Why it is never “just” fiction
In recent months, I’ve had several discussions in which I criticized the way a sensitive topic was treated in a fictional work. The topics in question varied, as did the fictional works, but the course these discussions took was always the same. I’d object to the way the matter in question was portrayed, and would be told that it was just a book / movie / TV series, and I was making a fuss over nothing.
It was just fiction! I should be more open-minded; it wasn’t meant to be taken so seriously, OMG; it was all in good fun, and everybody (except me, apparently) understood that; the only thing that actually mattered with fiction was how good (well-written, well-acted, …) it was.
Except that this is complete nonsense.
Fiction does not exist in a vacuum. Books, movies, TV series: All fiction is both the result of the common views and opinions of the society it is created in, and – inevitably – a reinforcement of these views and opinions. Even the most uncontroversial novel or TV series incorporates countless social mores and generally held beliefs, and it reinforces them simply by referencing them.
Fiction can (and does) perpetuate commonly held ideas, reinforce stereotypes, prejudices and other beliefs, and validate popular opinions. It always does this, by its very nature; it’s a feature, not a bug. Fiction can also bring people to think and reevaluate, of course. Either way, it has a very real and material impact on people’s views, and on their lives. It matters.
A homophobic book or movie will validate the homophobic views of readers or viewers, and support a general air of homophobia in society. A comedy about men being drugged and raped by a woman (and loving it!) will perpetuate the harmful myth that men cannot actually be raped by women. And so forth. It’s the same for all issues.
Treating a sensitive issue in a highly objectionable way in fiction is not just a bit of good fun. Instead, it is both a symptom of a problem in society, and an actively harmful influence that perpetuates the problem.
So, no. It’s never “just” fiction.
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Agreed. I have this conversation all the time. It's almost like people are insulted that someone *thought* about the work(s) in question.
I love this post! It just showed up on my feed through Mrs. Joseph above (thanks, Mrs. J).I would add that given that we know that reading fiction makes a person more empathetic (there's ample research on this topic), then I think this enhances the idea that "it's not just fiction."
The reason that fiction increases empathy is that the reader is voluntarily choosing to walk in someone else's shoes. So, when fiction contains harmful and inaccurate stereotypes, the reader is misled in their walk.
For example, inaccurate portrayals of sexual abuse victims abound in romance, whence victims are healed with their mere exposure to the mighty healing wang of their beloved. This trope is both inaccurate and demeaning. Sexual abuse victims are healed through their own hard work, not because a man (or a woman) rescued them through the magical power of smex. These tropes can - incorrectly - interfere with both empathy towards victims, understanding of the healing process, and they can further devalue victims who must find the healing within themselves by implying that a victim is irretrievably broken until someone else fixes her/him. Far from being empowering, this trope further disempowers victims who have already had their control wrested from them by their perpetrator.
So, thanks.
I agree whole heartedly and on Goodreads I have shelves for various forms of discrimination, inappropriate relationships, rape, etc., so I'll know before I read the next book in the series (I usually don't continue) or other books by that author.In my own writing, I try very hard to not perpetuate bad behavior/ideals/mores of society but the ones I believe in. Yes, I'm very liberal, so some of these beliefs might offend people. But I do not advocate harm or discrimination based on those protected by law and some that aren't. I believe that other religions and belief systems have value except when they infringe on other people's rights.
