TEAM SPIRIT
I found this on Tumblr this morning and it made me mad. (I should probably get a bumper sticker saying that, since Tumblr is full of maddening things.)
Earlier I had made a Tumblr post complaining about people claiming that shipping is antithetical to people caring about worldbuilding or plot or characterization. And this reminded me how much it bothers me when people say that shipping or loving certain characters trivializes “serious” books or movies or shows. Yes, The Hunger Games is about a totalitarian state that abuses children. Yes, most of its characters probably suffer from PTSD and other trauma-related psychological and physiological injuries. No, sex and romance are not going to solve any or all of their problems, and their relationships are most likely going to be informed by what they’ve been through. But as readers we’re allowed to care about the whole character, and this can include their sexual and romantic lives. And we’re allowed to find the characters attractive too.
One thing I always have to remind myself when I feel guilty about being attracted to a character in a book with heavy subject matter is that it’s quite likely that the author intended for the characters to be appealing in some way. Suzanne Collins chose to make Peeta charming, funny, selfless, kind, intelligent, and physically attractive. It’s hard to expect people not to react positively to a character like that. And even if the author didn’t intend it? That’s still your right as a reader. Just like we’re allowed to be attracted (or not attracted) to whoever we want in real life, we’re allowed to be attracted to, or to ship, whoever we want in fandoms too.
Also, I am reminded of the whole “first world problems” thing, and the rebuttal by Teju Cole and others that people in “third world” countries care about technology and clothes and relationships too. We’re allowed to care about who Katniss ends up with, and to write fic or make art or talk about it. The characters care about these things themselves. They, and we, can even find humor in their lives; to use a movie example, laughing about Gale's manpain doesn't in any way diminish how harrowing it is to watch the District 11 revolt. And calling yourself “Team Peeta” or “Team Gale” or whatever does not in any way imply that you don’t understand or care about the wider implications of the book. “Team Peeta” and “Down With Snow” are not mutually exclusive sentiments, even if Peeta (or some other character) is what draws you to the books and the fandom. This relates to Warchild, my latest fannish obsession, quite well. I can want Jos to end up with Niko, and still acknowledge that their relationship isn't perfect and that there are many other things Jos and Niko both need in addition to romantic love. (Like therapy.) True, some people might have a shallow understanding of the material and only care about the characters because they're cute. But there are lots of people with shallow understandings of material who aren’t shippers or fangirls, either.
I might also argue that many of us like the characters and their relationship precisely because we understand the gravity of their situation. We like seeing characters who are strong and brave. We like seeing love flourish amid adversity. It is arguably problematic to use violence and exploitation instrumentally, just to make the romance more appealing, but I would also say that that's the pitfall of fiction in general. Very often we are using someone else's troubles to gain something for ourselves, even at the same time that we are using them in admirable, witness-bearing ways.
I can understand taking issue with the implication that characters, especially female characters, need relationships with men to be happy, that that is their ultimate goal in the narrative. But I also see nothing wrong with wanting to see a female character pursuing romantic desire. Even Bella Swan. More importantly, it bothers me to see people shaming fans for expressing their desires and opinions.
Teams can also divide fandoms and incite ship wars, which suck. But here's a team I think we can all agree on:
