My First "Supernatural" meta...

[impulsiveanswer]

Sam's Journey: Pre-Series, Stanford, and the First Season

Comments

This is your first meta? 0.0 You're kidding.

[blacklid]

This is your first meta? 0.0 You're kidding. This is an incredibly brilliant introspective on Sam. THANK YOU and WRITE MORE! :)

Re: This is your first meta? 0.0 You're kidding.

[impulsiveanswer]

Thanks for the encouraging words!

[impulsiveanswer]

Thanks! I love just how complicated little Sammy turned out to be...

[yourlibrarian]

Hunting is their way of taking back control, of making sure they and others are never victims again.

Yes, very much so, and this extends to Dean, particularly this season as he comes back feeling very out of control of everything and immediately tries to reassert himself in hunting. That's very interesting how you see this having the opposite effect for Sam. Personally, I always thought that Sam blaming hunting was a form of emotional displacement. Although he certainly was at odds with John, and by extension Dean, I'm sure that like any kid he wanted to love and respect his father and his sibling. It's a lot easier to blame decisions they were both taking (prioritizing hunting in their lives) than to really examine how damaged his relatives (and caretakers) actually were. And given Sam poorly understood their motivations, it would be even easier for him to blame their choices rather than them as people.

and you know John Winchester would never put up with anyone bad-mouthing him to either of his sonsI'd always wondered if John

[impulsiveanswer]

It's a lot easier to blame decisions they were both taking (prioritizing hunting in their lives) than to really examine how damaged his relatives (and caretakers) actually were.

Children and teenagers are innocently selfish creatures; I doubt Wee!Sam had the emotional maturity to really see how damaged John and Dean really were.

I'd always wondered if John's falling out with Bobby was over Sam, but perhaps it was about Dean, whom Bobby is clearly closer to.

Or maybe even both boys. I hope they do another flashback and show that argument!

I think that feeling like he wasn't good enough for his father (and to a certain extent, his brother) was a huge part of Sam's character. Remember, he didn't jump out of the car in Scarecrow until Dean implied he wasn't a good son.

Thanks for commenting.

[yourlibrarian]

I imagine given JDM's general unavailability that there wouldn't be a flashback, but I would really love it too, if they gave us more on that backstory -- or if they did any development of Bobby, really.

As to Sam's emotional maturity, I think it's actually the other way around -- blaming the external factor is the more immature reaction because any other explanation is too difficult. For example, at least some children of alcoholics tend to blame the alcohol and the decision to drink as the reason their parent does not behave like the parent they expect, or whose behavior is erratic. They are often unaware until much later the reasons why the drinking occurs, but blaming the drink rather than the parent allows them to be close during the "good behavior" periods.

[percysowner]

This is a great look at what formed Sam's personality. I think you have done a great job of connecting the dots to explain a lot of why Sam is the way he is. Thanks for sharing and I hope you do more metas

[impulsiveanswer]

Thanks! I plan to do more metas, so hopefully that'll work out.

[aberystwyth1]

Excellent perspective on Sam's motivation and character development. You brought up points I had never even considered. These aspects are exactly why I find Sam so fascinating. Thank you for sharing!

[impulsiveanswer]

Thanks! I actually think Sam is the more fascinating brother; he's harder to get your head around because he's so very good at hiding things, even from himself (poor boy's going to give himself an ulcer, the way he keeps things buried inside).