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pauraque_bk) wrote2004-06-22 01:06 pm
pauraque_bk) wrote2004-06-22 01:06 pm
odds :: Gay characters in YA lit :: ends
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eponis asked a good question the other day: Didn't Fred and George ever wonder why this bloke named Pettigrew was always shown on the map in Ron's dorm?scarah2 has a post on the perennially popular topic of whether particular characters may be gay in JKR's mind, regardless of whether she'll ever tell us so.This put me in mind of a discussion
keladryb and I recently had on the subject, more focused on whether JKR can/would explicitly state that a character is gay in the books. I'm not sure what purpose it would serve, beyond diversity for the sake of it. Remus is already figuratively queer, so it would seem a bit odd to make him literally queer as well, wouldn't it?We agreed that JKR can write whatever she wants; no one could possibly stop her. We also discussed the precedent of gay characters in children's/young adult literature. Kel brought up Annie On My Mind, one of the very first YA novels about gay characters.
I've read Annie On My Mind, and it was pretty frank for the age-bracket it was aimed at. With that as a standard of what's acceptable, allowing Remus Lupin to be gay as a small part of an epic series seems like something that should be taken in stride.
Yet, it doesn't feel like it would be taken that way, at least not to me. We talked about the fact that Annie On My Mind is not just a novel with gay characters, it's a gay novel. You'd know that as soon as you read the back cover. It's in its right place on the Gay Interest shelf, where it's easy to avoid if you don't like it.
But mentioning at this point in the HP series that Remus is gay -- that's quite different. It tells us that he's a human being first, a teacher, a wizard, an expert on dark creatures, a person who makes mistakes -- all these things first, and then he also happens to be gay. It tells us that being gay isn't the end-all-be-all of someone's personality and life experience. It tells us that there isn't a great divide in the world with all the gay people conveniently Over There on their proper shelf where you don't have to see them (separate but equal).
And that's what I think would cause the controversy if JKR did decide to tell us Remus is queer. Even if it was only a passing, minor point -- perhaps especially if it was a minor point -- the message that being gay simply isn't anything to get worked up about is something I think a lot of people would have a huge problem with in a very mainstream YA series.
Any thoughts?
On a totally different note: If you, like so many of us, are possessed by an unexpected love for movie!Remus, go here to add 'lupin's cardigan' to your interest list.
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And I think it'd be easier than you think to incorporate canon homosexuality into the books without it necessarily being a big deal. It wouldn't even have to be onscreen. You could have Ron showing up wide-eyed and red-faced, Hermione hot on his heels berating him for staring slack-jawed at Lavender and Parvati kissing because, "it's rude!" and Ron saying "But... kissing!" and Harry saying "Lavender and Parvati?" and Hermione telling him, "Honestly, Harry, do you notice nothing that goes on?" and you could pretty much wrap it up there, having established that yeah, gay teenagers exist in Britain, it's not a big deal, and they exist in the wizarding equivalent too.
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Of course Rowling would probably get some backlash - the accusation of shoehorning in a "gay agenda" or of being too strait-laced to present a "here, queer, get used to it" character or of her selection of those characters to "represent" gayness (since you can find faults in virtually any HP character you care to mention) - but since anything she does will draw fire from some corner, that shouldn't stop her.
Now you've made me want to see it happen in the series!