Anya + her money

[Paul]

I think The Game of Life was definitely the start of her money obsession. She took the "money = win" scenario very seriously. That's probably why she enjoyed working in the Magic Box, she felt she was doing a good job of being human.

The fact that she started off giving things for free, believed in communism during the Russian revolution, and settled on capitalism in the present day, just goes to show that she has no consistant sense of self, and is always changing to follow other's examples.

[Emmie]

Actually, Xander's to blame for Anya's money fixation. He explains to her the value of money in The I in Team:

Anya: (indignantly) Xander. You haven't been paying any attention to
me, tonight. Just peddling those process food breaks. I don't know
why.

Xander: (around mouthful) Well, let me put it in a way you'll
understand. Sell bars. Make money. Take Anya nice places. Buy
pretty things.

Anya: (considers) That does make sense. All right, I support you. Go
sell more.

At first, Anya only cares about attention from her boyfriend. When he shows her the value of money, she begins her obsession with earning.

[Paul]

Good memory, Emmie! I'd forgotten about that little scene. I don't think she becomes concerned about making her own money until later though.

[Skeptic]

It was explained to her what money meant, really. I don't gather she had much use for it, or had a care about what capitalism or consumerism were, before she was turned human again. All that stuff evolved while she was a demon, and she didn't need money for her work. I gather she was very good at manipulating people for money, if she found she needed it, but if that was so, it was merely a tool on the periphery of the job at hand.

In really simple terms, it was explained that capitalism and consumerism are the keys to survival in our society. If you master both, you're winning the game. And the way to master both is to have command over money. So she realized if she got piles of money, and used it to become a better capitalist, the process would cycle naturally ad infinitum, and she'd become rich, and thus have the power and command. I'm sure in a lot of ways, she meant to master it to take the place of her former job, which she was an ace at.

[gumgnome]

One thing that I've never really been too clear about is when we see her and Halfrek in 1917, having killed the Romanovs. Does this imply that she had an active part (as in deliberately) in the creation of the first Communist state? She waxes lyrical in that scene about how Communism is the way forward, so has she made the decision herself to help kickstart the revolution, or do you think she's just doing her job and someone made a wish?

[Hellbound Hyperion]

Jul 8, 2009 6:48:10 GMT -5 gumgnome said:

One thing that I've never really been too clear about is when we see her and Halfrek in 1917, having killed the Romanovs. Does this imply that she had an active part (as in deliberately) in the creation of the first Communist state? She waxes lyrical in that scene about how Communism is the way forward, so has she made the decision herself to help kickstart the revolution, or do you think she's just doing her job and someone made a wish?

She was just doing her job; it was a wish that brought her there, and the whole point of the scene was that she lived through her work (as the musical scene later showed that she was living through Xander and defined by Xander). The way she spoke about Communism was very matter-of-factly of her; it was probably just how she felt at the time. The times have changed quite a bit since the Romanov overthrow, as far as Communist thought is concerned.

Also, I don't think it's ever explicitly said that Anyanka and Halfrek are in the Romanov house.

[gumgnome]

I agree that it is not explicit, but she is surrounded by the bodies of a family with a strikingly similar demographic profile to the Romanovs - I have always interpreted it as her having destroyed the aristocracy.
I also agree that she speaks very matter-of-factly about communism, but then she speaks very matter-of-factly about everything!

[glorylover]

Jul 7, 2009 21:16:19 GMT -5 Emmie said:

Actually, Xander's to blame for Anya's money fixation. He explains to her the value of money in The I in Team:

Anya: (indignantly) Xander. You haven't been paying any attention to
me, tonight. Just peddling those process food breaks. I don't know
why.

Xander: (around mouthful) Well, let me put it in a way you'll
understand. Sell bars. Make money. Take Anya nice places. Buy
pretty things.

Anya: (considers) That does make sense. All right, I support you. Go
sell more.

At first, Anya only cares about attention from her boyfriend. When he shows her the value of money, she begins her obsession with earning.

I was just thinking that!

[Midnight Butterfly]

I never spotted that Raz. Makes alot more sense now. I think its so funny how obsessed Anya is with money ;D

[Hellbound Hyperion]

Jul 8, 2009 17:44:01 GMT -5 Midnight Butterfly said:

I never spotted that Raz. Makes alot more sense now. I think its so funny how obsessed Anya is with money ;D

Agreed.

"Anya! How is your money today?"
"Fine! Thank you for asking!"

[TabulaRasa]

Jul 8, 2009 9:10:46 GMT -5 gumgnome said:

I agree that it is not explicit, but she is surrounded by the bodies of a family with a strikingly similar demographic profile to the Romanovs - I have always interpreted it as her having destroyed the aristocracy.
I also agree that she speaks very matter-of-factly about communism, but then she speaks very matter-of-factly about everything!

I think that that line was more of a pun from the writers stemming from the time period with a twisted irony about how people thought communism was good. So I think it was just more about the certainty of the Communists and how perfect the world would be rather than Anya's own point of view. Especially because when Hallie suggests that they go out on the town during the revolution that Anya put into motion she is still only focused on vengeance. So I think that it was her literal interpretations of what Xander has said and her working at the Magic Box that really push her money obsession.

[buffyfan21]

I think there are many factors that contributed to Anya's love of Money. In the flashback scenes with Olaf, we see that Anya was once a very different person. She was not interested in money, but instead believed in giving things for free, as she did with the rabbits. At this time she is happy and in love with Olaf. We can see this in her clear affection for him. It is when Olaf betrays Anya (Aud) with another woman, that she sets about on a completely different path, thus accepting D'Hoffryn's offer and becoming a vengeance demon. It is with this that everything Anya thought she knew, everything she was, changes. She no longer believes in the good of mankind, or happiness for it's own sake. She was portrayed by her lover and so makes it her life's mission to curse other unfaithfuls. I think it is this change in Anya, the going from human to vengeance demon, and creating a whole new identity and persona for herself that first informed not only Anya's fear of bunnies, but also her love of all things capitalism. Anya realized that in this "new world" she needed money to get by. And never again would she find herself slave to any man, leaving herself open for heartbreak, so she decided to ensure her independence by becoming "a capitalistic running dog." But then of course she meets Xander and everything goes to hell. Here is a man she can trust, and wacky love ensues (of course, the real tragedy is that Xander ends up betraying her anyway, but that's another story). So while Xander certainly influences Anya's love/obsession with money (as well as who she becomes as a whole), I think we must first look at Anya's origin as a character in order to gain a complete understanding of what all her little quirks and idiosyncrasies were about.

I dunno, perhaps I am just a crazed fan and reading waaaaaaay too much into this (which is entirely possible, btw ), but that's the way I see it. When everything about Anya's life was turned upside down and changed, I think she eventually came to realize that the idea of money was something she could control, the thing that would not let her down or fail her. For Anya, money could indeed, buy happiness.

[gumgnome]

Jul 10, 2009 15:04:33 GMT -5 buffyfan21 said:

And never again would she find herself slave to any man, leaving herself open for heartbreak, so she decided to ensure her independence by becoming "a capitalistic running dog."

I think that this is probably very informative - I hadn't thought about the idea of money meaning independence for Anya. Good point *karmas*

[buffyfan21]

Jul 11, 2009 7:13:50 GMT -5 gumgnome said:

Jul 10, 2009 15:04:33 GMT -5 buffyfan21 said:

And never again would she find herself slave to any man, leaving herself open for heartbreak, so she decided to ensure her independence by becoming "a capitalistic running dog."

I think that this is probably very informative - I hadn't thought about the idea of money meaning independence for Anya. Good point *karmas*

Thanks.

[gumgnome]

No, she says she's flunking it to D'Hoffryn at the beginning of Doppelgangland.

[Midnight Butterfly]

I think that basically Anya was unable to find her place in the real world. She couldn't find herself out. The money made her feel like she belonged in the real world and that she had something.

[Johanne]

Great post buffyfan, and I basically agree with what you said

[buffyfan21]

Thanks.

[Hellbound Hyperion]

Jul 21, 2009 6:10:03 GMT -5 gumgnome said:

No, she says she's flunking it to D'Hoffryn at the beginning of Doppelgangland.

But in the Selfless flashback to OMWF she sings "I like to bowl, I'm good with math".

Sly commentary on the American school system perhaps?

[gumgnome]

Good spot. If it is commentary on the American school system, it certainly is subtle...