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[Chris Johnson]

At 22:44 +0900 9/10/01, MMKokusaiYK wrote:

>The way it is described, Shinji rejected the world of togetherness and
>unconditional acceptance, so his strangling Asuka might fit with his choice of
>a world of "rejection and denial".  His lapse into a sobbing fit when Asuka
>reaches up and caresses his cheek (something the pre-TI Asuka would 
>hardly have done) may be out of fear that he is still caught in some 
>TI loop...


The way I interpret it, which seems to be consistent with the card, 
is that, while he chose to live in an authentic world where rejection 
and pain are possibilities rather than the false perfection of 
complementation, he still clings to "hope that people can understand 
each other" (despite his belief/recognition that this is like a 
prayer that doesn't last forever).  That one simple, transient, 
imperfect gesture (the caress) is more emotionally powerful and 
meaningful than complemented bliss *because* it takes place in the 
world of rejection and denial.  After everything he's been through, 
Shinji finds this minor act of someone reaching out to someone else 
in a lonely world to be emotionally overwhelming, so he breaks down.

Of course, it's been over a year since I saw that scene, so my 
interpretation may be faulty.
-- 
Chris Johnson                 	  chrajohn at alumni.indiana.edu

"In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse."
	-- T.S. Eliot, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"