TW: Pedophilia
Teenagers are rarely taught the reason why they can't consent to sex with adults.
And that's because teaching them that would completely unravel our coercion-based society.
It can be difficult to explain in detail the exact reason and all the specifics in a way that they will understand. But the simplest way to phrase it is that in some cases, even when someone agrees to something and even when they appear enthusiastic about it, there's too much of a power imbalance that it's no different than forcing them. Also, having power and being abusive doesn't require a conscious expectation to be obeyed.
Imagine a world in which every teenager understood that and was easily able to call out anyone who tried to convince them otherwise.
They'd know that there's no such thing as an employee consenting to working for a poverty wage, working in unsafe conditions, working long hours, or working without taking breaks. They'd know that there's no such thing as consenting to paying a bank overdraft fee. They'd know that there's no such thing as consenting to student loan debt. They'd know that there's no such thing as consenting to medical bills. They'd know that there's no such thing as consenting to generating profit for banks or landlords in order to have a place to live and being evicted or foreclosed when you lose your source of income. They'd know that there's no such thing as consenting to a police search. They'd know that there's no such thing as a child who's okay with their parents spanking them. They'd know that being dependent on someone does not mean that you can never criticize them. They'd know that if it's considered abusive to simply play along when someone obeys, then it has to be much more abusive to actively expect to be obeyed, which many adults do to them.
And people who benefit from a society based on coercion masquerading as freedom wouldn't like that.
So instead, teenagers are taught something dismissive. They're taught that what they want doesn't matter. They're taught that they're too young to know what love is. They're taught "it's the law". They're taught things that are insulting to their intelligence, which they'll naturally rebel against.
Maybe people don’t see me as believable playing a person of today. I guess I’m just more realistic in a corset and funny hairstyles.
cmon girlies we’re picking out a 10k+ single chapter fic on ao3 to read stomach down head turned towards our phones held next to our pillows as we move only our thumbs to scroll until our sedatives knock us out
"You're already six feet deep, stop digging and leave me here to die" vs "Don't you dare say you love me right now because I won't believe you mean it like I want you to"
wait why am i getting emotional over the fact that this is christen’s first major tournament in the solid starting position that SHE ALWAYS DESERVED
So, running with the idea that Lena fell utterly and completely in love with Kara (first) but thought Kara was unavailable (straight, bc, c'mon Lena flirted hard and Kara didn't get it), and with Lena's love and healthy relationships deprived upbringing and young adult life...
...I will always have a hard time not head-canon'ing Lena coming to associate "best friend" in regards to Kara (a name that in Irish/Gaelic even means "friend / beloved") with "person I am truly, madly, deeply, irrevocably, utterly in ...an emotionally dependent relation-- yeah, relation with". And it got so stuck in her brain over 5 years that even when they possibly maybe totally finally become a romantic couple, certified genius Lena Kieran Luther will refer to her Kara still as "my best friend" without so much as considering the platonic implication. Like, she knows they are "girlfriends" but her brain is hard wired to thinking "Kara = my best friend". And that wouldn't even be a bad thing, tbh, because even when they become a couple, they are still best friends first, forged through fire, hell and back.
And, yeah, she'd also be a total Luthor and call dips on Kara and stake her well-deserved claim every chance she can get and refer to her as "my Kara" even outside the context of the multiverse...
Lena: *introducing* "...and this is my best friend, Kara."
Kara: *whispering* "...girlfriend, Lena. We're girlfriends now."
Lena: "Right." *clears throat* "This is my Kara, my best friend."
Kara: "..um, Lena?"
Lena: *confused* "...what?"
Kara: "...you know what, leave it to me." *shakes person's hand* "Hi, I'm Supergirl and I am dating my best friend."
Lena: *muttering to self* "...but that's what I said..."
#Kue out.
Hundred episodes later and it’s still cool seeing it. (2012 / 2019 / 2021)
tragedy as a genre asks us repeatedly “why did this have to happen?”. why did medea kill her children? why did lear reject the only daughter who truly loved him? why cant estragon and vladimir simply walk away? we can accept the idea that these are events made inevitable by some facet of the characters personalities. we can argue that circumstances forced their hand. but ultimately we dont have these answers and thats why i think tragedy. is a genre so given to retellings and repetition. the why is tantalizing — maybe if we play it again, we can figure out where it went wrong. so anyways as always we’re back at hadestown’s “its a sad song, but we sing it anyway. to know how it ends, and still begin to sing it again, as if it might turn out this time …”
Art by Juan Ruiz