Tag: bs spoilers

belewitts:

I was thinking about this all afternoon; that scene between Max and Grandma Guthrie and the story she tells about the cat and her son and husband. At first it’s posed as a fable and Max is asked which part she plays, but its also a mental puzzle like that one with the fox and goose and corn. Max sees that right away, but what I find interesting, upon reflection, is Max’s answer.

I think it impressed Madam Guthrie, and at first glance it is perfectly unexpected. It’s so quintessentially Max and I also think Madam Guthrie is exactly the type of woman who’d “go out into the woods and drown the damn cat,” which is why she decides to give Max and Rackham a chance, because she sees herself in Max.

At the same time… its a pretty horrific answer. Because what is seen by both these women as the only viable solution to ending that cycle of suffering is not stopping a man from beating a child, but killing the animal that wants to be fed.

They see men and their violence as natural disasters. The equivalent of a storm, or an earthquake. Something you can’t prevent, but simply have to brace for and work around. I think it falls into the same trap of thinking men are incapable of self control when it comes to sexual assault, or other attacks. That it’s “just their nature,” and “boys will be boys,” etc.

Its said this attitude doesn’t hold men accountable for their actions, and that’s true, but to me it speaks more to the utter weariness of so many women. This sort of inherited despair we have, as a whole, which can lead to defeatist thinking. Like the victim of who’s been hurt so often they can’t imagine anything they do stopping their abuser. They’re in survival mode.

It says a lot about the time Max lives in, but this still holds true today and I think it is the one of the most insidious forms of toxic masculinity. The idea that it is inevitable.

And the more I think about it, the more I think that if Flint or Madi had sat in that chair, they would have proposed drowning Joseph Guthrie instead. Because he is the root of the problem. Not the hungry cat, or the little boy.

Max and Grandma also know that Joseph is the problem but they see him as an unsolvable one, so they do the next best thing. The least evil to achieve the least suffering.

Flint and Madi would argue that nothing is unsolvable.

Like all idealists they’d be considered mad for saying that, but ultimately, they’d be right. Because “drowning the cat” is only going to stop one problem at a time. Meanwhile the root violence that made drowning the cat necessary continues to perpetuate evil in other ways.

I have an uncle, and the last time I saw him, thankfully many years
ago, I kept thinking that if the only way he knew how to make himself
feel powerful was by putting someone else down, then he didn’t know a
thing about power.

Joseph Guthrie, like many characters before him is a symbol of the “civilized” world, and in every era, including our own, men like Joseph have gotten away with horrors because crimes against humanity are not just considered inevitable they’re excused as “sound investments.” Like the Guthrie bookkeeper there are always people who argue that human decency (running businesses without slaves, providing free universal healthcare) are financially “unwise.”

Though in reality, its actually the opposite, and costs much less money.

Flint even says at one point “no-one will believe it’s possible until we show them.” Which beyond talking about the Urca also describes skeptics of a society with fair foundations.

Leaving the “Josephs” untouched and trying to clean up their mess and bandage the wounds they make one at time, is as destined to fail as trying to hold water with a sieve. Madi and Flint know the only way to really stop that cycle of suffering, is to make a world where men like Joseph Guthrie can’t beat their children.

The problem is that Flint is as much a victim of this adherence to violence as the rest of them. He really believes that war and burning it all down is the only way to stop it and when push comes to shove, Flint’s solution is murder.

Whether its because he really thinks its a more expedient or lasting solution, or its just a rash choice at the time, that’s where his mind first goes. I think he still doesn’t see how much of his own hatred and pain and desire for revenge has been tied up in this rhetoric.

I’m not saying revolution isn’t necessary. I stand with Madi a hundred percent. People have the right to fight for their rights and their existence and there are things that can only be stopped by outright revolt, but I think Madi is unique in that she’s a mix of Flint and Max’s ideologies.

Max, although she makes her own mistakes, knows how violence perpetuates violence. There’s an incredible and understated strength to her compassion, and she walks such a fine line with it, refusing to own slaves and perpetuate the evils she’s suffered on others, and not backing down when pressured to do so, or sneered at by “society.” Max adheres to the principle that change takes millions of tiny acts of kindness, incalcuable small victories (and every refusal to perpetuate violent traditions is a victory). Her’s is the slow rising of a tide, rather then one sweeping move.

Flint knows the evil’s of England’s colonialist society, but I don’t think he sees the difference between his war with “civilization,” and England’s wars with Spain, France, etc that he fought as a naval man.

Flint is fighting to win.

Madi and Max are fighting for peace.

silverflintdaily:

captain-flint:

Is this war more important than her life? Answer the question. I wanna hear you say it. Is this war more important than her life? Right now with what’s at stake… yes, it is more important. Oh, fuck you!

#LISTEN #THE ABSOLUTELY BEST PART OF THIS SCENE #THE PART THAT WRECKED ME #IS ACTUALLY A SPLIT SECOND WHERE THE CAMERA ISN’T ON THEIR FACES #IT GOES TO THE QUEEN #AND FLINT LOWERS HIS VOICE AND WHISPERS #‘I TRUST IT’ #AND YOU JUST HAVE TO IMAGINE HOW CLOSE THEIR FACES ARE RIGHT NOW #HOW THAT LINE WAS SO INTIMATE #THEY COULD NOT EVEN SHOW IT ON CAMERA [via @bal-lantine]

Hi:) I just saw that excerpt from Lauren Sarner’s review and thought I’d add my two cents about Silver’s motivations – I don’t think it’s just about Silver’s relationship with Madi and his love for her outweighing everything else. I think, if something similar had happened in episode 3, he wouldn’t have turned on Flint to save her, even though he already loved her then. But this is the second time in the last few episodes that Flint explicitly asked Silver to trust him (1/3)

captain-flint:

and told him what to do with the cache. The first time Silver went along with Flint’s plan, clearly against his instincts, and ultimately paid a heavy price for it as he had to sacrifice someone close to him for it (regardless of what we think about Billy, he still considered him his friend). And Flint and Eleanor’s plan blew up in their faces spectacularly. I don’t think anybody could have predicted the Spanish invasion, but ultimately it had been fundamentally flawed from the beginning,

because as Jack pointed out at the beach, it completely misjudged Rogers’ character. So when the situation repeats itself, and this time the personal stakes for Silver are even higher, he does go with his instincts. Sorry that this is so long-winded, but I just wanted to provide a different perspective:)

I agree with all of this, yes. I think there might be even more to Silver’s behavior because he’s being extremely irrational and emotional over the whole situation and I think we might find out more about it when they introduce his backstory. This can’t be just about his undying love for Madi, although that is the main motivator. He’s been struggling with trust during the whole series, but especially this season when the stakes are higher than they’ve ever been for him. He cares for Flint, he trusts him, but every decision Flint had made so far was approached with caution and a significant amount of doubt on Silver’s part because he finally, intimately understands how important this is to Flint and it clashes with Silver’s perception of the situation. He’s not convinced anymore that what Flint wants is the same thing he wants. Essentially, they’re the same person now, both driven by love to the point it makes them reckless, except their motives are on the opposite ends of the spectrum. Flint can’t stop the fight because he loves, Silver can’t start the war because he loves. But what I find so god damn heartbreaking about all this is that, regardless of Silver’s instincts, regardless of their emotions, every action leads to the same outcome – the war. 

(I’m going slightly off topic now)

Flint had tried to go for peace, twice, and both times it blew up in his face and advanced their war. Had Silver not agreed to the cache exchange the first time, it wouldn’t have changed much either. They would’ve defeated Rogers perhaps, but that wouldn’t have stopped the upcoming war. In fact it would’ve set it in motion. The pirates and the maroons were already gathering on the island

with the idea to unleash hell on the colonies when this went down. Silver’s instinct in this matter now is purely acted on for personal reasons. He’s not thinking about the bigger picture anymore, he’s emotionally compromised and it’s clouding his judgment. He’s forgetting that this war is not just Flint’s war as he keeps stressing out. It’s his too, it’s Madi’s, it’s her mother’s, it’s every man and woman’s who have agreed to join the cause. He’s forgetting that Flint and Madi both have a responsbility now. As I said once before, Flint got cornered by his own agenda. He set this in motion (on Silver’s insistence!!) and he now has to play the part. Yes, Flint is also driven by personal (romantic) notions, but it’s equally understandable because he’s been fighting for ten years now, it’s all he knows. He could’ve let go before, he did let go for a while, but he can’t now. Not when he has a countless army at his back. ‘’Things have changed.’’ Not only is it expected of him to lead them, he wants to lead now. It’s like he’s been given the victory on a platter and the hunger is stronger than him. (However, I do believe he’s still the more rational of the two at the moment and that his concern for Silver and Madi is 100% genuine.)

Madi, too, has to play her part in this. She’s not just an extension of Silver here, she’s her own person and this war is simply too important because despite everything she’s still a queen of her people first. What I found interesting was how Silver acknowledged this, that she matters in this war as much as any of them do, and yet he knowingly disregarded her decision on the matter by doing what she wouldn’t want to do. Flint, on the other hand, didn’t. He was right in his assumption that Madi wouldn’t permit Rogers to separate them and we know this because Mr. Scott warned her that if turned against each other, the damage Silver and Flint could do would be off the charts and they cannot allow that. She cannot permit that without risking the lives of her people. And we also know this because Madi told Rogers that she will die fighting against his regime (however, I believe that in that moment she didn’t want to give Rogers the satisfaction of having won, and if given the choice between an unwinnable war and peace with a loved one (what Eleanor talked about) she’d have chosen the latter (or she might not even be given a choice)). 

The point is, both Silver and Flint are being stupid in their decisions. Flint, as rational and smart as he is about the importance of the alliance, won’t be satisfied with Nassau anymore because there’s a chance at more, and Silver is disregarding the inevitable, essentially turning against everyone and destroying their ranks because he can’t lose the person he loves. Madi might not agree with either in the end. It’s not certain whether she’d agree with Flint’s decision to exceed the parameters of the war and risk all their lives, and because Silver went against her beliefs and completely disregarded the alliance that she worked so hard on salvaging I can’t imagine she’d be pleased with him either. Whatever happens now it’s gonna be a damn roller coaster ride that goes straight through hell, no doubt.

Sorry that got longer than I expected too, I was mostly just trying to piece the story for myself. I might be wrong in my assumptions here because the story from this point on is completely unpredictable and everything changes so quickly I’m struggling to comprehend the narrative because we’re missing the vital pieces of the puzzle. Phew.