I want to say, for the record, that I like the erotica meme. I have reasons why, which hopefully I'll get around to discussing. I'll also hopefully do the meme. And
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I have a huge question now. You like Ginny Weasley. You are at least okay with Harry/Ginny. I find this entirely baffling given what we see of Ginny in canon. I'd be really interested to know what it is about Ginny you like, and what processes got you there.
I don't really like Ginny Weasley. I don't really like Draco Malfoy, either.
Imo, neither are well fleshed out in canon. I believe JKR thought of Draco as a foil for Harry, not as a human being. When you try to think of him as a human being, and you try to incorporate all the disparate elements from canon, you get someone who's pretty damn bizarre. By the same token, a lot of JKR's themes are half-baked, particularly themes about the way the "dark side" mirrors the "light side"--that we're all just human and have the potential for good and evil within ourselves. Draco Malfoy is an excellent way to explore those themes. Bake them the rest of the way, in other words
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...With their sad, broken childhoods and their sad, broken dreams, and their heartbreaking, overwhelming dependence and longing for a "normal", traditional, conventional family
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I agree with everything you say about Ginny. But as you say, Draco was mishandled as well. Why are you more comfortable extrapolating Draco's character than Ginny's? Why does Ginny seem to inspire your disgust, whereas Draco your creativity and imagination? Do you think it is resentment due to Ginny being shoe-horned in as Harry's love interest? I ask because in other people I have seen discuss this, it appears to be resentment that Ginny is a woman.
I don't get defensive about Ginny Weasley, since she is badly handled in canon. But sometimes I see fans bashing the female love interest and it really looks like it's less to do with the character herself and more to do with the fact that she isn't the person they want for their man. Which . . . huh? I'm not saying that's what you're doing; I just see it a lot and it makes me sad.
In other news, this was an awesome question. I'm glad you asked. Sometimes I don't understand why people ship something or like someone, and I've love for them to explain why. I know that's why you asked, and I know you to be someone who is interested in discussion. But I submit to you that your question would have seemed aggressive, had I not had this background knowledge of you. I would also ask you to consider the context of the question--that is, Ginny Weasley is frequently bashed, and no doubt many feel defensive about loving her. The way you worded the question suggests that there is nothing to like about Ginny in canon, which people more defensive, more easily offended, less understanding, or less interested in discussion than I would easily read as you saying they are stupid for liking Ginny
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I'm in the process of getting rid of those. It often leads me to go too far into the other side.
I deal with this all the time! I am the opposite in that the way I was raised, my personality, etc, I always said exactly what I thought. It got to the point where I argued with everyone I knew, never had any fun, and most disappointingly, never had any interesting discussions. So I went in the opposite direction, and sort of became a mouse. I never said what I thought even when I should have. For the most part, this has not affected my online discourse, as usually I am able to frame what I say exactly the way I mean it. But oh god, irl, it is such a battle with me to say the things I want to say, but say them so no one gets hurt.
It's surprising how much that doesn't work. People generally just assume I'm lying about that, that I am judging them but that I don't want them to be angry with me for it.I think that people have good reason for that, though. Saying, "no offense" after "you're a dickhead" is exactly that: a lie. Do
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I have a huge question now. You like Ginny Weasley. You are at least okay with Harry/Ginny. I find this entirely baffling given what we see of Ginny in canon. I'd be really interested to know what it is about Ginny you like, and what processes got you there.
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Imo, neither are well fleshed out in canon. I believe JKR thought of Draco as a foil for Harry, not as a human being. When you try to think of him as a human being, and you try to incorporate all the disparate elements from canon, you get someone who's pretty damn bizarre. By the same token, a lot of JKR's themes are half-baked, particularly themes about the way the "dark side" mirrors the "light side"--that we're all just human and have the potential for good and evil within ourselves. Draco Malfoy is an excellent way to explore those themes. Bake them the rest of the way, in other words ( ... )
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I don't get defensive about Ginny Weasley, since she is badly handled in canon. But sometimes I see fans bashing the female love interest and it really looks like it's less to do with the character herself and more to do with the fact that she isn't the person they want for their man. Which . . . huh? I'm not saying that's what you're doing; I just see it a lot and it makes me sad.
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I deal with this all the time! I am the opposite in that the way I was raised, my personality, etc, I always said exactly what I thought. It got to the point where I argued with everyone I knew, never had any fun, and most disappointingly, never had any interesting discussions. So I went in the opposite direction, and sort of became a mouse. I never said what I thought even when I should have. For the most part, this has not affected my online discourse, as usually I am able to frame what I say exactly the way I mean it. But oh god, irl, it is such a battle with me to say the things I want to say, but say them so no one gets hurt.
It's surprising how much that doesn't work. People generally just assume I'm lying about that, that I am judging them but that I don't want them to be angry with me for it.I think that people have good reason for that, though. Saying, "no offense" after "you're a dickhead" is exactly that: a lie. Do ( ... )
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