i’ve seen that tumblr post that’s like ‘tag this with the song lyrics stuck in your head’ so maybe let’s do that with poetry lines for whoever’s got poetry haunting them right now. tag / reply with any that come to mind!
“Authors should not be ALLOWED to write about–” you are an anti-intellectual and functionally a conservative
“This book should be taken off of shelves for featuring–” you are an anti-intellectual and functionally a conservative
“Schools shouldn’t teach this book in class because–” you are an anti-intellectual and functionally a conservative
“Nobody actually likes or wants to read classics because they’re–” you are an anti-intellectual and an idiot
“I only read YA fantasy books because every classic novel or work of literary fiction is problematic and features–” you are an anti-intellectual and you are robbing yourself of the full richness of the human experience.
“you are functionally a conservative” is such a good and clarifying insult
Literally right after I saw this post, I saw another post in a discord chat for BOOK EDITORS in which an outspokenly liberal editor talked about how Nabokov should have never been published because he wrote about p*dophiles and described women’s bodies in ways that made her uncomfortable. She described his writing as “objectively terrible” and said she wanted to burn his books. And other editors were bringing up classics they didn’t like and talking about how they wanted to throw them in the trash. This wasn’t like a light “unpopular opinion!” conversation. This was actual book editors talking about how books should be destroyed and censored.
There is something so scary and toxic in global culture right now. The revival of fascism is influencing everyone’s mindset and approach to art, regardless of where they fall on the political spectrum.
I see far more books being censored today than when I was a kid. Librarians handed me The Catcher in the Rye, The Sexual Politics of Meat, and Animal Farm when I was literally 8-11. My mom would never have taken a book away from me. I read everything from the Tao Te Ching to the Qur'an to atheist texts under my desk at school. Teachers thought nothing of it or encouraged it. Books seemed universally acknowledged as sacrosanct to me.
Now I can’t find any adults who don’t hesitate or want to make exceptions when it comes to censorship. Even the most liberal social activist librarians I know go, “well except for book X…”
Functionally conservative. It’s so important to have the language to express that.
Thank you for this addition!
And, following up on the previous post …
“This makes me uncomfortable” is NOT a valid reason for censorship
These fucking book editors should remove themselves from the profession ASAP 😡
The only reason a book should be removed, the ONLY reason, is “we are keeping it in the restricted section for research because its only intended function is to cause harm.”
And to be clear, when I say this, I’m talking about shit like To Train Up A Child and The Protocols of Zion. One is a text responsible for the deaths of multiple children because it’s an abuse how-to, and the other is entirely fabricated “protocols” from a group that never actually existed but is claimed to represent all Jews, and it’s basically one long antisemitic screed.
And even these should be available. Just. Not where they’re gonna be used to start a white supremacist cult.
i love revenge tragedies so so much because they have so much potential to explore such a nuanced and complex topic and give it the consideration and care it deserves. revenge and revenger characters are such powerful narrative tools, both of catharsis and self reflection. a good revenge tragedy will not tell you that “revenge is bad, seeking revenge makes you just as bad as the people you’re seeking vengeance against, and nonviolence and forgiveness are the only paths to building a better world”. a good revenge tragedy will present you with a really difficult and complicated situation, even something absolutely unforgivable, and ask you to consider questions like “will this really help anyone?” “am i doing the right thing, or am i just doing what feels good?” “how far can you go before your quest for self-empowerment and personal satisfaction becomes perpetrating the same violence that you claim to be fighting against?” “what else could i do to help build a better future for myself and others, to ensure that the cycle of violence doesn’t continue after justice is served?” “what went wrong here? how did something that seemed so right go so wrong?” and “what would i do in this situation?”
sayings like “those who live by the sword will die by the sword” and “those who fight monsters should take care they don’t become monsters themselves” often get oversimplified, misinterpreted, and used to criticize people from feeling justifiably angry at their mistreatment and oppression, and discourage them from seeking the restitution they’re owed. but when used correctly, a good revenge tragedy will employ these ideas as tools of teaching and learning, of questioning and discussion, of analysis and communication, and as a reminder to think critically and to think for yourself, not as a moral lesson. and those stories are so incredibly and important and valuable to me, and i believe that they have a very necessary place in the world.
The thing is you read too much 19th century Brit Lit and that’s literally just how you start to talk. Was speaking with a friend about another friend and I said “he’s very agreeable, but he lacks discernment” like that was in any way a normal way to phrase that sentiment.
