Problem novels, issue books, social novels — whatever you call them, they’re abundant. Where’s the line between good fiction and moralising?
Problem novels, issue books, and moralising
Tag: storytelling
What does ‘gritty’ even mean, anyway?
gritty (adj.) 1590s, “resembling or containing sand or grit,” from grit (n.) + -y (2). In sense of “unpleasant” (of literature, etc.), from 1882, in reference to the sensation of eating gritty bread. Meaning “plucky, spirited, courageous and resolute” is from 1847. Related: Grittily; grittiness. The new hotness in adult pop culture right now is […]
What would an ordinary trans narrative look like?
Diversity is the new trend in media and pop culture these days, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, though at times it feels like more of a buzzword than an actual commitment. We are, however, starting to see more diverse projects by diverse creators come down the pipeline — and I’m talking about good diverse […]
Playing with narrative structure on Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
The regrettably short-lived Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles had a lot of stuff going on for it, but one of the most fascinating elements of the show for me was the narrative structure. Television tends to be very rigid and linear: Once it picks a format, it sticks with it, with each episode progressing logically and within […]
I Heart Television
I didn’t have television in childhood. We lived in places without electricity, without television service, and then in places where we had no interest in television (and couldn’t have afforded one even if we’d wanted television service). I was exposed to television occasionally in my teens at the homes of friends, where I watched in […]
Stray Dogs and Wandering Montages
A couple of months ago, I watched Kurosawa’s Stray Dog (1949) with a friend when it was playing at the Pacific Film Archive. For those unfamiliar with it, the film traces the story of a policeman after his gun is stolen from him and used in a series of violent crimes for which he feels […]
Telling Our Own Stories
Throughout history, members of dominant classes have been telling the stories of marginalised groups, presenting those stories through a dominant lens and tightly controlling the narrative. It’s a system that allows structures of power and oppression to continue, because the people at the bottom of the system have no opportunity to fight those at the […]
Let Characters Be Who They’ll Be: The Rest Will Follow
I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about ‘issue books’ lately, and their long-established lineage in young adult and children’s fiction as well as their current incarnation. A lot of people don’t like them, and make the mistake of confusing any sort of book with a minority protagonist as an issue book, no matter […]
Vampires and the Legitimisation of the Rape-Romance
Rape-romance is a rather old and established genre; for those not familiar with it, it’s a subset of romance that involves things like ‘forced seduction.’ The basic storyline involves the heroine repeatedly resisting the advances of the hero, who eventually ‘forces[1. What a nice word for rape.]’ her, making her realise that she really does […]
Dear Creators of Pop Culture: Please Do Your Damn Research
Riddle me this, gentle readers: When a television show depicts, say, open heart surgery, or forensics, or tax accounting, it hires consultants. These people come in and meet with the producers and writers to talk about their jobs and provide suggestions on keeping the storyline at least reasonably realistic. They will shoot down things that […]