Opinion | Princess Twilight Sparkle, The Product of Nepotism
On her coronation, Princess Twilight Sparkle famously admits to being the 'luckiest pony in all of Equestria.' Though her definition of luck for many seems to be slightly skewed. Coming from a life of privilege, favouritism, and wonder, it is no surprise that Princess Twilight Sparkle rose to acclaim. Because the simple truth of the matter is, that you can have anything when you are well off with connections.
As soon as she was born Twilight was surrounded with opportunities. Opportunities other ponies could only dream of. For Twilight, these opportunities were a plentiful commodity. A common commodity her parents could afford with a wave of their name.
It is no surprise that those who work closely with the Canterlot municipality are certainly well off. From the prestige, the position in any cabinet holds you can be expected to be paid a hefty sum. As Night Light and Twilight Velvet work as prominent astronomers (and minor nobles) for the city, they uphold the best interest of Canterlot through their work and publications. This means the royalty they receive from years of service allowed their family to afford more than just a grand home in the heart of Canterlot.
(The city suddenly has housing to spare when the rich come by.)
The money they have, as well as the position they held, made it easy for them to slip their average daughter into Celestia School for Gifted Unicorns. Her application was approved instantly just by the sight of her name which allowed her to move onto the next stage of the vigorous application process easier, while other unicorns had their dreams and aspirations crushed.
It’s all simple cronyism. As the old saying goes, "It's not what you know but who you know.” Twilight’s cronyism from her parents granted her a network of insiders. Insiders that confer favours for her. Favours that gave Sparkle a breezy education equipped with the perks of being a personal student to the Princess herself as well.
From what we know the rest is history. Sparkle gets recruited to be Princess Celestia’s personal protégé, a title that allowed her even more power due to amassing the Princess’ favouritism. Princess Celestia’s favouritism to this sole student allowed for free housing, be it a tower, or a sanctuary, for Sparkle’s endeavours. In the midst of Canterlot's worst housing crisis at the time, it begs the question. How many more empty towers does the crown own? And are they all reserved for the ones with instilled advantages? Disguised as a study location, it takes no detective to understand that free exclusive property is more than just a study playroom.
Twilight’s winning the Princess’ favour also allowed for a lot more opportunities, not limited to, access to dangerous wings in the castle, access to every spell imaginable, and information that has not been leaked to the public. It is said that Sparkle knew of Celestia’s love for cake before the press released the information and before anyone else knew the information for that matter.
You would think after living the life of luxury in Canterlot moving to Ponyville should have kickstarted her quiet, low-key, and humble life. Away from all the money and fame. Incorrect. Twilight Sparkle immediately was granted a home inside Golden Oaks library. She got a home without having to struggle with the Ponyville housing crisis. On top of that living in the Golden Oaks library, she was given a decent job as the town's librarian. Did she even go through an interview process? To be frank, they probably took one look at her name and hired her. No need for a resume, no need for qualifications, just have a reputation.
This is all favouritism that has allowed Twilight Sparkle to ascend to where she is. Her wings? Bestowed to her by her mentor who loved her from the start regardless if she was a sack of potatoes.
Now after all of this, things cannot possibly get better for the young princess, right? Well, next thing you know, she grows out of her treehouse and moves into a huge castle. Made of valuable crystal.
Another topic to touch on would be Sparkle’s other family members. As we know Prince Shining Armor is her older brother. ‘Destined’ to become the Captain of the Royal Guard right before he stepped foot in the cadets. Then he marries an alicorn, who later became the ruler of a whole empire, and finally father an alicorn daughter himself.
This alicorn princess whom he married is none other than Princess Cadance, who foalsat Twilight at a young age. Which families could afford to convince an Equestrian Princess to foalsit? Only the most privileged, rivaling the money of a Princess. They could have had any other foalsitter on the market yet somehow they got a Princess to do the job. The fact is simple. When you have money, you can have anything from your wildest dreams.
Sparkle’s family has assembled enough power that it is plausible that they are actually the ones ruling the country. Full control of the Royal Guards, control of the Crystal Empire, and three alicorn Princesses, one of which rumoured to be the next sole monarch of Equestria. It would not be a surprise in the upcoming years that this family will continue to make clever moves in the scheme of gathering even more power and prestige.
It is clear that without the means that she did not work for, Twilight Sparkle would not be where she is. From living the life of privilege from the start, it had allowed her access to favouritism even Canterlot Dukes would envy. Utilizing her nepotism she turned what she gathered into power. The immense power will continue to be passed around to her Captain of the Royal Guard brother, Princess of the Crystal Empire sister-in-law, and the two reigning monarchs.
Princess Twilight Sparkle’s rise was not a story of a hard-working unicorn working and fighting with her blood sweat and tears, it was a matter of a rich unicorn being born into a shell she would grow into. Princess Twilight Sparkle is a product of nepotism.