ext_171336 ([identity profile] boscaresque.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] hetalia2010-01-17 02:56 am

[DISCUSSION] Biggest fears/worst memories

So I was reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban earlier (yes, I know :P) and during the parts involving boggarts and dementors, I started thinking about Hetalia and what each nation would see if they encountered either of those creatures. What would their boggarts turn into and what would the dementors force them to relive? I feel so nerdy for even thinking of this

Basically the question is: What are each nation's biggest fears? What about their worst memories? And alternatively, what are their best memories?

[identity profile] taiyou_to_tsuki.livejournal.com 2010-01-17 05:33 pm (UTC)(link)
No prob. |D

It's not that we refuse to talk about it. But it's very important for Swedes to be politically correct and national pride is directly connected to neo-nazism here. I remember what my history teacher said when we started reading about the empire in sixth grade, I quote: "Do not think that any of this matters now. Sweden is and have been a shitty little country for a very long time and most of the world don't care about us".

Sweden being hellbent on growing as an empire is very much related to separating itself from Denmark in general. The fact that the Dano-Swedish relationship was surprisingly good right after Sweden's independence and Kristian II being replaced as king of Denmark up until Sweden started to expand territory in areas of Denmark's interest (Reval) is a good example of this.

To be fair, Gustav IV Adolf having troops in the south and west wasn't completely irrational since there WERE soldiers being sent to Denmark (from Spain I think) in 1808 - he just blew it out of proportion the size of a planet. And was a generally sucky strategist who didn't listen to people who knew what they were talking about. Oh well.

Swedes weren't namely cruel towards German civilians, at least not at first. There were rules for when and how to plunder and burn villages, what to do with the people etc (which is awful but at least THERE WERE RULES): and those things were prohibited unless the king allowed it. As the army grew during the war however, and more and more foreign troops joined, it got out of hand. The Swedish army was generally respected in Germany at first but that respect deterred as the size of the army increased.

And Scanians (and the other people from other provinces that were ceded from Denmark) weren't considered Swedes at first. Had they been ceded from any other country than Denmark I don't think the treatment would have been as cruel. But it's worth noting that the conflicts in Scania are often blown out of proportion as well and deeply misrepresentative of Sweden: something that this fandom has not escaped.

Lol, thank you, I guess? We also invented the zipper. :D

[identity profile] letthemhavepie.livejournal.com 2010-01-17 06:12 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you thank you thank you!!!
I absolutly love this information.
That quote from your teacher is so interesting, here in America were not really interested into history as much as other countries but when we mention out history we only talk about good parts.
(Like for instacne the Spanish American war. That war was absolutly B.S. but we glorify it because of Roosevelt and his Rough Riders)
The only thing we do talk about with shame is slavery. Yeah we were horrible about that. Some people think though that constantly bringing it up is causing a division in the already frail patching between black Americans and white Americans, but what we fail to talk about is other groups were persecuted by the Americans, namely Irish and Asians.
I never knew Christian the II was nice to the Swedes. You always get this image of the Swedes and Danes fighting because of the breaking apart of the Kalmar union.
Gustav IV is sorta like our Gen.Burnside, both really bad strategists and refused to listen to anybody but themselves.(Though Gustav had the cracky excuse that he was being leaded by God...Burnside was Burnside...but atleast be got the hair term burnsides from him.)

So it wasn't nessarary the Swedes that were horrible in Germany just the common practices at the time and the mercanaries that came along. (Burning stuff and plundeing happened in America too. Just check out the Buring of Atlanta in the Civil war)

Man I feel sorry for the Scanians...so they were just persecuted because they were Danish...That's horrible. Yeah the fandom I guess does blow it out of proportion (Drama is drama though) What whould you say Sweden's biggest point that should be represented in the fandom more??? I love hearing these thing from other countries because I know there are somethings with America that our blown a little out of proportion.

Again Thanks for the Information!!! :3
OMG Zippers are you for realz!!! Shoo Sweden your so inventive. BTW in America the term to, "Swede," means to make something out of nothing.

[identity profile] taiyou_to_tsuki.livejournal.com 2010-01-17 06:34 pm (UTC)(link)
I don't think it's good to leave out the bad parts of history, but sometimes I feel like Swedes persecute ourselves a bit too much. Yes, we founded the first university for racial biology and majorly suck for that, yes we sat on our arses trying to be neutral in WWII, but these things are in our past. Our actions then have shaped the country we have now, most of the time for the better. It's okay to be proud over something or someone else than Alfred Nobel.

I guess slavery is one thing we haven't had to deal with in modern times. A law against that was established in the 1400s already, because vikings didn't really know the concept of human rights and that spirit lived on. XP

Oh, you misunderstand me. Kristian II wasn't very nice (Stockholm Bloodbath, cough cough) but the guy who came AFTER him was pretty okay with Swedes. Sorry about that. Swedes and Danes have been fighting for a long time before the Kalmar Union was dissolved though, even before the countries namely existed.

In the case of 1809, it might also be worth noting that the Russian army just might have been stronger than the Swedish one. You can't blame everything on the king. :9

I guess? It wasn't like the Swedes were the only ones in Germany at the time of the war. xD

Persecuted because they were Danes who opened a guerilla war and shot and plundered Swedish soldiers, yes. ;) Although the civilians got the worst of it. Many people would like to think that the Swedes were just being bastards, but the ones who hid in the forests weren't exactly God's best men either. Some Scanians cheered them on because as they saw it they worked to liberate their province, and some Scanians disliked these men because their actions led to their own persecution. Basically, everybody were kind of being bastards.

A point of Sweden that should be represented more in fandom... Could be almost anything between the Stockholm bloodbath and 1809, I guess. You don't see that many historical fics with him to begin with, and those that I've found seem to concentrate on events like these + WWII. My personal favourite is the civil war in the 1200s, but that would be hard to write...

That is a... Strangely fitting term? XD

[identity profile] letthemhavepie.livejournal.com 2010-01-17 07:04 pm (UTC)(link)
I understand about what you say about leaving off the bad parts of history. I get really ticked how are teachers are like ( Excuse the upcoming Hetalism), "Well we did it but everything is okay now because we're the HERO!!!"
We did stuff wrong and we should admit it.

I forgot the whole first university of radical biology thing...wasn't it set up to study the Saami people???
Yeah there were another people you kinda picked on...sorry

You shouldn't beat yourself for neutrality in WWII. It actually makes sense. Germany wanted your iron ore so why not make some money from it. So you kinda benifited except from all the other countries being ticked at you because you made:
1. Money
2. you didn't lose as many people to war. (Though didn't you help the Finns in the Winter war with some, "belligerant neutrality" thing?)
The Swedes shouldn't be as hard on yourselves. Truth be told you have one of the best healthcare systems in the world, and your rated one of the most peaceful, cleanest, and egalitarian societies in the world.
Though definatly your taxes scare me...Your just a little to liberal for an American
Haha Nobel...didn't he invent dynamite though? LOL.

Ohhh...Yeah the Stockholm bloodbath was a really dick thing to do. Killing all those people for just trying to suceed...Okay it makes sense politically but...still they could have done it better. Though I never really got the consept of, "let's dig up a dead person and cut it's head off..." I know it's something about on the day of reveltaion you wouldn't have your head or something but still...

Yeah the Russians got pretty amazing after Peter the Great but in my opinion more with Catherine the Great, military wise at least. (God I love that women)

"Basically, everybody were kind of being bastards."
I love this. Haha it made my day. I'm deffinatly going to now check out the Scanian wars.
Yeah I would like to see more of that too just because it's great for some of the intermingling and political relations.
The image of Holy Roman Empire and Sweden fighting makes me laugh when I know it shouldn't
PLus it's interesting with how Finland basically had a Swedish identity from that point on. I once read that the Swedish rule for Finland was it's, "dark ages," and I would love someone to write about that.
I never heard about the civil war of 1200 but I bet it's really interesting because wasn't it in the 1200's Sweden went on it's little crusades against Finland???
My tech. theater teacher first introduced me to it. It's not really a common term unless your in the carpentary business or Teachnical theater business. Also if something is, "dutchman" it mean's it's covered.

[identity profile] taiyou_to_tsuki.livejournal.com 2010-01-17 07:16 pm (UTC)(link)
I feel this conversation is getting a bit too long, not to mention off-topic, for this thread. If you want to talk more you can send me a message. :)

[identity profile] letthemhavepie.livejournal.com 2010-01-17 07:38 pm (UTC)(link)
Yeah true...
I tend to do that