Post by mistytail on Aug 31, 2012 16:36:51 GMT -6
I've been thinking about this for some time now and wanted to share my thoughts with you guys. Forgive me for not providing exact quotes, it's been a very long time since I've read the series, so I tend to forget in which books and in which PART of the books they happened, so it's hard to try to zero in on one sentence or two when I don't know what I'm looking for in the first place. If there is anything I'm mistaken on, please feel free to correct me, I don't mind.
So, Ashfur. I think people forget how tragic his life is - or rather, it should be. We know Ashfur now as the cat who became so spiteful of an ex-girlfriend that he tried not only to murder his ex's kids, but his Clan leader, just to get back at her. It's also hinted (incredibly badly, I might add) that he has somehow slipped into a sort of mental instability. Then, he is murdered by Hollyleaf for what later turns out to be completely meaningless reasons. We should find this either utterly tragic and heartbreaking, or intensely frightening and disturbing, especially for a children's book series. But... we don't. And here's why I think that is.
We, as readers, have known Ashfur since he was born. We have watched him grow up, if only in the background of more plot-central characters like Firestar or Brambleclaw. We saw his pain when his friend was killed by dogs, the other horribly maimed by them. We felt his grief when his mother was then murdered by Tigerstar to feed those same animals. We cheered when he and his sister began the relay that would rid the forest of the dog pack, and foil Tigerstar's plan in the process. We watched him and the other apprentices avenge Whitestorm in the battle with BloodClan. We smiled when he saw that he had a warrior name in the allegiances of Midnight. From then on, whatever was going on, we knew Ashfur was there, a good warrior trying his best to work hard for his Clan.
But then along comes Squirrelflight, a pretty young warrior who has had a falling out with a cat she very obviously fancied. Suddenly, she's paying attention to Ashfur, good old Ashfur, lonely Ashfur. And on some level, we're happy for him, right? We should be - I mean, after all this time, and all Ashfur has been through, we should be happy he's getting all the attention for once.
But then, nope, false alarm, she was actually never really interested in him at all in the first place. Now that hurts, that really does. So, obviously the next course of action would be to deal with it, move on, and find someone n-- ... Or plot with an enemy warrior and try to kill your Clan leader and your ex's kids. Okay.
See how it stops working?
Ashfur's motivations for his horrendous, awful actions are lame. The fact that Squirrelflight didn't love him isn't an excuse for what he did. It's not even a bad excuse or reason. It's just lazy writing for the sake of a "oh, wow, what an evil cat, look how insane he is!" ending. (We'll talk about that shoddy attempt at "mental instability" in a second.) If Squirrelflight actually did something to him other than break up with him, then maybe. But anything relating to this bad relationship just doesn't work, because not even the worst of relationships can make a perfectly normal warrior snap like that. Being bitter about it, yes. I understand Ashfur's complaints about Brambleclaw being chosen as deputy, because not only is he bitter that Squirrelflight chose Brambleclaw over him, but his explanation is correct: Brambleclaw being picked by his mate's sister is a pretty fishy move. I could understand him being portrayed as a callous jerk throughout the rest of the series. That would make sense. But suddenly turning both murderous and traitorous? ... No.
And, no, "mental instability" is not an excuse or a reason for his behavior, either. While this is mostly the fault of the fanon (which glorifies evil and mental illness as it is), the canon itself does in fact hint at Ashfur being suddenly not all there.
-Long Shadows, page 273, American Hardcover
This is indicative that Ashfur suddenly has hallucinations. Why? Was this ever hinted at before? We don't know, and definitely not. Again, cheap, lazy writing for the sake of having a new villain. And is anyone else royally offended by yet another portrayal of mental illness turning somebody murderous and evil? So much for tackling "big issues," Erin Hunter. Talk to Nickelodeon Magazine all you want about how you maturely deal with racism (how???) while you let crap like this fly.
You know what? Maybe Ashfur could have become horribly, cripplingly depressed by what Squirrelflight did to him. That is plausible. He already endured so much pain and loss in his life, and that was a particularly cruel one. But you know what? Depression like that would make him more likely to kill himself, not his ex's kits and certainly not his Clan leader. But, no, we can't maturely talk about how pain and using other people when you're mad at somebody else can be an awful thing, so instead we'll just turn the victim crazy and make him the villain, how original!
This is why Ashfur doesn't work. He's not even a villain. He's just a sloppy caricature of one that ruins the development of an otherwise average warrior.
I don't know. I'm getting really angry now at the writing so I'm not even making sense in my own head and don't have a very good conclusion other than those two sentences, so I'm gonna open up the floor here: Do you agree? Disagree? Why or why not? Any other thoughts or things I forgot to mention? Let loose, guys. c:
So, Ashfur. I think people forget how tragic his life is - or rather, it should be. We know Ashfur now as the cat who became so spiteful of an ex-girlfriend that he tried not only to murder his ex's kids, but his Clan leader, just to get back at her. It's also hinted (incredibly badly, I might add) that he has somehow slipped into a sort of mental instability. Then, he is murdered by Hollyleaf for what later turns out to be completely meaningless reasons. We should find this either utterly tragic and heartbreaking, or intensely frightening and disturbing, especially for a children's book series. But... we don't. And here's why I think that is.
We, as readers, have known Ashfur since he was born. We have watched him grow up, if only in the background of more plot-central characters like Firestar or Brambleclaw. We saw his pain when his friend was killed by dogs, the other horribly maimed by them. We felt his grief when his mother was then murdered by Tigerstar to feed those same animals. We cheered when he and his sister began the relay that would rid the forest of the dog pack, and foil Tigerstar's plan in the process. We watched him and the other apprentices avenge Whitestorm in the battle with BloodClan. We smiled when he saw that he had a warrior name in the allegiances of Midnight. From then on, whatever was going on, we knew Ashfur was there, a good warrior trying his best to work hard for his Clan.
But then along comes Squirrelflight, a pretty young warrior who has had a falling out with a cat she very obviously fancied. Suddenly, she's paying attention to Ashfur, good old Ashfur, lonely Ashfur. And on some level, we're happy for him, right? We should be - I mean, after all this time, and all Ashfur has been through, we should be happy he's getting all the attention for once.
But then, nope, false alarm, she was actually never really interested in him at all in the first place. Now that hurts, that really does. So, obviously the next course of action would be to deal with it, move on, and find someone n-- ... Or plot with an enemy warrior and try to kill your Clan leader and your ex's kids. Okay.
See how it stops working?
Ashfur's motivations for his horrendous, awful actions are lame. The fact that Squirrelflight didn't love him isn't an excuse for what he did. It's not even a bad excuse or reason. It's just lazy writing for the sake of a "oh, wow, what an evil cat, look how insane he is!" ending. (We'll talk about that shoddy attempt at "mental instability" in a second.) If Squirrelflight actually did something to him other than break up with him, then maybe. But anything relating to this bad relationship just doesn't work, because not even the worst of relationships can make a perfectly normal warrior snap like that. Being bitter about it, yes. I understand Ashfur's complaints about Brambleclaw being chosen as deputy, because not only is he bitter that Squirrelflight chose Brambleclaw over him, but his explanation is correct: Brambleclaw being picked by his mate's sister is a pretty fishy move. I could understand him being portrayed as a callous jerk throughout the rest of the series. That would make sense. But suddenly turning both murderous and traitorous? ... No.
And, no, "mental instability" is not an excuse or a reason for his behavior, either. While this is mostly the fault of the fanon (which glorifies evil and mental illness as it is), the canon itself does in fact hint at Ashfur being suddenly not all there.
"All this was moons ago." Squirrelflight sounded puzzled. "Ashfur, I had no idea you were still upset."
"Upset?" Ashfur echoed. "I'm not upset. You have no idea how much pain I'm in. It's like being cut open every day, bleeding onto the stones. I can't understand how any of you failed to see the blood..."
His eyes clouded and his voice took on a wild, distant tone, as if he could see the blood spilling out of him now, sizzling on the burning ground."
"Upset?" Ashfur echoed. "I'm not upset. You have no idea how much pain I'm in. It's like being cut open every day, bleeding onto the stones. I can't understand how any of you failed to see the blood..."
His eyes clouded and his voice took on a wild, distant tone, as if he could see the blood spilling out of him now, sizzling on the burning ground."
-Long Shadows, page 273, American Hardcover
This is indicative that Ashfur suddenly has hallucinations. Why? Was this ever hinted at before? We don't know, and definitely not. Again, cheap, lazy writing for the sake of having a new villain. And is anyone else royally offended by yet another portrayal of mental illness turning somebody murderous and evil? So much for tackling "big issues," Erin Hunter. Talk to Nickelodeon Magazine all you want about how you maturely deal with racism (how???) while you let crap like this fly.
You know what? Maybe Ashfur could have become horribly, cripplingly depressed by what Squirrelflight did to him. That is plausible. He already endured so much pain and loss in his life, and that was a particularly cruel one. But you know what? Depression like that would make him more likely to kill himself, not his ex's kits and certainly not his Clan leader. But, no, we can't maturely talk about how pain and using other people when you're mad at somebody else can be an awful thing, so instead we'll just turn the victim crazy and make him the villain, how original!
This is why Ashfur doesn't work. He's not even a villain. He's just a sloppy caricature of one that ruins the development of an otherwise average warrior.
I don't know. I'm getting really angry now at the writing so I'm not even making sense in my own head and don't have a very good conclusion other than those two sentences, so I'm gonna open up the floor here: Do you agree? Disagree? Why or why not? Any other thoughts or things I forgot to mention? Let loose, guys. c:
