A very interesting post on a difficult subject. You totally succeed in showing the richness of the soul metaphor, how it can differ from one character to another and lead to different stories and interpretations, without forgetting to signal the possible contradictions between the metaphors. May I rec you an excellent article in Slayage n°18 by Scott Mac Laren :The evolution of Joss Whedon's Vampires Mythology and of the Ontologie of the Soul. He explains how two concepts of the soul coexists in Joss Whedon's universe and analyses the dynamics between them. Here's the link : http://slayageonline.com/essays/slayage18/McLaren.htm
I'm sure it will interest you.
Now about a very minor point in your post Simply, Giles was wrong. The counsel of watchers, the books they had, they all lied. It's not necessarily that the Watcher Council lied or was even totally wrong but rather that their knowledge was incomplete. In Innocence the scene with the Judge shows that some vampires still have some remainders of humanity but that others (Angelus in this case) don't. So there're different sorts of vampires. But of course, in normal circumstances, when meeting a vampire, for a Watcher or a Slayer, that difference surely doesn't jump to attention. :D Later in season three, the writers overtly use this theme in Beauty and the Beast, introducing a strong shade in Giles's opinion about monsters :
Giles: Maybe. Maybe not. In my experience, there are... two types of monster. The first, uh, can be redeemed, or more importantly, wants to be redeemed.
Buffy: And the second type?
Giles: The second is void of humanity, cannot respond to reason... or love.
But this as previously said is just a detail in regard to your subject. Thank you again for your work on this complicated subject.
I'm sure it will interest you.
Now about a very minor point in your post Simply, Giles was wrong. The counsel of watchers, the books they had, they all lied. It's not necessarily that the Watcher Council lied or was even totally wrong but rather that their knowledge was incomplete. In Innocence the scene with the Judge shows that some vampires still have some remainders of humanity but that others (Angelus in this case) don't. So there're different sorts of vampires. But of course, in normal circumstances, when meeting a vampire, for a Watcher or a Slayer, that difference surely doesn't jump to attention. :D
Later in season three, the writers overtly use this theme in Beauty and the Beast, introducing a strong shade in Giles's opinion about monsters :
Giles: Maybe. Maybe not. In my experience, there are... two types of
monster. The first, uh, can be redeemed, or more importantly, wants to
be redeemed.
Buffy: And the second type?
Giles: The second is void of humanity, cannot respond to reason... or
love.
But this as previously said is just a detail in regard to your subject. Thank you again for your work on this complicated subject.
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