Somebody stop me!
Aug. 7th, 2004 09:23 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
emmagrant01Before I hurt myself.
But seriously, I have a question. It appears that most people who participate in slash fandoms are politically liberal (or left-wing, if you prefer that term). I realize that means many different things in different countries, of course, but when I cruise my f-list, I see lots of people who support gay marriage, who oppose the war in Iraq, who oppose the Bush administration in the US, and so on. It could just be a product of who happens to be on my f-list, but I'm not sure.
So are slashers, in general, more liberal than the average person on the street? Why or why not?
If you're not liberal and are a slasher, do you feel like a minority? Do you find it difficult to express your views?
ETA: The terms "liberal" and "conservative" mean different things to different people and aren't even opposites -- it's possible to be a liberal conservative, for example. I would love to hear what the word "liberal" means to you if you're applying it to yourself, or even if you don't.
I'm also curious to hear from people who don't support gay rights and believe homosexuality is immoral, yet who read and/or write slash. I know you're out there! I'd love to hear what you think!
But seriously, I have a question. It appears that most people who participate in slash fandoms are politically liberal (or left-wing, if you prefer that term). I realize that means many different things in different countries, of course, but when I cruise my f-list, I see lots of people who support gay marriage, who oppose the war in Iraq, who oppose the Bush administration in the US, and so on. It could just be a product of who happens to be on my f-list, but I'm not sure.
So are slashers, in general, more liberal than the average person on the street? Why or why not?
If you're not liberal and are a slasher, do you feel like a minority? Do you find it difficult to express your views?
ETA: The terms "liberal" and "conservative" mean different things to different people and aren't even opposites -- it's possible to be a liberal conservative, for example. I would love to hear what the word "liberal" means to you if you're applying it to yourself, or even if you don't.
I'm also curious to hear from people who don't support gay rights and believe homosexuality is immoral, yet who read and/or write slash. I know you're out there! I'd love to hear what you think!
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Re: I'm not a right-winger but I play one on tv....not.
Date: 2004-08-07 02:36 pm (UTC)You know, I've never heard that one. I'm trying to think if there's any other thing I love reading about but think is immoral and horrible in RL. I really can't think of anything! I know some people get off on rape fc, but I really don't. *shrugs*
I'm at a loss on that one.
pondering rapefic
Date: 2004-08-07 05:08 pm (UTC)*grins* *pokes head up* OK, I do write, read, and get off on noncon fic. I read something once that put it in an interesting light: Rape is about a complete lack of control. Rape fantasies are about having complete control, as in getting to direct every part of the action -- which is certainly true for what happens with me and writing my characters, although it doesn't hold true for reading other people's rapefic. *ponders* And I don't really dig noncon RPS -- heck, my whole series "Matter of Time", RPS or no, hinges on a certain semi-consensuality (the idea that any character could walk out at any moment is very clear in my head and has been since the beginning). I dig the hell out of TPM noncon, though, and I'd be all over Troy noncon (might someday write some) -- don't know that I could get into KA noncon... hm. (I'm going to have to think this over a bit more.)
Re: pondering rapefic
Date: 2004-08-07 05:29 pm (UTC)Here's what I was thinking: consider your average slash fan. She reads and writes lots of slash. Maybe she has an OTP and maybe she doesn't, but the odds are she only rarely reads het or gen fic in the same fandom, for a variety of reasons. She probably subscribes to a handful of listserves devoted to slash fic, and her LJ f-list is populated by folks who dig the same kind of fic she does. She enjoys a variety of kinks and genres of slash, but the main attraction, for her, is the relationship between the two (probably male) characters. She likes to read explicit sex, but it's better if it's part of a story she can get into.
Now, I'm sure there are people out there who are fans of a particular kink, rather than particular characters/fandoms. I'm sure there are lists and communities devoted to rapefic. I'm equally sure that most of the people who read those don't condone rape in RL. Somehow, the fantasy of raping or being raped turns them on, and that is the sole reason they read and write fanfic. These hypothetical people would probably read rapefic in any fandom, slash or het. I don't want to offend anyone here, but I can't help but wonder if those folks have some issues they're trying to work through.
I totally just made that up, of course, but do you think that's fundamentally different from being a slasher in a fandom or two? We're typically more interested in the characters than in the specific sex acts they engage in. We'll enjoy non-con, but it's because it shows us something intere4sting about the characters and their relationships for the most part, right?