Honestly Sjm. At This Point I Have Read ALL Of The Books You've Ever Published Atleast 3 Times Each (well

you know how i went home from school today all motivated to do literature then i get distracted and spent 2 hours messaging people and another 2 hours using tumblr and another hour staring into space and contemplating life and now i have a shitload of math and literature and mandarin to do. to think i thought ill stop procrastinating because greys anatomy has been taken off netflix... who am i kidding?

“Bread and Roses” 🍞🌹

Elain, Feminism, and Deeper Implications?

Disclaimer 1: This is my first time posting! I am very new to the “fandom.” I got a Tumblr after finishing the ACOTAR series and wanted to delve deeper into underlying theory, mythology, folklore and themes. I found such thorough and beautiful analyses and theories on here, so I decided to legitimize my lurking and just get an account. I’m not really sure how Tumblr works with the tags. Please be forgiving and kind if I did all of this wrong!

Disclaimer 2: I have read all of SJM’s books. I am “pro”Elain, Feyre, Nesta and every character in the series (yes- even the “evil” ones). I say that bc I have noticed (as a newbie) this fandom has a tendency to get nasty so quickly and we miss the essence of such psychologically complex and dynamic characters. I am a clinical psychologist, and have a great appreciation for how SJM writes all of her characters (villains included). That being said, this is a pro-Elain/pro- woman post. If you don’t like Elain, then don’t read this!

Ok so 🚨 Major HOSAB spoiler below 🚨

Let me just be honest, I knew the ending of HOSAB before reading it (LOL). I couldn’t help but look online and spoil it for myself. I am who I am. I am totally and unapologetically the girl who reads the last page of the book before starting. Guilty as charged.

Anyways, let’s talk about mf’n bread and roses. I tried to look around and see if anybody was discussing the MAJOR sociopolitical and historical implications of this, but didn’t see anything (so sorry if I missed somebody’s post and this was previously discussed). Bread and Roses is a slogan tied to feminist advocacy and the suffrage movement.

On a surface level, “bread and roses” is OBVIOUSLY alluding to Elain who is not present in the scene. I don’t see how anybody could argue that this symbolism is heavily associated with Elain. What I am talking about is the deeper implication for Elain with SJM assigning these symbols to her throughout the series. For whatever reason, I never put it together on the deeper level until it was literally in print, in front of my eyeballs, and I read aloud multiple times “BREAD AND ROSES!!!!” It was in this moment that I realized SJM is more brilliant and, potentially, politically bold than I originally thought.

Because…BREAD AND ROSES!? Let’s briefly chat about the implications of this and how I think this totally ties in with Elain, our most “feminine” coded character in the SJM metaverse. So the slogan “Bread and Roses” was coined by labor organizer Rose Schneiderman in a 1911 speech encouraging women to fight for more than bare minimum pay for necessities (bread)..we also deserve love, beauty, art, and MORE (roses). We deserve to not just survive, but to live: “The worker must have bread, but she must have roses, too.” This inspired the poem “Bread and Roses” by James Oppenheim, which later became a song, as well as a feminist/civil rights/labor rights slogan that is still relevant and readily used today. In fact, the 2019 Women’s March theme in London was…Bread and Roses. And..just read this:

Bread and Roses

By James Oppenheim

As we go marching, marching, in the beauty of the day
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill lofts gray
Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses
For the people hear us singing, bread and roses, bread and roses

As we come marching, marching, we battle too, for men
For they are women's children and we mother them again
Our days shall not be sweated from birth until life closes
Hearts starve as well as bodies, give us bread, but give us roses

As we come marching, marching, un-numbered women dead
Go crying through our singing their ancient call for bread
Small art and love and beauty their trudging spirits knew
Yes, it is bread we fight for, but we fight for roses, too

As we go marching, marching, we bring the greater days
The rising of the women means the rising of the race
No more the drudge and idler, ten that toil where one reposes
But a sharing of life's glories, bread and roses, bread and roses

Notice any parallels? Any buzzwords in there from any specific prophesies you noticed? 😉

The slogan “Bread and Roses” was a rallying cry during the Lawrence Strike, aka “Bread and Roses Strike,” aka “The Singing Strike(!!)” in 1912. The Bread and Roses Strike was a large strike of women textile workers in Lawrence, MA. Many women were beaten and soaked with firehoses in the dead of winter. What was unique, at this time in history, was the “spirit” of the workers who were singing and chanting. I read that singing was an integral part of the success of the strike, as many could not read or speak English. Song was used to bring women together and help others learn the English language.

Are you seeing any possible parallels here, but in a fantasy world with magical powers, yet? Perhaps some “singing” powers as it might pertain to Elain developing more understanding and fluency of her powers? Because…I am!

(I’m going to stay away from shipping bc I am honestly terrified to go there with the fandom and don’t want to get my head ripped off…but yea.)

Ok so how does this tie into Elain, you ask? Elain is disliked by a lot of the fandom (from what I can see) bc she’s seen as “boring.” She’s seen as a bland/vanilla girl who just enjoys her flowers and baking. People use this to justify their stance in the ship war. She’s “too much” in regards to domesticity and simplicity (by perspectives I have read). She’s a very traditionally feminine coded, gender-loaded character..kind of like these symbols which have been used throughout the women’s/civil rights movement to fight with and rally behind. I think people are about to be VERY surprised by Elain. I was already sure of this and then I read that last chapter of HOSAB..and I’m convinced!

Rose Schneiderman in 1911: “What the woman who labors wants is the right to live, not simply exist—the right to life as the rich woman has the right to life, and the sun and music and art. You have nothing that the humblest worker has not a right to have also. The worker must have bread, but she must have roses, too.”

Sun, music, art…hmmm.

SJM is an unapologetic feminist. In the dedication to KOA SJM wrote:

“For my parents--who taught me to believe that girls can save the world”

Her using Bread and Roses and connecting Elain to bread and roses as symbols throughout the ACOTAR series was intentional. It was not an accident. It is not in place to stand that she is weak and boring. That she is naive and simple. I truly believe SJM has a (large) percentage of the fandom believing that Elain is a simple and domestic woman who just wants to garden her flowers and bake her bread (“she belongs in Spring!”), but Bread and Roses are so much more than that. There is hope for more. There is hope shining through the void to not just survive! But to live! You will not tell me otherwise after that slapped me in the face. Bread and Roses is a rallying cry, still used in civil rights movements to this day! Used to advocate for racial, gender, and social equality. LGBTQ rights, labor rights, politics….Bread and flippin’ roses.

Women do not have to settle for the bare necessities. Women do not have to settle for surviving. We (Elain included) deserve to live! Bread and Roses is a slogan representative of egalitarianism. Balance. No matter our sexual orientation, race, religion, gender, or hobbies…we are ALL deserving of love and beauty. Joy and wonder. Art and song. That’s what Bread and Roses is about.

And…because I can’t resist…an author who has associated such STRONG feminist symbols with a character would never pit that character against another woman over a man. SJM is not going to make this next book about a man’s choice of what woman he wants. It will be Elain ‘Bread and Roses’ Archeron’s choice to get her damn roses. To not simply settle for the bread. I have never been more confident in where the direction is going. Shipping aside, Elain’s book is about the serve.

“Hearts starve as well as bodies, give us bread, but give us roses”

I would love to hear thoughts or if anybody else picked up on this!

this analysis >>>

The Book Of Breathings Foreshadowed Feysand, Nessian and Elriel

so we know the book of breathings spoke to the feyre in acomaf. but i never see anyone talking about what it said?!?!

“Hello, sweet thing. Hello, lady of night, princess of decay. Hello, fanged beast and trembling fawn. Love me, touch me, sing me.”

Lets analyse:

"hello sweet thing" - basically just cooing at feyre, it clearly likes her as it sung to her.

"lady of night" - "love me" - feyre

high lady of night court, love being a big thing she struggles with in acomaf, her growing love for rhys and her fading love for tamlin.

"princess of decay" - "touch me" - nesta

she's referred to as Lady Death, touch is how her and cassians relationship started, the whole just sex no emotion business.

"trembling fawn" - "sing me" - elain

is referred to as a fawn several times and described having doe eyes, including multiple times in contrast to azriel and his darkness. sing, well azriel is a shadowsinger but even if it meant literal singing, sjm did say we would possibly see azriel sing in future.

"fanged beast and trembling fawn" - what does that quote remind you of? ah yes "death and his lovely fawn"

the order in which the archerons are described also matches the order of their books!

BONUS - it also ties with the archerons being part fae theory!

basically that theory is that the archeron mother was part fae or had fae lineage. it makes sense to why she was so cold to her children, but loved their father - it was because he was her mate.

thats why she stayed in human lands, didn't tell about her fae lineage and is why she didn't love her children as much as her husband. she put her mate above all else. and the books did say the cauldron sometimes purely chooses mates based on who would make the strongest offspring. and who are three of the most powerful fae alive because they were made by the cauldron itself or all high lords? the archerons

the book of breathings is made of two halfs and could tie the fae and humans together by some human born sisters with fae lineage ;)

im practically a celebrity now!! i have my first "do you like home videos" ask 🥰🥹

im loving the height difference 😂

𝗥𝗼𝘄𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱, 𝗮𝘄𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱, “𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁. 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂.”

𝗔𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻 𝘄𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻. 𝗪𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁, 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗲.

𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻, 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗢𝗮𝗸𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗱, 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀𝗳𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴.

This exquisite Rowaelin piece was commissioned with @mistilteinnart whose work always takes my breath away 🤍 (link to post here)

The walls pushed in on me. The quiet, the guards, the stares. What I’d seen at the Tithe today. “I’m drowning,” I managed to say. “I am drowning. And the more you do this, the more guards … You might as well be shoving my head under the water.” I cried out, instinct taking over as his power blasted through the room.”

“Does Tamlin? Does he ever ask you why you hurl your guts up every night, or why you can’t go into certain rooms or see certain colors?” “He locked you up because he knew—the bastard knew what a treasure you are. That you are worth more than land or gold or jewels. He knew, and wanted to keep you all to himself.”

“But I forgot to tell him,” I said quietly, opening the door, “that the villain is usually the person who locks up the maiden and throws away the key.” I shrugged. “He was the one who let me out.”

Credit: thedustyshop & starscrapers (Instagram)

"She wasn't fated for anything. Not anymore. "

-Throne of Glass, Chapter 6

it hits differently when you're rereading

bye i'll just go sob in a corner y'all

Addison Montgomery + entrances

okay but just imagine

SJM child all grown up & reading ACOSF and ACOMAF ch 55 and be like:

throne of glass characters — aelin galathynius 

 “She was Aelin Ashryver Galathynius—­and she would not be afraid.”