The Dark Artifices, part 2

Sent by brucewvayne :

thank you for the long answer that was extremely interesting! I don't agree with you 100%, but I see what you meant, and I'm glad you clarified your dislike of the quote like this (that's what I expected, and I'm glad we share feelings). Now I'd disagree with a few things, but globally I'm all in with you here. I think the problem is that she raises really good questions, but if you don't look for the right answer, you don't find it. --

Like for the Maia thing? She never really forgave Jordan and she wasn’t ready to go back in a relationship with him, for the Isabelle cooking things, you realize pretty fast in the novels that it doesn’t matter if she can cook or not, but I think it might be because I wish to understand that. But it’s pretty obvious that if you don’t, you find yourself reading Cassie’s endless tumblr explanations about what she meant by the things she wrote. —

— Which is good, because it gives you insight, but still, well, it’s not in the books. So yeah, thank you for the answer, and I’m really glad I didn’t read it and just went “uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh” but more like “yup. yup yup”. Now it won’t stop me from reading TDA and all (I’ll keep you updated on the problematic storylines if you wish :p), but I see your point!!

Okay, first of all, I’m sorry for answering so late —I saw your messages on Saturday evening, read them, and didn’t really get a chance to sit down at the laptop until now :/

I agree that TMI (which i’m focusing on since I haven’t read the rest of the series yet) does raise some interesting and important points. Unfortunately, they’re not followed through.

Maia never forgave Jordan or her brother, that’s true, but her own thoughts state that she should. She basically feels guilty for not feeling sad about her brother’s death, and no one —not herself, not ther friends, not the book- ever says it’s okay for her not to be sad. And the absence of that statement makes the story sound like she’s right to feel guilty for not mourning her brother, or for not forgiving Jordan.
It probably wasn’t C. Clare’s intent, but it’s still what it sounds like.

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TV musings

You know, in a way I’m not that surprised that the viewing of In the Flesh dropped as the seasons went along (and it gained internet support)

Kieren, the protagonist, is a member of a minority who starts out wanting everyone to forget he’s part of said minority, to pretend he’s one of the majority. But then, as the series advances, he realizes there’s no way he’ll ever be a part of that majority, that it’s not who he is.
That’s why the scene where he takes his make up off after lunch with his family is so powerful –because that’s him deciding he’s not going to lie to himself anymore. That’s him deciding people are going to have to take him as he is and nothing else.

And I think, to a lot of viewers, Kieren’s storyline is a very scary one.
It’s scary for the members of the majority, who get to see how painful it is to be part of a minority in a discriminating society (esp. since Kieren started out as a cis white man –aka. he had some levels of protection against others. Make the same character with brown skin and the story becomes very different, I think).
But I think to a degree, it’s also possibly scary to people who are part of a minority. Of course, I can only really speak from a queer perspective, because even though I don’t see my skin as white, I can’t say I have much experience with racial prejudice, if any. But the thing is, when Kieren takes off his make up, when he basically comes out as an Undead person, things instantly go bad for him –very quickly, and very explicitely. That’s not a reassuring feeling for the member of minorities watching his story, I think.

So all in all, the drop in TV rating doesn’t surprise me, but the Internet support doesn’t surprise me, either.
The web –at least, Tumblr– is filled with people who are going through the same journey as Kieren. Not just being discriminated and hated for what they are, but also realizing that it’s not right, and that they want/need/have to fight that. Which, I think is probably one of the reasons why In the Flesh can have so much impact on us.

And to be honest, that’s also why I wish I’d started watching this series sooner, and that’s why I’ll recommend it to anyone who ask. because it’s an important process to witness and, in many cases, to go through, and I think having a character like Kieren can help with that.
Yes, there are flaws in terms of intersectionality –like I said earlier, the show is still very white, and very able-bodied, so intersectionality in the storyline only goes so far. Still, the self-acceptance journey is there and very well described, and that’s something I think a lot of people –particularly on Tumblr– can relate to.