You know, I think what makes Papyrus and his boastfulness so endearing, despite egoism usually being a negative and unappealing character trait, is the fact that his self-confidence does not exist at the expense of others. He doesn’t build himself up by putting other people down; he thinks highly of everyone! He can consider himself great and admirable while still genuinely being impressed by the people around him and celebrating their accomplishments.
Papyrus understands that greatness is not a competition; it’s something everyone can win at! And even if he is the greatest, it’s only so that he can show everyone else how to recognize their own inherent value.
Papyrus believes in himself! Papyrus believes in me! Papyrus believes in you, too!
“While many people think fanfiction is about inserting sex into texts (like Tolkien’s) where it doesn’t belong, Brancher sees it differently: “I was desperate to read about sex that included great friendship; I was repurposing Tolkien’s text in order to do that. It wasn’t that friendship needed to be sexualized, it was that erotica needed to be … friendship-ized.” Many fanfiction writers write about sex in conjunction with beloved texts and characters not because they think those texts are incomplete, but because they’re looking for stories where sex is profound and meaningful. This is part of what makes fan fiction different from pornography: unlike pornography, fanfic features characters we already care deeply about, and who tend to already have long-standing and complex relationships with each other. It’s a genre of sexual subjectification: the very opposite of objectification. It’s benefits with friendship.”
“Real magic can never be made by offering someone else’s liver. You must tear out your own, and not expect to get it back.” – Peter S. Beagle, The Last Unicorn | 2/31
Consulting Witch 