A yandere misconception.

A month ago today, I saw a particular yandere image for at least the tenth time. Normally I don't mind seeing the same picture so many times, shared by so many different people - the problem was that the message in it was completely wrong, and I'm not a big fan of incorrect information being upheld and repeated as fact. I'd never seen anyone challenge it, and thanks to having an abundance of free time on that occasion and realizing that nobody else was going to point out all the problems with it, that was the time I finally decided to do so myself. What follows is that image, my explanation which debunks it, and a more reasonable, alternate image that could be used instead.

Whoops! This image mistakenly implies that it’s unreasonable to not want a yandere like Yuno to kill someone after they become that yandere’s boyfriend or girlfriend. To better understand why this image is fundamentally flawed, you first need to know which type of yandere is being discussed, and how different types of yandere’s minds work.

Virtually every yandere character can be broken down into one of two groups (if there’s enough canon information available about them): obsessive or possessive. An obsessive yandere’s goal is typically to be in a relationship with or win the affection of a specific person. This is the most common type of yandere, and this category encompasses such yanderes as Gasai Yuno, Esdeath, and Sakuma Mayu.

A possessive yandere’s goal is simply to be with the object of their affection - whether their target lives or dies is irrelevant to them, as long as the two of them are together. A possessive yandere usually thinks of their target as something like an object to be owned, even if it means owning their corpse as a way to “be with them forever.” Depending on how circumstances change, an obsessive yandere can turn into a possessive yandere, and vice versa. An example of this is Sengoku Nadeko.

This is another problem that makes the above image wrong, in addition to obsessive yanderes being the standard form of yandere. If a person says that they want a yandere girlfriend, then they’re unlikely to put that yandere girlfriend through a traumatic experience, such as telling her that they’ll never love her. Thus, she'll never become a possessive yandere and they'll never give her a reason to kill them. That person would know the risks that come with having a yandere girlfriend and do their best to keep her happy, because they would love her and would want to avoid being killed or harmed.

Yet another reason why this image is incorrect is because of the character that was used for it. If the yandere girlfriend in question was the fictional character in this image, it makes no sense to imply that everyone should expect her to try to kill the person she loves at the drop of a hat. She risked death an incredible number of times to save the life of the person she loved. That alone is undeniable proof of her desire to keep him alive, not kill him, but there’s even more to it than that.

There are major mirai nikki spoilers in the following two paragraphs. Ignore these next two paragraphs if you don’t want to see any spoilers.

For those who say, “But she tried to kill him (for a very short time)!” you’re forgetting or ignoring the context of the image. In the image, all that’s presumed is that someone wants a yandere girlfriend, not to participate in the survival game with Yuno. Since that person would never have to go through the survival game with her, they would never have to go through that brief time where she tried attacking the person she loved in order to save the universe, so that’s out.

Next, for those who say, “But she tricked Yukki into killing himself in the first world!” again, you're either forgetting or choosing to ignore her intention. As is made clear in the story: it was for the purpose of saving the universe and bringing him back to life. She did it because she thought it was her only option to keep him alive. And ultimately, she intentionally killed herself so that he could live in the world he belonged in, knowing it meant that she’d die and, as such, never see him again.

This is obviously someone who is extremely, selflessly devoted to the survival of the person she loves, as the vast majority of yanderes are. It’s no wonder she’s indisputably the most well-known yandere character there is. So if you really want to spread the truth about how most yanderes act, this image should be changed to...

http://i.imgur.com/fWnOKRE.png (Leaving this as an imgur link. Every so often, blogger automatically removes this image. No idea why.)