About Yor: she isnβt dense, but most likely indoctrinated by Garden
So I wanted to address this for a long while now, because Iβve seen one too many posts talking about Yor like sheβs just an aloof assassin who doesnβt care about things outside her direct environment, which is why sometimes she says dense things.Β
Iβm well aware that sheβs a fan favorite so people donβt mean her harm, yet I think the whole story actually hints at way more than her being dense, especially considering her background and who she still works for.Β
In other words, since Yor was trained but also half raised by Gardenβs leader, the Shopkeeper, itβs likely that, considering how they operate and what theyβre about, they instilled in her a conditioned dependency since childhood or teenage yearsΒ that would make her unable to learn things on her own without asking for their opinion, making it very hard for her to turn against them ever.Β
Want a striking example? Her encounter with Melinda Desmond.Β
Not only did she not know who Melinda was (but I mean, that at least could be understandable)β¦
β¦but she also didnβt know what a First Lady is.Β
Sure, itβs funny on first glance, but after thinking about it, what does it betray? That Garden probably made sure over years Yor would never get the slightest basic info and understanding on what politics of this country are all about. Because if their strong soldiers start to get opinions of their own, then they could start disagreeing with Garden and turning on them.Β So, βletβs prohibit people having free thinking, so that they can remain good little pawnsβ as we βfight for peace in our countryβ.
In fact, for Yor, until a short time ago (when she met Loid and Anya), all she did was thought and decided for her by Garden and, to this day, she still voluntarily asks them for their agreement when she opens up her close circle little by little: she asked them if it was okay to marry Loid and then she asked them if it was okay to befriend Melinda.Β
To be honest, thatβs a scary ass thought process to envision, when Yorβs an independent working lady well into her 20s, but this shows how deep Gardenβs indoctrination runs in Yor, since they got hold of her as a child/young teen.Β
Another striking example is the way she always describes her job, in an almost childish way. Her nickname βthorn princessβ aside, I always found it interesting that Yorβs aware sheβs an assassin but she isnβt morally anguished at all about killing people and never mentions or distinguishes any grey area in her missions.Β In factβ¦
β¦ itβs all in black and white and she clearly thinks that the people she kills are all evildoers (which as we saw in the recent arc with the Red Circus isnβt always the case and begs the rhetorical question βwhy does Garden get to decide whoβs evil?β), therefore βsheβs not doing anything wrongβ, which also pretty much betrays how she was pushed into it.Β
Long ago, Garden probably baited Yor with Yuriβs protection and told her that, since theyβre βabout peaceβ, Yorβs work would just help them to βfight against evilβ. As a child, she wasnβt mentally fit to understand the deeper implications and then she was mentally conditioned to always do and think like Garden tells her to, which promotes this systematic childish description of her assassinβs job.Β
Finally, please take notice of the Shopkeeperβs reaction the first time she tries to argue about her work, in the ship arc:Β
Enough said, Gardenβs awful. Iβm sure there are more examples throughout the story, but I now want to talk about future character development.Β
After all, since the story obviously calls for Yor to ditch Garden, to protect whatβs actually important to her (Yuri, Loid and Anya), we actually do see her changing little by little so far, thanks to her living with Loid and Anya.Β Her coworkers quickly mentioned that sheβs more lively ever since she got married and the ship arc overall emphasizes that her family is starting to become more important to her than her job, so there is high hope for Yor. :D
Additionally, while sheβs still far away from noticing that Garden mentally drove her into a corner, she now openly voices her concerns that βsheβs not normalβ but that she wants to understand why in order to learn how to change.Β
To be fair, fighting against indoctrination is tough and takes time so Iβm very proud of her for slowly realizing that she ought to decide for herself from now on. :DΒ
TL;DR Yor is not dense. She was indoctrinated as a child by Garden and can only (for now)Β see the world through the filters they taught her.Β
Ironically enough, the only character who knows about her real job and could, thus, notice that Yor isnβt being critical about Gardenβ¦β¦ actually canβt because sheβs a four year old who is too young to understand that Mamaβs job is wrong. Well done, Endo-sensei!
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