#but that's not the point of this post

[neversetyoufree]

I've been thinking lately about Vanitas and Noé's first "what is salvation" fight at the bal masqué and what it means about their individual definitions of the concept, and I've realized something about Vanitas.

Noé's definition of salvation is the obvious one. It feels natural. To save someone is to keep them from dying. But in a way, his understanding of salvation is also almost selfish. Noé's foundational trauma is the constant loss of his loved ones. He is the eternal sole survivor. So of course he wants to keep people alive—he wants to "save" the people he cares about in the way that keeps them by his side this time.

It's not wrong to want that, of course. I don't mean "selfish" as a condemnation. It's just that the definition of salvation that Noé starts the series with is inarguably the one that best serves his own happiness.

And it's the same with Vanitas.

When Vanitas kills the little girl Catherine by restoring her true name, he tells Noé he doesn't know what salvation is. He might be lying there, or he might be telling the truth in that he's never put his definition of salvation into words or acknowledged it on a conscious level. Either way, though, I do think he has a definition of salvation somewhere in his mind, and it's a very personal one.

Vanitas sees salvation as the preservation or restoration of one's true self. You're saved so long as you can preserve your essential self, uncorrupted by outside forces. Even if the price of that selfness is death.

While Noé's foundational trauma that informs his worldview is the loss of his loved ones, one of Vanitas's foundational traumas is the loss of his bodily autonomy. Through Moreau's experiments and Luna's mark/bite, he has been transformed into something no longer fully human, and he hates it. From the moment Luna told him he was dying, he said he wanted to die as himself rather than live as their kin, and he has been denied that opportunity.

Nothing is more important for Vanitas than being able to dictate the destiny of his own body, and malnomen are the ultimate corruption of bodily autonomy and selfness. Altering one's true name warps not only their physical body, but their very being on a metaphysical level. The curse takes everything a vampire is and changes it, and doing that to an unwilling victim is the ultimate horror for Vanitas.

Given that context, of course Vanitas thinks that killing a child to restore her true name counts as saving her. He's restoring her essential self and un-corrupting her body and being, and even if her self is only returned for an instant before she dies, it's preferable to living on as something warped by an outside force.

Vanitas absolutely starts the series with a definition of salvation, and like Noé, it's the one that best serves his own happiness. He wants to be saved. He wants to be returned to his human self, and failing that (since he knows it's impossible), he wants to wipe out all traces of the force that changed him and then die without going any further down the path of inhumanity.

Vanitas might not be able to admit that definition out loud (or even to himself directly), but it's there, and it guides him early in the series as much as Noé's own definition of salvation guides him in turn.

#and perhaps noé will learn to see death as a form of salvation when life is corruption #and perhaps vanitas will learn to see the value of preserving (his own) life #and perhaps they'll both find a definition of salvation that is neither of these things 👀 #but that's not the point of this post #anyway this is one of those concepts that I've been orbiting around and maybe gestured toward before #but I don't think I ever quite put it in words or thought about this connection so directly #so here we are #vnc #vanitas no carte #the case study of vanitas #vanitas #vanitas my beloved #english major hours

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

Everyone stop what you're doing and look at tiny Oda.

Look at him.

Have you seen him? Good, have a nice day. :)

#he is... so small #so cute #he is literally killing someone and he is adorable #on that note though i hate how dead his eyes look #oda's really interesting i wish we talked about him more outside of what he meant to dazai #there's a lot we actually don't know about him #but that's not the point of this post #the point is that he is small here and i needed to share #bsd #bsd odasaku #storyrambles

[kalinara]

I was skimming through my dashboard and I saw a post that I thought was really interesting.

In the post, the person stated that they missed when fandom was more interactive, when it came to fanfic writers and fan artists, rather than today, where it was like the content creators were machines that didn't need positive feedback, but were just there to create product.

I'm paraphrasing, because I can't find it again. It stuck with me for a bit though.

See, I think this is the natural effect of discouraging constructive criticism.

I can appreciate that very few people enjoy logging into their email or messages and seeing a comment regarding a project that they've spent so much time and effort on and seeing "Well, this is what I think you did wrong."

I can appreciate that for most folk, fanfic is a labor of love, something that they're sharing with the community. They're not craftsmen honing a craft, per se. They're not looking for advice on how to improve.

That's understandable. But I think it misses something really important: that constructive criticism, heck, even a polite yet negative review is still ENGAGEMENT.

It's a conversation in a way that kudos aren't. It's a conversation in a way that gushing praise really isn't.

I'm not saying a writer has to agree with the criticism. People are people and sometimes people are full of crap. But the fact that someone took the time out of their busy day to actually engage with a writer about something they created, and to talk about it, and think about it, and examine what worked for them and what didn't...

That does mean something, in my opinion. I've been a fanfic reader, primarily a lurker, since I first took baby steps onto the web in 1996. Back before AO3. Back before fanfiction.net. I remember webrings, and mailing lists, and geocities. I even, vaguely, remember bulletin boards.

As I said, I was a lurker primarily. I didn't talk much. I followed the discussions. Sometimes I'd agree with it. Sometimes I'd disagree (quite strongly). I very rarely commented or reviewed.

But when I did review, that was because I really wanted to. And when I did review, I put a LOT of effort into it. I'd talk about what I thought the author did really really well (which was a lot! Or I wouldn't have bothered.) I'd mention what didn't work so much for me, and what I thought might have worked better. It'd take hours, sometimes, to figure out exactly what I wanted to say - what I would want to HEAR if I'd written the story. I always tried to leave the kind of reviews that I wanted to receive on my own work.

I'd never write a review like that now. The etiquette's changed. I recognize that the kind of review I wrote back in 1998 would be incredibly rude now. But when I look at the comments I've left nowadays - they're quick. They're meaningless. Even on fics I've truly loved. Sometimes I don't even comment. Just a kudo. Sometimes I forget to do that. It's not personal, but I've got things on my mind.

It occurs to me that even the word is different. "comment" vs. "review". There are very different expectations.

I see people sometimes talking about how what they really want is comments, though. And interaction. And I get that, but when you limit the type of interaction that you're looking for, then I think that you're going to get less of it.

I'm sorry. But sometimes I'll read a fic that's okay, but not great. It's got wonderful ideas, but they could be developed better. It's got good character voice, but some of the word choice is a little off. It doesn't sing.

At least, to me. Maybe it's just a matter of personal taste. Maybe it's a craft issue. The author didn't ask for my opinion, and that's fair enough. But am I going to leave lukewarm praise and nothing else? Maybe. I have before. But more likely, I'm just going to hit the back button and look for something else.

It's easier to give feedback now than it was in 1997 in a lot of ways. Kudos buttons are lovely. Instant review buttons/forms that don't require a perpetually shy anxious person to send an email to a stranger are wonderful things. I probably do leave more comments now than I did back in 1997.

But when it comes to actual substance and engagement...I'm not sure there's even a comparison. Why bother? If I feel really strongly about something in the fic, well, I can write a blog post about it instead.

It is kind of funny that this means that I get the engagement out of it, rather than the author, but that's how it goes sometimes.

#fandom woes #this is not to say that fandom back in 1997 was all sparkles and wonder #there were a LOT of problems too #but that's not the point of this post

[nothorses]

Yeah, you hit on something that's been bothering me about the atheism Discourse. There is this implication from a lot of people that we're just void of beliefs unless we also happen to be a member of an ethnoreligion, and as a member of an explicitly atheistic religion that's... Really insulting? My community has put in just as much thought about our beliefs as any member of any other faith, as have atheists who have gone the philosophy route (i.e. secular humanism). Our relationship with the dominant Christian culture is not the same as the atheist who just deconverted a hot minute ago and is probably still working through their old beliefs and possible traumas, but that nuance is very rarely acknowledged. And our beliefs are no lesser or heartfelt just because they don't include a spiritual component.

Yeah!!

I've seen some folks sick to just "cultural christians" without really defining what they mean by that (which is better, I guess, than forcibly labeling entire groups- but you're still applying that to someone you have in mind, and I'm still not really a fan)

but the number of people who just say "atheists" like the terms are interchangeable... that's bad, actually!

the conversation isn't going to get anywhere until people can acknowledge the value of atheism. not just tolerate the existence of it, not just grumble out a "yeah some of them are fine" about it, but actively acknowledge that atheism and atheists have actual value in the same way any religion does.

#any religion being a broad term that like. does include some nuance for obvious exceptions #and room for conversation #but that's not the point of this post #atheism

[hemat1c]

In bed thinking about hoe Asher is very babygirl and he should be kissed on the mouth and he deserves it

#Also thinking how he should be absolutely railed #But that's not the point of this post #· ❛ ｡⸸ ˚ ˎ⁀ ⛧ 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐨 » ooc.

[lesbopolo]

atheist who base their whole personality on being atheists are... weird. and I say this as an "devoted" atheist who completely rejects the possibility of the existence of god(s), afterlife, ghosts, demons, anything paranormal, you call it. and especially when they keep bothering religious people. like, let's just mind our own business, especially considering that faith can be a very delicate topic.

#the same goes to religious people who force their faith onto others #but that's not the point of this post #just please let's be respectful #as long as no one is being harmed it's okay to believe #your religious trauma means nothing to others cope and leave them alone

[star--anon]

What if Wilbur found a random raccoon in his trash can and goes "ah fuck it y'know what I do have a shit ton of dog food for no reason that's probably expired at this point but I don't think the raccoon would care" and feeds the lil' raccoon guy because he's tired of waking up every morning and seeing his trash scattered on his lawn.

Eventually, the raccoon is trusted enough to go into the house. Wilbur swears the raccoon understands him. It looks at him when he speaks, paws at his leg for water, makes angry noises when Wil refuses to feed it because it literally just ate, makes squeaky noises when he tells it jokes.

One day, Wilbur can't find the raccoon anywhere. It's simply gone. Dead, perhaps? Ran away?

He finds himself feeling oddly emotional over the raccoon's departure. He puts out a little food bowl and leans on the kitchen counter and cries for a long time. The house echoes his cries back to him. The house is dead silent and empty. Eventually he forces himself to toss the food away. "Oh well," he whispers, plastering a smile on his face while he rinses out the bowl. "It was just a raccoon after all."

#the raccoon comes back a few days later with a bear trap around its arm #and when Wilbur's healin' the little guy up #he turns around for maybe two seconds #and turns back and sees a 12-year-old kid sitting on his couch #and that's how Tommy and Wilbur met #but that's not the point of this post #focus on sad Wilbur being very lonely #it's important #jesus I really do just latch on to one specific character and ruin their mental health don't I

[candycatstuffs]

Candace and doofenshmirtz would be tumblr mutuals i think

#maybe ill draw this when i inevitably get sucked back into pnf at some point dsjfj #phineas and ferb #candace flynn #heinz doofenshmirtz #pnf #candys pnf posting #prty sure thats the tag #sighh didnt get to draw much today and now its close to bedtime😔

[kvothes]

poetry and musical theater get similar accusations leveled at them in terms of not being realistic, i.e. “no one fucking talks like that” or “people don’t randomly burst into song in real life” and sometimes i just want to take people by the shoulders and say. there are forms of art that are not aiming for perfect realism. are you capable of handling that

#‘i actually do sing in real life—‘ not the point of this post. thanks. #can you engage with art for what it is trying to do. and not what you think it SHOULD do. #mine

[throesofincreasingwonder]

"A story doesn't need a theme in order to be good" I'm only saying this once but a theme isn't some secret coded message an author weaves into a piece so that your English teacher can talk about Death or Family. A theme is a summary of an idea in the work. If the story is "Susan went grocery shopping and saw a weird bird" then it might have themes like 'birds don't belong in grocery stores' or 'nature is interesting and worth paying attention to' or 'small things can be worth hearing about.' Those could be the themes of the work. It doesn't matter if the author intended them or not, because reading is collaborative and the text gets its meaning from the reader (this is what "death of the author" means).

Every work has themes in it, and not just the ones your teachers made you read in high school. Stories that are bad or clearly not intended to have deep messages still have themes. It is inherent in being a story. All stories have themes, even if those themes are shallow, because stories are sentences connected together for the purpose of expressing ideas, and ideas are all that themes are.

#original post #text post #500 #1k #2k #btw i know my definition of death of the author is loosey goosey here #it wasn't the main point so i went informal with it! as ppl in the tags have pointed out it isn't exact #and i do recommend reading the wikipedia article or similar (possibly even the essay itself if you're narsty) if you want to learn more! #wasn't expecting this to take off so my apologies to my barthes-heads out there #love you mwah #5k #10k #15k #20k

[gibbearish]

love when ppl defend the aggressive monetization of the internet with "what, do you just expect it to be free and them not make a profit???" like. yeah that would be really nice actually i would love that:)! thanks for asking

#yes i want things to be free like ??? that is not a weird desire #'but but it costs money to keep up' ok and? how is that my problem #the government has plenty of murder dollars they could reallocate a few to make internet services universal if they wanted #also these companies were perfectly capable of supporting themselves before the internet got drowned with ads so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ #edit: muting notifs on this post bc new additions have kind of petered out #so no one feel bad about adding something someone else has said‚ it is not bothering me im just trying to keep my #notifs page cleanish lol #also since i saw some people are being redirected to read my tags: firstly hiiiiii this is a special secret message for you:3 #secondly i have learned since making this that the reason they were able to support themselves previously was because #of investors bankrolling everything #and theyre now finally realizing that theyre never going to actually make a profit and arent as willing to invest #however thats just a minor correction and doesnt change my overall point #once again. so many murder dollars #so thats why im just adding it here in the tags rather than making an actual correction #anyways . love yall 💕 #origibberish #bigger gibbers

[puraiuddo]

FanFiction.net is not gone.

Right now it's a victim of DNS (Domain Name Service) spoofing. This means that a malicious party is trying to steal traffic from FFn by purchasing a very similar domain.

Correction:

The new "fake" site that people are seeing still belongs to FanFiction.net—they just misconfigured their servers and are not redirecting traffic from the bare fanfiction.net to the main site at www.fanfiction.net. There is likely no malicious agent. Didn't mean to scare anyone! Just wanted to let people know the site wasn't deleted!

So if you want to read fanfiction and not see leaves, you have have to type out "www.fanfiction.net".

Please share so people stop panicking.

#i was not expecting this to become ANYWHERE near as popular as this is #sorry for the misinformation concerning why the website wasn't working #just wanted to get the point across the ffn isn't dead #fanfiction #ffn #fanfiction.net #fanfiction dot net #fanfictionnet #ff net #purs post #psa

[carouselcometh]

“The point of horror is to survive” “the point of horror is to be doomed” maybe the point of horror is to cum

#I keep SEEING posts about the point of horror and I’m SICK

[threefuckencrowsinatrenchcoat]

Myself included tbh

#it’s a lifestyle #spn #it’s kinda a tumblr rite of passage at this point too #literally yesterday I found out ab the soap2day closing like this #and then ten minutes later people started texting me and posting on other apps freaking out #supernatural #destiel #destiel confession #destiel confession meme #dean winchester #castiel #this is also a little bit for the 196 girls who are inevitably gonna see the template eventually #196 #Reddit 196 #reddit refugee #HOW ARE PEOPLE STILL SEEING THIS ITS BEEN LIKE 6 MONTHS

[scramratz]

Missouri is hell

#posted it at like 4am but wanted to clean it up #my only option at this point #dyke #transmasc #top surgery #trans

[talaricula]

Things I've seen tumblr memeing about James Somerton doing à la "How did no one see how bigoted he was!" as if those things haven't been a significant part of tumblr culture for over a decade :

Presenting untrue and bordering on conspiratorial versions of (queer or otherwise marginalised) history without any sources

Completely disregarding and disrespecting any expertise on socio-cultural topics/humanities and distrusting academics and historians (incl. acting as if no academics or historians could be queer or marginalised)

Downplaying the role misogyny played in the historical oppression of queer women and concluding that queer men must have been more oppressed than queer women

Bi women are, at best, not as queer as "real" queer ppl, and at worst, simply equivalent to straight women

Despite nominal trans inclusivity, transmasculine ppl are functionally women when convenient (combined with the above, bi transmascs are functionally straight women)

Despite nominal trans inclusivity (bis), shamelessly attacking, threatening and actively endangering any trans woman who questions them or smth they find important (often by unfairly presenting her as violent or as a threat)

Having absolutely fucking wild and reductive takes about ace ppl, the oppression they face and their place in the queer community

Stating that marriage equality is an assimilationist fight while completely ignoring its direct roots in the horrifying consequences of the AIDS crisis for partners of ppl who died of AIDS

Praising western media creators from the past for queer coding even under censure and in the same breath condemning current non western media creators for being homophobic bc their representation isn't explicit enough

Blaming China for all existing homophobic censoring in western media

Assuming all queer media would be better told by western creators and by western standards

Only out queer ppl get to tell queer stories

Heavily criticising almost all queer media created by women or ppl they see as such (see above points about trans ppl) or involving/starring a significant amount of women for any perceived or real amount of "problematicness", but fawning over and praising and negating criticism of queer media created by and starring mostly or even functionally exclusively men (even when it could be argued that, you know, not involving/seriously sidelining women is a pretty clear example of misogyny which should probably be considered "problematic")

And I'm probably forgetting stuff or there's stuff I have internalised myself and don't recognise as an issue

Like idk but I feel like the takeaway from Hbomberguy and Toddintheshadow's videos should maybe be "be aware of such patterns in your communities bc they definitely exist" and not "this guy is uniquely awful" and I feel like a lot of the discussion I've seen surrounding this has been severely failing at that. Most ppl who've spent any significant amount of time on tumblr prob either have internalised at least one of those thought patterns, have had to de-internalise them, or have had to be extremely vigilant to not internalise them (which is done by, you know, seeking out other sources, which also seemed like an important takeaway from the videos)

#Also I'm saying this as someone who actually watched quite a few of Somerton's videos #And noticed those patterns and stopped watching bc I recognised them from here #and had already learned to unlearn them after being so exposed to them here #And tbh I think anyone who hasn't had the luck or made the conscious choice to seek out ppl who pushed against those narratives #Would absolutely have fallen for this man's bullshit. Like let's not kid ourselves we see takes like this every day on this hellsite #2014 me would have. For sure. #This is next to the plagiarism issue which as Harris points out is an Internet wide issue and this includes tumblr #James Somerton #hbomberguy #todd in the shadows #This brought to you by a conversation with my wife yesterday #So many ppl on here don't deserve to meme or be this self absolvingly critical of this man #The call is coming from inside the house #The man has a tumblr it would legit not surprise me if some of the things he supposedly made up himself he did actually get from somewhere #And that somewhere was a tumblr post