#also you're a fucking english major are you really going to say LOLITA is sympathetic to hh in a morally wrong way

[llycaons]

one of the annoying podcast hosts I've often complained about was once like 'you CANNOT write or read from someone's point of view without developing empathy for them' and that was her argument for...literally never having villain povs I think but while I agree that writing from someone's pov helps develop an understanding of the character as a person, I disagree that it's always a bad writing choice and morally wrong.

dehumanizing 'bad people', especially but not only abusers, is often counterproductive to understanding how they live in your society and community. which they DO. when you say 'only an inhuman MONSTER could do x' you're denying the capacity for harm from anyone you've ever met that you liked or found relatable (or YOURSELF), because you can't conceive of a likeable, friendly, personable, even relatable human being still capable of causing great harm, which is extremely dangerous when allegations about these types of abuses surface, or when you yourself are accused of harm. the prelude to lolita asserts that hh 'is not a gentleman' but I feel like a big part of the book is exploring how established and respectable he was in society. also when reading from his pov if you're agreeing with his opinions and statements then you definitely aren't understanding the book and you shouldn't be reading it and that's not the author's fault because he's patently obviously a sexual predator. and the prelude tells you as much!