The Corruption's connections to want, desire and toxic relationships in The Magnus Archives, An essay
by now everyone on this app knows I like writing essays about the magnus archives but.... here we go again! this one's about the connections between the corruption and toxic relationships!
The corruption as an entity seems to have little to do with relationships and love at the surface, with it being about fear of revulsion, filth, sickness and insects. However the corruption is deeper than that, it's relationships to it's victims and how it effects them delving into aspects of toxic relationships and desire. Multiple statements, such as Mag 6 - squirm, Mag 32 - hive, Mag 102 - nesting instinct and Mag 153 - love bombing, delve into relationships as an aspect of the corruption. These statements as many other corruption aligned do, highlight the afflicted having a fear of being alone, having lost everything and yearning for connections with such intensity that they seek out the hive.
That yearning to be wanted is an essential feature of the corruption, as well as it's avatars/victims. Many of them want human connection, love and affection. Jane Prentiss, one of the main corruption characters in the series, is an example of this. In her statement, her lack of connections is obvious, with her stating "I had friends, at least I used to, but I lost them." Even her in own statement she describes herself as lonely, when she tries to fight back against the corruption, which makes her unlikely to free herself from its hold. She was unwanted with nothing to her name, and she would have done anything to be wanted. She asks herself "Was that it? Was I swayed and drawn simply by the prospect of being genuinely loved?" The prospect of being genuinely loved. Jane Prentiss yearned to be wanted so deeply that she ended up putting her hand in the wasps' nest. She wanted to be loved and wanted so bad, that she ended up losing all humanity because of it.
Harriet lee from Mag - 6 squirm; a victim of Jane Prentiss's, sought out human connection over and over again after being infected, and eventually died after having sex with a man at a club. He describes this as "she leaned over and asked me if I wanted her." Again, the corruption's victims needing to feel wanted by someone, anyone, to the point that they end up seeking out any human connection just to feel okay. She singularly wanted to have sex with, and be wanted by anyone who would take her. The corruption increased her desire, specifically her sexual desire, which might I add is a theme only particularly explored by the corruption in the magnus archives, it having the only sexual statements and mentions throughout the series. Another one of the corruption's victims who yearned desperately to be loved and desired. To be valuable to someone. Jane Prentiss also expresses confusion when a customer of the crystal shop she worked in did not look at her in lust, or affection. This implies being desired is important to her, and that if someone does not desire her she becomes confused and upset. She wants to be desired, lusted after, wanted.
In statements 102 - nesting instinct and 153 - love bombing, both victims of the corruption are also so desperate to feel wanted, Benoît Maçon was a miserable lonely man and Barbara Mullen-Jones wanted relief from her industry which was full of hatred and ridicule. Benoît ended up getting afflicted by the corruption and getting married to a beetle, becoming much happier and more fulfilled after he finally was wanted by the corruption. He needed to be wanted so deeply that he searched for it from a source that isn't healthy, "mon petit scarabée" his little beetle. Barbara Mullen-Jones was a comedian and her field was full of hatred and ridicule. Few genuine connections, she was recommended a meditation course, run by the divine chain cult. She eventually after being sold the promise of genuine love from the practices in the class, ended up in rural Arkansas living in a commune. Her experience included the cult descending into the corruption after they fell in love with a sickly dog adopting it. "we were to tell each other that we loved them. And, Claude said solemnly, you have to mean it." the cult became about love and affection to others, but to an extreme. This is another instance of the corruption driving and feeding off of victims needs to feel wanted, as Barbara joined the divine chain to feel loved and wanted as did the the rest of it's victims and the majority of them ended up sacrificing themselves to the flesh hive that made up the center of the cult.
But the corruption isn't just about want. The hive does provide a "genuine" feeling of love, although it is toxic. The corruption warps and contorts it's victims using them as a host unto the filth that it spreads, and these victims are so terribly lonely that they do not have any connections to make them realise that they are in a bad situation. It fills you with wasp larvae, or beetles, mold or sickness and degrades your feelings of self along the way. However, the corruptions victims often share these traits of toxicity and are rejected because of them leaving them seeking understanding and love. Jane Prentiss, Timothy Hodge and Greg Russell are all such corruption victims with toxic connections to others. Jane Prentiss writes in Mag-032, about the people who left her "I do remember that they called me “toxic”. I don’t think I really knew what that meant, except that it was the reason I was so very painfully lonely." This indicates her personal struggle with being rejected as of toxicity and lead her directly to the corruption with her lack of connections. Timothy Hodge was also potentially toxic, as in his statement he describes "I know, I know, she was vulnerable and I feel like an a… But I swear I wasn’t trying to take advantage." after Harriet Lee, a girl afflicted with the flesh hive, described her encounter with Jane Prentiss and started crying. He proceeds to end up having sex with her, which is probably a sign of toxic behavior. Both of them are afflicted with the need to be wanted, and are influenced towards the hive because of it. Greg Russell, from Mag 93 - contaminant was a cleanly person who ended up with an infection of purple mold after his daughter and wife died. His son in law describes his relationship with his wife as "When I first met them I was horrified by the way they talked to each other, convinced I was about to witness the messy divorce of my girlfriend’s parents" and he also states, "To be honest, I’m still not sure how healthy their relationship was" this is another similar circumstance where a victim of corruption has fallen into loneliness after their toxic relationships have ended and instead of seeking help they fall deeper into the thing that is supposed to love them.
Victims of the corruption may have a streak of toxicity and be slightly unhinged at best, however they also have a warped view of love because of the corruption in some extent. The corruption has both toxic victims and warps the views of those who are afflicted by it, changing their views of genuine healthy relationships and (pardon the pun) corrupt them. Jane Prentiss is a main example of this, as she is one of the only corruption avatars a statement is directly from. She describes in her statement being loved by the corruption, it apparently singing that she is loved. However the corruption is unhealthy by nature bugs and beetles and rot that yearn to consume people inside out. Is that truly love? Maybe to the victims it is. Jane says in Mag 32 "Was I swayed and drawn simply by the prospect of being genuinely loved? Not loved as you would understand it. A deeper, more primal love. A need as much as a feeling. Love that consumes you in all ways." Her view of love as all consuming and primal is not healthy in any way and it speaks into her want to be needed. The corruption lures the loneliest away from their real connections and says that the toxicity of their love is correct, taking them and changing who they are until they are unrecognisable. In Mag 102 - nesting instinct, Benoît describes the beetle he is in love with by saying to his coworker "François, I am in love. And she loves me" This again demonstrates the fact that the corruption has warped his view of love as Benoît does not even know the beetle's name and his past lack of relationships worsens this. He is however happy with the thing that made him view love as nothing but a consumption of being rather than trying to connect with others. This is furthermore evidence that victims and avatars of the corruption have their already toxic or harmful views of love reinforced and warped by the fear to suck them deeper into the spiral of loneliness.
The corruption has deep interconnections with the concepts of toxic relationships, love and desire in the magnus archives and these concepts are deeply intertwined with their victims. The victims of corruption are deeply toxic individuals who become worse with the corruption influencing their views of love and desire, increasing their already unhealthy tendencies towards wanting to be desired and leading them back into the grip of the hive.
if you wanna read about this read the transcripts of Mag 6 - squirm, Mag 32 - hive, Mag 93 - contaminant, Mag 102 - nesting instinct, and Mag 153 - love bombing! Specifically hive is a fun read!!! This is a very long essay, my apologies. Also i'm going to cross-post this on ao3 <333 Hope you enjoyed this long long essay it took me a while again.... multiple days of work. Please like it xoxo.... if youre at the end like subscribe and retweet lol.
