Rambling, mostly fandom blog. Hetalia, Vinland Saga, RGU, Ace Attourney, Killing Eve, Haikyuu,
ect ect. 28 She/Her. Long time lurker, new time poster- my AO3 is Overpoint65
Hi! I'll probably add to this as I go, but I suppose the most useful thing for me to pin just now is my Ao3 account:
Overpoint65 | Archive of Our Own
Go there or go through the tag 'my fic' to find my stuff! I write for Hetalia (Family in Darkness-verse), Haikyuu (Designation Miracle -verse), witha smattering of Naruto, Steven Universe, and even a but of Goncharov (best movie, no notes). I'm interested in history, nature, psychology, and socialism, and sometimes post art (under 'my art')
Come ask me stuff! I'll try and tag consistently with fandom/character/fic names as relevant, as well as common triggers for blocking purposes. Let me know if you need anything else tagged.
in general I find that "why did someone behave this way" is almost always answered by "behaving otherwise was too difficult and frightening for them at the time," and then you have to dig into why that is. people behave in ways that feel 1. easy for them (do not require much thought or effort) 2. accessible to them (patterns that have worked many times before) and 3. safe for them (apparently predictable outcome)
this is true even for behavior that is absolutely horrific and totally unacceptable. which can be a tough thing to accept, I think.
hyperfixating on a fictional woman who went underdeveloped in canon is literally FUN and the 80-90% of fandom people who only do the same for background character men have no idea of the degree to which they are fucking missing out
hour 1 of thinking about an underdeveloped woman: idk it would've been nice if she had more screentime
hour 100 of thinking about an underdeveloped woman: ok but despite having only eight lines of dialogue she is literally THE most interesting nuanced and tragic character in the entire series and these writers had no idea what they even had. how is no one else seeing this it's literally so objectively obvious
Hungary finally got rid of its fucking corrupt government after 16 years. I have no idea about the video quality but there is a techno partyin front of the parliament with fire show and I'm happy and drunk AF.
Chapter 17: Monochrome Rainbow (Run faster, Shouyou, All Your Problems Are Behind You)
Room To Be (A real human being) - Chapter 17 - Overpoint65 - Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball [Archive of Our Own]
In the morning, he dreams.
It is night. The hall is dark, apart from tiny green lights that mark the camera’s positions as they watch and watch and watch.
Orange is curled up against Blue, barely sleeping, when he hears movement in their pile. The sound of soft, small feet, across mattresses, then, across concrete.
The padding takes time, seemingly so much time, all the way across the hall. To where the other two sleep. The two- out of all fourteen- who sleep separately, who care not at all for the re-
died and came back tired. died and came back exhausted. died and came back with manic energy. died and came back with malingering unease. died and came back twitchy. so many possibilities
died and came back and refuses to talk about it. died and came back but don't know if it's permanent. died and came back with tragic knowledge of the future. died and came back with memories that aren't yours. died and came back with a implacable sense of doom. died and came back and now crows are following you
Tagged by my lovely mutual @aspirationallybutch thank you kindly <3
1. Last Song: Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Ankles by Hemlocke Springs from her new album which is SO FUCKING GOOD i recommend especially if you like campy high energy esoteric sound and incredible lyrical skill
2. Favorite Colors: Anything jewel toned, but especially burgundy, maroon, brass, gold, deep teal / navy blue, or brown
3. Watching: I’m currently rewatching Supernatural with my hubby
4. Currently Reading: unfortunately nothing other then a cool article here and there and some fanfiction bc i struggle to read :(
5. Current Obsession: The Resident Evil franchise, the newest game has gotten me back into it
6: Currently Working On: So many creative projects, a zine, personal paintings, art for friends, making stamps and garlands, clay work, i’m doing a draw every day challenge for 2026, and trying to find a fucking job (the last one isn’t going so well)
7. Last Google Search: Germanic water spirits. i was looking for inspiration for a drawing
8. Current Phone Wallpaper: My art, specifically a digital painting of blackberries, i’ve posted it on here already :)
tagging @ursinefutchass @mighwnt @interhusband
no pressure to do this and also it’s open to any mutuals or followers :)
2. favorite colors: warm yellow, sage green, dark red
3. watching: nothing at the moment, except occasionally rewatching some episodes of granada holmes with my girlfriend. but hopefully i'll be introducing my roommate to atla soon.....
4. reading: during the school year i don't really have the energy to read for pleasure outside of school, but im currently reading ling ma severance for my 300-level and LOVING it so far
5. current obsession: me and my gfs ocs. they are like if the secret history was about music instead of ancient greek. and if there was a lot more sex and murder and fucked up mentor/student relationships
6. currently working on: a bunch of projects i'm doing piecemeal- my denim patch jacket, my killjoy raygun, my bracelet collection, a crewneck i'm embroidering
7. last google search: what gauge jewelry for bridge piercing (got pierced last week and recently purchased new jewelry for once it's healed, i was double checking i got the right gauge)
8. phone wallpaper: my lockscreen is a picture of me in the woods up north last year, and my homescreen is a landscape picture i took while traveling in the mountains with my gf's family last summer
open 2 everybody!! i'll make just a couple tags tho: @illmeetyouforcoffee @anomaloc4ris @sherbertilluminated
I'll do anything to procrastinate working on a problem set.
Last Song: The Trawlin' Trade by Malinky
Favorite Colors: mauve, lilac, powder blue, plum
Watching: Soviet Holmes, also with my girlfriend <3
Reading: Middlemarch and Mann's Doktor Faustus
Current Obsession: Perfume. I got into an mfa program and my mother urged me to celebrate so I purchased a slightly impractical amount of discovery kits
Currently Working on: the thesis o god the thesis
Last Google Search: "Leo Strauss + Moses Mendelssohn." UChicago Press published a compilation of his commentary, which on one hand is not surprising because many people have weird and bad takes about Moses Mendelssohn but also pretty strange because I'm not the most familiar with the development of far-right philosophy in America
Phone Walpaper: Lockscreen is some art from [redacted] University's Special Collections; dashboard is a picture of water lilies from a garden in Kazakhstan.
Taggin @trenchcoatofangryhedgehogs, @crochet-and-creatures and @oriontomoonbase
Favorite Colors: just about any dark cool color, particularly favoring blue right now.
Watching: a quite frankly concerning number of Slay the Spire challenge runs. Also Make Some Noise.
Reading: nothing at the moment, the book I intended to start is actually in the middle of a series so I'm looking for something else.
Current Obsession: I'll say Blades in the Dark, been looking to run a new system for a while and this one seems promising. Session 1 is Thursday and my players really wanna get a hagfish farm for some reason.
Currently Working on: a knit scarf, so much ttrpg stuff, and a crochet tapestry
Last Google Search: The menu for where I'm going to dinner tonight
Phone Wallpaper: my lock screen and wallpaper are both the same sort of mediocre art of a like celestial wolf howling in the stars. This has been the case for three phones over roughly 7 years because I am nothing if not a creature of habit.
Open to everyone but tagging @cassandralexxx @nakiju13 @stealthnoodle
Last song: well I just watched a movie with a bangin soundtrack, but like a song that I deliberately listened to would be The Loneliest by Maneskin
Favourite colors: red, purple, and green
Watching: the aforementioned movie was Peaky Blinders: the Immortal Man (be warned, the soundtrack was the best thing about it)
Reading: just started on Ciao amore, Ciao by Nicola Lagioia (which is the Polish translation of an Italian crime non fiction book, which has a different title in Italian. I think it's such an interesting choice to change the title in the POLISH translation to something else in ITALIAN. like if you wanted a title in Italian, there was one right there already. But I digress). The Blazing World by Margaret Cavendish is my current read from the library, which I ought to finish and return soon. And also Pakistan Lost which was given to me by a friend who keeps asking about my progress, so I gotta get on that too. Last book I actually finished was Jane Eyre, first time reading it, and I completely loved it! My girl Jane has never done anything wrong in her life. Oh and also my beloved and I have been reading the Lord of the Rings together for about a year now (like out loud to each other, part of the reason it's taking so long)
Current obsession: I gotta say crochet! I learned how to do it around Christmas (long time knitter, always been intimidated by the magic of working with just the one hook) and I'm already banging out a second baby blanket (my friends keep getting pregnant, on purpose), and have also made a shawl for my mum in the meantime, and a few small bits like coasters, bowls and glass pouches. It's so fun! It goes so quickly! Also uses so much yarn and leaves so very many ends to weave in, but that only means there's so many excuses for yarn shopping 🤩
Currently working on: a crochet baby blanket (getting lots of practice on the sunflower granny square pattern), getting promoted at work (keep your fingers crossed Wednesday, I've an interview), getting started with a new volunteering opportunity (they've got a thorough recruitment and training process, which is great! Since it involves work with vulnerable populations), also I've been trying to be more organised about my finances and other adulting stuff, like healthcare, etc
Last Google search: meerkats in Polish (surykatki, if you're curious)
Phone wallpaper: my wedding photos 🥰
@lavender-long-stories @aceoftigers @helianthus21 @thesundaytea and anyone else who'd like to do it!
3. Watching: '800 Hours of Runescape One RANDOM Task at a Time' By Nooblet
4. Currently Reading: Tumblr
5. Current Obsession: Sleep. I have been taking a lot of lovely naps.
6: Currently Working On: This week I have bounced between Once Again(KisaHina), Please Marry My Son(SasuHina), Expect Failure (unreleased ItaHina), and the last 3 days straight I got distracted writing a brand-new story Stuck Between(SasuHina)
7. Last Google Search: 'garrenteed' because I can't spell, and my grammar checker gave up on me
8. Current Phone Wallpaper: same sunset orange swishy pattern that is has been for like a year
1. Last Song: Into the Sun - BTS (Arirang is a really BANGing album. If it's not playing on Spotify, then it's on loop in my head.)
2. Favorite Colors: Generally it's a deep cherry red, but I've been really vibing with mint green lately. (Fun Fact: The walls of my room used to be mint green. Now they're a sad beige.)
3. Watching: The Nanny Season 2
4. Currently Reading: The many drafts/ideas for unfinished fanfic ideas that keep popping up in my mind and never seem to want to write themselves
5. Current Obsession: Blue Bottle instant espresso and beautiful (sunset) skies
6: Currently Working On: Sorting through my snippets and trying to organize what I want to work on throughout the year.
7. Last Google Search: "dreamlight valley sweet and sour kingfish steak recipe" 😅
8. Current Phone Wallpaper: A doodle I made of Arthur when I was going through it (Haven't changed it since September and it still makes me smile every time he pops up on my lock screen. He just gets it.)
Tagging @backtothe60sfuture @fireandiceland @koolkat9 @prince-boy @chermice @pestissuum @floralcrematorium and anyone else interested in participating!
Currently Reading: Does Fanfiction Count? No books recently, sorry.
Current Obsession: A few days ago people started heavily shipping The Amazing Spider-Man Movies/ Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parker with Michael B. Jordan playing as his version of “MJ” on Twitter and a bit here too. I love the Amazing Spider-Man movies, maybe I should rewatch them but like the vibes are immaculate for this ship and I can't stop thinking about it and reading fics for it on AO3.
Currently Working on: The WIP I'm posting: A Shared Paranormal Connection. Also a fic for APH Niche Pair Week.
Last Google Search: Does Tuna have Vitamin D?
Current Phone Wallpaper: “Trains, Planes and Automobiles” the movie from 1987.
I'll tag @theherdofturtles , @historicalclaptrap, @longingpolaris , @kaunastika-the-sweetheart and anyone who else wants to join. No pressure to do it of course!
Favourite colour: deep racing/forest green by a coutry mile
Watching: Heated Rivalry and Umineko
Currently Reading: The Rise and Reign of Mammals by Steve Brushette
Current Obsession: I am caught in the jaws of about 15 spinning obsessions just now but I have been listening a lot to Gutsick Gibbon.
Currently working on: of fandom stuff or general? In terms of fandom stuff- ive just finished the first draft of my MononokeAU! Haikyue fic 'The Samurai and The Medcine Seller' so i think ill be editing that so i can actually post something! Other than that- fragments of my 15 other projects lol. In general: getting a payrise at work, getting fit, desperately canvassing so Reform doesnt get any seats in the upcoming Scottish election
Last Google search: English to Cantonese translation
Current phone wallpaper: a picture of a tiger i pinched off pinterest
Can i double tag people? Is that allowed? @theherdofturtles @sunnylolli @jikimo-world
[ID: 3 photographs of book pages. a passage titled Romantic Fiction, begins:
Another human being, particularly one with whom you are physically and/or emotionally involved, has many uses. These should not, however, include the following. Confirming your worth as a person / Taking away your feelings of inadequacy and shame / Making you feel intelligent, sexy, and worthy of a high-powered job / Making you happy every minute of the day. While she may assist in these matters, the task of fully achieving them essentially belongs to you. Should you expect her, or anyone like her with whom you come into contact either naked or partially clothed, to fulfill these essential duties, you are not only certain to be disappointed but you will over-burden any relationship you attempt to engage in until it crashes through several floors of the building, disintegrating into rubble. You are not entirely to blame for being startled that these skills are not meant to be provided by others, but rather ones you must supply your very own self. Our entire culture is set up to reinforce the notion that other people exist to give you the worth you are lacking. Everything from music (except when written by Courtney Love) to books and films (except when involving Anne Rice or Isabelle Adjani, whose oeuvres function as purely cautionary tales) conspires to prove that you may not have found someone to make you complete, but everybody else has, so there's clearly something wrong with you. Happily, once you recognize that by expecting another person to fulfill all these needs for you, you are dooming yourself to a life of continual disappointment, you will do quite nicely living with your lowered expectations. And since you're already quite skilled at blaming yourself (at least those of you traditionally reared on the fun-loving girl program that has proven so rewarding for the psychiatric and pharmaceutical professions), the handy recipient of the blame for your inevitable failure—that is, you—will be already at hand to enjoy the punishments and shame you have devised. On the brighter side, there are things you may expect from another human being, even a significant other human. A person, even your girlfriend, may not unreasonably be expected to do the following: Share your enjoyment of life / Make you look at things from a different perspective / Give you support, comfort, or at least advice / Surprise you / Make you laugh / Make you want to have sex / Make you dinner / Give you the occasional massage, though not nearly as often as when you were first going out. It may seem to you that these options are not dissimilar from the list of Don'ts shown earlier. Wrong. They are so different as to be virtually in another category, which is why in one they're Don'ts and in the other Do's. Supporting, nurturing, aiding, abetting, and helping can certainly be part of your interaction as two seperate humans, but they feel completely different when practiced with the intent of rendering whole one seemingly complete but actually radically insecure and needy person. No one can make you whole, not even—particularly not even—the person whose job you believe this is by virtue of the fact that she's your girlfriend. Losing yourself in someone whom you allow to provide your sense of self-worth is not only addictive but dangerous, unless the person providing the sense of self-worth is you. You are less likely to beat yourself black and blue and put yourself in the hospital, cheat on yourself, or scream out insulting things about your body or personality you never realized you didn't like.
The paragraph that I've used as a touchstone with myself for like ~2 years now is the one that goes:
Supporting, nurturing, aiding, abetting, and helping can certainly be part of your interaction as two seperate humans, but they feel completely different when practiced with the intent of rendering whole one seemingly complete but actually radically insecure and needy person. No one can make you whole, not even—particularly not even—the person whose job you believe this is by virtue of the fact that she's your girlfriend. Losing yourself in someone whom you allow to provide your sense of self-worth is not only addictive but dangerous, unless the person providing the sense of self-worth is you.
[8] Julio Argentino Roca, twice the president of the Argentine Republic (1880–1886 and 1898–1904), was one of the key architects behind Agustina’s shift in attitude towards Arthur. He carefully pulled strings and created connections to ensure Agustina understood the importance of leaving a favorable impression on the British, and his influence would last for decades. He was largely responsible for shaping the image of a “benevolent” England, portrayed as having played a crucial role in Argentina’s “freedom and progress”, and therefore deserving of her gratitude and respect.
In 1887, the former president set out on a leisurely tour of Europe, with several destinations on his itinerary, England among them. Ever so calculating, he invited Agustina to go with him, aware that it was always advantageous to present Europeans with the beauty, vitality, and intelligence of the young Argentine Republic.
Thus, on July 9th —Agustina's official birthday, her independence day— the leading figures of British commerce hosted a banquet in honor of General Roca. The celebration took on an official character, for:
“The elevated significance of this event may be considered from two distinct perspectives. First and foremost, it constituted a personal tribute to a distinguished guest, to which was deliberately added an act of frank and sincere international fellowship (…) Moreover, not only was it scheduled to coincide with a national anniversary, but a few hours earlier a telegram had been sent to the President of the Argentine Republic, associating him with the celebration and thereby conferring upon it the character of a national demonstration.” (De Vedia, 1887)
And so, although this was not strictly a diplomatic affair, Arthur attended the banquet as a courtesy, fully aware that Agustina would be there.
[9] Why would he be personally interested in Agustina at all? Britain had an empire built on trade and influence that stretched across the entire globe. Surely he doesn't care to know every single nation person he has friendly relations with...
“Apart from Canada, the British held only two countries in the Americas in high esteem. Regard for the United States reflected ancestral ties and present-day trade; respect for Argentina stemmed from the country’s pulsating energy and prodigious expansion.” (Rock, 2019)
Agustina was a rather odd case within Arthur’s relationships. He was fairly detached from his European neighbours at the time, and often even preferred “isolation,” but he kept himself busy managing his vast Commonwealth. Of these nations, only a handful ever received Arthur’s one-on-one attention— and even that was sparse. Argentina, meanwhile, was
“…the country in Latin America with which Britain had had the closest relationship for a hundred and fifty years. So close had this been that Argentina was sometimes described as the ‘sixth dominion’ or as part of Britain’s ‘informal empire’” (Hennessy, 1992)
“From the Napoleonic Wars into the 1950s, Argentina remained a major focus of British commerce, trade, and investment, and British settlement there once climbed higher than anywhere else outside the Dominions and the United States.
Yet Argentina was no colony. One of its most unusual features lay in its development as a great centre of British business, economic power, and settlement while remaining an independent republic, free of the panoply of imperial rule.” (Rock, 2019)
Agustina was neither a European neighbor nor a subject of his Crown. She posed no threat to his global power, nor was she bound to him by the fraternal, almost familial ties he shared with Canada or Australia. She was not his most ambitious project, his great obsession: she was not India. She was, quite simply, an agro-exporting country on the capitalist periphery, eager to do business with him. A relationship that, in his eyes, was perfectly complementary.
Her admiration was desirable; his attention was enticing.
“The British wielded power in Argentina subtly and selectively, preferring enticement, persuasion, example and certainly consent to coercion. Imitation and emulation became a means to elicit deference and compliance. (…) Argentines never became passive, inanimate victims of British domination. Welcoming the British when it suited them, they also devised ways to resist them (…) protecting their sovereignty. Nearly always open to wider external contact than with Britain alone, Argentina exemplified the great difference between free, independent states and closeted colonial subjects of the British Empire.” (Rock, 2019)
[10] In this collage I wanted to highlight a few of the elements that helped cement the cultural and economic exchange that, over time, strengthened Agustina's admiration of Arthur.
1. Football
Possibly the single most important thing England has ever given the world. Industrial Revolution who? No. Football.
And while the sport is globally popular, in Argentina it very quickly became a pillar of national culture and identity. Argentina’s first division is the oldest football league in the world outside the British Isles, and the first international match ever played outside the Isles was Argentina vs. Uruguay, in 1901. So as you can see, Argentina was one of the early pioneers of world football.
Agustina herself couldn’t play, but she loved going to watch. Had she been male, I’m sure one of the things she and Arthur would’ve done most to pass the time would’ve been playing football together (and polo too, but that’s a whole other conversation).
Tina found that athletic side of Arthur especially attractive; she liked seeing him active, relaxed, a little less stuck up than usual. And Arthur, who at the end of the day is still a man in his early twenties, probably pulled a few flashy moves on the pitch to impress her. Because, really, what guy doesn’t want to show off a little when the pretty girl came to watch him play?
2. A transactional relationship
At its core, this was the essence of their bond. On a personal level, Arthur dazzled Agustina with plenty of material gifts: sweets, dresses, coats, jewellery...
Agustina came from a very modest background, far removed from that kind of luxury. So Arthur’s gifts became deeply meaningful to her. No one had ever given her so many beautiful things before, and she gradually began to associate luxury and prosperity with his presence.
And I’m not exaggerating when I say he spent a generous amount of money on her. British investment in Argentina reached enormous levels by the late 19th century; she was often spoken of in the same breath as Canada or Australia:
"After many sharp fluctuations in the seventies, with the eighteen eighties came the full floodtide (...) The year 1889 was an annus mirabilis when Argentina absorbed between 40 and 50 per cent of all British funds invested outside the United Kingdom." (Murray. 1960)
3. The railway
This, in my opinion, was the backbone of their relationship. The railway system almost completely reshaped the face of the country; but at the same time, it also conditioned Argentina into a position that served British interests.
Argentina effectively became what you might call a “fan-shaped country,” since its railway network didn’t really connect the provinces to each other so much as it connected them all to the port of Buenos Aires.
While the railways did help expand the country’s frontiers and encourage settlement, British interests ultimately took precedence over Argentina’s own autonomous development. Even so, at the time, this was just one more factor tipping the balance of Tina’s opinion of Arthur in a positive direction (that's no longer the case, btw).
4. The Buenos Aires Harrods
One of the most interesting little trivialities. Harrods is a famous London department store that, to this day, remains synonymous with luxury and refinement. The only Harrods branch ever built outside of England was opened in Buenos Aires, and up until the late 20th century it was a beloved destination for porteños, who would wander its halls and shop its galleries. It remains one of the city’s most emblematic landmarks.
Tina, of course, loved strolling through those beautiful shops!
5. The Monumental Tower (also known as the Tower of the English)
This was a gift from the British community to Argentina for the centenary of the May Revolution (celebrated in 1910, though the tower itself wasn’t completed until 1916). All the construction materials were brought over from England, and the clock mechanism comes from the very same clockmakers responsible for Big Ben. They even share the same chimes.
To this day, it remains one of the city’s most iconic landmarks.
[11] It was on the night of the banquet that Arthur, dazed by the heat of the celebration, Agustina’s closeness, and one drink too many, finally took the next step. With that small indiscretion, the flawless image she had of him as a prim, repressed English gentleman began to crack, and for the first time she caught a glimpse of the desire he’d always kept carefully hidden.
There was no turning back after that, nothing left to pretend; and yet, there was still a line Agustina wasn’t willing to let him cross…
📚References:
Bulmer-Thomas, V. (2000). British trade with Latin America in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Developing Economies, 38(3), 1–25.
Cibotti, E. (2006). Queridos enemigos: De Beresford a Maradona, la verdadera historia de las relaciones entre ingleses y argentinos. Aguilar.
De Vedia, A. (1887). El teniente general Julio A. Roca y el comercio inglés: El gran banquete en Londres. Imprenta de La Tribuna Nacional.
Hennessy, A., & King, J. (Eds.). (1992). The land that England lost: Argentina and Britain, a Special Relationship. British Academic Press.
Luna, F. (1993). Breve historia de los argentinos. Grupo Editorial Planeta.
Luna, F. (2011). Soy Roca. Debolsillo.
Murray, J. (1960). Britain and Argentina in the nineteenth century. Studies: An lrish Quarterly Review, 49(196), 341-354.
Rock, D. (2019). The British in Argentina: Commerce, settlers and power, 1800–2000. Palgrave Macmillan.
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[ESP] Índice || Anterior || Siguiente || AO3
Y si acaso olvidáramos ⁸
el verdadero propósito ⁹
detrás de cada gesto,
podríamos caer en las fantasías de una imaginación excitable.
¡Qué desgracia resulta
dejarse seducir por algo tan frívolo! ¹⁰
Así, quien no escuche estas razones
se arriesga a cometer el error
de enamorarse...
de la persona equivocada. ¹¹
· · ─ ·[Fin del prólogo]· ─ · ·
Índice || Anterior || Siguiente (20 de Marzo)
📝Notas:
[8] Julio Argentino Roca, dos veces presidente de la República Argentina (1880-1886 y 1898-1904) fue una de las mentes maestras detrás del cambio de comportamiento de Agustina hacia Arthur. Él movió hilos y creó conexiones para asegurarse de que Agustina se tomara en serio su labor de dejar una buena impresión en los ingleses, y su influencia perduró por décadas. Él es en gran parte responsable de forjar en Argentina esta imagen de una Inglaterra “benévola” que jugó un rol clave en la “libertad” y el “progreso” de la Nación, y que por ello le debe su gratitud y respeto.
En 1887, el entonces expresidente emprendió un viaje de placer a Europa que abarcaría varios destinos, entre ellos, Inglaterra. Astutamente invitó a Agustina a formar parte del viaje, pues siempre resultaba provechoso demostrar a los europeos que la naciente República Argentina se encarnaba en la belleza, salud e inteligencia de esa joven señorita.
Así fue que el 9 de julio —el cumpleaños oficial de Agustina, su día de la independencia— lo más altos representantes del comercio inglés ofrecieron un banquete en honor al General Roca, celebración que tomó carácter oficial porque:
“Bajo un doble aspecto puede considerarse la elevada significacion de esta fiesta. Ha sido, ante todo, una demostracion personal á un huésped distinguido, á la cual se ha querido unir un acto de confraternidad internacional,franco y sincero, (...) no solamente se ha designado para celebrarlo el dia de un aniversario patrio, sino que algunas horas antes se ha hecho un telégrama al Presidente de la República Argentina, asociándolo á la fiesta, y dando así á esta el carácter de una demostracion nacional. “ (De Vedia, 1887)
De modo que, aunque no se tratara de un asunto estrictamente diplomático, Arthur acudió al banquete como acto de cortesía a sabiendas de que Agustina estaría allí.
[9] ¿Por qué el interés hacia Agustina? ¿Con qué mérito? Si Inglaterra comerciaba e influenciaba a todo el mundo en esa época. ¿Qué tiene ella de especial?
“Al margen de Canadá, los británicos solo tenían en alta estima a dos países en el continente americano. La consideración hacia los Estados Unidos se explicaba por los vínculos ancestrales y el comercio contemporáneo; el respeto hacia la Argentina, en cambio, surgía de la energía vibrante del país y de su expansión prodigiosa.” (Rock, 2019)
Agustina es un caso particular dentro de las relaciones de Arthur. Sabemos que Inglaterra se encuentra en un periodo de “aislamiento” con respecto a sus vecinos europeos, y que en cambio dispone de un amplio Commonwealth de Naciones que forman parte de su imperio. Mientras tanto, Argentina era
“…el país de América Latina con el que Gran Bretaña había mantenido la relación más estrecha durante ciento cincuenta años. Tan estrecha fue esta relación que, en ocasiones, Argentina llegó a ser descrita como el «sexto dominio» o como parte del «imperio informal» británico.” (Hennessy, 1992)
“Desde las guerras napoleónicas hasta la década de 1950, la Argentina siguió siendo un foco central del comercio, el intercambio y la inversión británicos, y el asentamiento de población británica allí llegó a alcanzar niveles más altos que en cualquier otro lugar fuera de los Dominios y de los Estados Unidos.
Sin embargo, la Argentina no fue una colonia. Uno de sus rasgos más singulares residió en haberse desarrollado como un importante centro de negocios británicos, de poder económico y de asentamiento poblacional, sin dejar de ser una república independiente, ajena a todo el aparato del dominio imperial.” (Rock, 2019)
Agustina no era una vecina europea, ni una súbdita de su corona. No era una amenaza a su poder global, ni le unían a ella lazos fraternales cuasi-familares como los que tenía con Canadá y Australia. No era su proyecto más ambicioso, su obsesión: no era la India. Era sencillamente un país agroexportador de la periferia capitalista que quería hacer negocios con él. Una relación, a sus ojos, perfectamente complementaria.
Él quería su admiración, ella quería su atención.
“Los británicos ejercieron su poder en la Argentina de manera sutil y selectiva, prefiriendo el incentivo, la persuasión y el ejemplo, y recurriendo al consentimiento antes que a la coerción. (…) La imitación y la emulación se convirtieron así en medios para suscitar deferencia y obediencia. Los argentinos nunca llegaron a ser víctimas pasivas e inertes de una dominación británica. Si bien recibieron a los británicos cuando así les convenía, también idearon formas de resistir su influencia (…) y preservar su soberanía. Abierta casi siempre a contactos externos más amplios que los mantenidos exclusivamente con Gran Bretaña, la Argentina ejemplificó la profunda diferencia existente entre los Estados libres e independientes y los súbditos coloniales recluidos del Imperio Británico.” (Rock, 2019)
[10] En este collage quería mostrar algunos elementos que fueron cimentando el intercambio cultural y económico que fue afianzando la imagen que Agustina tenía de Arthur.
1. El fútbol
Posiblemente lo más importante que le ha dado jamás Inglaterra al mundo. Que la revolución industrial qué cosa? no. FULBOL.
Y aunque su popularidad es global, en Argentina el fútbol pronto se convirtió en un pilar de la cultura e identidad nacional.El fútbol de primera división argentino es la liga de fútbol más antigua del mundo fuera de las islas británicas. El primer partido internacional que se jugó fuera de las islas británicas fue Argentina vs Uruguay, en 1901. Así que como verán, Argentina es una de las pioneras del fútbol mundial.
Agustina, por su parte, no podía jugarlo, pero le encantaba ir a verlo. De haber sido varón, estoy segura de que una de las cosas que más hubiera hecho con Arthur para pasar el tiempo hubiese sido jugar al fútbol (y al polo, pero ese es otro tema).
A Tina le resultaba atractiva esa faceta atlética de Arthur, le gustaba verlo activo y descontracturado. Y el Arturo, que al fin al cabo sigue siendo un tipo de veintipocos, algún firulete se habrá inventado mientras jugaba para impresionarla. Porque ¿qué tipo no quiere impresionar a la chica linda que fue a verlo jugar?
2. Una relación transaccional.
Siendo esta la esencia de su vínculo, en términos personales, Arthur deslumbraba a Agustina con cientos de regalos materiales; vestidos, abrigos, joyas, adornos, etc., etc.
Agustina viene de una vida muy modesta y ajena al lujo; para ella, los regalos de Arthur se volvieron especiales. Nunca nadie le había regalado tantas cosas tan hermosas, y comenzó a asociar al lujo y la prosperidad con su presencia.
No exagero cuando digo que le hacía regalos bastante generosos. Las inversiones británicas en la Argentina alcanzaron un volumen muy significativo para fines del siglo XIX. A menudo se la equiparaba a Canadá y Australia.
“El año 1889 constituyó un verdadero annus mirabilis: la Argentina llegó a concentrar entre el 40 y el 50 % de todos los capitales británicos invertidos fuera del Reino Unido.” (Murray, 1960)
3. El ferrocarril.
Esta es la “columna vertebral” de su vínculo, en mi opinión, porque el ferrocarril le cambió la cara al país casi por completo, pero al mismo tiempo, eso condicionó a la Argentina a posicionarse como un país funcional a los intereses del Imperio. Argentina se convirtió en un “país abanico” dado que su entramado ferroviario no conectaba a todas las provincias entre sí, sino que las conectaba con el puerto de Buenos Aires.
Aunque el ferrocarril ayudó a expandir las fronteras del país y poblarlo, prevalecieron los intereses de Inglaterra por sobre el desarrollo genuino de Argentina. Aún así, para la época, era una más de las cosas que resultaban un balance positivo para la opinión de Tina sobre Arthur.
4. El Harrods de Buenos Aires.
Una de las trivialidades más interesantes. Harrods es una famosa tienda departamental de Inglaterra que hasta el día de hoy es sinónimo de lujo y refinamiento. La ÚNICA sucursal de Harrods que existió fuera de la original de Inglaterra se construyó en Buenos Aires, y hasta fines del siglo XX fue un querido lugar para los porteños que visitaban esas tiendas y constituye uno de los lugares más emblemáticos de la ciudad. ¡A Tina le encantaba pasearse por esos lindos locales!
5. La torre monumental, también conocida como la Torre de los Ingleses.
Fue un regalo de la comunidad británica a la Argentina en su centenario de las revolución de mayo (1910, pero se terminó en 1916). Todos los materiales de su construcción fueron traídos de Inglaterra, y curiosamente, el reloj viene de la misma casa relojera que el Big Ben. ¡Tienen las mismas campanadas! Al día de hoy, sigue siendo un sitio especial e icónico de la ciudad.
[11] Fue esa noche del banquete en la que, azorado por el calor de la celebración, la cercanía física con Agustina y alguna copa demás, Arthur dio el siguiente paso. Su indiscreción resquebrajó la imagen impoluta de caballero inglés mojigato y reprimido que Agustina tenía sobre él, y vio por primera vez una fracción del deseo que ese hombre era capaz de contener.
Ya no había vuelta atrás, nada que fingir; pero había un límite que Agustina no estaba diespuesta a dejarle propasar…
📚Inspiración y referencias:
Bulmer-Thomas, V. (2000). British trade with Latin America in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Developing Economies, 38(3), 1–25.
Cibotti, E. (2006). Queridos enemigos: De Beresford a Maradona, la verdadera historia de las relaciones entre ingleses y argentinos. Aguilar.
De Vedia, A. (1887). El teniente general Julio A. Roca y el comercio inglés: El gran banquete en Londres. Imprenta de La Tribuna Nacional.
Hennessy, A., & King, J. (Eds.). (1992). The land that England lost: Argentina and Britain, a Special Relationship. British Academic Press.
Luna, F. (1993). Breve historia de los argentinos. Grupo Editorial Planeta.
Luna, F. (2011). Soy Roca. Debolsillo.
Murray, J. (1960). Britain and Argentina in the nineteenth century. Studies: An lrish Quarterly Review, 49(196), 341-354.
Rock, D. (2019). The British in Argentina: Commerce, settlers and power, 1800–2000. Palgrave Macmillan.
Hetalia China but he's wearing vaguely hanfu inspired garments. Tbh just wanted to try drawing him in a different colour scheme than his usual red. He gets a red bandana tho.
Rough sketch of india x england kiss in 17 hundred and something. Will make a nicer one at some point but i kind of like the vibes of sketches as well.
