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 Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 3:24 pm
 LIFE'S MARROW IS THE BEST EARTHLY MEALTIEMEI SONG | INVERTED CROSS | CLEAVER | CONCEPT CONTESTthemes : princess iron fan ; filial humility ; flesh and dining
✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦UPDATES
- still need to streamline personality
- finish history by tuesday
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Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 3:47 pm
whee  YOUNG GIRL | 防人之心不可無"---be cautious of people that may hurt you intentionally."
防人之心不可無xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xNAME: Tiemei Song 宋鐵美
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xCOLOR: Pus and Rot (#5A463E)
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xAGE: 17
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xNATIONALITY: Taiwanese
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xHOME/FINANCIAL STATUS: upper-middle class
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xSCHOOL: Teufel Town High School
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xLIKES: Chinese classic lit (esp. Three Kingdoms), Baroque music, gachapons, creepypastas
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDISLIKES: Lady Gaga music videos (she really doesn't understand), people blowing down her neck
Princess Iron Fan
left hell for earth one day
and brought back with her a butterfly,
a small and beautiful butterfly,
to bring home to her husband to eat.
He laughed and said it was too little,
so she filled it with pus and rot,
and it grew and grew and grew
until it became a demon butterfly
that nobody could eat.
- Tiemei Song, 4th grade poetry contest
runner up entry
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xPERSONALITY
The reason behind why Tiemei is such a "hardass" is something that her parents can't explain without feeling ironically guilty, while she, sentimentally, can. She was given the name "鐵美" which literally means "metal beauty" as the Song family's avatar. This isn't to say that she's stereotypically expected to succeed in everything, but that she's the result of her family's hard work. Her mindset as a hardass is ironic because her parents sent her to America to give her a more easygoing, academic lifestyle. Regardless, being the daughter of "xiao chi" owners, or a Taiwanese snack store owners, has made ambition important to Tiemei. Capability and uniqueness from competitors is necessary to keep an eatery alive in Taiwanese industry since there were, at least, thirty of them per district. Her mother and father were always taking risks with new shop concepts, and Tiemei learned that every detail mattered, starting from which district the shop operated in to which recipe of which delicacy the shop sold. Industry didn't forgive, and Taiwan had so little news going on, that even the most menial of its citizen's mishaps were often broadcasted on national Television. There's few things that excite her anymore, and fewer things that shock her, which is also why she isn't very responsive to tickles or sneak attacks. A childhood of technicolor had numbed Tienmei's zeal. Taiwanese television is stigmatizing; every small and stupid thing that you committed would be attached to your family, and everyone would know. Life doesn't care if your family depends on a small eatery to feed you and your extended family, and life certainly doesn't care if your small eatery fed your grandfather's hospital bills. Most people remember their childhoods as heaven, but Tiemei remembers hers as the borderline of an economic purgatory.
Tiemei often quotes that, "There are no demons in Hell; all of them are walking on earth." Among them, Tiemei, too, is a violent spirit; she dominates situations and she lingers when she doesn't. Life, to her, has always been a struggle, and those who've sucked its marrow. It's important to be important, and it's crucial to be relentless. Tiemei is talkative and opinionated. To Tiemei, being heard matters even if you're not the best at speaking because doing so ushers in opportunities and recognition. At school, she hungers for leadership roles and exhibits the traits of an opportunist. She's the first to volunteer and the first to open her student planner. Clubs are her usual hunting grounds, and ASB elections are assessments of her annual success. American life, for her, is a "good meal", because American teenagers generally lack the ambition to conquer. It isn't (completely) that everyone else is lazy but that everyone else hasn't experienced desperation. Living in Taiwan has proven to Tiemei that being on top of the industry is synonymous to being well-fed. Living in the U.S. has proven to Tiemei that opportunities are literally a few essays away, and that those who take the effort to write them are the ones that buy others dinner. Tiemei chooses to dine, and she won't buy anyone dinner. Being a natural leader in a foreign country was hard at first, but her English improved annually to amend this problem. She enjoys leadership roles because they make her feel trustworthy and dependable, and she likes to be the one to give orders and not take them. However, Tiemei isn't insensitive to the concept of "gradual hierarchy". She understands that the top industries began as small eateries, so if she must, she'll do what others command and learn from that experience. Therefore, she's humble, after all, like Confuscious said, “If I am walking with two other men, each of them I will serve as my teacher. I will pick out the good points of the one and imitate them, and the bad points of the other and correct them in myself.”
America introduced a metamorphosis. It wasn't that Tiemei became a social butterfly overnight, but that her cultural needs changed. People didn't easily gravitate toward her, and in Taiwan, Tiemei never needed an incentive to socialize. Taiwanese industry and academics are both collective, so Tiemei didn't need to be dependent on her classmates in order to be successful in finding a side job or getting into club positions. America is completely different, and while individuality is encouraged, networking is critical. Reaching out to people became important to Tiemei, and while she never had an issue with shyness, she did feel awkward about her school climate. She'd sit alone unless someone literally dragged her to sit at their table, and she preferred the company of teachers over students, since the buddy-buddy relationships between students and teachers shared did not exist in Taiwan. Truly, Tiemei was the oriental intrigue when she first entered school, and as uncomfortable as the stereotype was, she couldn't deny its presence. People liked her enough after she learned to soften up around them, but few non-"fobs" befriended her until her sophomore year, when her English was considerably better. At the core of her being, Tiemei is very much the teenage norm. Tiemei's fine with touchy friends, but she's never the one to initiate hugs or squeezes until she's gauged the person's personal space. She knows her own boundaries but she's wary around other peoples's. Ultimately, it's not that Tiemei doesn't like spending time with people, but that she has nothing against doing it unless that person offended her somehow or consistently makes her uncomfortable. As always, Tiemei knows herself better than she knows other people, but she tries to make other people as comfortable as she finds within reason. She'll save their face and save their spot, but only if they do the same for her. She's the best secret keeper that anyone can ask for, but won't tell anyone her own. Secrets are what make up the soul, and Tiemei isn't ready to share her soul with anyone.
Generally speaking, American life, to Tiemei, is a complicated meal as she is a complex person. As a hard worker and a veteran of Taiwanese night classes, academic successes in America were easier for Tiemei to obtain than social ones. She likes her teachers a lot, and they usually feel mutually about her, since she gives off the vibe of the "hardworking ESL student". Tiemei knows that she's not a prodigy, so she makes up for it with her work ethic. Because she's not particularly clever or talented, but she tries to expand her breadth by being cultured and dependable. Therefore, she's an enthusiastic student and a kindred, library spirit, and a member of many school clubs. She's usually picked first by the "smart kids" for group projects, but it took her awhile to befriend them outside of academics until her sophomore year of high school. Making friends has become easier for her ever since she's discovered American pop culture and television, but for the most part, Tiemei still remains cautious and curious about new things. Specifically speaking, she aspires to keep the friendships that she has, but treads carefully around them. Therefore, she retains a surface of politeness, but because she doesn't buy anyone dinner, won't easily be easily taken advantage of. She's still inherently (and somewhat secretly) a hardass, especially when it comes to economics. Where her money is spent matters, for she's gotten used to the Taiwanese style of spending. Most people keep their hearts on their sleeves and Tiemei keeps her wallet on hers. Tiemei has always been frugal. She thinks that the poor are too taxing to care for, and in Taiwan, it's the universal truth. There really isn't a reason to care for the less fortunate; they are vile, they take up space, and they make it difficult for people to get from Danshui to Xindian on the morning metro. Tiemei's father would often ask her if she'd like to be like them whenever she desired a "family day", and she'd shake her head and understand why he couldn't risk a vacation.
It always upsets Tiemei when her family can't spend as much time with her as she'd want them to. Family is more important than friends to Tiemei, and her grandfather's death is testament to this. Like most teenagers, Tiemei is different around her family; she's chiding and clingy. She understands their financial pressures, but she tries her best to share an essence of family with them, since they're deathbed companions. Her family is always relatively open with her, and always mean to give the best that they could. There isn't a reason for her family to provide her with anything less, and if it weren't for Confuscianism, Tiemei would have figured that they functioned on an unspoken rule. Her mother and father sent her to America in her aunt's care because they felt as if her life mentality was "wrong", and that she deserved an easier life to dampen her hellish, academic appetite. In Taiwan, she traded nights with friends for night classes at ShiDa, the local, international college, and her parents, at one point, were worried that she had no hobbies. Truly, her American attitude is no different. She simply has a different ethnic culture to deal with, and America hasn't proven anything too challenging other than SAT vocabulary and deciphering Lady Gaga music videos.
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xAPPEARANCE
Tiemei stands at 5"8, which is tall for her age, and taller for a Taiwanese adolescent. She's generally stern-looking or apathetic, but in the presence of her teachers, she adopts a soft-spoken look. She tries to keep her figure thin (but not bulimic) because it's what the media expects from her gender and because the other girls are doing it too. Taiwanese students are not allowed to moderate their appearances other than a regular haircut. They cannot dye their hair, paint their nails, apply makeup, or get any piercings. Thusly, Tiemei looks very much like every other Taiwanese girl, though, she's become a nail polish enthusiast because of her new, American life, and she's taking baby steps in adapting. Generally speaking, she has black hair and brown eyes, and her skin is usually covered by long-sleeved clothing. She collects skull necklaces and rings a lot, though. She's always seen with at least one on. The jade necklace that her aunt, Apple, gifted her upon arriving in America is also one of Tiemei's token garments. It punctuates her outfits and is cared for dearly. Her hair is tied in a whispy ponytail like this, and my faceclaim for her is Amber Kuo.
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Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 3:47 pm
HISTORY | 肉包子打狗"---punishment gives less incentive than reward."
肉包子打狗xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xMOTHER | SONG MEILAN
text text text text text
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xFATHER | SONG RUIXI
text text text text text
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xAUNT | SONG RUOPING (Apple Song)
text text text text text
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Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 3:47 pm
MUSIC | 自助者天助"---God will help those who help themselves."
自助者天助xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xCHARACTER: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xTRANSFORMATION THEME: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xBATTLE THEME: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xFAVORITE SONG: xxx
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Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 6:00 pm
PUELLA | 害人之心不可有"---do not harbour intentions to hurt others."
害人之心不可有xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xLANGUAGE: Chinese
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xWEAPON: giant cleaver (half the size of her body)
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xOUTFIT: x | x | x | x | x
Lacy, rippling flesh thematics integrated into a Chinese hanfu motif or a seifuku motif? Torn fabric edges and burnt cloth would be great!
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xTYPE OF MAGIC: Anti-Magic, "Starvation"
Her desire to eat the finest Earthly meal has blessed her with the ability to starve others. Tiemei's magic allows her to "sever" the connection between her enemy and their magical affinities for a limited amount of time. They can, however, still use their physical abilities, but they're forced to fight on completely even ground with her. She then "feeds" on them by cutting away at their health with her cleaver, which is treated as a physical attack (unless the staff thinks it should be something different).
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDESIRES: "The best meal in the world."
Tiemei's wish is to have the best meal that she can get out of her lifetime, metaphorically speaking. Life is too short, and she doesn't want to repeat her grandfather's fate. She wants a good life, a life that her relatives say is "only attainable in America", a life to call her own. It's important to Tiemei that she doesn't screw this up, and she wants more than anything to go to a prestigious college in two years.
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xEMBLEM: inverted cross
The origin of this symbol comes from the Catholic tradition that Simon Peter was crucified upside down, as told by Origen of Alexandria. It is believed that Peter requested this form of crucifixion as he felt he was unworthy to be crucified in the same manner that Jesus died. The inverted cross is applied to Tiemei as a symbol of filial irony. The Songs felt that Tiemei was unworthy of being raised in an environment of hardship and economic infighting, and therefore sent her to America for a better meal, and in this sense, "crucified" her differently.
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Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 6:00 pm
HELL | 人算不如天算"---the best laid plans of mice and men go oft awry."
人算不如天算xxx ＷＩＴＣＨ - Princess Iron Fan, Queen of Hell, Ash Princess - based on the Qing Ming Shang He Tu painting, Tiemei's favorite painting at the Palace Museum. x | x
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xNAME: Jinmei 燼美
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xTYPE: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDESCRIPTION: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xNATURE: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xAPPEARANCE: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xBARRIER/MAZE: morning (entrance) | night | will expand im just brainstorm
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xLOCATION: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xATTACK(S): xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xGRIEF SEED: xxx
ＭＩＮＩＯＮ ＯＮＥ - lantern princess, silence
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xNAME: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDUTY: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDESCRIPTION: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xAPPEARANCE: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xATTACK(S): xxx
ＭＩＮＩＯＮ ＴＷＯ - incense princess, decay
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xNAME: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDUTY: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDESCRIPTION: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xAPPEARANCE: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xATTACK(S): xxx
ＭＩＮＩＯＮ ＴＨＲＥＥ - vendor princess, filth
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xNAME: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDUTY: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xDESCRIPTION: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xAPPEARANCE: xxx
xxxxxxx▐ ✦xATTACK(S): xxx
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Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2012 6:01 pm
Notes
I'm not sure if the presentation style that I used the personality section is easy to comprehend. The reason why I veered away from using the "bullet point" explaining method is because it's really hard and counter-intuitive to describe an ESL student without understanding why they have such quirks and what caused their personality schisms to shift upon culture shock. I figured that as long as I bolded the traits, it'd be okay, but feedback would be lovely!
It's actually really important right now to Taiwanese families to send their children overseas.
It's difficult to get a high standing job with standard Taiwanese education, so Tiemei's academic attitude isn't so much of an "Asian stereotype" as it is a response to desperation. Taiwanese students also need to take a special test that decides which high school they go to. It's as intimidating as our American prerequisites to college, and so many families send their children to America for a safer, more certain, educational pool.
- - - -
Sources
- I've lived 50% of my life in Taiwan, and I'm trying to give the most accurate representation that of my culture.
- 6 years of Chinese culture class, my mother is the instructor for our competition team.
- Wikipedia.
- - - -
Credits
PUELLA MAGI MADOKA MAGICA | SHAFT, aniplex, & gen urobochi.
PUELLA MAGI: SYMPHONY PROJECT B/C | zanaroo & staff
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