#mymusing

Now: Ken-hate is super interesting in its own right, and this is especially because I think, going beyond just the hating kids angle—a true and observable fact—it's also just noticeable to me that to blame Ken is to strip Shinjiro's agency and choice in the matter of his death? Shinjiro wanted to die! He chose to. He came of his own free will, expecting—no, planning—for it. To Shinjiro, his death was the only conceivable outcome.

So personally, it's really those layers of cognitive dissonance that make it sort of intriguing from a general standpoint, because obviously it wasn't his fault, he's a kid, and an angry one at that—rightfully so! Ken's not just "some whiny brat". He lost the only person who was important to him, and technically—depending on the source material, anyway—this is something that can be considered to happen not just once, but twice, because if he befriends Shinjiro, then that gets ripped away from him, too.

What if you found out that this guy, your friend, for all intents and purposes, was the same guy who murdered your mother, the only family you had, and left you an orphan? And that the group you joined covered it up?

Back to noticing how Ken haters deny Shinjiro's agency and choice in his death and how it takes place, though— I've often been aware of the fact that those who seem to hate Ken, more than even that, are upset that Shinjiro died, but I also think the awareness that Takaya killed him requires you to be cognizant of Shinjiro's own decision in the matter?—not only did he jump in front of the bullet, but he wanted to.

Conversely, if Ken is responsible for Shinjiro's death, then that would mean Shinjiro has no agency, which... I think that's sort of the point, isn't it? It ignores the reality in favor of this cop-out, it doesn't look at all the choices that Shinjiro made consistently, to be there in the first place, while pushing the labor of all of this onto Ken and only Ken.

Takaya is not responsible, but underlying that, Shinjiro is not responsible. Not for showing up. Not for shielding Ken. This leaves us with the cop out, the avoidance, and pointing fingers at all the wrong places.