on any given day you'll find me gone...
Jun. 13th, 2010 12:07 pmMy thoughts, such as they are, on the HC Bingo situation, in neat and bite-size format...
(Not that anyone is particularly interested in what I think, but there you go.)
- I have problems with h/c as a genre. I cannot particularly articulate what those are, other than that it is a vague discomfort, that it hasn't exactly been addressed in criticisms of late, and that I felt this way prior to this latest incident (you should see my Overambitious Dissertation notes on Camille Bacon-Smith's essay re: h/c fandom...).
- It probably has to do with my desire for realism, which sorta colours my feelings about fic anyway--I have a hard time reading PWPs in my fandoms, too, because I can't find myself buying the situation, full stop. (The one time I wrote something that could even approach h/c [Subzero'], it was pretty twisted...) This is not to say that you can't buy it, or that not all h/c is unrealistic. But that is just my experience.
- And I agree with some of the other criticisms that I have seen (e.g. ableism and real world implications).
- But then again some people are doing it right (see The More Adventurous Wanderer, which I would classify as h/c on some level and yet quite realistic and addressing some very important ideas).
- I am not condemning a whole thing on the idea that there is a massive potential for fail. I also don't think that![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sasha_feather or damned_colonial are doing this, if you read their posts and their responses carefully.
- What I do know is this:
* It is perfectly acceptable to enjoy things that have problematic aspects. We were talking about this at WisCon, more than once.
* The important thing is to recognise and criticise the problems.
* The other important thing is to recognise that people could very easily be hurt by the problematic parts, and that that viewpoint is important. Care and due diligence should be taken to make sure that those people are aware of when problematic bits arise.
- I also know that there are people who are engaging with h/c on a level of reclamation. This is pretty awesome, and I am all for that as long as it is done with awareness and respect.
- I like pie.
(Not that anyone is particularly interested in what I think, but there you go.)
- I have problems with h/c as a genre. I cannot particularly articulate what those are, other than that it is a vague discomfort, that it hasn't exactly been addressed in criticisms of late, and that I felt this way prior to this latest incident (you should see my Overambitious Dissertation notes on Camille Bacon-Smith's essay re: h/c fandom...).
- It probably has to do with my desire for realism, which sorta colours my feelings about fic anyway--I have a hard time reading PWPs in my fandoms, too, because I can't find myself buying the situation, full stop. (The one time I wrote something that could even approach h/c [Subzero'], it was pretty twisted...) This is not to say that you can't buy it, or that not all h/c is unrealistic. But that is just my experience.
- And I agree with some of the other criticisms that I have seen (e.g. ableism and real world implications).
- But then again some people are doing it right (see The More Adventurous Wanderer, which I would classify as h/c on some level and yet quite realistic and addressing some very important ideas).
- I am not condemning a whole thing on the idea that there is a massive potential for fail. I also don't think that
sasha_feather or damned_colonial are doing this, if you read their posts and their responses carefully.- What I do know is this:
* It is perfectly acceptable to enjoy things that have problematic aspects. We were talking about this at WisCon, more than once.
* The important thing is to recognise and criticise the problems.
* The other important thing is to recognise that people could very easily be hurt by the problematic parts, and that that viewpoint is important. Care and due diligence should be taken to make sure that those people are aware of when problematic bits arise.
- I also know that there are people who are engaging with h/c on a level of reclamation. This is pretty awesome, and I am all for that as long as it is done with awareness and respect.
- I like pie.
