Anon
2:
Um, uh, I’ll just get the weird out of the way. I think I’ve talked about my
paranormal experiences before, eh? I’ve only just found out that mediums run in
the family.
I attract ghosts, see shadows, and can sometimes hear real
voices if I’m tired enough. If not, I often get ringing in my ears, can sense
spirits in rooms, and feel cold spots. I’ve had objects thrown at me too (not
fun when it’s in the middle of the night in the dark, yikes).
I freak people out a lot because I drain electronics/
technological appliances wherever I go – I’ve heard that this has to do with
the ghosts following me.
My friends complain because as soon as I go into
a study room, the Wifi stops working and their phones lose a lot of their
battery life. The most extreme case is that I’ve drained car batteries before
just by sleeping over at someone’s house.
You can think that I’m crazy all that you want, but a
recent photo that I shared here on this blog has two orbs in it…
It flows
differently for them:
Of course,
being immortal affects how the nations experience time. They’ve lived for
centuries/ millennia and experience time at a much faster pace. A year, let
alone a decade, for a human is nothing to them.
Ex: Canada once
spent an entire weekend in a trance, staring into Kumajiro’s eyelashes. [x]
Ex: Because time flows differently for him, by the time America visits his child/ later teen friend Davie again, the latter’s had both children and grandchildren [x].
Interestingly,
the nation’s immortality can also rub off on other beings.
Ex: Pets like
Hanatamago, Pochi, or the Gilbird’s have extended lifespans as a result of
being around their owner nations. Should they separate, they would become
normal pets again. [x]
Ex: The
situation with humans is similar, but not quite the same. Unlike pets, humans
have a stronger developmental capacity to perceive time. It’s likely for this
reason that being around a nation for too long would cause them to go mad. The
drastic warping of time would be too much to handle.
How the Nations cope with their Immortality:
From what we’ve
seen in the strips, immortality is depicted to be more of a curse than it is a
blessing. There are several instances where nations have expressed regret over
their existence.
Ex: Germania
and Rome, as fallen ex-nations, experience relief over not having to deal with
wars and their leaders.
Ex: As an
Ancient in his own right, China romanticizes about the past, wishing that the
world was the same as it was 4000 years ago.
Ex: Italy
admits that he sometimes gets bored of seeing the same people every day [x]. Also
notice how his boss recognizes that immortality isn’t beneficial in practice,
as Italy’s had to endure countless painful memories and experiences.
While it would
be impossible for them to remember everything, as they’re not perfect immortals
and can get injured and die, the fact that Russia claims that it’s good that
they don’t remember all the bad in their life may allude to an unconscious repression
of memories.
Still using
Russia as an example, given how he’s historically been tortured and punished by
his bosses, it’s easy to understand why he wouldn’t want to remember everything.
He likes all delicious food [x] and thinks that homemade cooking is the best.
He has no problem eating other foods like sushi or burgers, even in his own country when Germany visits him.
It’s not that he’s cocky either. He gets smug when he’s good at something, but low-spirited and dejected if he’s not.
Just for further reference, I’d like to point out that’s he still considerably insecure in recent strips.
The nations’ bodies can physically die, but they regenerate. I’ve done a post about that here [x]. Given this logic, I’m sure they’d die if they ingested poison; however, this hasn’t been shown in canon.
As for the rest of the asks, I can go over how the nations deal with and perceive time tonight! It’s not a theory, though. The answers are explicitly given.
Considering that the nations are described as “odd beings”,
many aspects of their existence are either left open-ended or unanswered. It’s probably
meant to be like this, as it allows Hima to have more creative leeway.
On the other hand, there’s a consistent logic in the process
of how the nations are born that I’d like to go over.
How Are They Born?
For the most part, the nations are born as babies.
Ex: Egypt and his mother, Ancient Egypt.
This excludes…
1) The micronations, who are noted to be anomalies outside
the rules of nationhood.
2) Germany, who’s born as a young child given that he
already had an existing body (I’ll get back to this in a moment).
We know from Iceland that the nations spontaneously gain
consciousness and come into existence. It’s not a formal birth process. They’re also instinctively able to tell that they’re different from humans.
What signifies them?
What signifies a nation as a baby is the nightgown they
wear. Personally, I don’t believe that the nightgown has any real significance
other than the fact that it acts as a plot device to distinguish the nation’s
young age.
How do they know who they’re related to?
Just like the nations are able to sense each other, the baby
nation is also able to sense their biological sibling.
This is seen with Iceland when he’s born. He sensed that
Norway was his brother upon gaining consciousness.
Norway also senses Iceland.
Likewise, we also know that later on, Iceland takes a DNA
test–in this case, it’s a land excavation–to confirm that there were no
Icelandic natives. Instead, the first people to settle in Iceland were
Norwegian.
That’s why Iceland and Norway are related.
On the other hand, America was colonized by several nations at once, not to mention that there
were already native tribes living there. As such, he’s referred to as an “ingredient.” He represents a mix of several cultures. [x]
Further, America doesn’t ‘sense’ an older brother from the pool of countries colonizing him. Instead,
Finland, France, and England deliberate over who will assume the role of America’s older brother.
It’s also important to mention that “onii-chan” in Japanese
does not always literally mean older brother. It can be an expression of “endearment” or “adoration.”
There are different cultural connotations that are
unfortunately lost in direct translations.
Despite this, America does, in fact, have a biological brother: Canada [x]
Germany’s ‘Existing Body’:
As mentioned above, most nations are born as babies. Germany
is an exception to this rule as he’s born as a young child…or is he?
Disclaimer, I’m going
outside canon now. This next part is theory based on canon fact.
Many people have speculated that Germany’s ‘existing’ body
means that while Holy Rome died, his body remained. Germany then resumed this
body after German Confederation.
The ‘existing’ body, then, would be the fact that Germany’s spirit
inhabited Holy Rome’s old body, hence the reason why he wasn’t born as a baby.
This perspective doesn’t make sense to me, as we know that
it’s possible for nations to live past their date of dissolution. More
importantly, Holy Rome lived past his dissolution.
Another problem with this perspective is that the nations’
bodies don’t remain when they die, but rather, they fade away. The nations are
personality-based, meaning that when their culture dies, so do they. [x]
Put another way, culture doesn’t die definitively. It fades
with time – A nation’s path to death is reflective of this.
This would explain why Holy Rome didn’t die right away, albeit being ill. The
German culture he represented was still alive and well.
Meanwhile, my take on Germany’s ‘existing body’ is vastly
different. I’m of the mindset that Holy Rome lost all his memories when he
became Germany. [post on that here].
In other words,
Germany wasn’t born as a baby because he was already existing, as in he had a living body.
In sum, while many questions about the nation’s existence
are left unanswered, there is a relative level of consistency regarding the
ages in which nations are born as well as the role that evolutionary instinct
plays in how they find their relatives.
So my sleep-deprived brain made a dumbass mistake. America does have a biological brother: Canada.
I didn’t word this post clearly. I had originally meant to say that America didn’t sense a biological brother among the countries colonizing him. Please disregard the old post and sorry for the inconvenience ;;;;
To begin with, I want to emphasize how important it is to
recognize that Hetalia is not a series that believes in permanent grudges. Regardless of
the betrayals that occur in the manga, the grudges that the nations bear rarely
if ever remain.
This doesn’t go to say that grudges can’t last for a long
time, because they do and for good reasons. What I’m getting at here is that
while the nations are cultural personifications – representing their citizens,
not just the government – they’re also people just like you and me.
How the nations associate
with each other is influenced by their political relations. On the other hand,
to say that, because of these rocky political relations, the nations in
question inevitably hate each other is a shallow way of understanding things.
Their pasts together extend beyond their present situation. They’ve
lived for several lifetimes and have their own memories and experiences; there are
other factors to take into account that influence how they view each other on a personal level. To view and associate are two
very different things that are wrongfully equated together in the fandom.
I say this because you’ll see moments where enemy nations
drop their political masks and treat each other as friends.
Ex: After being stranded on Seychelles during WW2, Italy invites
France to his side of the island and asks not to pick a fight. Italy still
fondly refers to France as Big Brother, a title that originated from their
childhood spent together in Rome’s house.
Ex: When he occupies Rome, rather than treating the Italy
brothers with hostility, America politely asks them to make him authentic Italian
cuisine.
Ex: Italy excitedly greets Austria after his annexation,
despite having recently fought him in WW1.
What this post will explore is how grudges held by the nations
subside with time.
That said, let’s go over some examples.
America and England:
Of course, I’ll get the most obvious one out of the way
first. America’s declaration of independence was experienced as a personal betrayal to England.
Ex: He’s noted to have had a stormy temper in the decades
following America’s independence. [x]
Ex: While it’s not explicitly stated, it’s alluded that
England is talking about America when he claims to have suffered from 100 years
of heartbreak.
Of more importance is that aside from their volatile political
relations, America still demands to see England when he hears that the latter’s
fallen ill as a result of the war.
Notice how distressed and panicked America is here. He even
tries to force his way into the house, despite being barred entry by
Canada. Again, the personal triumphs over the political.
As mentioned, with time, a lot of this anger and resentment disappears.
Ex: England takes the leap and attends America’s centennial
celebration.
Ex: The two are now able to tease each other void of any
spite.
Belgium and Netherlands:
There’s a rocky period in their relationship after Netherlands attempted to unify them into one Kingdom. Belgium declares her
independence instead.
We learn from his bunny how upsetting this “fight” was for
him. He copes by constantly keeping busy.
China and Japan:
This one is definitely the most difficult betrayal to
digest. It’s easily the most brutal scene depicted in the manga.
Japan stabs an unsuspecting China in the back during WW2.
What I want to place particular emphasis on is the fact that even though China
knew that their political relations were tense, he still personally trusted Japan, even as the katana was pulled out.
Additionally, notice how Japan’s face goes blank before he
stabs China. To me, this appears that he’s emotionally removed himself from the
situation.
In the aftermath of this betrayal, we see China drunkenly
crying as he realizes how war has changed Japan. Russia’s response to this is
crucial.
Nations don’t remain as enemies
forever.
It’s the good memories that last.
Even though China developed a grudge against Japan, it doesn’t
last.
Ex: In a more recent strip, China attempts to strengthen his
diplomatic ties with Japan.
Following the abolition of their empire, Lithuania falls
under Russian control. As Lithuania’s forcefully dragged away, Poland doesn’t
answer Lithuania’s pleas for help and instead laughs at his facial expression.
Because of all the fond moments they shared together,
Lithuania resents Poland for this, but he doesn’t hate him.
If he did, then he
wouldn’t have warned Poland of Russia’s plan to invade him in WW2.
All in all, the point to take away from this is that while
hatred exists in the manga, it doesn’t persist. Political relations may influence
the nations, but in no way does it define them in whole.
*talking about the American Revolution.*
America: Remember when you fucked up so badly that the whole
world turned against you?
Ellawritesficssometimes 