But for real, reading Dune in 2020 when I am constantly inundated with people who lose their shit on the internet if a piece of media is less than 100% fun or satisfying or validating of their opinions

This book does not give a shit about my cool vibes, and I appreciate that

As someone who likes opaque and challenging stuff a lot of the time, or at least stuff that doesn't explicitly hold your hand, explaining that to people who seemingly only see value in stories based on how good and cool it makes them feel is

Uh

Unsettling?

The idea that I would engage with something to feel cool or powerful or righteous or personally validated or even, like, comfy (whatever the fuck that even means, lol) confuses the ever-living shit out of me

"This is a power fantasy, it's supposed to make you feel free and empowered"

"This is supposed to make you feel like you do when you fall in love"

I

Wat

It doesn't compute in my brain

Like, I dunno, man. My favorite art project of the last few years has been Petscop, because I find it a fascinating kaleidoscopic look at memory, trauma, and identity, but if I say anything about that on the internet, I'm bound to get shanked by some ideological fan group, so

This isn't me asking you to pity the edgelords, because I don't think anything I enjoy is particularly daring or edgy (or good, lol), and I don't think my ways of thinking about stories is particularly deep

I am just perpetually confused by the constant Feels Discourse™