I'm one my vampire diaires nonsense again and let me tell you. I hate the way Emily Bennett was written and her involvment in the creation of the Gilbert Device.
Emily Bennett’s reaction to vampires killing people in 1864 Mystic Falls doesn’t make sense when you remember she was an enslaved Black woman. The show acts like she would naturally care about the safety of the white townspeople, but those same people legally owned and controlled her life. It’s unrealistic to expect her to feel protective toward people who treated her as property.
Enslaved people were not part of the “community” the show tries to portray. They lived under constant violence, family separation, and exploitation. Many resisted in whatever ways they could. So the idea that Emily would be emotionally invested in saving the Founders’ Council—wealthy white enslavers—is historically inaccurate. It ignores the real power dynamics of slavery and flattens her experience.
The show uses Emily as a magical helper instead of a real person with trauma, anger, or agency. She’s written as loyal and self‑sacrificing toward the very people who oppressed her (hmm this reminds me of a certain shield maiden *cough* *cough* Bonnie), which strips her of depth. Instead of exploring how a powerful witch might navigate life under slavery, the writers reduce her to a plot device who exists to protect the Salvatore storyline. The Salvatore BS seems to be hereditary given the shit Bonnie has to deal with.
This is exactly the kind of mistake that happens when there are no writers of color in the room. A Black writer would have immediately pointed out how unbelievable it is for an enslaved woman to care about the safety of her enslavers. They would have pushed for nuance and historical honesty. Without that perspective, the show defaults to a white-centered view that makes Emily’s motivations feel hollow and unrealistic.
I have nothing major to add because you said it all 👌
One of my biggest pet peeves is her loving whats his name Gilbert, having her make him successful, and then her getting not an ounce of credit because that legit embodies why I hate the racist writing. Emily can't even be decent to Bonnie, but she can to her slave master and the town taking advantage of her and her family??
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