Thoughts on Parallels and Love in Fiction
Jan. 18th, 2006 11:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lls_mutantI've been meaning to write this down for a bit, because I'm trying to think of what attracts me to romances in fiction so I can flesh out aspects of a fantasy novel type thing that's still a swirling vapor mist in my head. But I also wanted to do another FAP rant... well, not rant. But a comment. So cut for your convenience, we have...
I was reading over on the Can't Stand Lupin/Tonks thread at FAP, and came across a comment about how Lupin's lycanthropy is obviously a metaphor for AIDS, and how that serves as proof he's gay. I've seen this comment in many, many places, and I've been wanting to say a lot about that for a while now.
Personally, I love the idea that lycanthropy is a metaphor for AIDS. There are a lot of similarities, and a lot of ways the parallel works.
1.) Both lycanthropy and AIDS are spread by very specific methods. AIDS can only be contracted via the exchange of bodily fluids, and lycanthropy can only be contracted via a bite by a werewolf on a full moon night. That's it. Handshakes, kissing, using the same toilet, etc. do not spread either condition.
2.) Despite the fact that these two conditions can only be spread by such specific methods, the general populace is terrified of both the condition and those that have them. Prejudice largely born of fear is rampant.
3.) And people have a good reason to be afraid of both. Both are painful conditions that have no cure.
4.) Although there is no cure, there are measures that victims of both can take to ensure that they do not spread the condition. However, they are not fail-safe, and failure can be catastrophic.
However, the parallel between AIDS and lycanthropy only stretches so far. Why? Because Remus Lupin is a werewolf, not an AIDS victim, and he has a part to play that is both directly related to his lycanthropy and directly related to Harry's story. There's also the matter of authorial intent. J.K. Rowling did state that yes, she was playing with chronic illness when she created Lupin. However, she was playing with how the world percieves those who are chronically ill, not the illness itself. As Rowling's mother had M.S., it seems logical that if she did use a disease as a model or had a specific condition in mind, that would be it.
But let's go a little further in this rant. Another disturbing trend I notice is that people in the fandom automatically equate AIDS and homosexuality. Um, newsflash, fangirls. Straight people get AIDS as well. The time when AIDS was a "gay disease" is long past. I mean, think about it. The reason it DID spread so prominantly among homosexuals is because there was no need for birth control. No matter how mpreg fics you read, it takes a man and a woman to make a baby. If you're two men or two women and you don't know about the existance of AIDS, why use a condom or other barrier method? (Well, except for those other pesky STDs.) But beyond that, AIDS is not just transmitted via sex. Drug users and blood transfusions were two other big at-risk categories. So let's say that Remus Lupin is a direct metaphor for AIDS: prior to HBP, was the method of transmission sex? Or something more like a blood transfusion? (We all get the Fenrir Greyback = child molester bit, so let's not even go there at the moment.) At any rate, my point is that even if you want to use this metaphor, it does not automatically equate to Remus Lupin being gay.
I think the metaphor works, mind you. I think it's an excellent way to begin introducing kids to the idea of prejudice against people with some sort of illness or ailment, in much the same way Chicken Run is a great way to begin introducing kids to the concept of Nazi death camps. But the metaphor is more for how the world treats someone with that sort of problem and how they can cope and have courage in the face of adversity, not for the disease itself.
Anyway.
and
On to Romance!
I've been thinking about different novels and series and stuff that I watch or read, and what I like within them in terms of romance. What attracts me to a couple, and what makes me want to read about that couple? It's not the same things I think about for coupledom in real life. I mean, I am in a great relationship, but it would make incredibly boring reading. So what makes a fascinating couple? What do I like? There's a couple things, I think.
The Epic Love
This is, by far, my favorite category. The one where I can see the big love of a lifetime. It's always fraught with some reason why the two can't be together, or some obstacle at any rate. This is best if the obstacle comes both from society and from within the couple itself. Romances like Remus and Sirius (in my head, but Harry Potter), Jack and Ennis (Brokeback Mountain), Brekke and F'nor (Anne McCaffery's Pern), A'drias and C'olby (and Adrian and Colby, for that matter ;) , and Lakesedge Pern), Satine and Christian, and Rhett and Scarlett come in. They all have some major obstacle, some big thing that has to be overcome. However, they're all CRAP at communication (although Brekke and F'nor less so). These also tend to be the romances where the flaws are the most evident. These work well as the main romance for me.
However, notice how often they end in tragedy.
The Married Couple
On the opposite end of the scale, I'm a huge fan of the married couple as well. I like stable, secure romances. Molly and Arthur and Frank and Alice (Harry Potter), Melanie and Ashley, Jed and Abby (West Wing)... even when they're having problems, you know this sort of couple will stick it through until the end. I had a hard time coming up with some of these, because they do tend to be rare in fiction. It's precisely because of what I said earlier- they don't make very interesting reading as a main plot. You can have a main character involved in a solid romance or marriage, but the plot needs to focus on something else. You can also portray an issue within that marriage or relationship. I like these stories, because so often they end up in a happy ending :) Plus, they're accessible. These tend to be your more "real life" stories.
The Cute Couple
I admit it- I'm a bit of a sucker for cute. But it can't be pure fluff. I need something dark in it too. Like James and Lily. Would I be as interested in them if they hadn't croaked? Probably not. Or Claire and Charlie on Lost (or at least, I hope that's where that's going- we're only in Season 1. DON'T TELL ME!). They're darling, but with Charlie's former heroin addiction and Claire's past... yeah. Not fluffy, even if they're cute. I also always liked... oh SHOOT. They were a pair in The Left Behind series. David and Annie, I think. (Once the authors learned a LITTLE better how to write romance.) Apocolypse also adds some nice tension. Natalie and Jeremy from Sports Night is another, although that always disturbed me because I dated a guy (hi Kelse!) who WAS Jeremy, except that he was not so into sports. But looks, mannerisms, speech patterns.... Watching Sports Night really cracked me up on that level.
The Cute Couple II, or the Fun Couple
This is a pairing that isn't necessarily as cute emotionally- they lack the innocence- but are cute in other ways, particularly their interactions with each other. The absolute top of this list is Danny and CJ from West Wing. Depending on their mood, Natalie and Jeremy fit in here too. And while I would never, ever, EVER want to read certain types of fanfic about them (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
theregoesyamum and ignipes, don't even THINK about it), Miss Piggy and Kermit go in this category as well. It's all about the banter. There isn't necessarily a huge emotional investment in the couple, but they are fun to watch.
Okay. Enough babbling for today, and on to housework.
Goodie.
I was reading over on the Can't Stand Lupin/Tonks thread at FAP, and came across a comment about how Lupin's lycanthropy is obviously a metaphor for AIDS, and how that serves as proof he's gay. I've seen this comment in many, many places, and I've been wanting to say a lot about that for a while now.
Personally, I love the idea that lycanthropy is a metaphor for AIDS. There are a lot of similarities, and a lot of ways the parallel works.
1.) Both lycanthropy and AIDS are spread by very specific methods. AIDS can only be contracted via the exchange of bodily fluids, and lycanthropy can only be contracted via a bite by a werewolf on a full moon night. That's it. Handshakes, kissing, using the same toilet, etc. do not spread either condition.
2.) Despite the fact that these two conditions can only be spread by such specific methods, the general populace is terrified of both the condition and those that have them. Prejudice largely born of fear is rampant.
3.) And people have a good reason to be afraid of both. Both are painful conditions that have no cure.
4.) Although there is no cure, there are measures that victims of both can take to ensure that they do not spread the condition. However, they are not fail-safe, and failure can be catastrophic.
However, the parallel between AIDS and lycanthropy only stretches so far. Why? Because Remus Lupin is a werewolf, not an AIDS victim, and he has a part to play that is both directly related to his lycanthropy and directly related to Harry's story. There's also the matter of authorial intent. J.K. Rowling did state that yes, she was playing with chronic illness when she created Lupin. However, she was playing with how the world percieves those who are chronically ill, not the illness itself. As Rowling's mother had M.S., it seems logical that if she did use a disease as a model or had a specific condition in mind, that would be it.
But let's go a little further in this rant. Another disturbing trend I notice is that people in the fandom automatically equate AIDS and homosexuality. Um, newsflash, fangirls. Straight people get AIDS as well. The time when AIDS was a "gay disease" is long past. I mean, think about it. The reason it DID spread so prominantly among homosexuals is because there was no need for birth control. No matter how mpreg fics you read, it takes a man and a woman to make a baby. If you're two men or two women and you don't know about the existance of AIDS, why use a condom or other barrier method? (Well, except for those other pesky STDs.) But beyond that, AIDS is not just transmitted via sex. Drug users and blood transfusions were two other big at-risk categories. So let's say that Remus Lupin is a direct metaphor for AIDS: prior to HBP, was the method of transmission sex? Or something more like a blood transfusion? (We all get the Fenrir Greyback = child molester bit, so let's not even go there at the moment.) At any rate, my point is that even if you want to use this metaphor, it does not automatically equate to Remus Lupin being gay.
I think the metaphor works, mind you. I think it's an excellent way to begin introducing kids to the idea of prejudice against people with some sort of illness or ailment, in much the same way Chicken Run is a great way to begin introducing kids to the concept of Nazi death camps. But the metaphor is more for how the world treats someone with that sort of problem and how they can cope and have courage in the face of adversity, not for the disease itself.
Anyway.
and
On to Romance!
I've been thinking about different novels and series and stuff that I watch or read, and what I like within them in terms of romance. What attracts me to a couple, and what makes me want to read about that couple? It's not the same things I think about for coupledom in real life. I mean, I am in a great relationship, but it would make incredibly boring reading. So what makes a fascinating couple? What do I like? There's a couple things, I think.
The Epic Love
This is, by far, my favorite category. The one where I can see the big love of a lifetime. It's always fraught with some reason why the two can't be together, or some obstacle at any rate. This is best if the obstacle comes both from society and from within the couple itself. Romances like Remus and Sirius (in my head, but Harry Potter), Jack and Ennis (Brokeback Mountain), Brekke and F'nor (Anne McCaffery's Pern), A'drias and C'olby (and Adrian and Colby, for that matter ;) , and Lakesedge Pern), Satine and Christian, and Rhett and Scarlett come in. They all have some major obstacle, some big thing that has to be overcome. However, they're all CRAP at communication (although Brekke and F'nor less so). These also tend to be the romances where the flaws are the most evident. These work well as the main romance for me.
However, notice how often they end in tragedy.
The Married Couple
On the opposite end of the scale, I'm a huge fan of the married couple as well. I like stable, secure romances. Molly and Arthur and Frank and Alice (Harry Potter), Melanie and Ashley, Jed and Abby (West Wing)... even when they're having problems, you know this sort of couple will stick it through until the end. I had a hard time coming up with some of these, because they do tend to be rare in fiction. It's precisely because of what I said earlier- they don't make very interesting reading as a main plot. You can have a main character involved in a solid romance or marriage, but the plot needs to focus on something else. You can also portray an issue within that marriage or relationship. I like these stories, because so often they end up in a happy ending :) Plus, they're accessible. These tend to be your more "real life" stories.
The Cute Couple
I admit it- I'm a bit of a sucker for cute. But it can't be pure fluff. I need something dark in it too. Like James and Lily. Would I be as interested in them if they hadn't croaked? Probably not. Or Claire and Charlie on Lost (or at least, I hope that's where that's going- we're only in Season 1. DON'T TELL ME!). They're darling, but with Charlie's former heroin addiction and Claire's past... yeah. Not fluffy, even if they're cute. I also always liked... oh SHOOT. They were a pair in The Left Behind series. David and Annie, I think. (Once the authors learned a LITTLE better how to write romance.) Apocolypse also adds some nice tension. Natalie and Jeremy from Sports Night is another, although that always disturbed me because I dated a guy (hi Kelse!) who WAS Jeremy, except that he was not so into sports. But looks, mannerisms, speech patterns.... Watching Sports Night really cracked me up on that level.
The Cute Couple II, or the Fun Couple
This is a pairing that isn't necessarily as cute emotionally- they lack the innocence- but are cute in other ways, particularly their interactions with each other. The absolute top of this list is Danny and CJ from West Wing. Depending on their mood, Natalie and Jeremy fit in here too. And while I would never, ever, EVER want to read certain types of fanfic about them (
theregoesyamum and ignipes, don't even THINK about it), Miss Piggy and Kermit go in this category as well. It's all about the banter. There isn't necessarily a huge emotional investment in the couple, but they are fun to watch. Okay. Enough babbling for today, and on to housework.
Goodie.
