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scrollingkingfisher · 5 years

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Gabriel Through the Seasons- Control and Self-Deception

An excessively long essay, by me.

Evening peeps! So the topic of Gabriel’s relationship with control came up in the discord last night and it resulted in an entire TED talk which I didn’t even know was in me. So here we go, all tidied up and ready for meta consumption!

So Gabriel’s complex relationship with control is written into his character from the very first time we see him on screen. In Crawford Hall, he orchestrates the whole thing- he punishes people, but it’s always from a safe distance, never getting his hands dirty. He's actively manipulating the Winchesters for the entire time they're there in a similar way. Illusions are one of the first ways that he uses to control situations and keep them at arm’s length- let’s call them his first line of defence. Through them he can distract and confuse, and it means he doesn’t have to get too close to the action, either emotionally or physically. He uses his illusions to give the Winchesters the impression they got the better of him, but really I think that was him sizing them both up, and using his persona as the trickster to keep some emotional distance from the situation- his second line of defence.

Next up- Mystery Spot. Gabriel's control complex comes out big time. The apocalypse is getting closer, Dean's played his cards, Gabriel's family-related trauma is rearing its ugly head from where he'd managed to stash it under all those layers of repression, and the situation is suddenly more immediate than he’d like. So what can he do, both to maintain distance from the situation, get some kind of control over it and to try and avert having to deal with his brothers? Oh look, a convenient vessel of the apocalypse! But he can't just tell him what's gonna go down, because that would require trust, and then the ball would be in Sam's court. Telling Sam what was going to happen would have meant relinquishing control of the situation, and he doesn’t want to get too involved either. Better to stay in his comfort zone of using his alter ego to teach Sam a lesson from a distance. It works out excellently, obviously. Sam is particularly good at cutting to the chase, over the seasons- probably because he has a similar (but not identical) relationship with control and autonomy. And that's the first time we really see Gabriel break character. Then we get to see what imo is probably closer to what he's really feeling. When somebody takes that control of the situation away from him, it makes him either scrabble to get his mask back on, or get incredibly angry and absolutely fucking lose it, or he gets overwhelmed and runs away from the situation. Which is exactly what he does on this particular occasion. Sam calls him out, Gabriel realises that he’s no longer in control here, he gives up on teaching Sam a lesson and he’s off.

Changing Channels is a whole ‘nother ball game. The complete control Gabriel takes over the situation- literally puppeteering them around his own sets- he’s eve controlling their environment. Throwing the Winchesters around and teaching them a lesson like he can't do with their angelic counterparts. Bullying them into playing their roles, because if he can't stop the apocalypse, he needs to feel like he has control over what's happening somehow, yeah? The angry outburst when Dean calls him out. And that anger when provoked is another recurring theme. If I had to guess, I’d say that the anger is another shield, his third and final defence- this time though, it’s a shield against himself, and his own emotions about his situation. Gabriel is not about facing his emotions head on. Repression is the name of the game, and like nearly everybody on SPN, he’s very good at it. And then, finally, the Winchesters know who he is and the layers of deception peel away. Gabriel can't hide any more; they know what he is. He can't run away. And he manages to keep it together, just, but I think it's a close thing, because the bitter resignation as he finally explains to the brothers what's going on? That's as honest as he gets.

Then we get to Hammer of the Gods, and this one's a little different, because as the audience we're seeing Gabriel's shields and attempts to control the situation from a slightly different angle. Gabriel is cool as a cucumber while he's with the other gods, because he NEEDS to be otherwise they'll slaughter him and he knows it (story of his life- he can never trust anyone), but as soon as he's alone with the Winchesters, he drops the act, if not the attempts to control the situation. Then he spends the rest of the episode desperately running around, trying to maintain a series of ever-more-convoluted deceptions, until he finally has to face Lucifer. And as much as I love Gabriel's return, it was absolutely in character here for him to pull one last layer of deception and nope out of the entire thing. He's stressed beyond belief. His brother just nearly stabbed him. He needs some RnR and several liquor stores.

Maybe that's why he lets his guard down with Loki and relinquishes control of the situation. And immediately it's proven why Gabriel can never let his guard down, even with his ‘allies’, because they fucking sell him. Cue eight years of torture.

Asmodeus was probably the literal worst thing that could have happened to Gabriel. Because if it had just been pure torture, I think he would have held up quite well. But Asmodeus stripped away Gabriel's control and autonomy. All of it. He’s a slave, but it’s worse than that, they condition him and break him until he doesn’t even run away. And that speech in Unfinished Business? Wow. He felt absolutely violated by what was done to him, and it's never explicitly talked about, but it's made fairly obvious what happened. When he comes back, he has no walls at all, no deceptions, no control over his situation or himself, and he spends the majority of the episode quivering in the back of his own mind. Sam eventually manages to coax him out, but not before showing weakness of his own by basically begging for help, and therefore handing Gabriel a little bit of control back. And then Gabriel finally at the end of the episode manages to gain back a bit of control over his life when he realises there's an opening to kill Asmodeus, and WHAM, the masks are back up, witty quip time, look at me I've got my powers back and I'm gonna burn you in a very Extra way because this rage inside has nothing at all to do with how you ripped my self-control away from me. And then Sam asks for help, and he sees a potential for someone trying to control him again, and obviously, he's gone.

Next up: Unfinished Business. Whoo boy there's a whole lot to unpack here. First off he's hunting the people who sold him. Not because they're posing a threat- they probably still thought he was still with Asmodeus until he started hunting him down- but because they caused him massive trauma and REVENGE SIDEQUEST has a better ring to it than fall-apart-alone-because-I-don't-dare-to-trust-anyone. And Gabriel has to have control over his own reactions even more than he likes to control the people around him. Gabriel never lets himself be vulnerable, even to himself. And he is hurt, and angry, so revenge quest it is! He starts before he's ready, because letting himself wallow is a no-go, so obviously he gets stabbed and ends up with the Winchesters again, because they're his least-worst option. He knows they're hunting for him, but he went to them, so he's in control, right? RIGHT! So he spins the Winchesters a story (dubiously realistic emotional mask of hot babes and decadence ahoy). But obviously Dean's that git who can't keep his fingers out of the emotional cracks, and he pushes a little too far and Gabriel loses control, and we see what Gabriel's feeling again. Or rather, what Gabriel's letting himself feel, and that’s all anger. But under it, reading between the lines, there's the emotions that he can't control, that feeling of incredible vulnerability and violation, of having your control taken from you. And that carries through to when Loki, who obviously knows him, who Gabriel has obviously confided in previously ("boohoo, Gabriel with his mean older brothers"?), uses his knowledge of that vulnerability to absolutely rip into him, to really grind in the point while he's helpless, and even after he's defeated (by Sam throwing him the sword, not by Gabriel being able to do it himself), there's no celebration, there's no witty quips, because Loki tore down Gabriel's self delusions of control. It's an empty victory. And we see that in the scene outside where he's talking to Sam. The shields are back up, he has control of the situation and himself, and he knows that Sam knows he's faking being "swell" but at least going with the Winchesters provides something to do, a little more control for a little longer. But inside? He's even more vulnerable now, because Loki took away any sort of internal defences he might have had with his little parting speech. This is where his descent begins. His expression when Sam turns away? Absolutely hopeless and dead inside. His self-defence of anger is gone, and that's not a good thing.

I haven't watched the rest of the episodes quite as obsessively, but I'll still do the broad strokes. Getting it on with Rowena? Exercising power and autonomy over his own actions, with a healthy side-helping of "Could a depressed person do this??" He doesn't have as many problems with confronting Lucifer as one might expect, but then again, he's in control. He's got Lucifer drugged up to the nines before he even drops his disguise, and then he takes gleeful advantage of the situation to play with him for a little bit because finally, he's got control over that brother who caused him all that anguish! Revenge is almost second nature at this point. But he never breaks character through the entire confrontation. He maintains that emotional distance. Fast-forward into the apocalypse world, and I think Gabriel is genuinely deeply upset by his inability to heal Sam. One more time where he was absolutely helpless to do shit all, he has no control over the outcome, and he's not raging this time, but he's quiet and withdrawn, and that's a bad sign because he's nearly fresh out of coping mechanisms. Then Lucifer comes back. Gabriel spends the next however long scouting way way out ahead or skulking on the edges of camp, because he knows that this time, the ball will not be in his court, and at the end of the day Gabriel likes to avoid confrontation when at all possible, because why risk it? And we see him slowly sinking deeper into that depression, those thoughts that he'd managed to put off earlier through anger and revenge. He has no power. He has no control over what happens to himself or anyone else. But he manages to hoist the shields up reasonably well when Lucifer corners him, enough to get in a few good quips. But they're pretty damn transparent by this point. He's not cocky any more as he chews Lucifer out. He's just tired. And then Michael attacks, and, well. What do you do when you have no more power over your own trauma, no more leverage or self-belief, and the only control you have is which metaphorical train you throw yourself in front of?

Gabriel sees one last opportunity to take control of his destiny.

And he takes it.

#Gabriel #meta #supernatural #my metas #spoilers for up to s13 #implied suicide #because I don't think he ever intended on lasting long

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neojoli-neuroplasticity-blog · 4 years

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PL 209

In the paper below, it is addressing a book review called Neo-Colonialism and the Poverty of 'Development' in Africa by Mark Langan.

Neocolonialism history in a dark shed

As part of a huge African diaspora community, I feel I have a responsibility to encourage and downplay the significance of seeing Europe as this mecca for hope. I am not going to lie, being in Europe has opened my eyes and I thank God for giving me such an opportunity. Conversely, I do not say this with bitterness but with compassion that shouldn’t be translated as self-righteous or having a moral high ground. The West has portrayed itself on the global stage as the savior, the moral compass to guide barbaric/uncivilized societies into modernity. The West has gone to extreme lengths in erasing rich African history out of history books. Carefully orchestrated and painting false images of a people; and, putting them into a category that creates this complexity of superior-inferior perception. Neo-colonialism, a concept/theory articulated by Kwame Nkrumah was well versed and serves to what he saw as the destruction of African states after independence was won. The roots grew deeper, and through colonialism, western powers realized the power it could acquire through the resources Africa abundantly has.

Dr. Mark Langan is the author of Neo-Colonialism and the Poverty of 'Development' in Africa. He is a senior lecturer in International Politics at Newcastle University, United Kingdom, and has a master’s in development studies. His interests are understanding the relationship between the Global North and Global South, how trade influences development, the examination of donor initiatives, and critically engages situations that seem to revolve around African elites and foreign investment initiatives. Neo-colonialism is a good starting point in understanding the complexity of development in Africa and his deep analysis by stating that Neo-colonialism should not be abruptly be thrown away is far from utilizing and using it as a weapon. It gives context and furthers discourse, and opposing concepts are brought into the conversation. However, Langan is passive and lets his examples and factual representation by other think tanks narrate the story. It’s hard to identify where Langan falls in this dialogue. His thoughts on African sovereignty is unclear, and the book feels like it’s pandering to an audience that is highly agreeable to the matter. Opposing arguments such as Neo-Patrimonialism are not subjected to further analysis but given, “I understand where it is coming from.” This further leads me to believe that his undying love for Neo-colonialism stops him from becoming active in the book. The book is flooded with information that is repetitive and sounds like victim-blaming. Just like Marxism. Langan tries to differentiate the two concepts from each other to no avail. African states are plagued by bureaucratic corruption where civil servants pander to foreign corporations for illegal monetary gains. Beckons for the purpose of asking questions. There is a much bigger problem that should have been addressed. Fanon is introduced in the book, and one key point idea that should have been concentrated on was that education of self-image of the African people was essential. This book was highlighting the problems but was not addressing the problems or ways to overcome colonialism. Indeed, the book had its positives such as Langan foreshadowing what the chapter is going to be about before the beginning of a chapter. I mentioned that it is redundant, however, this serves as a reminder to the reader and draws emphasis on a point made. The language used is not complicated and has a glossary of all the acronyms in the book. It is very concise and not vague; every chapter is seamless as one reads. Even though Langan’s voice is passive, he seems rather enthusiastic in informing the reader and educating the reader. This is his primary goal as a lecturer and an author with over 20 publications. The structure of the book is divided into 8 chapters, each having its own significance. Whilst I read this book, I was relating this to Black Americans and the slavery they are going through at this very moment. The democratic party has captivated the Black people and reserved them as second-class citizens by impoverishing them through welfare. Furthermore, politicians have the agenda of keeping their votes via the Black population. Until this is realized, the change will not happen. This book serves as education but does not criticize the other party, the African govt/African elites or the African people. Tribalism and ethnic affiliations are traditional and there is a lot of history that is lacking in this book. My grandparents and most of my family members support the president because of his tribe, this is called confirmation bias, but when news comes out with allegations of corruption. They do not change their stance, reinforcing the idea of identity politics. This book offered an interesting insight that I did not know, on the contrary, it was also something that African citizens’ paid attention to. Equal blame should be put on African leadership. Former president of the United States, Barack Obama addressed the African Union and criticized certain African leaders re-elected after a third term. For example, the second president of Kenya, Daniel Moi was in office for 24 years. Nkrumah was ahead of his time, his raven vision on the involvement of Western entities, in the book Langan describes. “Nkrumah himself defined neo-colonialism as the continuation of external control over African territories by newer and more subtle methods than exercised under formal Empire. He viewed conditions of neo-colonialism as those in which African countries (which had attained legal independence) were penetrated by external influences to such a degree that they were not genuinely self-governing. Moreover, states under the sway of neo-colonialism could not attain meaningful economic or social development for their peoples, since policy was directed more towards the material interests of foreign elements than towards the needs of the local citizenry. African elites who took part in relations of neo-colonialism would govern on behalf of foreign benefactors and would in effect ‘betray’ the economic interests of their own people.” This got me scratching my head, what would be Nkrumah’s definition of self-governing. If a state is besieged by the influx of wrongful rhetoric and power-hungry corporations what should African states do? Should western news agencies share these stories and publicize on a grand scale? Should African nations overhaul the government system and start from scratch? Should African nations backout from faulty trade ties and take back and establish itself sovereignty whilst keeping foreign aid away? These are questions that could be answered by affirmative action taken by government officials. However, this is going to be a difficult task, I mentioned bureaucratic corruption previously and I was having a striking conversation with a friend of mine. I was telling her about this book I’m reading which I recommended to her and she told me about her mother. She was a civil servant that helped and bounced around through the Ugandan government administrations and in every department, she found corruption. She went to great lengths to eradicate this plague, but she found herself back to where it started. The analytical approach taken by Langan was appropriate in addressing such a huge topic. Maybe this story would work in Western media if it made major news. Take for instance what happened a few days ago, the Notre Dame incident. CNN reported, “France's three wealthiest families are coming to the rescue of a national icon, spearheading a fundraising drive to rebuild Notre Dame that has topped $700 million. The billionaires behind luxury giants LVMH Group, Kering, and L’Oréal on Tuesday pledged a combined €500 million ($565 million) after a massive fire ripped through the Paris cathedral.LVMH (LVMHF) and its CEO Bernard Arnault have promised €200 million ($226 million). The donation has been matched by the Bettencourt Meyers family, which controls L'Oreal (LRLCF). The Pinault family, which operates luxury conglomerate Kering (PPRUF), has pledged €100 million ($113 million). The three fashion dynasties have invoked patriotism and…” These elites create deception and brainwash the masses. Real stories need to be reported, expose the culprits that need to be held accountable, and push for these stories to be understood. This is far-fetched however, movements such as Blexit, Black people leaving the democratic party. Need to get more press time, I do however state that I do not categorize myself a right-wing or a left-wing. The psychology of how things work is fascinating yet an evolutionary concept towards understanding why our bodies do what they do. It is understood that when a party of three or more accept something that is false. We agree with things that deter us from accomplishing who we are as humans. We are all fighting for equality but to what extent. We have to acknowledge certain things that need to be rectified and news like Notre Dame leaves us to wonder why false/fake news is being broadcasted. As my professor says as I will paraphrase what she said in class, “We are constantly shown bad news all the time, we are not shown the good that is happening.” This woke me up, it seems we are going in a downward spiral of depression. We have been fine-tuned by the likes of social media, pornography, and other hindering gadgets. 1996-year born children until 2000 understand the capacities of third nature through technology. We are the product of a generation that started this whole process, but this is a story that would stop us from reaching the final goal of the essay. We must rise and publicize the good that happens in the world. It would give us hope as human beings. We have labels and false images of one another. Our bodies cannot detect whether we are scared or in love/attracted to someone. The science analyzes this in advanced experiments. Our capabilities to criticize whilst not knowing the real person is at a high probability, and there is nothing we can do about this. This is the science of body and mind. We must rise and believe in ourselves as individuals, we cannot fight for people if they cannot fight for themselves, we must extinguish all that is corrupt. At this very point in the paper, I must confess that realism to the smallest simplification as what we’ve learned in class; human greed will never stop corruption. This is overly pessimistic as the cycle will always exist. Change will not come in my time, the struggle of waking up to the brainwash is now. History has affected our present, and wrongful public perception and political power have ruined a civilization. A majority of which have not woken up and are still being used which is very unfortunate. Being an African living in Europe has really opened my eyes, and changed my perception of the world. A question I would like to pose for you professor, with the problem going on and hopes of things not happening is misfortunate especially from a psychology perspective. However, policies are being made that are happening behind closed doors. These kinds of news are not also publicized as much as it needs to. Criticizing a structure that is already corrupt due to a hierarchical association with high intelligence beings does not solve the problem. Corruption is bound to brew, even the greatest forces that should instill hope still suffer from this. In Langan’s book, the UN has been criticized for driving development money and poverty reduction transcripts that happen to benefit an elite than the citizens. Aren’t we all realists? Change should happen for the benefit of the entire race, not just people. Responsibility has to be accounted for and help should happen.

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