(no subject)

[labellementeuse]

1. Grades: A+, A, A-, which means I have successfully kept every grade this year within the A range (which was my goal for the year). The A- is a bit disappointing but fully deserved since my final essay was two weeks late and basically rubbish (it was the one about Stargate and pregnant women, a final version of which I will post here at some point, but trust me, it didn't get better than the snippet I already posted.) My grade point average was a full .8 higher than my next best year's GPA: I think that counts as a successful year.

2. Potentially unpopular fannish opinion about Merlin: Gaius is giving Morgana drugs that he tells her are to help her sleep, but are really to stop her having prophetic dreams - to suppress her talents as a Seer. Talents, therefore, that she will be unable to understand, practise, test the limits of, USE - or possibly even recognise. The degree to which Morgana is aware of herself as a Seer is not made very clear in canon but there is a good chance that she's not much aware of it at all. Note, too, that the nightmares she has because she can't control her gifts, and that she is obviously still having, doubtless disturb her sleep and affect her quality of life.

All that being said: Gaius is maybe a bad man, and is definitely doing something that is seriously wrong. He's drugging Morgana without her consent. Now, a friend pointed out that he's been doing this for Morgana since she was a small child. OK: fine. *Maybe* this was excusable when she was 9. But it becomes less excusable when she is 14, 16, and is absolutely inexcusable when she is however old she's supposed to be now. [The dynamic of older guy literally disempowering younger woman is... well, let's just not talk about that, shall we?]

But that doesn't bug me. What bugs me is the total inability of two groups to recognise that Gaius is doing something bad: 1. The show; and 2. The fandom. The show not recognising that something bad is going on here is disappointing but fairly predictable; mmm, tasty paternalism! On the other hand, fandom is usually okay at picking up on this, but I haven't heard anyone so much as mention it. Ugh!

3. I'm totally back in Wellington and need people to catch up with. ♥?

Comments

[shoeless-girl.livejournal.com]

1. That's awesome - congratulations :)
2. I have no opinion on this other than I should probably watch Merlin at some stage.
3. ♥ Are you working? What are you doing with your days at the moment? Would you like to meet up for lunch or something?

[amarynth.livejournal.com]

Congratulations.

[niennahirilfea.livejournal.com]

Well done! That's awesome!

[chattycheese.livejournal.com]

3. I'm totally back in Wellington and need people to catch up with. ♥?

jealousssssss. It's about -4C outside and precipitating right now.

[kuril.livejournal.com]

Congrats on the grades! I hope to mirror that here soon. Although I might break my fingers trying to keep them sufficiently entwined enough to do so. Have fun in Wellington!

[megaffe.livejournal.com]

As the person you were already dicussing this with - did I mention you completely conviced me, once you'd made your case? Really good point.
*sighs* I like Merlin. Why do TV shows always fail on the big issues?

[stlkrchck.livejournal.com]

I wish I could tell you how I ended up here, but I really can't remember. However, I just wanted to agree with you on (2). Exactly. What Gaius is doing is, at best, morally ambiguous--and I would go with you on saying it's just outright wrong. I think it becomes clearer when you look at it in modern terms: this is a doctor refusing to share a diagnosis with his patient. It surprises me that more people don't recognize this and instead see it simply as a good thing: Gaius protecting Morgana.