50 Shades of Fuckin' Had It.

[davidthegnome]

89. I don't understand the controversy.

Why aren't we fighting about something more important like Game of Thrones?

As someone who has spent absolutely ridiculous amounts of time reading... there are thousands and thousands, even millions of examples of really bad shit going on in various books, particularly in the fantasy and sci-fi genre - many of which are based on real life events.

There is nothing that cannot be written about, or talked about, as American television goes about proving every single day. Molestation, rape, murder, slaughter, looting, the destruction of planets, flying spaghetti monsters, rings of invisibility, dolphins, Super heroes, ninja turtles, powerpuff girls, South Park, 16 and pregnant, sweet sixteen, sixteen and stupid, Honey Booboo, Beavis and Butthead... of all the ridiculous stuff to complain about, why fifty shades of grey?

The idea that, because a particular book or movie is popular the Author or the society in which they reside is attempting to promote something specific... is kind of silly. Is George Martin promoting incest because Jaime and Cersei have sex in Game of Thrones? Are the writers for the walking dead promoting a zombie apocalypse? Are they telling us we should eat people?

We can suggest particular meaning in any piece of writing we like, but there is something really funny about the controversy that revolves around the significance of a popular book. It's a book. A story. The purpose, generally speaking, is entertainment.

Up until now I never cared enough to read the book, but now I think I will. I will also see the movie. Somehow though, I don't think my feelings will change. Anyone who is familiar with the fantasy and science fiction genres knows how much ridiculous, or terrible, or terrifying, or hilarious, or wonderful stuff is written about every day. Stories are stories, not always intended as a moral lesson, or the promotion of a specific idea.