long yap with spoilers for monochrome by intoapuddle (up to chapter 27 ig and only the in-universe video game because im analyzing the fuck outta those metaphors) as well as references to like vaguely what the matrix and 1984 are about but if you've heard of these things before you probably only know the parts i mention if that makes sense.
monochrome's metaphor for willful ignorance of your own circumstances is so much better than plato's cave, which you always see thrown around.
in plato's cave, people are forced to be there, knowing nothing else, with no way to know anything else. others force them to stay in the cave, thinking that the shadows others cast on the wall are reality, until one day one of their restraints is removed.
in monochrome, in fall whisperer, you have a choice between the garden and the cave. you choose whether to stay in the garden, where things seem nice, or venture to the cave to actually solve the problem. there are shadows whispering from the shadow realm, which you can only destroy by traveling through the cave, but they're quieter in the garden. ultimately, its your choice. you know, if you choose the garden, that there's another option. choosing the garden results in using all your energy to pretend that everything is okay, with no path to progress. if you choose the cave, you can see how scary things are, but you face the shadows, to face the ugly reality, and get yourself out.
this is also different than the matrix, where you can choose the red pill or blue pill, that is to see reality or to forget. in the garden, you are aware that something is wrong. but it's easier to manage there, it feels nicer, so you choose to stay. in real life, if you choose to ignore what's wrong, to justify your situation or to pretend that everything's okay, you are still, deep down, aware that it isn't. there is no hard line between reality and fiction, only facades, doublethink, pretense, whatever.
this is definitely similar to 1984, but another crucial part is that no one is forcing you to choose the garden. the only reason you can't face your own issues is yourself, or your personal circumstances. in many dystopias with this altered sense of reality, whether built through lies or technology, it's enforced by this massive, autocratic regime. in real life, most of your struggles aren't against big brother but ultimately, yourself or your immediate circumstances. it's not the entire context of reality that's being ignored, but instead a facet of life that we choose not to face. 1984 is faced much more politically, while fall whisperer/monochrome is concerned with personal problems that you avoid.
all that being yapped, fuck i love this fic so much i had to write an essay analyzing a metaphor in it. i wanna play fall whisperer so bad but it doesn't actually exist :(((. intoapuddle you are altering my very world like 7 years later. god i love fanfiction and also real books. how many times has a book or fanfic literally changed my life? man phil if i met god i would ask that not whether me or my business partner/boyfriend has pissed less than me.
if you read all this and wanna respond with your own essay about like fucking anything please do i love thinking and writing im like fucking giddy from this im running around the walls of my room im gnawing at the bars of my enclosure you don't get it. i love writing and themes and metaphors fuck im thrilled by this fic experience. i need to yap so bad.
pixelskylines
tangentwithtanner
jimmyeatworldofficial
germansingergirl
areudirty
