Knightfall: Why It Makes Sense [A Thematic Perspective]
Character's Want vs. Need (Explained 4 Different Ways)
This first link is important so that people understand the difference between Want & Need. In stories the desires that the characters outwardly express that they want is not what they truly want. It's just whats on the surface.
As a quick preface: This is is gonna be a thematic analysis of why Knightfall makes sense to happen and why I currently think it's going to be a thing. By explaining the thematic argument the story is making. Theres much more to dig into that reinforces this but consider this a simplified overview.
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So lets start by going over Salem before we get into Cinder and why their stories are connected.
One thing needs to be clear: We are not supposed to kill Salem. You're not supposed to fight Salem. Thats not the point of her story.
God of Light told us how to beat Salem.
Salem must learn the significance of life & death. Only then will her curse be lifted and she will allowed to pass on.
Thats it. Thats the win condition. Thats why the story reiterates that "you will see no victory in strength". Because it was never about fighting Salem or beating her in combat.
RWBY is a fairy tale. Fairy tales were about learning morals and lessons. Salem didn't learn her lesson so her story kept going. So they have to teach Salem the moral of the story for the story to end. Thats what the story is about.
Salem being "redeemed" in this sense also has to do with Cinder. Because they're tied together not only by being the only villains with a backstory but they're the two villains who have the same solution to their stories.
What is the core wound at the heart of the story? Whats the source of the conflict? The entire conflict between Salem & Oz is about a broken romance. The gods aside, the real fued in the story is between Salem & Oz and it's starts when their marriage fell apart. So if the core wound is a romance that fell apart what must you do to mend it? Whats the salve to the wound? Go listen to what the Blacksmith said word for word and apply everything she just said to Salem & Oz. She told us the answer directly.
So you can't beat Salem with combat. She needs to learn her lesson. How do you get her to learn that lesson? Again think about the core wound of the story. The conflict comes from a broken romance. How do you fix that?
The way to fix the romance is obvious. You need to get Salem to believe in Love again. Thats the only way to get her into a position where she would even think about listening to anyone else. Restoring Salem & Oz is the answer. This is why Cinder and her being redeemed is absolutely key.
Cinder was already significant for a long time but the thing that propelled her into major narrative importance was her backstory. NO this is NOT because her backstory was "sad" and we feel bad for her. It's the simple fact that she got a backstory at all. If Cinder were truly just another evil villain meant to be killed, then they wouldn't have bothered with the backstory. No other villain in the entire story had screentime devoted to showing us the roots of their pain. Not Hazel, not Tyrian, not Watts etc. NONE of these major antagonists were important enough to have their backstory shown to us in the actual story. None except for Cinder & Salem. This is important because the resolution to Cinder's story is the key to resolving Salem's. Because Cinder's core wound is the exact same as Salem
^Go back and watch Cinder's backstory and actually pay attention to every scene. What are we being shown in every scene? As you begin to watch all of them you will notice something very simple and easily overlooked. There is something missing here. Something that is absolutely important for a young child yet is absent from every single scene. Theres no Love. Thats Cinder's real core wound. In nearly every scene of her backstory Cinder is is either being kicked around and mistreated or on her knees scrubbing floors. The story even goes out of way to literally tell us this in her song - The Truth. The actual lyrics of which state: "the truth is that no one's ever loved you"
Thats very literally the lyrics. The story could not get any more blatant with it's messaging.
Cinder doesn't actually want power. Thats a common mistake people make. But if you understand the difference between Want & Need that I highlighted earlier things will become more clear. The Want is just a cover for the Need. It's something the character wants that they falsely believe will let them achieve happiness but it's not what they actually need. Cinder's desire for power is a cope. It's a small child trying to make up for the fact that she was never truly loved by anyone. To quote Carl Jung:
“Where love rules, there is no will to power, and where power predominates, love is lacking. The one is the shadow of the other.”
― Carl Gustav Jung
Love & Power are opposites. She chases one because she doesn't have the other. The resolution to Cinder's story is Love and it's what she actually wants but believes she will never have. So power is what she uses to compensate. Before I once said that even if Cinder is redeemed theres no guarantee romance will be part of it. Though an acquaintance of mine staunchly disagreed and said that without romance Cinder would not be redeemed. That it was either romance or no redemption. Period. At the time I couldn't see it but now? The story itself has gone out of it's way to straight up tell us this is the case.
As they are leaving the Ever After the Blacksmith very literally states that balance cannot be restored with force or calculation. It can only be restored with love.
I don't know how much more blatant they can make it. The story is telling us, that Cinder has never been loved, then it went out of it's way to have an actual character, literal God, tell us word for word that the way to resolve the conflict is with love.
This is the thematic argument the story is trying to make. It's the thesis of the show.
This is why Volume 9 has me very certain that Knightfall is happening. Not as crack or a kink but something absolutely necessary for resolving the story.
Only remaining question is why this needs to be Jaune. And the answer is simple: It can't be anybody else.
It does not work with anyone else besides Jaune. This ONLY hits as hard as it does because hes the one person who absolutely should not love Cinder but still chooses to anyway.
Jaune is the only character that is set up for it.
Even ignoring the fact that it's just really poetic for the person she harmed the most, to ironically, be the one to help her heal; both Jaune's character arc and semblance are both setup for him healing somebody.
Jaune's character arc puts him on the direct path towards helping Cinder. When we look at Jaune's story what is the one key consistent struggle he faces. What are his biggest failures? Everytime Jaune's biggest source of pain tends to come from him failing to save a woman. Pyrrha, Penny, and recently Alyx. These are his biggest obstacles. A moment where there is a woman close to him who is suffering and at the last minute he fails to help her when it's most crucial. All of these are setup for him eventually succeeding with Cinder. Alyx's arc in particular is foreshadowing for his relationship with Cinder. With him going from thinking she's an evil monster to him eventually realizing she was more than that albeit far too late. The reason I think that Cinder is where he finally succeeds is because of Alyx's statement during their last meeting. He failed to save her but this time it's time for him to be the kind of man he always wanted to be. And he can't fail this time
In addition to that, Jaune's semblance first and foremost represents compassion & empathy. The act of connecting his very soul with another and allowing that connection to make them stronger and heal.
The only form of love Cinder has known has been transactional. Which is why Emerald doesn't work. It can only seem real and be genuine if it's coming from someone who has no obligation to love her and every reason to hate her. The very fact that she caused Jaune so much pain yet he would be the one to help her in spite of everything she'd done is the purest depiction of love they could possibly do in the story.
A lot of people will try to argue things like "Cinder has done bad things how can you love that" but that is the point. It's SUPPOSED to seem impossible. The more daunting the task the more impactful it seems when the trials are overcome. And the more powerful & pronounced the theme of love will be. That it can overcome even this. Thats why Jaune has to forgive her.
But Salem has existed for thousands of years and a few idealistic words from the protagonists aren't gonna be enough to change her mind. Which is where Knightfall comes in.
The purpose of Knightfall is to build towards Ozlem reconciliation.
Jaune & Cinder is another reflection of Oz & Salem. The purpose of Jaune & Cinder in the story is to make the case that if these two can overcome all that happened to them and all that they did to each other and STILL find a way to love each other, then maybe Salem & Ozma can as well.
The reason it has to be them specifically is because Salem needs to see something shocking. Something that radically shakes up her worldview. Something absolutely impossible. Something that no one, not even the audience, ever dreamed would actually legitimately happen in a million years.
Jaune & Ruby wouldn't work because everyone would expect that.
Jaune & Weiss wouldn't work because everyone would expect that.
Emerald & Cinder wouldn't work because anyone could see that as a possibility.
Ruby & Cinder doesn't have the emotional build up.
It's Jaune falling in love with Cinder Fall.
The absolute last thing on anyone's radar. The most insane dramatic depiction of romance there could possibly be in the story. The most impossible of impossible romances to prove the power of love in the story.
It's also the only thing that justifies Jaune's existence in the story. He's not here to slay the monster. He's here to love someone.
Again, this is love playing a thematic role in resolving both Cinder and Salem's stories. Cinder is a child who wants to be loved and Salem is a woman who needs to remember what love is, in order for her to humble herself and admit she was wrong.
But the ONLY thing that could get Salem to believe in love again is seeing an impossible romance play out right before her eyes. To show her that it's still possible even after all they've done to each other.
Feel free to believe I'm crazy if you want it but I think the themes make this pretty indisputable.
Continuation: https://www.tumblr.com/emperorluffy/802101357110837248/knightfall-analysis-the-significance-of-jaunes
YEAH. YOU GET IT. YOU GET IT. I think the narrative significance of redemption and the possibility of forgiveness is something which SHOULD BE TALKED ABOUT MORE in the context of RWBY. I am so tired of people harping on about how xyz villain should be killed when the entire damn moral of the story/plot is about unity, forgiveness, and cooperation and how disunity is what leads to failure!!
