Thanks! Classpecting characters in fiction has definitely gotten way easier for me as I figure this stuff out–even with the parts i’m definitely wrong about or not really sure of, its just a really solid framework for character assessment/analysis
Happy to know I’m not the only one who feels that way.
Being a good person is a choice. Don’t let people fool you into believing that truly good people never have bad thoughts, are never tempted by the easier path, by the low road, never mess up or act out selfishly. Never believe a person can be good without making a conscious effort.
Every single time you do something good, you’ve made a decision to make the world a little brighter.
Goodness is not an inherent trait, it is a choice. Keep making it! I see you, I’m proud of you, and I’m rooting for you!
I’ve been feeling really nostalgic about Homestuck recently and while this is a sketch from sometime last year, I just realized it never ended up on my tumblr.
While all art here was drawn by me, the song and characters are not my property and belong respectively to Two Steps From Hell and Andrew Hussie. I am not profiting off of the use of these creations.
A long time ago someone proposed the prompt: “What I learned in Homestuck is…?” and I never could shake the idea. I wrote the script for this about a year ago, remade the panels about three times, and finally ended up with this. Please take your time reading, the song does not have lyrics. I recommend viewing this on my blog rather than on your dashboard.
This doesn’t show exactly what the caption suggests it shows.
In this scene, the lower pilot is dying. He had been captured, managed to escape, and stole a German plane to fly back. The upper pilot–his best friend and rival for the love of Clara Bow*–shot him down, believing he was the enemy. This is him kissing his friend goodbye.
“But that’s still slashy!” you can say. Yep, it is. “You can read this as homoerotic!” Yes, you can. “Why are you denying this? Is it because you think being gay or bi is shameful?” A thousand times no. I am pointing this out because I think this is an important piece of evidence about what homophobia has done to our society and to male expressions of emotion.
In 1927, the obvious reading of this scene, for audiences, was not that this was a romantic kiss. Audiences primarily understood this as an expression of friendship and love, because of course it was perfectly natural for non-romantically involved men to embrace or even kiss, particularly at highly emotional moments. Of course a dying man would want to be held during his last breaths. Of course a guilt- and grief-stricken man would want to kiss his friend goodbye.
However, not very long after this, the commercialization and commodification of homophobia became a powerful force. The market (including Hollywood) began drawing lines and graphs and boxes, declaring which emotions, expressions, habits, and even colors “belonged” to men and to women. This kind of touch, which would not necessarily have been sexualized during many eras or in many cultures, became forbidden to men in the US, Britain and Canada (and many other places, too) within the decade–and is still lost to them today. This scene–a far more honest expression of grief and affection than anything we’re used to seeing in today’s action films–became gay.
Now, if you strongly wish to write “Wings” slash, you can still do so–and not entirely by putting on your goggles! University culture of the 1900s-1920s definitely allowed for a far wider range of sexual behavior than frats do now, etc. I don’t want to police what anybody can and does find in “Wings.” But I think we should acknowledge what we lost when capitalism decided that, for men, kisses could only be sexual.
*You may recognize Clara Bow from that goddamned photo that keeps making the rounds of the internet captioned, “A sex ed class in the 1920s!” so everyone can hoot with derision at the shocked girls in their desks. The photo is actually a still from a movie, and the star, Ms. Bow, is front and center.
This reminds me of that post where the kid’s family thought he was gay because he cuddled and held hands with his male friend so they thought he was dating. But then he brought home a girlfriend and everyone got confused and found out that he was just friends with the other kid and they were just cuddling because they wanted to
“i hope my parents will accept who i am” is something that seems so gentle in movies but is actually such a violent and repulsive way to feel. even worse maybe is it’s cousin – the knowing that they won’t accept you, that you are a disappointment/a black sheep/a failure. the terrible duality of “i need them to love me” and “i don’t care they’re terrible people” never seems to cease.
so i’ll say this. you were not made in a factory. you are a random assortment of alleles. some of these will be just as they wished: your mother’s eyes, your father’s chin. some of these will be the complete opposite. their failure to love you is not an expression of your own success. it’s simply as far as their heart goes at the moment. i hope one day they overcome it.
but in the meantime, love doesn’t need to come from them. you aren’t a toy. you aren’t a robot built to fulfill expectations. you are just yourself, and living, and they are just two people trying to live through you. and you need to live your own life. “to thine own self be true.” those who look for failure will always find it. and those who look for love will too.
and if all else fails: come to me. i know plenty of others who will accept you.
Flying through Storytelling 