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Reality for Romantic Heads?
An interesting editorial in today's Tucson Citizen newspaper suggests that the psychological effects of romance novels and erotica to readers (mostly females) is equal to the harmful effects of porn on men. Specifically, the author suggests that romantic and erotica stories perpetuate the concept of an "ideal" male who is all things: good-looking, successful, and sensitive and attentive--all things unrealistically unattainable. The author states, in effect, that such writings instigate dissatisfaction in marriages and long-term relationships. She states she wishes erotic novels were gone.
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Well. I'm not sure I agree and the editorial cites no psychological research as substantiation of the author's claim. I looked into the credentials of the author-- she's a Harvard grad, but studied public policy and economics, working as an analyst on Wall Street--not exactly a Dr. Phil, yet she's published several books about the inner workings of the mind of women about men. Hmmm.
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Why DO 64 million women read romance and erotica each year? Is it to make them feel crappy about their own miserable lives--that they're missing something special "out there," as the editorial author writes?
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Don't readers recognize the differences between fantasy and reality? Could a positive outcome of romance and erotica be a stimulant for spicing up one's own love life?
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I'll be looking into the research on this and post an update soon.
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4 comments:
Why DO 64 million women read romance and erotica each year? - because they are too embarassed to rent porn. - blu
I ahve been saying that for years ,Mills and boone /harlequin are responsible for as many failed marriages as cheating husbands. They give people a false sense of reality, Love isn't rippling muscles or multiple orgasms its paying the bills when you'd rather spend the money on a new car, Its watching tv when you want to go to the bar its swallowing when you want to spit
It strikes me that most literature is a "reach exceeds your grasp" kind of thing. Would women want to read about a hairy guy who picks his nose and talks about baseball all the time?
Books are supposed to be uplifting or thought-provoking, not just little vignettes about the mind-numbing ordinary.
Keep doing what you do.
BTW, I like to visit your blog just about every day, and I enjoy it.
R
Some poignant and laugh-out-loud comments here and all ringing with some bits of truth. See my next blog entry, expanding on these comments.
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