What the Hell Did Les Miserable Ever Do to You?
Disclaimer: Personally it isn't my say whether people like Eponine or not. If you choose to bash her in your own journal then I can't stop you, but please do not parade around the Internet about it.
I believe that I did post a rant before on another account of mine about Anti-Eponine fans, but since then fans have grown more rabid about their hate. Most of this comes from the Pit of Voles, but there are some who linger on livejournal communities and forums who carry on as well. So I typed up a new rant on the new myths that have been passed around since my last one.
Common Myths Created By Anti-Eponine Fans
For the most part, in every fandom there are a few fans that a small fact and wrap it around a huge lie. In this fandom it is far worse than that, Anti-Eponine fans will take a small fact and blow it out of proportion. One of the most common examples is Eponine's appearance. If you were to ask an Anti-Eponine fan about Eponine's appearance their answer would be, “Eponine is a lice ridden, toothless, anorexic, skeletal, diseased, ugly bum.” Upon hearing this, I research each chapter containing Eponine in the novel.
-Hugo stated once that Eponine's hair was disheveled. It was never stated that Eponine had a bad run in with lice.
-True, Hugo stated that Eponine was missing teeth, but she does have remaining teeth as well. Hugo also has a habit of leaving just enough for your imagination, so he never stated which ones were missing. For all we know she could only be missing her molars.
-As for anything related to Eponine's skin, even I'll admit that she was not clean. This is due to the fact that she did not have the money to afford luxuries such as soap. He also stated that she was slender, but never stated that she was so anorexic that you could see her skeleton through her skin.
-Eponine is not diseased, that is one of the most amusing myths I've come across. There was no mention of her current health other then that fact that Eponine was starving.
-Hugo stated that Eponine was beautiful. You cannot argue with the words of the author.
Now that I have discussed Eponine's physical condition, I will discuss some other ridiculous myths that are thrown around by others. These myths include that Eponine was whoring herself, having an affair with Montparnasse, a stalker who won't leave Marius alone, and of course a slut for wearing reveling clothing. I don't know what translation they were reading, but surely it wasn't the same one I read.
-Hugo never stated that Eponine was a whore, or even hinted towards it. She received the little money she had by begging off of others.
-There is a moment were Hugo states that Eponine runs off with Montparnasse, but does not at all say that she had sex with him.
-Eponine does not wear a corset, because she cannot afford one. She wears a petticoat because she does not have the money for proper clothing. She did not try to seduce Marius by wearing a reveling shirt. Her chemise almost fell off, because it was too big for her.
-Eponine follows Marius around, because she is madly in love with him. What did you expect her to do, completely shut herself away from Marius?
Finally I will end this rant by saying, I really do not care how much you adore Marius and Cosette's love story. That is no reason to distort Eponine in such a way that anyone new to the fandom would find her outrageously ugly and an all around bitch. Personally, I am not a huge fan of Cosette (and I will not get into reasons since that is beside the point of the community). However, I do not carry on in fanfiction, communities, forums, and what not (if I do say something it will most likely be in my own personal journal). Please give the same respect to me that I give to you. Thank you.
I believe that I did post a rant before on another account of mine about Anti-Eponine fans, but since then fans have grown more rabid about their hate. Most of this comes from the Pit of Voles, but there are some who linger on livejournal communities and forums who carry on as well. So I typed up a new rant on the new myths that have been passed around since my last one.
Common Myths Created By Anti-Eponine Fans
For the most part, in every fandom there are a few fans that a small fact and wrap it around a huge lie. In this fandom it is far worse than that, Anti-Eponine fans will take a small fact and blow it out of proportion. One of the most common examples is Eponine's appearance. If you were to ask an Anti-Eponine fan about Eponine's appearance their answer would be, “Eponine is a lice ridden, toothless, anorexic, skeletal, diseased, ugly bum.” Upon hearing this, I research each chapter containing Eponine in the novel.
-Hugo stated once that Eponine's hair was disheveled. It was never stated that Eponine had a bad run in with lice.
-True, Hugo stated that Eponine was missing teeth, but she does have remaining teeth as well. Hugo also has a habit of leaving just enough for your imagination, so he never stated which ones were missing. For all we know she could only be missing her molars.
-As for anything related to Eponine's skin, even I'll admit that she was not clean. This is due to the fact that she did not have the money to afford luxuries such as soap. He also stated that she was slender, but never stated that she was so anorexic that you could see her skeleton through her skin.
-Eponine is not diseased, that is one of the most amusing myths I've come across. There was no mention of her current health other then that fact that Eponine was starving.
-Hugo stated that Eponine was beautiful. You cannot argue with the words of the author.
Now that I have discussed Eponine's physical condition, I will discuss some other ridiculous myths that are thrown around by others. These myths include that Eponine was whoring herself, having an affair with Montparnasse, a stalker who won't leave Marius alone, and of course a slut for wearing reveling clothing. I don't know what translation they were reading, but surely it wasn't the same one I read.
-Hugo never stated that Eponine was a whore, or even hinted towards it. She received the little money she had by begging off of others.
-There is a moment were Hugo states that Eponine runs off with Montparnasse, but does not at all say that she had sex with him.
-Eponine does not wear a corset, because she cannot afford one. She wears a petticoat because she does not have the money for proper clothing. She did not try to seduce Marius by wearing a reveling shirt. Her chemise almost fell off, because it was too big for her.
-Eponine follows Marius around, because she is madly in love with him. What did you expect her to do, completely shut herself away from Marius?
Finally I will end this rant by saying, I really do not care how much you adore Marius and Cosette's love story. That is no reason to distort Eponine in such a way that anyone new to the fandom would find her outrageously ugly and an all around bitch. Personally, I am not a huge fan of Cosette (and I will not get into reasons since that is beside the point of the community). However, I do not carry on in fanfiction, communities, forums, and what not (if I do say something it will most likely be in my own personal journal). Please give the same respect to me that I give to you. Thank you.