#literary foil

[abybweisse]

What role in the manga is the undertaker meant to be? Is he an anti-hero, is he the end boss, is he the evil villain?

Undertaker's role?

Idk if I'd call him an anti-hero, simply because that's usually the role of a protagonist, like our earl and Sebastian.

I expect the (mostly emotional) end boss to be real Ciel, though he might be accompanied by Undertaker... at least at first. (This is a Mother3 parallel.)

Even Yana-san said at one point that Undertaker isn't a true villain. I expect the "evil" villain to be John Brown, or the queen under the influence/control of John Brown. (Another Mother3 parallel but even stronger as a Mother2 parallel.)

I think of Undertaker as a Severus Snape sort of character. Greatly flawed... but motivated by love to help take down the evil that destroyed the person he loved. Even if it means acting as a double agent... and as an adversary to someone he's sworn to protect. And he's both a foil and antagonist to Sebastian. (Some HP parallel tossed in for good measure.)

[hermitthrush]

It would seem that in some men there is indeed the true instinct of a beast, pure and unassailable like all instinct, which creates antipathies and sympathies, which separates one nature from another forever, which never hesitates, never is perturbed, never keeps silent, and never admits to being in the wrong; clear in its obscurity, infallible, imperious, refractory under all counsels of intelligence and all solvents of reason, and which, whatever may be their destinies, secretly warns the dog-man of the cat-man and the fox-man of the presence of the lion-man.

Victor Hugo, Les Miserables (1862) | FANTINE, Book Five, V. “Vague Flashes on the Horizon”.  Enter Javert.

[thegenesisofrevelation]

BNHA Foil

Hot Take: Yeah, you can use Midoriya Izuku as the foil/comparison-contrast character for Shigaraki Tomura. But what about Eri? 

WARNING: SPOILERS REFERENCED BELOW

Besides their similar appearances, Eri and Tomura have dangerous Quirks that led to the death of a family member (or members in Tomura’s case) when awakened, were abused (Chisaki Kai and Shimura Kotaro aka Tomura/Tenko’s father, respectively), were raised by villains (Chisaki Kai and All for One), lost a grandparent due to said villain (Eri’s grandfather and Shimura Nana aka Tomura/Tenko’s grandmother, respectively), and gave their affection and trust to the person who saved them (Lemillion/Deku and All for One, respectively). 

[sweetmeatdale]

Upon her introduction to the series Kagami’s main weapon of choice is a foil, a sort of light weight blunted fencing rapier. This is however possibly also intended as a pun, because her purpose in the narrative is also a foil.

A word repeated changes it’s meaning.

Kagami means “mirror” in Japanese and as is often the case in fiction, that name gives us some insight to what the writers intended when imagining her. In this case, she’s a mirror/foil to both our main protagonists. But since Marinette and Adrien are already a Yin Yang couple, built on complimenting and contrasting each other all the way down to having their color schemes be each other’s negatives. So how does she manage to mirror them both?

Well, where is the mirror between you and your reflection? Right in the middle. She shows each of them themselves, but with a little bit reversed.

A foil exists to provide contrast; When Marinette’s too afraid to make a move Kagami’s bold and rushes straight ahead, when Adrien struggles to disobey his father her strong and stubborn will stands firm, when Marinette’s trying to self sabotage her best friends day contest Kagami’s making an earnest effort with Adrien’s quirky friend who he suggested she might like, when Adrien and Luka are too stunned to help up Marinette she makes her move, when Ladybug has a plan for a stealthy escape Ryuuko boldly attempts to fight Ikari Gozen, when Marinette’s clumsy and disoriented Kagami’s athletic and skilled, and when Adrien is unable to effectively comment why he can’t always be present for her Kagami is able to express why that lack of honesty won’t work for her.

A silvery foil is what gives a mirror it’s reflective surface, the things reflected on the other side will still match.

The Cat and Ladybug miraculouses always find each other through fate? Well Adrien and Kagami were literally made for each other.

She high society like Adrien.

She struggles to communicate and express herself like Marinette.

Adrien’s an anime nerd? Kagami reads manga and bases relationship advice off of them.

Marinette hates liars? Kagami’s reason for breaking up with Adrien also led to her becoming an Akuma that embodies her hatred for dishonesty.

She revels in tiny bits of rebellion with Adrien.

She tries to capture the world around her through art and even sketches and paints in her spare time like Marinette, she even paints with Marinette.

She tries to wingman for Adrien with Marinette like how Marinette tried to help her back together with him

She’s burdened by familial expectations like Adrien

She had a helmet removal scene that was literally copied for Marinette, both even happen at the front of the school

Ryuuko’s fighting style matches Chat’s, her main color scheme matches Ladybug’s, and her civilian attire has a white overcoat with a black under shirt like Adrien’s that give a perfect white/black futatsutomoe (☯️) with Marinette’s black jacket over a white shirt.

She’s obviously visually inspired by Marinette’s overall design with her hair and even her freckles are more prominent on the opposite side of her face than where Marinette’s are(Kagami has more overall but her’s are mainly on the left side of her face while Marinette’s are on the right)

When Adrien’s only parent is his father she’s left with only her mother

When Marinette has several friends to fall back on Kagami feels alone and when Adrien feels isolated Kagami’s there alongside his other friends

When we start to get clues about who is a senti-being we get scenes of both Kagami and Adrien

Both Marinette and Kagami have arcs about setting their own feelings aside to support the other

Both Adrien and Kagami have their image co-opted by their parents for a soulless ai assistant copy of themselves.

She even counterbalances their heroics by having some of the most akuma forms and by being one of the fastest to reveal her own identity

A foil has many uses in a narrative, and by letting her be a counterpart to two protagonists at once it has allowed her to become one of the most dynamic and fleshed out characters in the show, even if a lot of that was in service of fleshing out other characters. Heck she even mirrors herself in ways, just look at how Ryuuko’s symbol flows counter to the Tsurugi family crest, she’s a break from tradition and what was intended for her.

I know I’m probably still forgetting things but I just wanted to have a little rant about how I love these themes.

Kagami is a mirror, she is a foil, a word repeated.

[insignificant457]

ok but i can’t stop thinking about kaz matthias parallels. like hello?

their situations (only surviving family member after the death of parents and sibling) are actually so similar, but while kaz is left to fend for himself among the criminal underworld spawned by kerch individualism, matthias’s grief and vulnerability are taken advantage of by the fjerdan nationalist state and he is propelled into life as a child soldier. if they’d been born in different countries, raised on different values, they could have been each other. leigh bardugo i’m in your walls

[youling-the-ghost]

Spot the difference: impossible

[sagaduwyrm]

This may be an unpopular opinion, but I think that even if Jason found out about the times Bruce and Dick tried to kill the Joker he wouldn't stop being angry that the man was still alive.

It's my understanding that Jason wants the Joker dead for two reasons. One, to prove that Dick and Bruce really did care for him as more than "a good soldier." Two, so that what happened to him can never happen to anyone else. Attempting to kill the Joker in a fit of fury does fulfill the first reason, but it completely defies the second.

One of the main reasons why Jason is upset when he finds out about Tim is that "nothing changed." There is still a preteen kid flying around in tight pants, and the Joker's still there to clip the birdies wings. Generally, Jason's anger is interpreted as being upset over being replaced, but his actions suggest another reading.

Jason's modus operandi in his early Red Hood days is to kill those who cross certain lines, not to avenge the dead, but to safeguard the living. His analysis goes like this:

A criminal shows themselves to be a danger to the people of Gotham

Arresting the criminal might allow for rehabilitation, but more likely than not they won't even make it to prison with how corrupt the Gotham judicial system is. Therefore, arresting the criminal will not stop them from hurting others.

If jail was an actual option, Jason might take it. But it isn't. So in order to stop this person from hurting others, the only certain solution is to kill them.

To Jason, Bruce's rule against killing inherently means he fails to protect other people. Bruce is only temporarily stopping the problem.

Batman's philosophy is the opposite of Joker's. While the mad clown claims that one bad day can turn anyone into him, Bruce believes that anyone can become a better person if given the chance. This philosophy inherently prevents his character from killing. The character of Jason Todd is designed to expose the weaknesses in this philosophy, namely that giving someone the chance to change also gives them the chance to stay the same and continue to put others in danger.

Jason finding out about the times Bruce and Dick tried to kill the Joker wouldn't change anything. In fact, it might make things worse. Bruce and Dick only tried to kill the Joker while half out of their minds in grief and fury, and once they calmed down they felt guilty and considered their actions to be wrong. As far as Jason is concerned, they shouldn't be killing Joker because of emotion, they should be killing him because it's the only logical, certain way to prevent the Joker from hurting anyone else the way he did the second Robin. Learning about the incidents in question would just emphasize their philosophical disagreements and leave Jason feeling like the Bats have failed him all over again.

[cup-of-starlight-waters]

thinking about boromir dying and and his last words being “I have failed”

and Aragorn saying “No!” and kissing his brow and “You have conquered. Few have gained such a victory”

and realizing that even here, Tolkien was planting the seeds for Frodo, because Boromir’s victory, the victory Aragorn praised him for was that he fell to the Ring’s temptation but unlike gollum and Isildur he came back—

and because he came back, Frodo could too.

[thegorydamnreaper]

Darrow vs Lysander - symbolism and favored weapons

Okay this I a bit of analysis that has been turning around in my brain since I finished Light Bringer. There will be major spoilers for all of the books, so read on at your own discretion.

And of course if anyone has points to add please do! This is by no means exhaustive, just a compilation of my main thoughts on the whole thing!

Darrow basically grew up with a weapon in his hand, since he started mining at age thirteen. It becomes part of his identity, an extension of himself. It’s also a symbol of his people, as all Red miners are given one. So as a Red, he already closely identifies with the slingBlade as a weapon, as a cultural symbol, and as a means of protection.

“I wonder what Eo wants of me. Does she want me to take my slingBlade and start a rebellion? I would die. My family would die. She would die, and nothing would make me risk her. She knows that.”

(RR Ch 4)

“This is your slingBlade, son. It will scrape the earth’s veins for you. It will kill pitvipers. Keep it sharp and if you get stuck in the drills, it will save your life for the price of a limb.” So said my uncle.”

(RR part III intro)

Lysander, on the other hand, is trained by his grandmother from childhood to use his mind as his weapon. He is capable of using a razor after spending a decade with Cassius, but his mind was his first weapon. It’s also a callback to the Jackal losing his hand and being mostly unaffected - because all Golds are taught that their mind is their first and greatest weapon.

“He sighs. “I told you. I am something different than you. A hand is a peasant’s tool. A Gold’s tool is his mind. Were you of better breeding, you may have realized this sacrifice means so very little to me”

(RR Ch 41)

“Skipping supper. No wonder you’re a little twig,” Cassius says, pinching my arm. “I daresay you don’t even weigh a hundred ten kilos, my goodman.”

“It’s usable weight,” I protest. “In any matter, I was reading.” He looks at me blankly. “You have your priorities. I have mine, muscly creature. So piss off.”

(IG Ch 8/ Lysander 1)

“My memory is a formidable thing. In many ways it is my grandmother’s great legacy, her teachings preserved in me.”

(IG Ch 8/ Lysander 1)

But the mind isn’t a symbol on its own, there’s no cultural gravitas to it. So to him physical weapons are tools that are an extension of his intellect. In that world view, a gun is the most practical choice of tool. Firearms are the great equalizer - you can be smaller, weaker, less trained than your opponent and there’s still a VERY good chance that you will win any fight.

This leads into another similar understanding that he and Darrow share: their rise must be meteoric. Darrow accomplishes this the hard way, through pain and training and failures. He builds himself as a symbol because he knows that’s the only way to start the chain reaction of bringing Gold down. He is a symbol, and so are his tools. The slingBlade becomes a symbols of liberation when once (as just a razor) it was a tool of the enemy.

Lysander? He cuts corners, because the tools don’t matter only the endgame does. He’s not trying to build something new, or inspire his followers to fight for something they never thought possible. He is fighting to reestablish the status quo as swiftly as he can. He doesn’t need to fight from the ground up to become a symbol - as a Lune, he already is a living breathing symbol of Gold, and that’s enough.

“Dancer would want me to accept the offer. It would guarantee my survival. Guarantee my meteoric rise. I would be inside the halls of the ArchGovernor’s mansion. I would be near the man who killed Eo. Oh, I want to accept. But then I would have to let the Proctors beat me. I’d have to let this little whorefart win and let his father smile and feel pride. I’d have to watch that smug smile spread across his bloodydamn face. Slag that. They’ll feel pain.”

(RR Ch 41)

“He sneers at the gun. “No honor.”

“No time.”

I shoot Alexandar in the head”

(DA Ch 81)

He studies those who came before him, flipping their symbols and methods against them instead of doing anything new. He quotes poems like Roque, uses Darrow’s Morningstar as his flagship, claims to be honorable like Cassius - but it’s hollow because these aren’t his achievements. He doesn’t subvert the paradigm like Darrow does constantly, he just borrows and steals to get his way.

Darrow sees himself as the sword of his people, but he’s more than that because he put in the work to be more. He questions if he’s a good man, but the we see the weight his decisions have on him. But because he built himself up, he has a community that loves him, friends and family that are truly loyal and will check his worst impulses. He is the symbol, but he’s anchored by those he represent. It’s real and has meaning because of all the sacrifices he has had to make.

Lysander can’t even unite the Golds because he is built upon lies. His parents and their deaths, a lie. His grandmother’s teachings, all lies and propaganda. The Golden lies of the Society he so desperately wants to restore. He is built upon lies and hollow promises, of course he collapses into Gold dogma at the first sign of pressure. He has no idea what he’s doing, but he’s sacrificing everything and everyone to prop up this dying system, because that’s where he feels safe. He has no symbols to look up to, no culture to give him strength and community. Anything that could have grounded him is gone (often because of his own actions). Pytha and Cassius were his only family left and he rejected them and their teachings. More than ever before there’s nothing holding him back. He has his mind and it is telling him the only way to be safe is to double down and become the worst of Gold.

[the-good-neighbors]

How did you go from making a comic about Celtic fae to Batman?

Good question!!

To be honest IDK

I blame my 12th grade English professor.

he was obsessed with batman

we had a fucking batman unit

We watched the Dark Knight trilogy, The Animated series, and we read a lot of the origin story comics. Honest to god it was the best English class I ever took and not because it was easy but because I actually learned shit.

A lot of our classwork involved looking at the classic Rogues and identifying how they foil Bruce Wayne. That was that thing that really captured me. The reason i started The Good Neighbors is because I really wanted to write a story exploring the history of "changeling" accusations. During the 1800's and even before it wasn't uncommon for people who were queer, neurodivergent, mentally ill, or disabled to be labeled changelings. it really got me thinking about how that would affect someone claimed to be a changeling.

I write about changelings because i like the psychology behind them

Similarly i write about batman because someone got me thinking about the psychology behind him and the antagonists he faces.

I don't think that's too far of a leap is it?

[motivationisdead]

Interesting that the first case we see Xie Lian solve is basically about how love and devotion can go wrong.

Xuan Ji loves and worships Pei Ming to the point of obsession but it’s a selfish love. She doesn’t really care about how Pei Ming feels or what he wants—only about forcing her own feelings onto him. Even to the point of hurting herself in order to try and force Pei Ming to stay with her.

It’s a great contrast to how Hua Cheng handles his own love and devotion to Xie Lian. Hua Cheng’s love is one without expectations or demands. He’s never needed Xie Lian to return his feelings or even know of them because to him respecting Xie Lian’s autonomy and choices has always been more important.

Where Xuan Ji’s love is selfish Hua Cheng’s is selfless.

[formerheroeswhoquittoolate]

reread charles soule's daredevil run and I am thinking AGAIN about sam and this fucking line:

"three, mr. murdock. that's the number I came up with. I would have let three of those people die to save my eyes from muse."

and jesus christ. he's like nineteen. he's nineteen years old and he's weighing everything his mother taught him (we look out for ourselves, because who else will?) and everything daredevil taught him (don't die, don't let anyone else die, but at some point you're going to have to choose) and trying to figure out where they intersect.

and he comes up with an answer. the answer is three.

and daredevil? matt murdock? he would give up his eyes to save anyone, ever, in a heartbeat. he exists to sacrifice. he saves others by sacrificing. (it's a very audacious jesus parallel, in some ways, and some authors are more hamfisted about it than others) hell, the whole reason he's blind is because he pushed someone else out of the way of that truck.

matt gave up his eyes to save one person. sam would have let three people die to keep his.

and it's fascinating to me because these characters are basically perfect foils (oops literary analysis sidequest unlocked) like. matt is a hero because his ideals and his virtues will not let him be anything else. he's tried not being daredevil and it makes him feel guilty. he wants to help people because he feels like a piece of shit when he doesn't. but sam? sam saw the shit going on in his community and he built an invisibility suit to fight it. despite his mom trying to convince him that he didn't need to be a hero. he chose it. he chose it over her. and then he went the fuck back and chose it again. stick was like "here's a sword, guard this cave in the middle of nowhere in japan" and sam was like yeah sure. I'll vibe in the wilderness in a tent for an indeterminate amount of time.

he got his eyes back (kind of) and he's still doing this.

[sunny-rants]

and if I said Xander is Buffy’s narrative foil??

[pintura]

Garrin and Nahris 🌾 for @snidy

Art for artfight!

[puissantveil]

Tanya and Kitana might be literary foils.

Tanya:

Older, starting to show signs of aging

Not all that sexualized despite belonging to the Royal Big Tiddy Sisterhood

Raspy voice and austere aesthetic

Gruff, abrasive personality, Does Not Fuck Around

Devout follower of Delia and Argus (who are hopefully not awful in this timeline)

In a relationship with another woman and unimpressed by Earthrealm men completely

Kitana:

Youthful, definitely the baby sister

The Hot One of this timeline, despite more modest endowments

Rich, smooth voice and glam aesthetic

Sweet puppy dog personality, but also playful, kind of a jobber tbh

Confronts Liu Kang with the problem of evil like a disillusioned Christian

Has risque intros with Johnny Cage and one or two where she teases Kenshi

Yet despite being so different, there's one thing that ties them together: they both love Mileena immensely and would help her hide a body.

[louisapennyfeather2021]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm having my biannual KinnPorsche rewatch and have come to the conclusion that Vegas and Porsche are foils to each other.

They are the same as in they are two older brothers who would do anything for their little brothers. Their weaknesses are their brothers. They both had to grow up too soon in a household with a parent/guardian who didn't prioritize them.

The similarities lessen from there. Where Porsche is kind and warm, Vegas is cruel and cold. Porsche avoids violence(but will use it when necessary) to protect his brother and Vegas uses violence to protect his brother.

Porsche never wanted to be the Head of the Minor Family. It was never his endgame. It was something handed to him and he seized the opportunity. Vegas was groomed to be the Head of the Minor Family. It was all he ever worked for. It was taken from him.

Vegas is the foil to Porsche because all of the bad he is amplifies the good that Porsche is.

I'm not making this post to argue about Porsche or Vegas's characters in depth, this is a very broad analysis of the TV series characters.

I just want to share the idea I had. Let me know if someone has already talked about this :)