I enjoy Jesperās sense of humor as much as anyone, but one of my biggest pet peeves in the SoC fandom is the tendency to treat him as unintelligent. Canonically, Jesper is a child prodigy who joined a prestigious university at fifteen. He is stated to be as intellectually gifted as Wylan, who himself was educated by tutors trained at that same institution. The difference between them is not ability, but trajectory.
Iāve also always hated how Jesperās addiction is so often mocked. In many ways, I feel it actually mirrors Wylanās dyslexia; both being traits that others use to dismiss their intelligence or worth. The difference is that the narrative and the reader are explicitly encouraged to recognize that Wylanās dyslexia is not a reflection of his capability. Whereas Jesper is rarely afforded the same courtesy. His addiction is framed as a personal failing rather than as a response to trauma and systemic oppression.
Where Wylanās struggles are clearly meant to be seen not as a personal failing but rather the fault of an abusive parent and an unjust society that refuses to accommodate, Jesperās are too often treated as self-inflicted despite emerging from a world that punishes Grisha for the simple act of existing.
Jesper does not suppress his powers because he wants to, but because revealing them would mean surrendering his future to forces beyond his control: conscription, persecution, or death. Within this framework, it becomes clear that Jesperās addiction is neither a personal flaw nor a sign of stupidity, but a desperate attempt at survival, born from fear and the impossibility of being allowed to exist safely as himself.
