#literature is not real life

[mckitterick]

[ ID: screenshot of a tweet by @RachelSketching: "people end up unable to see depiction as anything other than endorsement when their entire cultural diet is escapist fun and reassurance. they see something make them uncomfortable and can only assume people are watching horrible shit as vicarious pleasure and are horrified" /ID ]

depiction is not the same as glorification and I need people to get that 

[wordswithloveee]

[turtledotjpeg]

melody leorio and kurapika somehow find a chance to take a break and Chill together (I don't know how or when, but I want it for them lol)

for a vday exchange in discord!! this was right up my alley hehe, was very excited to draw these three again ^_^

[usefulquotes7]

Just be yourself. Let people see the real imperfect, flawed, quirky, weird, beautiful and magical person you are. Unknown

[mynameistala]

[originalferal]

i sometimes wonder what broke me more- what happened or what never did.

[intothestacks]

As a children's librarian, people who harass fans of Harry Potter indiscriminately really worry me.

Here's why.

1. The majority of Harry Potter fans are children.

I've had people call me disgusting and scum and an embarrassment to my disabled community. I've been suicide baited and have received death threats. All of this can be heavy enough stuff for an adult to deal with.

And then I think of how most of my 700+ elementary-aged students are huge Harry Potter fans. Because, you know, Harry Potter is a children's series. And they also have access to the internet and social media like TikTok and YouTube.

Now imagine the stuff that's been said to me being said to a kid. Because Harry Potter's main audience are KIDS.

2. This black-and-white mentality isn't healthy.

Very few things in life are cut-and-dry good vs bad. And if you employ this kind of thinking in one area of your life, odds are you'll apply it to other areas too(more on that in a moment).

And people who go out of their way to harass people who like Harry Potter don't seem to particularly care about any context beyond "If you like Harry Potter in any way whatsoever you're scum".

It hasn't mattered when I've pointed out that I absolutely and unequivocally think Rowling's TERF views are awful and scummy and wrong. It hasn't mattered that I try my best to consume the content only in ways that won't monetarily support her, (which kids typically can't do, btw). It hasn't mattered that it's literally in my job description to keep up with children's media to procure content for my patrons as well as to be able to hold conversations with them.

3. Saying "You're not allowed to read this without being harassed" is no different from saying a book should be banned.

This is ironic, seeing as the people doing the harassing are also often up in arms about queerphobic and racist book bans (as they should be) while demanding book bans of their own.

Because in their all-or-nothing way of thinking, book bans are only bad when the "bad" people do it.

No. Book bans are always bad, no exceptions.

Book bans aren't bad because they're banning the "good" books, they're bad because banning access to different ideas is always bad. Because every book has a lesson to teach us (perhaps not the lesson intended by the author, but a lesson nonetheless).

[cupofearlgreytea]

nothing can come in between a girl and her obsession for complex complicated fucked up toxic deliriously in love relationships

[adeadgirlspoetry]

[sunnyouth]

If I told you to leave, would you still find a reason to stay?

sunnyouth

[myfandomrealitea]

Ok so...I've been thinking: is it true that there's an actual irredimable media?

IMO media is only truly bad when its specifically intended to cause harm or is just a blatant act of bigotry. Media is media. Media is supposed to tell a story, invoke thought, express things. Such things don't need redemption.

I mean I'll be blatantly honest and say after watching A Serbian Film I just... Didn't get it. If there was a message within it beyond the corrupt and horrific world of extreme pornography then it was lost on me. But assuming that was the message, the film did its job well. It told a story. The things shown in the film are the story. Contrary to my view, most people think its a horrific and damning piece of media that needs to be outlawed and everyone involved shot on sight.

Unless a piece of media was just a flagrant display of bigotry or something truly intended to be blatantly offensive with no ulterior goal, thinking of media as something that needs to be redeemed is just... Pointless, honestly.

JoJo Rabbit, for example. Many people were outraged that such a terrible era was turned into a slashy comedy, but those people also missed the very important messages conveyed in the movie. Does the film owe them redemption, or do they owe the film self-reflection?

[wordswithloveee]

[thepersonalwords]

A relationship is the union of two psychological systems.

Sharon Salzberg, Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection

[ominousblob]

//Ive always been a little jealous

[usefulquotes7]

Don't ever lie to me, i understand a lot of shit, ain't no need to lie. be real with me, i respect honesty no matter how bad it is.

[wovi]

*

peter a. levine, waking the tiger