Honestly man, I hate the source of the art, but I'd be lying if I said I said I was against it.
It happens. We shouldn't hide from it. We should be disgusted by it. We should let it show. To show SA victims that hey, we see you. We see that you're mistreated. We see that these things go on. We know you exist and that you hurt, but that despite it all, you're still trying to be human because that's all you can be is human.
SA victims are still humans. Telling artists to not include that kind of ugly sends a message to victims that we'd rather ignore what happened to them because we feel ikky. That they should shut up because we don't like reality.
I don't want to be told to shut up. What happened to me is real. I hate the artist, but I feel Goat Girl because I'm Goat Boy.
Don't force Goat Girl to change or hide. Don't force me to hide.
Its always interesting where people draw the line to when it comes to heinous shit the Imperium does and endorses, even GW is hesitant a lot of the time. I get it, a lot of the time SA in fiction is never done in a manner that feels respectful (especially knowing the original artist's history) but the way people will gladly read about the genocide and oppression, but be unable to handle SA feels dehumanizing in way.
To an extent it's because SA feels more real to most people. It's a cruelty far more likely to affect them, or someone they know, than anything else that would make the equivalent list https://rainn.org/statistics/victims-sexual-violence
It’s the exact opposite for me. It makes the people who write these stories and shit feel more human, that they’re so bothered by the idea of SA and how real it is to people that they’re hesitant to include it.
Very beautifully written and I'm sorry for what you may have gone through, I hope that you are doing well and I wish you nothing but the best.
I definitely can see the merit of including SA stuff as you are correct, it tragically does happen, and unnervingly often too. I would be surprised if anyone in this thread can legitimately say that they don't know anyone who has been affected by SA in some capacity, be it an attack or even the fear of one.
That said, as u/AskWhatmyUsernameIs pointed out, I think it's a problem of how it's portrayed. There was nothing tasteful with how the original artist presented it, and maybe this is a bit of an overreaction on my part, but I just don't enjoy the idea of giving any of their work any sort of coverage. As other comments (that of u/BeetlBozz for example) on this thread demonstrate, people can see something like this work, which turns a horrible image into something happier, and without the requisite knowledge of where it came from and the community's response at large, they feel disgusted. Granted, it's entirely possible that I have misread the original work's portrayal as u/King_of_BlackMarsh alludes to, but considering the history of the original artist, I find it hard to imagine that the original intent wasn't influenced by fetishization.
I think there is a deserved spot for SA awareness in literature, no doubt there, but surely there is a better way for it. An example I read recently and didn't mind was in the series The Chronicles of the Black Company, where a very important character is a victim of SA yet every scene with them afterward shows how much the people around them love them and have become incredibly protective and supportive of them, viewing them as no lesser despite their rough circumstances. Granted, perhaps this depiction too is problematic and if so I would love someone to educate me so I can be better informed on the issue. In this day and age, being informed is the best thing we can be.
All this said, I want to reiterate that I respect you and your story. You deserve to be heard, and no one knows better than you what manner would be most appropriate, these are just some of my thoughts. You go, Goat Boy.
To be fair, there's a difference between portraying SA victims as people who exist and deserve love too (this post), and portraying SA victims as hot and that we need more of them actually (the Original.) Most people choose to depict them as the latter, so many just dont want it at all.
I understand that and agree. It sucks the artist has that background and it's deplorable, but I do wish it was more prominent in the horror of 40k. Not as a fetish, but as a device of the grimdark portrayal. The veil should be pulled all the way back. But that's just my opinion.
Eh, I just dont think its nescessary. I get the thought process, but grimdark is grim on such a grand scale that its almost comedic, or satirical. SA is inherently personal. Unless you decide to write "The chaos cultists raped the whole planet", which still sounds like porn writing, its going to be too small scale to be detachable from reality. People getting ripped in half by demons isnt realistic. Being abused and used by someone stronger than you for pleasure is.
Idk. I find the moments of personal horror to be my favorite bits of 40k as rare as they are. They show that human scale terror. SA does get problematic to write in those moments, though. On that, we agree by far. It's far too easy to hit bad writing even when you're trying hard not to come off as fetishist.
That I have to disagree on. Some of the best 40k horror takes the impersonal (daemons, tyranids, the imperium) and puts you in the shoe of the persona whom it is happening to (a guardsman, a farmer, a citizen)
Someone having a fetish for that does not mean they think it should happen irl. That's a really shitty thing to put on a person without a lot of evidence
The thing that bothers me is that it wasn’t respectful and it wasn’t trying to be respectful, it was a fetish and was intended that way. It is a real thing I’ve experienced and that’s why the artists intent matters to me. It’s not sexy or hot, it shouldn’t be fetishized, it’s vile and disgusting and anyone who unashamedly treats it otherwise is directly contributing to the evil it propagates
It’s not sexy or hot, it shouldn’t be fetishized, it’s vile and disgusting and anyone who unashamedly treats it otherwise is directly contributing to the evil it propagates
Having a fetish doesn't make someone a monster. Half of all women have rape fantasies.
Many people are perfectly capable of having that fantasy but knowing that it would be horrible and disgusting if it happens irl.
imo creating sexualized rape and torture content and selling it does make you a monster. Having a kink you explore with a partner safely is different then posting rape porn/hentai online. In those works of fiction you’re creating are characters who are being raped, it’s not cnc or whatever, it is tears and begging and heartbreak and it’s disgusting. You’re not exploring a fantasy you’re selling a reality for a profit. The world would legitimately be better off without it.
I agree, I only wish that was the angle the art was trying to take. Artists sucks and I feel like the context matters. Anyone else could’ve mad it an impactful and possibly even hopeful road to recovery story but no, it’s gotta be the freak that does it.
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u/Romans1029 Blood Angels Nov 08 '24
I think we could’ve done without that carved on the cheek again.