Before even reading the comments to this thread I predict a fair bit of "my entertainment has absolutely zero effect on me" defensiveness.
If entertainment had zero effect on us, advertising would also have no effect. That is clearly not the case.
Now I read the comments, I will say the Stormcloaks aren't directly fascist, not to the same extent as the Thalmor that see Ulfric Stormcloak as an unwitting asset. The Empire is a neoliberal mess in decay (sound familiar?) and it is fairly sus that the only story choices offered are siding with the ethnostate rebellion or the neoliberal status quo that's already crumbling from a war with the fascist Dominion.
If I had to venture a guess, the real entertainment-driven origin of modern fascism (if the fascism wasn't already part of United States cultural character and never left) was a gross misunderstanding of what Verhoven was trying to say in his Starship Troopers movie. I lived through that. I know many former classmates (and family) that took it at face value, as a good thing, that "the failure of democracy!" was both inevitable and a good thing so that the movie's presented government and society could come true.
That theory is mostly conjecture but canonically they do believe their mortality to be a curse inflicted upon them when the Aedra were tricked/convinced/decided to create Mundus and humanity/beast races.
Aedra and Daedra meaning "ancestors" and "not ancestors" respectively, in Aldmeris. Hence the reverence of Lorkhan/Shor/SEP/Shezzar within human societies and hatred or indifference without.
High Elf and Dark Elf culture differs here where they both view him as someone who cast Elves down from "heaven" but the Altmer see this as a curse that must be rectified, the Dunmer see it as a test that must be overcome for true enlightenment.
Before even reading the comments to this thread I predict a fair bit of "my entertainment has absolutely zero effect on me" defensiveness.
If entertainment had zero effect on us, advertising would also have no effect. That is clearly not the case.
Now I read the comments, I will say the Stormcloaks aren't directly fascist, not to the same extent as the Thalmor that see Ulfric Stormcloak as an unwitting asset. The Empire is a neoliberal mess in decay (sound familiar?) and it is fairly sus that the only story choices offered are siding with the ethnostate rebellion or the neoliberal status quo that's already crumbling from a war with the fascist Dominion.
If I had to venture a guess, the real entertainment-driven origin of modern fascism (if the fascism wasn't already part of United States cultural character and never left) was a gross misunderstanding of what Verhoven was trying to say in his Starship Troopers movie. I lived through that. I know many former classmates (and family) that took it at face value, as a good thing, that "the failure of democracy!" was both inevitable and a good thing so that the movie's presented government and society could come true.
My lore is a bit rusty, but the Thalmor are not only genocidal fascists but they also want to UNMAKE REALITY right?
Yes.
I won't say Pelinal Whitestrake did nothing wrong, but... :side-eye-1: :side-eye-2:
The Middle Dawn as allegory for the SU breaking capitalist realism for a moment.
That theory is mostly conjecture but canonically they do believe their mortality to be a curse inflicted upon them when the Aedra were tricked/convinced/decided to create Mundus and humanity/beast races.
Aedra and Daedra meaning "ancestors" and "not ancestors" respectively, in Aldmeris. Hence the reverence of Lorkhan/Shor/SEP/Shezzar within human societies and hatred or indifference without.
High Elf and Dark Elf culture differs here where they both view him as someone who cast Elves down from "heaven" but the Altmer see this as a curse that must be rectified, the Dunmer see it as a test that must be overcome for true enlightenment.
Dunmer got it in one tbh. I'd much rather become an immortal hyperdeity within the dream than have the dream change under me