of the hidden world, produced the first Dragoncite. Dragoncite, when heated with dragon flame, radiates a heat similar to the heat of sunshine. Dragons heated it up for survival or addition, they heated it up for nostalgia. As a reminder of times long past. Dragons in the modern day do it because their ancestors and forefathers did it

With ^ in mind, this would also lead to many dragons being very eager to soar into the open sky. Finally feeling the true heat dragoncite was replicating. But the loud machines and once familiar now unfamiliar sky intimidate them, for there is no reason to trek beyond their home that has all they need

The initial earthquake that opened the fissure was a quarrel between a Fault Ripper and a teenage Screaming Death. The following earthquakes are the result of the Fault Ripper attempting to close the fissure

The Fault Ripper is a noble species in the hidden world, they are the dragon that create vast caves and paths between the varying realms. Where Whispering Deaths dig to eat, Fault Rippers dig to serve their environment

Jormungandr, as a dragon, is like the hidden world itself. Unfathomably large. One doesn't even realize it's a dragon unless you somehow find its head/tail. One can find oddly rounded formations in the Hidden World that go through mountains and caves. No one would ever suspect them to be the same nor even consider it to be a dragon because the environment and the dragon itself have melded into one. Jormungandr is in a sort of eternal hibernation, absorbing nutrients through its scales in the varying environments of its segments

Treasure Hunters/Poarchers/Hunters trying to head into the fissure to steal either information, creatures from within, or even just Plants constantly try to go in and is in fact an ongoing issue for the research team because these goons are disrupting the natural environment of the creatures and thus tampering with data!

The goons go missing a lot though, and none of their people on the surface know why because even the search parties they send in go missing

(Answer: dragons and other carnivores but mainly the dragons)

Now, I refuse to believe Hiccup would leave so much random shit in the Hidden World and seem to move his young children and wife to the Hidden World and leave Berk to what?? Snotlout??? Democracy??? Anyways

Either Hiccup himself (with Astrid obviously and maybe the other riders), when his kids are grown and managing the village in full, or (again another bias thing my little wrym brain wants) a child of his (maybe a 3th after Zephry and Nuffink? To match with Toothless also having three kids?) is the one who stays in the hidden world and records their findings. Living out the rest of their days in the Hidden World, hoping that their notes will guide the future. They pray to the Gods that whoever finds their notes is kind to dragons and will show them the kindness of the world

The notes are locked in a container made out of gronkle iron and death song amber

And that's all for now my brain is a pile of water mashed potatoes

[cowardlybean]

Being a proshipper just means you don't harass people over fiction, that you can tell the difference between fiction and reality, and that you have a stable rational mind that doesn't urge you to accuse people of crimes over fiction. Most people are proship. Most adults are proship. All your favorite content creators are proship. The only people who are antis are typically ignorant teenagers who think society is too stupid to understand what fiction is.

okay this is absolutely some kind of bait but I don't really care. the term "proshipper" is a stupid term and here's why:

Proship originated as what anon said, a term that meant anti-harassment over ships. However, we've seen multiple times in history that language can change as perception of terms changes (the terms problematic and media literacy losing some meaning, yaoi now becoming synonymous with gay romance in fiction rather than just Japanese media), and thus proshipper no longer means the same thing. I don't need any experience in linguistics to know this.

As for accusing people of real crimes, this is Sometimes. Sometimes an issue. For example, teenagers groomed into creating proship content being doxxed and called a criminal should instead be receiving help. However, on the other side of the spectrum, artists who draw explicit artworks of minors are creating actual CP (link to the American law: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1466A)

Proship as a term is now used in connection with pairing fictional characters in incestuous, pedophilic, or otherwise harmful relationships. Can these be explored in media? Yes, yes they can be, the book Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (written in 1955, mind you, but is still relevant) is an example of pedophilic behavior written in a famous story. But what's important to note is that even with an unreliable narrator, the pedo himself, his actions are not glorified anywhere apart from within his eyes.

In analyzing media one needs to look at motifs, narrator bias, the author's intent, other character's behaviors, and more to understand what is happening. When I see proship artwork I see that the negative implications (if any) are just a scandalous flair to otherwise glorified depictions. Serious topics should be handled seriously, not with a dick in one hand.

While there is a difference in fiction and reality, fiction can cause things to occur in reality. We're on Tumblr, surely you would know of the Voltron cookies incident? As for something that applies to proshipping, various people who have come out with stories about being groomed online will explain that drawn sexual content of children was involved. Still not enough? Lolicon and Shotacon are discovered on social media and saved to the computers of pedophiles. There are even more examples I can make, but this is long enough.

But I'm sure I'm the one here who doesn't have a stable rational mind.

[absolutebl]

Hi!

I have seen calls by Western (mostly American judging by English accents) fans to stop using the words Tsundere and Seme or other non-English labels related to BL. Critics have stated this alongside requests to stop using terms “top” and “bottom” as they are antiquated and limiting in their use, stuck in a gender binary and the roles that come with it, and hetero-centric.

As a queer, white, American BL fan, I am hesitant to comment on any part of queer culture that isn’t mine. I don’t particularly use the words mentioned but that has more to do with being new here and not remembering them than it does any conscious boycott. I also am hesitant to criticize queerness and how it it is expressed in culture outside of my own. For example, the use of the term “wife” in Thai BL to refer to a male partner. I don’t really know about Thai queer culture so I don’t have enough info to comment.

Anywho, I’m curious what your thoughts are on the Western, queer lens and critique of BL? It seems short sighted to me in my minimal exposure. I’d love your thoughts.

Love your blog! Keep up the awesome work.

seme/uke isn't queer (sorry, but its not terminology that belongs to, applies, or even should really be used by the queers to apply to our community in any way, certainly not applied to other queers *shudder*) its narrative terminology, as in pop culture or lit crit. Which means, by its nature, it is designed to talk about characters and archetypes, not real humans. Avoid applying it to real people and it's fair game IMHO. The problem is fans conflating it (or BL characters, for that matter) to real human beings. And that's fandom's fault, not the syntax. 

I really don't like the pillarization of words, (and I can’t STAND attacks within the community, like seriously don’t queers have actual - ya know - rights for fight for and non-queers to police these days, why all this infighting?) especially when there is NO alternative narrative word choice that doesn't impose a queer lens onto stories (BL or yaoi). These narratives are still, in the main, NOT queer, and not intended for a queer audience. In other words, can a critic of the terms seme/uke come up with something better than seme/uke? Until they do, I think it’s fair to apply these words to narrative analysis and discussion as long as the user defines them and knows their history.

Western queer lens critique/approach is fine IMHO so long as the critic understands their lens, bias, and cultural immersion issues (as in, limits to comprehension and socio-political, linguistic, and regional bubbles). Or makes an honest attempt. 

The point of healthy dialogue around pop culture is to encourage research, linguistic and otherwise, and understanding, travel (actual, mental, emotional, or fantastical), immersion, and openness to alternate cultures, social dynamics, and ways of perceiving the world. (And I do mean perception.) So long as all that is occurring because of these narratives, then the narratives are doing their pop-culture jobs.

With the possible exception of Japan, BLs are being expressly produced for a global market (now) therefore they not only can be but should be critiqued (in the academic sense of the world) by global audiences based in different cultures (and with different lenses). 

BL is pop culture entertainment intended for a global market (as, indeed, is Kpop). It’s like publishing a book and not expecting bad reviews. The thing has gone out into the world to entertain, and entertainment by its nature it is what the audience makes of the experience. The resulting pop culture phenomena IS a dialogue between creator/artist and consumer/audience. Otherwise why put it out into the world in the first place? 

This goes into one of those old arguments about separating the art from the artist. Does the art itself have its own autonomy? Will harry potter always be colored by JKR’s behavior? Ender’s game by Card’s? Lovecraft by Lovecraft’s? 

I am one those critics who believe that the experience of art and entertainment is what the audience makes of it, but that the origin should be taken into account as well. These aren’t mutually exclusive. The nature of intent is in play in both directions. The creator may intend one thing, but the consumer can and will end up reacting to whatever they make of that creation. They will take away what they wish from the experience. They will bring their own bias and life experiences to their enjoyment of any piece of media. Which is why no media satisfies everyone. 

In other words, the creators of the thing and what they intend is in play, but so is the intention of the audience. Some viewers go into BL with the intent to find flaws and to criticize (in the online sense of the word) and many of those are queer folk. 

Also, negativity always gets more online attention than positivity. 

I guess all this is say sure “everyone is entitled to their own opinion,” but if certain persons feel entitled to express that option in public, I’m equally entitled not to give it any weight if it’s ill informed. 

QED 

[shenuuuuh]

Language is a powerful tool that shapes our culture and society. Language is a powerful tool in shaping our culture as it carries the beliefs, traditions, and knowledge of a certain group. The way we speak and the words we use shapes our cultural identity. Language serves as a medium of communication in which we express ourselves and connect with others that fosters social interaction and forms relationships that are necessary in a society. The English language is becoming widespread and has become the dominant language most of us speak and the language of communication used globally. In this era of globalization, the influence of English language has reached higher ground to the point where it has become the global lingua franca or the de facto language of trade, business, technology, and academia. The influence of English language reached to the extent where kids are more fluent in English rather than their first language. We really cannot deny the change and influence the globalization of the English language has brought. However, in this rapid globalization and widespread of English language certain salient issues rose that most of us needs to be enlightened.

One of the issues the world is facing is language discrimination. The English language is spoken by millions of people and is still increasing every day in today’s generation. A lot of people consider the English language as the superior one, thus, it is not shocking that the minority of people who don’t or can’t speak are being discriminated. In today’s world where the English language is the primary mode of communication, those who can speak English proficiently are often seen as more intelligent, educated, and competent while those who can’t speak are subjected to discrimination and bias. This discrimination manifest in subtle ways like dismissing someone’s ideas in workplace or class just because they are not that proficient in speaking English, laughing at someone, and mocking their pronunciations when they are speaking, and denying employment or education because of language proficiency. We all should be aware that language discrimination causes detrimental effects on someone as people who are not proficient in speaking English may feel exclusion, shame, may face barriers and disadvantages. We all need to recognize and understand that we all live in a world where diversity is present and value the richness of different languages and cultures.

The reason why we face problem like language discrimination is that we fail to see the beauty of diversity which leads us to the next issue, the lack of recognition to language or linguistic diversity. This issue is prevalent in the Philippines as we consider the English language as a language for intelligent people, we are all so focused on learning English language that we fail to see the beauty of the different languages we have. We all need to recognize that there are diverse and unique languages out there and see the beauty with it. We all need to promote and raise awareness about linguistic diversity. Together, let us preserve the beautiful, diverse, and unique languages and cultures each of us have.

In today’s era the ability to communicate effectively in multiple languages is crucial. This statement leads us to our next issue which is the lack of language education. In today’s interconnected world, I think that the education system is lacking in providing the students with resources and opportunities that are necessary to know and develop proficiency in other languages, especially the English language. I think that they need to provide more resources and opportunities for non-native speakers and underprivileged people to access education. I think that they need to improve the access and the quality of language education that can cater everyone, especially the marginalized individuals and every person regardless of their backgrounds and status.

The language is the door in knowing the culture, we can’t separate the language from culture as we share culture through language, when we learn the language, we cannot help but learn and adopt the culture as well. With the rapid globalization of English language, a lot of other languages and culture became endangered. One of the most salient issues we are facing is the loss of language and culture. The dominance of English language many indigenous languages has become endangered and extinct which caused the loss of cultural knowledge. Language is not just a mean of communication it is also a reflection of our culture, traditions, and beliefs.

In connection to that, we must promote cultural preservation. We must learn how to preserve our unique culture. I remember reading an article that said “once a person lost their language, they also lost their cultural identity. Learning the English language nowadays is a must, however, in doing so we must not forget our own language and culture that comes with it. We all should protect and preserve our language and culture in the face of globalization. We must recognize and understand the importance of the contribution of the diversity in language and culture in shaping our collective identity and understanding of the people around us, ourselves, and our world. All of us must value and celebrate our own unique, beautiful, and diverse language and culture so we can create a balanced and harmonious world.

This blog aims to promote the salient issues we are facing in English language, culture, and society. The language, culture, and society are essential in building a harmonious community. I truly believe that all of us should come together and embrace language diversity and celebrate cultural differences in the face of globalization. I hope that all of us can help mitigate the salient issues presented in this blog which are the language discrimination, lack of recognition to language diversity, lack of language education, loss of language and culture, and promoting cultural preservation. Together, let us create a community and a world where all of us are valued, included, and respected. Together, let us promote understanding, unity, and awareness to the salient issues of English language, culture, and society to create a inclusive future for all.

[paradife-loft]

should be going to sleep. instead having an entire fit over the reversal of emotional/ideological/symbolic etc valence of the idea of the ~pre-fall monolinguistic culture that Babel sets up

like the diffused cultural narrative of the tower, the one characters even reference in the story, is that the single language and the state of humanity with that single language was essentially a good thing, that it's some sort of idealized state, of everyone being able to understand each other and not be thwarted from collaboration by communication barriers

but if the tower instead belongs to Oxford, to the crown, to the project of empire; and the broad symbols play out of the tower and the project behind it falling and crumbling into dust - the single language here isn't cooperation, it's hegemony; it's smothering out minority languages and cultures with a single dominant linguistic paradigm, and anything else is only allowed to exist so long as it serves that project.

....the four main characters all do literally speak the same language, and that doesn't fucking help them understand one another in the way they would've needed to. because they're positioned differently with respect to empire - perhaps the central "language" in the whole thing, actually?

(perhaps this is just my selection bias of what countries' linguistic policies I know a little bit about, but it also feels... a little bit relevant that among them, the main characters' central languages, the ones they put to the most use for empire, (non-exhaustivsly) include English (of course), French, and Mandarin Chinese. Ramy fits in less with that commentary, but he also I think fits in a little differently in other ways as well, like his personal family background, and his general orientation toward England which was always hostile from the beginning. ...Ramy's positioning relative to each of the other three in general just feels really complicated in ways I'm not entirely sure what to make of, honestly. but oh, nonetheless, the professors still keep trying to treat him like Sanskrit is one of his main languages when it's very much not, which is certainly suggestive in itself, too.)

... but anyway yeah, unity as hegemony, as the narrative of the ruling class sweeping violence under the rug, masking faults, rather than the traditional utopian ideal. and conversely, kind of implied - multiplicity as a site of opportunity, and something much more sustainable in the long term.

[blackcrowing]

A History Of Pagan Europe by Prudence Jones & Nigel Pennick -Review

If you are 100% unfamiliar with the subject matter outside of possibly knowing that there used be pagan beliefs in the general areas of Greece, Rome, France/Spain, Germany/Scandinavia, The Baltic States then I suppose this book would be a decent starting point, though honestly I wouldn't recommend it even for that. The authors might as well have named the book "History of Pagan Europe as written by the Classical Writers" and be done with it. It would have been more honest. While the balk of our written information about these cultures and practices of the time period covered DOES come from classical writers there is still a plethora of archeological, linguistic and DNA evidence to draw from which these authors wholly seemed to ignore. Worse they didn't even bother to note that some "facts" written in those text are heavily disputed at this point OR EVEN BOTHER TO TOUCH ON THE BIAS OF THE WRITERS IN REFERENCE TO CULTURES OUTSIDE THEIR OWN! This is simply unforgettable. Additionally to its list of sins I will add the fact that it joins the horrifyingly long list of books that don't bother to make any real distinctions when it comes to the 'Celtic' groups (ie. Insular and Continental AT THE VERY LEAST). Its additionally disappointing because I've read and deeply enjoyed Nigel Pennick's Pagan Magic of the Northern Tradition: Customs, Rites and Ceremonies and found it a illuminating and well researched read so I was really looking forward to this book.

[bersergner-blog]

Sources & Significance 1_1.7 - Identity & Visual Culture

Today we will focus on tackling representation as it relates to imagery. First we need to assess what representation means in visual culture. Images offer an insight into particular views being represented, whether overtly or subconsciously. This is the practice of Ocularcentrism: ‘depiction, picturing and seeing are ubiquitous features of the process by which most human beings come to know the world as it really is for them’ - John Berger (1972: 7) ‘ways pf seeing, London, Penguin.

As visual beings we naturally perceive the world predominantly through sight, we ascribe meanings to imagery and symbolism and eventually it, alongside cultural doctrine and personal experience, form our understanding of the world. “We daily experience and perpetuate the conflation of the ‘seen; with the ‘known’ in conversation through the commonplace linguistic appendage of ‘do you see?’ or ‘see what I mean?’ to uttrances that seem to require confirmation, or, when seeking opinion, by inquiring after people’s ‘views’” - Jenks, C. (1995) ‘the centrality of the eye in Western culture’, in C. Jenks (ed.), Visual Culture. London: Routledge, pp. 1-2. This seems to imply our culture is a visual culture where seeing is believing. And while I would largely agree with this I believe that there is a cultural shift in postmodern views where we are confronted with ‘faked’ imagery and situations on a daily basis and while I believe it has given some people, such as myself a more critical eye and view of perception I believe for a lot of people this has simply shifted into a new normal where seeing still is believing. But everything is worked and reworked in the digital age to the point where I believe everything not seen in person should be taken with a grain of salt, a challenging, taxing and pessimistic outlook indeed, but sadly a necessary one.

Nonetheless it is undeniable that imagery holds power, symbolically as well as culturally. Continually perpetuated beliefs are given form through visual imagery, combined with the information bias we all see what we want to see. So the crux of the issue is arguably perspective. As artists it is impossible for us to not imbue our images with our own particular world-view and identity. So where does representation fit in with this? Should we forego representing other cultures as it is impossible to not show them through our own lense, further potentially perpetuating a cultural misunderstanding? How does identity affect our work?

Identity is our image of the self. We externalise this with our views, social media presence, art, voice and clothing. In fact clothing in particular is a fascinating form that people use to reflect their individual and cultural identity. However cultural studies have also drawn attention to how identity is defined in response to something external. Such as cultural pressure. It is more than just a form of self-understanding. Effective visual communication is based on a connection between the viewer and what is depicted in the image. This is related to the old adage ‘write what you know’ as writing something you are unfamiliar with can come across as inauthentic. So how can we represent other cultures visually in a respectful and meaningful way? Identification can be realistic or aspirational, but some level of identification is necessary for visual representation to resonate. But where can we draw the line between aspirational and stereotypical? Are all stereotypes inherently harmful? It is impossible to separate representation from meaning. The human brain will automatically ascribe knowledge and identification to imagery. ‘Thinking outside of stereotypes, however, is difficult. In her study of four focus groups attempting to create ideas for television shows featuring a White character, an American Indian character, and a female character, Bird (2003) found participants often relied in stereotypes for characters of racial identities different from their own. One of the White male groups, “ even with their determination not to stereotype… essentially found themselves unable to draw on cultural knowledge that would help them imagine a fully-developed Indian character” (Bird 2003, p. 99). Moreover, while White people may have learned not to characterise Native Americans negatively, they still rely on stereotyped assumptions about behavior, thought they may be “positive” stereotypes. (Bird, 2003, pp. 88-89)”.

So as artists representing other cultures in our imagery what can we do to do so justly? I found this following excerpt to be rather insightful: “Perhaps instead of thinking of identity as an already accomplished historical fact, which the new cinematic discourse then represent, we should think, instead, of identity as a ‘production’, which is never complete, always in process, and always constituted within, not outside, representation” (Hall 1989: 68). It is also important to keep in mind what we consider representations of our own identity and use this to think of our characters as individuals with their own identity way beyond stereotypes. What do we use to identify ourselves? Clothes, opinions, aesthetic, etc. In fact our characters may appropriate stereotypes in an effort to break social boundaries, such as cross-dressing or gender-queer outfits. However once this becomes cultural we are walking a thin line between representation and cultural appropriation.

[wayward-hums]

For instance: recent studies on PTS have presented, that the diagnosed subjects show a significant difference in volume of hippocampus and amygdala. To me, this clearly indicates that those misdiagnosed with disorders of thought and affect, despite of showing signs of a psychotic breakdown, being administered medicines, must have turned out resilient to all treatment. It may take years, decades, until specialists realise the ‘worst’ option - I apologise for the bias - as it appears plausible that ‘the sufferers' (recent statistics: 1 out of 16-17 people last time I checked) aren’t really as mentally disordered as they are, I’d say, “idiosyncratically ‘retarded’".

The study of philosophy came next, as psychiatry could not bring satisfactory answers at all. 

Thankfully, a significant amount of philosophical content, was already familiar to me, since the field of linguistics is concurrently linked to the studies on being. As the constructs described by psychiatry form a system of a written law, a set of rules, a guide into productivity, that is subsequently organised within an already existing foundation, it can be deconstructed with ease. However, the issue of ‘I’ - has always been problematic, even to the wisest of madmen - ever since an animal became self aware. As psychiatry fails to explain the very root of human error, one has to venture a wee bit further - just like with anything else really - to the very source of its existence. A psychotic episode could constitute a breakthrough…: surely - the mind gets lost, and the road that leads to its retrieval is immensely unwelcoming and unsightly - nevertheless, the wisdom given by insanity from within and from without is served freely, imposed forcibly within the flow, and exchanged automatically, as the societal 'soap bubble’, or the personal ‘wall’, depending on circumstance, vanishes. The ‘traps’ left by those in doubt who were before are stumbled upon throughout further discovery. They are there to remind that we are all human, despite of it all. And most, I reckon, have to start alike: “why am I, I?”, (so many get stuck at the hyperreal red stop of monkeys in the pale moonlight, or venturing further back, get mesmerised by lizards baking in the sun), to know how it goes. It is easier now to get out of these ‘traps’, though - from sinking into the realms of religious dogmas, or being lured into the Oedipal net, into a state of organised confusion, where enslaved with a vision of the fulfillment of desires designed externally “for you” one ceases becoming, to finding self at the dead-ends of internally hidden holes of solipsism, or - on the contrary - being locked in the anxious file cabinet of radical materialism… - as those in doubt who were before us, were there too, all human, after all; some of them wrote passages of their labored release from own past inclinations that signify the prevailing nature of some profound dream we are all, seemingly, after. Hence, as long as question is posed, there’s a chance the doors of endless possibilities have been unlocked already, and with each and every one originating from the exact same source, some were friendly enough to leave the copy of their copy of the key behind them. 

What would I like you to think of me?

Know that I am

What do I think of us? 

We come so anxious and worried about the hostility of the environment; the malice of sharp smiles and beady eyes is upon us. We've felt... We continuously feel heavy pain in our heart. Our chest is growing an evil lotus flower of pastel slime that bursts intensively out of our solar plexus. The only thing still intact is our spirit, and although its walls are being pricked constantly, we don't panic. On the outside of itself, people seem hostile. We sense danger. We feel too vulnerable, our sternum holds an invisible metal screw that is receding persistently, whilst our momentum is ebbing within it the entire time, as if we existed in the applied reality only as a heavy metal body, and the rest wasn't here anymore. People are looking at us with drone empty eyes, without any glimpse of selfhood, and the demons are standing still. Our belief is that people constitute a myriad of components that form different shades of grey while our strength is determined by how much force we possess to remain decent. It terrifies us, as the reality becomes less and less real and our mind more and more abstract. Life is a state of one's mind... Such state can be heavily affected by the environment, by the other. We perceive the hyperreality slowly mesmerising us into an anxious insignificant suit asking us to join the oblivion where nothing resides, where we are (not) in a way, already.

What do I think of you? 

Sounds are essential, you know. The youth is - in fact - the key to salvation. I'm writing this to you at the age of 40, so I'd like you to think and feel the impossible: “escape”. The older you’ll get the more gradual the change will become, you will learn to defragment self, believe me, you will overcome self, you will reinvent self, to the point where you'll realise viscerally and absolutely that there is no self. Outside it is all a matter of libidinal force. One fine day your happy bubble’s gonna pop. They will start picking, and you're fragile, they will poke accordingly with their (dis) order, their musick (sick). You will start raising above, higher and higher due to your resistance, and if you’re strong you will prevail alive. The more you’ll resist, the higher you will get, there lies a  issue ahead, never the less - you can’t escape societal gender binary no matter what you are, my little tree, my flower, my transgender love, my queer, my unique "transcendered". Let’s face it now - you’re fucked, fucked up, fucked over, and god help you if you just want to get off… At this point you are scared - it seems to you that the sound became a subconscious feeling on the move to find you: sharp teeth, crooked smiles, shiny eyes of beasts start reflecting your essence. Terror of the other, so remote from you out there, resisting to the further borders of sanity. 

Now stop, and read me this: You’ve reached a channel you will surely fall from. My assumption is that your blooming understanding of violet makes you tread very carefully. As above so below.

So what do I think you should do with all this?

The only thing you should do, you should punch a Nazi

For poetic reasons.

All is transient, everything is temporary, you're capable of the personal flow, just know that you are, and everything else will unfold by itself, try not to try, accept setbacks, sit tight, and brace yourself in the face of the great annihilator and the absolute signifier, we are all scared shitless, we are in this together you and me. I hope my poetry isn't pure shite and you will find something wee for yourself within it so without further ado:

[nx-communicato]

ToLoveHerUnconditionallyAnOathHeSwore;

NowHeart&HonorBrokenBothEverMore…

********************************************

* 4b*4h4** : 48241748 •§• 424574514 : 42487814

* 0.5¢ : 21o9o (90210)

* D***d : 2442 : P*a : 224 •§• 2974 : 2274

* 42487814 2274 21o9o 81182417

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To be honest… I’m really kinda hoping this turns into more of a step-daughter thing and less of an incestual thing…🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏… like hopefully you were from the 12941427-213427529 line prior to P*tri*1* Coven… sorry, 629h1i2, (half-/step-)-sister to 8r**ke.

‘5734’ 5288325 (ie. Havoc ~ which is what you were brought in to wreak… and did with such flair and aplomb that I am to this day still wholly enchanted by you! 😍 Also, for fun, $umr*ll = $ummer-assault = $ummersault = “Take off ~4, I’m gonna steamroll you ~4!” (Strange Brew – a perfect analogy for a vexing Canadian party girl/enforcer!) …still 😍🥰!

* N***** P** A******** ¿?

********************************************

…with the blood of V1king in his veins

{…as an addendum: I know it’s a little weird that I typically write as if in correspondence with ‘424574514’, when it is far more likely that the market I am reaching is 8unt*r, my Momp, 8r8k*, D2d2, or the entire island population of HonnaLee instead; but it maintains a continuity in my writing, provides me with a target for whom to direct my narrative, and prevents a lot of unnecessary dragosplanatory side-dialogues like this one here in particular… for those who are not familiar with the terminology, dragosplanatory (drogonating, dragonspokating, dragooning, drakuspanking, draxplanations, deragotory remarks, dragulit, et al.) are used as a way of enlightening the audience when one does not think that they’re as literarily simpatico with the linguistic interadministrations of he who shall henceforth be referenced as the author or said narrator of such works, quite similar to what others may have heard in relative terms to the jargon, lingo or cant of “man-splaining” but with one key difference here being that there is no separation or bias based on the gender of the listener or in this case, reader (as you can see we too can be haughty or “woq’d-up y’all” to heighten the presentation and awareness of our views on civil equality).}~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

19864 the Eye of Horus •§• and finds his own tale instead Ouru’80208’…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As another example of just how wildly unstoppable the juggernaut of my hope is, I have been secretly harboring a tale wherein this all magically resolves and you surprise me popping out of nowhere to whisk me away like a fairytale princess to go celebrate Pancake Day with you in NoLo… as with you may be the only way I would want to celebrate Shrove Tuesday. Laissez les bons temps rouler!

[roci-wolf]

∘°∘♡∘°∘

I've figured it would be nice to say some things about myself just to give an overall idea of who's messing around on this blog.

First of all, I don't have that much to say about myself. Hah.

The end.

Joking.

I'm 20 and I have severe anxiety, so I've lived most of my teen years in survival mode, wasting precious time instead of trying to discover who is the crazy individual that's maneuvering the strings in my brain. So let's say my journey started only just recently.

・❥・call me Roci or Sana! both nicknames are derived from my real name

・❥・  she\her

・❥・  scorpio ♏️

・❥・ november baby 🍁

・❥・  MBTI is INFP

・❥・ no, I'm not a crybaby.

・❥・  guess which one of these ^ is the lie

・❥・  i used to watch a lot of animes but not that much lately

・❥・  i love cats. my cat and my besties are the most treasured beings for me in my life

・❥・  i consider myself a multistan! skz and enha are my ult groups, and i also follow txt here and there. minho is my ult bias! chan and jisung are part of my skz bias line and jake, heeseung and sunghoon in enha :) i can't choose a bias in txt 😭 IT’S SO HARD. 

・❥・  i listen to a lot of other kpop groups, especially 4th gen, but i don't follow them that closely

I'm an English literature and linguistics major and I have Spanish as my minor so yeah, I have a lot to do in uni so that's why I'm not present that much in here. That, and I have a little demon on my left shoulder screaming "THAT PERSON THINKS YOU'RE A DUMBASS", each time I'm reblogging a fic I love or I just... comment on posts. But it's ok, I started to flick his head every time he does that. I discovered that he can, in fact, be tamed.

I love art. Everything about art. Sculptures, paintings, writing, even the pretty moodboards on tumblr, I love everything created from pure passion. I also love to overthink and analyse the person behind the work based on what I'm seeing. It may seem odd, ik, but I love to see how someone's soul is somehow presented in their creation. Yes, even in smut, even that can say something about a person.

I also paint traditionally. I used to do it a lot when I was younger, then I gave up and I started doing it again recently. It helps when you have a mental breakdown because of uni haha. I also had a phase when I was making a looot of origamis, mostly made with origami pieces, if you know what I mean? Anyway, I gave up on that too, the origamis on my mom's shelves started to pile up lol now they catch a lot of dust and it's troublesome to clean with them there.

I love the universe. I don't know as much as I wish I would about it because I still struggle with everyday life and I don't have the energy to learn about something different than my major now, but sometimes I search random facts about the universe. I love to be reminded that I'm just a little and irrelevant ant in a big and vast Cosmos. 

[marsixm]

wow i wish i had another source on this name bit because its the first i’ve heard it but it sounds accurate

[miekasa]

love talk

+ pairings: eren yeager + (fem) reader

+ genres and warnings: it’s not important that eren is a tattoo artist i just wanted to share bc i gave him tattoos here :’), fluff i think, smut/nsfw content, if you see a hint of eremin then no you don’t </2

+ word count: almost 2k, sickening innit luv

+ notes: yeah, still thinking about eren speaking german during sex bc he’s losing his mind hehe. i suppose this is the… softer version. might post another one later, who knows. and yes, i did almost name this pussy talk. 

Unbeknownst to him, Eren Jaeger speaks three languages.

The first two are obvious, but English is his preferred language; the one you’ll find him speaking most often. It only makes sense, seeing as it’s what the overwhelming majority of people, media, and signs spew at him.

The second is more reserved; something you might assume given his name, but not know for sure unless you asked, or stuck around long enough to catch him rambling excitedly to Armin in German, with broken slang phrases of English interspersed. It’s fascinating—cute, moreover—the way he stumbles back and forth between both tongues; and the difference in tone between them. You’re not sure if your own bias is peeking through, but you’re certain Eren and Armin both sound a little… meaner in German; more sarcastic, at the very least—and you wouldn’t be surprised to find out they were talking shit the whole time.

Though, there is a special, reserved intonation to his mother tongue that shows itself when Eren’s around you. It doesn’t seem to be by choice—gone beyond comprehension that he’s forced to revert to grunted expressions and curses in a language foreign to his surroundings. You assume them to be curses; you never can confirm, and Eren seems to not even be aware of his switching in the heat of the moment, can never quite recall what he was saying to you.

There are times when he’s reduced to mere sounds, no comprehensible words between the hundreds of thousands he knows—only guttural moans, and breathy sighs, and he seems to not even be able to understand himself. You have to admit, it’s a bit of an ego boost to be able to fuck your boyfriend stupid in two languages.

And at first glance, Eren doesn’t seem like the type of guy to know about anything outside of himself. He doesn’t seem like the full-sleeve, three ear piercing, tattoo artist kinda kid; but Eren Jaeger speaks the language of pictures, of symbols, of images, that he is able to decipher and give meaning to upon creation. He’s got a penchant for art, and a vision bigger than himself, so it’s only right that he takes his knowledge and applies it in its most permanent form. The tattoos are more than a hobby for him—they’re an extension of himself, his art, his language; and his body is the only canvas fit enough to capture them.

So, here, with Eren laying on his back, chest exposed, arms bent for his hands to rest against your waist, you get to see the culmination of all the words and all the pictures, from all the languages he’s deemed important enough to find a place on his skin.

“Do all of your tattoos have a meaning?” you question, reaching your hand up to trace over the delicate waves that ride along his right collarbone.

“No,” Eren winces when you move—just enough of him to feel an ounce of friction inside of you, but not enough to give him what he wants. He wiggles himself a bit, desperate for something, “Not at all.”

It makes you chuckle, with a sort of disbelief, at both his words and his actions, “You get things tattooed on your body that don’t mean anything to you?”

Eren lets out a shaky breath, followed with a boyish smile. He blinks at you slowly, lids fluttering and hands gripping tightly at your body, “Learned that not everything has to have a deep meaning to want to keep it around,” he tells you, right palm moving to venture over your tummy, and up your sides, “Somethings you just love.”

You don’t miss the lilt in his voice on the word ‘love,’ but you play it off, rolling your eyes at his deliberately sweet affections, and then, gently, your hips, “Pretty poetic for something with no meaning.”

“Yeah, well, Armin taught me that,” Eren grits, hands fastening themselves at your hips again.

“You talk about Armin a lot when we’re in bed you know,” you taunt him, moving your fingers to trace over more of the tattoos that litter his right shoulder, “Something I should know about?”

Eren shivers at the feeling—of your fingertips on his skin, and what he swears was an intentional clench around him, “You don’t seem to mind.”

You smile at him, enjoying the contortions of his face when you run your hands down his chest, palms pressed lightly against his pelvic bone. Eren bends a knee, but does he best to remain still, and you can’t help but to chuckle. He looks pretty when he’s trying his best.

“I’m greedy,” you tell him, raising your hips, and pausing in your words as you slowly lower yourself back on to him.

“Trust me,” Eren scoffs, a façade to cover up his reddening cheeks and shaky thighs, “I know.”

He tries to move his hips up, desperate for something more; for you to fucking move, but, you keep your hips perfectly still. Instead, you reach your arms behind you, and onto Eren’s thighs, cementing them to the bed. He groans, his hands sliding down to your own thighs, fingertips digging into your flesh.

“And you called me greedy,” you huff, amused, as Eren rolls his eyes beneath you. When you’re sure he’s not going to move, you bring your arms back around, palms splayed on his stomach, “Relax. This is what you asked for, isn’t it?”

“Honestly, in an ideal world, this would be happening when I was playing COD, not when I was already impossibly hard with morning wood. And with a lot less teasing on your part.”

You have to laugh—genuinely giggle—at Eren’s blunt honesty. He’s unintentionally charming; another linguistic skill he seems unaware that he’s proficient in. You can tell he doesn’t understand the source of your amusement, but the look in his eyes, the twinkle in his irises lets you know he’s too far gone to even care.

“Call it a lesson in self-control,” you say, moving your hands to his sides in time with a shallow grind of your hips, “Besides, I’m admiring you.”

Eren keeps his hands anchored on your thighs, shivering at sensitivity of his dick coupled with your hands stroking over his pecs, “Lesson fucking learning—babe, fuck, please—”

“Shh—not yet,” you coo, and reach to pull his arms off of you, leaving you with room to admire his sleeve. You take pity on him, holding his right wrist with both of your hands, before slowly beginning to bounce on him.

Eren squirms, his free hand reaching to grab at the flesh of your ass, eyes blinking open to watch his cock be buried inside of you. The relief is instant—for the both of you—immediate groans and shallow profanities slipping past your lips as you build a steady pace to ride him.

“Tell—tell me what this one means,” you question slowly, keeping your right hand around his wrist, but using your left to point to the tattoo; a stylized line art of crossed wings.

“Some shit about freedom,” Eren grunts, fingers twitching, “Fuck, babe—more, please, I’ll—”

Eren cuts himself off with a whine, and you hiss yourself, lifting your body all the way to the tip, before lowering yourself again at an agonizingly slow pace. At this rate, you can feel everything; every vein on his shaft, every twitch of his cock. You feel Eren deep inside of you, even see where the bulge outlines your tummy.

You still yourself for just a second, catching your breath, anchoring yourself on Eren. You’re pretty far gone yourself, but you want more; for yourself, and for him. You do your best to stay coherent, slowly grinding atop of him, questioning him about another tattoo on his arm, ignoring the way his palm grips at your bicep. It’s a small one, with detailed Japanese characters that you can’t understand, but appreciate anyway; it’s one of your favorites, and you ask Eren about its meaning, clenching yourself around him as punctuation to your question.  

Eren sucks air between his teeth, left hand pulling back to run his fingers through his hair, a grunted word in German falling from his lips. You smirk, but let him try to answer you.

“I don’t fucken’ know,” Eren grumbles, head thrashing from side to side, “It’s really fucken’ hard to remember anything—shit—like this. S’fucking torture.”

“Hm,” you hum, not satisfied; eager for more of Eren’s love language, “Tell me something in German, instead, then.”

But Eren can only babble beneath you; sounds incoherent in either language—reduced to desperate whines and grabby hands at your thighs, waist, boobs—anything. You lean forward, letting go of Eren’s tattooed wrist, and reaching to ghost your fingers over his lips.

“Come on, Eren, you’re usually so good at it when we do this,” you taunt him, words coated in sweetness that distract you from keeping up your pace, “Just want you to talk pretty to me. Tell me something, baby.”

Eren’s eyes travel from your fingertips, up your arm, neck, and to your face. When he meets your gaze something shifts; eyes heavy with want, and bitter with dissatisfaction.

So, he reaches for your extended hand, laces your fingers together, “Something like what?”

You wrap your fingers around his, then do the same with your left hand, “Anything.”

“Anything?”

“Yeah,” you affirm with a smile, finally satisfied.

Eren grunts, bending his right knee for leverage before he flips you over, hands still intertwined, but now pinned over your head, harshly pressed into the pillows below. He buries his head into the crook of your neck; licking a stripe along your collarbone, where you’d teased him minutes before. Then up, up, up, your neck to the shell of your ear, retreating downwards to suck on the skin just beneath your ear, nipping with pointed teeth.

Eren keeps his weight on you, the length of his cock sliding over your slick folds while he bites angry, red blotches into your skin—a kind of impermanent tattoo of his own making on your body. The friction is good, but not enough, and you wonder if Eren intends on teasing you as long as you’d done to him; but, he breathes heavy breaths up your neck again, before mumbling a series of foreign syllables into your ear.

He hovers over your face, satisfied by the daze in your eyes; the slight openness of your mouth. It’s you who looks dumbstruck now, a foreigner to his ministrations; and for once, he’s in control with his second tongue.

“What—what does that mean?” you finally ask, squeezing your eyes briefly when Eren teases the tip just past your entrance.

Eren chuckles, airy, gritty, and cocky all at once. He pushes his cock inside of you, balls deep, only to pull out almost all the way, before leaning forward just slightly, so that his bottom lip grazes over yours.

“It means I love you,” he whispers, hips bucking forward, “Try to remember that, ‘cause I swear I’m gonna fuck you stupid, baby.”