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True if literature isn't synonymous with 'worthwhile.'
by liability 7y ago
True if literature isn't synonymous with 'worthwhile.'
- SolaceQuantum 7y agoIt isn't synonymous with 'worthwhile'. That's just true. For one thing, 'literature' is a form of media, 'worthwhile' is an subjective quality of experience.
- liability 7y agoYou snark, but I think the enclosing conversation was about whether YA fiction is worthwhile (or, whether we should be concerned when people fail to progress past it), not whether it's literature.
- SolaceQuantum 7y agoWhether or not a literal entire genre of literature is worthwhile is itself a question of the worthwhileness, IMO. Historically, this has already been debated multiple times with multiple different genres- experimental fiction, fiction by female authors, fantasy, scifi, fiction by american authors. Must we repeat it for every new genre that becomes popular or even remotely prominent in the sphere of mainstream consumption?
- liability 7y agoI assert that some books have more value to children than others and that the distribution of worthwhile books is different in different genres. I further assert that YA fiction is proportionally less worthwhile than other genres generally accessible to the "young adult" demographic. Can you convince me that any of those assertions is wrong? Pointing out that "YA fiction is literature" doesn't come anywhere close to refuting any of the above assertions.
- SolaceQuantum 7y agoNeither have you refuted that this has been a historical game of stack ranking literary genres and I’m asking when we will grow up and let people enjoy good books.