Adult content

[vilakins]

I've long regretted the loss of the word 'adult'. What does its current use imply--that the fiction I write and prefer to read is childish because it doesn't contain explicit sex?

A Simpsons episode we saw recently had the family going to the Lackluster video rental. Bart sees Moe sneaking into an alcove marked 'Adult' and follows, only to be disappointed to find shelves labelled Truffaut, Merchant and Ivory, Bergman, Spike and Ang Lee. Nice one! At our video store those are under the 'Festival' category.

Which reminds me, the films I most want to see at this month's film festival are the three Miyazaki animes I've missed up till now. So I suppose I'm neither grown-up nor adult. Not that I care.

Comments

[zoefruitcake.livejournal.com]

I know exactly what you mean. I'm not sure what you could replace 'adult'with, though. If you were to use 'grown up' that suggests a childishness in itself. 18+ is practically saying naked dancing girls are here.
Being an adult is great, as for me it means I can be as childish as I like, but still drive and have a credit card :0)

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Yes! Says the person who goes to kids' films without an accompanying child and often reads books from the children's or young adults (hey, it's correctly used there) section of the library.

Go us!

[kerravonsen]

Me three?

I'm not sure how it is that I've managed to avoid being embarrassed by reading young adult and children's novels -- though still feel an urge to justify myself sometimes. Maybe it's the fact that one of my best and most respected friends ran Camp Narnia (for grade 5-6 kids) for about eight years...

[astrogirl2.livejournal.com]

Heh. A co-worker and I were having a discussion about the Harry Potter books a while back, and another co-worker joined in, with a slightly puzzled look on his face, and said, "But aren't those kids' books?" And we both turned to him and, in unison, said, "So?" Heh. Shut him up, too, that did. :)

But I agree about the word "adult," Nico. Just because something is best not viewed by children, that certainly don't make it mature! Paradoxically, some of the most juvenile stuff out there is labelled "adult"! (I also happen to think that little kids are capable of being a lot more mature about subjects like sex than adults are, actually, just because they haven't been all screwed up by hormones yet, but that's a completely tangential subject, I think. :))

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure how it is that I've managed to avoid being embarrassed by reading young adult and children's novels

Why should you be? Most are more inventive, adventurous, and well-written than those grown-up novels which are about everyday life and dysfunctional families. And the librarians never ask me who the books are for. :-) It's a lot easier to find something that will interest me in those sections.

one of my best and most respected friends ran Camp Narnia (for grade 5-6 kids)

OK, that's like our year 5-6, ages 10-11? We don't have the camp phenomenon here and I'd have hated most of the ones I've read about, but that sounds very cool.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

A lot of people I know have read Harry Potter, and in fact two of our books were presents from Greg's sister. I haven't been laughed at for reading them; condemning fundamentalists are the main danger. This is odd considering they accept the Narnia books which are also about good vs evil, and in many cases LOTR too. I don't see the difference myself; they're all fantasies about people's struggle with themselves and what is wrong in the world.

[mistraltoes.livejournal.com]

Eh, no, that's simple. In the Narnia books, Aslan represents Christ and the witch (magic user) is the villain. In the Potter books, the witches and wizards (magic users) are the good guys. Since the Bible forbids the use of magic, some Christians think it is wrong to have fictional good guys who use magic. The ones who believe that and still accept LOTR do so because Gandalf and his ilk aren't human, but represent angels in Tolkien's works. The position is perfectly consistent if you look at what it's based on.

Note, however, that consistent doesn't mean right. I think the Potter books are great. And agree totally about the word 'adult'.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Thanks for that explanation; I'd always thought it rather inconsistent. I love the Potter books too, and consider that anything promoting the cause of right and good is better than some of the nihilistic slice of life stuff around. I'd rather a child read Harry Potter than some of those depressing books for young adults about divorce and family problems, and in one case here, incest. Kids need imagination and inspiration.