I Don't Even Know (Wattpad Rants)

Slutshaming is Toxic and Problematic: Please STOP Pt. 2

This is a continuation of the topic of slut-shaming in media. Nothing much else to say, so let's get on with it!

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💠 The Real-World Implications and Messages Sent to Young, Impressionable Girls

Okay, let's open this can of worms and spill it all over the ground.

Before I get into this section, I want to make my stance in the "it's just fiction so it's okay" debate very clear. I whole-heartedly believe that themes, beliefs, worldviews, etc. that are portrayed in fiction influence people in the real world, so I think it's important that authors are careful of what they put in their books. It can't be helped if readers interpret their work in a harmful way, but it's still the author's responsibility to do good research and present their work in the best/most accurate way possible, especially if they want to deal in sensitive issues such as racism, homophobia, mental illness, suicide, sexual assault, and so on. There's a reason literature has played huge roles in creating entire movements and ideologies, and there's a reason megalomaniacs have a history of burning/banning books, fiction or otherwise.

Media, whether it's fiction or not, whether it's books, tv shows, or movies, whether we can separate reality from fiction, will play a role in the way we see the world. Even if we are aware of problematic aspects portrayed in a book, I think that too much glorification and romanticisation of said aspects can desenstise us from how damaging they can be in the real world.

So, personally, I don't think it's okay to romanticise abuse or rape or sexual assault in books. I don't think it's okay to glorify suicide, mental illness, self-harm, and other destructive behaviour. And if any of these issues are present in a book, I think it needs to be called out.

Now, this doesn't mean that I want to "cancel" every book that have these aspects, nor does it mean that I find people who like books that have these problems horrible or disgusting. It's okay to like problematic content as long as you understand and acknowledge that it is problematic and why it's a problem. Because, this is what I've come to realise these past years. A book being problematic or having problematic issues can't invalidate your connection and enjoyment to it. I know YA fiction gets a lot of hate for having romanticised abuse, terrible clichés, etc. but that doesn't invalidate the millions of people who find enjoyment in those books and who connect and relate with the characters. (Also, there is good YA, so I think it's ignorant and insensitive to label ALL YA as bad. Plus, all genres/categories have bad, trashy content, too.)

This also doesn't mean that I want to censor everything and that only certain books that portray themes/elements a certain way are allowed to be written. I know that at the end of the day, we all have different experiences, and some people will be more affected and sensitive to certain issues in media than others. And, this type of content will ALWAYS continue to be created. But the romanticisation of harmful messages need to be addressed. If a reader takes away from the book a harmful message, then it's the reader's right to not like the book and give their perspective on why they think it's harmful, regardless of whether the author meant it or not. A book can't please everyone, and there will be someone somewhere who gets offended by it. Opinions and biases will skew a reader's thought, and there's nothing we can really do about that. So, the least we can do is at least call out objectively harmful messages, such as "self-harm is quirky and edgy and cool."

This issue is also a LOT more nuanced because sometimes, the problematic aspects of the book is what attracts readers to it in the first place. Seriously, don't even get me started on how shocked I was to find out INCEST ROMANCE/EROTICA IS AN ACTUAL GENRE THAT PEOPLE WANT TO READ.