I Feel Like The Main Difference In The Tone Of The Books Is How The Source Of Conflict Has Veered Away

Have you heard of the Proteus effect?

Hi! (Just wanted to say hi)

Hello! :D

silly kitteh :3

my little pwn-y

Just saw a post on a confession blog that made me feel so validated about that post I made a day or so ago. Suddenly, my insecurities about how bad I am at writing are gone completely.

I feel totally vindicated. Like my post was worth it. What I wrote last night fucking sucked, so I deleted it (because I couldn't make it sound right), but I'm glad that at least something I wrote resonated with people and conveyed what I had to say.

I read through that confession, and I'm just like, 'This is a problem and I didn't blow it out of proportion.'

It's a good feeling.

I feel like fans tend to ignore the line between "fictional kitty society" and "intentional veiled commentary of real world societal issues" when it comes to critiquing Warrior Cats.

When you read a piece of media, you will always come away from it with two seperate interpretations.

What the author intended

What the reader interpreted

Like, I don't think the Bumble thing was a commentary on abusive relationships in real life, and I don't think, based on how Kate or Vicky talk about and treat Warrior Cats, that it was intended that way, for instance.

—But, the parallels are there for those with eyes to see them, and I think it's worth noting that the fandom treats her situation as if it were supposed to be interpreted that way to start with— as an analogue for real abuse— and are incensed by the way the topic was handled.

Similar to Bumble, I see this with cats like Snowkit, or cats like Jayfeather, who, at the time of their being authored, were very likely not intended to convey the authors' stance on disability.

And, if Jayfeather were to do that then the best thing you can possibly say about his portrayal is that came from a well-intentioned, well-meaning place.

To summarize, I don't think Jayfeather or any other situation / character in Warriors is or was—

Intended to be an offensive caricature / stereotype

Purposefully demeaning to children or older readers with a similar disability, or in a similar situation as to what has been portrayed in Warriors thus far

That his character or any other character comes from a place of bad faith, or underlying bias

—even if some readers feel otherwise.

my ponysona Champion :)

I really like your warrior cat opinions. I want to hear more. Get controversial. Make the warriors fandom gasp and clutch their pearls.

OMG. My takes are not that spicy, I swear! It's just that, coming from other fandoms, the Warriors fandom— is like— conservative, I guess, is the right word.

During the month I've been here, I've seen—

>a JPN Twitter fan of Warrior Cats get shit on so hard by the ENG side of the fandom for drawing Ferncloud x Dustpelt ship art that they deleted their art and issued an apology for having made it.

>the Warriors Wiki implode on April Fools' Day because the jokes were 'too offensive' for Twitter users to handle.*

(*The jokes were Smudge being a fat cat, which he is, he's plump, and a Cinderpelt getting hit by a car joke).

>that the fandom anthropomorphizes the characters to an insane degree.

For instance, one of my favorite Super Editions is Crookedstar's Promise. I love Shellheart and Rainflower, and their whole dynamic. And especially Shellheart's talk with Crookedjaw at the end of the book.

But, saying you like Rainflower (I ship her with Lakeshine, BTW) is apparently a big no-no, unless you slap a big, 'I know she's evil, I disagree with her actions, and hate her guts, what a bad mom' sticker over your post because, if you don't, you're 'abelist'.

Crookedjaw is a fictional character, they'd compare me 'liking' his mother to me being discriminatory against disabled people in real life. Like, that's somehow on the same level to them.

>that Bluestar is apparently controversial and widely hated because she named 'Brightpaw' Lostface. I seriously didn't see this one coming. I love Bluestar and she's part of why I revisit The Prophecies Begin so often.

She's so compelling, and her character arc moved me deeply when I first read it. But, any and all discussion I see about her, when she's mentioned in passing, or brought up in a comment thread— is all about Lostface! And how 'abelist' Bluestar was, and how, her being senile 'I guess *grumbling noises* excuses it' (my impression of comments I've received on Reddit).

>that Nightheart is sexist and 'misogynistic'– But, is he? Really? How do you get there. What are the mental gymnastics you are doing to get there. That's insane to me.

>That certain ships are bad because—

*Whitetail was Onestar's apprentice.

*The cats you're pairing together have any level of shared blood, for any reason.

Even if it's through a family tree that's been released half a decade or more after the book said characters were originally from.

*Fireheart was too old for Cinderpelt and she was his apprentice.

*Hawkfrost / Ivypool is unhealthy— which apparently isn't a ship dynamic in the fandom, at all. (If it's unhealthy you just aren't allowed to ship it. Period.)

*Dustpelt was interested in being mates with Ferncloud when she was still Fernpaw.

etc. etc.

>that feathers are culturally insensitive to Native Americans so everyone is banned from using them in their designs. Because— I guess— someone said not to.

Does the fandom know that not everyone is from America? The writing team is from the UK. I'm American, but I just am. speechless.

Anyway— I could definitely add more to this post, but I'll spare you. I've carried on now for waaay too long. Thank you for your ask!

My biggest tumblr fear is making a sideblog and not knowing what to do with it. I just talk here. If I made a sideblog, it'd just be me talking somewhere else??

Ahhh, I can't decide.

It seems like it's just a recent development in the fandom, but I've never thought mentor and apprentice couples were inappropriate.

Has the zeitgeist really shifted so much that any deviation from the norm can be considered problematic? What happened to 'live and let live' or 'don't like, don't read'?