🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <92314.140929KVJLC@ASUACAD.BITNET>, Jon L. Campbell
<KVJLC@ASUACAD.BITNET> wrote:
>

> Plain and simple when
> someone attempts to subvert a story with their own ideas of morality, then
> they are playing god with the mind of the reader.  Because morality in the
> story is so subtle, it is subliminal and therefore, dangerous.  A means of
> invoking thoughts and prejudices, love and hate, right and wrong, but who
> among any writer has that responsibility.

Ah, Jon...  This is *why* writers write and artists create art and actors
act.
When you (the audience) experience something that is well crafted, we
(the creators) are offering  you a look at the world from a different 
perspective--our own.  And morality is a unique part of each of our 
perspectives.

When you read something *I* write, I hope that
you will come away with a view of duty and
honor that is slightly different than the one you already have.
I want you to see, from my p.o.v., how guilt can warp our lives
and how responsiblity can be more important than personal happiness.

I write suspense fiction, and I've failed if you are bored by the world
I've created.  I want you to be involved enough 
in the people I've introduced that you'll  hurt--just a little-- when they
are hurting and  you'll hold your breath--for just a moment--when they
are in trouble.  And maybe someday  (if I've done my job really  well) when
you are confronting some personal dilemna, you'll find yourself 
remembering that one of my characters handled a similar problem.  Maybe
you'll find some comfort in the thought that our worlds have much
in common.

Am I playing  God when I write ?  You bet I am.  That's my * job*, Jon.
In my make-believe world, I *am* the creator and you are my 
invited guest.

Every time you read a book, view a piece of sculpture, watch a movie,
you are entering  a world of someone else's making.
While you're visiting, you'll be shown the thoughts and prejudices,
loves and hates, and rights and wrongs that exist in *that* world.  Then,
at your discretion, you can use what you've learned to re-form your own
perspective.

If you want to avoid themes and morality--if you're truly afraid of
subtle, subliminal, and dangerous viewpoints, then your only safety
is in cookbooks, user's manuals, and soup can labels.

Maureen 
Path: uimrl7.mrl.uiuc.edu!ercolessi