Before I get into how Prussia fits into Hungary and
Austria’s relationship dynamic (platonic or romantic), it’s important to
briefly go over Prussia’s background, as it allows more insight into his
behaviour.
In one of his character notes, it’s stated that he’s never
had to marry. It would follow, then, that Prussia’s narcissism likely derives
from the fact that he’s long grown accustomed to fending for himself. He
doesn’t rely on others.
Yes, he’s been subordinated by other nations before (i.e.
Poland, France, Russia), but the point here is that other than Germany, Prussia
hasn’t formed a meaningful and trusting relationship with another nation.
It’s not just a lack of intimacy either; Prussia’s lonely
and desperately craves company.
In the 2007 Christmas event, he tells [lies to] himself that
he’s happy being alone. Likewise, he attributes the tears welling in his eyes
upon seeing couples spending time together on the holiday to this happy mood.
The strip then pans on Hungary and Austria acting seemingly
couple-like, where Austria buys Hungary a hat. Pretty romantic if you consider
how stingy Austria is.
The fact that Prussia cries at the sight of Hungary being
with Austria hints at an unrequited romance. I’ll touch on this again soon.
Prussia’s alone because he lacks the skills to socialize and
develop relationships with others. The most obvious evidence of this is where
he attempts to read a book instructing him on how to socialize with people,
only to get bored and quickly abandon his commitment to learning from it.
Buon San Valentino also touches on how relationally-stunted
Prussia is.
Just a quick refresher: Germany reads a book about dating
and marriage, thinking that Italy has romantic feelings for him. Austria has
also read this book.
The comedic relief in the strip, is that after failing to
propose to Italy – given that Germany had misread the situation – the scene flips
to Hungary making a remark on the absurdity of the romance book.
Austria gets flustered, keeping that he had also read the
book a secret. He and Hungary then set off to the book store to fix this mess.
Notice how the scene deliberately shifts to Prussia. On cue,
he claims how happy he is to be alone. He then secretly watches from afar as
Hungary and Austria ask the store owner if they have a book on how to comfort
someone who’s “been rejected in his romance.”
The store owner doesn’t appear to have a book of that kind, so of
course Prussia takes things into his own hands and pulls a prank on Austria by
forging a fake book.
I would like to thank @shirokage218 for correcting my original misinterpretation of this part. I really appreciate it.
Take note of the title.
“How to properly comfort a German man who has failed in love.”
Here, it seems like Prussia might be projecting his own insecurities, even in something as trivial as a book title.
With all this in mind, I want to end by pointing out that
Prussia isn’t entirely alone either. He, Austria and Germany have lived together before, likely during Germany’s annexation of Austria.
Lack of romance aside, Prussia is close enough with Austria
and Hungary for them to be considered family. Yes, he does tease Austria by
referring to him as a “lesser German”, but they still spend their holidays
together.
That said, the irony in Prussia’s
life is that he feels alone and depressed despite being surrounded by others.
Reblogging because I want to build up a solid queue. I’m heading into mid-terms in the coming weeks. P.S I’m just starting to get back to those who have already submitted. Thanks for your patience, everyone 🙂
We are not the people we were before, we changed, and we can continue to change. Sure this fandom has done many horrible things in its early years and honestly I wasn’t even in the fandom at that point in time, and the point is some actions were plain wrong, we know, but it’s honestly disheartening.
Please, please, I’m calling out to the true fans who cares about this fandom I learned to call my family, let’s prove that we can do good, prove them wrong for the things they still think about us. I’ve met more real people than I could ever meet in the real world. Please, I’m begging you, don’t let this fandom die, don’t let them degrade us, prove that we are good people with good intentions, that we can be real mature people who can contribute to society. Make them see what I see, a fandom that welcomes all people no matter what age or race.
Please share the word.
((I am tagging people who made me see that hetalia isn’t as bad as people say, please help me get the word around.
@hetafacts for getting the truth around the fandom and keeping it alive.
@urufu-arts for being brave enough to stand up and make a fundraiser for the victims of the Hurricane Harvey.
@annotated-hetalia for helping us connect with the world with real world facts from the hetalia comic strip and series
.
@hetascanlations for translating Himaruya’s webcomic and sharing it to the world.
@k-y-t-s-k-o for being an inspiration to me and many more artists out there.
@ellawritesficssometimes for reliving and proving that our fanfiction can be great no matter what context.
@ciakirkland for introducing me to this beautiful world. You will always be in my heart.
And to the ask-blogs, artists, writers, archives, translators and everyone who supports and loves this fandom. Thank you for giving everyone something to love and protect, thank you so much
Thanks for the mention @tomatolouise! I think what people need to realize is that Hetalia is the most versatile fandom out there; it literally works with everything. You have a multitude of characters, their human forms, their fanmade 2ps, and their nyos. It opens up a lot more creative avenues (such as AUs) that wouldn’t be available elsewhere.
Now, as for the horrible things the fandom has done. Yes! It is crucial that the problems from the past are addressed and properly condemned. However, like OP said, these traits should not define us if we can rectify them and move on. You learn from your mistakes.
*Hetalia DOES NOT promote nazism. Most of the manga takes place in WW2. Germany is not once shown wearing a swastika, and it is even implicitly stated that he was not fond of Hitler. There’s a difference between promoting a horrid ideology vs situating a context.*
Hetalia promotes nazism just as much as any other WW2 blockbuster film does – it doesn’t. It doesn’t even show or focus on domestic political life like these films do. Germany is wearing a SS uniform ABSENT of any nazi insignia. Again, most of the strips take place in WW2. Before you put the fandom at the butt of your rage, watch the anime or read the manga. Then come back to me and we’ll have a chat.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m not an optimist. There will always be awful people, but that’s the case for ALL fandoms. Still, I’ve met wonderful people in this fandom and am very grateful for having this common interest as a global linkage.
People also need to recognize that STEREOTYPES are GENERALIZATIONS. Generalizations do not reflect the entire population accurately, but they do attempt to give us a general overview of a country and its culture. Hima has already proved that he’s moving outside of his old humor and is being more politically correct. (I do concur, though. Some countries should be portrayed better.)
And you know what’s great about this fandom? Don’t like how your country’s portrayed? FIX IT. That’s what properly researched historical fanfiction is for. We all have a voice, so use it.
We are the world. We are diverse. Hetalia is an opportunity for people to share their unique histories, languages, cultures, and customs.
It’s supposed to link countries across the world, not divide them. There’s a reason why the main theme is “Draw a circle, that’s the Earth,” instead of “Draw a border, that’s my country.”
It’s almost time! This post is a reminder that the Hetalia Extravaganza will be starting in about a week! I cant wait to see everyone’s lovely artwork and contribution to this event!
I would have never guessed that such a silly post would stir
up this large of a debate. I got so many messages in my inbox? Anyway :p
Italy = Mercury:
The God of messengers; lots of speed.
France = Venus:
God of love, obvs.
Germany = Earth:
He pretty much runs all the world meetings (in Hetalia not real life)
England = Mars: A
planet that was once relevant and probably hosted life. Is old and dusty.
Russia = Jupiter:
Giant planet. World’s biggest landmass.
America = Saturn:
Thinks the world revolves around him – rings.
China = Uranus:
Is a big super power (or planet) that is often forgotten about. Is the butt of
many stereotypical jokes (kill me).
Japan = Neptune: Asian
Pacific.
Canada = Pluto:
Guys, unlike Sealand, Canada is actually recognized as a country (obvs), even if the
other characters forget about him sometimes. Pluto was once recognized as an
official planet ya know.
Ellawritesficssometimes 