.... in which a big ship sails on the alley-alley-O
This is inspired by talking to mr_ray, who deliberately baits me into these things, the bastard. (heh. *loves really*)
The thing is, there are many male/female pairings that are not explicitly outlined but which their fans would consider "practically canon". Loads. Many people who like these heterosexual pairings are drawn to them because of things other than smut - the stories and history around them, for instance, or identification with those specific characters and their situation. There are people who read and write slash because they want to make a political statement, there are people who want to validate themselves and their outlook on the world, there are people who are in it because they think there's another story to be told. All the same reasons as people who read and write boy/girl stories. Of course there are people whose reason for reading a certain fic is 'ooh, two hot guys/girls, yum!', but it bugs the hell out of me when it's assumed (as it seems to be by a surprising number of people, not all of whom are joking) that the slashy porn is the only reason people would want to read it.
That's tied in to my gripe about slash being considered automatically less canonical than male/female ships. Why? There are gay people in the world, and therefore (especially in a canon which purports to be a representation of this real wold we live in now) there are gay people in canon. Since sexual preference is rarely adressed specifically, it's almost impossible to know for certain which they are, too - usually the best you can do is 'so and so has had sex with person A', which isn't ultimate proof of sexual preferences either which way.
This especially bugs me as lots of slashy pairings have loads of canonical support. I'd say that a pairing like Heero/Duo from Gundam Wing, or Josh/Sam from the West Wing, or Frodo/Sam and Legolas/Gimli from Lord of the Rings, have a hell of a lot more canonical evidence than most male/female pairings. People who see the shippiness in certain things aren't making it up out of nothing - people who think there's something there in canon usually have a few damn good reason swhy they think so. They might not work as reasons for everyone, but they're not just deluded - or at least, if the people who do this for same-gendered couples are deluded, then so are the straight shippers. If I say "Oh, oh, the tension in that tie-straightening scene! The potential in that conversation about whether sexuality is a legitimate issue to bring up in a job screening process!", there's nothing inherantly different there from the people who'd say "Aww, he appreciates her! Look, how cute is that?"
I like slash because I think there's a lot of interesting potential in many situations, because the kind of stories that good, plot-heavy slash involves are more likely to be the ones that interest me and reflect my attitudes and interests as a person. And, I admit, I like a little validation now and then that I'm right about various things.
I also admit that I can get rather defensive about the things I like, so, um, yeah. Hi. *waves peacefully*
In other news, the TWINKIES Project rules, as does being in the same room as anna_thebabbler. I love my people, man.
The thing is, there are many male/female pairings that are not explicitly outlined but which their fans would consider "practically canon". Loads. Many people who like these heterosexual pairings are drawn to them because of things other than smut - the stories and history around them, for instance, or identification with those specific characters and their situation. There are people who read and write slash because they want to make a political statement, there are people who want to validate themselves and their outlook on the world, there are people who are in it because they think there's another story to be told. All the same reasons as people who read and write boy/girl stories. Of course there are people whose reason for reading a certain fic is 'ooh, two hot guys/girls, yum!', but it bugs the hell out of me when it's assumed (as it seems to be by a surprising number of people, not all of whom are joking) that the slashy porn is the only reason people would want to read it.
That's tied in to my gripe about slash being considered automatically less canonical than male/female ships. Why? There are gay people in the world, and therefore (especially in a canon which purports to be a representation of this real wold we live in now) there are gay people in canon. Since sexual preference is rarely adressed specifically, it's almost impossible to know for certain which they are, too - usually the best you can do is 'so and so has had sex with person A', which isn't ultimate proof of sexual preferences either which way.
This especially bugs me as lots of slashy pairings have loads of canonical support. I'd say that a pairing like Heero/Duo from Gundam Wing, or Josh/Sam from the West Wing, or Frodo/Sam and Legolas/Gimli from Lord of the Rings, have a hell of a lot more canonical evidence than most male/female pairings. People who see the shippiness in certain things aren't making it up out of nothing - people who think there's something there in canon usually have a few damn good reason swhy they think so. They might not work as reasons for everyone, but they're not just deluded - or at least, if the people who do this for same-gendered couples are deluded, then so are the straight shippers. If I say "Oh, oh, the tension in that tie-straightening scene! The potential in that conversation about whether sexuality is a legitimate issue to bring up in a job screening process!", there's nothing inherantly different there from the people who'd say "Aww, he appreciates her! Look, how cute is that?"
I like slash because I think there's a lot of interesting potential in many situations, because the kind of stories that good, plot-heavy slash involves are more likely to be the ones that interest me and reflect my attitudes and interests as a person. And, I admit, I like a little validation now and then that I'm right about various things.
I also admit that I can get rather defensive about the things I like, so, um, yeah. Hi. *waves peacefully*
In other news, the TWINKIES Project rules, as does being in the same room as anna_thebabbler. I love my people, man.