Questions of Agency with Vampires, Jedi, and Sith

Meta
Title:	Questions of Agency with Vampires, Jedi, and Sith
Creator:	eleai
Date(s):	2012-02-14
Medium:	online
Fandom:	The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Topic:	Stefan Salvatore and Damon Salvatore
External Links:	http://tvd-meta.livejournal.com/12693.html
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Questions of Agency with Vampires, Jedi, and Sith is a meta essay by eleai posted to tvd-meta, which is a comparison of Stefan and Damon with a specific look at how they handle agency in their various relationships.

Excerpts

The central idea of Jedi vs. Sith is the idea of attachment and possession. Jedi possess an attitude of overwhelming love, a reverence for life, and a general attitude of following the flow of the force. They recognize the interconnectedness of life, and its importance, but they also recognize that all things do, in time, die. There is a line from Revenge of the Sith where Obi-wan tells Anakin that “Everything dies. In time, even stars burn out. This is why Jedi form no attachments: all things pass. To hold on to something-or someone-beyond its time is to set your selfish desires against the Force.” The Jedi of course, fight to save innocent life whenever possible, they do not take life unnecessarily, but they also acknowledge the power of one’s individual will over their own life. They also recognize the occasional necessity of sacrifice for the common good, and while they mourn the dead, they do not fear death. Possession is inherently selfish, especially possession of people, because there is a lack of agency. Obi-wan is a perfect Jedi in this. He holds true to all those tenants, except when it comes to Anakin. Because he would do anything in his power to save him, and has done so.

Stefan is, quite obviously, a Jedi. (We are, for now, ignoring their past, and their vampire tendencies. The fact that both Damon and Stefan now possess a biological dependence on blood and have the natural characteristics of an aggressive hunter is separate from their individual personalities, which were present before they were turned, and remain present after. Analyzing whether or not Damon or Stefan is worse based on their killing habits or past body count is irrelevant at this point, and essentially an exercise in futility.) Stefan has a respect and a reverence for life. This much is plainly obvious in his desire to protect the people of Mystic Falls. In fact, on one occasion Stefan outright asks Elena “When have I ever wanted to hurt anybody?” He originally plans to help Vicki after her change, right up until the point that he can’t anymore. He helps Caroline after her change, he has no intention of doing anything about Mason Lockwood, he helps Tyler after his turn, he doesn’t want to see Bonnie hurt protecting Elena. Even when he and Alaric finally really “meet” he has no intention of hurting him, he just wants to talk. Does Stefan kill? Yes, as does any Jedi—there is a reason they carry lightsabers. Some conflicts simply cannot be resolved without death, which is an unfortunate reality of life. But Stefan neither takes life gratuitously or without care nor forces life on anyone (the exception being Damon, which we will discuss in a minute.)

One of Stefan’s central characterizations is his respect of agency. He has the power to make people listen, to force them to obey. His physical strength alone allows him to manipulate people, as does his ability to compel. However, Stefan is extraordinarily careful to make sure that people retain their own agency. In his relationship with Elena, he never controls her. Their relationship is founded on mutual trust and respect; they are two individuals who are in a partnership together. We repeatedly see him grant her ownership of her own life. There are numerous examples, right from the very beginning of their relationship. He allows her to take the first step, respects her when she backs off, allows her to decide whether or not she wants to be with him. He doesn’t force the relationship. Even when they break up over Catherine, again, he allows Elena to decide what she is comfortable with. And of course in the whole sacrifice situation, he very much lets Elena make the decisions. I have seen it said that Stefan is weak or ineffectual because he refuses to protect Elena, but here’s the thing. He does want to protect her, but because he respects her agency as an individual, he allows her to make her own choices. In season two, episode 19, we see a perfect example of how his relationship works with Elena. She wants to go and work with Elijah—Stefan is obviously concerned, we can see that in their conversation after she talks with Jenna. But instead of forcing her to stay safe and with him, he again concedes agency and allows Elena to leave, despite his fears. We see this again in episode 20, when Elijah is describing what will happen to Elena at the sacrifice. Stefan is by no means okay with her dying, but once again, it’s her choice. It’s why he never brings up the possibility of her becoming a vampire—because it is not her choice. To do so would be selfish and self-serving. He is okay with Elena’s decision because it is her life, her choice. Her death will hurt him, certainly, but he acknowledges that it is her fundamental right to chose. (I will acknowledge that he originally went along with Damon’s plan to kill Elijah—the first time. But then Elena killed him a second time, so that whole thing was a little wonky. It’s really the second deal that matters, following Elena’s long conversation with Elijah and her decision to trust him). The only time he really takes away Elena’s agency is on the bridge in season three, and its wrong. 100% wrong and fucked up and the thing is, he knows it. Because he apologizes, he acknowledges it was wrong, and he doesn’t expect forgiveness for it, or for Elena to make it okay. He just wants her to know that he knows that it was wrong.

Damon, then, is Anakin Skywalker. He is moody, anxious, volatile, and yes, seductive (in both the sexual and non-sexual sense. Alaric certainly doesn’t want to sleep with him, but he is nonetheless drawn to Damon). But Damon’s problem is twofold, much like Anakin’s. Firstly, he reveres life only insomuch as it affects him—he protects the people he likes and wants to protect, but those who operate in the periphery are expendable, and he refuses to grant agency to any individuals. Let’s start by examining his connections to people. Damon’s goal in the first part of the first season is to piss of Stefan and get Katherine back. He doesn’t care who he hurts or who is killed in the process. Vicky doesn’t matter to him at all—whether she lives or dies is irrelevant in his mind. She is nothing more than a prop and a toy, and her life is essentially meaningless. In his fight with Logan Fell he allows Logan, who he knows is dangerous, to live simply because he wants something. But he kills Alaric without a second thought when he seems to know too much. The same goes for Pearl. Even his nephew—Zach lives only so long as Damon can tolerate him. In later seasons, again, there is a casual disregard for the lives of people Damon doesn’t care for. He snaps Jeremy’s neck without a second thought, he kills Alaric and John when they get in the way, he tries to kill Mason simply because he doesn’t want a werewolf hanging around. He would have murdered Caroline, simply because he didn’t want to deal with her. He cares only about Elena and Stefan, but his love of them is possessive.

This leads us to our agency discussion, and this is perhaps Damon’s greatest flaw. He has an inability to grant people agency in their life. Instead, he works to have the people around him do as he wants, when he wants, and there is a blatant lack of understanding there. In the first season, he uses Caroline as a bloodbag/sex toy with absolutely no regard for her as a person. He violates her in the deepest sense, both by controlling her mind and using her body for blood and sex. She has no choice, is granted no power, and is simply used and disposed at his will. We see the same thing happen again with Andie. He refers to her as a “distraction” only, not as a real person with any sense of agency or control. Sure, she makes the occasional denial, like when she asks him to use a blood bag or to get his own bubbly, but that is hardly agency. She is being used, like Caroline was, and Damon makes no secret of the fact that she means little to him.

It we look at 3x14 as a whole, I feel like it perfectly encapsulates each Salvatore’s attitudes about respect for agency. Let’s start by saying that neither one wants Elena to be hurt, or killed. Stefan, for all his “acting” (and as has been pointed out elsewhere, Stefan is a terrible pretender. I mean, his poker face has completely broken down—Paul Wesley does a brilliant job of conveying Stefan’s actual feelings through his expressions alone, while he voices something completely different. He’s great) still cares about Elena and her safety, as does Damon. I don’t think either one want her to walk into the lion’s den. But the thing is, yet again, Stefan respects her right to chose. If she really wants to do this, go talk to Esther, than he will allow her to do so. Damon, on the other hand, snatches the invitation, forbids her from going and stops her once they are there. It is only after Stefan neutralizes Damon that Elena is able to get to Esther. Stefan listens to Elena, listens what she wants and how she feels, and respects her enough to allow her to make those decisions. And it’s clear that Elena appreciates that agency—she tells Stefan that after he agrees to help her. Damon categorically dismisses Elena’s opinions because they go against what he wants. She becomes a tool or a doll, not a person capable of making decisions, not a partner. And then of course, after her conversation with Esther, Damon physically grabs and her and attempts to remove her from the ball and take her home. There is no question about whether she wants to; there is not consideration of her feelings. And again, when Elena reacts, his response is an emotional and potentially deadly outburst.