I'm trying to phrase this and it's very difficult for me to find the right words, so bear with me.
I think the literary world has an obligation to explore everything which can be explored with words. I don't feel each writer needs to personally carry that obligation, but that they should push themselves to the boundaries with which they feel comfortable pushing. I do not believe a censure should ever hold someone back (with the exception of child pornography). The written word should explore everything. Love, hate, death, sex, murder, push all boundaries, find new ways of exploring social mores.
We should always be willing to explore the boundaries, as writers, and to push them as far as we can. I'm not saying that someone who doesn't want to write sex should. I'm saying someone who wants to, or who wants to try to, should. And they shouldn't be censured for it.
The same goes for any topic. Murder, rape, death, incest, mental disorders, self harm, pregnancy, etc.
With the exception of child pornography, I see no stone that should be left unturned in the written word. Why should anyone keeps us from writing down the world as we explore it? Why shouldn't we be able to share what we create in our minds? Who has the right to take that away from us, to take the words we write and demean and belittle them?
I recently came across a writer who wrote things I would never in my life want to read, but I would defend their right to write it. And I think that respect should be honored between readers and writers. I'll write whatever I want and you can read whatever you want and not read what you don't.
My words do not to change for your eyes and your eyes do not need to change for my words.
[Damn, I wrote a novel there, didn't I? ]
I think the literary world has an obligation to explore everything which can be explored with words. I don't feel each writer needs to personally carry that obligation, but that they should push themselves to the boundaries with which they feel comfortable pushing. I do not believe a censure should ever hold someone back (with the exception of child pornography). The written word should explore everything. Love, hate, death, sex, murder, push all boundaries, find new ways of exploring social mores.
We should always be willing to explore the boundaries, as writers, and to push them as far as we can. I'm not saying that someone who doesn't want to write sex should. I'm saying someone who wants to, or who wants to try to, should. And they shouldn't be censured for it.
The same goes for any topic. Murder, rape, death, incest, mental disorders, self harm, pregnancy, etc.
With the exception of child pornography, I see no stone that should be left unturned in the written word. Why should anyone keeps us from writing down the world as we explore it? Why shouldn't we be able to share what we create in our minds? Who has the right to take that away from us, to take the words we write and demean and belittle them?
I recently came across a writer who wrote things I would never in my life want to read, but I would defend their right to write it. And I think that respect should be honored between readers and writers. I'll write whatever I want and you can read whatever you want and not read what you don't.
My words do not to change for your eyes and your eyes do not need to change for my words.
[Damn, I wrote a novel there, didn't I? ]
February 6th, 2010 at 06:28am