An article on davekat, sand eating, and world war 2.
Karkat Vantas is a major character in the webtoon Homestuck. He is depicted as a self-absorbed troll who is obsessed with himself. He also has an antagonistic relationship with his human partner, Dave Strider. One of their favorite activities is eating sand together. Eating sand is one of the ways in which Karkat and Dave deal with their own feelings of depression and anxiety. It can be difficult to understand why someone would choose to eat dry earth, but it makes sense when one understands the psychological factors that influence behavior.
Karkat Vantas eats sand using his hands and his mouth. Some people may find this behavior disturbing, but it makes sense if one takes into consideration the troll’s psychological issues. Karkat’s life as a troll was traumatic and miserable. Unless he eats sand, he will experience unpleasant flashbacks to his unhappy childhood. Eating sand helps Karkat cope with his emotional pain by blocking out negative thoughts and emotions. Eating sand helps him avoid feeling depressed or anxious and focusing on positive aspects of his life instead. Despite how effective eating sand can be, Karkat has to do it responsibly or risk severe health problems from ingesting too much earthy matter overnight.
Eating sand is an unpleasant experience for most people; doing so makes one’s stomach ache intensely for several hours afterward. During World War II, Churchill banned soldiers from eating canned pears after he observed soldiers vomiting after consuming them. Doing so would have been more helpful than eating dry earth, as dry earth causes nausea instead of soothing emotional pain like other food does. Eating dirt also exposes someone to harmful bacteria that can make someone sick if she carries dirt inside her mouth without toothpaste or dental care afterwards. The risks associated with eating sand are not trivial; it makes more sense to focus on soothing emotional pain instead of causing additional stress by eating dirt inside one’s mouth and stomach.
Before I move on I recommend listening to the song below whilst reading for the maximum experience
Eating dirt is an effective way of dealing with emotional pain when weighed against the side effects associated with vomiting after ingesting dry earth orally or brushing teeth with dirt afterwards. The benefits far outweigh any risks involved when dealing with emotional distress this way. For trolls like Karkat who were raised in horrible circumstances as children, eating dirt allows them to block out painful memories by stuffing their mouths full of even more painful sensations—earthy matter—instead. It allows them to escape their daily misery by stuffing their mouths full of something they don’t mind tasting—sand—and passing the resulting mental burden onto their stomachs through their digestive system. For these trolls, eating dirt isn’t just a method for dealing with depression; it’s a necessary coping strategy that helps them get through daily life without falling into deeper despair or melancholy!
Everyone must deal with unpleasant emotions such as grief or anxiety at some point in her life, but some people have alternative ways of doing so than others do. Eating dirt helps trolls like Karkat block out depressive thoughts since ingesting earth causes nausea instead of making them feel depressed or anxious. As comforting as this practice sounds, there are best practices for eating dirt such as avoiding oral ingestion and hygienically brushing one’s teeth afterward for maximum effectiveness and safety. Whatever method best suits each person will help him get through life's difficult times, so long as he's willing to put in the work required for that approach!
