From: owner-stillpt-digest@smoe.org (stillpt-digest) To: stillpt-digest@smoe.org Subject: stillpt-digest V4 #13 Reply-To: stillpt@smoe.org Sender: owner-stillpt-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-stillpt-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk stillpt-digest Friday, February 8 2002 Volume 04 : Number 013 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: b/state of ["David S. Bratman" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2002 22:46:24 -0800 From: "David S. Bratman" Subject: Re: b/state of At 06:48 PM 2/7/2002 , Meredith wrote: >Xena has retreated so far into herself that it takes quite a lot to make >her wake up and see that turning herself in was actually the most selfish >thing she could have done. The world *does* need Buffy free and outside >-- we can't have both of our Slayers in jail, after all. And as much as >Buffy would love to run away from her problems for a free roof over her >head and three squares a day, that's not really a viable option. It's not that Buffy is being selfish per se, but that she wants to punish herself - which leads to a thoughtlessness about the effects of this on others which is allied with, but not the same thing, as selfishness. >Agreed on all counts. I would also add that her addiction is revealing >itself to be very high on the kinky scale, too -- though I can't say I was >surprised by the handcuffs. I guess on some weird level, it makes sense >that a Slayer, who lives by violence would be into the S&M thing. (Faith >sure appeared to be!) That is evidently Joss's theory, and since Slayers are something he made up, we can hardly gainsay him. Much as I'd like to try. >I'm not entirely sure Tara was right about that. Coming back from the dead >with such a spell might make those changes to a normal human being, but >Buffy is a Slayer. We've been led to believe all along that Slayers are >different from normal human beings, so maybe she was affected differently, >and just doesn't know exactly how yet. I fully expect this one to come >back into focus. I think I agree. How is Tara so sure nothing went wrong with the spell, especially after they all ran away? I expect a combination of: 1) she didn't find anything funky when she used her witchly tricorder on Buffy; 2) she might know more than we've seen her realize about what kind of spell Willow used, and didn't sense anything wrong; 3) she's just trying to reassure Buffy. Tara is not a hard-truths type; even her breakup with Willow was remarkably soft. >My prediction: the Nemesises will capture Dawn, and Jonathan will be the >one to let Buffy know where she is. Just a hunch. Others seem to agree. I commend your ability to spell "Jonathan". >>But why Buffy keeps >>_going back_ to Spike when she hates herself that much isn't clear to me at >>all. > >She keeps going back to Spike precisely *because* she hates herself. And >she can't stop. This is along the lines of the compulsive eater who hates >her/himself because s/he is obese, but since eating is how s/he copes with >guilt, it turns into a very vicious circle. Admittedly I've never suffered from sexual addiction, but I still don't follow it. The dynamic seems to me to be different from drug addiction, or from romantic addiction. Whatever the case, BTVS has persuaded me of the believability of a lot of odd things. That it hasn't persuaded me to believe in Buffy's behavior is at least partially the writers' fault. I haven't seen Buffy magnetically drawn to Spike, after the first time, the way a compulsive eater is drawn to the fridge. Imagine a regular story about romantic addiction: a woman repeatedly drawn back to a man who abuses her. There might be various reasons why, and it's the responsibility of the storyteller to demonstrate them. I recently read Anna Quinlan's abuse novel, _Black and Blue_ ("An Oprah Book Club selection!"), in which the runaway wife narrator spends considerable time explaining, quite effectively, why she didn't run away earlier, and why she did so when she did it. >>We have an escalating >>dissonance between the Buffy who cries in self-loathing in Tara's lap and >>the Buffy who is now so at ease with Spike that they have casual >>post-coital chats. > >Ah, but don't forget the timing: we see Buffy having a casual post-coital >chat with Spike *before* she collapses into self-loathing at the end. I'd >be surprised if we see such a chat occur again. Ah, but don't forget that the self-loathing Buffy has been well in evidence since immediately after her first sexual encounter with Spike. Tara's lap is merely its most extreme manifestation to date. Will we not see such a chat again? I was surprised we saw it this time, and so was Buffy when Spike pointed it out. ------------------------------ End of stillpt-digest V4 #13 ****************************