In which we stretch an analogy a little ...

[blamebrampton]

I was talking with a lovely young person earlier today about her idea for an hp_religion fest. Despite the fact that I am a godless heathen, I find religion endlessly fascinating and think that it works very well as a lens through which to view the Potterverse (obviously, since the author was consciously constructing a Christian allegory in parts).

Thinking about this, I had an epiphany of sorts, which relates strongly to the current brouhaha* on mpreg among my fandom friends.

My atheism does not affect the religiosity of some of my friends. Their beliefs do not affect my atheism. I would consider it the height of rudeness to tell them they cannot believe in their sundry gods, and they, after a cursory effort to convert me in a few cases, do not tell me that I must believe in one of their religions.

Some of them do believe that I am going to hell. Some of them believe that I am missing some basic truth of the universe. I believe that they believe in something a bit basically odd. Every now and then I have one of those conversations that goes: 'But how can you believe there's nothing?' 'How can you believe in something that is obviously an anthropological artefact?' 'No seriously, nothing? How?!'

However, in both cases, it doesn't matter. My lack of belief, my friends' beliefs, they are things that are important to US, not things that we need each other to adopt. The things that unite us, that bind us, are far deeper and more important.

Similarly, I think that there are lots of things in fandom that we take very very personally, but they are important to us as individuals, and when we try to make the personal public, it's just a recipe for disaster.

One of my friends loves mpreg because it soothes her soul, one of them loves it because it allows her to investigate whole new ideas in stories. I think it's fairly daft because I think stories about babies and pregnancy are essentially daft, just as I don't like avocado and am the least romantic person in the world. It doesn't matter! I leave more avocado for pushdragon ! My mpreg atheism does not weaken anyone's mpreg faith! It's exactly the same as the way that gay marriage doesn't weaken straight marriages.

Anyway, heathen_archive , come back! Maggie and Liz, chins up! And everyone else, like what you like, even if it's not me ;-)


* It's certainly more than a kerfuffle, but not yet a schism, and too personal to some to be considered wank.

Comments

[oldenuf2nb.livejournal.com]

I thought of you this morning. Sarah Palin's comic book drops today, and the idiots are out in droves all over Michigan to shake he tiny little hand. All white and middle class, of course. I cringe at the name she gives this country world wide. Time to move to Tahiti, clearly.

I saw what was going on, and other than a small comment at one friends post, refrained. This is a no win argument. I don't understand the vehemence, but I know that it's there. I do think, however, (putting on my thinky thoughts hat and holding my finger in the air, a la McGonnagall) that there does appear to be a bit of 'looking down the nose' on not only the genre, but the people who enjoy mpreg, as if it were a lesser genre, if you will. And I think the unfortunate part of that is that a good bit of it is, in fact, poorly written. For me, (and to be utterly honest here, when I first heard of mpreg, I had a great big ole WTF reaction) I only wrote it to begin with because I wanted to see if I could do it. I now have a not so secret love of the well written boys with babies, but I certainly understand why others don't. I guess what I don't get is why it can't be just another case of; yep, not for me!

My thought, and this is the cynic in me, (You see darling Brammers, you are not the only one)is that it's the trendy thing to list as a squick. Go through any fest list, and read down. Eight out of ten entries with list mpreg as a squick. And I can't help but wonder if they really don't like it, or it's a case of 'well, everyone else says they hate it'. But then, I'm old, and have watched many a generation of younger n'me have a pack mentality in terms of likes and dislikes.

And in regards to religion; Ah, the last great ticking time bomb. I recently had a fascinating conversation with a woman who does people's charts based on the Mayan calendar. Yes, the Mayan calendar of 2012 fame, a theory that made her giggle by the way. Anyway, according to her, I have reached the end of my personal calendar this year. At 52, you start over. Well, that would be nice, if those spare parts you mentioned were included. At any rate, I find myself questioning the existence not of God, but of rational thought in regards to God. So, I'm either a heretic, or going straight to hell, choose your poison.

[themostepotente.livejournal.com]

Hey, I'm in Michigan and am so not shaking Palin's hand :P lol

[mizbean.livejournal.com]

I've also been staying out of this discussion because I really don't have a vested interest in mpreg, but I had to respond to this part of your post:)

Go through any fest list, and read down. Eight out of ten entries with list mpreg as a squick. And I can't help but wonder if they really don't like it, or it's a case of 'well, everyone else says they hate it'.

I don't know. I think it's more likely they either don't like it at all, may like it on occasion, but don't want it in their fest fic or they are very picky about sort of fics they enjoy, so it's easier just to say no.

I'm going to use myself as an example. I always list darkfic as a squick when I sign up for fests when I actually enjoy reading darkfic on occasion. I'm very picky about it though, and instead of spelling out exactly what squicks me about certain darkfics, I'd rather just lump the whole genre in as my squick and have my gift-writer concentrate on the sort of fics I do like.

I think it's also a bit cumbersome to use fest sign-ups as a guide to what is popular in fandom. Fest sign-ups are supposed to reflect what someone wants as a gift, and that may not match up with the what that particular person is already reading. Maybe they're dead sick of reading mpreg fics and would rather read something else.

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

That all sounds eminently reasonable!

[blamebrampton.livejournal.com]

You are a GENIUS! Imagine how well it would have done had it been a comic! She and her publishers really missed a trick there.

You're right, of course, about the whole push-button issueness of mpreg, but I find myself wondering if it comes down to the same sort of yea or nay beliefs as anthropogenic climate change or as stone wash jeans. Increasingly it seems the former, people are willing to go to the mat over a question of taste, which baffles me.

Spare parts would make me so very happy ... And all of my fave religious figures were heretics in their day. More of it, I say!