Latest Posts by manicatlas - Page 4
dorian gray wasn’t even that vain, he was just 20. everyone has a moment in their 20s when they realise they’re actually kinda hot, that’s a part of life and it’s totally Normal. it’s not dorian’s fault that all these sexually repressed men are obsessed with him, nor is it his fault that he’s exclusively attracted to red flags. this is just what happens when you’re in your 20s </3
simple venn diagram
You gotta write for funsies sometimes. Everything doesn’t have to be groundbreaking. Like. Who cares if it’s a little silly it is made out of love
I love u mirror selves I love u doppelgangers I love u parallel versions I love u physical manifestations of alter egos I love u shadow versions I love u clones I love u dark but not inherently evil reflections of the self
tarot card reading except i just make "ooo" "ah" and "wow" sounds the whole time instead of telling you what the cards mean
I don't know if I just haven't encountered it yet, but I haven't really seen anyone talking about or acknowledging something that's neither Unverified Personal Gnosis or Shared Personal Gnosis, but rather a third thing: Personal Group Gnosis.
PGG emerges from a small group of people having similar experiences to each other, which may or may not resemble anything that people outside of the group are experiencing.
This isn't inherently a bad thing. But among those who lack critical thinking skills, it can lead to some real trouble if they conclude that their similar experiences means that they're uncovering an actual objective truth, regardless of whether it's congruent with anything anyone outside of the group is experiencing.
One thing that many people fail to account for is the fact that they and their group generally share many of the same preconceptions and biases. For example, a group of younger Wiccans are very likely to believe in now-debunked ideas such as the great goddess hypothesis and the witch cult hypothesis. They'll believe in the existence of pagan gods, but they'll probably have a Christian-influenced understanding of divinity and morality, with little to no comprehension of the role that animism played in the development of pre-Christian traditions, nor with any real appreciation for how different values influenced the stories that people told about gods and other spirits.
They might even be exposed to similar media, which gives them all similar ideas about gods, spirits, and history. Even if they don't directly engage with the most popular media, it can still reach them through second or third hand exposure.
They're also likely reading the same spiritual, occult, and esoteric writers; or at least, reading people who have very similar ideas to one another.
And finally, since they're most likely friends and therefore trust each other, they are naturally biased toward accepting each other's experiences as valid, and working them into their own mental maps of the spiritual or metaphysical world.
In short, they're all primed to have very similar experiences to each other.
Without awareness that exposure to similar ideas can influence similar mystical experiences, it's very easy for a small group like this to generate a sort of shared map of reality that they feel justified in regarding as absolutely, objectively true.
It's at this point that people begin to feel confident telling you that if you just talked to your gods about what they're claiming, your gods would absolutely confirm them to be true. And if they don't, you were never really talking to those gods.
Having one's entire internal map of reality dictated by Personal Group Gnosis can be incredibly dangerous. It alienates you from the rest of the world by making you feel as if the only people you can trust are those who agree with your PGG. It can make you see outsiders as spiritually inferior, especially if they disagree with you outright. It can even encourage conspiracy thinking, because attributing what outsiders believe (or apparently believe) to the actions of a malicious conspiracy is a very common rationalization.
In other words, this is how you get a cult.
Now, a lot of people won't recognize it as a cult (and some will vehemently deny it's a cult) because it might not have a clear leader (though there's almost certainly a small number of people who have the most influence), and it probably doesn't have a financial goal. However, the destructive capacities of small groups of people living in their own reality cannot be denied. Members who don't go along with the group's accepted model of reality are often treated harshly, and are frequently targets for harassment. They may say that if you don't like it you can just leave, but let's be real, that's no simple matter if you believe that these are the only people with a real grip on reality, or if these people are basically your only friends, or even just your only friends who share your spiritual beliefs.
(If you're in this kind of situation? My advice is to start making more friends outside of this group. You don't have to cut yourself off from this group cold turkey; you can just start hanging out with other people more.)
Now, I'd like to emphasize that none of this is to say that PGG is inherently bad; I am only pointing out that it can be incredibly dangerous for people who lack knowledge, perspective, and critical thinking skills. Additionally, a group where there's a lot of this going on can be very dangerous for those who desperately just want to belong and get along, and push themselves to adopt their groups popular beliefs for fear of consequences.
Just like a single person's UPG doesn't dictate reality for everyone, neither does a single group's gnosis. PGG isn't inherently any better or more "correct" than UPG.
It’s a content warning to you. To me it’s the reason it’s on my reading list
no more girl boss
now it's time for girl moss
Astarion sneakily getting a peek of Tav's sketchbook to see multiple drawings of the same guy and he's like "ooooh someone has a crush 😏" and then Tav just kinda has to sit there like "haha yeah sure do 😳"
This is just such a funny concept to me lmao
He takes a look at the drawings and is like ".... is he a vampire too...?" Everyone else is just trying not to fuckin burst out laughing
there's a certain amount of privilege and naivety that comes with the people who truly believe in the phrase "you can't fight violence with violence".
What exactly are the oppressed supposed to do to protect themselves and their families and their land that's acceptable for you?
Are they supposed to sit down and write love letters?
Are they supposed to sit down and wait for the world to pressure Israel into no longer oppressing them? I mean it's been more than 70 years, how much longer should they wait for nonexistent International aid?
How many more years of western media acting as though "those Arab terrorists" and one of the most advanced militaries in the world protected behind an iron dome funded by western nations are on the same level and that it's an equal conflict, are we supposed to witness?
How many international war crimes do Israel have to commit without facing a hint of consequences before it becomes clear that the majority of western nations do support Israel and do not want Palestine to be freed because it would be inconvenient for them?
How did you think we were gonna fight for Palestine?
by trending hashtags? by simply preaching "decolonisation" without physically doing anything? By voting? (lmao) be serious.
This is a war that's been going on for decades. Not some playground shit. Palestinians have been oppressed for decades. Hundreds of innocent Palestinians are murdered every year in cold blood. Hundreds are displaced. The people of Gaza have been trapped in one of the biggest open air tightly controlled prisons for a very long time.
Realistically speaking, this horror and this war is not gonna end by Palestinians sitting down, twiddling their thumbs and hoping the state that's shown no mercy and stopped at nothing to try and erase them will show them kindness and mercy all of a sudden.
This is the same state full of civilians that go around chanting "death to Arabs" on their own holiday. The same state who's soldiers and civilians make it a tradition to attack people simply praying every ramadan.
You think those people will stop trying to gain more land and wipe out Palestinians with treaties, kind words and gifts?
When will it be acceptable for Palestinians to defend themselves and for those in Gaza to try and break free from their prison?
What exactly were you expecting?
Maybe if I was prettier. Or maybe if I was more horrifying actually
idk how to explain it, but remus is girl breakfast, james is girl lunch, and sirius is girl dinner
i can take them (not in a fight)
art credit: @ave661
foolish one (taylor's version) is for the situationship girlies only
**I don’t mean which has the most trans characters/characters headcanoned as trans. I mean, which novel, as a whole, captures the trans experience the most. Which can be read the easiest as an allegory for being trans**
I wanted to put a more positive spin on the popular skeleton leaving meme
will you hug him? 🥺 👉 👈
(cropped & edited this image from my scaralumi comic)
the feminism leaving my body at the sight of miguel o'hara
speak now is for women only because i think men should speak never
I feel like when I say ‘relatable’ what I really mean is ‘resonant.’ I don’t want characters who I feel are like me, I want characters who have emotions so strong I can feel them through the page.
im taking my time reading it, though, bc i dont wanna speed through it and miss details. i've been poring over every single line like a madman
i don't think i've ever liked a book this much, and this fast the same way i'm so enamored by the picture of dorian gray after reading just the preface and the first chapter. it usually takes me a couple chapters to get a feel of a book, but with tpodg? im so fucking hooked HWJAKSBSJ
i don't think i've ever liked a book this much, and this fast the same way i'm so enamored by the picture of dorian gray after reading just the preface and the first chapter. it usually takes me a couple chapters to get a feel of a book, but with tpodg? im so fucking hooked HWJAKSBSJ
"defend your thesis" first of all why are you attacking my thesis.
some people think writers are so eloquent and good with words, but the reality is that we can sit there with our fingers on the keyboard going, “what’s the word for non-sunlight lighting? Like, fake lighting?” and for ten minutes, all our brain will supply is “unofficial”, and we know that’s not the right word, but it’s the only word we can come up with…until finally it’s like our face got smashed into a brick wall and we remember the word we want is “artificial”.
Me entering the Marauders' fandom:
You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself start shipping Harry Potter's dad and his godfather's brother.
god created man to be penetrated