In defense of Tonks

[author_by_night]

Most common complaints:

1.1: "She's a Mary Sue - she has special powers!"

That doesn't necessarily constitute a Mary Sue. First of all, extraordrinary powers are canon; Fleur isn't even 100% human (but you don't hear as many people call her a Sue). As long as she isn't using them to make  even Voldemort a soulful man  who is simply misunderstood, I don't see the problem.

1.2: "She's also related to Sirius!"

Is every wizard and witch supposed to be family memberless? Makes for bad angst more than a good plot if you ask me.

2.1: "Tonks was whining over love..."

In fairness, this one is often debated. I think there's two possibilities: Either JK Rowling is extremely vain and makes Tonks the same way, or, as even Hermione hinted, there was more to it.

And then there's the fact that it is possible she and Remus were in a serious relationship. No, we didn't see them kissing - we hardly ever saw them. And when we did (in about, say, five scenes) they were together in three of those scenes. I'd say that Remus was at least a close friend becoming a love interest. And who wants to be pushed away by their best friend, knowing it's partly because they are spying on a man who uses his Lycanthropy as a weapon? I'd be crying at random and having trouble metamorphing as well.

2.2: "... and she put him on the spot!"

Again, there's no denying it wasn't the right place or time. But Tonks was under a great deal of stress, especially as Remus could've died.  I think it all just came out. Also, notice that when Remus said "let's discuss this later", McGonagall was the one who kept going, not Tonks.

2.3: "Pink hair at a funeral?"

Honestly? I think Dumbledore was looking down from the big Sock-and-Candy Palace in the sky smiling at that. If anything, Tonks did it as a tribute. I might be wrong - and if I am,  I withdraw this argument. But I somehow think Dumbledore would've approved  100%.

3: "Tonks sunk R/S."

No, she didn't. The Veil sunk R/S. And even then, who is to say Remus and Sirius weren't a couple before? That I have no huge arguments against <strike>or my R/S friends would kill me</strike>.

4: "She's too perky."

So? I like perky. True, she overdoes it, but I think that's more of an escape, trying to make things lighter. I think HBP shows that this was not a good defense. The other possibility is that that's just who she is. It doesn't make her vain or possibly dangerous.

5. "Only a twelve year old likes the idea of pink or purple hair."

*Blinks* While I've seen older high school and college aged kids  with pink and purple hair, I have only once seen a pre-teen with a "non-natural" hair color, and I believe it was due to not realizing how hard hair dye is to get out when she sprayed it for Halloween.

Just my two cents! *Whew*

Thoughts are appreciated - even contradictions. This isn't wank, just my thoughts.

Comments

[victorialupin.livejournal.com]

WORD.

Especially on the first two points. I've never gotten why Tonks can be considered a Mary Sue just because she's got special powers and she's related to one of the main characters. I mean, for one thing, the story takes place in a magical world, so how on Earth can special powers be Mary Sue-ish? Secondly, if she didn't have any sort of connection to main characters, there wouldn't really be a reason for her to be there. She's got to be related to someone, whether as a colleague, lover, old friend, cousin, etc. to actually be a part of the story.

I think people really just throw out the term "Mary Sue" every time a female character comes along if the character challenges their beliefs about HP verse, particularly where ships are concerned. And, a lot of the time, it's almost as if readers feel challenged by these characters. Like, someone has developed such a strong attachment towards Remus that she can stand to think of him with a man, but not with a woman because it subconciously threatens her. Or, a reader likes Harry and identifies with Hermione, so when Ginny gets Harry she's "stealing" him from the reader. Seriously, I think fandom projects a lot of RL issues onto the HP characters.

[sea-of-tethys.livejournal.com]

In fairness, this one is often debated. I think there's two possibilities: Either JK Rowling is extremely vain and makes Tonks the same way, or, as even Hermione hinted, there was more to it.

I don't quite understand this bit?

I totally agree on the hair thing, though.

[dramaturgy.livejournal.com]

Thanks, well-written. I really like Tonks as a character and it makes me sad when people automatically dismiss her as a 'Sue.

But I somehow think Dumbledore would've approved 100%.

I agree. Even like McGonagall says, Dumbledore would've been happiest to know there was a little bit more love in the world. That's one of my favorite quotes from the book.

5. "Only a twelve year old likes the idea of pink or purple hair."

Bad argument! I tried to make my hair purple this summer, and I just turned twenty in October. (It didn't work, by the way, but I probably should have expected that. I was trying to dye it with Kool-Aid.)

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

What I was saying was - either JK Rowling thinks people fall over like that over crushes (not even boyfriends, crushes), or Tonks and Remus had something going on that was deeper than a crush, and that Sirius's death and the war were also factors. I think the latter is more likely.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Seriously, I think fandom projects a lot of RL issues onto the HP characters.

Oh, absolutely. And while that can produce good results (I read an amusing fic mocking the "PC mania"), it can also mean that people forget Tonks isn't necessarily the annoying Cheerleader that drove them nuts in tenth grade.

[story645.livejournal.com]

1.2 Her relation to Sirius is also a good way to just nicely compact a lot of exposition on family in the wizarding world and the Blacks.
2. Hell, even is it was just whining and mopeyness over love, I still think she rocks. Why can't she be mopy ober love? As lots of the sane fen have pointed out, she still manages to do her job and be responsible, so it's not like it affects her too much, and it makes her realistic. Lots and lots of girls get all mopey and iffy on identity cause of boys, even *gasp* cool, strong, kick ass, roxin ones like Tonks. It makes her relatable and approachable and yeah, real.
5. *Raises hand* I'm 18 and I'd dye my hair blue if I wasn't afraid of trying to land an internship or research position with blue hair.

[tunxeh.livejournal.com]

[re the confrontation with Remus at Bill's bedside]
Again, there's no denying it wasn't the right place or time.

I'll deny it. It worked, therefore it was the right place and the right time. And, as laverinth points out, the public nature of the scene may have been important in why it worked.

[tunxeh.livejournal.com]

Oops, that was actually a_t_rain. In a Tonks-defense post by laverinth. Sorry for the misattribution.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Even like McGonagall says, Dumbledore would've been happiest to know there was a little bit more love in the world. That's one of my favorite quotes from the book.


Mine too. :)

I tried to make my hair purple this summer, and I just turned twenty in October.

Go you! I'm not daring enough, but I think purple hair is cool.

[victorialupin.livejournal.com]

people forget Tonks isn't necessarily the annoying Cheerleader that drove them nuts in tenth grade

Absolutely. I don't really mind much if people say that they are annoyed by a character because the character reminds them of a person in real life, but I'm sick of said characters being turned into either evil traitors or Mary Sues. For example, personally I'm always a bit annoyed with Molly because I've had issues with over-protective parents in my life, but I'd never claim that she's a badly written character, a bad mother, evil, a Mary Sue, etc. It just isn't logical.

[victorialupin.livejournal.com]

I've always been a bit confused over why anyone thought it was a just a crush, of even just a casual relationship. They had apparently discussed marriage more than once, and obviously had deep feelings for each other.

Anyway, I agree that it was more likely a culmination of factors. Remus' actions would have likely devastated Tonks under any circumstances, but the reason they made her quite so depressed during HBP was that she was already dealing with her cousin's death and fighting in the war. R/T just pushed her over the edge.

[fernwithy.livejournal.com]

On the Mary Sue point, I've actually reached a point where I don't even consider the issue worth answering--it's self-evidently stupid. Related to Sirius? The whole point of that was to introduce the fact that all the wizards are related to one another. Harry's probably related to Sirius, too. And special abilities are only Sue-ish if they're abilities that solve all of Harry's problems. Mary Sue takes over the plot and changes the behavior of canon characters. That's what makes her Mary Sue. Tonks does none of that--she barely registers. There is no reason to even bother with such a silly accusation.

And then there's the fact that it is possible she and Remus were in a serious relationship.

I'd say it's probable, given her behavior. The fact that she's deeply depressed suggests that we're not dealing with a minor infatuation or a passing fancy--she's behaving like a woman whose very serious relationship has come unraveled for reasons she doesn't understand, not like a woman who really likes a guy who won't give her the time of day. And Lupin spends the year moping as well--we see him sad and withdrawn, staring into the fire at Christmas, avoiding contact... that's the behavior of someone trying to avoid temptation, not of someone who has no feelings in that direction. And they've talked about marriage hundreds of times over the year, judging by the context of the conversation in the hospital wing. At the very least, they've talked about some very serious relationship issues for a year. That doesn't come from out of nowhere.

As far as Tonks sinking R/S... it's like saying that Ginny sinks the Harry/Draco. It's a popular fan ship--granted, one that I think had more possibility to happen in canon than H/D, but still a product of fan imagination--but it's up to Rowling what the canon ships are. She said that Sirius wasn't married because he didn't have time for a girlfriend, and now she's given Remus a girlfriend; it seems to me that it's just that R/S was never there to be sunk, in terms of canon, and that has nothing to do with Tonks. It appears to just be what was intended about the character. It's not stopping anyone from writing it in fanon.

I've seen plenty of twenty-somethings with pink and purple hair, including a man in a nice tailored shirt with a sharp haircut that just happened to be, well, pink. College kids are well-known for silly hair colors. I hope Tonks outgrows it, but I certainly agree that Dumbledore would have looked on from wherever he was and done a little happy dance.

[fernwithy.livejournal.com]

Like, someone has developed such a strong attachment towards Remus that she can stand to think of him with a man, but not with a woman because it subconciously threatens her.

I don't know if I'd say that... I'd think the man would be more of a threat--another woman could always be displaced, but if he swings the other way, you're shut out forever. So I think it's just a question of liking the two pretty men at the same time. ;)

[locked-door998.livejournal.com]

I would die my hair too if I wasn't afraid of getting KIXed out of my school.

On second thought... ;)

[story645.livejournal.com]

You are not allowed to get kicked out of school, since I can't think of any yeshiva that'll take a girl with blue or purple or whatever hair, except ones with even Jappier kids. On second thought, what's the quality of your zoned public school?

[story645.livejournal.com]

Actually, I think the slash and threats points holds up better under pop psych or even classical psych analysis.

It's weird, I know, but the idea is, even though liking man=no chance, it's not no chance cause he's rejecting a woman, it's no chance cause he's biologically/psychologically attracted towards men. Were he not predisposed towards men, he'd choose the author.

Once the guy is het however, he has choice, and another girl therefore becomes a threat. Make that girl Tonks, who fandom has decided was that mean popular girl in high school the one they were too chicken to talk to, and you get a lot of Freudian theory on projection and displacement. I.e. didn't get the guy in RL who is totally Remus (or the ideal guy) and he fell for a girl who now becomes Tonks, and since the person can't be horrid to the RL "Tonks" fandom Tonks is the "dummy"

Gay!Remus isn't rejecting whatever type of girl the author imagine herself to be for a "Tonks" The author's just never an option for him cause he's into boys. This also fits in with the weariness towards bi-Remus that is often seen.

Yes, I know it's silly and beyond cracked, but on a pure theory level, there is more to gay!Remus than pretty boys having sex. Not to mention all the sane fans who like it just cause they like the chars together.

Here from the Snitch or Hogwarts Today- I forget which

[lls-mutant.livejournal.com]

Oh, I so needed this. I dislike how R/T played out in canon because I think it was some sloppy writing on JKR's part and her whole red herring thing just didn't work (I'd even go as far to say it backfired), but I like Tonks. She's never been a Mary Sue, and I certainly don;t think she's disrespectful to Dumbledore. ::sigh::

And then there's the fact that it is possible she and Remus were in a serious relationship.

This is one I can't believe, though. At the end of OotP, he doesn't even glance her direction when she falls in the DoM, and then at Christmas, he doesn't even know where she is. I'll believe Tonks was in love with him no problem. I'll definitely believe they were close. I can't believe he'd broken down and gotten into a relationship by this point, though. (It's actually one of the flaws I find with that relationship- if JKR wants us to believe it's a relationship, she needed to give us some clue that Remus was interested back, but resisting it. I'll accept that he was based solely on authorial intent, but she really needed to show it better. And the Harry filter doesn't work as an excuse, JKR!)

Honestly? I think Dumbledore was looking down from the big Sock-and-Candy Palace in the sky smiling at that. If anything, Tonks did it as a tribute.

Totally agree. I can understand why people get upset at times. The return of her Metamorph powers indicates that Tonks was made All Better by love. From that angle, I can get annoyed by it. (Although I'm withholding judgment until we see her personality in Book 7. If she's completely back to Book 5 Tonks, I will be annoyed. If she's somewhere in between book 5 and book 6, I will happily accept the idea that life's better, but she's still bothered by other things.

But the loss of powers because of unrequited love thing? Still cheesy as a bottle of Velveeta. :P

The Veil sunk R/S.

Heee. No, the Veil killed Sirius ;) That doesn't sink a ship... it just means that one party in the relationship is dead! :)

Anyway, I enjoyed. Thanks for letting me babble back at you!

Re: Here from the Snitch or Hogwarts Today- I forget which

[lls-mutant.livejournal.com]

Oops. That was so not the icon I intended to use. Sorry about that! :) There we go.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Good point. But it was still right after Remus had lost someone - though I do think it's a good point, and I do think Tonks deserves credit.

[cats-are-snakes.livejournal.com]

I have never seen Tonks as a Sue. I also find it remarkable that anyone would have the juevos to bitch because J. K. Rowling sank their ship. Gee, is it her universe or what?

Nothing wrong with perky. Not everyone can pull off a constant wank fiesta.

[cats-are-snakes.livejournal.com]

I've been annoyed by Molly because she's supposed to be "one of the good guys," but she constantly carped on Fleur. Glad she finally realized she was behaving badly.

Re: Here from the Snitch or Hogwarts Today- I forget which

[mafdet.livejournal.com]

The thing with the veil sinking the Ship, however, means that whatever Remus and Sirius' relationship was before Sirius died, they've been forever parted by death. So we have two choices: Remus can move on with his life and date someone else - Tonks, Charlie, Mundungus Fletcher, the entire Pride of Portree Quidditch team - or he can live his life in perpetual mourning. Which, face it, is cheesy and not very realistic. Even Queen Victoria was allegedly banging her gamekeeper in private while she was publicly going on about her eternal mourning for dear dead Albert.

[mafdet.livejournal.com]

*applause* Agreed. I really don't care if people don't want to ship R/T but calling Tonks a Sue, and acting like she's the Yoko Ono of R/S is just plain ridiculous. (Does that make Lily Evans Linda McCartney? Was there a Patti Harrison of MWPP?)

Tonks gets way too much flak from the fandom and, quite frankly, out of all proportion to her importance in the actual story. In a way, while I wish JKR had written more young adult female characters, I can see why she might not want to. Whenever there are young women in a story, they somehow take over the fandom.

[purple-ladybug1.livejournal.com]

True, but even in real life, good people can be horrid in-laws. Plus Bill was her oldest and the first to go.

[funwithrage.livejournal.com]

But--and this is why it's easier to be rejected with "sorry, I'm gay" than "sorry, you're not my type"--when the guy you want is with another woman, it's more personal. You're playing on the same turf and, no matter how much you don't think of it as a competition, there's always a few questions: what does she have that I don't? Is it something I'd *want* to have? Is he with her because she's prettier or smarter or better in bed?


If he's gay, you know. He has a cock. You don't. And your average girl doesn't want to have a cock--for more than, y'know, fifteen minutes at a time--so it's much easier to live with that.