Hi. I'm going to try this again. I should have made sure to ask in the most recent comment box.
Anyway, I love the comic and was wondering if you could explain this "dying" thing some more.
Why didn't Brand, David or especially Hans (because he was at the 2nd level of digestion) "die" in their dreams? None looked like they were given a choice to die like Grace was. Indeed, they all look like they are being forced to undergo profound, positive character delvelopment instead. Instead of their dreams making them want to kill themselves. They are threatening horrible things unless they change. The right path becomes the most logical choice when it SHOULD be the hard choice as the Mist wants them to die. I don't understand.
Are all these characters instead on the road to freeing themselves instead? Has Hans freed himself already? He looks like he did.
Also, Grace was given a ridiculous choice. I honestly thought her answer was the best possible one given her choices but it seemed to be the wrong one. how could she have avoided "dying" in her case? Thanks a lot. Keep up the good work.
Grey's choice probably was the right one. She put herself in a position that was impossible to reconcile spiritually. As such, her death created a way out. She hit rock bottom. Now the question remains if she can climb back out stronger for the experience. Could she have avoided it? Possibly, but it would have required a frame of mind entirely different from what she was in.
Facing death in a Mist dream does not equate to break-down. Becoming mired in what it brings up? That's when you get lost. If Hans had chosen to use Brand's heart to puppet him along, even if it was entirely a lie, he would have been lost. If David had insisted on returning to the fight, or attacked any of the people he met instead of learning to view them compassionately, he would have been lost. If Brand had rejected the wolf's offer, or refused to release Starfire, he would have been lost.
Beast causes the repressed elements to bubble up in a person. It encourages them to repeat negative patterns. That does not necessarily result in an environment culminating in death. Just degeneration.
What it cannot do is remove the element of choice. It also cannot prevent good unconscious things from rising as well. Brand and David both have very potent positive forces in themselves, and Hans is actually capable of non-selfish love. These things rise just as much as the bad things.
The forward link on the page http://shadesofgrey.rydia.net/comics/sog05109.html connects to itself. Simple enoguh fix. Thank you for the explanation. Pointless sidenote: Brand's dream reminds me of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. I naturally don't think it's a perfect comparison (i.e. please don't eat me).
4 comments:
Hi. I'm going to try this again. I should have made sure to ask in the most recent comment box.
Anyway, I love the comic and was wondering if you could explain this "dying" thing some more.
Why didn't Brand, David or especially Hans (because he was at the 2nd level of digestion) "die" in their dreams? None looked like they were given a choice to die like Grace was. Indeed, they all look like they are being forced to undergo profound, positive character delvelopment instead. Instead of their dreams making them want to kill themselves. They are threatening horrible things unless they change. The right path becomes the most logical choice when it SHOULD be the hard choice as the Mist wants them to die. I don't understand.
Are all these characters instead on the road to freeing themselves instead? Has Hans freed himself already? He looks like he did.
Also, Grace was given a ridiculous choice. I honestly thought her answer was the best possible one given her choices but it seemed to be the wrong one. how could she have avoided "dying" in her case? Thanks a lot. Keep up the good work.
Grey's choice probably was the right one. She put herself in a position that was impossible to reconcile spiritually. As such, her death created a way out. She hit rock bottom. Now the question remains if she can climb back out stronger for the experience. Could she have avoided it? Possibly, but it would have required a frame of mind entirely different from what she was in.
Facing death in a Mist dream does not equate to break-down. Becoming mired in what it brings up? That's when you get lost. If Hans had chosen to use Brand's heart to puppet him along, even if it was entirely a lie, he would have been lost. If David had insisted on returning to the fight, or attacked any of the people he met instead of learning to view them compassionately, he would have been lost. If Brand had rejected the wolf's offer, or refused to release Starfire, he would have been lost.
Beast causes the repressed elements to bubble up in a person. It encourages them to repeat negative patterns. That does not necessarily result in an environment culminating in death. Just degeneration.
What it cannot do is remove the element of choice. It also cannot prevent good unconscious things from rising as well. Brand and David both have very potent positive forces in themselves, and Hans is actually capable of non-selfish love. These things rise just as much as the bad things.
Does this help?
The forward link on the page
http://shadesofgrey.rydia.net/comics/sog05109.html
connects to itself. Simple enoguh fix. Thank you for the explanation. Pointless sidenote: Brand's dream reminds me of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. I naturally don't think it's a perfect comparison (i.e. please don't eat me).
I'm not familiar with it. I should look it up!
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