This struggle of problematic favs is so real! I definitely think reading other voices like Octavia Butler (such a badass), can help take some of the 'magical sheen' off the white heroes we're just in the habit of admiring. It's like if you've been told a Mars bar is 'chocolate' all your life, then when you finally sink your teeth into a 90% cacao bar, you're going to almost recoil a bit at first. Like, "what the fuck is this???" but then you realize, "oh my god, this is so much better than whatever the hell I had before." Still, I get it. Somedays I just need those 'comfort' characters that were on-screen and heroized for me when I was a child and times were simpler. There's no shame in that. And hopefully, our generation continues to make art with more diverse voices and heroines so that by the time our children grow up, their 'comfort characters' will be someone other than a white man. Great topic!
This struggle of problematic favs is so real! I definitely think reading other voices like Octavia Butler (such a badass), can help take some of the 'magical sheen' off the white heroes we're just in the habit of admiring. It's like if you've been told a Mars bar is 'chocolate' all your life, then when you finally sink your teeth into a 90% cacao bar, you're going to almost recoil a bit at first. Like, "what the fuck is this???" but then you realize, "oh my god, this is so much better than whatever the hell I had before." Still, I get it. Somedays I just need those 'comfort' characters that were on-screen and heroized for me when I was a child and times were simpler. There's no shame in that. And hopefully, our generation continues to make art with more diverse voices and heroines so that by the time our children grow up, their 'comfort characters' will be someone other than a white man. Great topic!