Obligatory Introductory Post
A few words on what to expect from this Substack
Writing your first post can be an exciting yet daunting task. You have a lot to say, but aren’t sure how to convey it in a way that will attract people. The fact that it’s your first time writing a long-form piece for public consumption, or that you’re a fluent but non-native English speaker certainly doesn’t take away from the consternation of it all.
That’s just a humbler way of saying: if any of my writing may seem a bit basic or cumbersome, this is why.
But I digress.
All you need to know about me for now is that I am from Romania and my main interests are fairy tales, animation, translation and being unapologetically opinionated in general. I never liked nicknames, so you may call me by my real name, Tudor - or Tud, whatever’s easier for you to pronounce.
Those of you who know me from Twitter (hi! glad to see you here too!) may already be familiar with what I do. For those who’ve just discovered me, this is what I mainly talk about:
speaking out against extremism and forced politicisation in mainstream media and society
rambling and fanboying about fairy tales
reviewing and analysing whatever piece of media holds my interest
Not so different from other personalities online, I suppose. But it’s the why that I wanted to address here. Why have I decided to be vocal about my interests and opinions? Why this particular combination of politics, fairy tales and media in general?
Well since this Substack is partly about fairy tales, I’ll answer my own questions by telling you a story. Trust me, this will be relevant later.
The Story of King Donkey Ears (Irish Folktale)
There was once a king who always wore a large crown over his head - large enough to cover his ears. Nobody knew why he covered his ears, and the king would always avoid the question whenever asked.
Only the barber - who had to cut the king’s hair - knew the answer, but that was no help either. For each time the king had a haircut, a new barber would be summoned to the palace. And after the task was done, the unfortunate soul would be locked away. Thus there were less and less barbers left in the realm - and more and more prisoners in the royal dungeons.
Soon it was the turn of a young barber to cut the king’s hair. He was rather nervous, as you can imagine, but his worry turned to shock when he removed the king’s crown - and saw a pair of donkey ears instead of human ones!
From “Manga Sekai Mukashibanashi” (Fairy Tales From Around the World), episode “The King with Donkey Ears” (Dax International, 1976)
The barber proceeded to cut the king’s hair, neither of them saying a word. But as soon as the task was complete, the king said, “Alright, to the dungeon with you! Nobody can ever know about my ears. I’d be a laughing stock to the people, and I cannot afford that.”
“But my mother is sick at home,” pleaded the barber. “And I’m the only one she’s got. Please let me go. I’ll never tell anyone about… you know what.”
Well, the king thought about it. Whether it was pity or just a matter of administration (between you and me, the dungeons were almost entirely full), the king agreed to let the barber go. “But if you tell a single person about… you know what, you shall be accordingly punished.” And he drew his finger across his throat.
The terrified barber just gulped and nodded.
The people were surprised to see the young barber again, but he refused to tell them anything about his encounter with the king. So life went on as usual, except that soon the barber was burdened with the secret. Every night the same words rang in his head, again and again: The king has donkey ears! The king has donkey ears!
The barber longed to share his thoughts with someone - anyone - but he knew that if he did, he would be severely punished. At last, he had an idea. The king had made him promise not to tell a person. So what if he told the secret to the ground?
Quickly, he ran to the most deserted part of town, dug a hole large enough for his head to fit in and shouted at least twenty times: The king has donkey ears! The king has donkey ears! Then he dug back up the hole and, heaving a sigh of relief, went back home. “I feel much better already,“ he thought.
From “Manga Sekai Mukashibanashi” (Fairy Tales From Around the World), episode “The King with Donkey Ears” (Dax International, 1976)
But life has a funny way of coming back at you when you least expect it. Long rushes grew from that hole, and when the wind blew against them, a loud unmistakable whisper could be heard: The king has donkey ears! The King has donkey ears!
Soon everyone heard the loud echoes - including the king. And he was absolutely livid.
What happened next is not entirely certain. Most say the king called for the barber to be seized and executed, but he quickly had a change of heart, realised there was nothing wrong with his ears, ordered for the release of all the barbers and everyone lived happily ever since. Others say the king was so ashamed, he ran away and was never seen again.
Whatever the case, this story highlights how one can (figuratively speaking) either live or die, depending on how long they can hold their tongue.
I think you know where this is going.
Why… all this?
I never cared for politics. Or at least, I never wanted to care about politics. I’ve always found them tedious and needlessly polarising. Or, in the words of younger me: “too much adult stuff”.
I was raised in a politically neutral household. Although my parents have certain political leanings, they never imposed them on me. They simply raised me to have people’s best interests in mind.
Which is perhaps why I caved into the “radical left pipeline” in the first place. They genuinely believe their thinking is the “correct” one. They genuinely believe they have the answers to everything, no matter how objectively flawed, ludicrous and inevitably self-destructive they might be, no matter how aggressive and vitriolic they are if things don’t go exactly as they want or, in their thinking, should be.
The right isn’t much better. They seemed like the more reasonable ones for a while, but soon their masks fell off too when they started being as equally ludicrous and self-destructive.
So now I guess you can say I’m politically homeless, even though I never cared for politics in the first place. And still don’t. But now I have to if I don’t want the entire world to fall into chaos.
Another thing my parents taught me is that I should always think for myself, and that ultimately saved me from being locked away in an echo chamber of thought. I, like many others at the time, was highly critical of idiotic “woke” videos like 36 Questions Women Have For Men, but now it seems those same people, who were once reasonable and sane, seem to brush off those times as nothing but an “Anti-SJW Era”.
If you were to believe ideologues like Julia Cudney, the left and right are synonymous with right and wrong (respectively), and those that are centrist/moderate are apathetic and don’t care about basic human rights, apparently.
Obviously I can’t speak for everyone that is on the center, I only speak for myself, but this is a severely flawed and, dare I say, ideological understanding of politics in general. Politics are a set of beliefs and values, or, according to Google “the activities associated with the governance of a country or area”.
Another sign that made me question the state that we are as a society is the way mainstream entertainment has been forcibly politicised. It first began with in-your-face messages in films like We Bare Bears: The Movie and the Disney live-action remakes, but now it’s full-blown lectures about social justice in shows like Dead End: Paranormal Park or “identity” storylines in films like Turning Red.
And it’s a very particular type of people - those that prioritise messages and “representation” over good storytelling - that praise them like they’re the second coming of Christ, while the rest of the crowd say they’re middling at best. And of course, if you dare criticise their beloved media, for whatever reason, they’re going to take it as a sign of bigotry and attack you for it, as some have experienced already.
The right isn’t much better, when they’re complaining about innocuous gay couples in films like Lightyear, or claim that any kind of representation, regardless of how it is presented, is “political propaganda”.
Again, I was left on my own, and the more I researched and observed, and the more nonsense I witnessed online, the more I wanted to speak out. I was like that barber, feeling I was going insane if I did not “let out” my thoughts to whoever would listen (or read in this case). And the times someone made me angry and I expressed my thoughts “out loud”, I felt relieved afterwards.
So this is what I’m going to do on this Substack. Commenting on random news and events happening on the internet and entertainment industry, sharing my knowledge of fairy tales (and giving out an alternative perspective on the genre in contrast to the dominant mainstream one) or just reviewing whatever fancies me in general.
Suggestions are very much welcomed, but I prefer to pick my own subjects to discuss, otherwise I’d fall into the same trappings as those unenthusiastic internet personalities who make content not because they want to, but because they have to.
And of course, none of what I say here should be used as a justification to harass or mistreat anyone, regardless of my opinions on anything or anyone. Just so we’re clear about that.
I hope you can find something constructive in what I have to say and that it can be the start of meaningful conversation.
Until we meet again.
Note: The story retold here is an adaptation of the Irish folk tale “The King with the Horse’s Ears”. For those interested in reading the original story, along with other variants, click here. My version is based on various adaptations of the story, particularly those by Lesley Sims and Peggy Thomson.