What I've Been Reading: 5/20/13
Since I haven't done a linkdump in a while, I figure I might as well do one now. There's a lot here, so it's all under a cut, with very little commentary of my own unless it helps clarify what the article is about. Enjoy! ^_^;
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Sorry; that's what happens when I don't do this kind of thing for two months. ._.,
Honestly I chalk most of her problems up to lack of moderation in sexual activities (everything needs to be experienced in moderation IMO, that's the healthy way of doing things anyway) and I wouldn't be surprised if some of the commentators were correct, that she did experience a psychotic (or manic?) episode.
Now that you mention it, it makes perfect sense. I do find people who spend a lot of time thinking about and using sex to "explore" spirituality or themselves or whatever to be really obsessive, as if they're trying to be the next Marquis de Sade. Like, I'm pretty sure sex can be amazing with the right people and with good communication, and it's something I want to experience, but I'm pretty sure it's not that amazing, you know? It's sort of like using drugs to attains something important; obsessive drug users or sex-havers seem to go on about how you can achieve enlightenment or foster trust through their activities, far more than what kinds of "lessons" you learn through what they do, or how such things work; I'm sure you could do all the things they claim you could do with drugs or alternative sex practices, but I'm also certain you can do the same things without having to resort to such extreme and painful methods. (If this makes any sense at all. :P)
I completely agree with you about how the stock photos in articles about the Internet and social networking imply that online friends aren't real friends, and you make excellent points about how "selfies" can serve to create closer connections to people and all that. But I have seen a problem with narcissism on social networking sites, especially regarding teenagers on Tumblr, and just because you can make new friends and form close bonds with people using this new(er) technology doesn't mean the tech can't also blind you into thinking you're more important/special than you are if you're not careful.
Child soldiers exist in real life and are a staple of science fiction though, I don't find that a cliché as much as a trope and it's not always done badly.
True, but you don't see much media (especially anime) about what could really happen if children were used to fight wars, especially using futuristic technology like mecha (Evangelion's the only one I can think of at the moment). For example, sure the kids would grow stronger, more resilient, more effective fighters, etc., but perhaps at the cost of losing empathy, not having healthy ways of dealing with trauma, and the like. They'd probably turn out more like Ishmael Beah than a typical shounen/seinen hero. I think the point about child soldiers has more to do about the fact that most anime use the trope as an escapist fantasy rather than playing it straight.
I'm curious as to why you think Evangelion wasn't trying to deconstruct anime tropes. It sure did a good job of at least subverting the audience's expectations, like playing the tsundere role (Asuka) straight.
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