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andrewduckerI've been thinking about Slash ever since I opened my mouth without bulletproofing myself.
Having read the Schindler's List Fanfic/Slash a little later, it's not actually that bad. Well, it's not terrible writing, and it's not offensive.
Except.... except it's solidified something that's been nagging at me for a while - the thing that I've realised I don't like about Slash.
It started with a link that Yonmei sent me to a FAQ page about Slash-writing, which gave various examples of relationships between people, and then said "They sounded romantic, yes? But we changed the genders around, and the people in each case were both men!" (and yes, I'm parapgrasing from memory, as I can't find the page again). This had the implication that as these relationships _could_ be romantic, therefore reframing them as romantic was a perfectly reasonable thing to do.
And I then realised that the problem was that the Slash people seem to think that it's impossible for any relationship to be non-sexual. That if one person cares for another, it must be because they want to have sex with them. If a person enjoys another's company it's because they are desperate for sweaty lovemaking with them. If a person loves someone else, it's because of lust.
Taking the relationship between Oskar Schindler and Itzhak Stern and saying that they worked together to save thousands of lives because Oskar couldn't get Itzhak's sexy looks out of his head takes an incredibly noble act and a great friendship and reduces it to animal attraction. And while I have nothing against animal attraction (it's great!), it's as bad as the idea of Aragorn fighting for Middle Earth because Arwen is threatened - suddenly he's not a hero fighting for all mankind - he's just some guy protecting his girlfriend.
It's reminiscient of the people that think that Men and Women can't be friends, because Men want to shag any woman they know - apparently men and men can't be friends, because deep down they want to shag.
(Oh, and all of the above applies to male/female relationships too, 'Het' fiction annoys me just as much.)
Having read the Schindler's List Fanfic/Slash a little later, it's not actually that bad. Well, it's not terrible writing, and it's not offensive.
Except.... except it's solidified something that's been nagging at me for a while - the thing that I've realised I don't like about Slash.
It started with a link that Yonmei sent me to a FAQ page about Slash-writing, which gave various examples of relationships between people, and then said "They sounded romantic, yes? But we changed the genders around, and the people in each case were both men!" (and yes, I'm parapgrasing from memory, as I can't find the page again). This had the implication that as these relationships _could_ be romantic, therefore reframing them as romantic was a perfectly reasonable thing to do.
And I then realised that the problem was that the Slash people seem to think that it's impossible for any relationship to be non-sexual. That if one person cares for another, it must be because they want to have sex with them. If a person enjoys another's company it's because they are desperate for sweaty lovemaking with them. If a person loves someone else, it's because of lust.
Taking the relationship between Oskar Schindler and Itzhak Stern and saying that they worked together to save thousands of lives because Oskar couldn't get Itzhak's sexy looks out of his head takes an incredibly noble act and a great friendship and reduces it to animal attraction. And while I have nothing against animal attraction (it's great!), it's as bad as the idea of Aragorn fighting for Middle Earth because Arwen is threatened - suddenly he's not a hero fighting for all mankind - he's just some guy protecting his girlfriend.
It's reminiscient of the people that think that Men and Women can't be friends, because Men want to shag any woman they know - apparently men and men can't be friends, because deep down they want to shag.
(Oh, and all of the above applies to male/female relationships too, 'Het' fiction annoys me just as much.)
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no subject
Date: 2003-12-27 05:17 am (UTC)Surely slash is no different to, say, good SF. It takes a core idea and looks at the world through it. 'What would the story be like if it was all about the lust'?
no subject
Date: 2003-12-27 05:27 am (UTC)Because fiction is full of relationships based around sex, so to take ones that are based around the vast number of reasons people with each other and say "Oh, actually it's just sex, not respect, loyalty, duty, friendship, mutual goals, need or anything else" takes it much further away from anything I care about.
None of the relationships in my life are exclusively about sex, very few of them have a strong sexual component. It's bad enough that so much of the media is obsessed with sex, taking the few bits that aren't and changing them to be about sex is taking away the bits I care about.
no subject
Date: 2003-12-27 06:07 am (UTC)See, I view Slash as somewhere along the continuum of speculative fiction.
As I said on yonmei's LJ, I see slash as a psychological tool, rather than a political statement. Gayness isn't political to me. And to be honest, _slash_ fiction isn't important to me - sexualised fiction interests me. The fact that the characters are male (or female) really doesn't.
So I see slash as a bit like the Wold Newton universe. A big 'what if?' Does a sexual connection between Angel and Spike make an interesting difference to the stories? How about a sexual connection between Kirk and Spock?
And does that shed any light on the characters?
no subject
Date: 2003-12-28 03:13 pm (UTC)And does that shed any light on the characters?"
But.... you could have all that without the actual SEX. It's like a PG movie, or a daytime TV show - you KNOW they shag, but you don't need the gory details (unless it's Heather Graham, then it's the more the better). And the impact on the stories is just as valid.
Funny, to me what you said actually seems to be making Andy's point for him - relationships are about far more than the actual act of sex.
As far as my very limited exposure goes, slash seems far more about the actual act, than about exploring the avenues these new relationships create with established characters.
no subject
Date: 2003-12-28 10:51 pm (UTC)The last couple of stories I've written are based around a relationship that functions on far more levels than just sex. Especially since although there's attraction and/or affection on both sides the only sex has been with people external to the main relationship or pure fantasy by one character. But it's still slash because I have a canon character attracted to another canon character of the same sex.
Gina
no subject
Date: 2003-12-27 06:16 am (UTC)If I write a fanfic in which two of the central characters are self-identified as gay or bi but don't fancy each other I'm still going to get the majority of anti-slash people condemning me as if I write one in which two characters of the same gender are shagging but there's no queer politics in there at all.
Gina
no subject
Date: 2003-12-27 12:18 pm (UTC)I think I'll go search out some B5 femslash now...
Gina