Over on the kickstarter for Tales From the Magician’s Skull, there have been a series of essays from some of the authors about their fondness for S&S. I’ve found them to be hit-or-miss, but nice to read nonetheless. So I thought I’d put a few of my own thoughts about a certain topic down.
One thing we hear a lot of concerning S&S, particularly early, pulp-era stories, is the misogyny. All those damsels in distress just waiting to be rescued by men, and all those lurid covers with half-naked women put up for the leering male gaze.
Here’s what those people are missing when they bang this drum: that Sword & Sorcery is a quintessentially sensual genre.
The best stories have the heroes and heroines in life-threatening situations that they barely escape from, using all their physical, and often mental, might. But more so than high fantasy, it is intensely physical, with the action being mostly muscle-driven. Also, the descriptions outside of the action sequences are explained as they appeal to the senses of the characters, and therefor the readers. That is what makes it such a vivid format for stories.
And yes, that sometimes involves semi-nude ladies. And dudes, though this fact is so often overlooked when people criticize what they perceive as problematic elements.
Not all S&S stories are like this, of course, and the more modern manifestations have gotten away from this to a certain extent. We live in a social media-driven culture right now, where those plugged in are pressured to weigh in on such things in as (predictably) negative a fashion as possible, so they might get the fleeting approval of the twitter mob before they move on to the next outrage. And we are conditioned to take offense at EVERYTHING right now.
So when we see a half-naked chick on the cover of a book or magazine, the cry of Misogyny! is probably inevitable. Not to say that a few examples are deserving, but most are not.
And that is sad and disappointing. The human form has been appreciated in art for thousands of years; there is nothing wrong with that. A couple of scantily-clad people in a Sword & Sorcery story or cover does not render it automatically pornographic or problematic, except to the programmed and to those on patrol for outrage.
What it IS, is a reflection on the inherent, visceral sensuality of the genre, since its inception. Mighty-thewed warriors and beautiful women, and mighty-thewed women and beautiful men, are an appreciation of the physical human ideal. Hopefully, most of us can understand and appreciate that!
We absolutely need a new culture of Sword & Sorcery. It seems like every other day you see someone musing about this very question, and I am feeling more and more that the planets are aligning for the impending resurrection of this classic genre.
I feel like we need to develop a new literary language that allows us to express the sensuality and sexiness of Sword & Sorcery in terms of today’s culture. I’m not even opposed to it turning out somewhat transgressive, as long as it is positive and inclusive and not marginalizing anyone.
Hey, Martin, thanks for the thoughtful comments. Could you elaborate a little more on what you mean by literary language?
I agree about being inclusive and not marginalizing anyone, but with the professional outrage class, this is very unlikely. Someone will be offended, no matter what you do.
I checked out your blog, and I like it. I think we are in agreement on core issues. I am interested in the world and story you are developing. Still reading through it…
What I mean is that we need to revise the archetypes, tropes, and symbolism that give Sword & Sorcery its identity and unique atmosphere. Not ditching them, because that would steal it of the things that define it, but rethinking how the underlying ideas and emotions can be presented in ways that reflect our contemporary sensibilities. Having Conan in a loincloth on a pile of corpses with two naked ladies hugging his legs will not get you taken serious by anyone today.
But I think people are still very receptive of the underlying emotions of “I live, I burn with life, I love, I slay, and am content.” But we need to evoke those emotions through different imagery and interactions.
I think one great example that did something like that in recent years was the movie Fury Road. To me it absolutely nails all the key traits that make Sword & Sorcery work, except for Joe not having magic powers. I think Furiosa, the Wives, Max, and Nux could all serve as templates for modern Sword & Sorcery characters.
I talked about this with some others yesterday and have come to believe that making such stories transgressive might not just be okay, but could actually be key to making it work. Sword & Sorcery has always had a reputation of being somewhat trashy and sleazy in mainstream culture, but what made it such a joy is that it never apologized for it and instead embraced it and owned it.
There absolutely will be complaints and offense taken at any Sword & Sorcery that would emerge from the invisible niche of existing enthusiasts. But I think that this might actually be something that contemporary art and entertainment needs. The current conversation about fairness and equality appears to me to not be one embracing and taking pride in a diversity of passions, but one in which everything that gets too personal has to be hidden and suppressed. It’s a debate that only about what is bad, but not about what is good. The talk is about fairness and equality, but too often it turns into attempts to make everyone the same instead of encouraging to accept everyone as being different.
I believe with it’s colorful past and trashy reputation, Sword & Sorcery might actually be uniquely well suited to produce such art. Like Camp, drag queens, or heavy metal, it’s an artistic expression that abandons shame and boldly dares mainstream culture to challenge it.
Now I totally see the very likely possibility of reactionary small minded people crying out about their beloved hobby being desecrated by queers and lefties, and producing their own macho power fantasies in which the savages all get slain and the hero gets his trophy slave girl. If a form of progressive modern Sword & Sorcery would get some traction in popular culture, these guys would definitely come crawling out of the woodwork. But I don’t see it as a reason to shy away from trying to revitalize Sword & Sorcery. In that case “the terrorists will have won”. Everyone can write what they want, and in the end it will be up to audiences to decide whose stories are making the better case.