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Character Analysis: Squall
Puddor- 01/18/2013 12:51 PM
- 700 views
Rough, and unrefined, but you get the idea. Word Count: about 1450
Squall Leonhart
The deepest character of the cast and unfortunately, despite the writer’s efforts, the one most commonly taken at face value. This is more or less taken from the first sequence of gameplay, up until Galbadia Garden. From that point onwards, Squall’s personality and motivations become much clearer. It is absolutely key to view Squall as a whole rather than judging by either his actions at the beginning or end of the game.
At face value, Squall appears quite harsh and abrupt, despite being quite bright. He intentionally constructs a persona of apathy in order to guard himself from pain. This is partially amplified by the fact he can no longer remember what the feeling of being close to someone is, only the agony of losing them, so he doesn’t feel the need to drop his walls unless they are completely charged through.
The truth is that his apathy is actually an opposite-facing mask to how Squall actually feels. Whenever he becomes attached or involved in something, Squall pours his absolute heart and soul into the pursuit of it. He is completely aware of his tendency to do this, and thus avoids those situations—including creating dreams, attachments, or participating in events.
Most of Squall’s actions are driving by the fear of having his heart broken. There is no middle ground with Squall Leonhart; it is all or nothing in everything he does.
It doesn’t become clear until later how deeply this runs within him, when he ‘kidnaps’ Rinoa from Garden, but examples of this are dotted throughout the lead up to the event. His intent to complete his mission during the Deling City incident, launching himself into harm’s way to save others in the D-District Prison, and despite being reluctant to do so, leading the Garden in the attack against the Sorceress all speak volumes of Squall’s drive and passion whenever he actually undertakes something. It is not as distinct until Squall experiences something that rings similar to past pain that it becomes absolutely clear that this is Squall’s disposition.
Squall’s allowance of letting himself be dragged into certain situations, or ‘going with the flow’, rather than questioning his orders (his excuse is that he is a mercenary, but unlike the previous point this character flaw isn’t one he is as clearly aware of) actually draws its roots from the fact that Squall overthinks to the point where he does ridiculous or insane things because he can’t put his foot down on his thoughts. His mind works at whirlwind speed, and it doesn’t take much for him to spiral into what seems like an over-exaggerated outburst. The first time this happens is in Galbadia Garden, where he, seemingly randomly, furiously exclaims he won’t be talked about in past tense. For those in the room it seemed to make no sense, but at the time his thought process seemed clear—it wouldn’t have been until later that he actually realized his reaction was over the top.
As a result Squall often tries to mindlessly occupy himself. He does what he is asked and doesn’t think about the orders he’s given for very long lest he end up debating the entire situation. He hates being bored or left with nothing to do, because his mind immediately turns to thinking about…well, anything.
The second time this occurs is, yes, when Rinoa falls unconscious. He loses his tight grip on his thoughts and ends up doing something ridiculous, which he doesn’t process until he reaches the midsection of the bridge and speaks to her while she is inanimate, wondering if everyone was laughing at him or were angry.
This thought process is one of the reasons why Rinoa is intriguing to him; she is able to question, rebel and act without feeling like she is being judged by others.
Although Squall forcefully drives others away, he is still quite aware of how others perceive him, and how he wishes to be perceived. As he says to Rinoa on the bridge, it’s a lot easier when people don’t realize what he’s actually like, and believe that he doesn’t care about anyone and is an introvert. His determination to crush any thought of rebellion or questioning stems from the fact he’s in a military organization and doesn’t wish to be viewed as distinctive.
However as with most things this is yet again a conscious thought while his subconscious tells otherwise. His decision to choose to wield the gunblade shows a number of things about his character; a part of him wishes to be acknowledged and accepted by his peers (and Sis, in extension), and he is able to complete just about any difficult task thrown his way.
Squall is quite stubborn, and it is likely that Seifer may have mocked him at some stage with something along the lines of ‘I bet you couldn’t learn how to wield one’. As a result Squall’s rivalry with Seifer (which has always been present) drove him to not only pursue the same weapon discipline but use the harder version (revolvers have a stronger recoil than pistols, thus making learning how to manage the gunblade’s vibration function several times more difficult).
For Squall, Rinoa presents an interesting concept of how he is currently, and how he could have been if he had actually questioned what he was doing at an earlier stage. It could almost be said that he sees a kindred spirit in Rinoa—another who is also quite intelligent, passionate, and allows herself to be led by her heart rather than letting her mind dictate her behaviour. Squall’s core is the same, but he has trained himself to reign in how his heart feels in favour of reason and the possibility of having his heart stomped on.
It is rare that Squall’s being ‘a jerk’ is actually intentionally being mean or cruel to someone and is rather stating the truth. When he does speak, Squall does not mince words and is very concise when it comes to a logical concept, but is terrible at explaining how he actually feels. As a result he comes across as cold, and struggles with easing his words so they are received better. What he says to both Rinoa (in front of the television screen) and to Zell (inside the forest) during and post the Timber mission is not him intentionally being an asshole, rather attempting to explain facts to those who are driven by heart. There is no doubt that Rinoa had exceedingly high expectations of SeeD, and that Zell’s statement on a worldwide broadcast could have resulted in missiles being fired at Garden much earlier in the timeline.
However, this is far from him deliberately trying to hurt either of them, because it’s very clear that he cares for them, even if he still views Rinoa as (mostly) a ‘friend’. Squall intentionally places himself in harm’s way in D-District in order to save Zell, which only occurred at maximum two weeks after the Timber incident. He was extremely concerned about sending the missile base team away, and his relief was extreme when they came back safely (how does ‘Yes! They’re safe!’ along with a look of complete and utter relief reflect someone who doesn’t care?). Upon Rinoa’s interrogation as to whether or not he saw her differently to the others, Squall actually blushes, and this is still early in disc 2—well before Esthar or Rinoa falling unconscious.
Squall’s heart and mind struggle with meeting in the middle, and rather, he reflects his garments; either he is strictly logic and cold reason, or fiery, intense and passionate. His heart is easily harmed when it is in clear view, so he hides it behind walls of apathy and pushes others away. Despite this, he throws himself into the line of fire constantly for them, and takes no consideration for his own safety, seeking to rather do something on his own than risk someone he cares about getting hurt or potentially screwing it up. It takes enormous amounts of trust for Squall not to feel this way.
Which is why it is very clear he cares deeply for every member of the party, rather than just Rinoa. Each character has a chance where they could be picked second in favour of someone possibly more responsible, but gradually, he allows every member of the group to step up to the plate and prove themselves.
Although it seems as though Squall’s character development was Squall learning how to care for others, it was actually Squall learning to meet in the middle of his heart and his head and pursue goals and dreams, and express himself as a coherent whole rather than a logical mind and a passionate heart.
Squall Leonhart
The deepest character of the cast and unfortunately, despite the writer’s efforts, the one most commonly taken at face value. This is more or less taken from the first sequence of gameplay, up until Galbadia Garden. From that point onwards, Squall’s personality and motivations become much clearer. It is absolutely key to view Squall as a whole rather than judging by either his actions at the beginning or end of the game.
At face value, Squall appears quite harsh and abrupt, despite being quite bright. He intentionally constructs a persona of apathy in order to guard himself from pain. This is partially amplified by the fact he can no longer remember what the feeling of being close to someone is, only the agony of losing them, so he doesn’t feel the need to drop his walls unless they are completely charged through.
The truth is that his apathy is actually an opposite-facing mask to how Squall actually feels. Whenever he becomes attached or involved in something, Squall pours his absolute heart and soul into the pursuit of it. He is completely aware of his tendency to do this, and thus avoids those situations—including creating dreams, attachments, or participating in events.
Most of Squall’s actions are driving by the fear of having his heart broken. There is no middle ground with Squall Leonhart; it is all or nothing in everything he does.
It doesn’t become clear until later how deeply this runs within him, when he ‘kidnaps’ Rinoa from Garden, but examples of this are dotted throughout the lead up to the event. His intent to complete his mission during the Deling City incident, launching himself into harm’s way to save others in the D-District Prison, and despite being reluctant to do so, leading the Garden in the attack against the Sorceress all speak volumes of Squall’s drive and passion whenever he actually undertakes something. It is not as distinct until Squall experiences something that rings similar to past pain that it becomes absolutely clear that this is Squall’s disposition.
Squall’s allowance of letting himself be dragged into certain situations, or ‘going with the flow’, rather than questioning his orders (his excuse is that he is a mercenary, but unlike the previous point this character flaw isn’t one he is as clearly aware of) actually draws its roots from the fact that Squall overthinks to the point where he does ridiculous or insane things because he can’t put his foot down on his thoughts. His mind works at whirlwind speed, and it doesn’t take much for him to spiral into what seems like an over-exaggerated outburst. The first time this happens is in Galbadia Garden, where he, seemingly randomly, furiously exclaims he won’t be talked about in past tense. For those in the room it seemed to make no sense, but at the time his thought process seemed clear—it wouldn’t have been until later that he actually realized his reaction was over the top.
As a result Squall often tries to mindlessly occupy himself. He does what he is asked and doesn’t think about the orders he’s given for very long lest he end up debating the entire situation. He hates being bored or left with nothing to do, because his mind immediately turns to thinking about…well, anything.
The second time this occurs is, yes, when Rinoa falls unconscious. He loses his tight grip on his thoughts and ends up doing something ridiculous, which he doesn’t process until he reaches the midsection of the bridge and speaks to her while she is inanimate, wondering if everyone was laughing at him or were angry.
This thought process is one of the reasons why Rinoa is intriguing to him; she is able to question, rebel and act without feeling like she is being judged by others.
Although Squall forcefully drives others away, he is still quite aware of how others perceive him, and how he wishes to be perceived. As he says to Rinoa on the bridge, it’s a lot easier when people don’t realize what he’s actually like, and believe that he doesn’t care about anyone and is an introvert. His determination to crush any thought of rebellion or questioning stems from the fact he’s in a military organization and doesn’t wish to be viewed as distinctive.
However as with most things this is yet again a conscious thought while his subconscious tells otherwise. His decision to choose to wield the gunblade shows a number of things about his character; a part of him wishes to be acknowledged and accepted by his peers (and Sis, in extension), and he is able to complete just about any difficult task thrown his way.
Squall is quite stubborn, and it is likely that Seifer may have mocked him at some stage with something along the lines of ‘I bet you couldn’t learn how to wield one’. As a result Squall’s rivalry with Seifer (which has always been present) drove him to not only pursue the same weapon discipline but use the harder version (revolvers have a stronger recoil than pistols, thus making learning how to manage the gunblade’s vibration function several times more difficult).
For Squall, Rinoa presents an interesting concept of how he is currently, and how he could have been if he had actually questioned what he was doing at an earlier stage. It could almost be said that he sees a kindred spirit in Rinoa—another who is also quite intelligent, passionate, and allows herself to be led by her heart rather than letting her mind dictate her behaviour. Squall’s core is the same, but he has trained himself to reign in how his heart feels in favour of reason and the possibility of having his heart stomped on.
It is rare that Squall’s being ‘a jerk’ is actually intentionally being mean or cruel to someone and is rather stating the truth. When he does speak, Squall does not mince words and is very concise when it comes to a logical concept, but is terrible at explaining how he actually feels. As a result he comes across as cold, and struggles with easing his words so they are received better. What he says to both Rinoa (in front of the television screen) and to Zell (inside the forest) during and post the Timber mission is not him intentionally being an asshole, rather attempting to explain facts to those who are driven by heart. There is no doubt that Rinoa had exceedingly high expectations of SeeD, and that Zell’s statement on a worldwide broadcast could have resulted in missiles being fired at Garden much earlier in the timeline.
However, this is far from him deliberately trying to hurt either of them, because it’s very clear that he cares for them, even if he still views Rinoa as (mostly) a ‘friend’. Squall intentionally places himself in harm’s way in D-District in order to save Zell, which only occurred at maximum two weeks after the Timber incident. He was extremely concerned about sending the missile base team away, and his relief was extreme when they came back safely (how does ‘Yes! They’re safe!’ along with a look of complete and utter relief reflect someone who doesn’t care?). Upon Rinoa’s interrogation as to whether or not he saw her differently to the others, Squall actually blushes, and this is still early in disc 2—well before Esthar or Rinoa falling unconscious.
Squall’s heart and mind struggle with meeting in the middle, and rather, he reflects his garments; either he is strictly logic and cold reason, or fiery, intense and passionate. His heart is easily harmed when it is in clear view, so he hides it behind walls of apathy and pushes others away. Despite this, he throws himself into the line of fire constantly for them, and takes no consideration for his own safety, seeking to rather do something on his own than risk someone he cares about getting hurt or potentially screwing it up. It takes enormous amounts of trust for Squall not to feel this way.
Which is why it is very clear he cares deeply for every member of the party, rather than just Rinoa. Each character has a chance where they could be picked second in favour of someone possibly more responsible, but gradually, he allows every member of the group to step up to the plate and prove themselves.
Although it seems as though Squall’s character development was Squall learning how to care for others, it was actually Squall learning to meet in the middle of his heart and his head and pursue goals and dreams, and express himself as a coherent whole rather than a logical mind and a passionate heart.
