Mal: Gotta say, doctor, your talent for alienatin' folk is near miraculous. Simon: Yes, I'm very proud.

'Safe'


Firefly 4: Also, we can kill you with our brains  

Discussion of the Mutant Enemy series, Firefly, the ensuing movie Serenity, and other projects in that universe. Like the other show threads, anything broadcast in the US is fine; spoilers are verboten and will be deleted if found.


DavidS - Feb 03, 2005 3:05:34 pm PST #524 of 10001
"Look, son, if it's good enough for Shirley Bassey, it's good enough for you."

Okay, someone really needs to explain "What Fathers Make Boys Into" for ita. Clueless and jocky, it seems.

Hmmm, well that's not really my plan with Emmett? Is that what you did with your son, Gus?

Psychological studies show that a father's influence on his son tends to manifest as modeling proper (socialized?) ways to express aggression.

I have no idea how that relates to this discussion of Mal, however.


§ ita § - Feb 03, 2005 3:05:37 pm PST #525 of 10001
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.

Men are not to be trusted with rearing of anything but horses.

::wonders how to specify raised-by-Mom on eHarmony::


§ ita § - Feb 03, 2005 3:06:41 pm PST #526 of 10001
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.

I have no idea how that relates to this discussion of Mal, however.

But didn't you draw conclusions about the status of his father from his character?


Beverly - Feb 03, 2005 3:07:56 pm PST #527 of 10001
Days shrink and grow cold, sunlight through leaves is my song. Winter is long.

ita, I think dad-raised sons often--but by no means always, or even most of the time--have all these expectations to live up to. Mom-raised sons tend to have more choices open to them. Men have different expectations for their sons, and that may be a narrower path.

Or, being a mom and not a dad, I could be completely full of shit. Dads?


Scrappy - Feb 03, 2005 3:11:23 pm PST #528 of 10001
Life moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

Wait, are we talking about what dads tend to add to their half of the parenting equation, or what single dads do?


DavidS - Feb 03, 2005 3:14:39 pm PST #529 of 10001
"Look, son, if it's good enough for Shirley Bassey, it's good enough for you."

But didn't you draw conclusions about the status of his father from his character?

Yeah, but that didn't have anything do with the psychological studies I cited.


§ ita § - Feb 03, 2005 3:16:51 pm PST #530 of 10001
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.

Yeah, but that didn't have anything do with the psychological studies I cited.

What I'm asking about is what you guys based your read on his fathering sitch from his character, not what untapped studies said.


DavidS - Feb 03, 2005 3:20:46 pm PST #531 of 10001
"Look, son, if it's good enough for Shirley Bassey, it's good enough for you."

What I'm asking about is what you guys based your read on his fathering sitch from his character, not what untapped studies said.

It doesn't seem worth elaborating on since (a) I was wrong, and (b) I don't know how to discuss it without looking over my shoulder for Anya to come swooping in and putting her gender studies-fu on me. Besides, I think the canonical backstory on Mal provides for plenty of male role models which would account for what I was seeing. He had a lot of adult men in his life, but Mom was #1.


§ ita § - Feb 03, 2005 3:24:31 pm PST #532 of 10001
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.

Well, you're probably safe from Anya. Me, I don't know what a) invested in male culture really means b) how Mal demonstrated that and in a far distant third position c) how closely tied that is to non-fictitious parenting.

So that's what I was wondering about.


Gus - Feb 03, 2005 3:25:11 pm PST #533 of 10001
Bag the crypto. Say what is on your mind.

OK. I don't know anything about psychological studies. I raised a boy, but it was with the assistance of a strong woman.

OK. "Assistance" is too strong. She raised him. I occasionally played b-ball with him,giving him the ego-boost of trouncing my academic tushy.