Post by Evie ❤✿ on Sept 12, 2019 11:18:14 GMT -5
This post unfortunately is the re-attempt after I lost a draft. Unfortunately some points were lost from that original draft. I would love to hear your thoughts too. ^^
Frog: Transformation and change. In Japanese kaeru has multiple meanings. Like "to exchange, "to interchange", "to substitute", "to replace". This makes sense > the loss of his material wealth, the gain of adulthood and eventually power. The important thing is that the Sablé Prince was pure of heart and innocent, even though he was taken advantage of. This then with the help of his friends (including the frogs) allowed him to transform. I believe that no one is truly naive (a popular quote "if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."). Prince Richard was prosperous, fortunate and physically skilled. But the Sablé Prince followed with a deeper desire to help his people and Prince Richard was not too kind to him, there is a powerful message that anyone with faith can spiritually become someone completely different. All we have to do is seek out help from the right people and harvest patience; as long as you truly love something, surprising changes will occur. Unfortunately at times we do not know who to trust, and too; we abandon some things we try because they may be too tiring and we later see them in vain, however a deep understanding of the self develops in time.
>Specific examples: Determination, Sable's Prince hidden adamant nature, friendship as a binding force
To exchange: The loss of material wealth. The loss of pride. The gain of more meaningful social relationships (the frogs, Mandola, Jam) despite the latter two's perceived 'untrustworthy' nature. The gain of (while keeping love) standing up for the self. i.e. in the battle against Jam, he had to fight - he was born with a sense of justice and knew that it was wrong. Experiences like these helped him gain combat experience and sure enough, he eventually beat Richard. But the power dims in the relationships with the people he had. The Sablé Prince didn't kill Jam and opened his heart to him. Nor I don't feel he heavily judged Mandola. Interestingly, the Sablé Prince gave her a lot of money at the start too. I feel Mandola liked the Sablé Prince who (maybe though a little shy) validated her. If I remember rightly, Mandola is actually a 'shadow counterpart' to Tiramisu(??) like Sheik and Zelda. What I mean by this; are contrasting elements to the same character (sometimes with shared personality traits) like how Sheik is stealthy, cunning, hidden, 'ninja' archetype. Zelda is however vulnerable. Both Sheik and Zelda however, are wise.
I don't know if we see much of how Tiramisu is like. But I imagine like Mandola she is strong-willed (determined to get what she wants; perhaps for the transformation into Tiramisu, she remains that but from a different angle). (I have more feelings regarding Mandola however will add in a separate section).
To interchange: The human, frog, snake forms.
Snakes: Snakes have been seen as stereotypical negative archetypes in Western culture. But this is far from the truth. Common themes are that snakes are grounded to the earth and represent life energy and the flow of it. Similarly, they are also admired as a powerful symbol of fertility (which can make them popular among women). In this: an egg is given the right amount of stimulation (life energy) but earthed to the ground with the right care, it will develop. Note too in character of their Earth like nature, are generally slow, but they are receptive in slivering their way across ground to cover good distance and make the most of it unlike a fast/straight approach (as my friend interpreted).
This then, can be interpreted as a more covert form of kaeru/frog. Because as transformative/open-minded(?) the frog character may be; the Sablé Prince needs time and experience (through the energy of what he learns, who he meets, what challenges he meets in life).
An egg is used to transform into the snake in this game. Snakes lay eggs, but more precisely can be linked in with the above ideas. In another approach; a seed needs the right time, helpful stimulus and care to grow. The Sablé Prince possesses this with patience and his faith in the good of all (even the stereotypically 'bad' people like Mandola and Jam).
>Specific examples: Wisdom through success and failure, the bell.
Bell: In Christianity, the bell represents communication. China use bells to communicate with the dead. In ancient culture I think it is another femininity symbol (the female concept). In Taoism; maybe the essence comes before the judgement in this context - first you need to feel (abstraction) before making a conscious decision. The female concept is that we understand the minds of others through pregnancy, and understand it in a clear, written way later (linked with "anima"). The counterpart animus is confidence but hidden suppression of abstraction/emotion. (In my interpretation they solve the first cause argument there is no beginning or end, but that's a different story).
According to one interpretation in New Religious Movements:
"Bells have a deep symbolic meaning that is associated with the mind and the expansion of consciousness."
Together these have something in common; discovery of self-identity and personality in terms of bonds.
Hence the bell does chime for the frogs (of which the Sablé Prince later discovers he is one of them). They will be empowered and find resolution/meaning in spite of apparent hopelessness.
Finally, the snakes would eat the frogs but they would not succeed. At this point it's overanalysis but that is part of me anyway. To be eaten is to be consumed. But the Sablé Prince was not overzealous about his transformation, yet remained justified and gained confident. As such, he now had the ability to communicate and receive the support needed from his friends (leadership, teamwork), understand risk better (less willing to spend money, manage danger more appropriately), and battle the snake (power, combined with management because he needs some support still like from Dr. Arewostein's machine).
To substitute: Not sure of examples right now. However, if the transformations are interpreted like the 'masks' from Majora's Mask; then the Sablé Prince borrows their power to understand them before they are no longer masks and fully integrate into his personality (which is a tough process I tell you from experience - I faced lots of confusion as a trans woman with mixed ideas of culture within my conflicting social relationships, until deciding finally what was the most true).
To replace: The Sablé Prince became a completely different person (Becoming), however from a different perspective is still the same person. This completes the transformation dynamic.
Specific characters:
Mandola: As mentioned earlier and explained earlier, Mandola may be a 'shadow counterpart' to Tiramisu? I feel there are hints that Tiramisu was Mandola throughout the game, but cannot fully remember to make a proper assertion.
Also if Mandola is an (inwardly) empath and mystic, perhaps Dr. Arewostein is her complementary. (He is logical and a scientist, inventor unlike a witch).
They have things in common though; strong personalities. In one perspective, Mandola manipulated the Sablé Prince to get what she wanted and his money. I wonder whether she is a stereotypical tsundere archetype though.
Curiously Arewostein is adamant about his Japanese culture (suggesting through a quote he finds Western food horrible), maybe a stereotype of an older Japanese person in general. Historically the Japanese are disciplined, have long kept their cultures, innovative (and so it is not surprising they are one of the largest inventors/developers of technology).
Mandola's pet condor like creature (Polnareff the Aasvogel): I did some research on the symbolism for this one as I was fascinated. It seems the condor are ancient creatures deeply associated with vision (insight and dreaming), power, mysticism and their long wing-spans can be interpreted with masculine grace. Additionally, the idea that condors promote egalitarianism; because both the male and female care for the young in similar ways. They also help the ecosystem by cleaning up carrion; symbolising a nature force.
It's no wonder then if followed through with these descriptions, Mandola naturally likes Polnareff. I think secretly Mandola promotes social justice (like an Athena [goddess of war but also weaving - that is solution, compromise] archetype and she maybe did weaving through magic to become closer to the Sablé Prince. And in helping the Sablé Prince manage his money wisely and balance his material and spiritual wealth, this may be the plan too.
The frogs: Faithful friends of the Sablé Prince. I think a good plot element was the sense of betrayal. It was a learning point for the Sablé Prince. What was more covert was the power was shifting, they deep down had trusted him as their leader, and the Sablé Prince remained faithful in return.
Delarin: This one is interesting too. A random guess is its name may be inspired by "derived"? But I just don't know Japanese well enough to make a good judgement. Derived in one interpretation is another word for "take". Was the Sablé Prince going to be 'turned in' by Delarin and consumed? Where did Delarin come from? It's also interesting its followers include other humans; a manifestation of jealousy?
A footer note about snakes. In Christianity, the snake is seen as tempting and deviating from God's trust by eating the fruit of knowledge (curiously apples are in this game too (to become frogs?), though what the fruit of knowledge was is not known. Maybe it is a parable through analogy. Despite the snake's tempting nature, I gather Moses raised the snake at some point, and as such the Christ manifest was born (?) - so that humans can indeed become like God and have eternal life; but this requires putting fear, negativity and hate behind (because faith-hope-love are the only qualities of him, even with the word; and as such any of these are virtues that are timeless but must be combined as well).
Frog: Transformation and change. In Japanese kaeru has multiple meanings. Like "to exchange, "to interchange", "to substitute", "to replace". This makes sense > the loss of his material wealth, the gain of adulthood and eventually power. The important thing is that the Sablé Prince was pure of heart and innocent, even though he was taken advantage of. This then with the help of his friends (including the frogs) allowed him to transform. I believe that no one is truly naive (a popular quote "if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."). Prince Richard was prosperous, fortunate and physically skilled. But the Sablé Prince followed with a deeper desire to help his people and Prince Richard was not too kind to him, there is a powerful message that anyone with faith can spiritually become someone completely different. All we have to do is seek out help from the right people and harvest patience; as long as you truly love something, surprising changes will occur. Unfortunately at times we do not know who to trust, and too; we abandon some things we try because they may be too tiring and we later see them in vain, however a deep understanding of the self develops in time.
>Specific examples: Determination, Sable's Prince hidden adamant nature, friendship as a binding force
To exchange: The loss of material wealth. The loss of pride. The gain of more meaningful social relationships (the frogs, Mandola, Jam) despite the latter two's perceived 'untrustworthy' nature. The gain of (while keeping love) standing up for the self. i.e. in the battle against Jam, he had to fight - he was born with a sense of justice and knew that it was wrong. Experiences like these helped him gain combat experience and sure enough, he eventually beat Richard. But the power dims in the relationships with the people he had. The Sablé Prince didn't kill Jam and opened his heart to him. Nor I don't feel he heavily judged Mandola. Interestingly, the Sablé Prince gave her a lot of money at the start too. I feel Mandola liked the Sablé Prince who (maybe though a little shy) validated her. If I remember rightly, Mandola is actually a 'shadow counterpart' to Tiramisu(??) like Sheik and Zelda. What I mean by this; are contrasting elements to the same character (sometimes with shared personality traits) like how Sheik is stealthy, cunning, hidden, 'ninja' archetype. Zelda is however vulnerable. Both Sheik and Zelda however, are wise.
I don't know if we see much of how Tiramisu is like. But I imagine like Mandola she is strong-willed (determined to get what she wants; perhaps for the transformation into Tiramisu, she remains that but from a different angle). (I have more feelings regarding Mandola however will add in a separate section).
To interchange: The human, frog, snake forms.
Snakes: Snakes have been seen as stereotypical negative archetypes in Western culture. But this is far from the truth. Common themes are that snakes are grounded to the earth and represent life energy and the flow of it. Similarly, they are also admired as a powerful symbol of fertility (which can make them popular among women). In this: an egg is given the right amount of stimulation (life energy) but earthed to the ground with the right care, it will develop. Note too in character of their Earth like nature, are generally slow, but they are receptive in slivering their way across ground to cover good distance and make the most of it unlike a fast/straight approach (as my friend interpreted).
This then, can be interpreted as a more covert form of kaeru/frog. Because as transformative/open-minded(?) the frog character may be; the Sablé Prince needs time and experience (through the energy of what he learns, who he meets, what challenges he meets in life).
An egg is used to transform into the snake in this game. Snakes lay eggs, but more precisely can be linked in with the above ideas. In another approach; a seed needs the right time, helpful stimulus and care to grow. The Sablé Prince possesses this with patience and his faith in the good of all (even the stereotypically 'bad' people like Mandola and Jam).
>Specific examples: Wisdom through success and failure, the bell.
Bell: In Christianity, the bell represents communication. China use bells to communicate with the dead. In ancient culture I think it is another femininity symbol (the female concept). In Taoism; maybe the essence comes before the judgement in this context - first you need to feel (abstraction) before making a conscious decision. The female concept is that we understand the minds of others through pregnancy, and understand it in a clear, written way later (linked with "anima"). The counterpart animus is confidence but hidden suppression of abstraction/emotion. (In my interpretation they solve the first cause argument there is no beginning or end, but that's a different story).
According to one interpretation in New Religious Movements:
"Bells have a deep symbolic meaning that is associated with the mind and the expansion of consciousness."
Together these have something in common; discovery of self-identity and personality in terms of bonds.
Hence the bell does chime for the frogs (of which the Sablé Prince later discovers he is one of them). They will be empowered and find resolution/meaning in spite of apparent hopelessness.
Finally, the snakes would eat the frogs but they would not succeed. At this point it's overanalysis but that is part of me anyway. To be eaten is to be consumed. But the Sablé Prince was not overzealous about his transformation, yet remained justified and gained confident. As such, he now had the ability to communicate and receive the support needed from his friends (leadership, teamwork), understand risk better (less willing to spend money, manage danger more appropriately), and battle the snake (power, combined with management because he needs some support still like from Dr. Arewostein's machine).
To substitute: Not sure of examples right now. However, if the transformations are interpreted like the 'masks' from Majora's Mask; then the Sablé Prince borrows their power to understand them before they are no longer masks and fully integrate into his personality (which is a tough process I tell you from experience - I faced lots of confusion as a trans woman with mixed ideas of culture within my conflicting social relationships, until deciding finally what was the most true).
To replace: The Sablé Prince became a completely different person (Becoming), however from a different perspective is still the same person. This completes the transformation dynamic.
Specific characters:
Mandola: As mentioned earlier and explained earlier, Mandola may be a 'shadow counterpart' to Tiramisu? I feel there are hints that Tiramisu was Mandola throughout the game, but cannot fully remember to make a proper assertion.
Also if Mandola is an (inwardly) empath and mystic, perhaps Dr. Arewostein is her complementary. (He is logical and a scientist, inventor unlike a witch).
They have things in common though; strong personalities. In one perspective, Mandola manipulated the Sablé Prince to get what she wanted and his money. I wonder whether she is a stereotypical tsundere archetype though.
Curiously Arewostein is adamant about his Japanese culture (suggesting through a quote he finds Western food horrible), maybe a stereotype of an older Japanese person in general. Historically the Japanese are disciplined, have long kept their cultures, innovative (and so it is not surprising they are one of the largest inventors/developers of technology).
Mandola's pet condor like creature (Polnareff the Aasvogel): I did some research on the symbolism for this one as I was fascinated. It seems the condor are ancient creatures deeply associated with vision (insight and dreaming), power, mysticism and their long wing-spans can be interpreted with masculine grace. Additionally, the idea that condors promote egalitarianism; because both the male and female care for the young in similar ways. They also help the ecosystem by cleaning up carrion; symbolising a nature force.
It's no wonder then if followed through with these descriptions, Mandola naturally likes Polnareff. I think secretly Mandola promotes social justice (like an Athena [goddess of war but also weaving - that is solution, compromise] archetype and she maybe did weaving through magic to become closer to the Sablé Prince. And in helping the Sablé Prince manage his money wisely and balance his material and spiritual wealth, this may be the plan too.
The frogs: Faithful friends of the Sablé Prince. I think a good plot element was the sense of betrayal. It was a learning point for the Sablé Prince. What was more covert was the power was shifting, they deep down had trusted him as their leader, and the Sablé Prince remained faithful in return.
Delarin: This one is interesting too. A random guess is its name may be inspired by "derived"? But I just don't know Japanese well enough to make a good judgement. Derived in one interpretation is another word for "take". Was the Sablé Prince going to be 'turned in' by Delarin and consumed? Where did Delarin come from? It's also interesting its followers include other humans; a manifestation of jealousy?
A footer note about snakes. In Christianity, the snake is seen as tempting and deviating from God's trust by eating the fruit of knowledge (curiously apples are in this game too (to become frogs?), though what the fruit of knowledge was is not known. Maybe it is a parable through analogy. Despite the snake's tempting nature, I gather Moses raised the snake at some point, and as such the Christ manifest was born (?) - so that humans can indeed become like God and have eternal life; but this requires putting fear, negativity and hate behind (because faith-hope-love are the only qualities of him, even with the word; and as such any of these are virtues that are timeless but must be combined as well).