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She put her face against Glinda's and kissed her

In a single lumpy bed they huddled together

Created on 2006-08-27 05:40:00 (#11006178), last updated 2009-11-16

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Basic Info

Name:	Gelphie Lovers
Membership:	Open
Posting Access:	All Members

About

WHAT IS GELPHIE?

♥ Gelphie refers to the romantic relationship between Elphaba and Glinda as implied by subtext in Gregory Maguire’s novel and Stephen Schwartz’s musical, Wicked.

WHAT IS GELPHIE LOVERS?

♥ Gelphie Lovers is a livejournal community where Gelphie fans can share fanfiction, fanart, and graphics pertaining to the Wicked femslash pairing of Glinda and Elphaba.

RULES

Refusal to follow these rules will result first in a warning and then in removal from the community:

♥ No flaming. Constructive criticism only!
♥ Place graphics/fanfiction underneath an LJ cut (max of 3 teaser icons allowed outside of a cut)
♥ Format subjectline: "Title (Chapter/Expected Chapters) by Author, Rating" when posting fanfaction, graphics, or artwork. Otherwise your piece may not make it to the memories.
♥ All posts must be Gelphie related!

WHEN POSTING FANFICTION...

♥ Posting Layout: Be sure to include the following information at the beginning of each fanfiction post. Place the lj-cut beneath this information.

Title: Name of Story, Chapter # (If applicable)
Rating: G, PG, PG13, or NC17 (see rating guide below)
Subject: Bookverse, Musicalverse, Both, or Alternate Universe
Disclaimer: Something like, "I do not own Wicked or its characters, which are property of L.F. Baum and Gregory Maguire."

♥ Rating Guide
G - content suitable for all ages
PG - content free of violence, coarse language, and adult themes
PG13 - content may contain violence and coarse language, and may suggest adult themes
R - content contains mildly-graphic adult themes, reference to violence and strong language
NC17 - contains explicit content, strong language, graphic adult themes, and graphic violence

SUBTEXT

Though a romantic relationship between Elphaba and Glinda is never explicitly mentioned in the book/musical, there are many aspects of both the novel and the musical that imply Elphaba and Glinda have romantic feelings for one another:

PASSAGES FROM WICKED, THE NOVEL
♥ But Elphaba dropped the [hat] onto her strange pointed head, and looked at Galinda from underneath the broad brim. She seemed like a rare flower, her skin stemlike in its soft pearlescent sheen, the hat a botanical riot. "Oh Miss Elphaba," said Galinda, "you terrible mean thing, you're pretty." (Maguire 78)

♥ "Entrancing," [Glinda] said. "There's some strange exotic quality of beauty about you. I never thought."
"Surprise," said Elphaba, and then nearly blushed, if darker green constituted a blush--"I mean, surprise, not beauty. It's just surprise, 'Well, what do you know.' It's not beauty."
"Who am I to argue," said Galinda, tossing her curls and striking a pose, and Elphaba actually laughed at that, and Galinda laughed back, partly horrified as she did so. ... When [Elphaba] picked up her book again Galinda said, "So what is Beauty reading anyway?” (Maguire 78)

♥ Elphaba to Boq: "The thing is, I have become quite fond of Galinda myself. Behind her starry-eyed love of herself there is a mind struggling to work ... But when she slides back into herself, I mean the girl that spends two hours a day curling that beauitiful hair, it's as if the thinking Galinda goes into some internal closet and shuts the door ... I love her both ways, but I find it odd." (Maguire 109)

♥ Glinda swooned at the same moment. Elphaba thrust out strong arms and scooped Glinda in mid-collapse. Glinda didn't really lose consciousness, but the uncomfortable nearness of the hawk-faced Elphaba after that undesired act of desire made her want to shiver and revulsion and to purr at the same time.
  "Steady on, girl, not here," said Elphaba, "resist, come on!" Resist was just what Glinda didn't want to do. But after all, this was hardly the place.
  "Come on, Glinda--you've got better brains--come on! I love you too much, snap out of it you idiot!"
  "Well, really," [Glinda] said, as Elphaba dumped her on a heap of moldy packing straw. "No need to be romantic about it!" But she felt better, as if a wave of illness had just passed. (Maguire 162)

♥ "Tonight," hissed Ephaba [to Glinda], "you little idiot, we have no time to waste on sex!" (Maguire 164)

♥ In a single lumpy bed, they huddled together for warmth and encouragement and, Glinda told herself, protection . . . Glinda would start as if from a frightful dream, and nestle in nearer to Elphaba, who seemed at night never to sleep. (Maguire 169)

♥ [Elphaba] put her face against Glinda’s and kissed her. “Hold out, if you can,” she murmured, and kissed her again. “Hold out my sweet.” … Glinda craned her head to see Elphaba drift back into the crowds … Elphaba hadn’t cried. Her head had turned away quickly, not to hide her tears but to soften the fact of their absence. But the sting, to Glinda, was real. (Maguire 178)

♥ "If you should see [Elphaba]," said Glinda lightly [to Fiyero], "tell her I miss her still." (Maguire 212)

♥ The Witch alarmed [Glinda]. It was not just the novelty of seeing her again, but the strange charisma Elphaba possessed, which had always put Glinda in the shade. Also there was the thrill, basis indeterminable, which made Glinda shy and caused her to rush her words, and to speak in a false high voice like an adolescent...For when she chose to remember her youth at all, she could scarcely dredge up an ounce of recollection of that daring meeting with the Wizard. She could recall far more clearly how she and Elphie had shared a bed on the road to the Emerald City. How brave that had made her feel, and how vulnerable too. (Maguire 344)

THE MUSICAL
♥ “What Is This Feeling” sounds like Elphaba and Galinda have a crush on each other—after all, there is a thin line between love and ~~hate~~ loathing. And the characters do describe the feeling as exhilarating, pure, and strong…
   What is this feeling, so sudden and new?
   I felt the moment I laid eyes on you.
   My pulse is rushing.
   My head is reeling.
   My face is flushing.
   What is this feeling?
   Fervid as a flame. Does it have a name?
   Yes, loathing.
   …
   There’s a strange exhilaration in such total detestation
   It’s so pure, so strong.

Q & A WITH GREGORY MAGUIRE

Q: There are many subtle hints in Wicked! at a 'more than friendship' relationship between Elphaba and Glinda. Was this intended, or just accidental? And if intended, what influenced you to create this relationship?
I'll say one thing, which is I think English readers are much smarter than American readers. American readers never ask that question!

But the questioner is correct. I do hint at something but I don't say exactly what it is and I don't say exactly how 'known' it is in either of the women. This is for several reasons but the main reason is the same reason I don't say specifically if Elphaba is wicked in any way and, if so, where this wickedness comes from.

Elphaba and Glinda could have a romantic affection for each other without even knowing it. They don't need to know it in order for it to be real for the reader and in order for it to be real for them.

Q: What is your opinion of the musical's finale, which is in direct contrast to one of the main themes in your novel (Elphaba's ultimate demise/mortality)?
I was initially suspicious and skeptical. I loved the whole play but when I saw the last 90 seconds, it's the only time where I thought 'Oh no, they've gone too far'.

But, in the five years that the play has been running and within two weeks of the time that I first saw it, I saw that ultimately it doesn't matter because since the main relationship in the play is between Glinda and Elphaba, when they are torn apart, they never see each other again and it's like a death.

If you're never able to see the person you love most in the world, it's like a death and so the fact that the character isn't physically dead, doesn't mean they don't suffer the same sense of loss.

Click here for full Q&A.

ACTRESS/ACTOR TESTIMONY

♥ "In the play we have the messy he-loves-her, she-loves-him, she-loves-him-too structure, and, to add even more confusion to the mix, the real love story is between the two ladies."
-Norbert Leo Butz (OBC Fiyero) Grimmerie, page 46

♥ "[Wicked] evolved and developed into these two girls, and that's what made it a hit, I think. Now the love story is really them.”
-Kristin Chenoweth (OBC Glinda) Playbill.com

LINKS

Affiliates

wickedart

thewitches3

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Gelphie Links
♥ Sharing Secrets: Official Gelphie Fanlisting
♥ Gelphie Fansite
♥ Gelphie @ Deviant Art: A collection of Gelphie fanart and graphics

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