#acotar meta

[whitedemon-ladydeath]

the Fandoms relationship with Feyre and the Race to Innocence to defend her poor actions and war crimes across the series whether that be to the innocent spring court and summer court citizens or the poor and authoritative actions torwards her sister and their strained relationship

this Fandom has decided Feyre is an eternal victim, she's selfless, she's kind, she's a feminist, shes-

Feyre has committed war crimes that have gotten countless people killed due to a personal vendetta. She has made fun of Lucien and the Band of Exiles and have undermined what they wanted to do. She has locked up her sister and taken away her freedom in the name of "her learning how to control herself" and to "help her" in a very similar way that was done to her- to which she justified the destruction of thr Spring Court in order to further Spurn tamlin

and quite frankly you can also see it when Feyre does not do anything about helping the Illyrian Women, despite donning their wings and using them in a way they are prohibited from using

you can also see this in her not doing anything to help anyone, especially the women and children, in the CoN. Keir asks for freedom for his people and she responds with questions about his comfort level. And when he, rightfully imo, ignores her, she blames it on being a woman

Events from the first book, especially around her and her sisters and their father, are often used as a way to undermine the impact and destruction Feyre has brought on people around her

#a court of thorns and roses #acotar #sjm critical #anti feyre archeron #acotar meta

[littlefeltsparrow]

There’s a problem with the way Sarah J Maas depicts physical abuse/intimidation in ACOTAR

The fact that Tamlin’s physical abuse of Feyre being communicated through a magical/emotional outburst is problematic in the sense that it undercuts the reason why abuse happens. Incorporating magical concepts into a portrayal of domestic violence muddles the issue at hand and makes the abuse an accidental consequence of involuntary magical impulses as opposed to a deliberate tactic of intimidation and control. This issue is exacerbated by the fact that Feyre too, experiences an uncontrollable magical/emotional outburst during the High Lords meeting due to Beron’s provocative remarks. To be clear, I don’t view Tamlin as detestable or as an irredeemable abuser, but the text very much does. What I want to comment on is the problematic framing of Tamlin’s actions that are meant to characterize him as an abusive partner to Feyre.

So, I’m going to compare and contrast a scene from ACOMAF with a scene from ACOWAR, both of which depict magical outbursts that are brought on by intense emotional stress or rage.

ACOMAF

Here, Feyre objects to Tamlin’s protective measures he had enacted earlier. She expresses how suffocated she feels and how she wishes that she had the breathing room to cope with her new reality and that Tamlin’s actions are making her suffer. Furthermore, Feyre introduces her doubt in their engagement and expresses her reservations. Tamlin then goes blank, reacting explosively with his power blowing the room into splinters.

This is a good first step towards characterizing Tamlin as an abusive partner (despite the leaps it took to get there) But, where it goes wrong is the emphasis the text puts on Tamlin's blank expression and subsequent magical response. He loses control momentarily, but the issue about this portrayal is that abuse is not "losing control" or accidental, it is a conscious decision made by the abuser. But here, Maas makes it seem as though Tamlin really was not in control, that the heightened emotions made him react that way.

It gives Tamlin an out and consequently undercuts the message Maas is trying to communicate. Bringing magic into the scene takes away Tamlin's agency and removes a portion of his culpability in harming Feyre.

This scene should not have been Tamlin simply losing control of his temper, if Maas wanted to enhance her abuse narrative, she should have taken Tamlin’s temper and had him weaponize it. Intimidation is a possibility, one that would work towards making Feyre feel scared about voicing ver true feelings on their relationship. But Maas doesn’t go all the way, she doesn’t lean into that interpretation and instead plays it straight.

This is also undercut by Tamlin's second magical outburst in ACOWAR. Feyre intentionally provoking him does nothing for Maas's abuse narrative and actively undermines it by strengthening the idea that Tamlin's destructive outbursts really were caused by overwhelming emotions. Once again, it gives Tamlin a way out and dilutes the message.

The notion of an involuntary magical outburst is applied again in ACOWAR

Beron’s inflammatory remarks provoke an immediate reaction from Feyre, she goes blank so to speak, and can no longer focus due to the intensity of her emotions. This manifests in a fiery outburst that throws the meeting into disarray and injures the Lady of Autumn accidentally.

She’s so angry that she can’t think straight or logically, and it manifests in an attack. Though this isn't exactly the same, Feyre's "blinding fury" is so powerful that it cannot be restrained and ends up harming an innocent party. This moment strengthens the case for magic manifesting strong emotions as external attacks, characterizing it to some extent as involuntary.

Ultimately, the magical element removes the agency of the individuals in question. It frames their violence not as a conscious act designed to inspire fear, but as a genuinely accidental reaction to intense emotions. This is why the "Tamlin is an evil abuser" narrative is so weak. Because it dilutes the severity of the violence and makes it seem as though these kinds of emotional outbursts are an element of possessing magical powers. It gestures at a larger issue of Maas picking and choosing when and where she wants to apply real-world standards to her characters' morality. It makes events less believable and hypocritical, making allowances for certain characters, but condemning others without adequate narrative set-up.

This is why Maas is fundamentally incapable of recognizing the abusive dynamic she constructs with Feysand. It is a combination of double standards, authorial bias and a misunderstanding of how abuse manifests.

#sjm critical #Even when Maas hates a male character and bashes him constantly she still offers him a shred of plausible deniability due to the magic syst #I just think that Maas does a terrible job of writing a coherent abuse narrative #Acowar #acomaf #acotar #anti sjm #acomaf critical #tamlin #feyre archeron #anti rhysand #anti inner circle #acotar meta #acotar critical #anti sarah j maas #not a Tamlin hater

[theweeklydiscourse]

What Makes Feyre’s Pregnancy Plotline in A Court of Silver Flames so Upsetting?

The answer is that the events and outcome concerning Feyre’s pregnancy speak to a fear of one’s loss of autonomy, specifically one’s reproductive autonomy. Furthermore, this plotline demonstrates Maas' consistent prioritization of her male characters at the expense of her female characters. Multiple factors make this subplot feel particularly uncomfortable and upsetting, but I can condense them into three main points that converge to create one frustrating scenario.

1. Rhysand and the Question of Choice

From ACOMAF onwards, the reader is made aware of Rhysand’s unusually progressive politics and his attention to the autonomous choices of women. This is demonstrated through his selection of counsel, appointing Mor and Amren in roles of authority, and eventually crowing Feyre as High Lady of the Night Court. In addition to this, we are shown his emphasis on choice through his interactions with Feyre. Rhysand repeatedly reminds Feyre that she can choose, that she can make an autonomous decision that he will respect. So, it is these positive features of Rhysand that make the pregnancy subplot of ACOSF so disturbing.

He, and the Inner Circle by extension, purposefully omit the information that Feyre’s pregnancy will turn deadly and never volunteer the information to her. During Cassian’s meeting with Rhysand and Amren, we are shown their thought process behind withholding information from Nesta (and Feyre by extension) According to Amren, it is not lying because they are technically not telling lies in the traditional sense, only withholding information.

While this is about Nesta, the reader can see the parallels between both cases. The choice to lie by omission reveals that both Amren and Rhysand are aware of the dishonesty of their actions, choosing to mitigate it slightly on a technicality. It feels distinctly like a loophole in Rhysand’s previous promises to Feyre, making this act feel more deceitful while demonstrating Rhysand’s willingness to undermine Feyre’s authority as High Lady. If Rhysand had a condition or illness that would eventually kill him, informing him of it would be certain, you wouldn’t even consider the possibility of not telling him. However, because Feyre is pregnant, she is not afforded the same autonomy.

Wanting to keep Feyre in blissful ignorance is not a sufficient reason, especially when Feyre is still of sound mind and can advocate for herself. Rhysand’s reasoning sounds noble, but in reality, it is just benevolent sexism. It doesn’t matter if he thinks it will cause Feyre stress, she NEEDS to be aware of what’s going on and the fact that the news will ruin her peaceful pregnancy is of little consequence when her life is on the line. Rhysand prioritizes his feelings and implicitly gives himself executive authority over Feyre’s pregnancy, demonstrating his disregard for her autonomy and choices. This action directly contradicts the progressive beliefs Rhysand stated in previous books and is a betrayal for the reader as well as Feyre.

2. The Infantilization of Feyre

The omission of this critical information, good intentions or not, is based on a belief that Feyre would not be competent enough to handle such a pressing situation in her pregnant state. Amren claims that the stress and fear could have physically harmed Feyre, but such a claim assumes that Feyre would not have the fortitude or ability to handle the situation.

Amren's explanation demonstrates a belief that Feyre's input on the matter would be irrelevant and pointless because it prevents Feyre from offering any. It is a plan that assumes Feyre will not be able to add anything meaningful to the solution and that it would be less harmful to her if she was kept out of it. This is infantilizing and paternalistic because Feyre has proven herself to be capable of coping under pressure and happens to be an unprecedented magical anomaly. Feyre’s access to pertinent medical information should not be revoked and it is insane that Madja her physician, actively misleads her with Rhysand’s consent.

This infantilization of a pregnant character echoes how pregnant women have been infantilized throughout history. It is a terrifying thought to imagine that your bodily autonomy could be stripped from you in the name of serving your supposed best interest. Rosemary’s Baby is one of the most famous horror movies of all time and it explores this exact topic, the same is true for the short story The Yellow Wallpaper, both stories capture the horror of reproductive/medical abuse that still happens to women today.

3. The Aftermath & Prioritizing Male Rage

Lastly, one of the most disturbing elements of this subplot is the way the text consistently prioritizes and coddles the violent rage of male characters at the expense of female characters. This is on full display when Rhysand flies into an intense rage after Nesta reveals the truth to Feyre. Although Nesta can be faulted for her harsh phrasing, let it be known that even Feyre felt that she did the right thing and was expressing her anger at the paternalistic and unjust practices of the Inner Circle. However, Nesta is still subjected to severe physical and emotional punishment in the form of a grueling hike where she is left to stew in her guilt and suicidal ideation despite Feyre ultimately not faulting her.

Feyre admits that Rhysand “majorly overreacted” and that she wanted Nesta back in Velaris. And yet, Nesta is still punished. But why? Will Rhysand or any of the Inner Circle be punished for betraying Feyre? Why, if Feyre agreed that Nesta was right to tell her, would she ever need to be subjected to a severe punishment when she was justified in what she did?

This is a particularly telling detail that compels me to ask: is this punishment about Feyre’s feelings or Rhysand’s? Why is it that Rhysand’s “overreaction” needs to be assuaged by punishing Nesta? What I observe from this passage is the characters prioritizing the feelings of a male character and placating him with the suffering of a female character, even when he wasn’t the one who was hurt in that situation. Feyre asks Cassian to tell Rhysand that the hike will be Nesta's punishment as though it isn't truly a punishment, but it undoubtedly is.

Throughout the hike, Nesta is in a silent spiral of guilt and self-hatred, Cassian never tells her that Feyre is alright and that Rhysand overreacted, letting her dwell in it alone. He hardly speaks to her, he pushes her to the point of exhaustion and is somehow surprised that Nesta shows signs of suicidal ideation.

This isn't constructive at all, it is not evidence that Cassian cares about Nesta's well-being, and the scenes of Nesta internally repeating that she deserves to die and that everyone hates her are nothing but gratuitous and disgustingly self-indulgent. The text basks in Nesta's suffering, even when she was in the right and this hike only happened to placate Rhysand who wronged Feyre in the first place.

Hindsight am I right? Fuck off. A more productive resolution to this matter would be for Feyre and Nesta to talk it out ALONE. Feyre could express her feelings to Nesta directly and they could find a solution together, that way Feyre’s situation could be centered on the two sisters working together. Cassian can see that Feyre is alright, she’s obviously upset, but she didn’t crumble like he expected and that makes it completely baffling that he would punish Nesta anyway. It’s a solution that prioritizes his and Rhysand’s feelings as opposed to Feyre’s, making it not about a perceived transgression against Feyre, but against Rhysand.

In Conclusion

This topic has already been discussed at length by many people in the fandom, but it is a topic that still stays on my mind with how upsetting it is. It is a stunning example of the misogynistic undertones in Sarah J Maas’s writing and makes reading a very straining experience due to her obvious bias towards certain male characters. Not even her main character matters when Rhysand is factored into the situation, his emotions are always centred by other characters and is permitted to betray his wife and get off scot free.

Feyre’s reproductive autonomy is violated, and Maas doesn’t bat an eye. But when Nesta rightfully reveals the truth to Feyre, everyone loses their mind. Both Nesta and Feyre have their autonomy stripped away from the, by way of the Inner Circle’s paternalism, and when Nesta advocates for herself and Feyre, she is punished severely. Being put in her place as the hierarchy is strengthened.

#a court of silver flames #acotar #nesta archeron #acotar meta #feyre archeron #amren #rhysand critical #rhysand #cassian #sarah j maas #acosf meta #anti nessian #close reading #acotar analysis #anti sarah j maas #anti sjm #anti inner circle

[kataraavatara]

because SJM thinks women learning how to fight is the end all be all of feminism, we get these scenes of ✨feminist rhysand✨ declaring that female Illyrians be trained how to fight, and she wants it to come across as this magnanimous and progressive thing, but it just reads like he’s very callously trying to replete his armies after the last war. has he done anything to address economic or legal inequality? what about reproductive care? is divorce even legal? who cares, they can use swords.

#once again rhysands feminism benefits only rhysand #sjm critical #acosf critical #acotar critical #acotar meta #carly’s anti rhysand manifesto

[astrababyy]

https://www.tumblr.com/astrababyy/738088417973420032/one-thing-i-really-liked-about-feyre-in-the-first

This post of your makes me wonder if SJM wasn't a onetrick pony and respected her own stories and actually wrote characters and not tropes of girlboss ™️ what would've feyre's character trajectory looked like? I'm interested to know what do you think her arc would've been?

I sometimes feel like the problem isn't even Feysand being a ship it's SJM molding Feyre (& nesta) so they are similar to their bat boy mates. Because like there's S&B with darklina being it's most popular ship. Sure it's not endgame and that's because Leigh didn't completely change Alina's whole personality to fit the darkling. Alina got to keep the characteristics that made her who she is which is what made the chemistry between the two interesting too unlike in SJM's stories where she obliterates her fmc's entire personality to fit their male li and in doing so it ruins any appeal in the "ship" itself. Feyre/Feysand and Nesta/Nessian are both examples of that.

hello, anon! i rarely ever receive asks regarding meta or characterization so thanks so much for this lol <3

as i stated in the post you linked, i do believe that feyre's natural arc would've had some sort of internal conflict regarding both her trauma from under the mountain and her being turned into a faerie. i feel that rhysand's comment about her "human heart" could've been emphasized better in the second book and would've served as an interesting contrast from rhys, her established mate in the story. their morals are vastly different from each other; how does this change their relationship? would feyre accept him for who he is? would she judge him, scorn him, try to help him?

especially in regards to the impending war, i think feyre struggling with her newfound fae instincts, being different from who she used to be, and trying to reconnect with who she used to be while accepting who she is now could've been very profound and paired well with her struggles with the trauma she faced from under the mountain.

the major issue with feyre's characterization is how she was molded to become rhysand's partner, rather than being able to fit with him naturally and seamlessly. the same issue occurs with nesta and cassian's relationship, where her character has to be altered just to fit in with the person cassian is. in feyre's case specifically, it got worse as the books went on. feyre gradually became less and less alike to her old self without a clear reason for why she was changing in that way. as i stated before, her becoming a less violent-averse person due to her faerie nature is understandable and would've been a wake-up call considering her transformation, but feyre becoming less empathetic and understanding of the plight of the lower classes, becoming so much more okay with spending money carelessly, supporting rhysand's frankly corrupt government structure, etc. are all ooc.

feyre, as a character, had a lot of potential and could've had that transition into becoming this warrior queen without losing all her morals and beliefs, becoming a vessel for the pro rhysand agenda. it's truly unfortunate that her character had to devolve in the way it did.

#sjm critical #astrababyy #feyre archeron #acotar #acotar meta #astrababyy asks #anti rhysand #anti cassian #nesta archeron #anti sjm

[disregardcanon]

acotar as a book is kind of fascinating because none of the circumstances that exist are indicative of how the characters would behave in other situations. we meet tamlin and lucien in the final days of a very tense, very isolated time where they didn't have any room to, like, exist in the world. they were kids with really cruel parents playing house in the basement, basically.

and every word that was said to feyre wasn't true. it wasn't entirely on purpose, but it didn't allow her to really see what tamlin was like in different circumstances. and afterwards when he's reentering the "real world" he's actually... worse-adjusted than he was under the weird circumstances that he was used to. and not working through any off *gestures to all of that* definitely made him retreat into old habits when he really was able to become High Lord with all the clout that came with it

#acotar #acotar meta #feyre archeron #lucien vanserra #tamlin acotar #a journey through my drafts

[floresfinds]

I wish the acotar fandom was more united. Instead of taking the story flaws/character inconsistencies and creating pro vs anti-X wars we just made a bunch of ‘what if…/au’ posts and had actual conversations about said flaws

Maybe we can designate a tag for those talks (#acotar meta) Or at least a ‘discourse-free’ one

#acotar fandom #acotar meta #acotar #I feel like that one chick in mean girls

[sad-endings-suck]

The Canon: She had dark blonde hair.

The fan artist: Anyway here she is, platinum blonde just as described. :)

#someone needs to be informed that light blond and dark blonde are very different shades #val the wildling #alyssa targaryen #asoiaf meme #asoiaf meta #acotar #feyre archeron #nesta archeron #elain archeron #the archeron sister have light brown hair not dark blonde hair but this still applies #acotar meta #acotar memes #aelin ashryver galathynius #Aelin has golden blonde hair NOT platinum blonde hair #she’s not dark blonde but it still applies #tog meme #and then when a character has white/silver hair they are still draw with platinum hair #ciri the witcher #cirilla fiona elen riannon #cirilla of cintra

[hellacioushag]

High Lord Power Engine Theory

i’ve been curious for a while about how the high lord power really works within prythian and i have some thoughts, specifically on how it will affect lucien (all this is just my theory and not at all claiming to be accurate)...

what do we already know about the high lord power:

it’s passed onto the most powerful fae in the court

it’s always been passed onto male high fae

it usually stays within a family, but it’s not a guarantee 

the current high lord has always* died before the power has moved onto the successor (inference based on a limited number of known high lords in history)

it’s not always inherited power since high lady feyre was made into one

to obtain the power you would swear vows (as seen from feyre in acomaf)

fae can smell the heir to the high lord seat even before they come into their power (acomaf ch 22)

so these points have made me come to the conclusion that the power of a high lord is tied to the court they serve. why is this significant? because that means it’s not as randomly selected as we thought and it doesn’t necessarily mean a high lord must die for a new one to rise. 

if the power of the high lord is tied to the court they serve, the land itself chooses the high lord they want, then prythian is almost sentient. the magic that created the court boundaries selects the fae they want to rule. there’s a lot to unpack with that alone and the implications that only high fae male seem to be the only ones who are considered for power when we know there have been extremely powerful fae women (and possibly lesser fae) who have been overlooked. however that may be a topic for another time. the one thing i wanted to touch on is high lord succession and the rules surrounding who would inherit the power. 

we assume that the current high lord of a territory would need to die in order for their power to pass onto their heir, but what if that’s not true? if the high lord power is granted by the boundary spell of the courts then couldn’t it be taken away as well?  if a high lord were to abandon their territory wouldn’t they no longer be high lord and that power not just move onto the next all powerful fae in their territory? 

let’s take a look at the spring court for instance:

tamlin’s power is out of his control

his subjects have fled and become refugees of other courts

the only thing keeping his boundary lines intact is him not leaving the spring borders / patrolling in his beast form

he skipped calanmai when it was a time for the high lord to rejuvenate his power back into his land with the great rite during acomaf and for all intents and purposes there’s no indication he has taken part in the great rite since acotar (and timeline wise that’s been over 3 years give or take a few months). 

so looking at how spring is falling apart it may not just be the seeds planted by feyre or tamlin’s own depression/trauma, but the land itself rebelling against the current high lord. now if that’s the case then could it not stand to reason that the spring court is looking to the most powerful fae in their territory to “elect” as their new high lord? and within the walls of spring, before the fall, who would have been the most powerful fae apart from tamlin? i would press lucien to that claim myself. 

lucien is born from helion and lady autumn. lady autumn herself was coveted by beron for her power and that of her bloodline of powerful fire users. helion was found to be powerful enough to become high lord of day. so lucien’s lineage is extremely impressive. we also know he’s showing hints about his own high lord power when he managed to calm cassian down from his mate instincts telling him to kill with the power behind a single word alone (acosf ch 7). some people are interpreting this moment as a hint that helion’s power may be fading and he’s slipping into his twilight years or something, but we have seen no hints that helion’s power is not what it used to be. however, we have been given quite a few hints that tamlin is not as strong as he once was. that both rhys and lucien have been working for about a year to try and bring tamlin back to himself without success. even nesta had alluded to the fact that the spring court may not belong to tamlin any longer (acosf ch 43). 

i think it’s possible that the spring court is rescinding its power from tamlin and looking for their next high lord and i think that high lord is lucien. he pledged his loyalty to spring when tamlin took him in after escaping from autumn. he has proven to be working for the good of the people and spent 50 years under amarantha’s rule helping those left in spring and protecting their borders from threats. he put efforts into rebuilding spring after amarantha was killed. lucien took over tamlin’s duty and performed the great rite during calanmai acting as the high lord. i think the evidence is mounting in favor of tamlin basically being forced to abdicate and lucien to succeed to power. unless tamlin finds some sort of redemption where he wants to live and not just survive from day to day then i don’t see him retaining high lord status.

what’s the implication of what this could mean for the power engine of high lords?

a high lord isn’t just a random all powerful male, but could be specifically chosen by the magic of the territory

this also means that the magic of the territory could take the high lord magic from those who are no longer acting in the best interest of their territory

a current high lord wouldn’t have to die for a new one to obtain power

it also implies that anyone can’t just take vows to get the high lord power, but would need to be deemed worthy by the magic (feyre earned her power and it wasn’t just given to her by being mated to rhys)

now how might this affect the possibility of the high king coming to fruition? well i think it would be similar to how feyre took vows and became high lady. but instead of just the night court deeming her worthy to be granted high lady power it would be the entirety of prythian to deem someone worthy enough to hold the title of high king, or queen, to rule them all. 

now again this is all conjecture your honor based on circumstantial evidence. but i also think it may be a pretty decent theory on how this whole high lord magic thing works so whatever.

#acotar #acotar meta #lucien vanserra #feyre archeron #high lord rhysand #high lord tamlin #helion spell cleaver #high lord tarquin #high lord thesan #high lord kallias #high lord beron #high lords of prythian

[rosanna-writer]

Ok honestly I don't think we talk about this line from ACOWAR enough:

"I kept this unit from breaking for forty-nine years,” Amren said, eyes flaring bright as lightning. “I am not going to let you rip it to shreds now."

When I see people talk about what the IC was up to while Rhys was UTM, I feel like what's always missing is that Amren was basically left in charge of the Night Court? Like if Rhys isn't there, she's his second-in-command, so she would basically be running the show. It's not something books really touch on, so I wonder what having Amren in charge looked like.

It makes my heart hurt for her and Mor in particular. Without Rhys, as his Second and Third, they would have to step up and take on so much more work/responsibility while they're scared and worried for him. I wonder if it took a toll on their friendship?

PLUS, I think it's so telling that Amren says "unit" and not "family" here. Amren can definitely be a bit condescending and rude a lot of the time but honestly, I wonder how much of that is a result of her thinking of the IC as comrades-in-arms before everything else, just as a way to keep the court running smoothly. Like yeah some of it is definitely because she's a super old and powerful firedrake/Angel of Death/??? but also...honestly I think she's been struggling with transitioning between "family mode" and "work mode" with the rest of the IC and no one really picks up on it.

#acotar #acotar meta #amren #amren acotar

[vaes]

“ I tried to swallow, but my throat had closed up. I kept my eyes on the trees, on the canopy, on anything but the cold mass circling us again and again.

Look at me.

I wanted to look - I needed to see what it was.

Look at me.

I stared at the coarse trunk of a distant elm, thinking of pleasant things. Like hot bread and full bellies -

I will fill my belly with you. I will devour you. Look at me.

A starry, unclouded night sky, peaceful and glittering and endless. “

- Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Thorns and Roses, Chapter 10, page. 90

Feyre thought of the night sky to comfort herself when faced with absolute terror. Including her painting the night sky on her dresser, there are a few other instances where she thinks of a calm night sky. Rhysand and Feyre were mates from the beginning!

#acotar #a court of thorns and roses #acotar meta #feysand #idk im re-reading the books and this jumped out at me shes so slay #feyre archeron #rhysand

[theweeklydiscourse]

LARPing Villainy: Rhysand’s character is weighed down by Sarah J Maas’s need to make him sympathetic to the audience.

Maas distorts her own narrative in her attempts to make Rhysand more sympathetic to her readers. Although Maas will employ the aesthetics of villainy or grey morality, her framing is such that the established negative traits or actions of certain characters are contradicted within the text. Rhysand is not the only example of this in ACOTAR, but I believe that he exemplifies this problem the most.

I believe that Rhysand’s development is stunted by Maas’s favoritism and it makes him a less interesting character when she tries so hard to keep him noble and heroic. It’s as if his actions can’t just exist and instead, must be explained away by incessant justifications to keep him sympathetic but dull the story's edge in the process.

To illustrate my point, I'd like to point to chapter 42 of ACOMAF.

This chapter is centered around Feyre’s introduction to the Court of Nightmares and it is meant to be a moment of growth for Feyre as demonstrated by her fortitude and willingness to re-enact events that had previously traumatized her under the mountain. The passage describes Feyre as "barely covered" and emphasizes the color of her lips, describing them as “blood red”. A color that once triggered Feyre due to its association with Amarantha but no longer bothers her as demonstrated by her donning it.

Feyre's empowerment, as shown in this chapter, feels both superficial and hollow in nature. It is a moment of development that is marred by Maas's lack of build-up and her desire to accelerate Feyre's healing journey. Suddenly, after months of panic attacks, flashbacks, and anxiety, Feyre is calm, collected, and ready to partake in a plan where she will be placed in a situation where she will reenact her previous negative experiences. Something that should be triggering, but isn't.

This scene masquerades as a moment of growth and empowerment for Feyre but is in actuality a thinly veiled excuse for Maas to clumsily gesture towards the sexual tension between the main couple and form the basis for a contrived argument in the very next chapter. I came to this conclusion because the "plan" Rhysand creates is politically incoherent and ridiculous. The plan necessitates putting Feyre in a vulnerable position even though doing so makes very little sense and arguably puts Feyre in a worse place than before.

This incoherent plan is never meaningfully questioned or used as a foundation for change in Rhysand's tactics and strategies.

Let’s put this in perspective. According to the story, Rhysand is aware that the Court of Nightmares is full of unrepentant misogynists who habitually sanction the violence and abuse of the women in their court. So with this in mind, is it truly a wise plan for Rhysand to put the person he loves in a position where she will be the subject of judgment and contempt for an audience? He actively puts Feyre in a vulnerable position and approved a plan that involves Feyre putting on the costume of the High Lord’s “whore” and yet, is later appalled that Feyre was slandered as a result.

He then leans further into his darker persona, affirming Keir’s comments about Feyre being his “pet”.

The pair continues their show and Rhysand exchanges a few more words before Keir calls Feyre a whore and hisses that Feyre will “get what’s coming to her”. To this, Rhysand reacts explosively and puts Keir in his place by brutalizing his arm and forcing him to apologize for his words in a “how DARE you slander my mate?! grrrrr” moment. This moment informs my larger point because it is the cause of an argument between Feyre and Rhysand in the very next chapter.

There are certain parts of this exchange that bother me.

Feyre silently draws similarities between Tamlin and Rhysand’s behavior and criticizes Rhysand’s reaction to Keir’s slander. Obviously, we understand why he acted that way, but I hate how Rhysand responds to Feyre’s criticism in a way that feels like guilt-tripping. As if to say “So I’m such a bad person for protecting you from harm? Go on, hate me for protecting you I guess.” And this puzzles me because technically it was Rhysand’s plan that placed Feyre in a position where slander and contempt should have been expected.

Feyre is right. Rhysand should have prepared himself better for this plan but I feel like it’s a missed opportunity that Feyre never brings up how this plan could’ve been done away with altogether. They could have had an easier time in the Court of Nightmares if they had just not placed Feyre in such a vulnerable position and not made her image that of the “High Lord’s whore” which attracted Keir’s slander in the first place. This plan that necessitates Feyre wearing a dress that barely covers her as she’s shown off to a crowd is irritatingly contrived and makes even less sense when you factor in Rhysand’s concerns about Feyre’s safety.

But now onto my main point. I present to you, my least favourite passage from chapters 42 and 43.

I’d like to call attention to how Rhysand frames himself in this passage. He says “how stories get written” as though the narrative is under the sole jurisdiction of outside forces. He denies his agency in the “story” being written about his relationship to Feyre. He frames himself as noble, being unfairly characterized as a demon or a dark lord for stealing Feyre from Tamlin. But his complaints are ridiculous to me because…did the previous chapter not just happen?

Because… if we’re checking the till here, it was Rhysand who explained his public relations strategy as a “mask”. It was also Rhysand who deliberately cultivated his image to be one of an intimidated and dangerous ruler, it was Rhysand who constructed a persona of cruelty which was bolstered by his presumed collaboration with Amarantha. Rhysand was the one who approved a plan that involved toting Feyre around like a “pet” and making a statement that implies that he is a “ dark lord who stole away the bride of spring”.

He wrings his hands over how their story will be written as if he has no control over it. As if he isn’t deliberately shaping the narrative that the public sees and has no say in the matter. The narrative frames him as being “anguished” that people would view him as a villain…but then had him take active measures to reaffirm that he appears villainous to the public.

So What's My Point?

Why does Maas establish facts about her characters, only to obfuscate those qualities later on? Why do the readers need to know that Rhysand is in such anguish about his being perceived as a villain when he takes active measures to project that exact image to the public? What I reason, is that Maas wants to have it both ways (to have her cake and eat it too) She wants Rhysand to be cool and villainous, but doesn't actually want to make him villainous. Rhysand is LARPing villainy, enough that he possesses the aesthetics of a dark love interest (ex. dubious morals, manipulative, shrewd) but not so much that he actually pushes the boundary because Maas is always there to walk back his edgier qualities.

The same can be said for the events of these two chapters. She wants to have a moment of sexual tension where her leads are engaging in pseudo-BDSM exhibitionism and getting close with one another, but also wants to make a grand statement on healing from one’s past trauma which ends up being in conflict with the former.(it wouldn’t be impossible to accomplish both in theory, but Maas just isn’t skilled enough to pull it off)

All this to say, I think Rhysand had potential but is unfortunately held back by Maas’s need to absolve him. Personally, I think I’d like it more if Rhysand actions/decisions were criticized more within the text and that his “mask” was discarded as a legitimate aspect of his character. The “mask” makes him less interesting, I’d prefer it if Maas just let him contend with his flaws and grow because of it.

#acotar meta #rhysand meta #sjm critical #anti sjm #feyre acotar #feyre archeron #rhysand critical #rhysand #tamlin #acowar

[eudociaocdump]

I have so many thoughts yall I am spiraling. Ok.

1. It is hard for me to organize my thoughts for this fic because I dont remember some of the things I write. Like I will look through a notebook and be like holy shit what a great idea who wrote that cuz I surely don't remember doing it.

2. I am looking through more acotar meta and I am gonna tag some people becaue I am in awe of the work they put into these theories and organising them and I just love everything they write, I gotta give credit becaue they keep me motivated to write and work despite life in general being difficult.

@flowerflamestars @offtorivendell @wingedblooms @nikethestatue @silverlinedeyes

3. Chaotic thoughts, may change bc I found a lot of interesting theories, but thoughts right now DIRECTLY from my notes app lmao:

Ooohhhhhh okay creepy creatures are from the connection to dusk. Night is darkness, full of stars, dusk is the covering. The sun setting and shifting. The change into darkness and from that it grew its particular type of magic. ....after being taken over the divide btwn velaris and nightmares court. The land drew back its power. The old gods were angry and so many fae were trapped away after they scattered. So i think it would be cool if hyberns anchient family were from dusk and that is why he hates prythian. Fae fled and rhysands anchient anceston followed them this trapping fae into the prison and creating the nightmare court. The unbalancing of power led to the middle being created!!!!! Now this would have happened millenia ago so basically when thw courts were young thats why carver is so old

Maybe morrigan can know things similar to seers, they can only know past and present tho, they give themselves to the deep magic of the land and can see truths. Maybe morrigan doesnt like the feeling of not being herself and leaning into that power...we know night IC didnt want nesta using her powers maybe they encouraged morrigan to not use them....azriel hears shadows because in his dispair the deep magics heard him. He was trapped like the dusk fae and they lended him rhe power of shadowsinging.

..elain and him are connected via that tog thing what is the name like they can share powers?

AAAAAHHHHHH SHE IS LOST IN THE WATERS OF THE WORLD AND SEEING PASTPREDENTFUTURE AND DUSK KNOWS IT AND SEES HER AAAAAHHHH - about elain

#acotar meta #thoughts #acotar

[astrababyy]

i really wanna know more about spring court lore. especially since spring’s population probably skyrocketed and became wayyy more diverse after tamlin started accepting refugees from the other courts during amarantha’s reign. like did the native citizens clash with the refugees? how did spring accommodate for so many new people, especially when they weren’t instituting the tithe so they couldn’t reasonably afford to take care of all of them? did any of them stay in spring after amarantha was killed? like there’s so much potential there, and i wanna know more lol.

#acotar #tamlin #pro tamlin #acotar meta #astrababyy

[bookofmirth]

I actually disagree with the fact that Rhys was ooc in ACOSF. I think he acted super consistent. He just had very little to no growth in the series. So to me, he’s just been stagnant.

I read Rhys’ problem not being secret keeping. But rather, the need to burden himself with everything which leads him to keep things from others so they don’t have to deal and burden themselves. And we have a few examples of this throughout the series. 

Rhys hiding Velaris. He doesn’t want to burden the IC with what is about to transpire so he hides it and essentially locks them up so he could do it on his own. They cannot do anything to help him.

Rhys hiding the mating bond. This is one time where I really don’t blame him entirely—even though I also understand Feyre’s right to be angry. Still, he hides it and keeps that burden to himself. Feyre gets mad and this is supposed to be his big aha moment. Where he learns that he shouldn’t do this anymore, especially with Feyre.

Hiding the Keir/Eris alliance. I think only Az knew about this bc I think he just needed him for the plan to work, but once again, Rhys is burdening himself with finding ways to win this war and keeping his rest of the IC in the dark, instead of actually consulting them. (*Cough* not being able to delegate is bad leadership)

The cauldron repairing scene: I go back and forth on this one but I think it still proves my point, even though I understand there was like a major time constraint here. He takes on the ultimate burden of literally giving up his life to repair the cauldron. His power was drained and although we’re not in his head, it was obvious he knew he wouldn’t live. And Feyre does feel lied to here (again) and she calls him out (again) for it later on, which he then proceeds to just laugh it off and make a joke instead of idk actually taking it to heart.

So by the end of ACOWAR, Rhys still is doing the thing he’s always done even after he’s was supposed to learn how it wasn’t right. And the cauldron scene is so significant here because it reinforces to Rhys that his thinking is correct. Like he did need to give up his life to save them. If he didn’t, they wouldn’t have enough power to fix it. I mean there was not a moment that I can think of where his need to burden himself with everything was proved wrong. 

So going into ACOSF, it makes sense he hides the truth about the pregnancy to not burden Feyre. There has been no moment of growth or realization that how he operates is incorrect. Every other time that he does this, everything works out. The pregnancy plot line also worked out again because they didn’t die. Once again, not providing Rhys with an actual moment of learning, meaning he’s just gonna do it again and think it’s gonna work out. This is why Rhys needs to actually face some consequences. It’s a way a character grows--not the only way obviously. And I also don’t mean a simple argument with Feyre or the IC again because clearly that wasn’t enough since they forgive him too easily. He needs to once again, take on the burden and hide something and it all go to shit for him to actually get it in his head that he can’t keep working that way. 

And by consequences, I mean unexpected ones. Him dying and what Amarantha did can be seen as consequences but he knew those going into his plan. I mean, more like, after locking up the IC in Velaris, the Illyrians rebelled during the 50 years because there was no one watching over them or Velaris' economy collapsed with the lack of trade.

This is why I think the cauldron remaking scene should have been Feyre and Rhys working together and just fixing it. Less dramatic? Sure, but it would have shown Rhys that he doesn’t need to take on the burden alone anymore because he has Feyre and the entire of his IC to depend on. It would have disproven his unhealthy mentality because he has an actual example of when he leans on others, they can be stronger together. It’s cheesy af but it’s a romance novel. It would have closed feysands story beautifully bc it would also be a good moment of Feyre knowing she would never have to face anything alone again also. 

To conclude this ramble, Rhys' actions in ACOSF made sense unfortunately. This man had too much just conveniently workout for him to actually have a moment of realizing his wrongs. This is why peoples obsession with Nesta apologizing just doesn’t make sense to me. Rhys gave a somewhat of a very half hearted apology into his soup, but his actions show it doesn’t hold any merit. Apologizing and acknowledging wrong behavior can be a moment of growth (it's what Nesta's journey essentially was), but if your actions don’t actually show any improvement then it’s meaningless. 

The IC’s response was inconsistent. I’ll agree with that though. 

I get what you mean about him taking on burdens, and I actually think you could add the way that he acted around Amarantha UtM to that list because he took on this "relationship" in order to keep his ulterior motives ulterior. I wouldn't call that a consequence, but another example of how he might be self-sacrificial for the bigger picture.

I think where I disagree, and maybe this doesn't change anything in terms of if you feel like he was ooc or not, but these "burdens" that he supposedly takes on, actually do harm to other people, so I wouldn't call them burdens in the sense that he thinks he is sparing his friends and family. Hiding the alliance with Keir directly and negatively impacted Mor, so that was not helpful for her. Not telling Feyre about the mating bond... that one I am more iffy on because like, when would have been a good time. Not telling them he was going to hide Velaris, I don't judge him for that because it happened in an instant, they were in Velaris and he was UtM and it was a split-second decision. From what I remember, he sent a message to Amren or Mor? Him protecting Velaris in general I can see, I suppose - it was always protected, and if he had been given months to decide, he doubt he would have done anything differently. It did probably strip Mor, Amren, Cassian, and Az of any agency, for them to be trapped in Velaris. Maybe I'm talking myself into the idea that that was another instance of him not thinking about how he impacts people.

I guess my thing is, if all of this is supposed to be Rhys taking on burdens, who exactly is being helped? He's got to deal with those problems one way or another, so it's not like he's taking the burden upon himself when it's already his job. Hiding that information from his friends actually does more damage to them than if he were upfront, and you'd think he would have learned that by now.

Perhaps the real issue is what you mentioned, that he hasn't changed pretty much at all since the beginning of the series. He has shown his "Mr. Nice High Lord" face to everyone, but I guess... what bothers me is that he pretends to be democratic with the IC, and he does listen to them and take their opinions into consideration, but ultimately he is going to do what he wants. Suppose that's how it is, since he is still the one in charge.

And maybe Rhys tells himself that he is doing this for everyone else's own good, but it's really, really not. Maybe in terms of the world, the "good guys" are winning so far, but he's not actually sparing anyone around him of any pain, and in fact contributes to it.

It would have disproven his unhealthy mentality because he has an actual example of when he leans on others, they can be stronger together.

I think that this is supposed to be the point of the IC, but it really doesn't come across. They meet, and he uses Amren's knowledge, and Cassian's ability to lead the armies, and Mor's diplomacy, and Az's spy skills, but they don't have a say outside of those roles. It's like they present him with information and then he decides. Yet we were presented with the IC as this wonderfully equal and family-style political structure in acomaf. Really??

I can't speak for others, but when I think of Rhys being ooc in acosf, it comes from the way that his relationship with Feyre began, and the fact that his relationship with these other people is political or familial, not romantic. Romantic relationships have a different standard imo. To me, Rhys situated himself as a partner for Feyre who would always keep her in the loop and would empower her, who saw her as an autonomous individual rather than an extension of himself. Perhaps it is the way that Tamlin and Feyre's relationship began, with him having power, knowledge, influence, status, and her having literally none of those things. Compared to Rhys, who didn't act as if there was any reason why this human hunter shouldn't be able to throw a shoe at him. It seems like a small thing when taken out of the context of her relationship with Tamlin, but Rhys saying "hey, you as a person have agency and a right to know stuff" was super important. And then he just fucking doesn't follow through. I understand why people are saying that there are now similarities between feysand and feylin, which 1) I detest that comparison, even if I understand the instincts behind it, and 2) if we removed this whole dumbass pregnancy thing from the story, literally no one would ever think that. Tamlin had rage issues from day one, about stupid shit. Rhys was faced with a problem and made a (one) shitty choice in his relationship.

I am getting off topic now haha

Anyway, I think the partnership that feysand set up in acomaf looks nothing like what we got in acosf. I don't recognize acosf feysand. It's super annoying, and to me, it's because of Rhys. It's certainly not due to Feyre.

Re: the IC, I think their response to the pregnancy was absolutely ooc. Otherwise, as individuals, I didn't see them acting in ways that surprised me. The only thing I can think is that they are ultimately still more loyal to Rhys above anyone else. Even one another.

#rhysand #acotar #acosf #ask #anon #long post tag #acotar meta #feyre #feysand

[disregardcanon]

an interesting acotar detail i've been thinking about is the absolute PARALLELS between feyre and lucien. like... they're both unloved, highly competent youngest children that found themselves at the spring court without another place that they could truly go.

the invented scenario with feyre's killing of the sentinel demanding her passage to prythian and the guilt she experiences once she realizes that this creature she killed... was also a being with feelings and struggles. lucien as a fugitive from his own court and a kinslayer on top of it.

i just... wish that we'd gotten more of the absolutely DEVASTATING interest and mutual destruction there. feyre realized that what was left at the spring court was rotting because she got to take breaks, and then she got to LEAVE to heal. but lucien was still in it. of course he thought that bringing feyre back could fix everything. because admitting that it couldn't, that neither of them would be safe and happy and alright if that happened... would be to admit the extent to which he was complicit in feyre's suffering and how unstable and abusive his situation was to start with

#acotar #acotar meta #lucien be like please come back it might be BEARABLE with you here- #and feyre's like my dude my guy my man i'm not your tamlin shield