I think Mulder very clearly has a guilt-complex toward Scully, and I think it does manifest itself quite a bit in his outward behaviour. One thing I can think of is the way in which the people behind the conspiracy tried to convince Mulder that Scully had been given cancer to "make him believe." That, to me, shows that they understood Mulder's mental process, that he does in fact have guilt over the fact that Scully's work on the X-Files has often led to negative consequences in her life.
And yes, Mulder does seem confident and arrogant on the outside, but some of that, I think, is an act. You can see indications that Mulder doesn't really like himself that much, or realize that how much he means to others -- specifically, to Scully. In "End Game," he travels to the arctic to find the alien ship and leaves this note to Scully: Scully, when you get this message, I will be too far away for you to stop me, but where I'm going I cannot allow you to follow. I won't let you jeopardize your life and your career for reasons purely personal to me. You were right, Scully... you said a line has to be drawn somewhere. I'm drawing it for you here. I'll contact you when I can. Mulder doesn't seem to be taking into account that Scully would miss him if he were lost, he wants to protect her from danger herself, but he doesn't seem to realize that she would be hurt if he were the one in danger.And then there's the hallway scene in FTF, where he tells Scully that he owes her everything and that she owes him nothing. I don't think he's just saying those things to manipulate her, I think really doesn't understand how much she values him. There is a clear sincerity to that scene. (I'm not saying that he *always* and *only* believes she doesn't value him much -- I think a lot of the time, he does realize that she does, it's just when he's dealing with difficult emotions, he can sometimes go into that dark place where he's more insecure).
A person can seem confident on the outside, but that doesn't mean they're free from insecurities. Mulder's a man, and even though he's not the kind of guy who's overly concerned with seeming "macho," he at least realizes that showing vulnerability is considered a bad thing for someone of his gender, and I think that he does a good job of hiding his insecurities behind stoicism and overconfidence, but I think they're still there, and they can be seen. I think that Mulder being both confident and insecure makes him a more complex and interesting character. I don't think it's a case of "is Mulder confident, or is he insecure?" I think it's both. Sometimes he's so sure of himself he does stupid things, but at other moments you can see some insecurity. I don't think it's all just fanon.
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winterfish
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Date: 2012-03-14 07:21 pm (UTC)And yes, Mulder does seem confident and arrogant on the outside, but some of that, I think, is an act. You can see indications that Mulder doesn't really like himself that much, or realize that how much he means to others -- specifically, to Scully. In "End Game," he travels to the arctic to find the alien ship and leaves this note to Scully: Scully, when you get this message, I will be too far away for you to stop me, but where I'm going I cannot allow you to follow. I won't let you jeopardize your life and your career for reasons purely personal to me. You were right, Scully... you said a line has to be drawn somewhere. I'm drawing it for you here. I'll contact you when I can. Mulder doesn't seem to be taking into account that Scully would miss him if he were lost, he wants to protect her from danger herself, but he doesn't seem to realize that she would be hurt if he were the one in danger.And then there's the hallway scene in FTF, where he tells Scully that he owes her everything and that she owes him nothing. I don't think he's just saying those things to manipulate her, I think really doesn't understand how much she values him. There is a clear sincerity to that scene. (I'm not saying that he *always* and *only* believes she doesn't value him much -- I think a lot of the time, he does realize that she does, it's just when he's dealing with difficult emotions, he can sometimes go into that dark place where he's more insecure).
A person can seem confident on the outside, but that doesn't mean they're free from insecurities. Mulder's a man, and even though he's not the kind of guy who's overly concerned with seeming "macho," he at least realizes that showing vulnerability is considered a bad thing for someone of his gender, and I think that he does a good job of hiding his insecurities behind stoicism and overconfidence, but I think they're still there, and they can be seen. I think that Mulder being both confident and insecure makes him a more complex and interesting character. I don't think it's a case of "is Mulder confident, or is he insecure?" I think it's both. Sometimes he's so sure of himself he does stupid things, but at other moments you can see some insecurity. I don't think it's all just fanon.