Classless
The Creative Writing class I was hoping to look forward to has proven to be a let down so far. I knew I should not have taken it till after I transferred, but certain schedule conflicts and "technical difficulties" occured. I'm really confused as to the direction in which this class is going to be headed. In the syllabus the instructor put a small disclaimer stating, "No fantasy, science fiction, fan fiction, romance, historical romance, pornography, or children's fiction, i.e. no formulaic or 'commercial' fiction. this class teaches literary fiction. avoid imitating the mundane, the mainstream, the mass-produced, the expected. Go for the literary, the original. Find your voice." Now I can understand her want for something that isn't "commercial" or "mass-produced", but completely disregarding genres that hold perfect literary merit is highly ridiculous. To bar some one from creating a piece of science fiction, for example, is ludicrous. Do classics like A Clockwork Orange hold no literary merit? Or The Yiddish Policeman's Union, written by Pulitzer prize winning author Michael Chabon, mean nothing simply because it takes place in alternate reality where history is slightly different. Alternate reality, after all, falls under the blanket of "science fiction". She also states that she wants no romance, but where would literature be without romance? What of Romeo and Juliet, one of the most notable tragedies history has to offer? And Shakespeare's Sonnets, the love he writes to the dark woman and the mysterious young man. And once again, I understand the not want of pieces that are Twilight-esque, but romance is something that can be done tastefully and beautifully. The pornography statement I'm a bit perplexed by, as well. Now I know she doesn't want full on sex, this is obvious, but many of my own personal writings touch base with sex, whether it be seriously or sarcastically. Sometimes I enjoy delving in the dark. Sex is a prominent force in literature, from the sex filled dystopia of Brave New World to the sexless year of 1984. I'm tempted to email the teacher just so I can get an idea of where this class is headed, but I don't know how to not seem like an asshole about it, pardon the double negative.