Kiss Kiss Fall in Debt
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Tag: aph Italy
Now that I’ve gone over some of the factors that cause a nation
to age [x], I think it would be useful to go through each one separately. This
post will focus on how political autonomy and independence allows a nation to
reach adulthood.
Not only that, but what you’ll also see is that they go
through growth spurts right before gaining independence; their status as an
adult is solidified once this independence is gained. In other words, it’s the resistance that first sparks the aging.
It’s also important to mention that
chronologically-speaking, nations will still consider themselves to be older
than others, regardless if one of them became an adult first. There are late bloomers
like the Italy brothers and quick bloomers like America. The best comparison I
can think of is that anything to do with gaining independence is akin to the pubescent
period for a personification.
That said, let’s go through some examples.
America:
In the following three panels, we see America go through three
developmental changes. In the first stage, he holds a more compliant attitude
towards England and helps him in the French-Indian War. Notice the tag of “Young
America” attached to him.
This compliance begins to wane as America was heavily taxed and financially drained by England following his involvement in the war. Notice how he’s a slightly
older child here.
Then, when America begins fighting for his independence, he’s clearly gone through another growth spurt.
We also see in the years leading up to his independence – as he becomes even more economically and politically sufficient – that he grows pre-emptively.
Lastly, there’s the imagery that Kumajiro uses with dolls to
represent England’s relationship with America and Canada. America is the rowdy
Baby Bear; put another way, it’s like a teenager fighting for freedom from
their parent. Once that freedom is gained, only then will they become an adult.
Canada:
Canada’s growth occurred at a much slower rate than America. He wasn’t an economic powerhouse like the latter.
While he remained as a young child, America appears to be in his pre-teen
phase.
In the years following America’s independence, Canada ages,
but he still has the lanky and awkward appearance of a teenager. He hadn’t yet
gained his autonomy yet, the missing factor to the age equation.
Here’s Canada after the Battle of Waterloo.
Pay attention to the roundness of his face.
And here’s him during the war of 1812 [right], vs how he
looks in present strips [left]. There’s a notable difference in age.
Likewise, we also know that when Canada upgrades to the semi-dependent
status of a Dominion, the autonomy is enough to allow him to reach adulthood.
Italy:
We know that Italy is around the age of a pre-teen during the
Austrian War of Succession. He’s not quite a teenager, or at least not an older
one given how short he is in comparison to Austria.
During the Battle of Custoza [whilst raging his third war of
independence], there’s a considerable increase in age. Once again, we see an
example of a nation pre-emptively growing right before they attain independence.
Once Italian Unification is complete, there’s no doubt that
Italy has become an adult.
Romano:
Romano’s path to adulthood occurred in the exact same manner
and timespan as Veneziano’s did.
He’s around the same age as Veneziano during the Austrian
War of Succession.
He’s noted to have stereotypical teenager behaviour in the
years leading up to his independence from Spain.
Before independence, he appears to be in his late teen
years.
Once unification occurs in the panel I provided above, he’s also clearly an adult.
With all that in mind, it’s important to mention that chronological age is how the nations organize themselves
in terms of perceiving their elders. I know this may come across as obvious,
but it still needs to be said.
Despite becoming an adult later than America did, Romano
still sees himself as older than America and even takes it upon himself to give
him political advice.
Do you think you could explain why independence sometimes causes a nation to age?
I sure can! Post coming up tonight.
In an earlier post, I talked about the lesser known sides of
Spain. This post will focus on the more obvious, yet ironically ignored,
positive aspects of his character. Spain has never been a plain character. The
problem is that his personality is often watered down, either as a result of
the anime or people choosing to selectively represent certain aspects of his
personality.
That said, let’s go over some examples.
He’s not a cheerful
ditz all the time:
Ex: He didn’t
take chibi Romano’s constant complaining without any resistance. On several occasions,
Spain’s shown to be calling him an idiot.
Ex: He’s an
emotional or “violent” drunk. It depends on which translation you have, but it
pretty much conveys the same thing.
My translation is a bit different from the one above:
“As long as you keep him away from booze, and don’t get on
his bad side, you should be fine.”
Ex: Prior to the
strip, teenage Romano had a huge obsession with fantasizing about/ role-playing
the medieval chivalric romance novels that he read. In comes Prussia, recklessly
spouting out keywords that seem to trigger Romano’s obsession again, much to
the latter’s dismay. Mother hen Spain quickly swoops in to give a deadly warning.
Ex: He melancholically
looks back on his and France’s rough childhoods.
Ex: When the
topic of discussions falls to what each nation is known for, Spain laments over
being known for cows and tomatoes.
He’s more than capable of reading the atmosphere:
Ex: His reaction
to America after the Stock Market crashes in 1939.
Ex: He’s
heartbroken when Veneziano chooses Austria over him during the Austrian War of
Succession. The scene alludes to the fact that Spain was deeply saddened in the
years following his divorce from Austria. Likewise, the way Spain revs up his
cheery attitude in light of being rejected seems to be more of a defense
mechanism, a guarded mask of emotions, than it is of his true personality.
I say this because Romano finds Spain weeping in the next
panel.
Ex: He solemnly hints to Chibitalia of what’s to become of him right before he and his brother are
both conquered.
His optimism is not out of sheer stupidity:
It’s more like it’s a desperate sort of optimism. The way
that Spain convinces himself to push forward with a smile is eventually
internalized until he himself doesn’t even realize that what he’s doing is
unrealistic and naive. As mentioned above, it’s also a coping mechanism.
Nonetheless, there are moments where he shows a deep awareness
of his economic/ political situation.
Ex:There’s a clear recognition that he’s lost his international
standing due to poverty.
Ex: Once again, his [desperate] optimism shines through in
how he copes with his weakened economy. He sings songs, and acts happy…
…but he’s more than aware of how deep and serious his money
problems are. He’s literally clinging to Germany, albeit for exaggerated humorous effect.
He may have a laid-back personality…
…but once he gets worked up about something, his passion
replaces his typical lazing around.
Ex: He fought to have olive oil continually be marketed as a staple product
of the EU.
Again, with Spain, it seems that the happiness he forces
onto himself allows him to get too carried away in what he does (e.g., over-manufacturing and then causing a property bubble).
That’s why he comes off as naïve and a bit air-headed. You could even argue
that it’s a slight dissociation from reality to help minimize any anxiety that
he feels.
His constant smiling is also a play on the fact that the sun
never set in the Spanish Empire.
He’s selfless:
Ex: Despite all the complaining and constant belittling that
he had to endure with Romano, Spain still saves him from Turkey.
Ex: Spain spent all his money on improving Romano’s
wardrobe. [Please note that Romano was too young to realize this]. Meanwhile,
his own clothes were in tatters.
Ex: When Romano immigrates to America, Spain is the first
person he calls. Their relationship is noted to be much deeper than the one
Romano shares with Veneziano.
Immediately, Spain’s mother hen mode gets switched on as he
asks Romano how he’s been and if he’s been eating well.
He also lets Romano know how proud he is of him working and
taking responsibility for himself for once.
That said, it wouldn’t make sense for a character predicated
on a stereotype of passion to be flat and static. He’s anything but.
Though I look like I’m
lecturing,
I’m actually just conversing
It’s not really…
At times my face may look grim,
But I’m actually just cold
Though I don’t mind it…
I take pride in work that
needs delicacy,
But my fingers are fat
That’s why
Even if I’m said to be “generally adequate,”
Strictly speaking
I don’t understand
Einsamkeit
Einsamkeit
Einsamkeit
I want to be found
Though they say I eat only
potatoes,
They’re the same with soba and pasta
If the kitchen is just going
to get dirty,
Then it would be better just not to cook
Einsamkeit
Einsamkeit
Einsamkeit
My heart is opening, I want to
be set free
Because you are here, I can be myself
I’m always said to be scowling,
But my smiling face hasn’t been erased
You may think I’m frightening,
But it’s only because I’m straining to laugh
Strong
Einsamkeit
[Loneliness.]
About Germany having difficulty smiling, I had seen times where he smiled in the anime in episode 3 of Axis Powers, in the second part of hetalia of the dead (ep 18 of the Beautiful world, while italy was sleeping), and in some parts of Hetalia Paint it white. Looks like that Italy would be one that can make Germany smile.
We don’t take the anime
as canon material. You go to the primary source of material for that – the strips
or any character notes/ blog posts that Hima shares.
Anyways, the scene from
Hetalia of the Dead that you mentioned is added. It didn’t happen in Volume 5,
where Hetalia of the Dead pt. 2 is located.
As for episode 3 of Axis
Powers, Germany isn’t smiling because Italy’s there. Germany’s smiling because
Italy’s not there given how much stress and annoyance the latter caused him in
WW1.
That said, Germany
smiling in this episode isn’t canon in the strips. This is the same scene from the
strips = no smile, but otherwise the same content. Again, he’s glad that Italy’s
not there. Problem is Italy shows up anyway.
As I mentioned in a
previous post, the only time we see Germany widely smiling is when he’s drunk.
He comes close to
smiling when he feels elated, though.
Ex: His love for
machinery. Here, it’s implied that he’s smiling, but it’s not shown. It could
just be something close to smiling too. It’s left open-ended.
Ex: He gets close to
smiling when he goes sight-seeing in Italy. He loves it there.
However, you are right
in that Italy does cause Germany to smile. We see that happen right before the
two of them go off to war in WW2. This is the most explicit example
of him smiling with full conscious awareness.
We already know from
chapter 1 of World Stars that the nations let their bosses order them around.
As such, they often have no choice over what they’re commanded to do.
I always use this
example, but it’s still important to point out that Germany’s sense of duty overrode
his personal unwillingness to annex Austria.
The control that
national leaders have over their personifications is pervasive. While Finland
is joking in part, he still alludes to the possibility of Germany’s boss [Hitler]
being more than capable of imprisoning Germany should he disobey orders.
In that regard, the
nations are just like regular citizens. They may cast votes…
…and hold meetings to
discuss world issues, but for the most part, they have little to no control
over what happens in their government. They recognize that there’s corruption
present, but don’t seem to be able to do much about it.
That doesn’t mean to say
that they have no agency, either. They’re not complete puppets in that they
have a mind of their own. It rarely happens, but some nations have in fact
resisted or gone against their boss’s wishes.
Either way, boss control
over personifications has historically been all-encompassing. While in present
times it’s not as extreme as what we saw during both world wars, the control is
still there. For example, England’s boss has control over his sweets and alcohol
intake.
Point is, there’s an
evident and wide power differential between a personification and their leader.
If that’s the case, what
happens to a personification when they’re captured?
The answer is nothing,
as Finland implies in this line of dialogue. More importantly, this strip takes
place in the present [2010].
The only material that
we have to work with on the subject can be found in
the instances where the nations are taken as prisoners of war.
Even when they are
rescued, it’s the personifications who do the liberating, not other human
soldiers. As you’ll see, when a nation is taken as a POW, they’re treated just
like any other soldier; no special treatment or protection is offered to them.
Let’s go over some
examples:
Russia:
As I’ve stated before,
Russia isn’t exempt from being exposed to the brutal conditions that his
soldiers had to endure.
The war-time conditions
are so bad that Russia even thanks Germany when he’s taken as a POW. He claims
that Germany is heaven compared to what he was used to dealing with.
Further, Russia’s bosses
are notorious for their brutal treatment of him. They clearly didn’t give a
damn about Russia given that they tortured him when they were bored.
That said,
I don’t think they would care all that much when news of Russia’s capture
reached them. Again, we don’t see any rescue attempts depicted.
There’s also the fact
that Russia was once given the order to stop a tank with his own body. What’s
crazy is that he actually obeyed this.
Germany:
When taken as a prisoner
of war, Germany claims that the torture there is nothing compared to what he
has to experience back home on a daily basis.
Italy:
Italy seems perfectly
comfortable upon being captured by Germany in WW1, citing that he doesn’t want to leave
as it would mean fighting again.
Usually it’s Germany who
rescues Italy when he gets into trouble on the battlefield. Of course, these strips take place during WW2.
However, in this case, Germany didn’t have to rescue Italy
from the Allies. He was so useless that they mailed him back.
England:
We also see that it’s
America who rescues England when he’s taken as a POW by the Italy brothers and
Germany.
In sum, when captured, it seems that the nations aren’t given any
special treatment or priority by their bosses. Instead, they’re treated just
like any other citizen. It would follow, then, that this type of treatment
would also carry into the present given the time in which Finland’s statement
was made.
Do you remenber of some scenes where Italy is pissed out about something?
It doesn’t happen very often, but this is the most striking one to date for me.
He calls Germany a “rough-up idiot” prior to making an alliance with him.
In a previous post, I went over how the nations have
considerable gaps in their memories for a variety of reasons. [link here]. That
said, I also find it important to reiterate that the nations are not always
able to repress or forget traumatic memories, and often carry these
experiences with them – it becomes part of who they are, their personality.
Yes, their memories are full of holes, but these experiences
can just as easily be retained. It’s not that they repress everything, but
rather that they don’t remember everything.
1) Sometimes there are triggers – such as an object
or person – that allow the nations to remember an experience more vividly.
Prior to that, they simply have a general emotive idea of the experience, good
or bad.
2) Sometimes the nations carry the memories with
them, either consciously – it actively affects how they relate and interact
with others – or unconsciously – it latently affects how they relate and
interact with others outside of their own awareness.
3) Sometimes, no matter how hard a nation tries to
repress uncomfortable, unpleasant, or anxiety-ridden memories, they’re unfortunately
unable to.
4) Sometimes the nations retain the memories, but
purposefully refuse to either mention or acknowledge them.
Given their dark, chaotic, and bloody pasts, it would make
sense for the nations to protect their sanity by not remembering everything.
Nonetheless, what this post will argue and focus on is how these experiences
influence the nations both at an unconscious and conscious level.
Without further ado, let’s tie this back to the strips.
America:
America is a case of a nation who desires to forget his
past, but is unsuccessful in doing so. In particular, the experience he wants
to forget is his Revolution.
Likewise, while America retained vivid emotive and affective
memories from the Revolution, it’s only when he begins cleaning out old belongings
in his storage closet that he recalls the finer details of the unpleasant experience.
Simply put, even though America’s experience of the Revolution
has deeply affected him emotionally in how he perceives his sense of self, the
fact that the belongings flesh out these memories is essential in demonstrating
the limitations of his memory.
It’s just like what Finland’s claimed before; aside from physical strength and a strengthened immune
system, the nations aren’t all that much different from humans.
Italy:
During a meeting, Italy’s boss takes an interest in Italy’s
immortality, and later remarks that it can be disadvantageous.
“You sure have been
through a lot, huh?”
Italy even agrees that his life has been tough.
Even more
interesting is that Italy claims that he gets tired of seeing the same people
all the time, only to reverse this statement and say that seeing the same
people can be refreshing in a way.
How I see this is that while Italy may see the same people,
he experiences them differently each time. Perhaps this is why
Italy refers to this as refreshing – could it be that while he sees the same
people, they evoke different memories and emotional reactions in him?
What’s also important here is the initial reluctance in
Italy to disclose more “private” accounts of his life. Notice how uncomfortable
he looks. Not every memory is good, so of course he’s not going to be keen on
recalling them.
The scene ends with Italy offering to disclose these secrets
should his boss treat him to lunch. This could very easily be interpreted as
him deflecting the subject.
France:
Having lost huge aspects of his culture following his own Revolution
–given that many old furniture pieces and decorations were either discarded, sold or burned – France still retains strong feelings of grief over this
in the present.
Put another way, France’s past still lives with him in how
he presently experiences himself.
Lithuania:
Lithuania too is an example of a nation who’s still
traumatized by their past. It impacts every aspect of his daily interactions.
As he and the other two Baltics recall their arduous paths
to independence, Lithuania further recalls a memory of Russia squeezing his
shoulders.
Notice how Lithuania repeats this behavior, albeit unknowingly,
as he squeezes Estonia’s and Latvia’s shoulders upon remembering this troubling
experience.
Just to prove how consistent this memory rule has been, I’d
like to point out that Lithuania has suffered from triggered-induced flashbacks
as early as the first original chapters of the web comic.
When privy to the fact that Russia intended to invade Poland
in WW2, Lithuania repeatedly recalls traumatic experiences where his own
country was taken over and conquered.
Russia:
Lastly, Russia is a quintessential example of a nation who’s
affected by their past. What’s complicated about him is that he seems to
remember a lot about his past, despite their being holes in it, but fails to attribute
this to how he presently experiences himself.
In other words, while retaining many traumatic memories,
Russia doesn’t connect them to how distorted and unhealthy his conception of an ideal relationship is [either platonic or
romantic.]
For instance, take the Bloody Sunday strip. There, Russia
sheds tears over the revolt, considering how hard he had previously worked to
improve his nation.
The strip ends by largely hinting at him being tasked with
supressing the revolt through the use of violence.
“We don’t want children who can’t play nice, right?”
Now, let’s skip forward a bit to WW2.
As he and England discuss America’s boldness, you can
immediately start to pick up on how Russia’s past inadvertently affects how he perceives
the world and the people in it. Yes, he might have repressed the nuanced
details of his past, but he’s internalized a considerable amount of it without
his realizing.
He appears to take what happened during the Bloody Sunday revolt,
and applies the same rhetoric to America. Not only is his view of relationships
distorted, but so are his solutions to problems.
I specifically want you to pay attention to the child
imagery that emerges again with regards to how Russia equates rebellion with
immaturity.
“Aren’t the provocative [rebellious] ones more fun to snap
in half?”
Translation: Dissent is childish, and therefore it must be crushed [snapped].
In sum, while the nations do have considerable gaps in their
memories, they are still very much influenced by their past.
You talked about what the nations forget, but how about what they remember?
Boom. Lucky for me I anticipated this ask and already have a theory prepared outlining some of the rules for this.
Post coming up tonight!
Ellawritesficssometimes 