Your answer is different from what's usually said about her, yes, but I do agree with you on many things here.
Annie is so interesting to me because how people handle her character in canon in their fanon/headcanon reflects their view of mental illness. It's disappointing when fans don't realize how ableist Katniss the Unreliable Narrator was whenever she encountered Annie. She basically says she tolerates her for Finnick. So when people take Annie's vague, out-of-context, unreliable characterization from MJ and portray her as a real person that, yes, has mental instability but isn't the wibbling, completely-dependent-on-Finnick child Katniss would sooner expect her to be, I admire that. Even though it's just the decent thing to do, some would rather just see her as Katniss does, more like an idea than a person - as you said. Basically, I'm glad that people make the effort to keep her actions in canon authentic while still fleshing her out as a person with flaws and virtues.
The fact that she's most likely (we don't get enough of her in the books for it to be canon, even when it's so obvious) very self-aware and self-sufficient while still struggling with her instability is, to me, a sign of strength in the sense that she's not going to give up. I'm not sure what other meta on her says more than that, aside from the 'mad poor girl' people. Though I guess someone could make it into this huge heroic thing when really, she just wants to live her life and working to improve is her only choice to do that.
The way you want to write her is awesome, and I'd love to see more of it, personally. ;)
Annie is so interesting to me because how people handle her character in canon in their fanon/headcanon reflects their view of mental illness.
Oh, I love that observation. How interesting. So true.
The fact that she's most likely (we don't get enough of her in the books for it to be canon, even when it's so obvious) very self-aware and self-sufficient while still struggling with her instability is, to me, a sign of strength in the sense that she's not going to give up.
I don't think there's a real question about whether she's self-aware? It's not like she's psychotic. Also I think District Thirteen wouldn't have hesitated to take away her right to vote on the Games if she couldn't make her own decisions. Or that Finnick would be comfortable having sex with her, for that matter.
I've seen people argue that Annie is secretly this super Career / River Tam kind of character who would go into the Quarter Quell and dissolve into a twirl of deadly martial arts moves. I think that could be fun. But sometimes, I get a feeling writers try to compensate for her mental instability in that way, like it's a weak thing that has to be evened out with an awesome thing. And that is a bit problematic.
Which is why it's obvious she is self-aware, yeah. But according to a big enough portion of the fandom to make me think that her canon characterization was inconsistent, or that some fans just really want her to be a child, she always needs Finnick to bring her back - no doubt stemming from the bit where she was upset by something Johanna said and held her hands over her ears, and didn't remove them until Finnick said something to her. But you're totally right; her entire relationship with Finnick would be disturbing if she wasn't self-aware enough to have agency.
I don't see that as much but you're right that it's problematic to have to balance out a person's mental instability with stereotypical 'strong' traits.
I sometimes think it's really hard for people to look beyond a protagonist's POV, or to look beyond what the narration of a book implies. I suspect people like you and me often underestimate how hard exactly.
Within the HG fandom, too. Mrs. Everdeen, Haymitch, and Wiress come to mind - and they're at a 'disadvantage' of sorts by not being young and pretty like Annie because then people just want to ignore them, like they're not worth romanticizing in fic. Usually the former two are criminalized, and Wiress fic barely exists, I think.
Annie is so interesting to me because how people handle her character in canon in their fanon/headcanon reflects their view of mental illness. It's disappointing when fans don't realize how ableist Katniss the Unreliable Narrator was whenever she encountered Annie. She basically says she tolerates her for Finnick. So when people take Annie's vague, out-of-context, unreliable characterization from MJ and portray her as a real person that, yes, has mental instability but isn't the wibbling, completely-dependent-on-Finnick child Katniss would sooner expect her to be, I admire that. Even though it's just the decent thing to do, some would rather just see her as Katniss does, more like an idea than a person - as you said. Basically, I'm glad that people make the effort to keep her actions in canon authentic while still fleshing her out as a person with flaws and virtues.
The fact that she's most likely (we don't get enough of her in the books for it to be canon, even when it's so obvious) very self-aware and self-sufficient while still struggling with her instability is, to me, a sign of strength in the sense that she's not going to give up. I'm not sure what other meta on her says more than that, aside from the 'mad poor girl' people. Though I guess someone could make it into this huge heroic thing when really, she just wants to live her life and working to improve is her only choice to do that.
The way you want to write her is awesome, and I'd love to see more of it, personally. ;)
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Oh, I love that observation. How interesting. So true.
The fact that she's most likely (we don't get enough of her in the books for it to be canon, even when it's so obvious) very self-aware and self-sufficient while still struggling with her instability is, to me, a sign of strength in the sense that she's not going to give up.
I don't think there's a real question about whether she's self-aware? It's not like she's psychotic. Also I think District Thirteen wouldn't have hesitated to take away her right to vote on the Games if she couldn't make her own decisions. Or that Finnick would be comfortable having sex with her, for that matter.
I've seen people argue that Annie is secretly this super Career / River Tam kind of character who would go into the Quarter Quell and dissolve into a twirl of deadly martial arts moves. I think that could be fun. But sometimes, I get a feeling writers try to compensate for her mental instability in that way, like it's a weak thing that has to be evened out with an awesome thing. And that is a bit problematic.
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I don't see that as much but you're right that it's problematic to have to balance out a person's mental instability with stereotypical 'strong' traits.
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That..... is true a bout a lot of characters across many fandoms, yeah, wow.
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