Maybe its because my favorite time of the year is upon us once again, where the pumpkin-spice flows and the flannel in my closet sees the light of day once more, but today I'd like to discuss something that's been on my mind for a while: witches.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnRx76id0XC
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In fan art, stories, and music videos ranging from Kiki's Delivery Service to the art of Woonyoung Jung and Fernanda Dias, witches have captivated my imagination. The style. The glamour. The free-spiritedness that comes with stepping onto a broomstick and soaring into the sky. I've often wondered why, specifically, I find things like Jung's716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5n3Xunf6u6
work so endearing. What is it about witches that I find so fascinating as opposed to wizards and warlocks?716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FkcbF3RsF
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I've already said the answer: free-spiritedness.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEm5Jtku0Mr
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I'm in a low-spot at the time of writing this, spiritually speaking. Not religiously, spiritually. I feel tethered to the ground, stuck in my ways, and unable to soar. It's led me to muse and mull over the state of the world we live in, how it affects us, and how its reflected in fantasy. Its led me to question why we are so captivated by magic or even superheroes. Is it because its really really cool? I mean, it is, but is there more to it? I think so.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR99yO9Hum7
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Magic isn't just cool. Its power. Control. An equalizer. And if both men and women happened to have access to magic the social order would be very, very different. 716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgHd06uXqBd
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When I see a witch like Dias' "Witch Bunny" in her music videos I see a woman who is taking back her power. Her control. She is living for herself and showing all of the emotions that come with it. Sure, she's sad in the music video I've linked above, but like everything it passes and happiness soon follows as she spirits herself away to her favorite place: a secret garden. Then, just before the video cuts, she looks bashfully at the camera before handing over some of her magic to the viewer so that we can do the same as her. Its a wonderful moment, and beautifully animated.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh9keFNBMKe
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Comparatively, I don't see Dias' warlock do the same. I see a man who is stoically masking his feelings, and when he reclaims his own power its aggressive and accompanied with an almost vindictive, sinister smile as his eyes turn yellow. Perhaps that's just who he is, but I rather dislike seeing that depiction because it reminds me once again of how men are viewed. We're only allowed to display two emotions without judgement: anger and arousal. We're supposed to appear powerful and in control at all times even when we're not.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX9qEjE1S6P
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Vindictively lashing out at the world because I perceive it as having wronged me, or masking my feelings out of fear of judgement, doesn't feel like control. It feels like the opposite. It feels like my emotions ruling me rather than I ruling them. I'd much rather cry when I'm sad before spiriting myself away to a field of hydrangeas where I can be happy. Where I can be myself.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNOV832EnPB
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This is why witches are so captivating to me. They represent women realizing their inherent power and equalizing an unjust playing field in a world that has, to this day, repressed them. At the same time they represent what happens when you're allowed to be yourself... magic.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUsjlv5hcxP
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Looking at Kiki's Delivery Service, what do we see? We see our culture's patriarchal roles reversed between Kiki and Tombo. Kiki, a girl who is able to fly freely from the start of the movie, only ever has her magic falter when she feels isolated and begins to doubt herself. She shuts down, tries to mask her feelings, and recuses herself from the world.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡup8zg1NjF9
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Tombo, a boy who's never been able to fly but dreams of doing so one day, admires Kiki for her seemingly effortless skill in flight and must work hard to reach her proverbial and literal height by building an aircraft.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuM6T7F4Z8g
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Kiki scorns him for his interest at first, thinking it a joke or an insult, but slowly grows to care for him, realizing that his dream isn't something to discard. Unlike her, flying isn't second nature for him. It takes work for those who weren't born with the ability, and even when born with it its an ability that she later realizes must be carefully nurtured. 716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcF19b35c9h
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When Tombo is carried to the sky by an untethered dirigible, reaching the heights he's dreamed of—sooner than he was prepared for and putting him at great risk—Kiki can't bare to watch him get hurt. She realizes that he's her friend, and that she's not alone. Unwilling to allow harm to come to him she eschews her isolation, renews her faith in herself, reclaims her magic and dashes into the air to save him.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWsyvHuqJDj
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Because of this the unharmed Tombo is able to finish his aircraft at the end of the movie and flies from the ground in a sturdy glider across the sea. In so doing he becomes something of a witch himself, complete with his very own kind of magic. Kiki then descends from the sky on her broom to meet him halfway, floating by his side as a vigilant mentor, protector, and friend.
And together they fly with their spirit, free from gravity's control.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswrVp5bgBp
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Moments like the ones I've discussed here are so uplifting, and fill me with such a strange feeling of wonder and joy that I'm unable to properly describe it. It's why I often watch several specific Studio Ghibli movies a few times a year. It's why I've played Dias' fanimated music videos on repeat.716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAlMMnH7Nrp
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We should all aspire to be more like witches. 716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFPOVp7mwBQ
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Happy spooky season,716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnWHE87C50B
Chris716Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkFlc43q77b
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