NQR : Topgallant : Rants

Orson Scott Card and Slash.

Originally posted July 19, 2004:

In the past 24 hours I've had 3 different discussions about Orson Scott Card with three different people. Why? Because on the basis of your recommendations on my quest for sci-fi novels, I picked up Ender's Game at my favorite local used bookstore, along with a bunch of other novels you recommended.

I find it extremely surprising--I'm not blaming anyone, just surprised considering the nature of my friends list--that no one mentioned during the sci fi discussion that Orson Scott Card is a homophobe. I know there was a to-do about this on LJ a while back and I barely paid attention because to me he was just another sci-fi writer, and I don't read sci-fi. But I am trying to start, and I chose to start with Ender's Game, because, let's face it, everybody loves Ender's Game.

I was not a third of the way through reading Card's introduction to the book when it was quite clear to me that Card is a pretentious, arrogant asshole. Seriously. Half the introduction is him talking about how precocious he was as a child and in high school and how good he was at everything he did, and it's quite, quite clear that he honestly believes that 'gifted' children are in fact superior to the rest of us. I am so far enjoying the book very much, which is a first for me for sci-fi novels--but his elitist attitudes quite frequently break through the story to remind me that this book is being written by someone who sees the world very strongly in terms of 'us' versus 'them.'

That was all very clear to me well before someone said to me last night, 'Card is a homophobe,' and pointed me toward the evidence. Yikes. It really doesn't get much more homophobic than that, though Card obviously thinks he is being pedantic, and the arrogance I detected in his introduction shows through at every line..

I was actually just sitting here pondering this very subject, and what I was willing to do about it, while reading further on into the book. I really am liking the book, and having been ignorant of the author's biases when I started reading, I feel like stopping now would accomplish nothing. But how to make the reading of it productive???

No matter what, when I am finished with the book, I am slashing it. Doesn't matter who the characters are, but someone is getting slashed. I pondered mailing my fan fiction directly to Card himself--and if anybody actually knows how I can do that I'll happily do it. At no time is slash fanfiction more subversive and more powerful than when the original writer is a homophobe.

I was just thinking about all of this when the ever-so-gifted

weatherby IM'd me. And she has had a wonderful, very very good idea.

This url takes you to the amazon page for the most popular edition of Ender's Game. Go there. Now, if you wish to participate, pick and choose from any of the following novels, and type in the ASIN numbers in the spot where you can choose "recommend this novel INSTEAD OF this book."

Below are a sampling of books you can pick from--the ASIN numbers are given before the titles.

0807079197 - Homophobia : How We All Pay the Price by Warren J. Blumenfeld (Editor)

0805076336 - Gay Marriage : Why It Is Good for Gays, Good for Straights, and Good for America by Jonathan Rauch

1555838731 - Why You Should Give A Damn About Gay Marriage by Davina Kotulski

0452274214 - Setting Them Straight: You Can Do Something About Bigotry and Homophobia in Your Life by Betty Berzon

0801434068 - Legally Wed: Same-Sex Marriage and the Constitution by Mark Strasser

015101017X - Civil Wars: A Battle for Gay Marriage by David Moats

0312420307 - Homophobia: A History by Byrne R. S. Fone, Byrne Fone

0446670413 - How to Make the World a Better Place for Gays & Lesbians by Una W Fahy

0803953852 - Stigma and Sexual Orientation : Understanding Prejudice against Lesbians, Gay Men and Bisexuals (Psychological Perspectives on Lesbian & Gay Issues) by Gregory M. Herek (Editor)

B00005N7TY - Advocate [MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTION]

You can also recommend more than one. The more of you recommend more, the more likely Amazon readers are to see these selections when they visit the Ender's Game page. Feel free to copy/paste all the relevant info from this post into your own--let's start a meme and see if we can't get some of these listed on his page.

I'd love to hear comments about this subject. How do you fans of the novel deal with the author's prejudices? Does it matter to you? Why or why not? I have similar experiences with other types of artists, but nothing that strikes so close to home as homophobia does for me. I will keep reading this book, but I know that no matter how good it is, it won't top the lurch of my stomach as I read Card's essay on gay marriage.