On Drawing The Line

[santiago]

Hi I'm new to the forum so this response is mainly a test, but since you are on the subject of dark, sexual and violent, I'm curious if there are any of you who think there are lines that should not be crossed when writing fictional literature. If so, where do you draw the line?

 

[Stewart]

I'm curious if there are any of you who think there are lines that should not be crossed when writing fictional literature. If so, where do you draw the line?

There should be no line. It's called freedom of speech.

 

[saliotthomas]

There should be no line. It's called freedom of speech.

Freedom of speeche end when it become armfull to others.Been a mod ,it's something you are well acqainted with.
Books would glorify race extermination,pedophile,racialisme..are coming against laws.
A book like american psycho does not glorify crime,or lolita pedophily.But a book in witch such abuse would be praise and encourage should be "baned".

It is a very sensitive subjet.Censorship is obsiously bad but nontheless necessary in some case.

 

[abecedarian]

Freedom of speeche end when it become armfull to others.Been a mod ,it's something you are well acqainted with.
Books would glorify race extermination,pedophile,racialisme..are coming against laws.
A book like american psycho does not glorify crime,or lolita pedophily.But a book in witch such abuse would be praise and encourage should be "baned".

It is a very sensitive subjet.Censorship is obsiously bad but nontheless necessary in some case.

I understand your point, but on the other hand writers who espose such evil ideas are quickly exposed for what they are...if the public can read their ideas. The problem with banning and censorship is that due to human nature being what it is, if 'we' are are told not to taste, touch, see, hear..or read...that forbidden thing becomes exalted in our eyes and we wonder what's so special about it. Far better to let rubbish be published and read so people can say for themselves, "hey, that's utter garbage!" It is far better to encourage debate and discussion.

 

[saliotthomas]

I understand your point, but on the other hand writers who espose such evil ideas are quickly exposed for what they are...if the public can read their ideas. The problem with banning and censorship is that due to human nature being what it is, if 'we' are are told not to taste, touch, see, hear..or read...that forbidden thing becomes exalted in our eyes and we wonder what's so special about it. Far better to let rubbish be published and read so people can say for themselves, "hey, that's utter garbage!" It is far better to encourage debate and discussion.

It's is a very difficult question and i would agree with you on a small scale(I would allow my kids to read anything trusting their judgement)
A comparaison came be made with the use of drugs-By forbidding drugs we accourage teenagers to try it,and worst by poor communication about them we mix in there mind hard and soft ones-"i smoke a joint,it's ok ,so maybe the rest is to"
By allowing certain discussion we give them a credibility they should not have.

I really feel like the devil advocat here,and i an not for sencorship,but to preserve freedom of speech on a large scale,rules have to exist.
It's clearer for movies,and i 'm sure that it's quite obvious that a film showing an holocaust as a proper thing could not go public,or child abuse as a funny thing could not be shown.
People would see it as a curiosity,a scandalous thing.But watch it all the same.I do not think it would be any good.

But again it is a difficult question,and sencorship as to be watch closely as a necessary evil

 

[beer good]

a film showing an holocaust as a proper thing could not go public,or child abuse as a funny thing could not be shown.

There are plenty of movies about the Holocaust, not to mention tons of horror movies in which people are killed in the most gruesome ways. And give me a moment and I'm sure I could compile a list of films in which child abuse is played for laughs (the playground scene in Braindead springs to mind).

Point is, it's fiction. It's not real. As long as anyone isn't stupid enough to try it themselves, the books themselves don't hurt a single living thing. Why ban that? (Not to mention that it's very difficult to come up with standards for what is to be considered acceptable.)

 

[saliotthomas]

Deep down i agree with you all,it's just for the sake of the argument.
Anyway sencorship exist already at different stage of creation, far more subtule and clever than if it was done by writen rules.

 

[Violanthe]

Lines can and should be crossed... however, in a free society we have a built-in and very fair type of censorship. You can put as much darkness and violence out there, but if people are offended, they simply won't read it.

 

[santiago]

Thanks for the response.

I agree that freedom of speech is an important value and in order to preserve this value we must take the good with the bad. However what I meant by my question was to find out if any of you have personal boundaries.

As a writer I think it is important to push the envelope, but I am always cautious about dealing with sex and violence in an irresponsible manner. I was wondering what methods some of you might use to decide whether something that you have written has become too distasteful or gratuitous. If you have examples of "shock tactics" that you think are used to provoke thought perhaps you could include these in your response.

 

[mr_michel]

you should be able to write whatever you want to, actully all you need is some paper and some ink.
now getting published, distribuited and non cesored by others its a whole different matter

 

[Champagne]

What do you think of the way that schools react to finding that students have written fantasies about killing their schoolmates and blowing up the school? Seems as though many school authorities feel that that's often a precursor to enacting the fantasy.

 

[Robert]

What do you think of the way that schools react to finding that students have written fantasies about killing their schoolmates and blowing up the school? Seems as though many school authorities feel that that's often a precursor to enacting the fantasy.

I think that have to do something. If they do nothing and the child decides to live out his/her fantasy, then they're responsible for not doing anything to stop it.

 

[whit3tig3y]

I recently read a book that had very discriptive sections of rape and sexual assult. It was very disturbing, but it made the book all that more interesting. It made me see things from their point of view, and it got me into the book alot more because the more I knew the more i felt like I was there. It can be upsetting and disturbing sometimes, but I guess you just have to learn to read about these things happening, and use them to get you into the story, but be able to detach yourself from them once the book is closed.

 

[beer good]

I think that have to do something. If they do nothing and the child decides to live out his/her fantasy, then they're responsible for not doing anything to stop it.

I agree that they should be addressed. At the same time, I think there's a danger in overreacting. AFAIK, kids have dreamed about blowing up the school since Plato - hell, telling stories about things we would not actually do is a pretty normal human coping mechanism. Having schools crack down on them and treating them as potential criminals could do more harm than good - if you're 15 and feeling alienated and hostile, having the authorities treat you the same way will hardly help.

 

[Writer44]

Violanthe,

You have it right.

Only thing that worries me is that in the market place of ideas, what do happens when the ignorant take control?

 

[Champagne]

Then major decisions get made on the basis of criteria other than common sense. And things get censored for reasons other than absolute necessity.

 

[sparkchaser]

Well said beer good.