So. Just what is a 'Scene'?
Scenes, tests and unofficial scenes were conceptualized by Glitchedpuppet as a way to address negative behaviors within the group publicly, in a controlled space and with options to pause or suspend the session at the request of any of the participants. Scenes are held both in character for roleplays, and for actual members as themselves. In theory, this would allow a space for all users to resolve grievances within members of the discord, however, in practice, because scenes are more often than not started by a moderator, admin or other high ranking members of the Floraverse team against casual members or fans, this creates an inherent power imbalance, and because scenes are the only form of conflict resolution offered and framed as a way to address exclusively negative behavior, denying participation in a scene or suspending it is often taken as an outright denial to address negative behavior overall and usually results in expulsion from the server, putting extra pressure on the person to agree or lose whatever social connections they may have made.
What constitutes “negative behavior” worthy of a scene is left to the discretion of the person (usually someone in power) to decide. Scenes, tests and unofficial scenes have been started for reasons such as:
- A member wrote a poem that one of the moderators did not like
- A moderator and Glip did not like how a member roleplayed
- Glip was frustrated with a members inability to coherently communicate problems
There are no rules for how the scene moderators should behave towards the people they subject to scenes. Name-calling, demeaning and abusive language, emotional manipulation, dogpiling and ridicule are all hallmarks observed in scenes. Scene holders will often bully and provoke the subject into lashing out, then reel back and use it as proof of the subject’s “inherent toxicity” and doubling down until provoking further reactions or a total emotional breakdown.
There are also no rules for how long the scenes should last, with scenes often taking hours in which the subject is expected to maintain composure and cordiality through the entire ordeal while the Scene holders very much are not. There are no special provisions for breaks or checking-in times regardless of the time or personal circumstances the subject might be beholden to. There are also no limits to how many Scene holders may attack a single or a couple of members, leading to them being dogpiled and swamped over a barrage of abuse they may struggle to even keep up with, and be ridiculed for not keeping up with it (Hare’s 6ish hour scene is a good example showcasing all of this.)
As a result, scenes operate as nothing more than a form of control and punishment leveled against members considered to be deserving of it. More insidiously, a feature of scenes is to include a channel for other uninvolved members to spectate the ordeal, ostensibly for “transparency” but functionally serving as a way to turn scene subjects into a public show of example-making to the other members to further reinforce the consequences of “stepping out of line”.
Of course, there isn’t anything wrong with speaking out when someone hurts you. (I mean. Come on. Look at this site. We’re not saying shut up and take it). The baked-in social peer-pressure coercion into participating, the peanut gallery that is the observation channel, airing the dirty personal laundry out for all to see. (The petty, personal type of laundry. Not the ‘wow holy shit this person is a well documented danger to others’ type of laundry.) The issue with scenes is that they are on a fundamental level: predatory. There are right and wrong ways to address those that have harmed you, and everyone has a different definition of what right or wrong is. But we humbly request that you look at the scenes we feature on this site and ask yourself- really, truly ask yourself: do you really believe these people not only deserve to be treated like this but that this is helpful to them to be treated like this?
Boxley is disorganized. Boxley is sloppy. Boxley is messy. Boxley's words mean so little.
Dogpiling on Hare
Content Warnings
A year after this Glip would go on to post an apology to Hare. When asked on their feelings on this, Hare said the following:
They don’t see me as a person, just a nuisance or a cautionary tale or whatever narrative they can spin about the situation to comfort themselves about how things are better when it’s another one of their lies. They said that their problem was that I couldn’t be vulnerable. You don’t know how much I related to them on a superficial level, I was also abused and escaped through drawing pokemon and playing the games, I just wanted them to see me as a person. They couldn’t. They won’t. Doesn’t matter to me. It’ll happen again to someone else. Even if they twist a different narrative and insist it’s different because of xyz.
There’s nothing you can do to get them to see you as a person. They’ll do whatever they want and write whatever narrative they want about it.
Pepper writes a suicide note to explore emotions, onlookers unaware that he is just exploring emotions, and not actually in any danger
Content Warnings
This scene was planned in advanced by Glip, Pepper and W0z, and the participants knew that while the feelings Pepper wanted to express within the scene were real- any intention he expressed of harming himself would not be. The people onlooking in #the-assembly did not know that this was preplanned with that understanding, and where left panicked and fearful for Pepper when he posted the suicide note.
Nichole doesn't want to reconcil with Iz when trying to reconcil with everyone else, gets dogpiled. Next day Glip and others roleplay a court hearing to ban Nichole.
Sun Drop gets harassed by Pengo and Glip over sharing a poem
