some thoughts on writing and responsibility
In the course of a long and complicated discussion over in glossing's LJ, I said some things about the "trailer-trash" stories that a number of people have been writing lately. And my comments got more response than I had anticipated, so I want to clarify what I meant.
First off, my concerns about these stories are partly personal (I grew up poor and rural--I come from the sort of people who might be called "trailer trash") and partly political. I'm concerned about the power issues involved in people with privilege (that's us--the people who have the money and leisure time to own computers, write stories, and post them to LJ) writing about people without such privilege (the rural poor). In particular, I've been unhappy about the way a certain exoticizing language has been used to describe and promote these stories--as though poverty, violence, hopelessness, and lack of education are sexy and fun. As though we privileged people have a right to be emotional tourists, looking at this exotic tribe for our own amusement.
(Incidentally, I also have some concerns about the term "trailer trash," which is, let's face it, a slur.)
But, here's the deal: I don't think it's my business to stop other people writing things. And I don't think that writing about poor people is automatically a bad thing (that would be absurd) or that only people who've experienced poverty have a right to talk about it (that would be the same ridiculous logic that says women shouldn't write slash).
I do think, though, that writing about oppressed people (poor people, gay people, people of color, or whatever) carries a certain responsibility, especially if the author does not belong to that group and hasn't experienced that kind of oppression. We need to write thoughtfully. I think slash that indulges in gay stereotypes, that uses male/male or female/female eroticism purely for mindless titillation, that doesn't concern itself at all with the real social situation of real gay and lesbian people, is unacceptable. (And I don't mean that every slash fic has to be about discrimination or coming out--heaven forbid. But I do think that every slash fic needs to rise above stereotypes and treat gay and lesbian people as people.) Similarly, I think that "trailer trash" stories shouldn't stereotype or dehumanize the poor, shouldn't treat them as performing animals. Being poor isn't a sexy lifestyle choice; it's a painful predicament that poor people struggle with as best they can.
As I said above, I think it's perfectly legitimate to write about other social groups, including oppressed ones. But we need, as a professor of mine once said, to do our homework first. We need to write thoughtfully and responsibly.
One final note: I'm not trying to attack cracktrailer or to single out any story. Frankly, I haven't read most of them (and the few that I've read, I've skimmed) because I've been ill and I haven't had the energy to deal with what I worried I might find. I hadn't intended to say anything about this issue, but last night I made some off-the-cuff remarks, and I thought they needed clarification.
Best wishes to all.
First off, my concerns about these stories are partly personal (I grew up poor and rural--I come from the sort of people who might be called "trailer trash") and partly political. I'm concerned about the power issues involved in people with privilege (that's us--the people who have the money and leisure time to own computers, write stories, and post them to LJ) writing about people without such privilege (the rural poor). In particular, I've been unhappy about the way a certain exoticizing language has been used to describe and promote these stories--as though poverty, violence, hopelessness, and lack of education are sexy and fun. As though we privileged people have a right to be emotional tourists, looking at this exotic tribe for our own amusement.
(Incidentally, I also have some concerns about the term "trailer trash," which is, let's face it, a slur.)
But, here's the deal: I don't think it's my business to stop other people writing things. And I don't think that writing about poor people is automatically a bad thing (that would be absurd) or that only people who've experienced poverty have a right to talk about it (that would be the same ridiculous logic that says women shouldn't write slash).
I do think, though, that writing about oppressed people (poor people, gay people, people of color, or whatever) carries a certain responsibility, especially if the author does not belong to that group and hasn't experienced that kind of oppression. We need to write thoughtfully. I think slash that indulges in gay stereotypes, that uses male/male or female/female eroticism purely for mindless titillation, that doesn't concern itself at all with the real social situation of real gay and lesbian people, is unacceptable. (And I don't mean that every slash fic has to be about discrimination or coming out--heaven forbid. But I do think that every slash fic needs to rise above stereotypes and treat gay and lesbian people as people.) Similarly, I think that "trailer trash" stories shouldn't stereotype or dehumanize the poor, shouldn't treat them as performing animals. Being poor isn't a sexy lifestyle choice; it's a painful predicament that poor people struggle with as best they can.
As I said above, I think it's perfectly legitimate to write about other social groups, including oppressed ones. But we need, as a professor of mine once said, to do our homework first. We need to write thoughtfully and responsibly.
One final note: I'm not trying to attack cracktrailer or to single out any story. Frankly, I haven't read most of them (and the few that I've read, I've skimmed) because I've been ill and I haven't had the energy to deal with what I worried I might find. I hadn't intended to say anything about this issue, but last night I made some off-the-cuff remarks, and I thought they needed clarification.
Best wishes to all.