fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #4718 ]

[ SECRET POST #4718 ]

⌈ Secret Post #4718 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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05. [SPOILERS for season 3 of Stranger Things]

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06. [SPOILERS for Frozen 2]

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07. [WARNING for discussion of slavery, non-con drug use]

[Far Cry 5]

Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 00 pages, 00 secrets from Secret Submission Post #675.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I really don't get the Sarah Dessen thing, as in, I don't understand why she and her other YA-author defenders behaved how they did. I've followed the YA community for years so I know the core of their arguments ("books for teenage girls aren't all shallow; girls are important; double standards and misogyny") very well, but they always, always seemed able to to discuss it maturely? And accept that some people just don't like their books and not dogpile random people over it?

On the flipside, as an aside, I don't believe the college student has internalized misogyny, but I think her recommending a book about the US justice system's treatment of black people as an alternative to Dessen's book reeks of white guilt or plain old academic pretentiousness. The class must have had some reason for choosing Dessen's book, so if the student thought the book was too low-level for college, it'd make more sense to recommend a similar book aimed at a college reading level, not a completely different in every way shape and form book.

...reeks of white guilt...

Uh, pretty sure the student... wasn't white. At least, that's what I heard.

Fair enough, I thought I saw a picture of her in one of the posts about it somewhere, but who can trust the internet on that.

I think it was a case of Dessen being waaaay over sensitive about someone saying her Young Adukt novels weren't appropriate for a college level course and taking it as a personal attack. Ridiculous, but lots of authors react that way to criticism.

As for everyone else, I think they didn't bother to find out the context that Dessen didn't include in her original tweet and just took Dessen at her word, circled the wagons, etc. "YA doesn't get the respect it deserves because misogyny" is a very hot topic in those circles. Lots of knee jerk reactions and people beating their chests over what woke women warriors they are, because righteous internet outrage is a hell of a drug.

The whole thing was fucking nuts, but I do wonder which one of Dessen’s books was recommended. Like, was it Saint Anything where the MC’s brother goes to jail for a drunk hit and run? Or Dreamland where the MC’s boyfriend gets arrested for domestic abuse? Maybe one of those could’ve prompted the college student to pick a book about the US justice system.

How is suggesting a interesting challenging book that happens to be about the flaws and racism in the justice system 'academic pretentiousness?' It's a college, not a summer reading list for kids. From my understanding this wasn't just for a recommended reading list but for a 'Common Read,' meaning one book that is recommended for the *entire school* to read. It's often required for freshman to read and there are often even seminars geared around it. A book about the justice system seems way more suitable for that than even an entertaining but ultimately fluffy book aimed at high schoolers.

Right? It ties in with a suspicion of mine that a lot of people have this deeply buried, stubborn streak of anti-intellectualism. Smart is good! But "too smart" is baaaaaad and pretentious.

How is it pretentious? It's a suggested list of books for college level readers, touching upon an extremely relevant subject. It's not weird or out there to recommend it over a YA novel. Sure, the class might've had a reason for choosing Dessen's book, but that assumes their reasoning was sound. The list wasn't just about popularity and suggesting books people read for fun, right?

Because it suggests that a general list of recommended books for college students can only contain books about matters of deep political importance. That is pretentious. There's nothing wrong with having some lighter fare mixed in. It's like how I read all kinds of books in grade school, but when my teachers saw me putting a Sweet Valley Twins book on my Scholastic book order every once in a while they'd have to suggest some Newberry Award-winning "real book" as a better alternative. No, fuck you, there's nothing wrong with having a burger instead of a salad sometimes. Don't snatch every light read out if people's hands and try to replace it with something irrelevant to what they're *currently* interested in reading.

Most reading lists, in my experience, especially school-wide ones, have BARELY anything of deep political importance.

I think you're overreacting. The student's suggestion didn't say that no works of fiction should be permitted, nor did it say that no lighter fare was appropriate. The suggestion was that a young adult novel was not a good choice for a college reading list, and unless that novel is exceptional, I'd tend to agree.

Your analogy doesn't quite work, because Sweet Valley Twins and a Newberry award winning books are at least within your reading level demographic. YA is one level below college. You weren't putting board meant for small kids books on your order, after all.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ SECRET POST #4718 ]

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