odds :: Gay characters in YA lit :: ends

[pauraque_bk]

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?

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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?

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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.

Comments

[pedantic-celia.livejournal.com]

I want there to be a gay character in the books. I'm sick of subtext. I'm sick of metaphor. I'm sick of people telling me that my own sexuality is not suitable for children, that gay people ought not to be around children, lest children get any funny ideas. Oh, sure, people say things like "It would be confusing". Yeah, right. Children will be so confused, they might start thinking it's okay. We can't have that, can we. People also say "well, who would let their child read a book that was full of gay stuff?" because all homosexuality is to some of you is a rampant bunch of hornies having a bunch of sex for pornographic purposes. Gay people apparently don't have relationships like straight people do, because heterosexuality is fine and dandy for a kid's book, but homosexuality has to be shrouded in some cheap metaphor, so that the writer can say "Look, I addressed the gay issue too!" without actually adressing any shit, because if anyone complained, she could just say "What are you talking about, it's just a story about a werewolf" and therefore nothing is challenged, no-one has their prejudices addressed and we all go home vaguely dissatisfied. Fun for all the pseudo-liberal family!

I loathe the idea of lycanthropy as a metaphor for homosexuality. I think it's vile. Yes, absolutely, gay people are a danger to children, yes, they have to be prevented from attacking children, yes, they all have a contagious disease FUCK RIGHT OFF. Don't give me any of that "but Remus isn't like that" shit. If he doesn't take his potion, he is. If that's a metaphor for homosexuality, it smacks of "Take this course of pseudo-scientific therapy and learn to control your sinful urges" shit. It works much, much better as a metaphor for a psychotic illness, right up to the prejudices of others. To a fucking T.

The issue of homosexuality seems pathetically easy to address. There's a group that's obsessed with the purity of the magical race. They want only pure-blooded magical people in their world. So they'll certainly be wanting to breed more purebloods, won't they? And do you know who doesn't do much in the way of breeding (traditionally)? Gay people! That's right, the Death Eaters also crack down on "inverts", which is the cue for some gay character to speak out about how worried they are. It's got potential, and I am so revolted by people who think that, in books which supposedly purport to address issues of inequality, that the slashy subtext is more important than showing actual gay characters because, heavens, we like our hot boyz kissing, but we wouldn't let our children hear about that kind of perversion.

[pauraque]

I've no idea who you are, but you're being rude. Chill.

If you're interested at all, I addressed some of what you bring up here in a previous comment:

I understand why a lot of people don't like to see him as allegorically queer for these reasons. But it somehow doesn't read like queer-is-scary to me -- I end up separating the fantasy/plotty elements from the allegorical/emotional ones, if that makes any sense.

I'm queer, by the way.