anonymous · 10mo
if it’s alright to ask prince questions too, i would love to know what being a prince means to you /gen
yes of course! i love getting questions, i just might be a bit slow
being a prince means a lot of things to me. to put it simply, it means to be a boy wearing a crown. we can take these terms apart and crystalize precisely what it means to be "a boy wearing a crown"--
being a boy means to be a child. you must not let go of your sense of wonder, and you must remain a playful soul
being a boy means to be a boy, in whatever way you decide this means. for me, a "boy" is the tension, the juxtaposition, between the hypermasculinity mandated by traditional manhood, and the rawness, youthfulness, innocence of youth. these two things are constantly pulling at eachother. boys can't wait to be bigger and to grow up, yet also still get hurt, play pretend, and haven't yet learned to shove away their feelings behind a wall
a crown is both a duty, an obligation, a privilege, and a birthright. you are looked up to, whether you like it or not. you were born with something that not many seem to have, and with this something comes a kind of responsibility to use it well. however, crowns are worn BY you. the crown doesn't wear you. you have to own the crown and make it work for you, or else it simply becomes a burden. many get crushed under this weight. but you must remember that in being a prince, you are royalty, and royalty have certain standards. a crown means a conviction in these standards and ideals, because you would not lessen yourself for others
a crown means the world is your oyster. you deserve things. you deserve to take them. it is indeed a birthright to be hungry, to desire more and be indulgent about it, but it's important to be cognizant and not allow this to lull you into a sense of entitlement. the crown is the mandate and power you give yourself to obtain what you want, but you must do the taking. the world will not bend the knee to an ineffective prince. you must be able to hunt for it and show the world you deserve it. the world has the power to take away your crown if you so let it. in the hands of stagnancy, a crown is merely a decoration on the head of a doll. show the world you can take it, and you will find it will open itself up and give to you generously
also, indulging without regards to your own ideals and standards means to lose the sharpness that makes a prince shiny. so you must have standards. for yourself and others. really, the main idea is sort of just "be full of wonder but also sharpness, be noble in your ideals and do not let go of your conviction. know your importance. recognize your worth"
others may have different interpretations of princehood to me, but this more or less sums up my interpretation of the trope, for how i use it in my own life
