#i love. the aeneid. A Lot. i hope you have fun reading it too <3

[catilinas]

Hi! I haven't been following you for long and I'm just starting to get into The Aeneid. Could you explain what you and the other anon meant when you said everyone in The Aeneid is a double of Aeneas? Like who and how? If you decide to answer could you link articles about it too if it's possible (because I'm kinda confused lol)?

the aeneid is (clearly. from its name) a poem about aeneas, so it would be surprising to me if there was any character who didn’t reflect some aspect of aeneas at least a little bit. it is hyperbolic though to say Every Character Is A Double Of Aeneas etc. or is it. eye emoji. there are definitely some characters who are More Blatantly doing doubling things like this Has Been Observed.

most noticeable is (as the other anon was talking about!) turnus. plotwise aeneas and turnus are doubles in that they are both rivals for lavinia. imo the aeneas-turnus doubling starts as soon as the sibyl’s prophecy in book 6 that in italy aeneas will ‘find a simois, a xanthus, and greek camps. in latium you’ll find a new achilles, he too a goddess’ son’ (aeneid 6.88-90 trans. bartsch) LIKE this is saying turnus will be achilles 2.0 But Also aeneas is invading italy! where the sybil says this new trojan landscape is! by taking the role of invader of a trojan landscape aeneas is also framed as a new achilles, and turnus takes the role of trojan defender i.e. what aeneas once Was! and the idea that turnus embodies an earlier (and trojan = not roman yet = defeatable) aeneas is then like. really obvious. e.g. juno tricking turnus into fleeing the battlefield to safety in book 10 as aphrodite saving aeneas from battle in the iliad. there is also the Very Famous parallel in the moment of turnus’ death where ‘ast illi solvuntur frigore membra’ ‘turnus’ knees buckled with chill’ (aeneid 12.951 trans. bartsch) repeats the line that introduced aeneas in book 1 ‘aeneae solvuntur frigore membra’ ‘aeneas’ knees buckled with chill’ (aeneid 1.92 trans. bartsch). what the fuck is going on there. like yes turnus is a weaker (and doomed) aeneas as he dies but also aeneas kills him while succumbing to furor i.e. the force/emotion consistently associated with turnus… like ok you could read it as aeneas overcoming the role of conquered trojan and becoming a hashtag victorious proto-roman via getting someone else to fill his previous role (ritual substitution on main) BUT aeneas killing turnus still ends up looking weirdly like self-sacrifice. and then the academics scream about The Ending Of The Aeneid for One Million Years.

also cool and sexy is that dido is doubled w aeneas!!! this one is kinda an obvious parallel like they are both rulers in exile. they both have dead spouses. they both want to found cities. and alas those cities are destined to be Sworn Foes :( my favourite detail of the aeneas-dido doubling though is vergil being cool and sexy w the verb ‘errare’ (to wander / to Err). the chapter on dido in j.d. reed’s virgil’s gaze (which btw i extremely recommend) says many very cool things about vergil’s Constant use of this verb for dido, including:

‘Dido’s welcoming speech ends with an even subtler and more emotional identification. Her last word—errat, “wanders”—naturally adheres to Aeneas; in his own words, for example, at 1.333. But erro is also her word, connected to her by an etymological pun: the third-century Sicilian historian Timaeus had said that the name Dido was applied to her by Libyans because of her wanderings in exile. [...] The last line of her first speech, in view of this wordplay, makes Aeneas a kind of Dido: perhaps, she fears, he wanders a castaway in some wood or city. Her sympathy with the plight of the Trojans can go no further than to cast their leader as an alter ego’. they are doubles to dido at least. 

and then aeneas seems to see them as interchangeable Enough with one another that him helping to build carthage counts as the city he is destined to found! it takes the literal divine intervention of mercury telling aeneas off for placing the High Foundations Of Carthage (which a Reader knows need to instead by the High Walls Of Rome!!! but aeneas doesn’t!!!) to get him to abandon dido/carthage. fun fact until the end of mercury’s speech where he tells aeneas ‘cui regnum Italiae Romanaque tellus / debetur’ ‘[iulus is] owed the rule of italy, and the soil of rome’ (aeneid 4.275-6 trans. bartsch) aeneas has literally never heard of rome.  and it’s mercury’s promise of italy that makes aeneas claim that ‘haec patria est’ (This Is My Land™!!!!!!) (aeneid 4.347) i.e. the verb ‘errare’ / Wandering does Not define aeneas the way it does dido and they have different fates, actually, and maybe even Wandering for Aeneas Who Must Settle In Italy IS To Err and the doubling starts to fall apart! and you’re like. but what exactly Does make aeneas and dido different. is it just fate??? bcs that fate was/is contingent on a historical Future Enmity between their cities (the punic wars) and vergil is using the future that has already occurred to say this imaginary past was inevitable, and then using the assumed inevitability of the past to say that specific historical outcome Was Inevitable Also. and that is a circle :/ and history Could have gone differently. hashtag here’s how hannibal barca can still win. like to me this is vergil implying that ‘fate’ (the fated foundation and Imperium Sine Fine™ of rome) only goes as far as the contingent historical events that you can retroactively use to justify it. and eventually you will run out of that and end up at the end of the parade of heroes in the present. and what do you (augustus) do then. (but maybe i have been reading too much lucan like the pharsalia brainrot is Real)

BUT ALSO that is kind of the point of (my beloved) virgil’s gaze by thee j.d. reed…… like that every Doomed Youth in the aeneid Could Have Been aeneas and every nation/people each doomed youth stands for Could Have Become Rome or an equivalent. do the doubles everywhere suggest that the rise of Rome Specifically is not as Fixed In Fate as it could be. maybe yeah. or that the Fated Rise Of Rome doomed every other almost-aeneas. pessimistic readings of the aeneid i love YOU <3

anyway yeah. every character in the aeneid kind of Is aeneas. if they have a dad they are Pius Aeneas (e.g. lausus and pallas. esp. pallas who aeneas even claims to be embodying when he kills turnus!). if venus is there. that’s aeneas (helen). if their humanity is sacrificed to the future augustan golden age that’s Also aeneas (turnus and also. marcellus in the underworld). if they Do Some Conquering In An Inset Narrative that is also also aeneas (hercules vs cacus, augustus on the shield of aeneas). if they found a city (or try to. or their city is the ghost of troy. but then aren’t all cities that.) then that’s also aeneas. honestly the aeneas-andromache parallels at buthrotum in book 3 make me go nuts because helenus is Right There! but vergil is like no. aeneas WILL be doubled with a doomed trojan princess who hashtag Lived Past The End Of Her Myth. wild. you can probably find aeneas anywhere if you look close enough! also wait i forgot about his GHOST. the imago of aeneas in book 10. aeneas is literally doubled in a ghostly image of himSElf while he is Still Alive. i get that this is a thing which is allowed to happen in epic poetry but also aeneas IS really extremely undead, especially after book 6, so. yeah. you see evert character being Also Aeneas and you’re like well if everyone is aeneas what is aeneas like. where’s that one article by adam parry. ‘Aeneas from the start is absorbed in his own destiny, a destiny which does not ultimately relate to him, but to something later, larger, and less personal: the high walls of Rome, stony and grand, the Augustan Empire.’ ‘Aeneas' failure as a hero goes deeper than the formality of his speech. As he makes his way through the first six books, we see him successively divested of every personal quality which makes a man into a hero.’ ough. at this point what is the difference between aeneas and his ghost!!!!!!

[firexfate]

muse one ~ character + bio

[a/n - hey, everyone! i thought i would make this bio for one of my characters that i roleplay as just for fun, also for people that i roleplay with to see more about the named character. :,) i hope you all enjoy, and let me know what you think, as always. also, yes, yes i changed the face-claim because some people had the same face-claim as i do, lmao, so i did not want anyone to be confused. that’s it for me! thank you <3]

Felicity Grace Hamilton — a patriot, a spy, a survivor.

❝ If I cannot move Heaven, I will raise hell. ❞

— Virgil, Aeneid.

⋆ ╤╤╤ ✯ ╤╤╤ ⋆

┊┊┊┊✧ ┊┊

┊┊⋆┊┊ ☪

┊✭ ┊ ┊

✯ ┊ ✧

✵

╱                       ╲

✵ 𝐓𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 ✵

ɪ. 𝓖𝓮𝓷𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵 𝓘𝓷𝓯𝓸𝓻𝓶𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷 ⋆

ɪɪ. 𝓣���𝓹𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓵 𝓐𝓹𝓹𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓪𝓷𝓬𝓮𝓼 ⋆

ɪɪɪ. 𝓗𝓮𝓪𝓵𝓽𝓱 ⋆

ɪᴠ. 𝓟𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓸𝓷𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓽𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓬𝓼 ⋆

ᴠ. 𝓟𝓻𝓮𝓯𝓮𝓻𝓮𝓷𝓬𝓮𝓼 ⋆

ᴠɪ. 𝓕𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓵𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓡𝓮𝓵𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓹𝓼 ⋆

ᴠɪɪ. 𝓑𝓪𝓬𝓴𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂 ⋆

ᴠɪɪɪ. 𝓐𝓾𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓻 𝓝𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓼 ⋆

╲                       ╱

- ˏˋ 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 ˊˎ -

────────────

┊

☪ . ˚

˚✩

- ˏˋ 𝓷𝓪𝓶𝓮 ˊˎ -

Felicity Grace Hamilton

⋆ ᴘʀᴏɴᴜɴᴄɪᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ⋆

First name: Feh-lih-sih-tee

Last name: hah-mil-ton

⋆ ɴɪᴄᴋɴᴀᴍᴇs ⋆

Lici [lih-see]

- ˏˋ 𝓰𝓮𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓻 ˊˎ -

⋆ sᴇx ⋆

female

⋆ ɢᴇɴᴅᴇʀ ⋆

female

⋆ ᴘʀᴏɴᴏᴜɴs ⋆

she/her

- ˏˋ 𝓸𝓻𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷 ˊˎ -

⋆ sᴇxᴜᴀʟ ᴏʀɪᴇɴᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ⋆

Heterosexual

⋆ ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴛɪᴄ ᴏʀɪᴇɴᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴ ⋆

Straight

- ˏˋ 𝓵𝓸𝓬𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷 ˊˎ -

⋆ ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇ ᴏғ ʙɪʀᴛʜ ⋆

Nevis, the British Isles [located in the Caribbean]

⋆ ᴄᴜʀʀᴇɴᴛ ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇ ᴏғ ʀᴇsɪᴅᴇɴᴄᴇ ⋆

America. Current place depends on the roleplay.

⋆ ᴇᴛʜɴɪᴄɪᴛʏ ⋆

Caucasian

⋆ ɴᴀᴛɪᴏɴᴀʟɪᴛʏ ⋆

American.

⋆ ʟᴀɴɢᴜᴀɢᴇs sᴘᴏᴋᴇɴ ⋆

French

English

Latin

⋆ ʀᴇʟɪɢɪᴏɴ ᴏʀ sᴘɪʀɪᴛᴜᴀʟ ʙᴇʟɪᴇғs ⋆

Felicity grew up to be a Catholic, despite her mother being a Huegenot. She attended mass most of the time, but, of course, this happened less frequently as the war had begun. She is not extremely religious, however, but she believes in God.

- ˏˋ 𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓲𝓷𝓯𝓸 ˊˎ -

⋆ ᴀɢᴇ ⋆

Around her 20s, though it would depend on the roleplay.

⋆ ᴅᴀᴛᴇ ᴏғ ʙɪʀᴛʜ ⋆

04.11.1757

⋆ ᴢᴏᴅɪᴀᴄ sɪɢɴ ⋆

Aries.

⋆ ᴛᴀʟᴇɴᴛs ᴀɴᴅ sᴋɪʟʟs ⋆

Talented musician -- can play the flute, harp, and violin.

Excellent public speaker, her motivation is something that both she and her brother share.

Knows basic defense -- can shoot reasonably well. Felicity had a very unconventional background, especially given who her brother was.

A dancer and singer, she is the patron of most arts.

- ˏˋ 𝐓𝐲𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬 ˊˎ -

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┊

☪ . ˚

˚✩

- ˏˋ 𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝓲𝓷𝓯𝓸𝓻𝓶𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷 ˊˎ -

⋆ sᴘᴇᴄɪᴇs ⋆

Human

⋆ ʜᴇɪɢʜᴛ ⋆

5’3’’

⋆ ᴡᴇɪɢʜᴛ ⋆

100 lbs.

⋆ ʀᴀᴄᴇ ⋆

White

⋆ ғᴀᴄᴇ ᴄʟᴀɪᴍ

Adelaide Kane

- ˏˋ 𝓭𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓾𝓲𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓯𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓾𝓻𝓮𝓼 ˊˎ -

⋆ ʜᴀɪʀ ᴄᴏʟᴏʀ ⋆

Dark brown

⋆ ᴇʏᴇ ᴄᴏʟᴏʀ ⋆

Dark brown

⋆ ғᴀᴄɪᴀʟ ғᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇs ⋆

Porcelain intoned skin, has a few birthmarks on her cheeks and neck.

⋆ ᴛᴀᴛᴛᴏᴏs ⋆

None

⋆ sᴄᴀʀs ⋆

She has scars and bruises on her back and arms because of the war. Many bring back memories of her past, which were horrifying, to say the least, ones which she would much rather forget.

- ˏˋ 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 ˊˎ -

────────────

┊

☪ . ˚

˚✩

- ˏˋ 𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝓱𝓮𝓪𝓵𝓽𝓱 ˊˎ -

Prior to the war between England and the colonies with their French allies, her health was normal average. She was a strong character before, especially with losing half of her family members and multitude friends, as the tensions in the colonies had grown. She had grown up too quickly in order to survive. During and after the war, she was never the same. There was both a hidden strength and grief in her eyes, which would be very difficult to extinguish.

- ˏˋ 𝓹𝓱𝔂𝓼𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓵 ˊˎ -

⋆ ᴡᴇᴀᴋɴᴇssᴇs ⋆

She is not very physically strong, and she is not very flexible either. Sometimes, especially due to emotional overload, she takes things to heart sometimes, and she can lose control of her emotions when she gets passionate or angry about something.

⋆ ɪʟʟɴᴇssᴇs ⋆

None. She is physically healthy.

⋆ ᴅɪsᴀʙɪʟɪᴛɪᴇs ⋆

None that are physical or mental. Perhaps, some trauma after the war remained with her still.

- ˏˋ 𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓵 ˊˎ -

⋆ ɪʟʟɴᴇssᴇs ⋆

Some anxiety, or PTSD after the war, insomnia.

⋆ ᴘʜᴏʙɪᴀs ⋆

Fear of small spaces, fear of being alone, fear of losing the people that she loves.

⋆ ᴛʀᴀᴜᴍᴀs ⋆

Her past life in Nevis, in particular when she had lost her mother (Rachel Faucette died in her arms, as Felicity nursed her to her grave). She also feels pained and reminded of the rather rough experiences she had living in New York, mainly that is where she lost a few extended family and friends. The war brought her more horrific memories as well.

- ˏˋ 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 ˊˎ -

────────────

┊

☪ . ˚

˚✩

- ˏˋ 𝓹𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓸𝓷𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓽𝔂 ˊˎ -

⋆ ᴘᴇʀsᴏɴᴀʟɪᴛʏ ᴛʀᴀɪᴛs ⋆

Kind-hearted

Strong-willed

Goal-driven/determined

Passionate.

⋆ ᴍᴏᴛɪᴠᴀᴛɪᴏɴs ⋆

Duty to country -- Felicity is driven to succeed as she has a country to protect, to fight for her own freedom. She is as patriotic as it gets, and her determination could be seen both as courageous or reckless. She would do anything to keep her country, and the people that she loves safe.

Family - she would give her life up to the people that she truly cares for her, and she would constantly put them first.

Freedom - She wants to be free, especially from the wrath of the British, and their ways. She wanted America to be free from the tyranny of Great Britain, for it to rule itself. She wanted it to have its own government, to make its own decisions. That being said, she is influenced heavily by Thomas Paine’s Common Sense. Moreover, she wants to be free of her own burdensome past.  

⋆ ғᴇᴀʀs ⋆

Fear of being alone.

Fear of tight spaces.

Fear of losing the people they love.

⋆ ʜᴏᴡ ᴅᴏ ᴛʜᴇʏ sᴇᴇ ᴛʜᴇᴍsᴇʟᴠᴇs? ⋆

Felicity sees herself as someone who is very determined and cautious. She believes that she is understanding and has a way with different kinds of people. She sees herself being loyal to a fault and a passionate person

⋆ ʜᴏᴡ ᴅᴏ ᴛʜᴇʏ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ᴛʜᴇʏ’ʀᴇ ᴘᴇʀᴄᴇɪᴠᴇᴅ ʙʏ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀs? ⋆

She is perceived as very passionate and strong-willed, which could be both a good and bad thing, since she was but a woman in a world that is ruled by men. She is rather bold in her manners, but she is fiercely protective of others, and while her mannerisms could be unconventional, she is a truly good person, with a good heart.

- ˏˋ 𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓬𝓼 ˊˎ -

⋆ ᴍᴀɴɴᴇʀɪsᴍs ⋆

She is very out-spoken and blunt when she is stating facts. She is rather honest, and it may come off a very odd and wrong way. However, she is also very good at keeping her silence, as this was of import as a spy. She is kind to most people that are good, and she is very open-minded and non-judgemental.

She is passionate and fierce when it comes to things that she cares about. She is overprotective when it comes down to people that are important to her. Felicity would never let any harm come to those that she loved, and she would do anything for her own country, for the cause of America.

She can be strategic and rational when she is making important decisions, especially with her work with espionage and of the like. However, strong feelings and emotions can get involved, which causes her to be rather rash. She tends to get angry, sad rather easily and it tends to blind her actions. Most of the time, she uses her mind to guide her, even in dire circumstances.

⋆ ʜᴀʙɪᴛs ⋆

When embarrassed or shy, she begins playing with her hair a lot. Similarly, she can also wring her hands a lot.

When angry or emotional, she paces around the room a lot.

⋆ ʙᴇsᴛ ǫᴜᴀʟɪᴛʏ ⋆

Felicity is incredibly resilient, she is a natural-born fighter, hardened by her experiences of the world. Hardships and obstacles were certainly thrown her way, but she continues to move on and live her life the way she can. She is mentally strong and a survivor because of it.  

⋆ ɢʀᴇᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ғʟᴀᴡ ⋆

Felicity is a very feeling person. That being said, the emotions that she feels can be both a blessing and a curse. She could be blinded by the things that she would do, by her hatred or grief. She could be impulsive, incredibly stubborn, and that too complicated matters greatly. She had to learn how to control herself, which was very difficult for her.

⋆ sᴛʀᴇɴᴛɢʜs ⋆

Kind, gentle, understanding

Brave, fierce, relentless.

Protective, intelligent

⋆ ᴡᴇᴀᴋɴᴇssᴇs ⋆

Brash and impulsive

Has some trust issues. ιnтιмιdaтed eaѕιly

Temperamental.

- ˏˋ 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬 ˊˎ -

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- ˏˋ 𝓯𝓪𝓿𝓸𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓮... ˊˎ -

⋆ sᴀʏɪɴɢ ⋆

❝ We do not have the luxury of waiting. Our time to act is now. If we wait, death will be knocking on our door. ❞ —Felicity Hamilton

⋆ ᴛɪᴍᴇ ᴏғ ᴅᴀʏ ⋆

The peak of day. (She like sunsets).

⋆ ᴀɴɪᴍᴀʟ ⋆

owlѕ, dogѕ

⋆ ᴄᴏʟᴏʀ ⋆

Ivory, blue, gold.

⋆ ᴡᴀʏ ᴘᴀss ᴛɪᴍᴇ ⋆

Reading, singing, writing.

⋆ sᴏɴɢ ⋆

She does not have a preference. She knows French and English songs, and she likes to listen and sing them, depending on the occasion.

⋆ ғᴏᴏᴅ ⋆

Any. She is not that picky.

⋆ ɴᴜᴍʙᴇʀ ⋆

12 or 14.

⋆ ғᴀᴠᴏʀɪᴛᴇ ⋆

She loves to talk about poetry, literature, history, and the arts, a romantic side of hers. However, she is very flexible and easy-going, so she would be up to talk about anything and everything. She especially likes to talk about things that she is passionate about, her beliefs being rather important to her.

- ˏˋ 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 ˊˎ -

⋆ ʟᴇғᴛ ᴏʀ ʀɪɢʜᴛ ⋆

Right

⋆ ɪɴᴛʀᴏᴠᴇʀᴛ ᴏʀ ᴇxᴛʀᴏᴠᴇʀᴛ ⋆

A mix of both.

⋆ ʟᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ ᴏʀ ғᴏʟʟᴏᴡᴇʀ ⋆

A mix of both, as well.

⋆ sᴇʟғ-ᴄᴏɴғɪᴅᴇɴᴄᴇ ᴏʀ sᴇʟғ-ᴄᴏɴsᴄɪᴏᴜsɴᴇss ⋆

Self confidence.

- ˏˋ 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬 ˊˎ -

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☪ . ˚

˚✩

- ˏˋ 𝓯𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓵𝔂 ˊˎ -

⋆ ᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ⋆

Name: Rachel Faucette

Relationship: From the beginning of her childhood, Felicity and her mother had a wonderful relationship. Her mother was a kind and gentle woman. She was the one that taught her French, etiquette, and how to read and write. Sadly, her mother became infected with yellow fever when Felicity was ten years old. Felicity contracted the disease herself and she survived, but her mother did not. She died in her arms.

⋆ ғᴀᴛʜᴇʀ ⋆

Name: James Hamilton.

Relationship: None. Felicity barely knew her father. He left her mother when she was just two years old, allegedly to spare her from being accused of bigamy. Felicity was bitter about his departure, claiming that he was good as dead to her.

⋆ вroтнer ⋆

Name: Alexander Hamilton.

Relationship: Very good. Despite their bickering and arguments, Alexander and Felicity had a great relationship. They had similar ideals of freedom, and they both showed immense support in the revolution. Their relationship was very complicated given that Alexander was by far more ambitious than Felicity, and yet, they were close as they only had each other, and they only grew closer with every hardship that they endured -- be it starvation, death, the control of the British, or the Revolution itself.

- ˏˋ 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 ˊˎ -

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Felicity Grace Hamilton is the younger sister of Alexander Hamilton. Her story is a rather harsh one. She was born to Rachel Faucette and James Hamilton in Charlestown, Nevis. Her father left them when she was just a baby, and she resented him for that. He was as good as dead to her. She grew up in Nevis, which had become under the occupation of the rising British Empire. They had brought with them many things: missionaries, education, laws, and they had brought with them disease. Yellow fever had broken out in her country, and before she knew it, she and her family were affected. Felicity was the first to get better, and she was the one who nursed Alexander and her mother. They were dirt poor, and Felicity did everything she could to keep them alive, managing to get food and water for them, medicine to keep them alive, despite it. In the end, she nursed her mother to her grave, and Rachel died in her arms. Alexander on the other hand got better.

When Felicity was twelve, she and her brother managed to get on a boat with the help of her cousin which set sail to New York, eager to escape their horrid life and start a new one there. They were met with the British tyranny again. Felicity’s hatred grew of them, rising immensely, as she had lost family members and friends , due to some causes that the British had imposed on him.

When the revolution came, Felicity was sixteen years of age. Alexander went to fight, and Felicity went along with him. On her way there, she happened to befallen on a raid that occurred between the Redcoats and rebels. Only a dagger in hand, she killed two of them, and she was taken to General Washington who was very much impressed with her. She wished to help the cause in any way possible, but Washington would not allow her to fight in the front, considering that she was but a woman. He instead placed her to be responsible as a spy, gathering information. Felicity was a woman, no one could suspect her. She did manage to get some, and to a set of God’s miracles, she did not get caught. She even managed to procure some intelligence which made the French very interested in helping them. She worked closely with both Benjamin Tallmadge, Caleb Brewster, and Anna Strong, being an asset to the camp, even if she assisted the medical tent of the doctors that would nurse the soldiers, all the while participating heavily in espionage. Proving her worth to Washington and the others, she was held in high regard, especially being the sister of Alexander. She made subsequent trips to Setauket, to secure the Culper Ring and continued to fight for her freedom, no matter what the cost, even if strange things were happening to her frequently.

[myupostsheadcanons]

Books “Read” in 2019

I am going to rank these by how much i enjoyed them vs. any actual literary quality. often well written books aren’t always the most entertaining books.

Note: i listen to many of these books at work, which is why i am able to go through so many of them in a year.

List from 2017 List from 2018

------- My Favs of the Year ----

Novels from The First Law:

Best Served Cold (#1), The Heroes(#3), Red Country(#4), Sharp Ends(#5).

A Little Hatred (#2) (Age of Madness, sequel to The First Law)

I read “The First Law Trilogy” about a year or two ago and finally got around to reading the rest of the books, just in time for a new series taking place in the same world to start up (Age of Madness) and now i am waiting like everybody else for the next two books to come out in 2020 and 2021. A Little Hatred shouldn’t be read as a stand alone, a lot of what goes on is dependent mainly on knowledge from the first trilogy and in The Heroes, then bits and pieces from Best Served Cold and Red Country. So much of your enjoyment of each book is based on what you’ve learned in other ones (character development or seemingly useless information being not so useless later).

Age of Legend (Book 4,  Legend of the First Empire)

This is more-or-less an “aftermath” book where the main characters are still reeling about what happened in the previous book and are trying to make plans for what they are going to do next. I still like the characters and the world/setting it takes place in.

House of Assassins (Saga of the Forgotten Warrior, Book 2)

I’ve been waiting for the next book in this series to come out the second i finished the first book in the series. It is one of those Science fiction in the disguise of Fantasy settings and I am on the edge of my seat waiting to see how that plot/revelation comes out (I am certain that the location the story takes place is Earth, more specifically around Asia/India, but in a post-invasion apocalypse setting where nobody remembers anything prior to the invasion). I also really like how much of a badass Ashok is... i have a thing for emotionally stunted badass characters, especially when their flaws are held up to a mirror and have real consequences.

R. R. Haywood’s Worldship Humility & Extinct (Extracted, Book 3)

I love the way Haywood writes characters and dialog. I was at-first iffy about WSH, but was won over after i warmed up to the new characters.

Shades of Magic Trilogy (A Darker Shade of Magic, A Gathering of Shadows, A Conjuring of Shadows)

Solid multi-verse and magic system world. Well-written characters, some minor nitpicks on plot points, but can be easily ignored. LGBTQ rep, the gays don’t stay buried.

“Don’t you have enough [knives]?” “You can never have too many.” [me, every time: LOL]

One of the few times when a character deserves a redemption arc, doesn’t really get one, dies, and i am perfectly fine with it because it is done well.

Assassin’s Fate (Fitz and the Fool, Book 3)

I read this one in book-book form, but i already knew most of the emotionally painful parts of the book by spoiling it to myself when it first came out a couple years ago. The main appeal is the inner monologues of the two main characters, even if like 50% of this trilogy is basically spending weeks/months trying to go from Point A to Point B, when many other books would have glossed over the details of travel.. but you can really feel the stress as they dwell in their thoughts and struggles.

Madeline Miller’s The Song of Achilles & Circe

Re-Imagining of the Iliad and The Odyssey. Focusing not on the characters of Achilles or Odysseus, but on Petroclus (Achilles’ lover) and Circe the sea nymph witch that Odysseus had an affair and child with.

The Spear of the Stars (Cycle of Galand, Book 5)

Still love Dante and Bleys... This is where they really get into the meat of world building and solving the mysteries of the Arawn Cycle (the book/bible) and peel back the layers of their reality.

Dust (Silo Book 3)

A great ending to a good series, it answers whether or not humanity can or has survived what had caused them to be locked away in the silos.

Blackthorn and Grim (Dreamer’s Pool, Tower of Thorns, Den of Wolves)

I like the premise of the books, the two main characters first seeking out revenge, but end up wanting to become better people due to magic shenanigans.... One part Fantasy, One Part Mystery, One Part Lovestory.

The Dispatcher (Audible Free Book) 

I want a whole series based off this novella. It is John Scalzi so he can write a good story. I had previously read Android’s Dream by him, which it didn’t make it into my top-10 that year, but was still decent, even if the subject matter was a bit gross... The Dispatcher world is a Sci-Fi Noir, not quite Cyberpunk, where people don’t die by anything other than natural causes. The Dispatcher’s job is to kill people before something goes does wrong and the person “resets” to when they where safe and sound.

---- this is the “Above Average” Zone ----

All the Pretty Horses & Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West

The master of bleak and depressing fiction. if regular Dark Fiction isn’t enough for you.... there is Cormac McCarthy books. Get use to the “purple prose” that fills up pages with no dialog.

The Golem and the Jinni

Supernatural world of the far past dealing with Edwardian New York and Immigration. It not only is a “fish out of water” story of the two main characters trying to fit in with society but they are among communities that are also new to America and trying to find their own place in the world. There are love subplots but most of those kind of fizzle out.

The Axe and the Throne: Bounds of Redemption Vol. 1.

“Discount First Law” book... it is lacking the dark humor that made TFL series far more entertaining.  This was also the book that was prefaced by warning people about how grim and dark the setting was... Hahahaha. I still found it entertaining none the less, and hope the rest would show up on audible soon.

Black Snow, White Crow (Audible Free Book) 

Another one of those short stories that should have a larger saga to its name. Fantasy Industrial Punk. It has the whole equality role reversal thing going on, it isn’t done quite as well as Left Hand of Darkness (but that book leaned onto the boring side of things).

Stephen King’s IT, Pet Semetary, and Carrie

It’s Stephen King. Classic King. Not much else to say.

Watership Down

Depressing Rabbit Book. Though I did like all the stories and mythology the rabbits had.

Bloody Acquisitions (Fred the Vampire Accountant, Book 3)

A series that is always fun to listen to. I wish the audio books were cheaper because they are rather short.

Lethal White (Cormoran Strike, Book 4)

shuddup, i don’t care if it is Rowling... i have a low-key crush on Cormoran.... he just hits that big-burly tragic-backstory man-shaped soft-spot of mine. These stories are also her “for adults” writings so...  expect more racism and garbage values.

The Eye of the World (Book 1, Wheel of Time)

Classic set up to a long running series, though i am reluctant to go further as the middling books in this series are said to drag out the story too much.... It’s not as self-centered as Wizard’s First Rule and the characters are more relatable and stick to their fantasy tropes. This is the “mold” that other modern fantasy try to subvert by going “darker and edgier.”

The Exorcist

If you like the movie, read the book. There is a lot of back story that the movie wasn’t able to adapt.

---- This is the “AVERAGE, but Still Good”  Zone ---

The Iliad and The Odyssey

Classics. I am still on the hunt for an unabridged version of Jason and the Argonauts story. I also have Virgil’s Aeneid in my wishlist to get too soon.

Phillipa Gregory’s Plantagonate Novels (The Lady of the Rivers, The Red Queen, White Queen, The Kingmaker’s Daughter)

Sometimes it is like reading the same book 5x in a row. other times you end up not liking the previous protagonist in a book you just finished reading because of how the current protagonist sees them from their POV.

Return of the King (Lord of the Rings, Book 3)

Read the other books last year and didn’t get around to this one for a few months.

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Fuck... I’m a janitor... why can’t i afford a house?   If you liked Stephen King’s “IT” go back and read this book.

Alien Franchise Dramatizations: Alien: Sea of Sorrows, Alien: The Cold Forge (Audible Free Book) Alien III (Audible Free Book)

I don’t mind that they all are done with a full cast. Though often I end up wanting to find the actual book and listen to them with just one narrator and descriptions.

The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (Narnia, Book 1)

I would like to get the rest of the books in this series, but for books that are only 5-7 hours long they want 20$ a book for them. It needs to go into an omnibus.

Stephen Fry’s Victorian Secrets (Audible Free Book)

It’s Stephen Fry... he’s funny and a good narrator.

Wizard’s First Rule (Book 1, Sword of Truth)

I don’t like Richard. He started off alright, but even before he got tortured 2/3rds into the book, i was starting to dislike his personality.  Other than that, the side characters and world are solid, but it was like taking an R-rated movie and cutting it down for TV. There is somethings that are vaguely described when i am use to harder fiction like ASoIaF, The First Law, Dresden, and McCarthy books actually describing those things.

Halloween (2018, movie novel)

Like I said when i first read the book, it would’ve benefited by a second re-write before being published. But, i like the movie and so I liked the book.

Don Quixote

Another classic read. I did find it hilarious that the Author spent a good chunk of the second book complaining about Fanfiction of his own book... in the 1600′s.

The Princess Diarist

I listened this book instead of going to see TROS. worth it.

Smoke Gets in Your eyes: And other Lessons from the Crematorium

Non-Fiction, If you want to know the ins and outs of the funeral business and get told in an informative yet non-clinical way with lots of tidbits and history facts tossed in as well as a semi-autobiographical account of the Author’s life.

--- These Books are “Alright” ---

Frank L. Baum’s Wizard of Oz books

I ligit got into an argument with a 70yo man in a comic book shop about how Canon the other Oz books were post Baum’s death. He was looking for Oz comic books and I brought up reading the first 14 books, and he’s like “There’s over 100 of them” and i was all “but all those are written by somebody else.” and he got all “they are still canon...” 

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

If you want to know about the In//cel ideology in a classic literary form, this fits the bill. So much man pain.

A Christmas Carol (Tim Curry) (Audible Free Book)

Tim Curry, guys.....

The Poetic Edda (Norse God Mythology)

I listened this book twice. I bought two Edda books thinking I’d get some extra content, but no... same book just different production teams and readers. Returned the one with the worst translation.

Treasure Island (Audible Free Book, dramatization)

I need to read the actual book sometime, but i did like the cast and thought they did a good job.

Wally Roux, Quantum Mechanic (Audible Free Book)

A YA coming of age story about diversity and acceptance... with wacky science fiction. 

Carmilla (Audible Free Book, dramatization)

The vampire before Dracula. Victorian Lesbian love story.

Even Tree Nymphs get the Blues (Audible Free Book)

A novella from one of those “love on the Bayou” romance series with supernatural creatures. Could practically take place in the same world of either True Blood, Dresden, or Fred the Vampire Accountant.

Mystwick School of Musicraft (Audible Free Book)

Harry Potter lite. For 10yo girls.

A Grown-up’s Guide to Dinosaurs (Audible Free Book)

I like dinosaurs.

Rivals! Frenemies Who Changed the World (Audible Free Book, Dramatization)

Interesting way on telling us about the Fossil Wars and Puma vs. Adidas.

True-Crime from Audible: Body of Proof (Audible Free Book),   Midnight Son (Audible Free Book), The Demon Next Door (Audible Free Book), Killer By Nature (Audible Free Book)

Why is True-Crime or YA fiction the only halfway-decent things Audible is giving us? But yeah, these are basically the type of reporting that the two journalists from Halloween were trying to do. Where they go around and gather up information about semi-famous cases and present it in a Podcast-like format.

---- Meh... ---

Camp Red Moon (Audible Free Book)

Would’ve been better if they were actually written by R. L. Stein.

More Bedtime Stories for Cynics (Audible Free Book)

No... half of these aren’t written very well.

The Darkwater Bride (Audible Free Book, Dramatization)

The setting is nice, but it is far too .... Soap Opera Dramatic.

Junk (Audible Free Book)

A cross between Alien Invasion and Zombie outbreak, read by John Waters and written as if it was a bad version of a Philip K. Dick Novel.

Rip Off!! (Audible Free Book)

Most of them are duds and boring. I don’t even remember half of them without having to look them up. The two that stood out the most for me where the “Other Darren/Bewitched” and the “Dark and Stormy Night” stories, the rest were rather garbled.

--- Garbage... ---

Dodge and Twist (Audible Free Book, Dramatization)

No, you are not being edgy or kool.

Unread:

Siege Tactics (Spells, Swords, & Stealth. Book 4)

Triumphant (Genesis Fleet, Book 3)

Earthsea (Tehanu and Tales from Earthsea, i am going to re-listen to the first three before i get to these)

Into the Wilds (Warriors, Book 1)

Pout Neuf (Audible Free Book)

House of Teeth (Audible Free Book)

Viva Durant and the Secret of the Silver Buttons (Audible Free Book)

The Other Boleyn Girl (Phillipa Gregory)