Subject: Re: Characterization in anime
From: "Damon Casale" <damoo@universal-net.com>
Date: 7/25/1997, 9:18 PM
To: fanfic@fanfic.com

On Fri, 25 Jul 1997, Eric Adams wrote:

Damon Casale wrote:

I'd venture to say that most of the human race doesn't know what love
means, considering that we don't treat each other very well to begin
with...  ;)

Seriously tho, if you stop and think about it, love is a commitment, not
a feeling.  In the States, at least, the marriage vows contain wording
along the lines of "love, honor, cherish...til death do us part."  Not
only do people tend to ignore the "til death do us part" bit, but they
also gloss over the "love" bit.  Look at the wording.  It's something
you *do*, not something you feel, although the romantic spark should be
there (and is, I think, for most of the Ranma characters).

Here's a question for the fic writers out there.  Is Ranma, et. al,
afraid of commitment?  Or have they just not thought about it?

Damon Casale, damoo@universal-net.com
* Damon notes that he's never commented on Ranma, except to say "I don't
like it" until now...  ^_-

My aren't we cynical.

Not really, just honest.  ^_^

the word love can be used to mean a thousand
different things.  But it depends on how you look it up, its probably
the most underdefined, overused, underated word in the language.  

True.  But I'm not talking about love, in the sense that I really love
cheesecake, right?

You fall in love with someone, you can wake up one morning and be in
love, you can grow to love,  its hard words to say if you mean it.

Falling is bad.  If you 'fall' in love, you have little or no control over
the situation, right?  That's why I said, that's not really love.  That's
a romantic interest.  :)

* Damon *reiterates* that most of the human race really doesn't know what
love is.  ^_-

Not everyone who says they love someone means it, and not everyone who
loves someone says it.

True, true.

If Ranma probably is afraid of his feelings for Akane, not because of
commitment, but because of the enormity of what he would say.  I
remember the anime where mikado kissed Girl Type Ranma, and Akane and
him are sitting in the dojo sort of daring the other one to kiss, that
was one of the most realistic scenes i've ever scene.  And then there is
teh Ranma and Juliet one where Ranma says "if i hated you it wouldn't be
that hard to kiss you."

Sorry, I've barely even seen Ranma itself.  I just happen to feel like
opening my big mouth on a subject I really don't know all that much about.
^_-  (exercise for the reader:  *which* subject am I talking about?  ;)

Love isn't anything written on paper.  Does Ranma have a fear of
commitment?  I think its more of confusion, once he decides what he
wants and loves then he will not have a problem being committed to that
person.  

*nod*  Yup.  :)
Damon Casale, damoo@universal-net.com
Spam, spam!  WONDERFUL spam!  ^_^