According to the New York Times, I read my fantasy for the sex.
Which surprises me, because I always thought I loved the complex characters, intriguing world-building, and stimulating plot lines. Most of the fantasy books I own are sans sex and sans erotica. So when the New York Times told me I only enjoyed fantasy for the sex, I had to wonder why it is I rarely read romance novels… and when the New York Times ended up with a telepath on their staff.
I think this article, about the new HBO series A Game of Thrones, was written by a female author. Maybe I’m looking at the name wrong (Ginia Bellafante). But if Bellafante (assuming this isn’t a pseudonym) is female, it surprises me that she’s so down on her own gender’s intelligence level and willing to ascribe motives that have nothing to do with good journalism, and everything to do with her own prejudices. Now, if Bellafante is male, well, THAT explains everything because men can’t possibly understand what women see in fantasy ( <- see here how I do to this author what (s)he did to the entire female gender? That’s not kosher).
I saw a lot of tweets about that article, some from female fantasy authors, who were upset with Bellafante’s premise that “women only like fantasy for the sex.” I’m glad I saw those tweets. It means I’m not alone. Bellafante specifically referred to the t.v. series, though, alluding that HBO added sex to get female viewership. Okay, yes, A Game of Thrones has a lot of sex and violence in it. I know this, and I haven’t seen the HBO series. All I’ve done is read the books. Guess what? The books have a lot of sex and violence too. It’s part of the world, the plot, a bit of background that tells you more about the characters through their actions.
The slant of the article makes me believe (s)he didn’t even read the books. In which case, what business does (s)he have writing a review of the show? I guess my main problem with the review is that the author is so dead set on telling us why we do the things we do instead of saying “I don’t like this series due to the sex and violence.” If you don’t like the series, you don’t like the series. It’s your opinion. You’re entitled to it. But don’t tell me why I like to read (and write) fantasy unless you can point to the science or the polls to prove your point. Last time I checked, the only person who fully understood my motivations was me.
Even my parents don’t claim that they know what’s going through my head. Of course, I’m not sure they really want to…
