With the recent chapter of Princess Luna's Suicide Solutions · 12:01am Jul 9th, 2014
I really wanted to show that you can be a flawed individual and still be an inspiration to others. Even a broken individual. Sometimes, our flaws are our strengths, our greatest potential assets that we as people have. Even the most broken of us have the potential for greatness and we should never forget that.
Noctilucent's gift was always intended that he was good with foals. Unfortunately, life threw him a curve ball and his odd sense of destiny placed him in a situation where his talent, his gift, was tested to the very ends of his ability and tried his endurance. He was an emotionally broken character and he was confronted with truly overwhelming emotional pain... in this case, being good with foals and watching them die. It was a question I felt was worth asking. What happens when a pony and their gift meets with failure? What if they can't hack what their destiny has cut out for them? What if they end up in a situation like Noctilucent did, thrown into a situation where they are way out of their league and fail to deal with the task life has given them?
It is a troubling question.
What if Pinkie Pie was born an introvert and failed to be a party pony?
What if Fluttershy was born with an animal dander allergy?
What if Twilight Sparkle was dyslexic?
Seems like it would be entirely possible to be overwhelmed by one's sense of destiny in the MLP-verse.
Destiny isn't the same as fate, I can't stress that enough, Destiny is what we are supposed to do, what we are made for. Fate is the force that defines us, it gives us something to fight, to use as an expression of character. It is what happens, what is given to us. When you accept your destiny, you accept yourself, and who you can be. When you accept your fate, you accept what life has given to you.
MIdnight is hoping this makes sense, and is understandable.
2267875
Your reasoning is sound, but the way you described the two, you make them sound like two sides of the same coin, which I'm a firm believer they are essentially the same idea.
2267940 They are, two sides of the same coin, one is defined by your goals, and the other by the challenges you face, destiny can be temporary, or multiple, and can change with time, and to make me sound typical, fate is forever. you get one fate, and it is usually somewhat controlled by outside forces, your destiny is yours alone to make.
2267940 Pllease note that this is my opinion, and not fact.
These don't feel like apt comparisons for me. Bucky's emotional fragility is at least in part imposed by his upbringing. These are entirely inherent conflicts with the ponies' canonical destinies. Emphasis on "canonical." Pinkie could spread happiness by designing and building conveniences and creature comforts. Fluttershy could care for foals, or specialize in less dandrous animals, like reptiles. Twilight could become a more intuitive magician, like Trixie "cast it by ear" Lulamoon of the Lunaverse.
The thing about cutie marks, at least according to how I interpret them, is that they are only reflections of their ponies' abilities, not brilliant beacons of competence without which their ponies are hopeless at their assigned tasks. Marks aren't set in stone from the moment of birth. Foals must understand themselves and what they believe their purpose is in life for the mark to form.
It's a matter of form following function, in multiple senses. If a pony can't function some way, then she won't get a mark in it. The ultimate deciding factor for a magical butt tattoo is the pony on whose butt the tattoo will manifest.
That's not to say you're wrong and should feel bad about even considering this question. It's an intriguing thought, and you've done a great job of exploring it. It just doesn't mesh with my interpretation of pony magic.
...which I apparently felt the need to write an essay on.
I believe at least one author has dubbed it Acute Cutie Mark Failure Syndrome.
I only read the first part of this and this line jumped out at me:"even a flawed individual can be an inspiration to others" I see this and I feel there is a great truth hidden in Noctilucent's life as a whole, I continue to read with awe, keep it up Kudzu. :P
I don't think I could put it better than you have. Now I really want to read PLSS. .-.
If mane6 were born with another characteristics, they will be another ponies and might get another CMarks. The magical stamps on pony's buttcheeks are the reflection of pony's talent and passion, not some kind of geas. If mane6 were born with another characteristics, they'd develop another personalities and may have different CMarks, or the same, but work with them differently, like 2268042 said.
Didn't Beethoven suffer from deafness?
A challenge to your talent is just a challenge.
Fluttershy with an allergy would probably specialize in animals that have minimal allergy issues. Replies, Fish, Butterflys, Pets that don't shed.
Introverted Pinkie Pie would be a behind the scenes planner or even coordinator instead of a Master of Ceremonies, Or maybe she would specialize in small parties for seriously ill ponies.
Twilight with dyslexia? Books on Tape(record)? Master storyteller?
I really don't see a problem.