#the mothers lament

[everdeenxmellark]

scène du massacre des innocents (1824)

by léon cogniet

why do you tear from me my darling son,

the fruit of my womb?

it was i who bore him,

my breast he drank.

my womb carried him about,

my vitals he sucked,

my heart he filled.

he was my life,

‘tis death to have him taken from me.

my strength has ebbed,

my speech is silenced,

my eyes are blinded.

- the mothers lament at the slaughter of the innocents

[alchemicaladarna]

Man I'm still processing Jaiden leaving the QSMP because like pretty much the only reason I got into QSMP all those months ago was because Jaiden was one of the only people I was interested in watching on a Minecraft server again. I love her animations so much, so I wanted to follow her story in the server.

I completely understand why she is taking a break though, since like everything lore and community wise can be too much, and I'm really happy she is prioritizing her mental wellbeing and I'll be happy to follow whatever projects she has planned next.

I will miss her interactions with Bobby, Roier, and especially Foolish- god I loved their duo so much during September and October in particular. Also I'll miss her lore about the federation and the Cucuruchos, so I hope they can find a way to reveal that story- maybe in like some sort of behind the scenes talk?

She was like one of my only two povs back in August-October before I religiously began watching Bad. And even though she'll be leaving the server, I hope she'll still hang out or play games with the other members.

o7 qJaiden. May you always remain an iconic queen of queens and literally the coolest and funniest girlboss ever. I hope she's found her place in the stars, and now rests with Bobby during the sunset.

[bonefall]

What are Tallstar's thoughts on how things play out? Now that his surprise pick kicks of a civil war and ends up not mattering in the slightest, probably gonna be a awkward conversation between him and Onestar when he dies

He regrets it massively. A change that I think is major but everyone else will probably consider minor is that Tallstar will never "reassure" Onestar that he was correct.

Tallstar quickly vanishes after his death, he goes to StarClan briefly but then leaves. In truth, he's gone to be with Jake, but it's a mystery to everyone else. All Onestar knows is that when he receives his nine lives, Tallstar's life is short and feels almost like a platitude, and then he is bizarrely absent from dreams and omens.

(If he even stays THAT long. It's still a bit up in the air but I think I'm going to have him catch the sabotauged muirburn, Mudclaw's trial and damnation, and Onestar's nine lives)

It's finally sinking in now, that everyone he's given power and personally brought into the fold of the Clan has been ruined by it.

He returned to WindClan and left his mate, Jake. His son Flytail became his political rival and snapped a ShadowClan warrior's neck in cold blood. He lost so, so much family in the WindClan Massacre. And now his hasty choice has caused THIS.

Tallstar wants peace but was never willing to do anything TRULY hard to get it. He was still going to keep the Mothermouth Moorland that WindClan had fairly won. He never campaigned to bring back tunneling. He saw Mudclaw's xenophobia earlier but didn't change his popular deputy in a "hard time." He has always been reactionary, not proactive...

And there's a thread there, between him and Onewhisker. Friendliness and the desire to be the leader that your Clan wants you to be.

So how would he DARE to ever be angry with Onestar? After what he did to him?

Tallstar checks in as a spirit frequently, especially when Jake's descendants (NOT Firestar in BB they are unrelated) wander around the area. Onestar doesn't know it, but the old leader IS watching him, protecting him even. When Onestar dies, Tallstar finds him before the fetcher does, and invites him to come along on a wander.

But most importantly, in that moment, he apologizes. He thrust a weight onto Onestar's shoulders that never should have been there, and he's had to pretend to be strong for too long.

[fromtheseventhhell]

Saying that non-conforming female characters don't face as much misogyny as their "feminine" counterparts is so funny cause literally the misogyny in their treatment is more overt because they aren't staying "in their place" like men think they should. The disdain for women + misogynistic societal ideals are so much more blatant in male characters interacting with these women. Countless times they are, in essence, told they need to sit down, shut up, and know their place but somehow that translates into them having "masculine privilege". I can only assume that people with this take haven't actually read the books and only get their information from second-hand sources.

[swan2swan]

Annual reminder that Aang wasn't a terrible dad, that one episode was badly written and had poor perspective. Aang was a busy, working dad who had a lot of stuff to do, and then suddenly his third kid was a full-on Airbender and he was literally the only one qualified to teach this baby, so then he finally had an excuse to put his family before his duties ("My family IS my duty now, suckers!!!"), and so Kya and Bumi were all "What the heck, Dad???" because they were now teens (iirc) and they missed out on all that stuff.

It was basically Aang going from "my family has 20% of my time" to "my family has 40% of my time". Still not enough, probably, but Aang could finally go and explore his own culture without feeling guilty about leaving the rest of the world to fend for itself.

[richter10]

An idea for Lila's Lament-like stories...

In stories inspired by @nobodyfamousposts Chloe's Lament, where Lila is the one to make the Wish, she Wishes to have Adrien's life and the Lament is that now she have Gabriel as her father - with all that it implies...

But to add on it... wouldn't it means that this new reality's Lila is now a Sentimonster, created by Lila's mother?

(And depending of how much the Reality changed... Would it mean that Felix's mother, Amelie, is actually related to Lila's mother? And since it means that Colt created a Sentimonster at the image of the Agreste's child... food for thought)

An interesting idea by @imthepunchlord is about a Tri-Life Swap AU, where Lila have Adrien's Life, Adrien have Marinette's, and Marinette have Lila's.

In a Lila's Lament's scenario, it would mean that Marinette is the daughter of a diplomat - and since she is not Lila and is actually a kind, compassionate, creative, hard-worker person, there is the possibility that Marinette really have the connections that Original Reality's Lila lied about.

It would mean that not only Lila have to live under Gabriel's control (in double if she is a sentimonster), she gave Marinette the chance to have an even higher profile life and a chance at Adrien without the pressures of being Ladybug...

[life-imitates-art-far-more]

Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641) "The lamentation over the dead Christ" (c. 1635) Baroque

[blorbologist]

Oh nooooo Pâté is really taking the abuse to heart.

Baby boy considering what is free will, his independence in relation to Laudna, his nature as a construct, you know - things extremely relevant to Laudna...

... and he's asked to be fishing tackle.

[hailmaryfullofmaggots]

𝖎 𝖑𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖉 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖙𝖔 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖕𝖔𝖎𝖓𝖙 𝖔𝖋 𝖗𝖚𝖎𝖓

i know i found this quote somewhere on tumblr years ago and drew a tat design inspired by it. is anyone able to direct me to the original writer or source?

[essek-thelyss]

all of the comments and jabs toward scanlan so far this season are just gonna make the adaptation of a bard’s lament so much worse and honestly. i for one cannot wait

[blessedarethebinarybreakers]

Discrimination, apathy, and arrogance break me into pieces. Mothering God, breathe for me when I cannot breathe. Hope for me when I cannot hope.

Thank you to Sophie for today's prayer.

[autisticlancemcclain]

akdjsjfjs both a friend and a sibling are also nov 12 bdays

hbd to y’all!!

SEE BEST DAY. THANK YOU!!!!

[come-see-our-show]

Into the Woods is clearly a story about growing up, but I want to acknowledge the underlying sexual themes in the story, specifically growing into one’s own sexuality, because there are so many allusions to that and I can't be the only one seeing it.

Fair warning, this analysis is going to be a mess.

CW: Discussions of rape and pedophilia.

(Also, when I refer to "sexuality" and "sexual indentity," I'm not taking about one's sexual orientation, but rather one's interest in sex and relationship to it.)

1. The Witch

I’ve always seen the Witch’s backstory as a metaphor for rape. When she says the Mysterious Man was “Raping [her],” she means that he was stealing from her. However, even since biblical times, gardens have represented temptation, maturation, femininity, and sex. The witch was told from a young age to protect her garden, and when the beans are taken, she feels an intense loss. She is cursed with ugliness because she has been “deflowered.”

This was clearly a traumatic event for her, much like how sexual assault is traumatic for victims. It reminds me of the scene in Maleficent where her wings are taken from her while she’s asleep. There’s something so graphic about it. From a young age, girls are taught to protect our virginities, and if we are too proud of it then it will get taken away from us. We are shamed for being comfortable in our sexual identity, but at the same time we are forced to make it a huge part of our identities. The Witch does not know who she is without her power, and the thing she loved most was taken from her.

2. Baker’s Wife

BW is also shamed by the narrative for having a sexual identity. We can infer that she’s had sex with the Baker because she knows they can’t have children, but the only time she is explicitly shown as a sexual being is when she cheats on him with Cinderella’s prince, which results in her demise. Again, female sexuality is seen as destructive.

3. Cinderella

Cinderella’s character doesn’t have any explicitly sexual themes like the Witch or BW, but I feel like that’s intentional. BW admits to Cinderella that she’s attracted to the Prince. It’s all described in a very tame way, but given the fact that BW has sex with him in Act 2, we know in hindsight that there is some sexual desire there.

Cinderella doesn’t show any desire for the Prince. She talks about how amazing the ball was, but doesn’t talk about the Prince unless BW coaxes it out of her. It’s weird to BW that Cinderella isn’t really excited about him, because shouldn’t all women feel that way?

I don’t think Cinderella is attracted to men at all (I see her as a lesbian or aroace). Her arc ends with her dumping the Prince, thus claiming her independence and rejecting the traditional expectations of female sexuality.

4. Rapunzel

The Witch projects her own trauma onto her “daughter” (bc uhhhh generational trauma 🤪). While she is undoubtedly abusive, you can see why she wants to protect Rapunzel from the world so badly.

Rapunzel’s first introduction to the world is by a man who enters her home and has sex with her after knowing her for maybe a day or two. We don’t know if she was the one who asserted the sex, but given the fact that she lived in a tower all her life and doesn’t know anything about the world, I doubt it.

Despite how dubious the consent is, Rapunzel probably enjoyed it since she was so happy to reunite with her prince after. Sex should be a beautiful and exciting thing, but she pays the price by becoming pregnant, another thing that I highly doubt she was educated on. Imagine how terrifying that must have been, to wonder why your body is changing so durastically, then giving birth to TWINS. Nightmare fuel.

Rapunzel’s storyline reminds me of Wendla’s in Spring Awakening. A sheltered girl is entering womanhood, but because she isn’t taught how to handle these aspects of life, she is sort of taken advantage of by a more experienced partner, and her first time having sex isn’t 100% consensual (even if she enjoyed it), she becomes pregnant, then dies. Rapunzel and Wendla never get full control of their bodies.

So, yeah, teach your children about sex because “children will listen.”

5. Little Red Riding Hood

Most actors portray the Wolf as a lustful character with lots of sexual undertones. The story of Little Red Riding Hood does sound a lot like a story about a little girl getting taken advantage of by a predator. That IS the story, even if it’s about a wolf eating her instead of a pervert molesting her. The lyric “Look at that flesh, pink and plump,” has undeniably sexual undertones. He’s attracted to her youth and purity (cough cough her virginity). He reacts to her the way a pedophile would react to a child. And yes, it’s disgusting.

Many victims of pedophilia don’t see the perpetrator as a threat initially. They’re kind, funny, maybe even give you treats. That was how Red initially saw the Wolf.

Red’s solo, I Know Things Now, is about not trusting strangers. All children are told to not trust strangers. In fairytales, it’s so you don’t get eaten by a seemingly-kind wolf. In real life, it’s so you don’t get kidnapped by a seemingly-kind adult. She acknowledges that “even flowers have their dangers,” again drawing the parallels of nature and sexuality.

Young girls are seen as women once they are objectified by men (hello barbie movie). So, we learn to be wary of men by protecting ourselves with keys or pepper spray. Red begins her introduction into adulthood once she is objectified by a wolf. She learns to be wary by protecting herself with a knife. However, Red reclaims her power by wearing the Wolf as a coat. She's hardened by this experience, which is tragic because she's still a child, but she holds her head up high by wearing her abuser's dead body. She views herself as a survivor. That's a power move.

6. Jack

Jack’s solo also has some sexual undertones, though less obvious than Red’s. The Giant’s Wife “draws [him] close to her giant breasts” and he "come[s] back again, only different than before."

In real life, boys are congratulated for having sex, but girls are shamed. Jack and Red, the two tweens in the show, have the same reactions to their pseudo-sexual experiences. Jack becomes greedy and impulsive, but Red becomes wary and guarded.

While I don't see Jack as a victim of the giant in the same way that Red was a victim of the wolf, his experience also parallels how male victims are treated (if you want to interpret his experience as statutory rape). They are congratulated for being assaulted because boys are expected to always enjoy sex (even though assault/rape are not sex!). Jack's Mother is the only person who acknowledges that he could have been hurt, and that he is "still a little boy." But of course, she gets killed trying to protect her son from that danger.

7. The Princes

I’m lumping the two princes together because they’re very similar. Much like men in real life, they rarely face the consequences of their actions!!! They treat women like prizes (evidence: all of Agony), but soon after, they cheat on the prizes they used to want so desperately. They aren’t satisfied because the patriarchy teaches men to view women as sexual conquests.

Also, it’s notable to me that after CP and BW have their affair, BW has to pay a much bigger price. While CP is dumped by his wife (and tbh he’ll just move onto the next girl), BW is literally KILLED. The Giant is not literally killing her for having sex, but it’s rather coincidental that these two events coincide.

BW and CP’s aftermath is similar to the real life aftermath of sex. If you’re a man, you’re gonna be fine. If you’re a woman, you need to pay a price because you’re a whore. I’m not saying BW should have cheated on her husband, because that’s wrong. But it takes two to tango, so it’s interesting that CP gets out scott-free. On the plus side, CP is still seen as an asshole and BW remembered as a loving person despite her flaws. A slight win despite all of the tragedy.

Anywho, that my spiel. I may edit it in the future, but I was just in a production of Into the Woods and HAD to get my feelings out at once. Toodles.

[the-one-who-died-at-the-end]

Soooo

I was listening to some showtunes with my mother, everything's going all right until "Noel's Lament" from Ride the Cyclone comes up, and my mother goes: "This song's so cool! Put up the video I want to see what he's doing!"

...

PANIC

For those Who don't know: the song's about this boy who's dream's to be a French prostitute and die tragically... And the performance is actually him dressed in drag, dancing and making out with this other dude and dying from various deseases... And my mother is a straight middle aged woman...

I was SWEATING.

So, I put the video on and I DON'T DARE TO LOOK AT HER, and she is silent aaaaallll the way trought and when the video ends, as I'm preparing for some nasty comments and putting on my brave face, my mother looks at me and she's just BEAMING and she's so excited and goes: "OH MY GOD THAT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL AND HE'S SUCH AN AMAZING SINGER AND THE PERFORMANCE WAS SO WELL ACTED AND I ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO WATCH THIS MUSICAL!!! "

Sometimes I forget how much I love my mum... 🥹

[simptasia]

man, thinking about it, there are parts of charmed that would absolutely destroy me if i rewatched 'em now

[loserbigsis]

Still not sure grey ace is entirely accurate to how i feel internally (i feel like i sit more in between grey ace and fully asexual since i don't feel physical sexual attraction "rarely" or "it comes and goes" it's just mostly completely absent, but i feel an almost pathological psychological/emotional desire to have sex with people i've gotten romantically attached to, but i don't know how to label that) But demi-grey ace works functionally to communicate my stance on a surface level, and that's what labels are for in the first place linguistically speaking imo, so.. it works? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯