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Post by happyshep on Jun 27, 2009 21:25:01 GMT -5
Have you ever written/read a fic which perhaps through metaphor dealt with a large social/cultural issue? Basically anything in your 'macro world'; the world beyond your personal everyday experience. For example: - a crisis or event, such as a war - racism, discrimination - conflict or misunderstanding between cultures - the workplace, government, laws, media - technological/scientific change
I ask this because I wonder if FF, in most cases being a form of escapism, is concerned wholly with the personal experience of individual characters, or whether it ever attempts to involve itself or comment on broader social issues.
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Post by mpbrennan on Jun 27, 2009 22:49:35 GMT -5
I few months ago I started writing a fic that was just intended as an adventure. I followed the common LotR plot of Gilraen's journey to Rivendell with two-year-old Aragorn. Much to my surprise, as I wrote it the piece evolved into something deeper. It ended up being a commentary on the effect of war on families and children--what happens when children are caught in the crossfire, as well as the ramifications of using child soldiers even for the most noble purpose. At the same time, it did focus pretty closely on Gilraen's personal tragedy. The broader theme was woven through as a subplot, but it did end up being fairly central to the story. While it didn't deal with a current event, the issue seemed relevant to today's world. Now I'm working on another long fic--this one in the Battlestar Galactica universe--that deals with the debate over torture.
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Post by E Fish on Jun 28, 2009 11:00:09 GMT -5
I have a series I've been writing, called the CIA Series (I am not known for my creative titles) and it so far has three stories in it. The first one began as me writing down a dream I'd had, but it has since evolved into something a bit more than that. It's a look at the ambiguities that govern the federal agencies, people's individual rights vs. what they owe to their country, how a single person can be thrown into something not of his own making and not be able to get out. It's about one single person (Tim McGee) but those issues are a big part of it. I also have an OC who is the head of the CIA and I've enjoyed showing his perspective on things like 9/11, spying, things like that. I feel that there are few clear-cut decisions that are made at the national and international level and I dislike that they are made that way in the media.
I'm also working on a story about male rape. The plot, when it popped into my head, rather shocked me because I've avoided those kinds of things, but as much as it is so far about Tim's horrible experience, it's also a broader commentary on public perception of rape which is, in my view, still incredibly callous. And male rape is even worse because men are, in the minds of the general public, supposed to be able to take care of themselves and if they don't then they secretly wanted it to happen.
The short answer is yes, I think fanfiction can also be a template for looking at difficult social issues.
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Post by SR DEVASTE on Jul 6, 2009 18:53:32 GMT -5
It auctually really really bothers me when people bring macro events into the fanfiction world. For one it usually takes the characters out of the storyline. And Two it often feels like the writer is pushing their own agenda. I want to read fanfiction not propaganda.
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Post by stealthdragon on Jul 7, 2009 23:07:19 GMT -5
I haven't written such fic myself - at least, not that I know of. I have contemplated stories that dealt with larger social issues, but they never went anywhere. But I have read quite a few stories that deal with some of the mentioned events.
Personally, I'm not always a fan of such stories. They can be difficult to read depending on my own personal views and beliefs. Sometimes a story will feel like it's pushing an opinion rather than exploring an event: focus on the black and white while disregarding the gray. A few stories will even turn a main character into a sort of "bad guy" in order to bring the issue up.
I think that's why I have difficulty writing such stories myself. It's too easy to give into personal opinion and portray those opinions as fact rather than truly explore the issue.
The stories that did well in exploring an issue - that is, the stories that worked well for me, at least - were those where the issue came up within the story, rather than the issue being the story.
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Post by E Fish on Jul 12, 2009 10:45:14 GMT -5
I'd like to think that I have been able to show the issues without thumping the podium about them. Characters make comments based on how I picture they might feel about things. Sometimes, they agree with me...sometimes they don't. I won't pretend that I don't sometimes put out ideas that are simply my own within the plot, but I think that can be done effectively without being in-your-face about it. I also do tons of research for every story I write and I try to be accurate with every element (to the degree I can find info about it...it's hard to make things accurate when you're writing about an agency whose very existence was denied until the late 70s).
I haven't centered any story on a specific, real-life event. Rather, I've taken current social issues and added them to the story I've already been writing. ...but people have their own preferences.
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