tumblr really has this terrible habit of getting into things that they actually do like, recognizing its flaws, but then instead of just Accepting that its flawed in some places & nothing is perfect they like………….feel the need to Justify Themselves by complaining. bashing on it every time they talk about it & calling it absolute garbage & saying the creator is the absolute worst. and i do not get it.
if i ever get to that point where i can’t think about some form of media w/o thinking its trash/i could do better/how the creator sees the world makes me bitter, i just. stop following it. it’s beyond “just because i like something doesn’t mean i can’t criticize it” it’s just insisting that you Be Mean And Continue To Be Mean about a cartoon & it’s creator.
The beauty of high fantasy is that it isn’t limited to the specific biases of our contemporary culture. Why do elves, dwarves, and dragons need a gender binary? Whose to say their societies aren’t matriarchal? Why can’t same-gender relationships commonplace? Why can’t dark skin and afro-style hair be considered an epitome of beauty?
My favorite type of high fantasy is the kind that flips our culture on its head and demonstrates that our constructs and prejudices aren’t universal or necessary. This also gives you the opportunity to come up with biases of your own, apart from the “elves hate everyone” cliche. Maybe dwarves are really prejudiced towards redheads, or elves think people who can’t curl their tongues are inferior. Maybe it’s the satirist in me talking, but I love the idea of a high fantasy novel showing the inherent absurdity of unjustified prejudice.
I haven’t written a high fantasy yet; at the moment, I’m more of an urban fantasy kind of gal. But when I do, I intend to make Terry Pratchett’s ghost proud.
