What Goes Around...
I figure that this is a perfectly apt subject for a post, especially considering the mood in the rest of the fandom right now thanks to the spoilers. You have to go look for them elsewhere on this journal - I don't want any accidents. For those of you who've read the spoilers, THIS IS A SPOILER FREE POST. Do not post them in the comments. For those ( Read more... )
I think there are certain - rare - cases where one can argue that sexual behaviour is problematic. Certainly with sex addicts, who just end up being unhappy with themselves, and ruin their lives, that case can be argued. But most of the time, it's not some girl who's not doing well at work because she has to have a quickie in the bathroom, it's someone who has more than one partner over the course of their life.
I think though, that many a fan suggests a contract (as if a piece of paper would stop Eric from doing it - like a speeding ticket pffft) to stop vampires misbehaving, when it would be easy enough to create fanfic barriers for Sookie to work with humans. I mean, this here is ignoring convenient truths. And you yourself have a way for Sookie's supe side to come into play, and humans that will work with her.
I don't think they are either. But there's usually a reaction to giving her a better job - which is "Thank god she's not a waitress any more". There was an outcry when Sam gave Sookie part of the bar instead of her money back, because that meant she wouldn't move on. Despite the fact that that made Sookie happy, that was ignored.
I wholeheartedly agree with you over the fact that she's been so limited. But I do think there's a big difference between what you did in your fic (give her a better job, more education) to making out like her problems don't exist. That if Sookie worked harder, cared more, she could be richer than astronauts.
Ah yes, but he gets there through virtually no effort. There's never a come to Jesus meeting for him, or 3 chapters worth of Pam bashing him upside the head, he's just twisted and justified. If he bit her hard, it's because he's not responsible in some way. When Eric and Sookie agree to sit down and talk, Eric never apologises for the litany of shit he did to Sookie, but Sookie *always* apologises for all of the stuff she did since DTTW or CD.
Heh - yes. It would have been something to pay back, or a favour owed if he bought her a new car. But that's the difference. I've seen it written more than once that he *would* buy her a new car, but that would make her have a "tantrum" and so he's being kind and considerate in *not* doing it. In that world, everything is a gift, and if Sookie would only "allow" it, Eric would give her everything. In fact, even though he said that "All who owe me fealty shall honour you" that he promised in DTTW? I've seen it said that he fulfilled his promise there because Thalia, Felicia and Pam are nice to Sookie. This is not something they think is earned through *Sookie's* efforts of kindness, but rather something that proves that Eric is a stand up guy. It pretty much ignores the whole "honour" and what that meant when he said it. The fact that Eric's vampires are not beheading Sookie on sight is now praise for Eric.
Eric didn't order that. The Queen did. I doubt she'd let Eric play his little games through her - she would have Eric over a hurdle if he made a request like that. But I think his refusal to acknowledge her rape at all - act as if it never happened - was just what Sookie needed. However, I don't think Eric's overall aim was to be a rape counsellor, merely that his respect for her situation, and knowing that it didn't change anything fit along with what Sookie herself needed.
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There's some confusion about Sookie's ability to be happy in her circumstances versus choosing what she really wants. I really do understand the pervading sentiment that Sookie is 'settling' for less than she could have, because she never seems to be given the opportunity to decide for herself. She never had control of her own ends.
I keep running through all these moments where she seems to be talking herself up, taking comfort in what little she has... it's frustrating to not want more for the girl who is able to say, with total sincerity, that she is "major lucky" in life, considering all she's been through.
To me, this is one of the moments where her Christian upbringing really comes into play... the acceptance of the things we cannot change, god never sends more our way than we can handle, blah blah, etc. This is the "opiate of the masses" part of religion that just infuriates me. She should - every person should - strive for more than just holding on to the cards that life deals to them. I can't tell if this is an intentional characterization or not, but it's a very true and unsettling depiction.
Oops, you're right. I had to go and double-check my companion. I remembered it was mentioned in the Secret Dialogs, but it's just that Eric made all the arrangements at the Queen's behest. Oh well.
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I think that's the wrong way to see it though. When I dated Mr. Minty, I didn't technically have choices. The boyfriend before him and all the previous ones - had been dumped for being a bit shit. Is ending up with any particular suitor actually an equal choice? I mean, in the choosing, there has to be a weighing up of what a good choice is, and what a bad one is. Bill was a bad choice for Sookie - yes, he's still an option, but he's not really a choice. She chose against him already.
I can completely agree with wanting her to have a lot, and have good stuff only. But then I think about all the bad things that have happened to people I know, and I can't help but feel that's kind of unrealistic. If I was to wish for my own mother (who's on my mind thanks to the above post) whose own mother didn't love her, abandoned her, abandoned by her first husband penniless with 2 small children, and then had my older sister die, I want something better for her. But that isn't really the way life works. It *doesn't* reward the good and kind.
But that's also just what happens. I don't think it's just religion, I think it's plain old life. The Disney version of life doesn't exist. What happened in the Steubenville case? Young girl gets raped, and then the world rallies round to support her and nothing bad happens to her again? No, that's when she gets death threats and people laugh at pictures of her naked and unconscious body and people feel sorry for the rapists.
While I think that Christianity encourages its adherents to accept their fate etc. I also think that the lies we can have everything we ever wanted *also* hurt. That's part of the reason why I actually - on a visceral level - like that Bill wasn't punished. So many fucking rapists don't face an ounce of justice, and it's about time we stopped telling people the fairytale that they *do*. I can't count the amount of times I've read that rape victims are "responsible" for future rapes if they don't report the crime - and that is supported by the lie that all one must to is cry rape, and someone goes to jail. The lie about things being perfect, and life rewarding you is a huge lie that hurts those victims.
:D So much to remember. I get it wrong sometimes too. :D
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