#lit analysis

[senecantragedies]

I just finished Far From the Madding Crowd in small part because I read that Suzanne Collins said in an interview Katniss’s last name comes from Bathsheba Everdene.

I just finished the book and I think she may have referenced a bit more than just a name …. More thoughts to come.

[bibliok1ept]

Not my usually post but I wrote a whole essay on haikyu for a class and I’m not about to let it rot in my drive for forever so might as well post it.

BE WARNED ITS LONG AF!! If you choose to read it thank you lol, it’s just me rambling about how haikyu subverts harmonic masculinity! Enjoy!!

Haikyu!! and Subversion of Hegemonic Masculity

Sports anime, a dramatic genre of anime typically dominated by an intense desire to win, a journey to become the best player, with anything less being seen as failure. Sports anime predominantly focuses on men’s sports, Haikyu!! is no expectation, however the way Haikyu!! explores characters' masculinity and their relationship to volleyball is a direct subversion of the hegemonic masculinity and typical attitudes seen in men's sports. This subversion is strongly demonstrated through Tsukishima’s character arc, the idea of “genius” in relation to Hinata versus Kageyama's journey’s, and Kenma’s philosophy surrounding sports.

Tsukishima Kei is a character who has one of the most impactful turn-arounds in the manga. Tsukishima begins as a character who isn’t particularly dedicated to volleyball. He watched his brother lose himself and lie because he gave too much to the club, and as such Tsukishima believes it's better to not become invested in volleyball because "it's just a club”. By the end of the manga, this attitude has shifted, as Tsukishima has a genuine passion for volleyball. The moment when Tsukishima really begins to shift is in chapter 163. Tsukishima manages to block Ushijima’s spike, winning a final point for Karasuno to win the second set. The panel is focused on Tsukishima pumping his fist because he was able to block the spike. The panel has no words on it which emphasizes the internal moment it was for Tsukishima. This moment had been building since the summer camp training arc where Bokuto pointed out that everyone has a moment where they become hooked on volleyball. But for Tsukishima this moment could not have happened without the direct mentorship of Kuroo. Tsukishima was only a good enough middle blocker because of what Kuroo had taught him.

This direct mentorship is emphasized throughout the manga and it's even more directly connected to Tsukishima being able to find his passion for volleyball in chapter 298. Chapter 298, aptly titled “The Guide”, further emphasizes the mentor/“guide” relationship between Kuroo (plus Bokuto) and Tsukishima. This chapter takes place during the “Dumpster Battle”, the game between Karasuno and Nekoma. Kuroo asks Tsukishima how volleyball has been for him lately. This question is followed by several panels that are flashbacks from earlier chapters of the time Tsukishima spent with Kuroo and Bokuto training, they are overlaid with Tsukishima’s speech and inner thoughts. Tsukishima says out loud, “thanks to everyone”, then thinks internally, “I mean that too. Thanks to everyone…”. The last panel focuses on Tsukishima smiling, and finishes his thought, “Once in a while…A very great while…It’s actually kind of fun”. Tsukishima credits his changing attitude towards volleyball to Kuroo and Bokuto, because they forced him to practice with them, and took the time to teach him Tsukishima and because of that he was able to block Ushijima’s spike. Typically in men’s sports there is an intense hypercompetitiveness, which can often lead to the dehumanization of rivals in the effort to “destroy” them (Colleen 2017). This attitude is further enforced by hegemonic masculinity. So naturally helping your rivals improve is not something that is done under this system of sports. Bokuto, and even more so Kuroo, subvert the typical attitudes adopted in men's sports which emphasize a lack of sportsmanship towards other teams and instead chose to assist a rival to help him improve as a player. Tsukishima is only able to have his moment as a character because of the mentors who helped him get to that level, Karasuno would not have made it anywhere had Bokuto and Kuroo refused to teach Tsukishima.

The term “genius” or “gifted” are typically used to describe kids who are extraordinarily good at activities, usually at a young age. This idea of young talent, especially in boys, is strengthened by the hegemonic masculinity which culturally expects men to be good at sports. Haikyu!!’s interpretation of “talent” and “genius” is directly mentioned in chapter 281, during the Inarazaki versus Karasuno match. Inarazaki’s captain Kita, makes a speech spanning several panels saying, “...Now there’s lots of people out there in the world you just can't measure up to, and there always will be. It’s only natural to look at them and think that they’re amazing. Personally I think the ability to press on no matter what is a talent, and I don’t think it matters what folks call people who have it. ‘Gifted’ works fine. It ain’t no insult. [New panel] But to think they’re as good as they are just because, for no reason at all, well… Folks who think that have already lost to those people without even steppin’ in the ring. [New panel] It’s rude, plain and simple”. Haikyu!! flips the typical concept of “genius” by establishing genius, not as innate but instead as a headstart on learning and a persistence to keep on learning.

This idea of headstart is further established by comparing Hinata and Kageyama through the manga. Hinata Shoyou is the main protagonist of Haikyu!!, from the beginning of the manga it is established that Hinata is not a very “gifted” player. Hinata lacked the resources to become a good player at a young age. He was physically short and he came from a public school which didn’t have a boys volleyball team, because of this Hinata did not have the opportunity to become a “genius” player. On the other hand the deuteragonist, Kageyama Tobio, is constantly referred to as a “genius” player. Kageyama grew up playing volleyball since age one, and attended a middle school with a highly respected volleyball team. Anyone who lacks resources in a given area will find it increasingly difficult to learn a skill or sport(Wilson 2002). Which is why Kageyama had such an advantage over Hinata in the beginning of the manga. However Hinata and Kageyama’s rivalry is one of the most important relationships throughout the manga, and one of the main driving forces for Hinata to keep improving. Hinata's drive to improve his own playing is central to Hinata’s character, as he is often only considered useful when paired with Kageyama because only a “genius” can use his skills properly. Hinata’s personal drive to improve, and his persistence despite his shortcomings gets him far; in chapter 400 Hinata and Kageyama face off over the net playing a division 1 volleyball game, with Karasuno's banner flying behind them. Hinata’s drive to improve and even when he loses over and over again to Kageyama is a direct opposition to the typical win-it-all attitude. That’s not to say Hinata doesn’t care if he wins or not, he does, but what Hinata values more is staying on the court the longest. Hinata values playing for the longest time, being the best player on the court or in other words personal improvement and persistence. While athletes do value personal improvement it is only to an extent. Athletes will try to improve in order to win, and not necessarily for betterment of themselves in their given sport(Colleen 2017). Hinata improves not because he wants to win, but because he genuinely loves the sport and wants to reach a level of excellence so that he can compete with the other players that are given this label of “gifted”. That attitude is in direct contradiction to the attitudes surrounding winning typically seen in men's sports.

In contrast to Hinata, and most of the characters in Haikyu!!, Kozume Kenma does not particularly care for volleyball. Kenma hates getting sweaty, and dislikes the effort he needs to put in to play. Kenma is a character whose philosophy around sports is the most directly oppositional to the typical hegemonic philosophy. Kenma does not care whether or not his team wins or loses, he plays merely because his friends play. Throughout the manga Kenma recognizes that he isn't the typical athlete. In chapter 25 when Kenma and Hinata meet for the first time, Hinata asks if he thinks it strange that he's a middle blocker (a position typically reserved for tall players), Kenma responds saying, “ I get that kind of thing [judgment], at tournaments a lot too. People look at me like, ‘Setters are supposed to be the smart guys. What’s he doing there? I mean…I’m not a gifted athlete or anything”. Kenma recognizes that there is a typical mold that male athletes are supposed to fit into, and because Kenma doesn’t he receives a lot of judgment. This idea that an athlete is supposed to be a certain way, stems from hegemonic masculinity and this belief that men should be hyper-masculine, especially men who play sports (Colleen 2017). Volleyball, the sport is often categorized as a “girly sport” because volleyball relies on team work and cooperation. Whereas hegemonic masculinity puts emphasis on individual strength and often ridicules men who have to rely on support. Similarly hegemonic attitudes have caused sport to be depicted as fun only if you can be the best at it. But that isn’t necessarily true. Kenma by the end of the manga despite not being a character who extremely loves volleyball and becomes extremely skilled in it, manages to find the fun in playing. In chapter 323, during the “Dumpster Battle”, Kenma after a long rally collapses to the floor smiling and says, “That was fun”. Kenma, despite not becoming the best player, or putting in the most effort to defeat his team's rivals, still managed to find volleyball fun. This is direct opposition to the idea that you need to win to have fun, for Kenma playing volleyball was never about winning, he played because his friends played. To him the sport was his connection to other people and how he showed his dedication to the sport did not mean he needed to become the best or most dedicated player on the court.

Haikyu!! is an anime that centers around characters and their experiences playing volleyball. Haikyu!! overturns readers expectations by creating characters and character arcs that subvert the hegemonic masculinity that permeates men's sports. Through Tsukishima learning from his rivals, to Hinata overcoming his disadvantages, and Kenma finding his genuine enjoyment of the sport, there are so many ways in which Haikyu!! overturns the stereotypes created by hegemonic masculinity. Haikyu!! is a blueprint for how men’s sports should be, with an emphasis on team and personal improvement, but not at the cost of sportsmanship and compassion.

[hislittleraincloud]

Asking for it🫵🏼👹🖕🏼

says the retard who pulled/plagiarized the bulk of their Ask from fucking Wikipedia (and probably had to look up the word "semiotics", too)

a Wikipedia article that relies on a biography that emphasized biographical psychology over literary analysis. The Bair bio interprets Nin’s fiction through her personal history, which isn't what it was; it was life transformed into myth/symbol.

Huh, kind of like how the dumbest of my critics assume that Afterburn is autobiographical wish fulfillment from Donovan's POV when it's not. Weird how illiterate idiots think alike.

Winter of Artifice isn’t a simple, disguised autobiographical work; it’s a surrealist, modernist exploration of identity, performance, and symbolic feminine archetypes. Nin used real emotional material but the stories aren't straightforward portraits of those relationships; reducing it to just Freudian shit misses the point, and yes, there is meaning in art and actions (like sharing this art), something that your illiterate fucking ass has no brains to understand.

But what you all need to try to fucking understand is that a work of fictional literature should not be interpreted only through the author’s life or intentions.

Once the text exists, readers experience it independently from any biographical background; a reader doesn’t need to know Rainer, Joaquín Nin, or her psychs to understand the themes of identity, performance, artifice, and fragmented selfhood. Do you know everything about an author's life that could have inspired their fiction before you read it? I mean, this is just the fundamentals of reading and I can hardly believe that I have to explain such simple shit to you, Anon.

Now, there's a reason that Ortega's douchey Dane recommended it, and it has nothing to do with Nin fucking her father or her therapists, or any Daddy Issues Ortega may have.

People take away what they take, see what they see, relate to what they relate:

Stella is an actress, which makes her life literally built around performance. The opening scene here where she watches herself on screen immediately introduces the core theme: the split between inner identity and public image. Sound familiar?

She feels small, melancholic, and fearful, but the cinematic image of her appears luminous, powerful, and seductive. She can't reconcile the two versions of herself. Sound familiar?

In archetypal terms she represents the woman who has become an object of representation. Her identity exists partly outside herself shaped by lighting/framing/interpretation and Stan™ audience perception. Sound familiar?

This is why her narrative repeatedly emphasizes artifice: stages/screens and the visual construction/stylization of such. She is the woman who experiences the horror of realizing that the world may know her only as an image.

Does any of that fucking sound familiar at all to you?

Or are you just a fucking moron desperate to cling to the idea that "it doesn't mean anything" on any layer except for the superficial and reductive Daddy Issues! take (that isn't even your own conclusion)? Modernist writers built entire careers on layers of meaning and symbolic construction. That should sound fucking familiar to you as well, especially if you're an Ortega Stan.

Now, do you need me to continue with the other two women who represent different psychological configurations of feminine identity in this edition? Or should I just wait for your next turd rocket in my inbox about how I'm just not as smart as I think I am? I'll leave you with this short n' sweetie from my copy because you're not worth any more of my precious time

"She was a child carrying a very old soul and burdened with it, and wishing to deposit it in some great and passionate role. In Joan of Arc, or Marie Bashkirtseff...or Rejane, or Eleanora Duse.

There are those who disguise themselves, like Stella's father, who disguised himself and acted what he was not. But Stella only wanted to transform and enlarge herself and wanted to act only what she felt she was, or could be. And Hollywood would not let her. Hollywood had its sizes and standards of characters. One could not transgress certain limited standard sizes."

— "Stella", Winter of Artifice ed. 1945

[greetingscowpoke]

RDR2 reminds me soooo much of King Lear— Dutch as King Lear himself, Arthur as Cordelia, and Hosea as The Fool. I wanted to talk about Hosea first, seeing him as a representation of King Lear’s Fool.

The Fool is an archetype seen in literature, more specifically as a narrative device in Shakespearean tragedies.

This character was unique in that they were allowed to make critical assessments of other characters and themes within the story, without fear of retribution. Oftentimes their criticism was masked through humor, wit, or sarcasm; they had comedic personalities and were masterful storytellers.

Hosea Matthews loosely reminds me of The Fool— as he is one of the few characters who is allowed to make harsh criticisms of Dutch. He is often heard pointing out the hypocrisy of Dutch's actions, as well as in others— continually doing so with wisdom hidden underneath sharp, witty comments. This is even more apparent when you compare Dutch to King Lear.

The Fool in King Lear served as a conscience and confidant to the King, until The Fool's untimely death. This is similar to how Hosea seemed to serve as a conscience to Dutch, and a voice of reason.

Arguably Dutch's last tether to sanity was tied to Hosea, and it was his death that accelerated his descent into madness (which is a lot like what happened to King Lear himself).

[girlswillbeboys11]

[lovelyonme]

guess who's back on her fairytale bullshit (you can thank my fav prof)

This week we discussed the legend of Fa Mulan, and the version that I clung to with every fiber of my being was White Tigers by Maxine Kingston. Her story is so deeply resonate and beautifully steeped in Asian culture and familial expectation. We talk a lot in my classes about individualism vs collectivism and how that is one of the biggest ideological differences that separate Eastern and Western cultures, but it is interesting to see how such an extreme cultural divide can be shared when you add in a third factor; sex.

The weight Mulan's femininity holds in Kingston's White Tigers is the driving force behind the story, and the burden is not lost on Western readers. In everything Mulan faces she is expected to overcome and supersede the challenge, she is not allowed to fail. Indeed, she is praised as a perfect woman for her capability to do it all with a smile & humility. Yet, there is no place for her femininity within her own story. Her own soldiers she has fought with, bled with, remained victorious with, never knew they did so all under the leadership of a woman. Here, a woman can be everything a man is (and more) and yet will still be denied her birthright. As though the act of being female is a crime that cannot go unpunished. Mulan must hide her femininity so much so, she continues to fight even after falling pregnant, keeping her swollen womb hidden under her armor. This hiding does not mitigate her femininity, but enhances it within the story. Parallels are drawn between the baby right under her skin, and the words carved out of her back. (it's a whole thing- her parents carve names of family she must avenge into Mulan's back before she leaves for war). Mulan’s two biggest burdens, carried directly on her body. The symbolism of the female form is not lost here; the sin that it is to be of the “other” sex and the implied duty to carry the weight of your family’s expectation and shame.

This does not prevent her from remaining a monolith of a powerful and virtuous woman, though. Even as a leader, she is a servant (she is a woman), she has a duty to her men, to the people of China, to her family. Every expectation that could possibly be placed on a woman, is placed on Mulan, but she rises above. She persists, she succeeds, and at the end of the tale she resigns to the life as a dutiful housewife. She is everything a good woman should be, and yet, it is a curse to be born with no power between your legs. But women are born with voices too. Voices becoming stories becoming lessons becoming warnings. Time and time again we see how fairytales act as conduits for powerful lessons. Women passing warnings pressed in other-worlds filled with impossible magic, creatures, and victors. In these stories, women are triumphant because they have power. They are saved from the mouths of wolves because they are cunning. They are fearsome in battle because they are competent in their training, even moreso than the men around them. Our oppressors have been regurgitating our own warnings against them for centuries, but we learn new ways to wrap our agency in fantasy. We are powerful because of our voices, our minds, our ability to adapt and overcome despite it all.

**also all of this is coming from only a weeks worth of readings and a dumb white girl so plsplspls if I am appropriating culture or just completely misreading something politely inform me in the comments- we do not need to be getting into fistfights over fairytales and I mean no disrespect in anything I'm saying

[paperstarwriters]

god I'm listening to Placing The Blame by Self (Link to soundcloud) and the song just itches in my brain thinking about a character exploraiton of Lucio—specifically the version of him from Muriel's route (since I know that version best lmao) just being a coward who wants to be loved, who wants to be cared for and going for the most fucked up way to get what he thinks he needs.

"No one will love me as a hideous monster; I have to get my body back NOW"

"My mother is here! she hates me! she'll kill me!! I have to be stronger to protect myself!!"

"My mother is working with someone else? My mother is teaching someone else? She cares for my gladiator more than me?? Is it because he's powerful because he's strong? I need to be stronger then!"

"I've come back, bow at my feet Vesuvia? why look to me with horror? why run to them?? Do they think that gladiator and magician are so much more powerful? I need to get even stronger!"

Its an earnest misguided misunderstood scramble for love and attention, and all that it gets him in the end is a loathing so deep he literally becomes the devil in Muriel's route.

there's just something so fun and angsty in the gender parallels between Muriel and Lucio, how they both bear the burden and weight of the gendered expectation for men to be powerful and terrifying. Warriors, leaders, weapons. Muriel is explicitly forced into the role and grows to resent it, fights his way free from it, even if it paints him a coward on the other side of it. And then he gets the opportunity to grow from the wounds of it, to accept himself, to explore the softer sides of himself.

But Lucio never really knew he was trapped, he never knew because he was good at fitting in. Good at living up to those standards. Not perfect (His mother saw to that) but good enough to pass. Good enough to find success elsewhere, good enough to become a count in a foreign land to have wealth and power and a princess as his wife.

He lives that gendered dream doesn't he?

So why do people still hate him?

(Are you man enough, Are you man enough, Are you man enough to take the blame for this?)

is he still not powerful enough? Is he still not the big strong man his mother wanted him to be?

Is he not a man?

(Are you man enough, Are you man enough, Are you man enough to take the blame for this? Are you man enough to take the blame for this?)

I can also 1000% see an angsty version of this with Muriel considering an alternate implication of the song's chorus (why is it manly to take the blame? Why is it manly to blame yourself? to sacrifice yourself like that?) but the crunchy fucked up background melody just really inspires a visual of the rest of the M6, faces shaded as their eyes glare daggers into Lucio, to the melody of that chorus, resenting him for his shortcomings, blaming him (deservedly) for their sufferings.

It's a fucked up skewed perspective of the events, a skewed perspective of the M5 from Lucio's eyes, and honestly I love that.

[icemankazansky]

@pscentral event 13: tropes