50 Shades - Great, or the Greatest?

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  • delicious_cocktail
    delicious_cocktail Posts: 5,797 Member
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    "Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocre minds. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence and fulfills the duty to express the results of his thoughts in clear form."
    --Alfred Einstein
  • SunofaBeach14
    SunofaBeach14 Posts: 4,932 Member
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    Horrible! Try the Anne Rice Beauty series, much better

    Yea. Now, that is literature! lol
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    I think she's brilliantly navigating the conventions of the romance genre, incorporating everything from "prince in rags" to Cosmo. I'm halfway through and this thing has settled down to nothing better than Georgette Heyer's Black Moth...which is my second favorite after Cotillion.

    Except for a sword fight.

    This thing desperately needs a duel.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    Bad, bad, and did I mention it was bad?

    Sure, graphic sex scenes are hot but all the hubbub about this book....nah, not worth it.

    As a person who crucified it before even reading it telling myself I knew, I KNEW it was going to be bad reading like all the other chick lit that seems to be plagueing the nation, I realized I needed to read it because I was making judgements based on heresay and my own experience with reading.

    I'm proud to say I got through 5/6 of that book before I put it down and told myself "Well, I was right."

    Yeah, it's garbage.

    I felt the same way about the Tiger Mom thing, but I found that the questions she asked about parenting were surprisingly good.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    "Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocre minds. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence and fulfills the duty to express the results of his thoughts in clear form."
    --Alfred Einstein

    It really is some pretty decent sex, no?
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
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    "Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocre minds. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence and fulfills the duty to express the results of his thoughts in clear form."
    --Alfred Einstein

    It really is some pretty decent sex, no?

    I think we are actually witnessing the rebirth of the Gothic novel with stylistic elements not dissimilar to the 18th Century "Les Bijoux indiscrets".
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    "Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocre minds. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence and fulfills the duty to express the results of his thoughts in clear form."
    --Alfred Einstein

    It really is some pretty decent sex, no?

    I think we are actually witnessing the rebirth of the Gothic novel with stylistic elements not dissimilar to the 18th Century "Les Bijoux indiscrets".

    It's not really that far off from modern erotic/romance writing. What she does is sell us some pretty standard non-missionary sex by starting at "anything goes" and dialing it down fast. My friends who actually do BSDM were uninspired by the sexuality. Three Muskateers easily tops it in terms of twisted sexuality.

    The real craft was in selling the standard formula. I mean, the heroine is a virgin. I don't think anybody's been able to do that believably since 1980.
  • roxywho42
    roxywho42 Posts: 165 Member
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    Horrible! Try the Anne Rice Beauty series, much better

    Yea. Now, that is literature! lol

    Technically, yes, it is. However, I never said it belonged on the shelf with my Tolstoy, just that is much better than 50 Shades.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    I think she's brilliantly navigating the conventions of the romance genre, incorporating everything from "prince in rags" to Cosmo. I'm halfway through and this thing has settled down to nothing better than Georgette Heyer's Black Moth...which is my second favorite after Cotillion.

    Except for a sword fight.

    This thing desperately needs a duel.

    Why can't I keep my hack fiction straight? It's Devil's Cub. Ah. Dominic.
  • fjanet
    fjanet Posts: 19
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    "Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocre minds. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence and fulfills the duty to express the results of his thoughts in clear form."
    --Alfred Einstein

    It really is some pretty decent sex, no?
  • Nachise
    Nachise Posts: 395 Member
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    I'll fess up: I'm jealous.

    I want to make a buttload of money from writing badly.
    It obviously filled a void, whether it was simplicity, or timing or whatever. It has been talked about to death, whether people love it, hate it, or are just non-committal. I think more people would like the freedom to talk about sex without judgement and censorship. Maybe this is the itch that was scratched:)

    I really wish the community discussions were formatted like FB threads. So much to like. So much to sigh and roll my eyes about...

    I thought 50 Shades was so poorly written that I never got to "inner goddess", much less "pickles". YA with an edge? There is better YA stuff written out there, and it is edgier. Frankly, I think it was written by a college frat boy trying to channel his inner girl.
  • SunofaBeach14
    SunofaBeach14 Posts: 4,932 Member
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    I'll fess up: I'm jealous.

    I want to make a buttload of money from writing badly.
    It obviously filled a void, whether it was simplicity, or timing or whatever. It has been talked about to death, whether people love it, hate it, or are just non-committal. I think more people would like the freedom to talk about sex without judgement and censorship. Maybe this is the itch that was scratched:)

    I really wish the community discussions were formatted like FB threads. So much to like. So much to sigh and roll my eyes about...

    I thought 50 Shades was so poorly written that I never got to "inner goddess", much less "pickles". YA with an edge? There is better YA stuff written out there, and it is edgier. Frankly, I think it was written by a college frat boy trying to channel his inner girl.

    College frat boys can write
  • Noogynoogs
    Noogynoogs Posts: 1,028 Member
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    Why read about it when you can be doing it:wink:
  • RhonndaJ
    RhonndaJ Posts: 1,615 Member
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    The popularity of these books is an embarrassment to anyone who writes, anyone who reads, and women in general. Anyone who bought them should plant a tree in apology to the trees that died in order to make the paper for all those books.
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
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    The popularity of these books is an embarrassment to anyone who writes, anyone who reads, and women in general. Anyone who bought them should plant a tree in apology to the trees that died in order to make the paper for all those books.

    Some peoples failure to understand the genre doesn't subtract from it. Just like Legos are simple forms, they can be used to construct stories and great edifices.
  • RhonndaJ
    RhonndaJ Posts: 1,615 Member
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    The popularity of these books is an embarrassment to anyone who writes, anyone who reads, and women in general. Anyone who bought them should plant a tree in apology to the trees that died in order to make the paper for all those books.

    Some peoples failure to understand the genre doesn't subtract from it. Just like Legos are simple forms, they can be used to construct stories and great edifices.

    Uhm... what? Personally I like BDSM erotica, I like erotica in general. I just prefer books that don't have me wanting to rewrite them in the first 20 pages of the first book.
  • tycho_mx
    tycho_mx Posts: 426 Member
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    Fairly simple question. I've never seen a work of fiction so thoroughly explore women's issues.

    Only read excerpts, but seriously - lots of other authors have touched these. Anais Nin comes to mind for similar takes on sexuality. As for more psyche issues - lots more authors.

    But nowhere near as popular. Which doesn't mean bad, but it doesn't mean "best ever". Based on that logic, Harry Potter would be the greatest exploration on maturation from childhood to adult ... it is not :)
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    The popularity of these books is an embarrassment to anyone who writes, anyone who reads, and women in general. Anyone who bought them should plant a tree in apology to the trees that died in order to make the paper for all those books.

    Crap romantic/erotic fiction has been around since women started being able to read in large numbers (like the late 1700s). I refuse to apologize for it.
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    50 shades is garbage for simple minded people

    so sad that book is so celebrated when there are so many reads out there so contextually better.

    Reality is sex sells no matter how you cut it.

    It is pure smut for the simple and boring masses.

    Stop being sheep people, you are better than that, demand adult fiction with substance. Truthfully if there a gun to my head I would chose to reread the whole Twilight series over again than one 50 shades book. And yes, I read Twilight, Harry potter, Divergent, Diary of a Wimpy Kid (hilarious), and a whole host of young adult fiction having two kids in my house :)

    And what is wrong with garbage for simple minded people? I like Fanny Hill. I like Roderick Random (though, if you want to talk about a skeeze-bucket). I like Moll Flanders and Clarissa.

    I'm not sure what 50 Shades has to do with "women's issues." I think the best contemporary pop-lit insight there would be Lipstick Jungle. But, for smut-lit, it's pretty fun. Of course, I don't read too much of the stuff written in the last century. I usually am left thinking "get a room" after the first chapter.

    ETA - my inner goddess is doing the chicken-dance.

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