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Ambiguous Disorder is not a trope anymore, but a redirect to a YMMV entry.
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* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards some type of mental illness. Her narration and dialogue is also written in a way that makes her seem younger than she really is. She is also antisocial, as she is vengeful, irresponsible, sadistic, possessive of her sister [[spoiler:to the point of murder and arson]].
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* ByronicHero: While arguably the best person in the entire novel, she still has her own troubles and frequently blames herself for allowing [[AmbiguousDisorder Merricat]] and [[CoolOldGuy Julian's]] conditions to deteriorate to the point they have.
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* ByronicHero: While arguably the best person in the entire novel, she still has her own troubles and frequently blames herself for allowing [[AmbiguousDisorder Merricat]] Merricat and [[CoolOldGuy Julian's]] conditions to deteriorate to the point they have.
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** In book and movie, Merricat is triggered by the mere word "punish" and runs away, and was [[DeniedFoodAsPunishment regularly denied supper]] when she displeased her father. And if Merricat's fantasy can tell us anything, it's that she harbors a lot of anger about however her parents and brother treated her, and we miht infer that she was not treated as well as Thomas (since she imagines him being forced to give up some of his supper for her).
to:
** In book and movie, Merricat is triggered by the mere word "punish" and runs away, and was [[DeniedFoodAsPunishment regularly denied supper]] when she displeased her father. And if Merricat's fantasy can tell us anything, it's that she harbors a lot of anger about however her parents and brother treated her, and we miht might infer that she was not treated as well as Thomas (since she imagines him being forced to give up some of his supper for her).
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Changed line(s) 4 (click to see context) from:
* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards some type of mental illness. Her narration and dialogue is also written in a way that makes her seem younger than she really is. She is also antisocial, as she is vengeful, irresponsible, sadistic, possessive of her sister [[spoiler:to the point of murer and arson]].
to:
* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards some type of mental illness. Her narration and dialogue is also written in a way that makes her seem younger than she really is. She is also antisocial, as she is vengeful, irresponsible, sadistic, possessive of her sister [[spoiler:to the point of murer murder and arson]].
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None
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** In the movie, John Blackwood was a ControlFreak towards Constance, even getting a man fired for daring to ask her out. He seemed to physically abuse Merricat as well- when Charles loses his temper at her poison talk, he grabs her roughly and ''drags'' her upstairs to do [[NothingInScarier heaven knows what to punish her]] while Constance follows them in tears but appears too terror-stricken to step in.
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** In the movie, John Blackwood was a ControlFreak towards Constance, even getting a man fired for daring to ask her out. He seemed to physically abuse Merricat as well- when Charles loses his temper at her poison talk, he grabs her roughly and ''drags'' her upstairs to do [[NothingInScarier [[NothingIsScarier heaven knows what to punish her]] while Constance follows them in tears but appears too terror-stricken to step in.
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* {{Bookworm}}: She's shown to read a lot about fairy tales and history.
* TheDogBitesBack: [[spoiler: She murdered her parents]] for being sent to bed without dinner, something that happened often.
** Averted with the townspeople who bully her, who for all her talk about wanting to see them dead, Merricat seems quite meek about standing up to.
** Averted with the townspeople who bully her, who for all her talk about wanting to see them dead, Merricat seems quite meek about standing up to.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Merricat loves exploring the woods, hates baths, provides for the family (in the form of going out for supplies) and is aggressive and demanding, while Constance is coded extremely feminine: cooking, cleaning, canning, gardening, wearing pink, and in general being gentle and nurturing.
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* VillainProtagonist: Or at least AntiVillain. She despises the villagers, kills animals just because she dislikes them, [[spoiler:and is the true culprit behind her entire family's murder, as well as the fire that ultimately leads to Julian's death]].
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* VillainProtagonist: Or at least AntiVillain. She despises the villagers, kills animals snakes just because she dislikes them, [[spoiler:and is the true culprit behind her entire family's murder, as well as the fire that ultimately leads to Julian's death]].
* ProperLady: Constance is in every way the early-1960s ideal for a young lady: she's quiet, sweet, excels in the feminine-coded arts, and at worst, gently scolds Merricat for her mischevous ways.
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* AdaptationalVillainy: He was a greedy asshole in the book, but in the movie he straight-up physically attacks Merrikat because she won't stop talking about poison.
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* AdaptationalVillainy: He was a greedy asshole in the book, but in the movie he straight-up physically attacks Merrikat Merricat because she won't stop talking about poison.
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* ChildHater: Played with. Merrikat's narration is childlike, but she's old enough to have boyfriends and go to the grocery store by herself. Even before Merrikat starts trying to get him to go away, he makes it clear he doesn't like her and muses that soon she'll be made to leave and he'll be the one staying.
* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler: Merrikat kills him in the movie.]]
* KissingCousins: It's implied that he wants to get together with Constance. Merrikat notes that he starts acting and dressing like their father, and wonders if he'll start telling Contance to dress like their mother.
* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler: Merrikat kills him in the movie.]]
* KissingCousins: It's implied that he wants to get together with Constance. Merrikat notes that he starts acting and dressing like their father, and wonders if he'll start telling Contance to dress like their mother.
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* ChildHater: Played with. Merrikat's Merricat's narration is childlike, but she's old enough to have boyfriends and go to the grocery store by herself. Even before Merrikat starts trying to get him to go away, he makes it clear he doesn't like her and muses that soon she'll be made to leave and he'll be the one staying.
* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler:Merrikat Merricat kills him in the movie.]]
* KissingCousins: It's implied that he wants to get together with Constance.Merrikat Merricat notes that he starts acting and dressing like their father, and wonders if he'll start telling Contance to dress like their mother.
* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler:
* KissingCousins: It's implied that he wants to get together with Constance.
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* RightForTheWrongReasons: He's right that Merrikat's behavior isn't healthy or acceptable and that Constance shouldn't wait on her family hand and foot, but it's always framed around his obsession with the Blackwood money.
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* RightForTheWrongReasons: He's right that Merrikat's Merricat's behavior isn't healthy or acceptable and that Constance shouldn't wait on her family hand and foot, but it's always framed around his obsession with the Blackwood money.money.
!! The Blackwood Family
The rest of the sisters' relatives who have died before the book begins, made up of their father John, mother Lucy, aunt Dorothy (Julian's wife), and younger brother Thomas.
* AbusiveParents: The movie all but says this outright, while there are only hints in the novel.
** In the movie, John Blackwood was a ControlFreak towards Constance, even getting a man fired for daring to ask her out. He seemed to physically abuse Merricat as well- when Charles loses his temper at her poison talk, he grabs her roughly and ''drags'' her upstairs to do [[NothingInScarier heaven knows what to punish her]] while Constance follows them in tears but appears too terror-stricken to step in.
** In the book, Constance is forced to do all the cooking, cleaning, and gardening for the family. While she does seem to genuinely enjoy these things, she was not given a choice int he matter while her family was alive like Cinderella. There is even one mention where she was franctically thinking of something to make for lunch real quick, as if the responsibility was hers alone, and another where she's hard at work in the garden while Julian entertains the other women.
** In book and movie, Merricat is triggered by the mere word "punish" and runs away, and was [[DeniedFoodAsPunishment regularly denied supper]] when she displeased her father. And if Merricat's fantasy can tell us anything, it's that she harbors a lot of anger about however her parents and brother treated her, and we miht infer that she was not treated as well as Thomas (since she imagines him being forced to give up some of his supper for her).
* ControlFreak: Both Mr. and Mrs. Blackwood act like this- towards their daughters, or helping others out financially, or how much they're willing to share of their land with the villagers (which is to say, very little).
* GenerationXerox:
** Thomas Blackwood was said to have his father's more "forceful" personality traits, [[BrattyHalfPint even as a ten-year-old.]]
** Constance is implied to be a lot like her mother, but a better person. Like Lucy, she's a ProperLady, as tidy as can be, a flawless host when she has people over for tea, and even Merricat wonders if Charles will make Constance dress like her when he begins dressing like their father, who he already behaves like.
* NeatFreak: Lucy Blackwood so loved her beautiful tea room to be flawlessly clean that the girls were not allowed in it, and even when she dies, Constance and Merricat clean it every week.
* RichBitch: John and Lucy were incredibly snobbish and downright classist to the rest of the village, outright calling them "trash". When Mrs. Blackwood first moved to the house, she even asked her husband to close the path in front of their mansion that gave walkers a shortcut into down rather than having to walk along the highway, because it disturbed her so much to see the villagers close to their home. They seem to see themselves as better than the entire town, so much that even Merricat, who [[spoiler: murdered them]] has ingrained their arrogant attitude towards it.
* SpoiledBrat: If Merricat's and Julian's hints are anything to go by, ten-year-old Thomas was turning into a jerk like his father, and was doted on by their parents.
* TokenGoodTeammate: One could say this of Julian's wife Dorothy, who at worst got into arguments with her husband. There is zero indication she was as awful as her in-laws, and made sure she "earned" her keep by helping Constance with the chores.
!! The Blackwood Family
The rest of the sisters' relatives who have died before the book begins, made up of their father John, mother Lucy, aunt Dorothy (Julian's wife), and younger brother Thomas.
* AbusiveParents: The movie all but says this outright, while there are only hints in the novel.
** In the movie, John Blackwood was a ControlFreak towards Constance, even getting a man fired for daring to ask her out. He seemed to physically abuse Merricat as well- when Charles loses his temper at her poison talk, he grabs her roughly and ''drags'' her upstairs to do [[NothingInScarier heaven knows what to punish her]] while Constance follows them in tears but appears too terror-stricken to step in.
** In the book, Constance is forced to do all the cooking, cleaning, and gardening for the family. While she does seem to genuinely enjoy these things, she was not given a choice int he matter while her family was alive like Cinderella. There is even one mention where she was franctically thinking of something to make for lunch real quick, as if the responsibility was hers alone, and another where she's hard at work in the garden while Julian entertains the other women.
** In book and movie, Merricat is triggered by the mere word "punish" and runs away, and was [[DeniedFoodAsPunishment regularly denied supper]] when she displeased her father. And if Merricat's fantasy can tell us anything, it's that she harbors a lot of anger about however her parents and brother treated her, and we miht infer that she was not treated as well as Thomas (since she imagines him being forced to give up some of his supper for her).
* ControlFreak: Both Mr. and Mrs. Blackwood act like this- towards their daughters, or helping others out financially, or how much they're willing to share of their land with the villagers (which is to say, very little).
* GenerationXerox:
** Thomas Blackwood was said to have his father's more "forceful" personality traits, [[BrattyHalfPint even as a ten-year-old.]]
** Constance is implied to be a lot like her mother, but a better person. Like Lucy, she's a ProperLady, as tidy as can be, a flawless host when she has people over for tea, and even Merricat wonders if Charles will make Constance dress like her when he begins dressing like their father, who he already behaves like.
* NeatFreak: Lucy Blackwood so loved her beautiful tea room to be flawlessly clean that the girls were not allowed in it, and even when she dies, Constance and Merricat clean it every week.
* RichBitch: John and Lucy were incredibly snobbish and downright classist to the rest of the village, outright calling them "trash". When Mrs. Blackwood first moved to the house, she even asked her husband to close the path in front of their mansion that gave walkers a shortcut into down rather than having to walk along the highway, because it disturbed her so much to see the villagers close to their home. They seem to see themselves as better than the entire town, so much that even Merricat, who [[spoiler: murdered them]] has ingrained their arrogant attitude towards it.
* SpoiledBrat: If Merricat's and Julian's hints are anything to go by, ten-year-old Thomas was turning into a jerk like his father, and was doted on by their parents.
* TokenGoodTeammate: One could say this of Julian's wife Dorothy, who at worst got into arguments with her husband. There is zero indication she was as awful as her in-laws, and made sure she "earned" her keep by helping Constance with the chores.
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Hollywood Personality Disorders is now UsefulNotes.Personality Disorders; useful notes are not tropes. if this is a legit in universe diagnosis it can go on the UN; do NOT list it if not
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* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards schizophrenia or psychopathy. Her narration and dialogue is also written in a way that makes her seem younger than she really is.
** HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Additionally, Merricat arguably fulfills the diagnostic criteria for two personality disorders: antisocial, as she is vengeful, irresponsible, sadistic, possessive of her sister [[spoiler:to the point of murer and arson]], and schizotypal, as her thinking is magical, referential and occult (her "magic" and constant feeling that other people are judging or talking about her during her shopping trips), she is socially isolated and emotionally flat aside from infrequent moments of rage, as well as her preoccupation with violent fantasies of the villagers' bloody corpses that she seems to enjoy as a reprieve from the discomfort they seem to cause her. Needless to say, a psychologist would most likely have a field day with Merricat.
** HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Additionally, Merricat arguably fulfills the diagnostic criteria for two personality disorders: antisocial, as she is vengeful, irresponsible, sadistic, possessive of her sister [[spoiler:to the point of murer and arson]], and schizotypal, as her thinking is magical, referential and occult (her "magic" and constant feeling that other people are judging or talking about her during her shopping trips), she is socially isolated and emotionally flat aside from infrequent moments of rage, as well as her preoccupation with violent fantasies of the villagers' bloody corpses that she seems to enjoy as a reprieve from the discomfort they seem to cause her. Needless to say, a psychologist would most likely have a field day with Merricat.
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* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards schizophrenia or psychopathy. some type of mental illness. Her narration and dialogue is also written in a way that makes her seem younger than she really is.
** HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Additionally, Merricat arguably fulfills the diagnostic criteria for two personality disorders:is. She is also antisocial, as she is vengeful, irresponsible, sadistic, possessive of her sister [[spoiler:to the point of murer and arson]], and schizotypal, as her thinking is magical, referential and occult (her "magic" and constant feeling that other people are judging or talking about her during her shopping trips), she is socially isolated and emotionally flat aside from infrequent moments of rage, as well as her preoccupation with violent fantasies of the villagers' bloody corpses that she seems to enjoy as a reprieve from the discomfort they seem to cause her. Needless to say, a psychologist would most likely have a field day with Merricat.arson]].
** HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Additionally, Merricat arguably fulfills the diagnostic criteria for two personality disorders:
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* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: He's not all there, or even half there most days.
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* AdaptationalVillainy: He was a greedy asshole in the book, but in the movie he straight-up physically attacks Merrikat because she won't stop talking about poison.
* BathingBeauty: Seen taking a bath in the movie for no particular reason other than to show Sebastian Stan naked.
* BathingBeauty: Seen taking a bath in the movie for no particular reason other than to show Sebastian Stan naked.
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* DeathByAdaptation: [[spoiler: Merrikat kills him in the movie.]]
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Irrelevant.
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TheProtagonist, whose perspective the novel is told from, Merricat's description of herself as an ordinary young girl who loves her sister above all else serves as the story's introduction. Most of her family is dead, as noted in the first paragraph's final sentence, and the story concerns her attempts to keep its last two members aside from herself safe.
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* RightForTheWrongReason: He's right that Merrikat's behavior isn't healthy or acceptable and that Constance shouldn't wait on her family hand and foot, but it's always framed around his obsession with the Blackwood money.
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* RightForTheWrongReason: RightForTheWrongReasons: He's right that Merrikat's behavior isn't healthy or acceptable and that Constance shouldn't wait on her family hand and foot, but it's always framed around his obsession with the Blackwood money.
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* WhenIWasYourAge: Delivers one such rant to Charles.
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* WhenIWasYourAge: Delivers one such rant to Charles.Charles.
!! Cousin Charles
Merrikat and Constance's cousin. His father was long since estranged from Julian and the girls' father. Merrikat had never even met him before.
* ChildHater: Played with. Merrikat's narration is childlike, but she's old enough to have boyfriends and go to the grocery store by herself. Even before Merrikat starts trying to get him to go away, he makes it clear he doesn't like her and muses that soon she'll be made to leave and he'll be the one staying.
* KissingCousins: It's implied that he wants to get together with Constance. Merrikat notes that he starts acting and dressing like their father, and wonders if he'll start telling Contance to dress like their mother.
* GoldDigger: He's obsessed with the family's money and appraises almost everything he sees. [[spoiler: When there's a fire in the house]] all he can talk about is getting the family safe out of the house. It's heavily implied that the reason he's being so friendly to Constance is because he wants the Blackwood inheritance.
* RightForTheWrongReason: He's right that Merrikat's behavior isn't healthy or acceptable and that Constance shouldn't wait on her family hand and foot, but it's always framed around his obsession with the Blackwood money.
!! Cousin Charles
Merrikat and Constance's cousin. His father was long since estranged from Julian and the girls' father. Merrikat had never even met him before.
* ChildHater: Played with. Merrikat's narration is childlike, but she's old enough to have boyfriends and go to the grocery store by herself. Even before Merrikat starts trying to get him to go away, he makes it clear he doesn't like her and muses that soon she'll be made to leave and he'll be the one staying.
* KissingCousins: It's implied that he wants to get together with Constance. Merrikat notes that he starts acting and dressing like their father, and wonders if he'll start telling Contance to dress like their mother.
* GoldDigger: He's obsessed with the family's money and appraises almost everything he sees. [[spoiler: When there's a fire in the house]] all he can talk about is getting the family safe out of the house. It's heavily implied that the reason he's being so friendly to Constance is because he wants the Blackwood inheritance.
* RightForTheWrongReason: He's right that Merrikat's behavior isn't healthy or acceptable and that Constance shouldn't wait on her family hand and foot, but it's always framed around his obsession with the Blackwood money.
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** HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Additionally, Merricat arguably fulfills the diagnostic criteria for two personality disorders: antisocial, as she is vengeful, irresponsible, sadistic, possessive of her sister [[spoiler:to the point of murer and arson]], and schizotypal, as her thinking is magical, referential and occult (her "magic" and constant feeling that other people are judging or talking about her during her shopping trips), she is socially isolated and emotionally flat aside from infrequent moments of rage, as well as her preoccupation with violent fantasies of the villagers' bloody corpses that she seems to enjoy as a reprieve from the discomfort they seem to cause her. Needless to say, a psychologist would most likely have a field day with Merricat.
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* HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Merricat fulfills much of the criteria for antisocial personality disorder.
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* BlueAndOrangeMorality: [[spoiler: Appears to genuinely want to do the right thing, but she's [[PsychopathicManchild insane]] and has a VERY distorted view of what's right, which often overlaps to her doing--and only doing--what's best for her. Still, there are a couple people she really cares about and she does believe herself to be doing what's right]]
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Merricat's grasp on reality is tenuous at best.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Merricat's grasp on reality is tenuous at best.
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* BlueAndOrangeMorality: [[spoiler: Appears to genuinely want to do the right thing, but she's [[PsychopathicManchild insane]] and has a VERY ''very'' distorted view of what's right, right and wrong, which often overlaps to her doing--and only doing--what's what's best for her and ''only'' her. Still, there are a couple people she really cares about and she does believe herself to be doing what's right]]
right.]]
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Merricat's grasp on reality is tenuous at best. This is best shown with the "magic" she practices, where she performs rituals like burying coins and nailing books to trees and seems to genuinely believe that this will protect her family.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Merricat's grasp on reality is tenuous at best. This is best shown with the "magic" she practices, where she performs rituals like burying coins and nailing books to trees and seems to genuinely believe that this will protect her family.
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* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards schizophrenia or psychopathy.
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* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards schizophrenia or psychopathy. Her narration and dialogue is also written in a way that makes her seem younger than she really is.
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* DisproportionateRetribution: [[spoiler:The reason she poisoned her family was because they kept [[DeniedFoodAsPunishment sending her to bed without supper for misbehaving]].]]
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* InSeriesNickname: Her real name is Mary Katherine, though she's nicknamed "Merricat" as a portmanteau of both of those names.
* SiblingYinYang: In contrast to Constance, Merricat is highly immature, has violent tendencies, harbors a deep hatred for the villagers, and is much more willing to go outside (either to the village or to the woods to practice her "magic").
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* SiblingYinYang: In contrast to Constance, Merricat is highly immature, has violent tendencies, harbors a deep hatred for the villagers, and is much more willing to go outside (either to the village or to the woods to practice her "magic").
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* SiblingYinYang: In contrast to Merricat, Constance is mature and responsible in looking after the house and her remaining family, is more mentally stable, quietly endures the village's distrust of her, and is agoraphobic to the point that she hasn't left the Blackwood property since the family died.
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* SiblingYinYang: In contrast to Merricat, Constance is mature and responsible in looking after the house and her remaining family, is more mentally stable, quietly endures the village's distrust of her, and is agoraphobic to the point that she hasn't left the Blackwood property since the family died.
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Only one trope per line
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* AntiVillain / AntiHero: [[spoiler: She murdered her family, but it's implied that she genuinely believes she had a good reason, and, at the very least, she's mentally disturbed and to some extent can't be blamed for her actions. Plus, she clearly cares about Constance and Jonas the cat]]
to:
* AntiVillain / AntiHero: Zigzags between this and AntiVillain. [[spoiler: She murdered her family, but it's implied that she genuinely believes she had a good reason, and, at the very least, she's mentally disturbed and to some extent can't be blamed for her actions. Plus, she clearly cares about Constance and Jonas the cat]]
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* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: She's the red obi and evil sibling to Constance's blue oni and good sibling.
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* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: RedOniBlueOni: She's the red obi and evil sibling oni to Constance's blue oni oni, being less mature and good sibling.much more volatile due to her unstable personality.
* SiblingYinYang: In contrast to Constance, Merricat is highly immature, has violent tendencies, harbors a deep hatred for the villagers, and is much more willing to go outside (either to the village or to the woods to practice her "magic").
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* BlueOni / SiblingYinYang: The blue oni and good sibling to Merricat's red oni and evil sibling.
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* RedOniBlueOni: The blue oni to Merricat's red, being calmer and more mature.
* SiblingYinYang: In contrast to Merricat, Constance is mature and responsible in looking after the house and her remaining family, is more mentally stable, quietly endures the village's distrust of her, and is agoraphobic to the point that she hasn't left the Blackwood property since the family died.
* SiblingYinYang: In contrast to Merricat, Constance is mature and responsible in looking after the house and her remaining family, is more mentally stable, quietly endures the village's distrust of her, and is agoraphobic to the point that she hasn't left the Blackwood property since the family died.
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Changed line(s) 34 (click to see context) from:
* MoralityChain: Merricat, who is otherwise wild and short tempered but obeys her to a fault.
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* MoralityChain: Merricat, who is otherwise wild and short tempered but obeys her to a fault. [[spoiler:It's revealed that Merricat specifically put arsenic in the sugar bowl because she knew Constance didn't take sugar, thus sparing her from being fatally poisoned along with the rest of their family.]]
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* HatesBaths: She admits upfront that she dislikes washing herself.
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* PsychopathicManchild: She hates washing herself, spends all her time in the woods, is extremely immature, is fixated on poisonous mushrooms and other plants, and is superstitious to the point where she nails books to trees in a desperate bid to keep her sister safe from outside corruption.
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* PsychopathicManchild: She introduces herself as 18 years old in the book's first paragraph, but her narration and dialogue make her sound younger than that and she's eventually revealed to be very unstable. She hates washing herself, spends all her time in the woods, is extremely immature, is fixated on poisonous mushrooms and other plants, and is superstitious to the point where she nails books to trees in a desperate bid to keep her sister safe from outside corruption.
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* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: The only thing keeping her from doing something very, very drastic to the villagers that ostracize them is the fact that [[MoralityChain her sister Constance would disapprove]]. And at the young age of 18, [[spoiler:she's killed her family]].
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* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: The only thing keeping her from doing something very, very drastic to the villagers that ostracize them is the fact that [[MoralityChain her sister Constance would disapprove]]. And at the young age of 18, 12, [[spoiler:she's killed her family]].
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* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:The book ends with her finally getting to live "on the moon" alone with her sister, actually the fire charred remains of the Blackwood home, though at the cost of Uncle Julian's life.]]
to:
* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:The [[spoiler: If viewed as the villain. The book ends with her finally getting to live "on the moon" alone with her sister, actually the fire charred remains of the Blackwood home, though at the cost of Uncle Julian's life.]]]]
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: [[spoiler: Appears to genuinely want to do the right thing, but she's [[PsychopathicManchild insane]] and has a VERY distorted view of what's right, which often overlaps to her doing--and only doing--what's best for her. Still, there are a couple people she really cares about and she does believe herself to be doing what's right]]
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: [[spoiler: Appears to genuinely want to do the right thing, but she's [[PsychopathicManchild insane]] and has a VERY distorted view of what's right, which often overlaps to her doing--and only doing--what's best for her. Still, there are a couple people she really cares about and she does believe herself to be doing what's right]]
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* LesserOfTwoEvils: Played straight and eventually inverted. She is obviously a terrible person to some extent, but is at first juxtaposed against Charles as at least having Constance's best interests at heart. This is turned on its head when [[spoiler:it is revealed that she was responsible for the Blackwood tragedy, something probably obvious to any sharp reader]].
to:
* LesserOfTwoEvils: Played straight and eventually inverted. She is obviously a She's done some terrible person to some extent, things, but is at first juxtaposed against Charles as at least having Constance's best interests at heart. This is turned on its head when [[spoiler:it is revealed that she was responsible for the Blackwood tragedy, something probably obvious to any sharp reader]].
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* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: She's the red oni and evil sibling to Constance's blue oni and good sibling.
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* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: She's the red oni obi and evil sibling to Constance's blue oni and good sibling.
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* AntiVillain / AntiHero: [[spoiler: She murdered her family, but it's implied that she genuinely believes she had a good reason, and, at the very least, she's mentally disturbed and to some extent can't be blamed for her actions. Plus, she clearly cares about Constance and Jonas the cat]]
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* DisproportionateRetribution: [[spoiler:She kills her family for sending her to bed without dinner.]]
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* LesserOfTwoEvils: Played straight and eventually inverted. She is obviously a terrible person, but is at first juxtaposed against Charles as at least having Constance's best interests at heart. This is turned on its head when [[spoiler:it is revealed that she was responsible for the Blackwood tragedy, something probably obvious to any sharp reader]].
to:
* LesserOfTwoEvils: Played straight and eventually inverted. She is obviously a terrible person, person to some extent, but is at first juxtaposed against Charles as at least having Constance's best interests at heart. This is turned on its head when [[spoiler:it is revealed that she was responsible for the Blackwood tragedy, something probably obvious to any sharp reader]].
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* VillainProtagonist: She despises the villagers, kills animals for fun, [[spoiler:and is the true culprit behind her entire family's murder, as well as the fire that ultimately leads to Julian's death]].
to:
* VillainProtagonist: Or at least AntiVillain. She despises the villagers, kills animals for fun, just because she dislikes them, [[spoiler:and is the true culprit behind her entire family's murder, as well as the fire that ultimately leads to Julian's death]].
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* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:The book wins with her finally getting to live "on the moon" alone with her sister, actually the fire charred remains of the Blackwood home, though at the cost of Uncle Julian's life.]]
to:
* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:The book wins ends with her finally getting to live "on the moon" alone with her sister, actually the fire charred remains of the Blackwood home, though at the cost of Uncle Julian's life.]]
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* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: She's the red oni and evil sibling to Constance's blue oni and good sibling.
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* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: She's the red oni and evil sibling to Constance's blue oni and good sibling.
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* AmbiguouslyEvil: [[spoiler:Whether Merricat is mentally ill to the point where she doesn't understand what is wrong behind her actions, or is she fully aware of how awful a person she is but simply doesn't care, is a major question her character invites, and one ultimately left up to reader interpretation.]]
to:
* AmbiguouslyEvil: [[spoiler:Whether Merricat is mentally ill to the point where she doesn't understand what is wrong behind her actions, or is if she is fully aware of how awful a person she is but simply doesn't care, is a major question her character invites, and one ultimately left up to reader interpretation.]]
* FreudianExcuse: The Blackwood family is established early on as a quarrelsome and tense one, likely inspiring its youngest daughter's equally violent disposition.
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* ShrinkingViolet: To an extent. She's a lot more sociable and extroverted than Merricat, though her severe agoraphobia and the mistrust the villagers regard her with keep her social circle limited to her family and Mrs. Clarke.
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* ShrinkingViolet: To an extent. She's a lot more sociable and extroverted than Merricat, though her severe agoraphobia and the mistrust the villagers regard her with keep her social circle limited to her family and Mrs. Clarke.Clarke.
!! Julian Blackwood
"Uncle" Julian is, aside from Constance, Merricat's only surviving relative - an old wheelchair bound man with brain damage and an unspecified terminal illness, he often mistakes the two sisters for other, long dead relatives, and [[spoiler:believes that Merricat had died in an orphanage 6 years ago while Constance's trial was pending]].
* CoolOldGuy: Eccentricities aside, he shares the title of the kindest character in the novel with Constance.
* ExpositionFairy: He's a side character to the girls and it's through his [[RamblingOldManMonologue ramblings]] that the Blackwood's history is revealed.
* HollywoodHeartAttack: [[spoiler:Believing that Constance was killed in the house fire, he dies of what the village doctor presumes to be a heart attack.]]
* SacrificialLion: [[spoiler:His death kickstarts the story's climax.]]
* WhenIWasYourAge: Delivers one such rant to Charles.
!! Julian Blackwood
"Uncle" Julian is, aside from Constance, Merricat's only surviving relative - an old wheelchair bound man with brain damage and an unspecified terminal illness, he often mistakes the two sisters for other, long dead relatives, and [[spoiler:believes that Merricat had died in an orphanage 6 years ago while Constance's trial was pending]].
* CoolOldGuy: Eccentricities aside, he shares the title of the kindest character in the novel with Constance.
* ExpositionFairy: He's a side character to the girls and it's through his [[RamblingOldManMonologue ramblings]] that the Blackwood's history is revealed.
* HollywoodHeartAttack: [[spoiler:Believing that Constance was killed in the house fire, he dies of what the village doctor presumes to be a heart attack.]]
* SacrificialLion: [[spoiler:His death kickstarts the story's climax.]]
* WhenIWasYourAge: Delivers one such rant to Charles.
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* DeadpanSnarker: She responds to Cousin Charles's threats with a mixture of quips, silence, and [[ImpliedDeathThreats lectures on deadly nightshade]].
to:
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Merricat's grasp on reality is tenuous at best.
* DeadpanSnarker: She responds to Cousin Charles's threats with a mixture of quips, silence, and[[ImpliedDeathThreats [[ImpliedDeathThreat lectures on deadly nightshade]].
* DeadpanSnarker: She responds to Cousin Charles's threats with a mixture of quips, silence, and
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TheProtagonist of the novel, whose perspective the novel is told from, Merricat's description of herself as an ordinary young girl who loves her sister above all else serves as the novel's introduction. Most of her family is dead, as noted in the first paragraph's final sentence, and the story concerns her attempts to keep its last two members aside from herself safe.
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Added DiffLines:
!! Mary Katherine "Merricat" Blackwood
TheProtagonist of the novel, whose perspective the novel is told from, Merricat's description of herself as an ordinary young girl who loves her sister above all else serves as the novel's introduction. Most of her family is dead, as noted in the first paragraph's final sentence, and the story concerns her attempts to keep its last two members aside from herself safe.
* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards schizophrenia or psychopathy.
* AmbiguouslyEvil: [[spoiler:Whether Merricat is mentally ill to the point where she doesn't understand what is wrong behind her actions, or is she fully aware of how awful a person she is but simply doesn't care, is a major question her character invites, and one ultimately left up to reader interpretation.]]
* TheAtoner: Downplayed. [[spoiler:She often reminds herself to be kinder to her Uncle Julian, but isn't particularly dismayed when he dies, nor does she pay any of her successful victims any thought.]]
* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:The book wins with her finally getting to live "on the moon" alone with her sister, actually the fire charred remains of the Blackwood home, though at the cost of Uncle Julian's life.]]
* DeadpanSnarker: She responds to Cousin Charles's threats with a mixture of quips, silence, and [[ImpliedDeathThreats lectures on deadly nightshade]].
* DisproportionateRetribution: [[spoiler:She kills her family for sending her to bed without dinner.]]
* HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Merricat fulfills much of the criteria for antisocial personality disorder.
* LesserOfTwoEvils: Played straight and eventually inverted. She is obviously a terrible person, but is at first juxtaposed against Charles as at least having Constance's best interests at heart. This is turned on its head when [[spoiler:it is revealed that she was responsible for the Blackwood tragedy, something probably obvious to any sharp reader]].
* LonersAreFreaks: In a contrast to her sister, she's as introverted as she is cruel and volatile.
* PsychopathicManchild: She hates washing herself, spends all her time in the woods, is extremely immature, is fixated on poisonous mushrooms and other plants, and is superstitious to the point where she nails books to trees in a desperate bid to keep her sister safe from outside corruption.
* {{Sadist}}: Unabashedly. Her [[UnreliableNarrator unreliable narration]] is often hijacked by her graphic thoughts of the villagers in various states of suffering, injury or death, which she delights in. It's somewhat justified, considering the village's [[AllTheOtherReindeer similarly uninhibited hatred towards the Blackwoods]].
* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: She's the red oni and evil sibling to Constance's blue oni and good sibling.
* TheStoic: Merricat is quiet and introspective compared to most of the other characters, though as the novel goes on she becomes less and less stable, ultimately culminating in breaking mirrors, attempting to banish Charles from the home via magic, and finally [[spoiler:setting the house on fire]].
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: The only thing keeping her from doing something very, very drastic to the villagers that ostracize them is the fact that [[MoralityChain her sister Constance would disapprove]]. And at the young age of 18, [[spoiler:she's killed her family]].
* UnreliableNarrator: Played with. While she is not deliberately deceitful, she nonetheless withholds very important information from the reader, including the rather crucial detail that [[spoiler:her entire family is dead, as she reveals in the first paragraph of the book, because she poisoned them 6 years prior]].
* WouldHurtAChild: She hates the children of the village as much as she hates their parents, [[spoiler:and poisoned her younger brother with arsenic]].
* VillainProtagonist: She despises the villagers, kills animals for fun, [[spoiler:and is the true culprit behind her entire family's murder, as well as the fire that ultimately leads to Julian's death]].
!! Constance Blackwood
The {{Deuteragonist}} of the novel, Constance is Merricat's kind 28 year old sister, who 6 years prior to the narrative was acquitted for the murder of her family. She and Merricat have an incredibly close relationship, though knows more than she lets on.
* BlueOni / SiblingYinYang: The blue oni and good sibling to Merricat's red oni and evil sibling.
* ByronicHero: While arguably the best person in the entire novel, she still has her own troubles and frequently blames herself for allowing [[AmbiguousDisorder Merricat]] and [[CoolOldGuy Julian's]] conditions to deteriorate to the point they have.
* CorruptTheCutie: [[spoiler: By the end of the novel, she's become jaded enough to indulge Merricat on her jokes about butchering and eating the village children, and has clearly come to resent them as well.]]
* TheHermit: Constance lives in isolation away from the village, with only the remnants of her family to keep her company.
* TheIngenue: A constant source of kindness throughout the novel.
* MoralityChain: Merricat, who is otherwise wild and short tempered but obeys her to a fault.
* SecretKeeper: [[spoiler:She figured out that Merricat had poisoned the family the night they had died, and cleaned the sugar bowl and refused to implicate her sister as the true culprit in order to protect her.]]
* ShrinkingViolet: To an extent. She's a lot more sociable and extroverted than Merricat, though her severe agoraphobia and the mistrust the villagers regard her with keep her social circle limited to her family and Mrs. Clarke.
TheProtagonist of the novel, whose perspective the novel is told from, Merricat's description of herself as an ordinary young girl who loves her sister above all else serves as the novel's introduction. Most of her family is dead, as noted in the first paragraph's final sentence, and the story concerns her attempts to keep its last two members aside from herself safe.
* AmbiguousDisorder: Merricat's superficial emotions, superstitious beliefs, extremely vengeful attitude she takes towards the people from the village near her home and low threshold for frustration all point towards schizophrenia or psychopathy.
* AmbiguouslyEvil: [[spoiler:Whether Merricat is mentally ill to the point where she doesn't understand what is wrong behind her actions, or is she fully aware of how awful a person she is but simply doesn't care, is a major question her character invites, and one ultimately left up to reader interpretation.]]
* TheAtoner: Downplayed. [[spoiler:She often reminds herself to be kinder to her Uncle Julian, but isn't particularly dismayed when he dies, nor does she pay any of her successful victims any thought.]]
* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:The book wins with her finally getting to live "on the moon" alone with her sister, actually the fire charred remains of the Blackwood home, though at the cost of Uncle Julian's life.]]
* DeadpanSnarker: She responds to Cousin Charles's threats with a mixture of quips, silence, and [[ImpliedDeathThreats lectures on deadly nightshade]].
* DisproportionateRetribution: [[spoiler:She kills her family for sending her to bed without dinner.]]
* HollywoodPersonalityDisorders: Merricat fulfills much of the criteria for antisocial personality disorder.
* LesserOfTwoEvils: Played straight and eventually inverted. She is obviously a terrible person, but is at first juxtaposed against Charles as at least having Constance's best interests at heart. This is turned on its head when [[spoiler:it is revealed that she was responsible for the Blackwood tragedy, something probably obvious to any sharp reader]].
* LonersAreFreaks: In a contrast to her sister, she's as introverted as she is cruel and volatile.
* PsychopathicManchild: She hates washing herself, spends all her time in the woods, is extremely immature, is fixated on poisonous mushrooms and other plants, and is superstitious to the point where she nails books to trees in a desperate bid to keep her sister safe from outside corruption.
* {{Sadist}}: Unabashedly. Her [[UnreliableNarrator unreliable narration]] is often hijacked by her graphic thoughts of the villagers in various states of suffering, injury or death, which she delights in. It's somewhat justified, considering the village's [[AllTheOtherReindeer similarly uninhibited hatred towards the Blackwoods]].
* RedOniBlueOni / SiblingYinYang: She's the red oni and evil sibling to Constance's blue oni and good sibling.
* TheStoic: Merricat is quiet and introspective compared to most of the other characters, though as the novel goes on she becomes less and less stable, ultimately culminating in breaking mirrors, attempting to banish Charles from the home via magic, and finally [[spoiler:setting the house on fire]].
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: The only thing keeping her from doing something very, very drastic to the villagers that ostracize them is the fact that [[MoralityChain her sister Constance would disapprove]]. And at the young age of 18, [[spoiler:she's killed her family]].
* UnreliableNarrator: Played with. While she is not deliberately deceitful, she nonetheless withholds very important information from the reader, including the rather crucial detail that [[spoiler:her entire family is dead, as she reveals in the first paragraph of the book, because she poisoned them 6 years prior]].
* WouldHurtAChild: She hates the children of the village as much as she hates their parents, [[spoiler:and poisoned her younger brother with arsenic]].
* VillainProtagonist: She despises the villagers, kills animals for fun, [[spoiler:and is the true culprit behind her entire family's murder, as well as the fire that ultimately leads to Julian's death]].
!! Constance Blackwood
The {{Deuteragonist}} of the novel, Constance is Merricat's kind 28 year old sister, who 6 years prior to the narrative was acquitted for the murder of her family. She and Merricat have an incredibly close relationship, though knows more than she lets on.
* BlueOni / SiblingYinYang: The blue oni and good sibling to Merricat's red oni and evil sibling.
* ByronicHero: While arguably the best person in the entire novel, she still has her own troubles and frequently blames herself for allowing [[AmbiguousDisorder Merricat]] and [[CoolOldGuy Julian's]] conditions to deteriorate to the point they have.
* CorruptTheCutie: [[spoiler: By the end of the novel, she's become jaded enough to indulge Merricat on her jokes about butchering and eating the village children, and has clearly come to resent them as well.]]
* TheHermit: Constance lives in isolation away from the village, with only the remnants of her family to keep her company.
* TheIngenue: A constant source of kindness throughout the novel.
* MoralityChain: Merricat, who is otherwise wild and short tempered but obeys her to a fault.
* SecretKeeper: [[spoiler:She figured out that Merricat had poisoned the family the night they had died, and cleaned the sugar bowl and refused to implicate her sister as the true culprit in order to protect her.]]
* ShrinkingViolet: To an extent. She's a lot more sociable and extroverted than Merricat, though her severe agoraphobia and the mistrust the villagers regard her with keep her social circle limited to her family and Mrs. Clarke.
