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Hitagi's bathing scene with Hanekawa & how it achieved the theme of the difficulty of human connection & self indulgence
THREAD
THREAD
The bathing scene in Mono SS is one of the most infamous scenes in Monogatari & many people see it as just fanservice without taking a closer look at its thematic depth & how it adds to the characters involved, Hanekawa & Hitagi.
Hitagi so far has been shown to the viewers as a frail, weak minded girl who was abandoned by her mothers & lived her life alone without anyone's help, which led her to develop trust issues & because she never grew attached to anyone, she lacked self love. On the other hand,
Hanekawa is a girl who suffers from identity issues & doesn't know what a warm home is, she's conflicted & doesn't a sense of self. She doesn't behave based on a well developed identity, but based on what pleases others because she was never raised in a healthy environment
where she was taught to live by her identity. She was never loved, so she never learned to love herself, thus never behaved in a way that benefits herself. With this context in mind, it would be odd for the two of them to join each other in a bath considering their
mental health issues, but what makes this scene genuis is the context that comes before it that develops Hitagi from a frail weak person who suffers from trust issues to a strong willed woman who's wise & mature enough to help out another person who's in need & give them words
of advice & take care of them, & that development is shown in this bathing scene. The whole reason Hitagi invited Hanekawa into her house, lend her pajamas, allowed her to sleep there, & showered with her was to give her a sense of familiarity & warmth. She wanted to give her
what she subconsciously yearns for, a warm place by bonding with her through all sorts of activities that helped Hanekawa realize how much she needs to overcome to achieve happiness & contentment. While bathing with Hitagi, what consumed Hanekawa's mind were thoughts
that filled her with envy & love for Hitagi because of how inspiring Hitagi is, which started the change in Hanekawa's character in Tsubasa Tiger, & change is what Monogatari is all about. Changing one self through self reflection & making a decision based on your true
desires & feelings, staying true to yourself, is one of Monogatari's overarching messages, and it's embodied perfectly in that scene.
So, in conclusion, the scene is thematically relevant, rich in how it explored the characters, & is one of the best directed scenes in Mono
So, in conclusion, the scene is thematically relevant, rich in how it explored the characters, & is one of the best directed scenes in Mono
In any case, uh, I'll probably be done with my Hanekawa thread by the end of the day & drop it tomorrow. Sigh.
But for now, good night 
One last thing, when I said that Hitagi is "weak minded" I meant that she's a traumatized person who's emotionally vulnerable due to her trauma. I probably could have worded it better, but yeah, sorry about that.
