Good day everyhoof,
Today, I thought that I would write a little about Fluttershy. What is a fluttershy? ….
In the image above, we can see what a fluttershy looks like.
So, Fluttershy is the element of kindness, which means that she is always kind – not nice. Indeed, a better word to describe her may even be that she is the element of loving-kindness. The difference between nice and kind can be summarized in the following ponyclip:
In this ponyclip, we see Rarity hard at work on the ponies’ dresses after they all told Rarity that the dresses she had made them were just not what they had expected. Previously, Fluttershy had agreed with the other Mane 6 as they told Rarity the dresses weren’t perfect, and now Rarity has a one-on-one with Fluttershy about the redesign. We see that Rarity had made some minor tweaks, but Fluttershy is still not impressed. Not wanting to hurt Rarity’s feelings a second time and not having the social skills to navigate the situation, she tells Rarity that she loves the new, new dress, while smiling politely; she hopes that Rarity will accept her reply, even though Fluttershy doesn’t like the dress.
Rarity, however, being more well-versed in polite culture than Fluttershy, spots the pretense immediately. And, being Fluttershy’s friend (and also wanting to make her a dress that she actually likes), tries to get the truth out of Fluttershy by saying, “Oh, you’re just saying that…” Fluttershy seems genuinely surprised that Rarity picked up on her deception. But instead of just telling her the truth, Fluttershy probably feels at least somewhat responsible for Rarity’s displeasure in her not liking the dress, so Fluttershy takes a moment to try and convince herself that she really does like the dress; not wanting to tell a complete lie Fluttershy settles on the word “nice” to describe how she feels and is hopeful that Rarity accepts her reply.
Rarity seems like she is about to accept Fluttershy’s reply, saying “nice…” to confirm that Fluttershy really feels that way. But Fluttershy, sensing Rarity’s suspicion, and being the shy pony that she is, backs down from her assertion that the dress is nice by giving a less-than-enthusiastic response and even wincing a little in anticipation of having her belief in responsibility for Rarity’s feelings questioned.
Rarity, however, thinks she knows what’s going on and takes offense.
Fluttershy, seeing Rarity’s apparent petty offense, is feeling as though she is now safe from Rarity exposing her secret feelings and so, perhaps mistakenly, thinks that she has the situation under control (maybe Rarity was just pretending to take offense?) and tries to make Rarity feel better about herself by emphasizing that she does, indeed, like the dress. (Although, it may be more that what was conveyed was that Fluttershy liked Rarity and didn’t want her to feel bad about her not liking the dress.)
Rarity, perhaps sensing this last bit, can now move forward with further questioning, as it has been confirmed that Fluttershy has no hard feelings about Rarity for making a dress that she doesn’t like. Having figured out a good portion of Fluttershy’s ruse, Rarity is now able to proceed until she gets Fluttershy’s genuine reply. All the while that Fluttershy is backing away, she is dropping hints that she not only has an opinion but that she has a great deal of thoughts on the subject, especially when she says, “No, that’s OK” – indicating that she is holding onto a strong opinion on the matter. Rarity, of course, notices this and so continues to pressure her.
In one instance after being backed up against the wall, Fluttershy gets scared while repeating that she likes the dress. This might be mean if Rarity was fully aware of Fluttershy’s shyness (perhaps, even if she had a strong opinion), but Rarity is still pretty ignorant about Fluttershy’s shyness in this episode and is driven primarily by her concept of what would make her friend happy, as well as her volition, rather than what would actually make her friend happy (even if it may have turned out well, although that is debatable). Rarity even goes so far a to throw a mini-tantrum in front of Fluttershy – “Tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me!” Rarity demands, while stomping her hooves.
It’s at this point that Fluttershy’s perspective shifts and she now sees Rarity as a cranky little animal that needs to be pacified somehow rather than an imposing designer. With her newfound view of Rarity as a cranky critter, Fluttershy knows the only way to pacify her is to give her what she wants and express everything she thinks about the dress. When Fluttershy finishes and realizes she might have gone too far, she returns to her usual shy ponyself, adding that whatever Rarity wants to do is fine. Fluttershy’s expression here, however, is interesting because she appears mildly disappointed in herself for letting Rarity push her that far.
So, Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy….
You are a truly wonderful and complex, loving-kind pony.
Let us praise thee.
Amen.
Attributions:
media1: Lauren Faust. Fluttershy. Artist: Aakili-amethyst. “Stained Glass Fluttershy – Better”. https://www.deviantart.com/akili-amethyst/art/Stained-Glass-Fluttershy-better-312384603. Uploaded to Derpibooru by: Mildgyth. https://derpibooru.org/images/1191613.
media2: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. “Fluttershy’s Rant”. gn33101. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toKSJqwO02I.
media3: PinkiePieSwear. Flutterwonder. “Flutterwonder (PinkiePieSwear)”. Deleted Brony Videos Archive. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrJTSxO517Y&t=0s.