Posts about Gomez and Morticia Addams are almost always uplifting and Iām happy to have them on my dash, but I think my favorite bit about this conversation is what Gomez is actually saying to Fester.
Itās nobodyās surprise that many of the aesthetic and thematic elements of The Addams Family in its various incarnations are influenced by Gothic tradition (not goth, that mostly came later. And not Goth, that was much much much too early), and I think Gomezās words are a dead bullseye in terms of Gothic mentality.
āMake her feel like sheās the most sublime creature on earthā
The sublime is a recurring theme throughout Gothic literature. Although the word (like āawesomeā) has lost a lot of itās original luster over the intervening decades, sublime doesnāt really mean elevated and lofty (or even heavenly) as itās often used today, but rather something possessing the power and grandeur to induce awe and veneration in the mind of the beholder. Although less than divine, something sublime possessed a wildness and power that transcended human ability to controlā¦or even to comprehend.
Sublime is standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon leaning as far as you dare over the railing and still not being able to see the canyon floor below. Sublime is warrior-queen Galadriel being tempted by the One Ring. Sublime is waking up in the middle of the night in the heart of a wild thunderstorm.
āMake her feel like sheās the most sublime creature on earthā
Gomez isnāt advising Fester to treat a woman he fancies like a princess, or even elevate her to pedestal of angelic nature (whoās idea was it to equate femininity with purity anyway? What a laughable and historically damaging idea. Shame on whatever dead (probably) white dudes promoted that!)
Gomez is advising Fester that if he truly loves a woman he must do everything he can to remind her of how sheās an untameable force of nature whoās grandeur brings him to his knees in awe and terror. Just like Morticia, for Gomez.
Iāll sign off with one of my most favorite quotes of all time, because it feels suddenly very relevant:
āWhen I find myself surrounded by so much beauty, I feel as if I am the eye of a hurricane.ā
janainaart
jbbartram-illu
dededos
origamiaround
romaincrisis
ellievsbear
snowghoul
