Homestuck is a webcomic written by Andrew Hussie that has a long and complex plot. It focuses on the themes of family, isolation, and childhood development. One species in Homestuck, the cherub, concisely portrays the darker side of these themes with only their standard life cycle. Contrary to the standard biblical depictions of cherubim, Homestuck illustrates cherubs as a violent and brutal species. They are a dark green color, and despite the growth of wings later in their life, they are far from angelic. Cherubs are extremely asocial, growing up almost entirely alone. They meet only two other cherubs in their life: their sibling, who shares a body with them, and their mate. Homestuck uses this species to represent abuse within the human family by putting them in an inherently abusive situation and showing how they develop as a result.
Duality is a significant aspect of cherub culture and life. In a cherubâs youth, one sibling will be male, and the other will be female. One will be malevolent, and the other will be benevolent (pg. 5963). In adulthood, the dominant cherub will seek out a mate of the same disposition as their sibling. This links to the common depiction of a brother and sister, and the even more common depiction of a husband and wife. For cherubs, this duality means a constant struggle for dominance, which creates tension that leads to abuse. Additionally, a malevolent disposition is not inherent to male cherubs, and a benevolent disposition is not inherent to female cherubs. While in humans, being male or masculine is linked with aggression and being female or feminine is linked with passiveness, they are not mutually exclusive. Human roles in a marriage can be flexible between genders (source), and so too can capacity for aggression and abuse. Neither cherub wants to be isolated with their sibling, but the only alternative is to be completely on their own. As the sibling is an earlier version of a cherubâs mate, their forced proximity can be compared to forced marriage, which has a notable link to sexual exploitation and exploitation of labor (source). A cherubâs isolation with their complete opposite leads to conflicts where they can find no common ground and where their distaste for the other only grows stronger, which is common in abusive relationships.
During the first part of a cherubâs life, they are accompanied only by their sibling. However, as they live in the same body, there are some complications. While one sibling is awake, the other is asleep and dormant. In order to tell the cherubs apart, one must look at their cheek; a green spiral on either cheek means the benevolent cherub is active, and a red spiral means the malevolent cherub is active. The struggle of duality, and the isolation that comes with it, is necessary for a cherubâs upbringing (pg. 5963). This will eventually culminate in the stronger sibling essentially absorbing their counterpart (pg. 5964), which reflects how, in an abusive relationship, the only way to âsurviveâ is to overpower the other person. However, the loss of this counterpart is what leads the successful cherub to search for a mate to replace the half they lost (pg. 5964). Likewise, humans may seek out relationships with those similar to someone who had abused them in the past for the same reason.
The cherubâs loss of their sibling leads to them finding a mate with the same gender and disposition as their sibling. While the siblinghood was forced, finding a mate technically is not; however, the relationship with the mate is highly aggressive, possibly even moreso than with the sibling. With humans, those who have gone through abuse as children are more likely to have dysfunctional relationships as adults (source). In addition, the only love a cherub can experience is kismesessitude, also known as caliginous or black romance (pg. 5968), which is a type of love marked by hatred. For humans, it could be compared to âan especially potent arch-rivalryâ (pg. 2395). In order to reproduce, two cherubs engage in a violent and drawn-out duel that may last for years. Eventually, the winner emerges, and the loser is fertilized with the winnerâs egg (pg 5972-5973) This connects weakness with femininity, as from a human perspective, pregnancy is feminine. This view is shared by masculine lesbians as well (source). Even if one is female and able to become pregnant, pregnancy lies more in femininity than in the female gender. The inherent aggression and violence in how cherubs experience and communicate love would be considered extremely abusive for humans.
Homestuck does not end with the breaking of a cycle. The main characters beat Sburb, creating a new universe and beginning a new life for themselves where they are free from the hardships of childhood. Though there are no more cherubs born in this universe, cherubs are only a part of the larger cycle. Sburb and its derivatives do not simply end forever; rather, it is to eventually be played again by new players. Those created for the new universe will have to overcome the same struggles the main characters faced. Even when one has finished reading Homestuck, it does not end. The aspects of the real world that it reflects still ring true.
NOTE: this was done as my final exam in my world studies class. i did a lot of overexplaining due to this! i also did not accurately format citations as it wasn't required. i am aware that many of the sources i used are not at all recent. i think people should write about this more. i wouldn't have this problem if that were the case. ^_^ some sources may seem flimsy, this is because i mostly drew from wider perceptions of things rather than stuff that is all backed up by specific research papers. i understand that this is a flaw. U_U
on the topic of flaws! i bet this whole paper is flawed! BUT! i hope it accurately conveys the message i am trying to get across :P
EDIT: i made an addition go reblog that.
