I have been lurking in this sub for a bit, and I have seen many criticisms of books because the reader dislikes what they consider misogynistic elements, or racist, sexist, homophobic elements. My question is, can a book be good/great, even if the author makes you feel uncomfortable? Why does the author’s style, or a character need to prescribe to a specific concept of morality to be an acceptable read?
Personally, I don’t understand why certain language or topics are a no go for folks. If a story is good, it shouldn’t matter. I also think reading things that don’t align with your beliefs, is generally a great way to expand your mind, and make you a wiser person.
I’ll answer with a specific example. I tend to be turned off by books that have characters that espouse cultural feminism. This is because it’s a philosophy many in my life have followed, and I personally(as a feminist myself) feel that it’s an extremely harmful form of feminism that creates many more problems than it solves. So when I encounter it in a book, that’s an immediate red flag, warning lights flashing, what is this? Does it have an agenda? Critical reading engaged!
There’s three ways it can go from that initial surge of repulsion and alert:
While a character holds these beliefs, they’re shown(or implied) to be untrue. The philosophy is subverted, rather than reinforced. These are good books that I will recommend, albeit with a warning that it might seem dodgy there for a while but trust.
Or maybe these beliefs go unchallenged. Maybe their truthful status is central to the plot, part of the thesis of the book. I do not enjoy these books, and I can’t recommend them.
Or, the third option, is that these beliefs seem to be present in the material, but aren’t central to the plot or premise. The author’s bias is seeping in, but their thesis is in another castle, so to speak. These books are…eh. Complicated. I may or may not like them. It depends on how egregiously it offends. I might even recommend them, but with a caveat.