Does this mean I get an influx of anti-feminist trolls?

[ljwrites]

A couple of days ago I got an anonymous comment on an old post about sucky historical fiction. It's certainly not the first negative comment I've received--I have received some, especially on the Zutara posts--but it is the first, as far as I remember, that takes me to task for having a "typical feminist vibe." How dare I, for instance, say a book was ill-written just because it has a racist character? (I didn't.) Why did I think it was necessary to make an ethical and feminist criticism of a rape scene written for erotic enjoyment? (...Seriously?) And the greatest sin of all: How could I unfairly expect historical accuracy of comics, and be dumb enough to think comics are a source for historical research? (LOLWHUT NO THIS is my research, bitch.)

It was a busy two days watching Legend of Korra and working, so today I finally got around to dishing out the verbal whumping that the comment so richly deserved. I don't know how the anon found that particular post, since I have reviewed much more prominent works that some fraction of English speakers are actually likely to consume, but better not look a gift horse in the mouth.

Most of all, I wonder if this means that MRAs and assorted anti-feminists have discovered my journal and I can expect our anon to bring along friends to yell at the mean feminist. I already directed the anon to my feminism tag so they can get properly outraged. I feel like I've been preparing for this my whole life, there's so much MRA bait here. How about a book review using the dread feminist construct, rape culture? The one where I pillory a romantically-minded white knight who is no doubt a Nice Guy(TM) all around? Or the one where I criticize the rhetorical tactics of the leading MRA outlet A Voice for Men?

Could I have I finally hit the big time, at least with disgruntled sexists? One can only hope--MRAs are always so hilarious to spar with.

Comments

[lb_lee]

I'm sorry, LJ. He insulted my medium. I had to go and give a piece of my mind. I know that you've got the history and Korean bit totally covered, but he pissed me off with that snooty, "Ugh, comics are purely for ENTERTAINMENT, you can't have STANDARDS for them."

As someone who makes educational mental health comics, I'm sure you understand.

--Rogan

[ljwrites]

You did good, man! Along with all the OTHER problems with his arguments, it was galling how he declared that a medium can only be what HE allows it to be. So it was great to see someone better versed in the medium take him down.

Seriously, fuck his criticism-silencing tactics for all time.

Edit: I seem to have forgotten my own policy of leaving gender indeterminate unless I know for sure. I'll leave it as is to remind myself of my mistake. And also, let's face it, given experience the person is at least 80% likely to be a he.

[lb_lee]

I have no idea what the reputation of manhwa is in Korea, but in the US, comics are often derided as an inferior medium, and that you can't possibly have standards for it because IT'S COMICS trololol.

It's total bullshit, but it's POPULAR bullshit. In my opinion, it only shows the limitations of the person spouting it, since memoir comics have really become popular in the US indy comics scene in the past few years. (You might have heard of Maus, or Fun Home. Maus predates the fad, but arguably started it off.)

Also it totally smacks down the work that I do, and a bunch of other people do. There are so many great educational nonfiction comics out there, about bee behavior and biology, economics, advertising, the Wire Mother monkey experiments, the autism anti-vax bullshit... they're great!

I dunno, that sneering condescension and asking whether you're a female SCREAMS clueless dumbass dude to me. It's not IMPOSSIBLE you got a female sexist, just kinda unlikely. (Since what would a female sexist have to hold over you and claim superiority?)

--Rogan

[ljwrites]

I love Maus! In fact I was talking about it to a friend just the other day. There are now some fairly serious manwha in Korea, too, dealing with real-life issues like the complexity of corporate life. And of course there's the more traditional cartoonish stuff, which is fine too. But NONE of it is without standards or above criticism. As I said in more detail to dhampyresa below, this "comics can't be criticized" bullcrap doesn't seem anything other than a tactic to silence and devalue media criticism.

I've been reading about the antics of JudgyBitch on We Hunted the Mammoth, so I didn't want to completely discount the possibility that the commenter was non-male. But you're right, they probably are.

[lb_lee]

Yeah, I figured, even though I have maybe read one manhwa in my life, because... MEDIUM IS NOT GENRE. I figure in any country that has comics, there's going to be some serious nonfiction ones.

Oh, Judgy. Rock on, you strange, strange diamond. I encountered her a few times, back before I left Mammoth, and she was a strange, strange person. It felt like talking to a chatbot who is responding to something totally different than what you're actually saying.

--Rogan

[dhampyresa]

I surprised you could stop laughing long enough to answer. Standard-less entertainment? WHAT.

[ljwrites]

It's why it took me two whole days to get a hold of myself! The insistence on standard-less entertainment is just than an attempt to silence critics, often used by rabid fans. ("It's just a movie/novel/comic/game/etc., what are you so serious about?" "It's a commercial product, if it sells it's fine!")

The mind-blowing part is, I am 99% sure the commenter has never seen any of the works I criticized and doesn't have any emotional stake in them. In other words, the only reason they were pissed off by my post was that I made it at all--from a feminist and ethical perspective, as they stated. This is a person who is pissed that feminist media critique exists, and probably that feminism exists. Wow.