One day at a time

Here we go again with Painters/Writers war, Clemma edition !

I may have an entire AU about this, and I mayyyy have something also with Verstave... 👀

For example; by our societal norms of that time Renoir is the head of the Dessendre family and Verso is his heir as his son. As his only son and male heir, there would have been a lot of pressure - from his parents and/or society at large - on Verso to marry, even if 26 years old was young for a man at the time to tie the knot.

But the Belle Epoque Paris of Clair Obscur might be totally different and in that case do you think the same thing could apply, with Verso being the heir in regards to society's rules, but in the small world of Painters & Writers inside that society gender norms are non-existent, therefore allowing Aline to be Head of the Painter's Council at one point and Clea, as the eldest child, her heir?

So Verso is the heir to the family but Clea is the heir to the family's council seat?

I’m writing a Verso x OC fanfic that is set at first in Belle Epoque Paris and I asked myself the exact same questions because the devs give us almost nothing about the “Original World” (because who knows if even THAT is real you know…). In the Canvas world, it seems that there is a certain equality between men and women, as well as acceptance for alternative lifestyles etc. It’s kind of a nice thought that maybe over the years, the people in the Canvas changed their society to more equal standards.

I still have this headcanon that the original world was pretty close to our Belle Epoque Paris with some caveats. Even in that time, there were exceptional women who clawed their way up to the top with sheer tenacity, and Aline feels to me like exactly that kind of woman. She’s an incredibly skilled artist with an iron will, and I see her fighting her own way into the position she holds because of her strength of character, which probably borders on absolute stubbornness. This reflects in Clea A LOT I think. The pressure put on her to excel, to create perfection, to be unyielding. Maybe in Aline’s mind, women needed to be exceptional to make their way in the world and be respected.

I do think she found a husband in Renoir who sees and treats her as an equal. So while the society outside would expect a traditional line of succession, the Dessendre family feels like they already didn’t fully follow that tradition. Still, there would have been societal pressure from outside for a male heir. Clea and Verso are pretty close in age, which could suggest that the parents tried for a son after a daughter.

Society would definitely see Verso as the male heir and expect him to take over family responsibilities and finances from his father and yes, of course marry. Probably someone high-born, highly intellectual, AND a Paintress herself, judging by Aline’s standards. BUT THE CRAZY THING IS there’s not JUST society pressure, there is the artistic pressure on him as well. His mother taught all her children to paint and expected them to carry on the legacy, maybe take over the Council position. Why would anyone give up the power of creating entire worlds?? I don’t think she could fathom any of her children NOT deciding to become Painters.

Why did Verso stop Painting? Why did he never make more than one Canvas? Sure… it could be the simple wish that he just loved music more. But I always felt like there has to be a deeper moral reason for it, which I chose to explore in my story for example. So when he decides not to become a Painter, he basically ruptures his family.

Clea has to become the heir apparent. The Hauler. The one carrying everything. While outwardly, she can’t inherit. Verso still has to serve as the male heir, still has to marry, but he’s rebelling against the legacy pressure by refusing to Paint.  And poor Alicia stands in both their shadows. I absolutely believe this family was half-broken before the fire.

Also wouldn’t it be a funny thought if, when Aline made Lumiere in the Canvas, she made the society more gender-equal because she had to fight so much for her position? I kind of love that thought… I WISH we knew more about Aline’s Canvas Clea before Original Clea Painted over her because she would reflect traits Aline wanted her to carry over… Like Canvas Renoir’s strongest trait is to protect the family at all costs. What would Canvas Clea be like..?

In Acts I and II, you have this wild, dense and immense world to explore and scrape your way through, the monolith always looming above you. It FEELS like a vast unmappable world, living, breathing, you may even imagine there are other cities, stranded beyond the continent, other continents, even...