This Is A Take As Old As Time Coming From Me I Know I Know, But. I Really Do Still Dislike How Offended

this is a take as old as time coming from me i know i know, but. i really do still dislike how offended people get whenever someone calls will soft, weepy, or vulnerable. he is all of those things and there's nothing wrong with that.

he's described as being gentle, soft-spoken, and not like most. he isn't "masculine enough," and so he gets called slurs like f-g, fairy, and queer—homophobia born out of misogyny, because a perceived lack of acceptable masculinity = femininity = gay = bad. he doesn't have a domineering personality. his instinct is to get behind others when there's danger. he doesn't like gross things. he tucks tail and doesn't see his self-defense through all the way, preferring to take it and forgive, even if undeserved. he cries often and openly, both for himself and others. he's a survivor, yes, but he often needs the help and support of others and would not be here, or have that drive to begin with, without them. he's sensitive, artistic, a dreamer, and a romantic.

none of those things cancel out his survivor instinct or his strength. the fact that he's still there, still fighting, and still being true to himself is a shining testament to those traits. not everyone would've been able to come out of what he's experienced thus far with themselves in tact. will is strong because he's soft and he's soft because he's strong. if he weren't a strong person, he would've broken and bent into a jaded, defeated husk of himself, and he hasn't. he's still the same old will at heart, where it matters most.

this knee-jerk "NO HE ISN'T!1!1!" reaction doesn't address the root of the problem, it just reinforces it in a different, less-outright way. will is the softie, the damsel in distress & the harbinger, the lover, the sweet one. there's nothing wrong with that. he faces vitriol in-world for it, and to deny what he is in favor of making him seem "manlier," "harsher," or more "aggressive" just makes it seem like you, on some level, agree that will's softness is a bad thing.

chastising people for calling him soft shouldn't be your tactic. instead, consider asking them why that's such a bad thing to be in their eyes. neither the narrative, nor any of the people in charge of this show, punish will for who he is and urge him to change. it's only the antagonists and their real life counterparts that do.