Sorry For The Lack Of Update On Eating Alone. I Know Its Been A Few Weeks. Ive Just Not Being Doing Well

Sorry for the lack of update on eating alone. I know it’s been a few weeks. I’ve just not being doing well headspace wise (I am receiving help, it’s just not fixing stuff; you know how it is) and I am also overwhelmed by school now that it’s finals season. I promise I’ll get back to it

The Negative Character Arc of Vito Scaletta Part 2

The first act of a story is structured as exposition, meant to establish relationships, the world they live in, etc. It usually covers about the first fourth of a story. For a negative character arc, it is, naturally, the set up of the story, but it also firmly establishes the character’s Truth and Lie.

Beat 1: The Hook

The hook is important due to the way that it introduces the audience to the character’s everyday life. For a disillusionment arc specifically, it introduces how the Lie that your character believes impacts their life and creates conflict between themselves and the people around them. This is often where we come to understand the character’s Normal World (as referenced in the last part). 

Vito’s hook is plain to see. We are introduced to it through the prologue and The Old Country, seeing how the idea of Vito’s Normal World and his Lie are established through his reflections on his father and how his desire for influence the like Don Carlo has develops. I won’t go to far into that particular nugget, since I did that in the introduction. 

The hook extends into the first part of Home Sweet Home. We see Vito coming back to his “Normal World” after the war. Just in case it hasn’t already been established, let’s go over what the Lie and Normal World are for him.  The Normal World that he lives in is one where those in the system are at the whims of those that run it, so the only way to achieve any sort of happiness is to run the system or be part of a hierarchy that runs it. For him specifically, he’s seen multiple occasions in which people that run the system can do ‘great’ things and are allowed to do them (Don Carlo). Vito’s lie is that, in order to be fulfilled, he needs to have influence, and the group he has seen the most from in that regard is the mob. This is probably more of a cultural thing (being Sicilian), but it is something nonetheless.

During his first night back, we have two examples of where Vito’s Lie impacts his normal life and creates conflict. These are the parts of Home Sweet Home that I refer to. The first incident is with Joe where there is a brief bit of tension when Vito tells Joe that he will have to go back to the war, but Joe gets him out of it. How? By using the influence that Joe has accrued in the time in which Vito was away. This particular act is important for multiple reasons, but mostly in how adult it makes Joe seem. He knows a guy, he can take care of the issue. (This will be important in the next beat). Just like that, Joe frees Vito but assures his friend that it doesn’t really make Vito beholden to him. I’m going to quickly mention it now, but Joe also goes through his own character arc in the story, a stunted positive change arc. I mean stunted, because his story cuts off before it reaches a resolution (I’m pretty sure he got “killed off” right after the midpoint/during the second pinch point aka his act two). That doesn’t really have bearing in this section, but I’ll probably mention it when it becomes relevant.

The second incident occurs basically during the entire night he spends at home, starting with the moment he is asked to pray at the table and up until his mother asks him to see Papalardo the next morning. He is seeing parts where he doesn’t fit, consistently reminded of the life is father built, the one he doesn’t want. His mother is pushing his father’s Lie on him and rejecting his own. She’s not trying to be smothering to him, but this is just how she knows the world works. It is simply too bad that it isn’t how Vito’s does.

Beat 2: The Inciting Event

In a normal story, this is the character’s call to adventure, the way the story really hits it off. For a negative character arc, it takes on another purpose. It is meant to show the first hint for our character (and the audience) that the lie is untrue. This also showcases the main conflict of the story. This hint, by the way, is meant to be subtle. It’s not supposed to hit the character in the face.

The inciting event for Vito occurs, at least in my opinion, a combination of when he wakes up and decides that he needs to get his own place and, more importantly, the moment he leaves his mama’s apartment and sees Frankie being harassed by the man their family owes money too. Yes it does blend in a bit with the hook, but storytelling is rarely cut and dry. Keep in mind that Vito left for war a teenager and came back as a young man; seeing his childhood room is a stark reminder for this and pushes him towards the idea that he needs to be an adult and live on his own. Remember how earlier I said that Joe seemed like an adult? A hallmark of maturity (at least where I live) is being able to take care of problems by yourself: scheduling your first doctor appointment, doing your taxes for the first time, having your own place, etc. etc. Joe was able to make Vito’s obligation to the government to go away and allow him to go home, a very different Joe than the one that Vito left and in direct contrast to his father that probably couldn’t rub two pennies together. Yes, I am comparing Joe to Vito’s father, no it’s not about Daddy issues. I mean, it is. But it isn’t? Let’s move on. Anyway, this means that Joe knows what Vito has to do to be an adult, one that isn’t stuck in his mother’s house and working for the man his father worked for.

And then he is spurred into further action when he sees Frankie being hassled about the money that their father owes. This reinforces the Normal World for Vito, as his father took out a lot of money and now his surviving family is stuck paying it back for him, but also gives him the opportunity to be the adult and prove his father’s Lie wrong. His father with all of his hard work had to borrow money from these people, but now Vito was going to use his way to not only pay back the money the Scalettas owed, but also get more money and become independent.

Beat 3: The First Plot Point

This is the first real consequential choice the character makes to show them that their old ways are ineffective. This is what leads the character into the next act and is the threshold the character crosses that prevents the rest of the story from taking place. Now, they will not see the consequences of this act at first, but it will show itself later. 

For Vito, this one is interesting. It could be argued that the rest of Home Sweet Home qualifies as this as it is Joe introducing Vito into the world of the rest of the game, but BUT, I disagree. Honestly, I think it sort of works in as the hook and inciting incident in a way. The only reason this part is probably WHERE it is is because of tutorial reasons. I’m not saying that it doesn’t make sense, but there is a more thematic and appropriate moment coming that fits this act better: going to see Papalardo and what occurs on the docks in Enemy of the State.

Even after going to see Joe, Vito still agrees to go see Papalardo and try and work at the docks for his mama. He’s stuck in this liminal space where he’s not truly embraced his Lie yet, but it’s still there lingering. So, he goes to see Papalardo (from this moment on he will be called Derek) and gets a job moving crates for him. After some time, he makes his choice and refuses to move another crate (I think I only managed about five in my playthrough before he just stopped). Steve comes to see what the fuss is and Vito tells him off before using Joe’s influence inadvertently and getting a better paying job, one that he likes better too, out of it. His choice, both to stop working the warehouse job and to take Steve up on a job that is explicitly exploiting the regular workers there, is the first plot point and one that will come back around in the third act.

You’ve heard of ‘single and ready to mingle’ now get ready for

Ace and in desperate need of space

I indeed opened up my document for the chapter a few minutes ago and wondered what the fuck I was thinking... mostly due to the sheer amount of misspelled words and repetitive writing. Go sleepy brain.

its 2 am where i am and i started sleepily writing for the next chapter of eating alone.

just so you guys know, my first thought was: i hope i make someome cry. tomorrow im going to wake up and probably wonder what the fuck i was thinking.

there you go tomorrow brain

I got Winter!

What Kind Of A-Spec Magic Do You Have?

All people on the a-spectrum are made of their unique, individual magic. Answer the questions to find out what you're made of!

A just-for-fun personality quiz! Find out what kind of a-spec magic you have!

A guy came into my job and threw tootsie rolls at me today (for no discernible reason). A few minutes after he left, he came back and threw more tootsie rolls at me.

Sir. Even if I wanted to eat this, I wouldn’t. I do not trust candy that can be easily unwrapped and rewrapped from anyone. Please stop asking me if I don’t like the candy and stop staring. I’m not going to.

Ah... Customer service.