really the magneto verses xavier debate is the same as the gandolf vs. dumbledore debate. one is a washed up lame ass professor exploiting students and the other is sir ian mckellen with a cool hat- 100% gayer, cooler, more powerful
i started reading this book today about living independently as an autistic adult (written by an autistic woman, too) and the writer mentioned that one of her coping skills when trying to figure out her own feelings was imagining the situation in the context of her special interest (which happens to be history, and medieval history iirc), so when she was trying to understand her meltdowns, she put it in the context of people under siege barricading themselves in a town and how when they do that, while theyre safe in the moment, things will eventually boil over and they’ll have to leave and that was why she was having meltdowns. i really like that technique and wanna use it, since imagining my situation in the context of my favorite characters makes things easier for me bc i understand others’ emotions much better than my own.
the book is called ‘living independently on the autism spectrum’ if anyone’s interested. i read about 60 pages of it today and it’s very good and helpful. i really like that it’s written by an autistic person and there’s a lot of quotes in the book from other autistic adults who are writers, teachers, and researchers. it’s really good and tho im not done with it, i’d really recommend it.
oh also, i forgot to mention int he original post, but i really like the way the book is written. it’s very easy to understand. one thing i particularly like is that so far, it hasn’t called non autistic people ‘normal’ or implied that an autistic person’s way of thinking is ‘wrong’ or ‘weird’, and instead describes our way of thinking as simply ‘different from a neurotypical person’s thinking’. also they never call NT people normal or regular people and only use the term neurotypical for them.
it uses a lot of recognizable autistic language too, like stimming and special interest. there’s also a glossary of idioms where the writer explains what specific sayings mean.
thinking about the statement that all maladaptive coping mechanisms were helpful and, well, adaptive, at some point, and that they become maladaptive when the circumstance changes or when their detriments outweigh their benefits, and how the framework of “this is no longer helpful to you” is probably better than “this is a bad habit/this is bad for you.” How much better “you don’t have to live like that anymore” feels than “that’s a bad habit you picked up when you were in a bad place.” “It’s ok, you can look now,” vs “you’ve been tainted/infected/sullied by a previous bad circumstance.”
Thought about this today while reading about hermit crabs.
Hermit crabs start out their lives tiny and defenceless, and they choose a small shell to protect them. When they grow too big for the shell, big enough that it stops them from growing more, they abandon it and move on to a shell better for them at that size.
Does that mean the old shell was a terrible mistake? No, because it protected them back when they were smaller and more defenceless! But now it’s limiting their growth, and it’s time for them to find a better shell.
Humans, like hermit crabs, pick up shells when we need protection. Sometimes, we need to ditch those shells to keep growing! If we look at them as shells instead of Irredeemable Moral Failures, it’s a hell of a lot easier to let them go.
I remember posting somewhere once in a thread about why girls aren’t exploited in animation anymore where some guy said, “all the disney girls are drawn to be generally attractive, but I don’t think there are any eye-candy men… or are there? Are there any Disney men that lots of girls like?” and I mentioned Roger. Tons of girls replied agreeing with me and the original guy was like “wait, Roger? from 101 Dalmatians? What’s attractive about him, he’s tall and lanky and has a big nose, he isn’t muscley at all! Wouldn’t you all prefer Gaston or something? Or do you girls think his big nose is indicative of something else?” and I was like “no, you idiot, he’s a silly, goofy guy who likes animals and can play a bunch of instruments, that’s why he’s attractive. What’s the matter with you? Gaston, seriously?”
This is why we need more girls in animation. And more guys like Roger apparently.
This is why I laugh my ass of whenever dudes talk about how men are “objectified” by the media too. Because 9 times out of 10, what men think is “women objectifying men” are characters like Gaston.
And Gaston is NOT a woman-driven fantasy. Gaston is a male wish fulfillment fantasy. Gaston is not what women want, he is what men want to be. He is hyper-masculinity to an extreme degree, dripping with sexism and testosterone. The fact that men think that Gaston is what women want says an awful lot about those men.
While I don’t want to generalize, female fans tend to prefer a very different kind of male hero. We like the Rogers, the Milos, the Hercules. Genuinely kind, often awkward men who are sometimes vulnerable and respectful to women.
Yes, this is a generalization. I own up to that. But I think it’s important to remember that there is often VERY big difference between what MEN want to be and what women WANT in our media.
Reblogging this again because fucking this. And hell, even the muscley dudes (see: Khal Drogo, Hercules, Thor, Captain America) are loved, not because they are muscley, but because they are sweet and loving and adorable. We love Thor because his mispronounces “Hubble” as “Hooble,” not because of what he can do with a hammer.
Reblogging for the awesome comments.
I’m just here to say I love the animation of Roger so fucking much. look how fucking smooth and graceful and agile he is. 2d animation is amazing and i just want to hug it
All of this.
Okay, listen, to return briefly to the idea of Gaston: Beauty and the Beast is actually the first animated Disney screen play written by a woman. Linda Woolverton, the screenwriter, got a lot of attention for creating a self-proclaimed feminist heroine in 1991, but she also had a *lot* to say about Gaston. She didn’t stumble into that villain by mistake. She crafted him based on her own experiences with men and even her ex-boyfriends, and said: “To Gaston, Belle wasn’t a person; she was a possession. And I think it’s great for little boys to see that Beauty doesn’t choose him. Not only can they look at Gaston as an example of how not to treat women, but they can hopefully be taught by the Beast, a macho guy who is comfortable with his feelings and gentleness. He could teach a lot of men, in fact, about sensitivity.“
Not only is Gaston not a woman’s fantasy, he’s literally a woman’s horror story.
Reblogging for:
“The fact that men think that Gaston is what women want says an awful lot about those men.”
“Not only is Gaston not a woman’s fantasy, he’s literally a woman’s horror story.”
My DM decides to let the players in on the worldbuilding, and asks us what kind of town we want to start in, what kind of taverns there are, what kind of leader the place has. We can decide on almost everything, except the gender of the ruler of the place.
Player 1: “I think it would be better if it’s a male, as it’s a noble and it makes sense that it’s the son that gets the city.”
Player 2: “I think it would be more fun if for some reason the family had to give it to the daughter instead, that makes for a more interesting interaction…”
Player 3: “Let’s just roll for it. Odd is male, even is female.”
Both players agree to that, and the player begins to roll, but just before he lets go I call out: “Natural 20 and they’re genderqueer!”
Of course it lands on a natural 20.
We now have a genderfluid ruler of the town, who’s body because of wild magic keeps switching between being male and female when they start feeling like the other gender.
As one of the players said: “This is the most interesting starting town I’ve ever been in…”
lets make a new trope: gay characters who are actually seemingly impossible to kill to the point that all of their enemies are comically frustrated. functionally immortal gay characters. being gay making you immortal. unkillable gay trope.
Plot Designing 