JOY - Mac Demarco
Although his songs are sad and melancholic, Mac Demarco brings me so much joy. His lyrics are filled with weird wisdom, occasionally comedic.
He portrays unconditional love so purely and completely. This may sound incredibly corny, but I wish someone would think of me like how he sings of the girl in the song “My Kind of Woman”.
SADNESS - Mitski
Some of Mitski’s songs are incredibly sad because they hit me right where it hurts the most. She sings about abusive relationships (romantic and non-romantic), fear of abandonment, unable to move on from trauma.
In the age of oversharing through memes, Facebook, and our willingness to talk to strangers about our eternal sadness on the internet, Mitski has turned herself into a character, and it’s one we all relate to. Everyone in this universe has experienced sadness at some point in their life, whether through heartbreak, grief, loss, depression, or all of the above. Mitski has taken her sadness and turned it into cathartic, relatable, emotive art.
FEAR - Shinji Ikari
Shinji Ikari is a character I relate to incredibly much. In the movie Neon Genesis Evangelion, Shinji displayed mostly negative emotions when it comes to himself, especially fear.
He’s afraid of pain, being left behind by others, and social exclusion due to his father’s neglect. He blames himself for not being good enough to make his father stick around. His constant depressing self dialogue portrays him as someone who is weak and easily scared, someone who’s afraid to take up responsibilities but gets upset when no one needs him, someone who doesn’t want to be alone, but gets visibly uncomfortable during social situations.
Shinji’s fear of pain and his desire for praise often conflicts with each other, considering his role in the film is someone who fights giant, dangerous aliens. He constantly runs away from his problems, emotionally and physically.
ANGER - Asuka Langley Soryu
When first meeting Asuka, she can come off as narcissistic with a fragile ego, someone who’s annoying, overly-confident, and makes fun of the weak.
Because of childhood trauma, Asuka has developed a competitive and outgoing character, to get noticed by other people and affirm her own self. However in reality, she hates herself and hates this facade she’s made up to prove herself to be “flawless”.
She’s constantly angry and yelling at Shinji because he reminds her of how weak and terrible she really is. In Ep 9 of the show, Asuka breaks down in the bathroom and screams about how much she hates everyone including herself.
DISGUST - Patrick Bateman
American Psycho is the most gruesome book I’ve ever read, and the main character Patrick Bateman, a narcissistic psychopath, makes me sick to my stomach.
Bateman is vain, materialistic, and shallow. He cares for nothing else but his own gratification, and has no personality underneath his attractive appearance. In the movie, he claims that his only emotions are greed and disgust. He goes on to do horrific things to the people (especially women) around him. Thinking about it sends chills down my spine.
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I really liked reading about these people and characters that I don't know much about. I've only heard a few of Mitski's songs, but I agree that her songs give off these sad and painful feelings. Shinji and Asuka are two characters that I also recognized from your post, and it was interesting to learn more about them. I feel like I would also be able to relate to these characters and people based off of what you wrote. Great job!
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