literary meme

[wildestranger]

Gacked from irisbleu

The Top Five Fictional Characters You'd Just Like to Punch in the Face

1. Pamela, from Samuel Richardson's Pamela.

Of all the virtuous heroines this one annoys me the most. Seriously, the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of the book is, "Oh yes, Pamela, she so deserves a slap!" Pretentious, immature, hypocritical, sickeningly coy. Don't get me started.

2. Molly Weasley.

She pushes all the wrong buttons with me, from teaching Ron the expression "scarlet woman", which is funny but also kind of disturbing (narrow-minded, judgemental, self-righteous), being bitchy to Hermione after reading the papers, being bitchy to Sirius in Grimmauld Place, and mostly for believing that keeping information from people will keep them safe. Oh, and for encouraging Tonks, with all the connotations of matchmaking and her knowing what's best for everybody and trying to bully people into relationships. Almost makes me like Tonks in comparison. *g*

3. Caramon Majere from The Dragonlance series

For being an insensitive prick to his lovely brother. It's been years since I read these books so can't be more detailed, but I remember being very, very annoyed by him. Mmm, lovely Raistlin. My first love.

4. Louis from Interview with the Vampire

So whiny. So selfish and annoying and underappreciative of the delight that was Lestat. In the early books, at least.

5. Mrs. Bennet, from Pride and Prejudice.

Like Molly Weasley, only worse. Much like nails on chalkboard, I imagine.

Comments

[fleshdress.livejournal.com]

I think Pamela was the most unintentionally amusing book I ever read. I adored it! And Pamela did not hitting round the face with a wet fish but she was so unutterably prudish and useless that it would have been a bit like treading on ants.


And Caramon never pissed me off quite as much as Tanis I-can't-make-up-my-mind-about-anything-and-will-just-continually-angst Half-Elven. :)

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, I recall being extremely annoyed with Tanis as well. He also didn't get Raistlin. Foolish mortals!

As for Pamela, there's one scene where she comes downstairs to see how her new clothes suit without in any way thinking about whether Mr. B. might see her and what he might do to her if he did, and when he does she acts all offended. Argh. Wet fish sounds like a good plan. *g*

[archon-mentha.livejournal.com]

Hear, hear about Tanis. *nods* Wanted to smack him silly.

[xrated13.livejournal.com]

I agree with #2. Haha. Molly Weasley! She encourages Tonks too much, its unhealthy. :)

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Oh yes. And, well, not a good idea considering the two people. She infuriates me far too much.

[tesseract-5.livejournal.com]

lol, yes! Mrs. Bennet needs some serious lessons on how to raise daughters, though somehow her two eldest turned out alright enough

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Oh yes. In spite of her rather than because of her.

*licks your icon*

[innerslytherin]

Ahahaha! Molly Weasley and Mrs. Bennet! I am so with you on that!

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Oh yes. Such silly women, both of them.

Also, your icon rocks. :)

[innerslytherin]

*grin* Thanks! Got it over at nano_icons, where there are many clever icon-makers. ^_^

[mrs-remus.livejournal.com]

I completely agree in regards to Pamela...I couldn't believe what I was reading, when I first read the book for my 18th-century literature module. She gets abused by her master, kidnapped, is nearly raped, and then finds out that he's had a woman on the side all along and had a child with her - and yet she still loves him and will do whatever he asks. WHAT?

Actually, instead of punching Pamela herself, I suggest we construct a time machine and go back and punch Samuel Richardson instead :) Fucking misogynist bastard...

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Heh, yes. Although, he does a bit better in Clarissa and, I hear, in Grandison. But yes, Pamela, most annoying.

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

That's the thing, really. I don't doubt that she loves her family, but she is very easily judgemental of people and things that do not fall within her ideas of how the world should be. Like Bill's long hair and earring and French girlfriend. Or Fred and George wanting to do something else than work in the Ministry.

[underlucius.livejournal.com]

oh god yes Molly!

I must do this meme when I get home!

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Hee. So many people to hate, so little time...

[archon-mentha.livejournal.com]

Oooh - FUN meme. Must do, despite deadlines.

The one I most agree with is Louis. I didn't understand why Lestat didn't just get sick of him and kill him after the first few years (having not read Pride and Prejudice or Pamela).

I do hate Molly for what she is, because she's become this horrible stereotype...but that hate is more recent. I actually liked her in the first couple books. I'm sure the hate will grow with time, unfortunately.

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Indeed. I agree that in the first books, she is a kind of long-lost mother figure to Harry, and that it's in the GoF when she starts to show off the less pleasing sides of the Wizarding World. And it all goes downhill from there...;)

[archon-mentha.livejournal.com]

I wonder if any of it is because JK Rowling was single when she started writing and got married into it?

[embossedsilver.livejournal.com]

Totally agree with Mrs. Bennet and Molly. I actually liked Molly at first, but she's been annoying me since the first book. I understand being concerned for your family, but there's no reason to be such a bitch about it.

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Absolutely. And it isn't her being concerned for her family, but going to such foolish extremes to protect her idea of how her family, and the rest of the world, should be like.

[embossedsilver.livejournal.com]

That should have said fourth book, not first. Silly me.

Her last great moment was the hospital scene with Harry at the end of GoF. It all goes downhill from there.

[bawdy-letters.livejournal.com]

Molly! I HATE that woman. I bet she'd read the Daily Mail if she was a muggle. Grrr!

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, she so would. And that's about the worst thing you can say about a person. ;)

[liadlaith.livejournal.com]

I agree with all your points (except the third, cause I haven't read that one), but most especially Molly. Oh God, I try to be sympathetic and see things from others' points of view, but Molly is just so . . . interfering! bitchy! blinkered!

I bet she encourage Tonks so that Remus wouldn't be stuck in another homosexual relationship (oh how terrible!)

I am so doing this meme : )

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

I bet she encourage Tonks so that Remus wouldn't be stuck in another homosexual relationship (oh how terrible!)

Yes, exactly. Saving him from the evils of homosexuality, as I wrote in a fic somewhere.

[liadlaith.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly. Saving him from the evils of homosexuality, as I wrote in a fic somewhere.

Damn, must've missed that one. Where?

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

er...don't remember...if you look under my memories, in remus/harry? it isn't actually, it's the first part of a series that was never done, but there is some tonksy break up bitching...

[glass-icarus.livejournal.com]

ohhhh the peeves... must agree with you on the Molly Weasley front. i'd rather punch Mr. Collins than Mrs. Bennet in p&p, though. and my biggest number one peeve on the literary planet: Jane Eyre. was there ever such a pushover?

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Heh. I must admit Mr. Collins was on the list. *g* But I rather liked Jane Eyre, especially compared to the other Bronte heroines...

[marauderthesn.livejournal.com]

Molly Weasley drives me crazy. I think she has good intentions, but she's such a reactionary all the time. (And she calls Sirius rash...she's the one who sent Hermione the crappy egg because Rita Skeeter, who lied about Arthur, said that Hermione was breaking Harry's heart.)

I appreciate Molly trying to be Harry's surrogate mother, but as for the other things she's done, the following annoy me...

1. Kept telling Fred and George that they should be more like Percy. Yeah, that's going to make peace between your children.

2. Was a jerk to Sirius, when he was just trying to be a good godfather, and turned out later to be nice enough to let her whole family stay at his house over Christmas.

3. Yelled at her husband many times in a manner that suggests that she doesn't have much respect for him.

4. Assumed that Fleur being snotty = Fleur being awful, not that Fleur being snotty = Fleur being snotty.

5. Seemed to think that Remus and Tonks, two adult people, needed her to push them into a relationship.

6. Got annoyed by stupid little things like Bill's hair.

7. Hermione and the egg.

8. Probably a lot more things that I've forgotten about.

[wildestranger.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly, that's the thing. I had a whole fic started about Fleur and what she thinks about Molly. Should finish that some day.