sirithromen

[sirithromen]

On the Oath of Fëanor

My earlier post discussed the issues with oaths in general within the world of The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings, but there are qualities of the Oath of Fëanor that make it particularly horrific and set it apart from other comparatively mundane oaths. This is something which I touched on in the character post on Varda. @lordsofmedrengard expressed interest in more on the subject, so this is a longer post on it.

One of the evil qualities of the Oath is the principle or the claim underlying it. It is the most extreme claim possible that the Silmarils belong to Fëanor and his sons exclusively. In the world of The Silmarillion, to say of anything this is purely mine; I name it unto myself forever is not merely wrong; it is the essence and the base nature of evil, echoing the very origin of evil in the world. It is what Melkor says when he first enters Arda. It denies the fundamental nature of creation as a collaborative venture. The Silmarils are not Fëanor’s creation alone; the light in them is from the Trees, which were created by the Valar. And beyond that, the skill and power within both the Valar and Fëanor that enabled the creation of both the Trees and Silmarils is not their own, but granted by Eru.

When the messenger of the Valar says to Fëanor, in the wake of the Oath, that Fëanor does not have the ability to personally defeat Morgoth, not if Eru who thou namest had made thee thrice greater than thou art, this rebuke is implicit: your abilities, though great, do not derive solely from yourself; they are a gift of Eru, and you can’t (or shouldn’t) claim them, or yourself, as a thing independent of and more important than everything else in the world.

A second element of what’s profoundly wrong with the Oath is what they are swearing to do. The evil done in the Oath’s service is very deliberately written into it from the beginning: to pursue with vengeance any being, great or small, good or evil. They’re stating from the start they they are willing, nay determined, to murder good people in order to regain the Silmarils. I think it’s the fact of having made this committment that makes it so easy for people who have scarecely known violence previously to jump so quickly to kinslaying at Alqualondë: they’ve already agreed within their hearts, and stated aloud, that that’s something they are willing to do.

And the third aspect of what is evil and blasphemous within the Oath is whose name they’re swearing it in. Even beyond the idea that one shouldn’t swear oaths in Eru’s name at all, they are swearing in the names of the three most powerful Good beings in the universe that they will murder innocent people to attain their goal, and they are calling on those beings to hold them to that Oath. They are, in short, trying to order Eru - and the Valar - to enforce evil, and to damn the Fëanorians if they don’t commit evil. Which is horrifically offensive to Manwë and Varda, and to Eru, and quite enough to warrant the Fëanorians’ condemnation quite apart from any other action they take. The one saving grace within the Oath is that the Fëanorians don’t actually have any authority to give such an order; they can bind themselves to the Oath, but they can’t bind Manwë or Varda or Eru to enforce it.

Yet the Fëanorians fail to recognize that fact. At Alqualondë and Doriath and Sirion, and even after the War of Wrath, they murder people who stand in the way of achieving the Oath, and we see from Maedhros and Maglor’s conversation before that final decision that they do expect to be condemned to the Darkness if they break the Oath. Which implies a belief that Manwë, and Varda, and Eru would prefer them to massacre civilians rather than break the Oath. It’s a horrifically offensive claim to make, and an assumption that I think must make the Valar incredibly angry at them. Maglor gets a step closer to the truth when he recognizes that continuing to try to fulfill the Oath, and commit atrocities in its name, is at least as likely to result in condemnation as breaking it is. But he still fails to recognize that he and Maedhros never had the right or the authority to require that they be condemned for breaking it, and that the authorities they invoked remain free to ignore or pardon the Oath.

And the fact that the Oath itself is inherently and deeply evil is why it’s very important to me that, ultimately, the only way the Fëanorians can truly be free of the Oath is to deliberately reject it, to choose to break it and seek mercy for having made it in the first place and for all that they did in its service, and to recognize that all their attempts to keep were, in the eyes of the beings they invoked, far worse than breaking it would have been.

[sirithromen]

I think a godtier dynamic for early stage Beleriand is like...

Fingolfin: In the absence of Finarfin, I will be like a father to Finrod in every way

Maedhros: I know what it's like to suddenly be responsible for your entire household in the absence of your parents, and Finrod is too young to have to go through that alone. I will help him as much as I can

Thingol: I don't particularly trust the Noldor, but my baby brother's baby's baby is my baby and I am going to take him under my wing immediately

Meanwhile Finrod is a certified adult who doesn't really need anyone's help and is honestly having a good time in Beleriand, but people do seem to enjoy looking after him, so for their sake more than his own he's happy to 🥰 at them whenever they unnecessarily baby him, so it takes like a century for any of them to realize Finrod is not their poor little meow meow and is as competent as any of them

[sirithromen]

Role swap au where Zuko was the Avatar who got frozen for a hundred years, so when he’s rescued from the ice instead of a goofy twelve year old Katara catches this mysterious teenager with long hair and a cool scar and a fucking DRAGON

Katara: BOY???? HOT BOY?????? HOT TEENAGE BOY?????????

Zuko: *speaks*

Katara: nevermind I hate him

[sirithromen]

Ok but Zuko using the knowledge he acquired during his banishment to help him as the Fire Lord. Like making small talk with Earth Kingdom dignitaries about their local foods that he enjoyed and even misses. Like having in-depth conversations with his captains about sea currents and navigation. Like, in the middle of a meeting with several high-ranking naval officials, pointing out flails in security, like how a person can cling to a Fire Nation ship for hours at a time, or climb aboard using hatches on the upper decks, or disguise themselves as a lower ranking guard with easily accessible spare armour….

Though none of his experiences can prepare Zuko for the long, awkward silence that comes after he admits to doing or at least knowing something illegal and/or completely buck wild

[sirithromen]

my dnd party has run into an npc who may or may not be evil and may or may not decide to betray us and the dm was in chat today like “just so everyone knows…not addressing this comment at anyone in particular…his favorite colors are red and black…wink” so now i’m desperately trying to get a real physical friendship bracelet done before session tomorrow in the vain hope that i can somehow stop this npc from trying to do a murder on my party

[sirithromen]

ICYMI, there was fear that companies were scraping public AO3 fics to train their AI without the consent of AO3 or its users. That fear has been confirmed.

AO3 has written about what they’re doing (and what they’re not able to do), and they recommend restricting your work to AO3 registered users only. [Instructions here]

This gross misuse of the archive by techbros is why I’ve locked down my fics for the foreseeable future. I recommend the rest of you do the same.

[sirithromen]

AU in which the chancellor dies in a freak (probably Zillo-beast related) accident. Everyone is attending his funeral and really, the Jedi are trying really hard to mourn but it’s incredibly difficult to when the entirety of the coruscant guard is apparently throwing a mental and spiritual party so loud in the Force Dathomir can feel it.

[sirithromen]

Things that are okay to make up if you wanna play with Catholicism in your story:

- Religious orders (just because there wasn’t an order dedicated to fighting vampires doesn’t mean there can’t be)

- Saints (just because there wasn’t a St. Kxchylian, patron saint of transporters, doesn’t mean there can’t be)

- Popes (see previous. You can also make up bad popes! We’ve had our fair share)

Things that are not okay to make up:

- Doctrines and teachings

- Sacraments

- Secret societies that hide the Real Truth from the unwashed masses (you can actually get excommunicated for trying to do this in real life)

[sirithromen]

I just think it’s interesting that books written about priests tend to have a lot of angst about things like celibacy and doctrine, while books written by priests tend to be very matter-of-fact and even cheerful about things like being sentenced to fifteen years of hard labor in a Siberian camp.

[sirithromen]

i still can't get over how in the blue shadow virus arc of the clone wars, after a bunch of people were exposed to a dangerous virus, anakin arrived on the planet and ignored both his men (who he is legally responsible for as their commanding officer) and, even worse, ahsoka (his padawan who he is legally responsible for because she is a minor), so that he could run straight to padme's side....

never mind the fact that padme had a hazmat suit for a long while to protect her against the virus, while his men and ahsoka had been exposed for virtually the entire time and were significantly worse off than padme. like padme was still conscious at the time of the rescue, while ahsoka was completely down for the count long before that. never mind the fact that anakin was in contact with them both the entire time and absolutely knew that his padawan was out here struggling ten times more than his wife:

anakin's so absorbed in checking on padme that he doesn't even think to ask about his padawan or his men. it's padme who has to bring up ahsoka, who's being brought in on a different stretcher! only then does he even remember she exists, because even his own padawan is a mere afterthought compared to padme for him!

once she does, anakin does go to ahsoka's side, and he does a good job of reassuring and praising her. when he tries, he can be a pretty good mentor. but that's the key phrase: when he tries. and this episode makes it abundantly clear that if padme is in any amount of danger, even if it's a fraction of the danger that ahsoka is in, he will not try until someone else reminds him.

oh and and all while that's happening, obi-wan is the only one actually sitting with the troops!!!! even though they're anakin's troops!!

anyways prioritizing your wife, an actual adult, over the child in your care who was in significantly more danger, to the point that you have to be reminded of said child's existence, is.... not a great look. it certainly reflects how anakin's fixation on padme has become this all-encompassing thing.

these scenes are all around minute 20 of season 1 episode 18 by the way. check it out yourself, because it's absolutely bonkers.

[sirithromen]

Hell yea great food they know IT

[sirithromen]

one thing i love about star wars is that the jedi are monks with dangerous psychic space magic, and so they're monks on purpose. they're joyfully and intentionally participating in their institution and finding meaning and happiness in life as monks—anakin is the exception that proves the rule!

it makes me happy to see as many people in the world live like this, and are quite happy with rich, full lives in fellowship with their fellow monks, practicing the tenets of their philosophies, studying the world and themselves, handing down their traditions and wisdom, always helping others; this is such a valid and good way to live, not any kind of oppression.

if anakin had been less selfish, if he had internalized and practiced the jedi philosophy of moderation and compassion, he could have had a rich, happy life (if only he lived in an age without the malice and menace of the sith!) and that's the root of his tragedy that he turned away from those bonds and generous purpose toward his own private pleasure.

it's not easy to practice discipline, but it's so worth it, both for you and everyone whose lives you can touch. it bothers me when i see comments openly and offensively denigrating all organized living; the individualistic amatonormative anti-religion biases of sw fandom are unfortunately on almost continual display. not all religions and religious organizations are abusive and controlling!

i believe from the bottom of my aromantic heart that one don't need romantic love and a nuclear family to be a full human being with a good life. these monks follow their philosophy of moderation and discipline in fellowship with their monastic fellows on purpose and by choice so they can serve the galaxy, and this is such a commendable life full of meaning and love.

the tragedy of their genocide is visible in how that force of generosity and hope for the galaxy was wiped away, for the violent enforcement of a brutal era of exploitation and greed. when luke restores the order and the jedi return, that form of joy in service and endless compassion is returned too. it's a beautiful thing that continually inspires me to live a better and more moderate and generous life.

[sirithromen]

shmi skywalker adhered to the jedi code more than anakin ever did

okay that's a very clickbaity title but i was rewatching the phantom menace and i found it so interesting that shmi actually demonstrated non-attachment and adhered to the jedi code with regards to anakin two different times during her brief screentime! i think it's important to emphasize this because shmi was anakin's only parent and primary influence during the early stages of his life. anakin's tendency towards attachment is not a result of shmi's parenting- it's despite it. so let's go through it!

the first instance of shmi's non-attachment occurs when she is presented with the notion of anakin racing on boonta eve in order to help qui-gon and padme. she explicitly says she thinks the racing is "awful" and tells anakin, "i don't want you to race." but she sets her own feelings aside- she lets go of her fear about anakin and prioritizes the greater good. the greater good, in this case, is padme and qui-gon's mission, and its implications for naboo.

shmi recognizes that her fear is not more important than an entire planet: "i may not like it, but he can help you... he was meant to help you," she says. there are also implications that she is listening to the will of the force here, and that she understands this is what anakin was meant to do.

the second instance of her non-attachment occurs when anakin is freed and she is not. she is the one who requests that qui-gon take anakin with him to coruscant to become a jedi. though she is clearly sad to part ways with him, lamenting to qui-gon that "he was in my life for such a short time," she still encourages anakin to go.

here, shmi recognizes that her desire to keep anakin near her is not more important than what is best for anakin. i've written a post here about the fact that shmi struggles to understand anakin's unique status with regards to the force, and that she turns to qui-gon and the jedi for help. shmi knows the jedi can help anakin grow this special part of him that she "can't explain" herself. she also knows that doing this will make anakin happy: she tells anakin that going with qui-gon is a chance to "make your dreams come true."

and she even drops a little nugget of wisdom, straight out of the jedi code, onto anakin. wisdom that anakin will later reject from the mouths of people like obi-wan and yoda, even though it is the exact same thing shmi believes, the exact same thing shmi is shown to have taught him. "you can't stop change, any more than you can stop the suns from setting," she tells anakin. "it is time for you to let go... to let go of me."

it's not a coincidence that shmi's screen time in the phantom menace is exclusively spent adhering to the jedi tenets of love without attachment. shmi is human, and she feels love just as anyone else. she feels scared when anakin is in danger, and she feels sad at the idea of not having him near. but she does not allow this to take precedent over the greater good, whether that is for the planet of naboo or for anakin himself.

that is non-attachment. it is letting go of someone- not because you don't love them, but because you do. and shmi skywalker is the very embodiment of it. when anakin rejects obi-wan's advice about letting go, when he refuses yoda's advice that death is inevitable, he is not just rejecting the jedi's philosophies. he is rejecting shmi's values as well. the further he sinks into attachment, the further he is forsaking his own mother's memory. that's the tragedy.

[sirithromen]

[sirithromen]

oh hey, remember that post about how Anakin and Ahsoka's relationship was a lie from the very beginning because every happy memory she has of him she formed when he was already a mass murderer? how the idea of Anakin before he fell to the dark side she has in her mind was never even the truth?

well it took me ages to realize but the very first mission they have as master and apprentice brings them to the place he committed the mass murder. like i knew it but I didn't get what it meant. ahsoka spends the whole movie thinking anakin is just grumpy about his past but he's dragging the ghost of a horrible massacre!! and still thinking that little kid is annoying for being so bubble and happy about a planet he hates so much!! he thinks it's her way of thinking that's wrong and needs to be corrected, never once realizing as he's walking across Tatooine that he absolutely should not be mentoring a child when he has killed dozens of them.

he just expects to build a master/apprentice rapport with her - expecting trust, obedience, attention of her - while just... lying. about everything. I don't even mean this in a bashing way, just in a 'it's fascinating and bonkers when you think about it' way.

it's not just ahsoka's image of anakin that was missing a VERY critical piece that would change her entire perception of him if she had known, it's that anakin is reminded by circumstances of that critical piece at the very start of their relationship and doesn't seem to think it matters.

he lies to obi-wan, but they have a prior relationship he doesn't want to destroy. but he lies to ahsoka knowingly as he builds a relationship he did not have to build. I don't know what I think about that other than huh, there's a lot of unpacking to be done here

[sirithromen]

New Things to Beware on the Internet

On May 3rd, Google released 8 new top-level domains (TLDs) -- these are new values like .com, .org, .biz, domain names. These new TLDs were made available for public registration via any domain registrar on May 10th.

Usually, this should be a cool info, move on with your life and largely ignore it moment.

Except a couple of these new domain names are common file type extensions: ".zip" and ".mov".

This means typing out a file name could resolve into a link that takes you to one of these new URLs, whether it's in an email, on your tumblr blog post, a tweet, or in file explorer on your desktop.

What was previously plain text could now resolve as link and go to a malicious website where people are expecting to go to a file and therefore download malware without realizing it.

Folk monitoring these new domain registrations are already seeing some clearly malicious actors registering and setting this up. Some are squatting the domain names trying to point out what a bad idea this was. Some already trying to steal your login in credentials and personal info.

This is what we're seeing only 12 days into the domains being available. Only 5 days being publicly available.

What can you do? For now, be very careful where you type in .zip or .mov, watch what website URLs you're on, don't enable automatic downloads, be very careful when visiting any site on these new domains, and do not type in file names without spaces or other interrupters.

I'm seeing security officers for companies talking about wholesale blocking .zip and .mov domains from within the company's internet, and that's probably wise.

Be cautious out there.

[sirithromen]

I don’t think some people realize why the gray jedi thing pisses some of us off so badly.

Imagine you like lord of the rings and you decide to look around the fandom.

And it turns out that 10+ or something years ago someone wrote a piece of fanfiction where they rewrote the rules for the ring. So instead of it only having one master and corrupting everyone else that tried to use it, it sometimes chooses to take a new master if it feels the person is worthy of it. And therefore this author’s self-insert OC can now use the one ring in all its glory without getting turned crazy.

This fanfic gets published (as some fanfics do) and most of the fandom has read it and loves it.

Now, when you (someone who has only dealt with canon works written by Tolkien) see this fic you go… huh. That’s nice, but it goes against the very point of the books and the lore tolkien created. So while it’s a good fic I’m not going to interact with it.

But then people keep harassing you for taking about/ writing the one ring the way tolkien wrote it to begin with.

And they SWEAR that this is the Actual lore of the one ring, and that YOU are wrong. Which is completely insane to you, because FRODE TOOK IT TO MORDOR FOR A REASON. There is only one lord of the ring!! That’s literally the name of the series that’s what it’s about!! If what the fandom was insisting about was possible, there would be no plot. In the original books.

This is why we are so upset over gray jedi!! Bc if it was possible to use the dark side but still be a good guy then wtf is wrong with Anakin? Why the fuck did Darth Vader fall to the dark side? Why did Luke struggle so much? If you can have your cake and eat it too why are the movies so fuckin long?? Why did Luke fail against Vader in Empire? what lesson did he learn in Return? Why would the movie be called Return of the Jedi if Luke had not learned the Jedi ways????

You can write OC’s as gray jedi all you want but when you start forcing it into canon it literally ruins the movies!