I love that Viktor Frankenstein is shown treating actually sick people horribly. I love that he goes on this long agrandizing rants about defeating death and then stands in front of people condemned to die, miserable and terrified, and looks them in the eye and goes "ugh terrible condition ugh be glad you're about to be killed you would have died anyway ugh" because yeah that's what an ego boost "I'm gonna defeat death and beat god" will do to you. That's a horrible doctor, an incredibly smart one, but a horrible one. He doesn't care about improving the quality of life of anyone, he doesn't care about actual healing, he cares about his ego, about getting retribution from death for having taken his mother, not anyone else's mother though, or someone else's son or father or daughter or sister, just his mother. Even when he finds out about Harlander, who has done so much for him, there was no empathy only disgust at his compromised body. And I liked that it was shown because so many doctors, even to this day still, despite the development of ethics and deontology committees, don't understand that the job isn't to defeat death or destroy a disease, the job is to help a human being. Even when you can't heal you should still do your best to help them, improve their quality of life even if they only have one minute left to live. That's the job.
But Viktor didn't vow to become a better doctor, he only vowed to become better than his father but he was still on the same wavelength, still on the same ego trip, just better at defeating death. And the other doctors who rejected him, they were also on the same wavelength, still obsessed with their place vis-Ć -vis god, as good christians and good extensions of their god, that they shouldn't try to defy him. But noone in that boys' club was identifying the actual problem of their practice. That patients were accessories when patients should be at the center of every single decision a doctor makes.
shadow of a doubt (1943) / interview with the vampire (2022-)
The same blood flows through our veins, Charlie.
I couldn't help comparing these two dynamics as I watched Shadow of a Doubt (1943) last night -- Lestat as the uncle Claudia once admired. The one she relied on to teach her about the pleasures of their nature. The fantasy breaks when she realizes Lestat's goal is to possess her in favour of keeping his family bound to him, just as Charlie Newton's faith in her uncle as the keeper of a joyful and dynamic life is broken by his murderous actions.
They are two forces that are more similar in their passions than they care to admit, and perhaps more capable of hurting each other than anyone else. Charlie knows her uncle better than anyone -- it's why she's able to figure out he's the Merry Widow Killer. Claudia knows Lestat, at least the dark part of him, even better than Louis. Louis, the brother, and Emma, the sister, are too in love with Lestat and Charlie to do detective work.
To beat Lestat you have to become Lestat. To corner Uncle Charlie you have to meet his sinister disposition with your own version of taunting. The gift of death, a ring around both their fingers. Both rings signifying the false commitment to honesty, to an ultimately dangerous love. Physically binding the girl to the father/father figure in so many ways. By his own possessive hands around her face/chest/neck, by the way he holds the promise of a family over her head. (What will it do your mother?/What will it do to Louis?)
A daughter/niece puts on the armoured skin of the violent man in her life. It's how she survives. In the end, both Uncle Charlie and Lestat are freed from their wretched lives, aka killed by the young woman they tried to cage. And there is something so dreadfully intimate about both deaths. Physical closeness for Charlie and her uncle, and Claudia staring down into his eyes, and then writing in her diary with Lestat's blood. The thing you created, groomed to be your very own blood, will always be your greatest downfall.
Hey everyone!! I just wanted to say thank you so much for 17k+ notes. This is the farthest my art has ever reached, and out of all my pieces, Iām so glad it could have been this one. Itās been so so so nice to read the tags and find it connecting with so many other people, and itās been so so so nice to see other trans Chinese people finding the comic? Itās so comforting to see other people having similar experiences to mine and itās just such a good feeling to know weāre not alone in this :) So thank you all!!!!
Oh and- Bodhisattva Guanshiyin is transfem but to clarify, she is traditionally nonbinary!!
EDIT: OH MY GOD THANK YOU FOR 73K+ NOTES????? I seriously never expected my comic to reach this far and itās so nice to know Iāve helped others feel not as alone in their trans Chinese experiences :)
Just so you know, you can now also view this comic on Dear Asian Youth!
you can think whatever you want about lottie's death but you can't deny that it's not another example of how the show treats their woc. like, explain to me what has happened to taissa's character and why her entire story has been whittled down to nothing but her white ex gf. explain to me where the hell simone and sammy have gone meanwhile callie gets upped to a series regular. this has been a problem that i have been talking about since last season was literally airing. taissa's literal wife and son reduced to a single phone call in the first episode and the career that was her entire driving force in s1 to a throwaway line.
it doesn't make sense and it's also fucking boring. taivan is literally my favorite pairing and they're afraid to do anything interesting with them. tai has no plot outside of van and van has no plot outside of tai. it took one episode for them to get back together. that's so BORING. and yes marking people for murder is boring when we could have gotten taissa clinging to her carefully constructed perfect life by her fingernails. you could argue part of that is because i'm sure sammy's actor has grown up considerably, but simone? and this show looooves recasting their minor characters, they really couldn't have just recast him? be so serious.
but jeff needs to donate shit to goodwill and randy needs to doordash on his scooter, right? we need to throw away characters who have been there since season one to make room for more white characters, right?
"it's only episode four, give them time!" i have been giving them time since season two.
This is what really ticked me off in season two because Simone had so much potential as a character and Rukiya Bernard is SO charismatic. They couldāve done so much with her character and her relationship with Taissa! Also, I absolutely adore Taivan, but their development in the adult TL was just not it, which is such a disservice to them because theyāre such a great ship with so much to offer.
To be fair, I do get Callieās increasing importance to the narrative because it has been there since season 1, and I think the gradual development of this over time was good, but this just leads us back to the point that they werenāt able to do this for any other POC character which is absolutely frustrating.
it actually means so much to me that tai and shauna seem to hold the most anger towards coach ben. they're the most willing to believe that he burned the cabin down not because they truly think he did it, but because of the way he abandoned them and looked down on them.
tai and shauna were the only ones who took shauna's pregnancy seriously- or at least understood the reality of it. partially because tai was the first to know, she helped shauna with the attempted abortion, she was the first that shauna confided in. they treat the pregnancy with much more gravity than the other characters, because they know how fucking dangerous and terrifying it is for shauna, to give birth in the wilderness with no medical care, no doctors, a rapidly dwindling food supply.
tai and shauna (and nat) are also the ones who struggle the most after eating jackie. tai because her other self took over in that moment, so on some level she has no idea what she's done until afterwards. shauna because they ate jackie, her best friend, the person she loved, hated, and whose death she caused.
for coach ben to look down on them, treat them like uncontrollable monsters who would turn on him and eat him next, to talk as if he's better than them for abstaining... yeah. i can see why tai and shauna would be angry. does he think they wanted this? to be driven to this? does he think they liked it? and the fact that, on some level, they did like it, they dont feel as bad as they probably should.... coach ben, like jackie, is the voice of judgement that they absolutely dont need. what right does he have to judge them?
because, coming back to shauna's pregnancy, coach ben may have had no clue what to do for her, or been able to help in any way, but he was the only adult figure that they had. to him, they didnt listen to him anymore, they didnt see him as an authority figure or value his opinion, but the yellowjackets still care about him, looking to him for guidance and reassurance. theyre still just kids. scared, terrified, unsure kids, one of whom is about to go through an incredibly traumatic birth, so they look to coach for something, anything... and he walks away. to the only room with a real bed, which (in my opinion) he could have offered to shauna during her last few months of pregnancy. instead, ben separates himself from the yellowjackets almost completely. shauna gives birth with her only help being teenagers who have no idea what theyre doing, but at least theyre doing something.
its easy for tai and shauna to hate coach ben. to blame him for the fire. him disappearing right when javi dies and they eat him is obviously no coincidence. and his obvious disgust, his morally superior attitude, the fact that he didnt care enough to even try and help shauna when she was in labour, and now javi's death? why wouldn't he try and kill them? why wouldnt he try and take them all out in one go? they're monsters. thats what he thinks anyway.
i dont believe coach ben set the fire anymore. i dont believe tai did either, but thats an entirely different post. his speech in 3e04 was moving, but it was tai and shauna who really made me feel their anger, their betrayal. he didnt just fail them, he judged them, he abandoned them and then he tried to kill them.
She's a wife, a mother, a friend and an important public figure.
Tai has always been related to leadership and intelligence. However, there's so much more than that to her.
Paranormal subjects have always been a part of her life and we're only getting a glimpse of what she can do when becoming the other Tai.
We know she's capable of murder but to what lengths can her dissociative disorder take her?
I like to theorize there will be many facedowns near the finale and I really want to know what Taissa is capable of doing.
Would she turn against Van? Shauna? We don't know but I believe the other Tai will take over and betray someone in the end.
Taissa is such a captivating character to me because she's so guided by reason and knowledge and refuses to believe the paranormal is out there with them in the wilderness but she is the paranormal, too. Darkness is a part of her as much as the other girls if not even more. She took Van's necklace, the one Lottie gave to her for protection and she almost got eaten by wolves. She accused Lot of being out of it and spent nights in the cold eating dirt.
Tai has a deep mystery to her because we don't know her family, nor her background.
I think the story of the man with no eyes could be related to her other identity.
Her dissociative persona makes her commit atrocious things to ensure her success and ultimately harms her loved ones because it needs an outlet to all that darkness inside.
She killed Biscuit to secure her win in the polls. The other Tai got so enraged at Simone while she was scolding her about her poor performance as a parent to Sammy that she made her crash against another car, putting her wife in a coma.
I honestly think there's so much more we have yet to see about Taissa and her other identity and I hope the writers go back to that part of the plot.
Everyone always gets on yellowjackets for being fucking weird with the number ofĀ Ā background characters and changing actresses and lacking depth for a lot of said background character and everything all the time but thats the point!!! Thatās the point of it!!! All the surviving Yellowjackets are unreliable narrators!!! Most if not all of the surviving Yellowjackets have mental conditions and if they donāt they sure as hell have endless trauma. The flashbacks are being told by them, 25 years later, when they have spent all that time trying to hide and deny everything that happened and everything that occurred and all of it is messed up. They donāt want to remember it all, they donāt want to remember their dead teammates. Sometimes itās impossible to tell which characters are flashing back to which segments. Sometimes characters are inexplicably absent. Sometimes some people remember more than others. Sometimes random characters appear who have been absent all this time. Like, Crystal appeared as a character out of the blue when Misty was feeling abandoned by Nat and was remembering her first best friend. Characters are recast because who can even remember what those girls looked like anymore. The consistent characters are the ones no one can forget. The first ones. Who is gonna forget Laura Lee? Jackie? Javi? No one. But who is gonna remember girl #3 that you killed and ate when you went insane in the wilderness? No one. Or maybe you donāt want to remember. Maybe by girl #3 you try and forget everything. You stifle all feelings and memories until you remember maybe she had brown hair, oh i think i remember her gathering herbs once, oh i think she had this hat she liked to wear, oh maybe she was around during this event or maybe she was already dead and gone and buried and eaten. Maybe maybe maybe. You donāt know. You never know. Because thats what trauma does it eats away at the brain until all you have left to tell your story is faulty memories and a heart full of grief. And i think it just got worse once Shauna burned her journals and left everything into pure memory. Even those were unreliable because Shauna was suffering from day one and it only got worse after Jackie. Nothing is gonna be consistent about a story told 25 years after the events by people so traumatized they can barely remember it themselves.
tai is a cheater and a deadbeat and a workaholic to the point that it tears her family apart but honestly it's chic it's refreshing. we love to see a woman excelling in male dominated fields. i love her so much. i hope she gets worse.
āI'm so glad people are starting to like Mari this seasonā starting? No lol I have liked Mari SinApellido Yellowjackets since season 1 when she was talking to Akilah in the plane and when Jackie asked who had the best arm and she went and said "I do, Jackie". I continued to like watching her being a hater and making belt soup and having one of the funniest lines in the whole show: praying "Wilderness, I hope Shauna doesn't die" at the worst possible moment (Taissa was gonna beat her ass lmao) and proving she has no social awareness. Some of y'all didn't appreciate her haterism and silliness but I did. Love her.
tai is a cheater and a deadbeat and a workaholic to the point that it tears her family apart but honestly it's chic it's refreshing. we love to see a woman excelling in male dominated fields. i love her so much. i hope she gets worse.
This is an edited repost of the Erzsebet Bathory character analysis I wrote yesterday that I refuse to let go to waste. I tried doing the right thing and tagging all of the necessary trigger warnings only for this post to be completely hidden from the Castlevania Nocturne and Erzsebet Bathory tags. Since I can't afford to tag the proper trigger warnings without being punished please do not read this post if discussions of rape or sexual assault triggers or upsets you in any way. I don't take these topics lightly and they are vital to this analysis of Erzsebet Bathory.
This post also contains major spoilers for this first season of Castlevania Nocturne.
This may seem presumptive of me to say but this thought has been stuck in my head for several hours: Erzsebet Bathory is the most rapist adjacent villainess I've ever seen without her actually being a rapist.
The first and smallest point against her is how often she mentions virgins. I know that Erzsebet's initial mention of virgin sacrifices is supposed to tie into the origin of her alter ego and consumption of Sekhmet but it's super fucking weird that it played into why she wanted to sacrifice Maria.
Next point against her is the lawyer's daughter. I'm not sure if this lady was a virgin but when she's first brought to Erzsebet she's already terrified and too dazed to fight back. It's obvious that she doesn't want to be there and that even if she did that she can't really express that desire. But Erzsebet still takes this lady out of a literal gilded cage, sits down and sits this lady on her dress to admire her despair before drinking her blood. The next time we see the lady she's still dazed. The only differences are that she's dolled up and seems more suggestible. Even with hundreds of people in this ballroom scene the lady is literally ignored by everyone except for Erzsebet who dances with her and parades her around for her own amusement. Everyone else knows that Erzsebet likes to make her victims suffer and they still refuse to acknowledge the lady because Erzsebet has made it clear that she's her possession. Hell the only person who is unhappy enough with Erzsebet to go rogue at this point is Olrox and he STILL IGNORES THIS LADY. When the lady is dragged outside to be fed on again without anyone batting an eye it reminds me of a rapist roofying their target and proceeding to do everything in their power to seem interested in their victim's well-being in order to take them to a second location. And no one speaks up since Erzsebet is the Harvey Weinstein, Prince Andrew or Thomas Jefferson of the vampire world; the embodiment of people in power getting away with abuse until the damage has already been done.
The last and biggest point against Erzsebet is the entire scene where she turns Tera into a vampire. For me personally that is just an allegorical rape scene and it's executed very well. Erzsebet makes her entrance at the abbey as a lioness of a woman, a literal predator who wants to take Maria as a sacrifice and turn her into a vampire to ensure Emmanuel the Abbot's loyalty. Tera protests and offers herself to Erzsebet instead. This is such blatant coercion that Tera refers to herself as the ram Abraham sacrificed to God instead of Isaac. And the only question or concern Erzsebet has at this point is if her sacrifice should be a virgin. The only reasons she accepts the sacrifice are Emmanuel's genuine love for Tera and the fact that Tera is a powerful sorceress. Once Erzsebet settles for Tera and physically lifts her to her level no one can stop her. Maria gets knocked out for trying and Richter gets bodied immediately after. Their only option is to get the hell out of there once Annette makes an opening and Richter rightfully runs for his life. Even Maria, the only person that could look back and see Tera turn, is knocked out and that feels like an intentional writing choice to give Tera one last shred of dignity. Erzsebet holds Tera really close in this sort of hug as she feeds on her and once she's fed she literally sits Tera on her lap for her turn to feed. Then Erzsebet cuts herself and the blood starts dripping down on Tera, starting at her skirt, going to her blouse and reaching her face. At first Tera doesn't react but then her body responds to the blood and she feeds even though she doesn't want to. Even though no one wants this for her. And that is exactly what it's like when someone has an unwanted orgasm. Tera's body is protecting itself the same way a victim of assault would and that paired with the blood on her skirt being reminiscent of the blood on a woman's thigh in the aftermath of an assault hammers home the rape allegory. It's very sad and uncomfortable to think of Tera's turn to vampirism this way but the thought lingers hours after like a grimy film on my brain.
I 100,000% believe that Erzsebet would have been an actual rapist if Netflix Castlevania didn't romanticize Lenore raping Hector and ending their relationship on friendly terms. Not to mention Sumi and Taka's sudden shift from allies to sexually assaulting Alucard out of spite. Castlevania Nocturne seems to shy away from rape and sexual assault in favor of allegories or moments so brief that I missed them unlike its predecessor. So I'm blaming the gratuitous depictions of sexual assault in Castlevania on Warren Ellis, the creator of Netflix Castlevania, who doesn't work on this show for a very good reason.
Everything from her size as Sekhmet to her tendency to torture women and girls before killing them contributes to the allegory of Erzsebet being the vampire equivalent of a rapist. She exudes power and not only does she enjoy making others feel helpless she's also great at it. She is a sadist without honor, willing to parade her lady victim of choice around vampire high society or hang a young girl on hooks to drain dry rather than let any of them die a quick death. The dragged out, needless suffering Erzsebet inflicts along with her preference for women and virgins frames her feeding as something more sexual in nature than the other vampire nobles who simply indulge in their gluttony. Even Olrox feeding on his former boyfriend isn't framed sexually, it's framed as a desperate, romantic gesture to keep his lover alive. And every vampire I remember from Castlevania has their feeding framed as a tool for political power or sheer, simple gluttony. Even the vampire general Cho was shown to be more of a tyrant or a general sadist clinging to power in Japan than a deviant.
Erzsebet's sheer sadism actually contrasts quite well with Dracula's humanity and restraint. He understood humanity, only feeding to survive or strike down the merchants who slighted him. (He probably also used feeding as a tool for political power but I don't think we saw that directly.) Dracula ultimately came to understand humanity so well that he fell for Lisa Tepes, the exemplar of what it means to be human. And that love is why I believe he respected Lisa's wishes and let her keep that humanity instead of turning her into a vampire. And after Lisa's death Dracula stopped feeding entirely, hoping to extinguish his life and take out as many people as he could because he believed that humanity should've been better. He believed that the people who lived alongside Lisa would've stood up for her and they betrayed her out of a mix of fear, religious reverence and apathy. Meanwhile Erzsebet doesn't care about humanity, seeing people like the lawyer's daughter as possessions or people like Tera and Emmanuel the Abbot as pawns to further her own rule. She might be taken aback by Drolta's death once she learns of it but there's an equal chance that she wouldn't even bat an eye.
So what do these points of analysis mean for Erzsebet and Tera's future dynamic as master and pawn? The one thing that's certain is that Tera has been fundamentally changed, forced into an unprecedented nightmare scenario that will drag her down a dark path. But I'm an optimist and I believe that Tera will ultimately be redeemed. She may never be human again but her humanity, her love for her son and daughter will save her soul. Ultimately I hope that Tera lives and recovers from the trauma of Erzsebet turning her. I hope that she goes home to her children and is taken in with open arms. But if Tera dies she will die as Tera, not as a pawn, and that is because Erzsebet could never kill her humanity.
Edouard Character Profile and Analysis: A second look at the man behind the bright-eyed smile.
Introduction/Context:
One of the most difficult challenges when analyzing Edouardās character is that much of his backstory is enshrouded in mystery. The most we know of him is told through Annette, which necessitates peeling back layers from how Annette would perceive him with her limited perspective.Ā
However, we can look at history to construct what sort of life Edouard might have had, and what unique challenges he might have faced. By piecing together circumstantial details of Saint-Domingueās theater culture, we can start to ask the questions: What might have shaped Edouardās motives, ideals, and beliefs? What motivates Edouardās character?Ā
So, letās embark on a iceberg-level deep dive where I explore a potentially cynical interpretation of Edouard that hasnāt been examined before...
Note: Throughout you will notice certain words enclosed in brackets following the end of a sentence with a number. This references the cited source by author's last name or website name, which is listed in full at the end.
PART I.Ā Annette and Edouard, Revisited
1.1 Initial Impressions
I initially heldĀ the belief that Annette/Edouard relationship was intimately close -- closer than anything, family, perhaps bordering on romantic. There was something implicit in their connection through demonstrated character actions: (1) Edouard saving her from Vaublanc, (2) fighting side-by-side during the Haitian slave insurrection. (3) How Edouard chose to follow Annette to France without hesitation (4) how Edouardās death affected Annette so deeply.
At the time when I had completed my first Annette/Edouard fic, I had written an in-depth analysis ("On the Edouard/Annette 'ship'") where I posited how deep their closeness must have been, and what they had meant to each other.
However, as Iāve let things sit in the fridge more, certain observations have made me reconsider. I believe they were 'close' in terms of trust when fighting alongside each other, but they didn't truly understand each other on a deeper level.
1.2Ā Re-Analyzing Sampled Interactions
Richter: Are you alright? You canāt be sure that was him.
Annette: Those were his eyes.
At the time, I had thought that Annette recognizing Edoaurdās eyes in a vastly different form was an implicit indication of their closeness. However, as mentioned in this previous post here ("Exploring The Narrative Significance of Edouardās Blue eyes"), my stance now is that this speaks more to her own personal perception of how well she thought she knew him, rather than actually knowing him.Ā
Annette: Edouard believed singing was the soul's way of speaking. That's why, from pauper to statesman, everyone is drawn to music. He'd say that when he was on stage looking out to the audience, he could see the colors of everyone's soul. Mine was pink. He was wrong, though. Green is my favorite color.
When Annette recounts Edouardās belief about singing and souls, thereās a wistful quality in her tone, sentimental and romantic with a subtle laugh. This scene can be interpreted in multiple ways -- perhaps she felt the notion Edouard held was silly, something she appreciated but perhaps didnāt understand or didnāt quite see it the same way he claimed. Note the visual storyboarding setup -- she is quite literally, reconstructing an subjective image -- her subjective image -- of Edouard as she speaks through memory.Ā
As I began to research more into Saint-Domingueās colonial theatre scene, I began to understand on a deeper level what kind of environment Edouard was in. This led me to question why the only things we heard about Edouard from Annette was from a rosy lens. Of course, here I ought to extend some grace. When grieving, it is only normal human tendency to want to remember the best parts of someone.Ā
Annette: My sweet, beautiful Edouard has been turned into a monster conjured from hell.
Butā¦ Annetteās phrasing of āmy sweet, beautiful Edouard,ā combined with the fact that we only hear only rosy things, suggests me that either (1) Edouard didnāt share much about himself beyond his romantic ideals, and/or (2) Annette didnāt know him as well as she thought, perhaping lacked the capacity to understand him deeper with her framework of understanding at that stage in her life.
Another instance that may hint at this disconnect is when she finds NightCreature!Edouard, she offers to give him penance through killing him.Ā
Annette: I can make it quick, Edouard. No. pain [..]
Iām sorry. Iām so sorry. I thought that's what you would have wanted.
This situation, taken in isolation, is not a strong one. With limited knowledge of night creatures, Annette wouldnāt have known that Edouard could be cognizant or the extent he retained his humanity (his case being unprecedented in the animated Castlevania universe). However, this still highlights Annetteās tendency to jump to conclusions and take action first rather than seek understanding.
----
PART II. Who was Edouard, Really? Constructing a Character Profile from History and HeadcanonĀ
2.1 Saint-Domingueās Political, Social, and Economic backdrop in context of French Colonial Theatre
At the peak of the Haitian revolution, the racial diaspora in colonial Saint-Domingue had evolved into a nuanced and complex one --Ā with the burgeoning rise of the mixed race population, some of which had amassed wealth and economic influence. Even within the mixed race population, there were nuances and subtleties regarding their rights -- i.e., a gens de coleur that would have been born free, compared to an affranchis, a slave that had earned their freedom. A mixed race personās circumstances of birth governed mobility in what careers, ownership of property/land, voting rights, and strategic marriages/unions could be pursued (Maguire[3]).
This theatre was situated in the heart of CapāFranƧais. now known as Cap-Haitian. At the time, it was one of the wealthiest cities with its key strategic seaport location and boasting a diverse urban population, and eventually became a key staging ground for the Haitian slave revolt that sparked in 1791 through 1793.
A fun detail comparing the skyline of modern Cap-Haitian (courtesy of Wikipedia) and CapāFranƧais as depicted in Nocturne. Note the similarity of the eminence of the peninsula that resembles a "widow's peak."
Note: Detail the specific theatres and setting will be important once I discuss Edouardās transition from theatre to joining the maroons, or escaped slaves.
The theatre scene in Saint Domingue was complex social, political, and economic space that both (1) reflection of a system that reinforced the French hegemonic colonial presence, but also (2) may have influenced and challenged the complex social structures that arose through the eventual Creole influences in performances -- all the while serving as a melting pot where a diverse body of people convened to immerse themselves (the perception of) high-end French culture and music (Prest[6], Clay [1]).
As discussed, there were a lot of nuanced social ordinances, not too dissimilar to a caste system. The majority of theatre attendees were wealthy plantation owners, businessmen, stationed military, or visiting government representatives traveling abroad on business or behalf of the crown; eventually, gens de coleur and free blacks were admitted. Enslaved persons only of the audience if they were attending their masters, and were only allowed to perform under very strict circumstances (Prest[6]). Theatres also enforced French colonial cultural influence by primarily performing French pieces (as we know, African-influenced expressions of song/dance were greatly suppressed and theatre was no exception) (Clay[1]). Structural rules on theater seating arrangements and social fraternizing by race were also imposed.
With the vibrant diversity of individuals also came varying motives within the theatreās social scene. People gathered to negotiate business or political deals, exchange ideas/sentiments regarding the current economic and political climate (sentiments that were growning increasingly tense as the revolution progressed). Wealthy gens de couleur saw this as an opportunity to enhance their social standing and economic influence, given Au Capās self-touted reputation for French sophistication and culture. It was also a place where less scrupulous motives were afoot, where colonists and soldiers would visit specifically to seek the company of the mulatto prostitutes (Clay[1]); or colored families would strategize in matchmaking for their daughters, tutted in well-spent attire, in hopes of being backed by a white sponsor (Powers[5]).
These details paint a vivid picture of Edouard's position within a broad social circle, ranging from the wealthy and educated, petit blancs, freedmen, and possibly even enslaved persons. By playing his cards right, Edouard could have gained insight into military, political, or business dealings and conversations happening at the time.
2.2 Edouardās Unique Challenges, Motives, and Ideals
What drives Edouard as a character?Ā
Edouard clearly has a passion for song, and any opportunity he has to express himself so, he eagerly does. We also know that and he verbally espouses romantic ideals. If the theatre was such a place where people constantly tried to leverage to climb higher within the social and economic ladder, did Edouard ever have any similar aspirations or motivations? Or was he just content with the pure passion of singing and performing?
Edouard openly admits to being relatively privileged due to his birthright and likely enjoyed access to material possessions, given we are shown his inclination to accessorize with jeweled rings and the first thing he says to Annette is, āYouāre stepping on my French silks.ā As a side note,Ā the theatre scene was also a place where gens de coleur often saw this an an opportunity to flout their wealth and proximity to french culture to up their social standing. Since fine goods (most fabrics in Saint Domingue were muslin/linen) from France would to be imported, and carrying/wearing something like silk in a social setting is to the effect of an opulent display of indulgence.
What other disadvantages or challenges Edouard might have faced?
We must also consider if Edouard faced any financial or economic pressures or constraints. As discussed, opportunities afforded for mixed persons depended on the circumstances of birth and their family's amassed wealth of social network and monetary resources. A subset of gens de coleur had indeed acquired wealth through merchant, administrative, artisanal, or clerical areas of business (Walton[8]). The primary passageway for a nonwhite to live or study abroad in France, i.e. to receive education, would be through sponsorship from a benefactor (Powers[5]). Was Edouard already born into wealth, or did he have to procure a benefactor or sponsor to fund/support his lifestyle?Ā
During this time, the majority of performers were imports from France during this era (Powers[6]). Since it was a challenge to retain native French performers in Saint Domingue, salary contracts customarily were generous in incentives for these white performers (Clay[1]). If Edouard was a native of Saint Domingue and of mixed-race origin, it is likely he may not have been able to levy a favorable salary contract with the theatre relative to his white colleagues.Ā
Although there were mixed race and black artists in performances documented in passing mention, the majority of their identities and names were lost (more likely, white people who left written records didnāt care to name them). The individuals who stood out enough to be recorded in history by name often had their talent begrudgingly acknowledged alongside backhanded remarks about their status or skin color in historical records. To obtain the opportunity to be be showcased as a soloist like we see in Edouard performing in Nocturne (i.e., the theatre agreeing to hold a named benefit in concert) especially for a mixed-race person, would have required a benefactorās backing. The most well-known case was Minette and Lise, two affranchis both sponsored by Madame Acquire and Saint Martin (Powers[5]). This suggests that, given the disproportionate lack of named black performers in written records, Edouard would have faced additional hurdles to gain recognition and credibility as an individual artist. He would have had to overcome social stigma while competing against predominantly white contemporaries -- most black performers never achieved this. Additionally, he likely needed a benefactor to sponsor him to achieve headlining solo performances.
Although the culture of benefactors sponsoring performers is known in theatre settings elsewhere, I have not found conclusive source regarding what the environment for Saint Domingue would have been like -- the why and what constituting these arrangements, and each partyās respective leveraging influence in negotiation. I can only remark on what would be an inherent power disparity due to financial reliance -- it begets the question, what would the benefactor seek in return, and what would the performer be able to offer? (Note: I have written an analysis regarding 19th century opera scene in Paris where is a harrowing example where young female performers were exploited by their benefactors) However, I don't think circumstance have to be that dark -- perhaps Edouard came from a family who was able to leverage a business deal, or Edouardās talents were remarkable enough to draw in an audience to generate revenue.
What were Edouardās motivations, ideals, and beliefs?Ā
Annette: Why do you sing for these people, then?
Edouard: I make them happy, and they loosen their tongues. You learn useful information that way.
If we revisit the above exchange with additional historical context, this exchange might be the closest insight to Edouardās underlying character. It hints of an Edouard who is fully cognizant of these invisible, subtle barriers governing economic/social mobility within the different sub-classes, and is willing to engage in what types of flattery are necessary evils to grease interactions with socialites to acquire a favorable standing.Ā
Theatre played an important role inculcating the audience with not only French sentiment; pieces normally performed centered on themes of virtues of innocent love, pursuit of pleasure, tranquility and serenity -- a stark contrast to the growingly disparate mounting tensions arising in reality due to the oppressive political, social, and economic climate.Ā Issues like increasingly non-virtuous behavior of French men toward black and colored women, misery, corruption, and other intricacies of court and city. (Powers[5]) Edouard would have been singing and trumpeting about rosy ideals all the while reality was the opposite.
Edouard: It's in our hearts what matters, Annette.
Yet, some part of me now has to reconcile: to what extent these rosy ideals he spouted were truly ones that he believed? Given his explores to various facets of human behavior that shed a darker light, how can he say something like, "It's what in our hearts that mattersā?Ā Ā
Perhaps he was aware of this hypocritical farce, or perhaps that in spite of certain darker realities, some part of him did continue to harbor these romantic sentiments.
Some part of me can't help but speculate -- did he ever feel like an empty puppet within the society, effectively an empty puppet for the French crown?Ā Did he ever become jaded, if he ever witnessed greed, corruption, and indulgence?
All these details provide insight on not only the potential complexity of his personal circumstances, but also how Edouard would have required social acumen to navigate aroundĀ -- observing both things that would jade him (greed and corruption), but also engaging things that make him happy (enjoying the privileged life, being able to perform his passions).Ā
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Part III. Annette and Edouard: Revisiting Their Relationship Yet Again, with Historical Context
3.1 What motivated Edouard to leave stage life to join Annette?Ā
If Edouard ostensibly was happy and comfortable doing what he loved performing and singing, what prompted him to join Annette to fight in the front lines, putting his life at risk for no good reason?Ā
This is actually a two-pronged question: Did Edouard leave of his own volition from a true character growth standpoint, or did he have no other choice to leave? Again, the timing and aligning of the history that occurred is a little murky If we look at the excerpted timeline courtesy from (Dayan[3]) as follows:
August 22-23, 1791: Slave Insurrection in the North
Sept 26, 1792: Cap Francais, the oldest, riches, and most densely populated city of the colony, burned to the ground by rebelling slaves.
June 20-21, 1794: Cap Francais again consumed by fires, and white inhabitants desert the island.
We also know that present Nocturne takes place in 1792. I am inclined to think that when Annette recalls taking up arms and Edouard is shown alongside her it would have referred to the August 1791 revolt, meaning that Edouard must have joined before the theater closed down. Maybe he had heard the disgruntled rumblings and saw the writing on the wall through the grapevine. Perhaps he had become jaded with the business of theatre. Maybe something about Annette's honesty, candor, and simple and straightforward nature inspired him to take up arms, too.
3.2 How well did they understand each other?
Edouardās lifestyle was markedly different from Annetteās, full of subtlety and nuance. Ironically, what drew Edouard to Annette (her simplicity and candor) may also have created a fundamental rift in their ability to understand each other. At the start of Nocturne, Annetteās simplistic approach to situations would have prevent her from comprehending the nuanced aspects of Edouard's life -- a life that both granted him relative privilege and constrained his opportunities.
With Edouardās background in interacting with various people, he is portrayed as observant, empathetic, and kind, as seen when he inquires about Mariaās connection with her birds. Being naturally emotionally attuned to others, he would have recognize Annetteās short-sightedness and tendency to make overly simplistic judgments without considering nuance. Knowing these traits, Edouard likely contributed less to their dynamic, often following her lead rather than suggesting his own ideas.
In conclusion, although Edouard and Annette were close, I believe there would have been certain things Annette wouldnāt have been able to understand about Edouard; ultimately limiting the depth of their connection before it was tragically cut short with Edouard's death.
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PART IV. Conclusion, Acknowledgements, and Further Readings.
tl;dr I way over-engineered a potential backstory for not even a side character that had less than five minutes of screentime in total probablyĀ
If you managed to read all of this, thank you! I mostly write these character analyses for personal reference when I find myself struggling writing a character. BecauseĀ Edouardās screentime in Nocturne is lacking, I had to substantiate insight with an unusual amount of research.Ā
I think Iām ready to tackle a writing story focusing on Edouard perspective now.Ā
Cheers! - Shingie.Ā
Citations: Works ReferencedĀ for Further Reading
Clay, Lauren R. Stagestruck: The Business of Theater in Eighteenth-Century France and Its Colonies. Cornell University Press, 2013. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctt1xx50x
āColonial Society.ā Traveling Haiti, 23 Mar. 2016, www.travelinghaiti.com/colonial-society-haiti/Ā
Dayan, Joan. Haiti, History, and the Gods. 1st ed., University of California Press, 1995. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/j.ctt5hjhnv.
Powers, David M. From Plantation to Paradise?: Cultural Politics and Musical Theatre in French Slave Colonies, 1764ā1789. Michigan State University Press, 2014. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.14321/j.ctt7zt6t5.
Powers, David M. āThe French Musical Theater: Maintaining Control in Caribbean Colonies in the Eighteenth Century.ā Black Music Research Journal, vol. 18, no. 1/2, 1998. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/779400.
Prest, Julia. Review of Public Theatre and the Enslaved People of Colonial Saint-Domingue, by Julia Prest. The French Review, vol. 97 no. 3, 2024. Project MUSE, https://dx.doi.org/10.1353/tfr.2024.a920002,
Walton, Charles, "Saint Domingue", The Digital Encyclopedia of British Sociability in the Long Eighteenth Century [online], ISSN 2803-2845, URL: https://www.digitens.org/en/notices/saint-domingue.html
