and it feels like me (on a good day): asymmetricsolutions: What Happens Next: A Gallimaufry: Rape Culture In…
asymmetricsolutions:
What Happens Next: A Gallimaufry: Rape Culture In Gaming
uninhibitedandunrepentant:
This. So much this.
picklemethis:
fozmeadows:
About a week ago, I wrote a post on Penny Arcade vs. Rape Culture, which sent my blog traffic skyrocketing after it…
Part One:
Let’s be honest. You make some good observations. Firstly, you’re right that going out and doing something other than a Tumblr blog is not necessarily feasible for anyone but the unusually talented. Second, it’s also true that I don’t get to define misogyny. I will concede those points and, in fact, support them. I should have consulted any of my female friends about what misogyny is before I tried to make a point using them.
But the truth is: these are the only two points I can pull out of that mess that don’t resemble incoherent screaming.
Do you want to make a point? Then make a point instead of just finding every conceivable fault in every sentence I make, because in the end your post does nothing. It goes every which way and you don’t even come to a conclusion. You SEEM to accuse me of being a raging misogynist, but I’m not entirely sure if you ever actually do that other than saying that I’m being “gross” at the end of you rant.
Do you want to criticize me and my writing? Is that the point? Because you still don’t do anything even remotely telling me where I’ve gone wrong except by saying: “MAN IS BAD RAWWR”. So what, I should relinquish my gender identity to write better?
Did you want to accuse me of being an apologist for the misogynists? Because I see a lot of words that sound like they’re trying to accuse me of being an apologist, but you never actually say that and don’t imply enough for that to be the actual point.
You find my post derailing? Is THAT the point that we come to? Because if it is, you could just say: “This is irrelevant, the point is [fill in the blank].” Because I still have no idea what the point is, because you just scream feminism at me and try to force it down my throat.
Do you find me offensive in general? Because, instead of saying: “It looks a lot like a morality argument up above, if you ask me. Anyway your point isn’t currently relevant so I don’t know why you’re making it.” You could just say: “I find this morally offensive, even if that’s what you say you’re not trying to do.”
Do you just think all men are against you somehow? That any portrayal of women that does not jive with this image of “FREE TO LIVE HOWEVER” means that we want to subjugate you? Because you’re wrong, first of all, and you still fail to do anything resembling taking a stand for this.
So part one, in summary:
- You fail to make anything resembling a cohesive point.
- You’re so-called “argument” is completely disjointed and pisses in my general direction without actually doing anything.
- If you were trying to call me out on anything, then call me out on it.
- Men are not all some kind of Brotherhood of Penis. We are not all going to applaud if some douchebag rapes you. In fact, some of us would kill the bastard.
Part Two:
Argument delivery is NOT trivial. It is critical to any proper discussion. Politicians are persuasive because they know how to talk to you in a way that makes them seem right all the time. This is why “bullshit politicians” keep getting elected. The reason why I criticized the article is because the presentation is simply bad. Calling something “Rape Culture” automatically implies, somehow, that rape is inherent in society. This is despite the lack of serious discussion on how this is true until you get to the part where it says “generic culture surrounding and promoting rape”, which sounds more like an attempt to make “generic culture that discriminates against women” appear more dramatic. The article’s points don’t make any points that apply specifically to how rape is supported in gaming, just general points that say more about female-based profanity and abuse rather than raping anyone or how said profanity promotes rape. Furthermore, the article discusses how Rape Culture is Everywhere in Gaming, but points to only one, maybe two, examples, diverges into Frat Boys, and tries to say “See, Rape Culture in Gaming!”. You cannot specify less than ten examples and say that an entire global industry and culture are inherently flawed without providing either a large number of examples or providing a large amount of critical philosophical analysis. Maybe I should have provided this in my original post. I guess assuming that someone could understand that discussing word choice and argument construction does not mean I disagree with the implicit ideas was a bit too much of an assumption.
Now, the linked Penny Arcade article DOES discuss all of that, along with a YouTube video about it. Note also that Penny Arcade is one of the largest and most important video game commentary sites on the internet.
So let’s go back over your post. Observe how it breaks up MY post into little bits and criticizes each. This is a good format.
You then proceed to completely fail at doing anything resembling a logical post. You start off well, making coherent arguments about how I’ve completely missed the point and that we’re discussing a SUBSET of a WIDER ISSUE, which I thank you for and request more information about.
But by the end of my first two paragraphs, you suddenly jump off a cliff of shouting and screaming. Tali’s a flawed character because she’s straight? How does that make any sense? Compare this to these people: http://redlettermedia.com/plinkett/star-wars/star-wars-episode-1-the-phantom-menace/