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NM (![[info]](http://www.journalfen.net/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} narcissam) wrote in ![[info]](http://www.journalfen.net/img/community.gif){kind=small} fandom_wank,@ 2006-04-23 09:13:00 |
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"I am not racist in real life, only in Harry Potter."
telesilla wrote a post entitled On Dealing with Half a Canon which asks how people deal with the holes and the unknowns in JKR's canon, when writing fic or coming up with theories. Most of the responses were polite, on-topic, until (18-year-old) durins_bane_616 asks the not-so-innocent question,
"Incidentally, what exactly do you mean by Slytherin apologists?"
darkrosetiger: There's a certain segment of adult HP fans who insist that not only is JKR being unfair in her portrayals of the Slytherins, where at best they're morally ambiguous, but that in reality, the Slytherins are the good guys and the Gryffindors are teh evil. Some of that crowd goes even further, and try to claim that the Death Eaters' insistence that "purity of blood" is the most important thing is not really at all reminiscent of the Nazis or the KKK, and it's not really intended as an analogy for real-world racism.
durins_bane_616: Wow. I can't believe there are people that actually believe that. Please do not misunderstand what I am about to say. I am not racist in real life, only in Harry Potter. I realize that Slytherins are evil, and that's why I support them. But I separate that from my real-life beliefs. I think that it is dangerous to excessively analogize books to real life.
darkrosetiger: don't think it's dangerous to draw parallels, especially when the author has stated repeatedly that the parallels are intentional. And I'm sorry, but "I'm not racist in real life, only in Harry Potter" doesn't fly with me. Lucius Malfoy is one of my favorite characters, but I still find his racist sentiments appalling. Having heard similar sentiments expressed toward people who look like me, I don't have the luxury of "being racist" in fiction, and I don't feel comfortable around people who don't understand how offensive that is.
Instead of answering, Durins_bane_616 went running to his own LJ to whine about it. eg. "I am not a racist Nazi." And apparently deleted Darkrosetiger's comments. Apologies are made at the end (good for Durin's Bane) but it's still great WTF? fun to read.
telesilla wrote a post entitled On Dealing with Half a Canon which asks how people deal with the holes and the unknowns in JKR's canon, when writing fic or coming up with theories. Most of the responses were polite, on-topic, until (18-year-old) durins_bane_616 asks the not-so-innocent question,"Incidentally, what exactly do you mean by Slytherin apologists?"
darkrosetiger: There's a certain segment of adult HP fans who insist that not only is JKR being unfair in her portrayals of the Slytherins, where at best they're morally ambiguous, but that in reality, the Slytherins are the good guys and the Gryffindors are teh evil. Some of that crowd goes even further, and try to claim that the Death Eaters' insistence that "purity of blood" is the most important thing is not really at all reminiscent of the Nazis or the KKK, and it's not really intended as an analogy for real-world racism.durins_bane_616: Wow. I can't believe there are people that actually believe that. Please do not misunderstand what I am about to say. I am not racist in real life, only in Harry Potter. I realize that Slytherins are evil, and that's why I support them. But I separate that from my real-life beliefs. I think that it is dangerous to excessively analogize books to real life.darkrosetiger: don't think it's dangerous to draw parallels, especially when the author has stated repeatedly that the parallels are intentional. And I'm sorry, but "I'm not racist in real life, only in Harry Potter" doesn't fly with me. Lucius Malfoy is one of my favorite characters, but I still find his racist sentiments appalling. Having heard similar sentiments expressed toward people who look like me, I don't have the luxury of "being racist" in fiction, and I don't feel comfortable around people who don't understand how offensive that is.Instead of answering, Durins_bane_616 went running to his own LJ to whine about it. eg. "I am not a racist Nazi." And apparently deleted Darkrosetiger's comments. Apologies are made at the end (good for Durin's Bane) but it's still great WTF? fun to read.
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