Abstract Thoughts #77: Destiny

Destiny, destiny, no escaping that for me...

Destiny is an interesting concept that the series has touched on once or twice, usually pertaining to cutie marks. It's rather vague how the two relate: is it ultimately the pony's choice what their cutie mark is, or is it determined beforehand by some unknown cosmic force? Magical Mystery Cure made things more confusing by showing that there's a spell that can change destinies, and even histories; when all of Twilight's friends' cutie marks were swapped, they had no memory of ever having their originals, and even though they sucked at their new talents, they felt they had to "cause it's what my cutie mark is telling me." However, once Twilight managed to convince the others to try their old talents, they found that they were still naturals at them and were able to get their original cutie marks back that way. So...if they still had their original talents, does this mean their destinies weren't really changed? Or was it their destiny to suffer under a false special talent and then rediscover their true talent? How destiny relates to all this is still rather murky.


And then there's Twilight's destiny: becoming a princess. I can't help but wonder how much of that is really destiny and how much of it is Celestia wanting it for her. After all, Twilight gets no indication of it beforehand and Celestia only tells her her destiny after she was made a princess, which strikes me as a tad irresponsible. I get that the writers didn't have her clarify before it happened in order to make the reveal more dramatic, but the fact that Twilight didn't get the opportunity to decide whether or not she really wanted to be a princess rubbed a number of fans the wrong way, such as the writer of this comic. What if Twilight had other ideas of what she wanted to be when she got older? Can she choose to abdicate her throne if she wants, or is she stuck in that position because "it's her destiny?"


What exactly is destiny? On a meta level, it's whatever the writers want, but what does it mean in-universe? To many, destiny means or implies lack of free will, which doesn't exactly make it sound good; in a society that idealizes independence and free will so highly, destiny can be a bitter pill to swallow, especially to those who aren't happy with their lives. I can't help but wonder what sort of message the show hopes to convey in regards to destiny, and what message viewers may take away from that. Sure, there are people such as Digibrony who wholeheartedly believe in destiny, but what about those who don't? Is there even a right answer, per say? I don't know if I can say; frankly, the whole concept makes my head hurt. Maybe that's my destiny?


Let's hear your thoughts on the matter. What do you think of destiny, both as it's handled in the show and in real life? How do you think destiny and cutie marks correlate? What about destiny and princess-hood? Do you think the show should clarify what exactly destiny is or keep it vague? Do you think destiny undermines or reinforces any of the show's lessons? Share your opinions below!