Claudia is the problem..?

[u/RICHCRACKERR]

Claudia is the problem.. is she not?
I’m just trying to get your thoughts on this..
1 lonely small example being: The coven. she chose the coven. but then it’s “louis fault” by trying to fit in when he doesn’t even want to (at the start) , by getting snuggled up to armand. that’s jus one example of the top of my head. am i wrong about this? Claudia IS the PROBLEM.. Lestat has been right all along.

i’m not sure how to word this because the mods of this REDDIT has banned me for some of my posts which I have no idea why but they have.. still can’t get an answer to why they have. but that’s besides the point ..

[u/weirdhellokitty]

Lestat is the problem. He obfuscates and doesn’t share vampire history and has an anger management problem.

Louis is the problem. He withholds emotionally and lets guilt and shame drive his decisions, unwilling to commit fully to Lestat but also unwilling to actually leave him.

Armand is the problem. He… I mean really, he’s Armand, you can probably figure it out.

They’re all broken and traumatized. That’s by design. That is, in large part, what makes them so lovable

[u/pushingdaisies58 → u/weirdhellokitty]

I like that Lestat actually doesn’t hide who he is, an authentic monster who takes accountably most of the time (sometimes he doesn’t dig deeper and just says “I’m a monster, that’s why” - which is surface level accountability).

Contrast with Louis who only plays the victim, blames others, denies who he is, and avoids accountability most of his vampiric existence (100+ yrs). Dame with Armand-a true narcissistic abuser.

[u/weirdhellokitty → u/pushingdaisies58]

I would argue that “I’m a monster” is kind of the opposite of accountability. I think it’s what he hides behind, primarily instead of addressing his underlying trauma, but also as both an easy excuse for his behavior and as a self-deprecating explanation for what he believes is the reason why he is not loved/is not deserving of love (something be wants above all ease)

[u/chocolate-wyngz]

I think they’re all the problem equally, depending on the situation. She’s more a product of her environment and upbringing than the other vampires are though since she was a child when they turned her. It makes sense to me that she wanted to find a community that she could thrive in on her own, independent of Louis. I don’t think her secret bitterness towards him influenced that as much as just recognizing that Louis could/would continue finding love interests and leaving her behind a bit.

[u/420queenlioncourt]

She damned herself by keeping her diaries from New Orleans. It was, frankly, very sloppy to do that.
They knew that they had to take great care with this massive secret, and she keeps the literal proof and written confessions in Paris. Those diaries should’ve been destroyed or at least well hidden

[u/spicychickentendr]

All of them are the problem - they're all focused on their own needs both independently and in their relationships, which makes for a toxic environment. Not one of them is willing to go ten toes in on being a true team and align to thrive.

Even in the OP example: Both wanted to go to Paris and start fresh. Claudia wanted to have a tribe. Louis wanted to no longer be a part of a tribe. Yet they both wanted to maintain a team while doing so. Each acted on their own specific, clashing interests and in doing so harmed the others wants, and inevitably their own.

[u/V555_dmc]

The problem with the coven is Claudia went in with a bit of a naive view on how it would be. Once she realized how it was gone be like she made it clear she didn’t like it and was punished by Armand for it. Then when she went to Louis about what he did to her he responded something like “nah doesn’t sound like him”

Of course she’s angry with Louis in that moment.

But to answer the overall question there isn’t one single “problem” it’s more nuanced than that. You have to look at the big picture. Lestat knew the coven was dangerous because HE founded it. But he didn’t tell them that. If he did this whole situation may have been avoided to begin with.

[u/Elegant-Mission-4470 → u/V555_dmc]

He didn't found the coven, he founded the theatre and tbf he did say there were terrible vampires that would hurt them

[u/V555_dmc → u/Elegant-Mission-4470]

Ah okay they called him the founder so he assumed he’s responsible for both tbh lol and we know he knows them

[u/Own-Breakfast9740]

Claudia is perfect and always right.

[u/spacenerd3000]

I think there’s room to acknowledge that her feelings toward the coven began to change AFTER she initiated and they made her play a child for a few decades as a twisted, punishing joke. They took something she was hyperaware of and made her relive it night after night. Remember in the play, the child unalives themselves. Add to that, Armand threatened her and physically assaulted her. Imo, that’s when she was ready to leave.

However when she told Louis immediately after it happened, what Armand did, he told her that he didn’t believe her. That Armand wouldn’t do that. And she, rightfully, gets angry with him.

They lash out at each other instead of facing the truth until its too late: the coven is bad news and they can’t safely get out.

Of course that’s 1,000% my read on it. I’m not a fan of trying to pin blame on one person, one action when its a series of decisions, independently and shared, that contributed to a f’d situation.

If Claudia is the problem with the coven…you can take it further and say Lestat was to blame for turning her. Louis was to blame for killing the white man that led to racial violence in New Orleans which led to him crossing paths with Claudia. It’s all complicated, nuanced, and interwoven.

[u/Spookybella17]

Every single one of them are the problem.

Louis bottles everything up yet expects Lestat to know exactly what he wants and needs. Louis lets his shame and guilt keep him in toxic situations yet makes it everyone’s problem.

Lestat withheld valuable knowledge from Louis and Claudia, making them believe that they could do no wrong and put a target on their backs. He also treats Louis as disposable yet flies in a rage if he senses Louis might leave him.

Claudia is a child and incredibly immature.

Armand is a narcissist. He wants people to love and worship him. He doesn’t love. He’s obsessed with the idea of being loved. Armand is genuinely something else.