Your Fave is Problematic Pt. 14: When Magical Girls Are Mammified
Fair warning this post is critical of Sarah J. Maasā writing choices.Ā
When writers of fiction and television are praised for their diversity, what people usually mean is that they have a character of color that exists. They have done the bare minimum. But the problem is that in doing this, many well-meaning authors do characters of color and their readers a great disservice. In works of fiction all too often characters of color that exist, exist only in relation to the white protagonist. They exist to provide comic relief. They exist to convey information. They exist to die or be tortured to further a protagonistās character development and teach a lesson. However, they are not often whole characters in their own right. Ā In YA there are many examples of bad representation, many of which can be found in Throne of Glass and The Mortal Instruments series.
Bad representation reinforces negative stereotypes for both the individuals the stereotypes are about and their counterparts. Ā The absence of any form of representation sends the message that marginalized groups of people are unimportant or entirely set apart from society. (Tuchman) Despite their ability to imagine worlds with angels, demons and dragons it appears that itās next to impossible for most authors to imagine a world where people of color are well-rounded, three-dimensional people, who exist outside of their ability to serve. Nehemia Ytger of the Throne of Glass series is a classic example.
Nehemia Ytger is a rebel princess fiercely devoted to her people. Her country follows the birth order rule in succession, but seems to ignore gender in this respect. When her father died Nehemia would have taken the throne and ruled. Sheās a princess, who has from a very young age felt the weight of the responsibilities to her people. Sheās kind, empathetic, cunning, and capable of being very calculating. She uses the stereotypes Adarlanian people have about her Ellwye descent against them, feigning not understanding the language to gather information. She saves Celaenaās life more than once throughout the first book. Nehemiaās bravery and devotion has made her beloved by her people. And itās that devotion and her profound hope for a better world that is what costs her, her life. At least according to the narrative.
Our heroine, Celaena Sardothien is the chosen one. Sheās the lost heir of the long conquered land of Terresan. Sheās endowed with incredible power by her bloodline. Sheās the only one who can save the continent from the tyrannical king. As the ghost of the departed Queen Elena tells her in the first book, āYou could rattle the stars,ā she whispered. āYou could do anything, if you only dared. And deep down, you know it, too. Thatās what scares you most.ā (Throne of Glass 633)
Celaena understands that the king is evil. Under his rule magic and any mention of it has been banned. Because of this people have started dying without access to itās sometimes medical properties. On the kingās orders entire countries have been conquered, people have been enslaved, and anyone with the smallest drop of magical blood risks persecution. And despite not being loyal to him, Celaena doesnāt want to act because she feels thereās no hope. Ā But according to Nehemia, according to Elena, according to everyone who comes into contact with our reluctant hero, Celaena could change the world for the better, she just needs a push.
Actually, she needs to be broken. After Celaena refuses to help Nehemia challenge the king and help to free her country, this conversation between Princess Nehemia and the ghost of Queen Elena takes place.
āOne of them has to break,ā the queen said to the princess. āOnly then can it begin.ā
āI know,ā the princess said softly. āBut the prince isnāt ready. It has to be her.ā
āThen do you understand what I am asking of you?ā
The princess looked upā¦ When she looked back at the ancient queen, her eyes were bright. āYes.ā
āThen do what needs to be done.ā (Crown of Midnight 340)
What needs to be done and what happens is that Nehemia orchestrates her own brutal murder to spur her friend into action. Nehemia Ytgerās terrible storyline is a hybrid of two equally offensive tropes: 1) the magical negro 2) the mammy. The mammy archetype goes back to at least the 1800s, but unfortunately, unlike corsets and muskets, the trope has much more staying power. The premise is pretty simple you have a woman, a black woman who is resigned to a lifetime or enslavement, if the time period permits, or general servitude. Ā These figures are often docile, obese, and sexless. (Graboski 9) Not all the cliches usually found in the mammy trope are found with Nehemia, but ultimately she exists to serve. Ā As sociologist Patricia Hill Collins would describe a mammy figure, āthe faithful, obedient domestic servantā¦loving, nurturing and caring for her white childrenā¦[she] knows her āplace as an obedient servant. She has accepted her subordination.ā (Graboski 9) In the case of Nehemia before we meet her, we will learn that Nehemia has resigned herself to self-sacrificing subordination. She exists to bleed for everyone around her and is more than willing to do it. Sheās Celaenaās friend, sheās a dutiful daughter, sheās a confidant for Prince Dorian. In true mammy fashion, this comes at her own expense. (Fontaine 39) Heroes sacrifice and in the end, they are rewarded for those sacrifices, but Nehemiaās story ends before she can ever be anything just for herself.
Nehemia also falls into the magical negro trope. In the first book, the audience learns she and her entire family can wield magic. This fact is revealed after she saves Celaena from a demonic creature in the first book. At the end of the story the audience learns that Nehemia has been using her powers throughout the duration of the competition Celaenaās competing in to save her from various magical threats. In the second book of the series she relays some of her magical knowledge. What little is seen of Nehemiaās abilities is seen only in service of Celaena. Ā Sheās not her own character, but a plot in Celaenaās story. Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā
Nehemia was a 19-year-old girl with a family that loved her and a country that depended on her and yet the last time we see her alive in the books her only concern over her impending death is how Celaena will react. Despite the fact that Nehemia is a character with characteristics beyond comic relief, with all her potential she exists for Celaenaās character development. And ultimately as all this accomplishes is sending Celaena into a horrible depression, this death feels incredibly senseless. Nehemiaās death makes Celaena resolve to free Ellwye, but what causes her to reclaim her identity and title is facing her past and forgiving herself for surviving when the people she loved did not. Did Nehemia Ytger truly have to die for this to happen?
The narrative will insist that the answer was yes. Through the flashbacks that take place in the most recent book itās revealed that Nehemia knew that she would likely die in Adarlan, but was encouraged to go anyway not even knowing if her actions would save her people. During Nehemiaās first meeting with the ghost of Queen Elena she asks the queen in what way must she bleed to save her people. Elena replies that only her bloodline will bleed. Ā
This statement is untrue, Nehemia bled and to no avail. Her people end up bleeding too, once again to further along Celaenaās story. In the fifth book Celaenaās evil aunt Maeve decides to send Celaena a message by burning down dozens of villages in Ellwye. Ā She makes sure that the survivors believe Celaena to be responsible for their suffering. This is done for added drama and to cause Celaena more pain. Ā The focus is on Celaenaās pain, Celaenaās guilt, Celaenaās worry that Nehemiaās people and parents will believe she attacked their kingdom. Never once do we learn any of the villagers names or what became of them post-fire. Half of the predominantly black and brown country was burned to further Celaenaās story. Torturing and murdering characters of color to teach white characters lessons is a default writing choice for Sarah J. Maas.
Nehemia Ytgerās role in the story was to be a martyr, to be a sacrificial lamb. Itās deeply troubling that one of the few prominent women of color in this series who wanted so desperately to change the world decided upon calculation and a dead queenās urging that the only way to make the world better was for her to no longer be in it. Itās troubling and an oversight. From all appearances, Nehemia is the most qualified person to rule. She has a strong sense of fairness, is firm, clever, diplomatic, and has had the royal upbringing that would prepare her to lead. Celaena who, through no fault of her own, has grown up away from her kingdom does not. But sheās the chosen one so Nehemia was expendable.
Hereās the second part of this chapter focusing on Nesryn Falique and Sorcha, who also deserved better:Ā https://shewhotellsstories.tumblr.com/post/169473812800/your-fave-is-problematic-pt-15-when-magical
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