I remember reading once about a group of Southwest American Indians who lived in close quarters with each other.
Occasionally they would do "shows" where several performers would wear masks and perform a skit. Many times the skit was about one of the other members of the community doing something "wrong". It was a method of pointing out problems within the community, yet it was not overtly hurtful; the person on the receiving end of the skit would understand, and mend their ways, and next week it would be someone else. A rather unique approach.
I think you're absolutely right that too often the writer takes the criticism as a direct personal insult. The amateur view generally cannot separate the person from the writing. Certainly criticism hurts, and sometimes it feels personal, but in the end it is all up to the writer what to do next. Is the criticism valid or not? is the question the writer should be asking first. If so, then how can I apply it? should be the next question. If not, then it can be discarded, unless other criticism brings it up again. That's what criticism is about. And oftentimes I think that people don't write directly what they're thinking; they leave some thoughts by the wayside as too cruel. The badfic communities often are very free to say anything, and won't mince words, though the first question still needs to be asked.
There is a culture in place in the States today, I would argue, that fosters dreams and seems to insinuate that all dreaming is good and should be encouraged no matter what, and that one should never give up, despite the odds. While this is an admirable mindset, it still should be noted that reality is a more powerful force, and it is actually much more profitable and pragmatic to "Know thyself" instead of working towards an unreachable goal. If you know your strengths and weaknesses, you aren't going to go on American Idol and claim that you are the next Idol and that you have the most amazing voice of all time; you're going to know that you're a better gymnast than a vocalist and not waste your time arguing with the "short-sighted" judges. Unfortunately it has become tremendously bad form to discourage anyone from dreaming, when it should be commonplace to analyze pros and cons and know when one hasn't got a chance. It is lovely to dream, and it's nice to make an attempt to bring it into reality, but if it isn't working, then it should be re-analyzed. Obviously now I'll be called a terrible dream-crusher for saying it, and people will point out oodles of circumstances where someone famous received four million rejection slips before being published, but still, I think a bit of logic is helpful in most situations, and a modicum of self-analysis is a powerful tool. Whew, got rather long-winded there, sorry.
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Date: 2005-01-19 11:28 am (UTC)Occasionally they would do "shows" where several performers would wear masks and perform a skit. Many times the skit was about one of the other members of the community doing something "wrong". It was a method of pointing out problems within the community, yet it was not overtly hurtful; the person on the receiving end of the skit would understand, and mend their ways, and next week it would be someone else. A rather unique approach.
I think you're absolutely right that too often the writer takes the criticism as a direct personal insult. The amateur view generally cannot separate the person from the writing. Certainly criticism hurts, and sometimes it feels personal, but in the end it is all up to the writer what to do next. Is the criticism valid or not? is the question the writer should be asking first. If so, then how can I apply it? should be the next question. If not, then it can be discarded, unless other criticism brings it up again. That's what criticism is about. And oftentimes I think that people don't write directly what they're thinking; they leave some thoughts by the wayside as too cruel. The badfic communities often are very free to say anything, and won't mince words, though the first question still needs to be asked.
There is a culture in place in the States today, I would argue, that fosters dreams and seems to insinuate that all dreaming is good and should be encouraged no matter what, and that one should never give up, despite the odds. While this is an admirable mindset, it still should be noted that reality is a more powerful force, and it is actually much more profitable and pragmatic to "Know thyself" instead of working towards an unreachable goal. If you know your strengths and weaknesses, you aren't going to go on American Idol and claim that you are the next Idol and that you have the most amazing voice of all time; you're going to know that you're a better gymnast than a vocalist and not waste your time arguing with the "short-sighted" judges. Unfortunately it has become tremendously bad form to discourage anyone from dreaming, when it should be commonplace to analyze pros and cons and know when one hasn't got a chance. It is lovely to dream, and it's nice to make an attempt to bring it into reality, but if it isn't working, then it should be re-analyzed. Obviously now I'll be called a terrible dream-crusher for saying it, and people will point out oodles of circumstances where someone famous received four million rejection slips before being published, but still, I think a bit of logic is helpful in most situations, and a modicum of self-analysis is a powerful tool. Whew, got rather long-winded there, sorry.