#pattern completion

You know how you type something like "I want" into your phone and then tap the middle autocomplete option over and over and over again, and it says some wild shit? This is just the LLM version of that. It looks ominous, but it doesn't mean anything.

Two weeks ago an anonymous Tumblrite submitted to my ask box a comment about Emboar, ending with an offhand remark about the Chinese zodiac theory of the Fire type starter Pokémon. For those unfamiliar with the theory, it goes like this: Game Freak has designed the Fire starter of each game to specifically be an animal out of the Chinese zodiac. This, of course, is grade A FDA certified baloney (or bologna, for any Italians out there). Today I’m going to explain why, but also touch a bit on why some folks find it attractive.

The nature of allusions lies in a fickle place. References can stretch from casual homage to deliberate replication. The key part of any allusion is that it must be recognizable specifically as relating to the referent. This is the central point where the Chinese zodiac pattern fails. In order for it to be a coherent, rational theory, each Fire type starter (Charmander, Cyndaquil, Torchic, Chimchar, Tepig, and Fennekin) would need to specifically correlate to a zodiac animal. In addition, it’s not a pattern if any one of these Pokémon does not correlate to a zodiac animal. I will explain the positions each of these six Pokémon hold and how well each allusion holds up to scrutiny.

Charmander: You would think that a theory about a pattern would at least hold true for the beginning, but you’d be wrong. Charmander is claimed to represent the zodiac Dragon as it evolves into a dragon-like Pokémon. Seems like sound reasoning until you investigate the subtlety of the false allusion. While Charizard is a dragon, it’s a European dragon, not an East Asian one. This distinction is key as dragons are associated with different things in each mythology. European dragons are bestial; they are representative of evil savagery and are something to be conquered or destroyed. Conversely, Asiatic dragons are revered as wise, ancient, and powerful beings. Thus, Charmander fails a basic criterion of the zodiac allusion by not actually being a reference to the zodiac animal.

Cyndaquil: There might be a whole article on what the Cyndaquil line is (spoiler alert: they’re porcupines). Technically, Cynaquil is an echidna, but the superficially similar body structure is Game Freak’s intent. Either way, the Chinese zodiac theory claims that Cyndaquil is the Rat (or Mouse, as both animals share a word). Either way, Cyndaquil is neither rat nor mouse. The counter argument has been, “Well the Pokédex says it’s the Fire Mouse Pokémon!” Sure, but it also says that Blastoise is the Shellfish Pokémon and Granbull is the Fairy Pokémon, so let’s not get hung up on the accuracies of a 10-year old’s research.

Torchic: The Torchic line is based on the chicken, and the Chinese zodiac does contain the Rooster (or chicken or hen, another ambiguous translation). While superficially correct, nothing about a fighting cock is representative of the patience and planning associated with the zodiac rooster.

Chimchar: Chimchar, Monferno, and Infernape are the only ones who nail the zodiac comparison, but only by coincidence. They are based on the Chinese legend of Sun Wokong, the Monkey King, so it’s not unusual that they embody many of the same themes.

Tepig: Like Torchic, Tepig superficially fits the mold of the zodiac Pig (or boar in Japanese translations), but is a total flavor mismatch. The Pig is calm, intellectual, and artistic. Emboar is a powerhouse wrestler.

Fennekin: The most recent addition to Pokémon’s pantheon of starters is probably its most controversial. Fennekin has spawned all sorts of online arguments about where or not foxes are dogs. Both biologically and mythologically they are not at all dogs. In fact, the difference between dogs and foxes is how the genera of the subfamily Caninae are split. In addition, the zodiac Dog is a domestic dog and a figure of enthusiasm and loyalty. Foxes, on the other hand, are spiritual beings of mystical power (see the huli jing of Chinese mythology and the related Japanese kitsune). But hey, one for six is good enough for a pattern, right?

Now, I don’t blame people for trying to find patterns in things. Human creativity is rooted in abstract thinking; it’s in our nature to seek out relationships between unlike things. Much like any other part of our psyche, however, this process can go too far. The phenomenon of apophenia is characterized by the human drive to find patterns in places where they don’t exist. The most common form of this occurs with visual stimuli (which is why we see faces on everything), although it happens plenty often with information as well (A Beautiful Mind was a movie about this phenomenon’s link to schizophrenia). This isn’t to say that everyone who believes in the Chinese zodiac theory is a schizophrenic (to say so would be an example of apophenia), but that the entire theory is rooted in flawed assumptions and poor rationalizations in order to force connections between unrelated cultural products.

Hold a moment - observe this blog closely. Do you think you've seen this blog before? Does this font reek of being known? Or the colours seem to jump out at you and dance in your head to the tune of familiarity? If any of your answers has been yes, congratulations!! You're automatically inducted in our club of 'vellah (idle)-nothing-to-do' people, of which the president is none other than the one who's writing you're enduring right now.

Apart from that (if you're still with me), you've just undergone a sliver of deja vu (already seen) in relation to the colours, name and other features of fixed nature in this blog currently, and perhaps an eeny bit of deja vecu (already experienced) in relation to the Naansense being churned out here.

Scientists have proposed (not proved) that there are two ways to a memory.

- Pattern Separation

This part distinguishes between similar but different memories.

- Pattern Completion

This part pulls out the whole memory if any part of it is triggered.

And deja vu, which atleast half of you reading this would have experienced sometime or the other, supposedly occurs when your Pattern Separation mechanism malfunctions and is unable to properly slot/sort your similar memories. That explains why you felt so at home while watching the Twilight series. Touche. And believe it or not, some people (mostly oldies) seem to be stuck in a state of constant Deja Vecu (read on to understand). Imagine that happening to you - even before you actually ride your first bike, you'll feel you've already done it before and not actually ride it. *horror* It's like being caught in the same episode of the series and living it over, everyday. *shivers*

But actually, all your deja vu experiences might not be what you think. 

Now, now. Before your already incensed brain starts potting plans to kill me, let me get down to the Dejas. So the umbrella term that most of us employ to describe anything which has a flavour of 'already' (deja), is "deja vu". Now this might or might not be the case, because there are, hold your breath, more than 15 kinds of Dejas (alreadys). I'm gonna quickly list 'em below before you feel anymore duped:

déjà arrivé

already happened

déjà connu

already known (personal knowing)

déjà dit

already said/ spoken (content of speech)

déjà entendu

already heard

déjà éprouvé

already tried or attempted

déjà fait

already done or accomplished

déjà gôuté

already tasted

déjà lu

already read

déjà parlé

already spoken (act of speech)

déjà pensé

already thought or pondered

déjà presenti

already "sensed" (or had a presentiment)

déjà raconté

already recounted or told

déjà rencontré

already met

déjà rêvé

already dreamt

déjà senti

already felt (as in I have felt this way)

déjà su

already known (intellectually)

déjà trouvé

already met

déjà vécu

already lived through or experienced

déjà visité

already visited

déjà voulu 

already wanted