2014/04/14 [Matilda #58] Deception

[Rafe]

Deception for money, no less.  And she seems rather ashamed about it.

If you remember, the title page for this story HERE shows a very intricate looking mask.  Seeing how Matilda feels about things now, that mask has a significant, and very poignant meaning.

Trying to think what Matilda must be feeling, a poem by Paul Lawrence Dunbar popped into my head:

   We wear the mask that grins and lies,
   It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes,—
   This debt we pay to human guile;
   With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,
   And mouth with myriad subtleties.

   Why should the world be over-wise,
   In counting all our tears and sighs?
   Nay, let them only see us, while
           We wear the mask.

   We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries
   To thee from tortured souls arise.
   We sing, but oh the clay is vile
   Beneath our feet, and long the mile;
   But let the world dream otherwise,
           We wear the mask!

[MT Hazard]

Money, dear boy is a good enough reason for many and I can't really fault her for this. Even if her brother wasn't the monster she made out he still made a very selfish decision.

[Lorien077]

I'm interested in reading her and Dan's discourse on the subject in upcoming pages, it'll likely prove enlightening.

Money, dear boy is a good enough reason for many and I can't really fault her for this. Even if her brother wasn't the monster she made out he still made a very selfish decision.

Augh I have so many mixed feelings.  I agree with you but I also don't in some ways; is it really selfish for Matilda to take an opportunity to thrive in an environment she was ousted into that would very likely have killed her were it not for a streak of luck?  (If she didn't bumble into those adventurers she would have likely starved to death or died after trying to eat.)  Especially since while said opportunity is definitely in bad taste (sullying the reputation of her dead brother and people in general) its not as if she made a deal with someone who would bring harm to the Blue Volcano mythos.

[Yarott]

I'm still kinda confused as to how this would work In real life. Unless, are programs like Oprah and such like this? Am I living a lie?

[HoneyBadger]

I was very amazed after reading Matilda's response to Dan's question and I was thinking "Wow, Matilda, you really do regret doing that."   



On the other note, I can't wait for next Monday's update because I want to see more of Dan and Matilda's interaction with each other!  They make SUCH a good couple! 

[Jigsaw Forte]

Money, dear boy is a good enough reason for many and I can't really fault her for this. Even if her brother wasn't the monster she made out he still made a very selfish decision.

Pretty sure this is closer to I Was Young and Needed The Money...

[Grey Wolf]

Money, dear boy is a good enough reason for many and I can't really fault her for this. Even if her brother wasn't the monster she made out he still made a very selfish decision.

First on Matilda's deception, I agree with you. More than just money to pay off school bills and set up a means of making a living, she was granted citizenship. I don't know that Zinvth's immigration stuff is anything like America's, but I still imagine it can't be all that easy. She offered to tell the truth; they didn't want it. She made a decision that increased her likelihood of surviving in a strange, new world.

On Heshi's actions, I think you're oversimplifying things. Not only did he just suffer a tremendously traumatic loss (ask anyone who's lost a parent, or God forbid, both), he was very likely mentally ill. The way Heshi behaved in the little we saw of him looks a lot like clinical depression. Our culture, in the real world, today doesn't handle mental illness well; I highly doubt his culture had much in the way of treatment or support. And unless Heshi had a specific plan to kill himself after his father died (which is possible), he probably wasn't thinking clearly.

I can't speak for all depressed people, but as long as we're quoting poetry I'll mention a translation of Rainer Maria Rilke's "The Panther" by Stephen Mitchell. There's a line and a half of that poem that explain what suicidal depression feels like better than I ever could:
It seems to him there are/a thousand bars; and behind the bars, no world.

[HaDDea]

I'm interested in reading her and Dan's discourse on the subject in upcoming pages, it'll likely prove enlightening.

Money, dear boy is a good enough reason for many and I can't really fault her for this. Even if her brother wasn't the monster she made out he still made a very selfish decision.

Augh I have so many mixed feelings.  I agree with you but I also don't in some ways; is it really selfish for Matilda to take an opportunity to thrive in an environment she was ousted into that would very likely have killed her were it not for a streak of luck?  (If she didn't bumble into those adventurers she would have likely starved to death or died after trying to eat.)  Especially since while said opportunity is definitely in bad taste (sullying the reputation of her dead brother and people in general) its not as if she made a deal with someone who would bring harm to the Blue Volcano mythos.

But this show was made in Zinvth - the Demon city. Taking on BV Mythos might suddenly become a worthy challenge after this show. And her story paints her people as mindless, bloodthirsty savages, stuck in old, dead ways rather than as the more complex people we got to see, with traditions in place for a reason - and there's nothing that reduces a person's inherent value faster than painting them in terms of stereotypes. She probably could've made the money too, albeit much more slowly. I can understand the pressure on her to take easy money and citizenship offered (especially after so much kindness was shown to her), but... as Matilda said, she sold out her entire people group to do it. So... yeah, its selfish (hence why she doesn't feel too good about the whole thing).

[Jigsaw Forte]

I'm interested in reading her and Dan's discourse on the subject in upcoming pages, it'll likely prove enlightening.

Money, dear boy is a good enough reason for many and I can't really fault her for this. Even if her brother wasn't the monster she made out he still made a very selfish decision.

Augh I have so many mixed feelings.  I agree with you but I also don't in some ways; is it really selfish for Matilda to take an opportunity to thrive in an environment she was ousted into that would very likely have killed her were it not for a streak of luck?  (If she didn't bumble into those adventurers she would have likely starved to death or died after trying to eat.)  Especially since while said opportunity is definitely in bad taste (sullying the reputation of her dead brother and people in general) its not as if she made a deal with someone who would bring harm to the Blue Volcano mythos.

But this show was made in Zinvth - the Demon city. Taking on BV Mythos might suddenly become a worthy challenge after this show. And her story paints her people as mindless, bloodthirsty savages, stuck in old, dead ways rather than as the more complex people we got to see, with traditions in place for a reason - and there's nothing that reduces a person's inherent value faster than painting them in terms of stereotypes. She probably could've made the money too, albeit much more slowly. I can understand the pressure on her to take easy money and citizenship offered (especially after so much kindness was shown to her), but... as Matilda said, she sold out her entire people group to do it. So... yeah, its selfish (hence why she doesn't feel too good about the whole thing).

But as Dan pointed out (and was considered common knowledge prior to this), any BV found outside the volcano was a bloodthirsty exiled monster ANYWAY, because that's the only type they kicked out.

Unless BV meat is considered a delicacy now to the point that people are invading the old tunnels, this is more a case of 'no harm no foul' -- especially as the thing she was actually caught lying about was her brother's depression / suicide, and the rest of BV culture was painted otherwise fairly.

[joshofspam]

I don't really fault either Matilda or her brother.

To be honest, it may have been a lie, but it was a lie they wanted to hear and she would need schooling and money to build her future in this new culture she lives in.

She does have some fond memories from back then, but considering she's banished from there and her culture practically destroyed what was left of her family, I don't think she really owes it any real favors in how she paints it. But at the same time, it's rather tragic how she has to lie about her family and culture to get this second chance rolling.

[tikitori]

The story on Jenelle is understandable-selfish, but understandable.

But why still hide the fact that her brother committed suicide? Unless she told Dan, that's something her own sister doesn't know about and a burden Matilda carries alone. She had a reason to lie about it on Jenelle, but not to her sister/elders/Dan.

And yes, there are plenty of reasons she could still be hiding this (Ashamed/wanted to protect her brother's memory/too sad), but the official motive is still unknown. That's something I hope to find out.

[Alondro]

Trying to think what Matilda must be feeling, a poem by Paul Lawrence Dunbar popped into my head:

   We wear the mask that grins and lies,
   It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes,—
   This debt we pay to human guile;
   With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,
   And mouth with myriad subtleties.

   Why should the world be over-wise,
   In counting all our tears and sighs?
   Nay, let them only see us, while
           We wear the mask.

   We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries
   To thee from tortured souls arise.
   We sing, but oh the clay is vile
   Beneath our feet, and long the mile;
   But let the world dream otherwise,
           We wear the mask!

My mask serves a rather different purpose... 

[Slacker Spice]

But why still hide the fact that her brother committed suicide? Unless she told Dan, that's something her own sister doesn't know about and a burden Matilda carries alone. She had a reason to lie about it on Jenelle, but not to her sister/elders/Dan.

Judging by Dan's comment - "If what you just told me is true" - she did tell him. But I suspect she didn't tell her sister or the elders because if his brother was seen as 'weak', then things would go a lot worse for both her and her sister.