The Sibling Effect

I’d like to begin with a seriously deep quote from a seriously deep poem called “Church Going” by Philip Larkin. In case you have no idea, this verse is about a Church.

“Dispersed, yet tending to this cross of ground
Through suburb scrub because it held unspilt
So long and equably what since is found
Only in separation - marriage, and birth,
And death, and thoughts of these - for which was built
This special shell?”

Church Going is fundamentally a poem which focuses on the crumbling institution of the Church and consequently of morals. A Church has always held ceremonies for Marriage, Baptism and Death. TODAY, marriage no longer holds a strong value or finality and this can be seen in the rapidly increasing divorce rates in the world. Siblings are separated and families are often - putting it in one word - broken.

In such a world, where commitment is becoming a phobia it is essential that fiction reminds us, every now and then about the importance of family. I write this post with the (pure) intention of shoveling up memories from the Past and listing down some of our favorite fictional siblings. Because WHY NOT?

After all,  fiction has more often than once portrayed the best of siblings, and how the very idea of getting along with them is TERRIBLY fun. I say this, as my evil sister throws major shade at me for <insert stupid matter which is not going to be relevant 30 minutes from now>.

But I HAVE to do this, because in the past few days I have started to notice how this is indeed a beautiful (and apparently misused *cough* Game of Thrones *cough*) relationship and also how it is way more powerful than the typical romantic nonsense which movies and cartoons enjoy depicting. In fact, I realized that my childhood has been shaped by a few such really amazing stories about brothers and sisters, and this is a tribute to all of them.

Now, point to note: I’ve decided to divide this into twosections, Books and Movies (no particular order). Of course, some of the books are also now movies, in which case I have simply noted them down under the more memorable category (see: books).

Books

1. The March Sisters - Little Women

I love them and I love Josephine especially. This is a soul-stirring story and the sisters are adorable. They decide to support the family after the US Civil War, and the story shows them dealing with the pain of loss, poverty and more importantly - that of being a woman at a difficult time in American history. Meg, Jo, Amy and especially Beth touched the hearts of millions of readers.

:') 

2. The Pevensies - The Chronicles of Narnia

Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy are probably the first thing that comes to your mind when you think fantasy literature. Or rather, the first normal set of siblings. I mean, all they do is walk into a wardrobe, literally discover freaking Narnia, fight in a war and get crowned Kings and Queens of the country. So far as sibling adventures go, I’m sorry this kind of tops it all. Whether it was Edmund’s arrogance, or (later) Susan’s vanity, the Pevensies may be living a fantasy, but they are also the most realistic siblings I have read about.

You know these actors immortalized the Pevensie family. 

3. The Darlings - Peter Pan

Inspired by a real family, Wendy, John and Michael are (apart from being as British as possible) also one of the first siblings I read about. Peter Pan is my favorite children’s book and I cannot think what could be more charming than a bunch of kids flying away to a land where you never, ever grow up. Wendy is the epitome of an elder sister (and weirdly enough, a mother) and she also was the only one who remembered Peter. AND they also had the CUTEST baby sitter - Nana the dog.

Second star to the right, and straight on till Morning!

4. The Weasleys - Harry Potter

All of them. I don’t want to leave a single one of them out because they are obviously the most envied, most famous and most ridiculous set of siblings in existence. Of course, not in “existence” but you get what I mean. Bill and Charlie were cool beyond measure, Percy was an ass, Fred and George were the troublemakers, Ron was the best and Ginny was (albeit suddenly) incredibly awesome. And as you can see, I am avoiding anything that has to do with death and accidents and the like.

Can you really imagine the Weasleys without Molly and Arthur?

5. The Bennets - Pride and Prejudice

As much as I have come to loathe Pride and Prejudice for the apparent romance it depicts, I cannot deny that this story is essentially about the loving friendship between Lizzy and Jane, the elder Bennet sisters. Lydia was a nuisance and the other two aren’t worth mentioning, but don’t we always have some of those weirdos  in our family? Lizzy was intelligent and Jane was kind, and they together managed to steal the hearts of some very, very rich gentlemen. Sibling teamwork sometimes does have wondrous results.

This Jane Austen novel is a lie. Sorry, I can't stop propagating this. 

6. The Famous Five

Do you remember the bunch of cousins that spent summer holidays together and ate sandwiches and owned an island? Yeah, okay this is a bit unfair since George was a cousin and Timmy was a dog, but I’ll have to give it to these five adventurous kids (yeah, you too Timmy). I don’t remember a single vacation I spent without reading about them and incidentally, Off to Kirrin Island was also the first (long story) book I ever read.

I really like Timothy. 

Special Mention: The Lannisters from A Song of Ice and Fire. 

Of course, they did not exactly have the most normal relationship. But growing up in a world like that (covered in riches but nevertheless) really made them - BADASS. One may often feel the incestuous, violent and arrogant traits among the Lannisters put them into the category of villains. But I choose to disagree because even the Lannisters have a cause to fight for. Cersei fights for her children, Jaime for Cersei and his "niece and nephews" and Tyrion fights - well - for himself. The stories at Westeros are more significantly about families, and therefore we do get to witness some really interesting sibling relationships - from the once wonderful Stark kinship to the - erm - complicated Targaryens.

Goofing around. Just because. Note: They don't do this in real life. Wait, what is real life? 

Movies

1. Thor and Loki - Avengers (2012)

Now, I have to say the very fact that they both are played by Tom Hiddleston and Chris Hemsworth ups the hot quotient, however there is no denying that they have one of the most entertaining sibling rows in the history of Marvel. They aren’t related by blood, and Norse mythology never considers them to be related at all. But when two “Gods” happen to be siblings, one being the temperamental Thor and another being the mischievous Loki, little remains to be said about that relationship. And the results of it. Also Thor has a hammer, and Loki has a spectre - now replay that inside your head, but with you and your sibling replacing them. You get what I mean.

Fan Art Courtesy heeroguy

2. Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes - Sherlock

Now, I haven’t read the books so I cannot say how chummy these two were in Arthur Conan Doyle’s mystery masterpiece. But what I do know is that Benedict Cumberbatch and Matt Gatiss acted their part splendidly in Sherlock. There’s is a strained relationship, but if either of them decided to shed their cold exterior, we may actually spot some love left.

And, they do play Operation together.

3. Ross and Monica Geller - F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

No other sibling duo has been as loving, caring and equally EVIL and COMPETITIVE as the Gellers. They have the ultimate baseball showdowns and equally unparalleled gestures to get back at each other. Monica and Ross are way different but they get on like a house on fire. They are hilarious in many ways possible, and they also are a fine example of sibling inequality which I want to bring up as serious case of injustice (see: my life). But later, that's for another grievous post.

Well, I kind of chose to forget this dance. But. 

4. The Von Trapp Siblings - Sound of Music

Yes they were evil. Very. And they were too many; I don’t even remember all their names. But they became nicer with the progress of the film, and turned out to be wonderful singers. With an age range as diverse as the Von Trapp siblings, the only other comparison I can think of are the Weasleys but of course, the Von Trapps came first. What makes it even more special, is that they are inspired from a real family. And when I think of them, I think of those legendary classics such as My Favorite Things,  Do Re Mi, The Lonely Goatherd and So Long, Farewell, which always, always brings back a wave of nostalgia.

Most popular picture of the Von Trapps from the Movie. And the gorgeous Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. 

4. Zack and Cody Martin - The Suite Life of Zack and Cody

Disney Channel inspired the creation of some very chucklesome sibling relationships but this one remains plastered at the back of my mind because Dylan and Cole Sprouse were awfully fun. And this show also redefined "twin" shows (after Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen, and that was ages back).

But I DO know which one's which. 

5. Hallie Parker and Annie James - The Parent Trap

This film was such a delight and so was Lindsay Lohan. If you haven’t, I advise you to watch this movie because it is most definitely going to leave you dewy-eyed. Twin sisters reunite and rediscover their past and try to bring their divorced parents back together. It makes for a very lovely watch, seeing as it tries to highlight the difficulty siblings face when their parents do not live together and basically, the unfortunate broken family problem once again.

They aren't mean girls. Take my word for it.

Note: purposely avoided Frozen because it’s super overrated.

That’s probably it. Another category I would like to have explored is Anime, but that can wait for it’s own blog post since it’s quite elaborate. It is an Universe which literally wages WAR for the sake of siblings (*cough* Code Geass *cough*). Moreover, I have observed that the best of Anime have been about family and sibling relationships. From My Neighbour Totoro to Fullmetal Alchemist, almost every adventure has been alongside a faithful companion in the form of a brother or sister.

Being an elder sister, I can say not all sibling relationships are endlessly smooth and - for lack of a better word - traditional. I’m older but I am almost always bullied -.- I’m older but I’m shorter by a head. A full adult human sized head! I’m older but - oh what the hell, I’m just shooting myself in the foot here.

So everyone, try to treasure your brothers and sisters. I know it's hard sometimes when you want to kill them because they broke your toy truck but they are after all, really special. Let’s also felicitate these fictional siblings because they really inspired us to look forward to family gatherings. OR NOT. 

To more and more amazing times ahead! :)