Buffy's Sacrifice Unappreciated

[chasesummers]

Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike Dawn. Being who she is (a key... or was) it's only natural to be so upset, whiny and well... Dawn. It's nice to see her and Buffy work together and get along but something really bugs me and that is her relationship with Buffy.

Now we all know that Buffy treats her like a child at times & rarely doesn't but Buffy offered her life to Dawn, what on this earth can you ever offer more to someone?
Dawn completely takes it for granted and I don't ever remember her being thankful.

She hates me, she doesn't want me around, she doesn't want to spend time with me

There's always something. Even on Season 8, I thought it was very cold when she said ''Willow taught me a lot when you were dead'', well surprise Dawn, it's thanks to Buffy you even had the opportunity to learn... ''a lot''.

Besides all this drama she creates, Dawn never bothered me.

What do you guys think?

 

[Buffy Summers]

I feel like pretty much everyone treats Buffy that way - she is just expected to sacrifice rather than people being grateful that she does.

🙂

 

[Lyri]

I feel like pretty much everyone treats Buffy that way - she is just expected to sacrifice rather than people being grateful that she does.

🙂

I agree with this.

It's not just Dawn, and I think it's a little mean to just dump it all on her. NO ONE is EVER thankful for what Buffy has done in her life. NO ONE. They all just...expect her to understand that, hey, you're the Slayer, it's kinda your job, so get on with it.

Yeah, everyone was grateful to have Buffy back, but that's where it ended. No one thought to ask Buffy how she was feeling, after everything that happened to her. Yes, Willow tried, but she didn't really push hard enough. Xander's line 'Me like Buffy, Buffy's not dead, so, me glad' is pretty much the beginning and end for him.

I know it's a Slayer's job to do what Buffy did, but I think, a lot of the time, people seem to forget that a Slayer is also a person, a teenage girl for the most part, and they feel pain and loss and guilt and sadness and depression just like every other girl on the planet. But even Buffy's friends sometimes forgot this, and they treat Buffy like she's made of stone and everything just rolls off her back, or that it should.

But a Slayer isn't wired that way, as Buffy proves more than once, and I do blame the Scoobs a lot for what Buffy went through.

Dawn might not have been respectful of Buffy, but at the end of the day, she was a 15 year old girl. What 15 year old girl IS respectful of her older sister? I know mine sure as hell wasn't, and still isn't now. No matter what I do for her, not once has my sister EVER said thank you to me in a serious manner.

Buffy and Dawn's relationship is the one part of this show that I connect with the most. It's the one part for me that is most true to real life.

 

[Kean]

I agree with this.

It's not just Dawn, and I think it's a little mean to just dump it all on her. NO ONE is EVER thankful for what Buffy has done in her life. NO ONE. They all just...expect her to understand that, hey, you're the Slayer, it's kinda your job, so get on with it.

Yeah, everyone was grateful to have Buffy back, but that's where it ended. No one thought to ask Buffy how she was feeling, after everything that happened to her. Yes, Willow tried, but she didn't really push hard enough. Xander's line 'Me like Buffy, Buffy's not dead, so, me glad' is pretty much the beginning and end for him.

I know it's a Slayer's job to do what Buffy did, but I think, a lot of the time, people seem to forget that a Slayer is also a person, a teenage girl for the most part, and they feel pain and loss and guilt and sadness and depression just like every other girl on the planet. But even Buffy's friends sometimes forgot this, and they treat Buffy like she's made of stone and everything just rolls off her back, or that it should.

But a Slayer isn't wired that way, as Buffy proves more than once, and I do blame the Scoobs a lot for what Buffy went through.

Dawn might not have been respectful of Buffy, but at the end of the day, she was a 15 year old girl. What 15 year old girl IS respectful of her older sister? I know mine sure as hell wasn't, and still isn't now. No matter what I do for her, not once has my sister EVER said thank you to me in a serious manner.

Buffy and Dawn's relationship is the one part of this show that I connect with the most. It's the one part for me that is most true to real life.

The Scoobies are great soldiers in a war, but when it comes to friends they leave a lot to be desired. If it was a slayer issue they had her back, if it was Buffy-as-a-person issue she was very often without their support.

 

[itssmiletime]

I disagree with any sentiment that says that the scoobies, and Dawn, should be 'thankful' to Buffy- because in retrospect, Buffy should also be thankful to the scoobies and Dawn. She's not the only one who makes sacrifices, hard decisions, goes through suffering. She just complains the most, that's all.

The truth is that what Dawn was thinking and feeling, well, makes a whole lot of sense. Dawn would come home from school whilst it was dark, and no one was ever home. She would say she'd come home at certain times, and arrive home hours late. She gave her hamburgers that were squashed and left out for hours. Buffy would scorn at any attempt of Dawn helping out with research (i.e Flooded).

Someone giving up there life for you is nice and all, but that shouldn't stop Dawn calling out on Buffy of how she treats her. As cold as this sounds, Buffy's sacrifice doesn't give her a get- out of jail free card.

 

[Kean]

I disagree with any sentiment that says that the scoobies, and Dawn, should be 'thankful' to Buffy- because in retrospect, Buffy should also be thankful to the scoobies and Dawn. She's not the only one who makes sacrifices, hard decisions, goes through suffering. She just complains the most, that's all.

The truth is that what Dawn was thinking and feeling, well, makes a whole lot of sense. Dawn would come home from school whilst it was dark, and no one was ever home. She would say she'd come home at certain times, and arrive home hours late. She gave her hamburgers that were squashed and left out for hours. Buffy would scorn at any attempt of Dawn helping out with research (i.e Flooded).

Someone giving up there life for you is nice and all, but that shouldn't stop Dawn calling out on Buffy of how she treats her. As cold as this sounds, Buffy's sacrifice doesn't give her a get- out of jail free card.

In fairness to Buffy, she has a lot to complain about, especially this season. Also, I think it's worth noting that nobody wants to hear Buffy's complaints, at most she is just resented for her struggle.

I think it is pointless to try to say Dawn suffered more or Buffy suffered more in this situation because the truth of the matter is that they were both victims of circumstance. Dawn is a kid who had gone through some very traumatic experiences and needed to be looked after, but so did Buffy. She was very seriously depressed, on top of all the responsibilities she has had dropped on her in both her slaying life and real life. The whole damn thing is a tragedy for Dawn and Buffy both.

 

[Robb Stark]

It's not just Dawn, and I think it's a little mean to just dump it all on her. NO ONE is EVER thankful for what Buffy has done in her life. NO ONE. They all just...expect her to understand that, hey, you're the Slayer, it's kinda your job, so get on with it.

I don't know if this is true. For the most part it is, but Giles, Angel and Spike all seem very aware of what Buffy has gone or is going through, both in slaying and in life. They seem to be, more than the others at least, able to read her in that sense and give a damn about her beyond the fighting. Maybe they should articulate it more, but all three of them do seem to have a pretty deep appreciation for Buffy, the slayer and the person.

 

[Zeppelin92]

I agree that Dawn and Buffy's relationship was very real. It makes sense because when you grow up with someone you remember them as they were when they were immature in a sense so its hard to accept that at a certain point they are kind of in charge of you. Also Dawn was coping with the fact that she did have a Slayer for a sister who was infinitely more important to everyone than she was.

Also I don't know if you guys would agree with me on this theory, but I think Buffy held some resentment toward Dawn all the way through season 6. In a way I think Buffy blamed Dawn for the emptiness and pain she felt after being resurrected. Buffy gave her life for Dawn and she was suffering for it in the end not because of Dawn specifically but because of circumstances surrounding Dawn. Anyone else get this vibe or was it just me?

 

[Buffy Summers]

Dawn also got to be "normal" (even if much of it was fake memories) while Buffy always had to be the Slayer.