#bungostraytexts

[fudanshipoe]

bungo stray dogs, themes of trauma, the abuse cycle, and how ranpo's disability+autistic trauma is an integral part of untold origins ★

🦴 abilities represent trauma and trauma responses

🦴 trauma as a theme of cycles

- the abuse cycle

- the "savior" cycle

🦴 the government, war, and society

- yosano, mori

- verlaine, chuuya

- fukuchi, teruko

- the role of the government

🦴 untold origins

- ranpo's ability is autistic masking

- his trauma

- untold origins through the lens of autistic trauma

wc; 2.6k (Origins quotes included in pictures only but I explain them briefly)

(this is also crossposted on Twitter, this is a long read format)

In this I want to cover trauma, and by extent mental illness, as an overarching theme in BSD, and how it portrays the cycles and effect of abuse, war, and is an exploration of traumatized individuals operating in a world not built for them. Additionally, Untold Origins is about autistic trauma.

Despite the approach of supernatural themes, Bungo Stray Dogs lends itself heavily to the discussion of trauma, mental illness, and its effects. One of the most notable themes in Bungo Stray Dogs is trauma and abuse, but it extends beyond the main abuse chain that most recognize to partially originate from Mori and end with Kyouka (Mori, Dazai, Akutagawa, and Kyouka, to be specific). There is a large focus on the abuse cycle and how trauma affects people. Emphasis is also placed on the specific structural abuse and violence of society within the world of BSD. The complexities of the abuse cycle are highlighted in organizations such as the Port Mafia, which is by far the most recognizable example within the series, but the government as another authoritative state plays another role in the cycle. BSD shows its readers various depictions of how trauma will manifest or affect two people who encounter the same thing. BSD shows a very honest depiction of mental illness in general, but it's specifically in how trauma affects the characters that these themes become integral to the story.

To start off the actual analysis, abilities themselves are representative of trauma responses. They arise from high stress situations in order for the user to have a protective mechanism for themself, uncanny to how actual trauma responses develop. Whether you think it is non-exclusive because abilities are based upon literature, many if not all of the characters’ abilities parallel their trauma. This is highlighted with tons of the characters, obviously, but I'll only point out a few because a separate analysis would be needed for every ability in the series (I want to one day, but not now). Each ability exhibits what each ability user needed in order to survive. Atsushi was a victim of child torture from what could have been birth, or at least since coming into the orphanage, to young adulthood, and he needed to become something to combat it. Beast Beneath the Moonlight is an ability that allows Atsushi to become something near invulnerable, with his impenetrable fur, regeneration, and the claws that cut through abilities themself. No Longer Human reflects how Dazai never allows anyone to get close to him, how he always keeps his guard up, how he never allows himself the vulnerability of being seen or touched. Both literally and metaphorically. Akuatagwa, similar to Atsushi, growing up in the slums needed a way to protect himself, Gin, and the other children around him. His ability is one that I feel is the most obvious with its connection to his trauma, as it is so important in depicting his relationship with Dazai and his own ability, though that is more about his coat itself than explicitly Rashomon. He only had the clothes on his back to protect him, so that is what manifested, the ability to control and kill his enemies with what little shield he had against the world. These will be the only ones I highlight in this section as they're some “main” examples and this is not meant to be exclusively on what the ability represents for individual characters. There are also plenty of characters that we can only speculate on, as we don't know much about their past, if at all many of them.

The cycle of abuse is the main theme present under the topic of trauma and how it relates to BSD's story. The most notable abuse chain that runs from Mori, to Dazai, to Akuatagwa, and finally ending with Kyouka is easily the most recognizable example of this. Whether you believe Mori's relationship with Dazai, and affect on him, was inherently classified as child abuse is irrelevant here and up to interpretation, I suppose, as a lot of people seem to believe so for some reason. Regardless, you cannot deny that the lessons of optimal solutions, needing to live for a purpose, and harsh treatment runs in this line of mentor/mentee relationships.

This is also the case between Mori and Yosano, though I'm not sure how much Mori would constitute as a “mentor” to Yosano over just being her superior, considering his relationship and treatment of Yosano is vastly different compared to Dazai. The cycles of abuse is not only present within the mentor/mentee cycle of BSD either, another major example is how many characters treat others based upon how they would treat themself, and this treatment arises from a place of projection. In the Dark Era, Mori acts according to his own judgment, assuming that Dazai will not act adversely based upon the shared qualities he sees of himself in Dazai. A shared logistical, observant brain and their ability to navigate a situation through predicting and utilizing their pawns. Dazai trains Akutagawa the way he does because he believes it is what Akuatagwa needs in order to be successful and survive.

Kouyou is a very great instance of this, too. The Port Mafia is a root of much of the abuse taking place within the story of Bungo Stray Dogs, and Kouyou shows this the best, aside from characters like Dazai and Akutagawa. This is where I want to specify that Mori is not the root cause or direct start of the abuse cycle within the series, as the Port Mafia itself was a tool of organizational abuse from the start. The Port Mafia has always used tactics of aggression and suppression as an operation, however, there is a stark difference between the Old Boss and Mori on how this force is used. There is no real difference on how they affect the Port Mafia individually, except the methods used and the tighter reign of control Mori uses compared to the reckless abandonment for critical thought towards the end for the Old Boss. It's an inherently corrupt organization despite the importance it holds in the balance of Yokohama. Kouyou was in the Mafia from childhood, and when she lost the hope of being able to escape that world, she lost her trust in both the organization and the greater world of people. This is the reason that she pushes her own beliefs onto Kyouka and tries so desperately to keep her in the mafia. Her disdain for hope and recognition of herself in Kyouka is the causation for her to attempt to drill this mindset into Kyouka.

Kouyou isn't the only one who projects herself onto Kyouka specifically either, as Akutagawa follows the lessons he has learned and forces his beliefs of giving Kyouka's life a “reason” through her ability and killing ability. Which is exactly what he learned through his years in the Port Mafia as Dazai's mentee. Another example of a character projecting their own traumas onto someone they recognize themself in is very obviously Verlaine, through the events of him forcing Chuuya to his side because of his thought process.

There is a common justification that many of the characters make that they are doing what needs to be done. There are many other examples that could be made from the series, but all of this is to say that there is a large representation of the idea that “hurt people hurt people”. It's what the abuse cycle is on an interpersonal level. The actions taken are not excused by a victim’s own past, however it is a very real depiction of the abuse cycle and its effects in the series.

There is some hope to be found though as the parallel to this is being “saved”. Exemplified through the Armed Detective Agency as a whole, it ends up being essentially a safe haven for many of the members. Earlier I mentioned Kyouka, and she is specifically helped by Atsushi. I really don't want to refer to this as a savior cycle because it's really not, they're not all “saviors”, I just don't really have a better name for it.

The best examples for the roots of this cycle in the series are Fukuzawa and Oda, though they are naturally not the only cause for the chain of events within this cycle of influence. Fukuzawa brings me back to the topic of the Armed Detective Agency, which was established in the first place in order to help Ranpo and others. He left his influence on Ranpo first in Untold Origins, and Yosano when the two are able to get her away from Mori, but he also is the first in the chain that impacted Oda (though not the only), another important figure in this theme. He is the person that is able to plant a moral seed in Dazai and change the course of his life, and he was the only one able to do this. This brings me back around to Atsushi, who after being taken into the ADA by Dazai is able to save Kyouka, Lucy, and Sigma in one way or another.

It is important to highlight the Decay of Angels arc and portraying the tragic results of war. The ones I'm going to discuss are Fukuchi, Fukuzawa, Yosano, Mori, and Teruko as participants of war, Verlaine and Chuuya as the result of the government experimentation after the war, and then Tachihara from an outsider's perspective because of his brother. There is limited information that we have on The Great War itself, but what we do know is that it was a fight between ability user organizations and for the use of abilities in warfare. It is shown to be the cause of much of the suffering of many characters in the series, whether it is as a participant or a result of the inherent tragedy of war. Yosano was a child soldier exploited by Mori, who was able to use his position to prove his thesis for the beneficial use of abilities in warfare. It's unclear to me whether it was issued from upper levels, but his Infantry Division was for the purpose of proving what you could harness with abilities and warfare. This is not the only time that ability experimentation resulted during/from The Great War either, both Verlaine and Chuuya were a result of ability research and singularity creation. You could also infer that The Hunting Dogs project, though it is not confirmed (I think?), is a result of this as well. All of this to show the role that the government plays in the war, and alongside the damage that war already brings the government is shown to prey on the vulnerable within.

Fukuchi is probably the most noteworthy example of war and trauma in BSD, as he is the one who enacts the greatest damage in order to stop another war to his knowledge. His entire motivation for creating the DOA and bringing calamity was to prevent a repeat of what he had witnessed in the battlefield. Though he also has personal beliefs for world peace from the beginning, it grew to be more than that. The war intrinsically changed him due to the trauma, and soldier’s PTSD is naturally a common thing. The war changed Yosano as well, and while the two had very different circumstances, they carry the weight of their sins years later. Teruko was essentially born from war itself, and similar to Atsushi, she was forced to become something or someone that was able to fight, hence her ability forcing maturity and age. Teruko's ability itself is an example of how intense or prolonged trauma can cause a person to force self preservation in the face of it as a tactic to survive. Many of the characters show this, but it is especially prevalent with Fukuchi and Teruko because of the war. The entire arc brings into question the role of the government in war, corrupt power, the tragedy of war, and the point of it in the first place.

I'm making a seperate section to talk about Ranpo's ability, Untold Origins, and autistic trauma. Ranpo is the only character based on an author who does not have a literal ability, and I believe his lack of ability and insistence on keeping the illusion up is reminiscent of autistic masking. As to why I think he is autistic outside of the context of Origins, please refer to this thread .

Masking is camouflaging autistic traits in order to appeal to neurotypical or allistic (non-autistic) expectations. This could be internalizing discomfort, suppressing behaviors, copying others’ behavior in order to “fit in”, or an array of examples of forcing yourself out of your nature. Long-term masking can lead to extreme damage to your mental health, it can cause burnout, distressed behavior (meltdowns, shutdowns), issues with sense of self, etc.

Ranpo doesn’t mask very much in the present canon, he has a support system with his friends and family in the ADA where he is not judged for his autistic traits or behavior. Yet he keeps up the illusion of being an ability user partially for his own sake, but mostly to appear a certain way for the Agency and others. His ability is the only mask he keeps up, and the reason for this is the same reason he got it in the first place. Ranpo had to deal with the world outside of himself not accepting him for the way he is, and this is specifically because of his autistic traits. His false ability was essentially given to him by Fukuzawa as a way to quell his frustrations with the world, an explanation to Ranpo for why he is the way he is, because the world didn't understand the way he was and vice versa. He does seem to mask his autistic traits in Untold Origins, however, both due to his experiences he talks about and his parents. Masking can be traumatic, growing up in a world not built for you is traumatic, and the culmination of it all is what leads to Ranpo’s meltdown. Being autistic is not inherently traumatic, but the instability of day to day life can even be a causation for it, and this is the case for Ranpo. He goes about the story assuming that he will get adverse reactions if he speaks up or acts like himself, showing specifically his autistic traits, and this is the reason that he masks. Like any other autistic person, he masks in order to survive situations or to avoid confrontation over it when he never intended it. He was already a sheltered kid, and so he was raised with the deliberate suppression of his autistic traits, to which he cannot control and that cannot be separated from him. Even if it was an effort to protect him by his parents, it had negative consequences on Ranpo. Growing up that sheltered is damaging enough but it is dire to understand that this is in relation to Ranpo's being autistic as well, so he was thrust into a world that already did not understand him as a young autistic person after he lost his parents, an added trauma on top of the loss.

(below are the quotes I was referring/alluding to)

(In order is Ranpo's meltdown scene, an example of the double empathy problem (difficulties due in part due to a mutual lack of understanding when socializing between autistics/allistics because of the way we experience the world internally/externally) in which Ranpo looks at the same thing as someone else but they percieve it vastly different and Ranpo does not realize this, an observation from Fukuzawa on Ranpo's inherent difference, Ranpo's expectations of rejection, another observation from Fukuzawa on how Ranpo doesn't realize any of this, Ranpo expecting rejection based upon experiences in the past, and finally what I interpret to be an example of suppression of Ranpo's autistic traits (in a literal sense it is referring to his ability, which is representative of his autistic masking/really autism in general)

The manifestation of his ability is not a literal one like the other characters in the series, but it is an extension of his need to mask at times. Whether it is damaging or not, Ranpo clings to it because it is both connected to Fukuzawa and it is the first time he got an answer to why he is this way instead of being told to hide it for the convenience of others. When you grow up in a world that does not like you for what you are, it would only be natural for him to be desperate for the comfort of something after believing for so long that there was something inherently wrong with him.

There are definitely more thoughts that I have on this topic, such as poverty in relation to the Akutagawa siblings and Atsushi (Beast, specifically as well), but I want that to be a separate analysis.

[fudanshipoe]

ranpo edogawa is autistic

a long analysis of ranpo's autistic traits (around 2k?? Idk it's long)

(there were meant to be wayyy more pics, including quotes from the novel, but I couldn't add more than 10 </3)

edit: I made a video essay on it!

1) socialization

a) bluntness and literal thinking

Ranpo communicates in a very frank manner. He is always straight to the point in the way he talks and comes off as rude to the people around him. He’s self-aware of the fact that he does not act according to the social expectations of others and verbalizes this himself many times in the series. He does put others down for not being on his intellectual level, very frequently I will say, but that is not always his intention when pointing out the obvious to other people, and subsequently coming off as unintentionally rude. Along with this, he is a very chatty individual who goes on about his own findings in such a way that gives the impression that he always regards others with a flippant attitude, and while this is true to some degree due to his self pride, Ranpo does not always intend this to be the effect. Ranpo is not always aware of social cues relating to this, either. For example, there are many times when another character's words go straight over his head because he takes it at face value. Literal thinking is another autistic trait that he exhibits heavily in the series, and this goes beyond his ability to discern logical facts. Another point of his seeming social unawareness is his lack of understanding of other people. This is shown heavily within the Untold Origins light novel, Ranpo expresses throughout the novel that there is something everyone else gets that he does not, and that he is isolated from the rest of the world.

b) low empathy

Ranpo also has very low empathy. This is another common autistic trait, though it is just as probable for an autistic to be on the extreme opposite. One of Ranpo's most outwardly identifying traits is the flippant attitude he carries for others. Even his own personal motto is about himself, after all. So it's natural to assume he is just self-centered, but he isn't. Ranpo struggles to identify with other people's emotions. That is to say, his way of thinking is very literal, as I stated earlier. He struggles to conceptualize other people's emotions, but he expresses compassionate and cognitive empathy (desire to help and the desire to understand rather than what people typically think of “empathy” as, emotional empathy or feeling other people’s emotions). He voices himself that he isn't that great at sympathizing with people in the manga. At one point, before Atsushi joins the Agency, Ranpo weighs him as less important compared to the Agency because of his focus on protecting the Agency and his comrades, to which he does not recognize Atsushi as at this time. He does care about helping people, but Ranpo is more concerned with those close to him.

c) personal boundary issues

Ranpo struggles with recognizing boundaries with other people, both with personal space and his inability to conceptualize with others a lot of the time. In the Perfect Crime arc, he bluntly demands a lot from Mushitaro, something that he does often. Ranpo doesn't think about if he inconveniences others a lot. It isn't something that is a priority in his mind, or it goes over his head that he even is an inconvenience to people. It's another example of his not picking up on social cues.

He overall does not behave or think in a conventional way according to other people, and this is something that excludes him from the adult world in Untold Origins. He says how he isn't taken seriously by adults in the novel as well, something that is, like the rest of his experiences, is pretty common for autistic people for us not to be taken seriously. His friends and family at the Agency never demean Ranpo for any of his traits, though, and this support is extremely important.

2) sensory related issues and behaviors

Throughout the series, in the main manga and in the spinoffs, Ranpo expresses a struggle with bland food. He refuses to eat anything that does not have an intense flavor. Many autistic people will have restrictive eating habits, whether it is because of sensory reasons or otherwise. Some gravitate towards a bland palette because it offers a consistent expectation of an eating experience. Many others, like in what I speculate to be Ranpo's case, instead go for flavorful foods as a means of sensory seeking. I believe this is also a form of stimming for Ranpo, but I will go over that later on. He has some admittedly odd eating habits as well, such as weird pairings like Tecchou, and while it is likely meant to be a joke, it can be related to his other food habits.

Ranpo also seems to struggle with form-fitting clothes. He chooses baggier items for his everyday wear, which includes not wearing his tie or shirt correctly (he tucks it in the sides), and his big shorts. In this specific BSD:TOTL card he can also be interpreted as struggling with formal attire, too, because of his compliance only after being distracted with a sensory input, which in this case is food as per usual with him.

Stimming is essentially repetitive, sensory self soothing behavior. Every person seeks sensory stimuli to calm themself, but it's especially observable in many autistic folks and most commonly associated with neurodivergent people in general. Ranpo seems to be attracted to marbles from his ramune bottle, staring at them and rolling or holding them between his fingers. This could be taken as an example of visual and tactile stimming. Ranpo is almost always pictured eating some type of snack foods, or he opts for flavorful foods in his palette. This relates to his sensory issues, as I pointed out earlier, but it is also another way that many people seek out sensory stimulation, through oral fixations or for the taste. He is also shown with suckers a lot throughout the series, and I take this as Ranpo going for either the smooth texture of suckers or for that ease to have something to stimulate himself on hand. There are moments when Ranpo flaps his hands or arms when excited, or yet another example of possible tactile stimming.

3) comfort objects

Ranpo exhibits a dependency on Fukuzawa's glasses. Comfort objects are something common with autistic people, as the emotional attachment to an item could be related to security or other factors. He gets extremely upset when he is without his glasses, both because he needs them for his “ability”, but they also serve as an important reminder of Fukuzawa himself, who Ranpo values greatly. Ranpo doesn't care that it is a cheap pair of glasses. He values it because of its connection to his father figure. He has a meltdown whenever he is without it, or someone insists he doesn't need his glasses, like in Poe's Murder Mansion, when he gets upset towards Yosano.

4) meltdowns

His strong emotional reactions in moments like this are akin to that of autistic meltdowns, which outwardly appear to be oversized tantrums, but they aren't. Autistic meltdowns are an extreme involuntary physical response to stressors. One of the pivotal moments for Ranpo's character in the Untold Origins novel is his meltdown in the theater, which resulted from his ongoing frustration and isolation from the world around him, and this is a large part of many autistic experiences. This is one scene that personally got to me, as I have very similar feelings towards the world. It is one of the moments that was lost in the anime adaptation, as it shows the culmination of Ranpo's frustration and the moment where he finally breaks down. It does not have the same effect of conveying Ranpo's isolation and struggles. It is one of his biggest character moments, I would say, as it is the final precursor to Fukuzawa fully stepping in to guide Ranpo.

5) "childish nature"

Ranpo is dubbed as childish due to his stubborn behavior, his inability to do seemingly basic things, and his “self centered” attitude which is really his low empathy. He refuses to do anything that does not interest him, or that is outside of his comfort zone. He doesn't conduct his detective work in a traditional manner because it bores him, he negates the idea of having to handle things that don't interest him on his cases. Ranpo has a large lack of independence alongside this, in refusing to learn to do basic tasks, like his inability to navigate himself. He can't do basic tasks such as cooking or laundry either and relies on others to do them. Ranpo struggles to function independently, and relies heavily on others around him for support. His friends and family in the ADA never treat any of his traits as negative, they both indulge him and treat him as a normal person. He is allowed to exist as he is without judgment, at least in the Agency, just as the other members are.

6) aversion to change

Ranpo refuses to go outside of his comfort zone, as I stated before. There is rarely a point in the series where Ranpo goes out of his way to differ from his regular. He is insistent on the fact that he is a gifted detective despite being aware of reality. This is both in part due to his attachment to the idea and his inability to let go of the image he has resulting from his self expectations. He doesn't want anything to change in the way his comrades view him. Of course, this also connects to how he is so attached to the idea because it was the first way he was able to make sense of the world. He lashes out towards Yosano during a meltdown in Poe's Mansion, as mentioned earlier, due to her potentially challenging this idea.

7) restrictive and unconventional interests

While not every autistic person has a narrowed focus of interests, niche or ultimately odd interests are highly associated with autistic people. Ranpo fits into this very well, as evident by how he works. As established before, Ranpo has a tendency to reject anything outside of his scope of interest. He only handles the most gruesome of cases at the Agency or when he is needed specially for a case. His interest falls under an umbrella of the grotesque and weird. He only puts his full brain power on the main thing that matters to him, his detective work. While this is because of his position as the heart of the Agency with his abilities, Ranpo cannot apply himself to the same level on other things outside of this bubble, similar to how a lot of autsitic people have restricted interest expertise, it can take a lot of energy.

I do have more thoughts on this, but this about sums it up. Feel free to comment on it at all :3. This is just my personal thoughts on him, as I relate a lot to Ranpo

[fudanshipoe]

dazai/yosano character parallels analysis ★

includes: connection/past with Mori, themes of humanity, dehumanization, life/death, change, and Elise(?)

wc: 1.5k

Beginning with the most glaring similarity, they have a mutual connection with Mori as a mentor figure in their past. (I'm not sure if I would assign the “mentor” role to him for Yosano, but for the lack of a better word, that's what he will be called here </3). He represents an important part of their traumatic pasts but in different ways. I want to stress the importance of understanding that the two of them were abused in different ways because of how Mori himself regarded each of the two, and that this is not to say one was worse than the other. I would also like to negate any argument that Dazai was not abused by Mori, this is false. While that is another topic I want to discuss in the future, I just want to get that out there.

Both are victims of Mori's tactics of controlling abuse and were utilized as tools for his plans. Yosano was used for her ability, as she was useful under Mori's immortal soldier regiment, while Dazai was picked up with the intentions to mentor him as a future successor to Mori because of their shared traits (refer to the 15 quote provided, their “common destiny” is being the Port Mafia boss). The reason I say they are abused in different ways is because of the methods Mori enacts on the both of them. While I don't want to say he respects Dazai more as an individual because of that inherent fear he carries of Dazai, however, I'm not really sure what else to word it as. Dazai is able to carry out a lot of his own volition while under Mori in the Port Mafia, and while he was still in a horrible place under this treatment, he did have some level of freedom on his own because of the way Mori viewed him. Mori recognizes that: one, Dazai lacks morals at this point in his life, two, that he is not loyal to Mori and could take him out at any moment (I would argue that he expects it if anything), and three, that Dazai is an extremely intelligent child beyond his years. Since he recognizes all of these aspects, he still controls Dazai to the degree he acts to everyone else, but he also does not push Dazai too extremely. Of course this is not to say his abuse to Dazai was not harsh, I am trying to compare the way Mori treated Yosano vs Dazai, and how this has affected them individually, not by the severity of either. He noticeably treats Yosano harsher, and he does go as far as to lay a hand on her, in the form of grabbing her hair. While he is not a physically abusive person, instead using psychological methods more often, this is an example of the disregard he has for Yosano as an individual herself. She is diminished to her ability in his eyes, and Dazai is almost akin to a mirror in at least Mori's eyes. Both of these lead into my next point, the way both of them experience dehumanization.

Both Dazai and Yosano are, to some degree, seen as inhuman for their abilities and past sins. This can be seen in something as simple as the names they are given by others in their lives. They are the "Angel of Death" and the "Demon Prodigy." Both of these names assigned to them from those around them serve as stark reminders of their past wrongdoings, to which I will expand upon later. Yosano was essentially forced to play God with countless lives until she created her own undead hell, and this burdens her for the rest of her life. As a result of these events, even though it was not something under her control as an eleven year old child, she is viewed in a vicious light for her ability and involvement. Similarly, Dazai's humanity is disregarded by those around him because of his actions and behaviors, but most importantly, his nature. To follow a commonly stated metaphor in BSD, his blood is mafia black. During his time in the Port Mafia, Dazai racked up a laundry list of crimes, and the methods he used were seen as cruel even by Port Mafia standards. Of course, his actions are not justified by the fact that he is a child during this time. Dazai is very much a person guilty of crimes enacted upon others, so he is not absolved from all agency in this, but it is still important to understand that his actions were heavily for survival and his own self destructive pursuit to find something to live for.

Coming back to these two and their pasts as these inhumane figures, both also go through a series of changes as a person to go on a better path. Dazai himself could care less about good vs bad during his Port Mafia days because there was no person who guided him properly on that course, but once Oda's death sets Dazai's path in stone on the good side. Oda's final request to him is to be on the good side, despite the indifference Dazai harbors. Dazai lives out this path up to the current events of the timeline, and he clearly benefits from being in the Agency. He goes to deliberate lengths to hide from his past as well, he avoids any possible association with that and denies similarities between him and those he has harmed during his Port Mafia days, namely those he hurt, like Akutagawa. At the same time, as I pointed out, Dazai is making the conscious choice to change. Yosano follows this similar path of trying with the Agency because of Fukuzawa and Ranpo picking her up from Mori after the isolation facility. The Agency does not require her for her ability, unlike Mori did, she is more than it. She chooses to continue to save lives with her ability because she so heavily values human life.

And this brings me to my next point, their shared connection with life and death, and their attitudes surrounding it. Both Dazai and Yosano greatly value life, as ridiculous as that sounds for a character like Dazai. Yosano is intrinsically connected to the cycle between life and death because of the nature of her ability. She holds life as having more value than death itself, and she expresses this with her drive to save lives. Dazai does not have the ability to control the cycle itself, but he does have a connection to it through his suicidal nature. He stumbles between the line of living and dying due to his inability to find a purpose to live, but he does appreciate life. Dazai appreciates the way other characters such as Oda live their lives, and the humanity Dazai sees in them. He does not believe there is an inherent value to his own life, but he voices his opinions on the human experience and he admires how others do find a reason to live. Dazai and Yosano's frame of mind surrounding life and death is not the same, however, they do share a mutual value for humanity and life in some fashion, even if Dazai seeks out death more than Yosano ever does.

Now, to address Elise. Her as a topic is separate from the rest only because the connection between her, Dazai, and Yosano is speculation on my part. It is not something observable as fact to canon, unlike something as the two's relationships with Mori or their shared themes. It is clear that Elise is at least partially inspired by an eleven year old Yosano. Before the events of the Great War, Elise is shown to follow orders blindly. She is a subservient ability, and her usual liveliness is not present at this time. This changes after Mori loses Yosano, and Elise behaves like an average child at this point, but the specific traits he takes from Yosano are her willpower and opinionated personality. Another notable detail in Elise's design is her hair bow, which does resembles Yosano's hair pin. This can be attributed to Mori's obsession with Yosano at this age, but I don't believe her likeness to Yosano is only because of that. She also shares traits with Dazai. What I'm referring to his her hair and attitude towards Mori himself. Outside of the time when Elise is based upon someone else, she wears her hair up in a bun. Though she is absent from timeliness between the Great War, we do see her after that, and she now has more open, wavy hair. While you can attribute to this design just for the sake of it, I do think it is interesting to point out this similarity between her and Dazai because Yosano has perfectly straight hair. Elise also chastises Mori, something that Yosano does not do, but Dazai does voice his disapproval of Mori and straight points out his faults, which Elise does too. She also exhibits similar behavior to Dazai in negotiating for what they want, neither lies, and I say this is a trait she got from Dazai only because Yosano does not do this. I think that Mori projects traits of these two onto Elise, a manifestation of his desires, both because of the obsession and because Yosano+Dazai symbolize regret from the past.

[fudanshipoe]

a ramble on Dazai having BPD ☆

This is mostly my own personal interpretation, but it is a very long ramble about me reading into Dazai's borderline personality disorder traits (abandonment, identity, dissociation, self risking behaviors, chronic emptiness, etc) or at least what I interpret as such. I do think ASPD is also a strong contender for Dazai, but I have yet to research that more in depth.

I think fear of abandonment being a trait he fills is best exhibited with Dazai and how he is with Oda. He clearly struggles with the thought overall losing anyone and anything close to him, but it's also a repeated thing by his line where he isn't sad about losing Oda/Ango and what felt like at the time almost everything, because he expects it. He fights hard for Oda to not go fight Mimic because he is afraid to lose one of his greatest friends, and who I think was also a favorite person in a way, but I don't explain that here.

He also fights hard for the agency yes because he cares about them, but I would argue it's also motivated in a similar fashion to not wanting to lose it/the people he cares about.He even puts forth an extreme effort of keeping up a persona as a means to not lose it. He even puts forth an extreme effort of keeping up a persona as a means to not lose it. Constantly joking around and not allowing much personal connection, at least as far as letting his true intentions or his personal thoughts go.

He also shows struggles with stable personal identity. Dazai views himself as something other than human in general. And also connecting to the heavy dehumanization themes around him, especially during his PM days. Dazai put on the persona of a "Demon Prodigy" and fit himself to that in what I would argue is almost a self sabataging way. He exposed himself to the worst to see and possibly feel raw humanity. And possibly gain a purpose or want to live, as well.This also is an example of chronic emptiness for Dazai and his search for a purpose to live.

There are a lot of examples of this for Dazai, obviously his biggest thing is suicide and constantly getting himself into those harmful situations. He also is shown to be a functioning alcoholic.yet being unable to fill the hole, which leads into suicide and Self harming behaviors. There are a lot of examples of this for Dazai, obviously his biggest thing is suicide and constantly getting himself into those harmful situations. He also is shown to be a functioning alcoholic. Physical self harm is really just a speculation, however I think it's a realistic thing to consider, and personally I do believe that.

Probably the biggest example of Dazai and dissociation/depersonalzation and loss of contact with reality is this scene in BSD 15. At least this is how I read it. There are other examples I think, one being the fact that I believe him disconnecting himself from his "humanity" is a form of it.

I also think that Oda is sort of a favorite person for Dazai. This is exemplified by the extreme lengths Dazai tries to go to in order to not lose him (dark era, beast), but also the extreme importance of Oda as a figure for Dazai. Despite never getting very personal, as stated by Oda himself, Dazai still has a strong attachment to him because Oda was arguably the first good influence in his life.

I definitely have a lot more thoughts on this, but this is just a shortened version and small ramble on some of the ways I read Dazai as implied/coded(?) BPD.

[fudanshipoe]

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