Why the fuck they thought reordering the buttons on the neurodivergent hideout social media site would be well-received, I don’t know. But I sure do hate it.
I’ve said it before and i’ll say it again: THAT IS NOT A FUCKING METAPHOR, JOHN GREEN
Thanks for tagging me in this. I agree that what Gus thinks is the metaphor is not the metaphor in The Fault in Our Stars, but I do think there is nonetheless a metaphor lurking there.
In The Fault in Our Stars, Gus is indeed engaging in classic teenage attention-seeking by putting a cigarette in his mouth but not smoking it, and he justifies this by claiming it’s a metaphor for his agency, for his control over what happens to him. “You put the killing thing between your teeth but don’t give it the power to kill you.” As if you have the power.
But of course, the reader knows this is not a good metaphor. This is not how power or agency work–you don’t actually have control over what happens to you, and (as Gus eventually realizes at the very end of the novel) you don’t have any say in whether you get hurt in this world.
The actual metaphor is that despite our furious attempts to establish a feeling of agency, we never actually have it. And so of course Gus is wrong when he says, “It’s a metaphor.” The actual metaphor is that when Gus desperately needs to express his agency over what happens to him, he’s not even strong enough to buy a pack of cigarettes, let alone make a choice about whether to smoke them. That’s the metaphor–Gus thinks the cigarette stands for the control individuals have over their fate; the actual metaphor is that the cigarette stands for the control we lack, for the fault that is in our stars.
Okay i actually love this analysis
WAIT WAIT WHY ARE Y’ALL ADRESSING JOHN GREEN DIRECTLY
PLS TELL ME JOHN GREEN DID NOT RESPONDED TO MY SHITTY POST PLS TELL THAT’S NOT TRUE
Unused, partially miscolored sprite of Yoshi accosting Peach with an unknown purpose, found in development files for the SNES version of Mario’s Early Years: Fun With Letters.
The finished game does not have any equivalent to this image, and it is difficult to determine what Yoshi is doing. Various interpretations include attempting to hug Peach, tackle her, or grab her hand.
