Things which a hundred years ago would have been laughed off are now seen as major offenses - which is almost ironic considering the now lax view on violence and het sex.
Isn't it? And I don't want this to sound like I think trauma is all in a person's head because it isn't, but I do think that how people are conditioned to think about trauma probably has an effect on how they deal with it.
Interesting that you should mention miscarriage though; I've only seen that issue be handled once in an online story, and it wasn't the main point of it.
It is odd I used that example--I think I just saw it listed with other things in passing, but I've really never seen it in fanfic, perhaps because I don't read a lot of pairings where that comes up (I suddenly wonder if there's Mpreg miscarriage-fic...). Really where that subject gets treated lightly all the time is in soaps--from watching daytime TV you get the impression you almost never carry a pregnancy to turn (especially if you ever try to lift anything). It's basically just there so they can have a pregnancy and don't have to deal with the baby, and just wring out angst instead.
It's possible just to write it for the drama, and I'll admit to having used the "talking it out" scenario before. Not quite to the extent you mention here, in my case it was wanting to explore certain view points and not even really resolve anything, but I can understand why people would write such things. It's very satisfying to write, if less so to read, and it's very easy to write. None of those pesky long-term issues, just immediate entertainment.
Oh yes, I think those scenes can be very cool to read--but then that's more looking at different angles of things and how people really felt instead of just using it as a shorthand for emotional release. And honestly, emotional release can be done well too, and be satisfying. Like most fanfic cliches, it's not always bad. I've enjoyed plenty of fics with lots of torture and angst--even sometimes when it's just done for cheap thrills.
It all comes together. Writers, particularly new ones who haven't considered all of these details, want an interesting, dynamic story that isn't that difficult to actually write. They write of these big, huge problems that must be overcome, and then return things to normalcy through Magic Sex and/or Conversations. Characters become less individual, and far more ever-changing aspects that can express whatever emotion the writer feels the need to have explored.
Well said. There's a lot of biting off more than you can chew there...
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Date: 2005-05-24 07:48 pm (UTC)Isn't it? And I don't want this to sound like I think trauma is all in a person's head because it isn't, but I do think that how people are conditioned to think about trauma probably has an effect on how they deal with it.
Interesting that you should mention miscarriage though; I've only seen that issue be handled once in an online story, and it wasn't the main point of it.
It is odd I used that example--I think I just saw it listed with other things in passing, but I've really never seen it in fanfic, perhaps because I don't read a lot of pairings where that comes up (I suddenly wonder if there's Mpreg miscarriage-fic...). Really where that subject gets treated lightly all the time is in soaps--from watching daytime TV you get the impression you almost never carry a pregnancy to turn (especially if you ever try to lift anything). It's basically just there so they can have a pregnancy and don't have to deal with the baby, and just wring out angst instead.
It's possible just to write it for the drama, and I'll admit to having used the "talking it out" scenario before. Not quite to the extent you mention here, in my case it was wanting to explore certain view points and not even really resolve anything, but I can understand why people would write such things. It's very satisfying to write, if less so to read, and it's very easy to write. None of those pesky long-term issues, just immediate entertainment.
Oh yes, I think those scenes can be very cool to read--but then that's more looking at different angles of things and how people really felt instead of just using it as a shorthand for emotional release. And honestly, emotional release can be done well too, and be satisfying. Like most fanfic cliches, it's not always bad. I've enjoyed plenty of fics with lots of torture and angst--even sometimes when it's just done for cheap thrills.
It all comes together. Writers, particularly new ones who haven't considered all of these details, want an interesting, dynamic story that isn't that difficult to actually write. They write of these big, huge problems that must be overcome, and then return things to normalcy through Magic Sex and/or Conversations. Characters become less individual, and far more ever-changing aspects that can express whatever emotion the writer feels the need to have explored.
Well said. There's a lot of biting off more than you can chew there...