um how do i explain that being attracted to something in a fictional setting does not mean that you want it to happen to you irl.

a common example of this is the relationship fandoms have with celebrities. i doubt the minors on this app who thirst over

a number of bg/gg or male and female adult actors would be anything but intensely creeped out if they were hit on by said adult.

another major ex. of this are common tropes found in fiction. take for instance the "cinderella story" while romantic in the fictional setting it

takes place in, it would set a lot of red flags if a heavily abused young woman is taken straight from her abusive household into a marriage to a man she barely knows.

same goes with beauty and the beast, Ariel, sleeping beauty, etc etc.

There's a lot wrong with this common

tropes once taken out of it's original *fictional* setting and placed in the world in which we find ourselves, "the real world"

Does this mean that this tropes weren't always problematic? no they were, but it's easier to look more on the appealing and romantic sides of

an idea when it remains just that: "an idea"

the real issue is when it transcends the point of an idea and starts becoming "real" to you. When you attach a modicum of reality to what is and was always meant to be a fictional work, once you cross that line the illusion

(as i may call it) shatters. the flaws become more glaring and more obvious, the "fairytales" seem more like horror stories.

There is a delicate magic inherent in fiction, inherent in keeping it just out of your reach, in letting it remain fiction

once that magic is corrupted, is twisted, your enjoyment and appreciation of the illusion, of the idea is also corrupted and twisted.

That is why there are sometimes discord in fandoms. It isn't so much that both sides do not recognize the problematic nature of what

is presented as a god-tier pairing or character +

(i'll use merlin characters and pairings, so for this i'll use gwenlance and Leon. These characters don't have much discussion surrounding them but i don't want to piss people off so i'm playing it safe. You can insert whatever

characters and ships come to mind in replacement)

+it's more of the fact that they're still beholden to the illusion the story tells. Take gwencelot out of camelot, out of the story and bring it to reality.

It raises all sorts of red flags. lancelot is flaky,

Gwen isn't allowed to make decisions for herself often. They hardly know each other, they often meet in situations where there's some sort of power imbalance: she's a maid, he's a knight; she's a prisoner, he's her would-be saviour.

(i'm not actually criticising it, these are

examples)

Leon as well is funny, loyal kind of a puppy dog character who is sometimes used as comedic relief. His character is light-hearted.

This is turned on it's head when we're reminded that leon was both often complicit in genocide, and may also be seen as a

murderer. Not so lighthearted.

The writing plays a huge role in what part of the illusion we see, what characters are MEANT to be villains, what characters are MEANT to be heroes.

I could argue the Evil Queen and Ursula were actually the heroes of their stories but that's not

part of the illusion.

Anyways, really long thread shortened a bit: most of what we read and ingest in a fictional setting we wouldn't find it so easy to ingest and accept in a real world setting.

So people aren't evil for liking problematic characters or ships with

problematic dynamics (um... y'all should know that rape, incest, etc are still very WRONG and are not included in this mild rant) because this ships and characters are explored in a setting that has no bearing on real feelings or consequences.

However, children are most easily swayed by this problematic dynamics (esp. when painted in a good light) which is why age rating in books and media is incredibly important.

But that doesn't apply to the majority of the fandom. this isn't really about anything btw, just thinking

and typing