privilege as a meme

my favorite movie is Super Troopers...I've always seen myself as sort of a Farva

I'd add every work with a hyper-competent Sherlock Holmes knock-off who is so much smarter than all the dum dums around them

i only like works of fiction about kind, attentive protagonists who take care of all the ppl around them and when sing birds gather round to harmonize

in a sense they are. but really any adult who identifies strongly with almost any fictional character is off

― President Keyes, Wednesday, April 18, 2018 2:41 PM (fifty-nine minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I'm interested in this idea - are there any cases where a person saying "I strongly identify with protagonist x" would cause ppl here to think well of that person? who would the protagonist be?

(I understand that part of the argument is about whether you can love the work without identifying with the protagonist, or can identify with the protagonist without idolizing them/being blind to their faults - but are there good characters to idolize?)

Leo Bloom sort of

I don't think most people would say they identify with a protagonist or the maybe misinterpreted premise/theme of a work, it's implied. That hot damn comment in the original post above I was reading as a sarcastic DUH at first (although that's wrong). I've had this same conversation with other women over the last decade. Oh, your favorite show of all time is Mad Men because Don Draper is so smooth? yikes.

a hyper-competent Sherlock Holmes knock-off who is so much smarter than all the dum dums around them

works of fiction about kind, attentive protagonists who take care of all the ppl around them and when sing birds gather round to harmonize

are there any cases where a person saying "I strongly identify with protagonist x" would cause ppl here to think well of that person? who would the protagonist be?

big ups to j christ + the gospels, historical fiction

he's smart and surrounded by a lot of dum dums, kind to the meek, and billions have been urged to strongly identify with the protag

Saying you "identify" with Jesus is definitely a bigger red flag, typically, than saying you identify with Tyler Durden!

i only like works of fiction about kind, attentive protagonists

Would be interested in encountering more modern literary or film protagonists who are indeed good/kind/heroic.

Or worth emulating in a realistic way (i.e. Jesus is a high bar).

Would be interested in encountering more modern literary or film protagonists who are indeed good/kind/heroic.

https://i.imgur.com/vAlkRnX.jpg

I did like that movie!

i only read parts of the screenplay but it did look good

are there any cases where a person saying "I strongly identify with protagonist x" would cause ppl here to think well of that person?

Pretty much every young adult novel ever written is designed to encourage identification with the main characters and their plights, while teaching lessons about how to become a more competent and compassionate adult.

P.S. I wrote a book in which I am the protagonist. It is non-fiction - to the degree that any book containing humor can be considered non-fiction. Not coincidentally, I identify strongly with the protagonist and also think well of myself. Case closed.

yeah lots of ppl identify with antiheroes

I am the antihero of my own story

poor holden, fidgeting at the end of this lineup of murderous sociopaths.

if a man says he really wants to be a drug kingpin, a godlike genius, a teenage spree killer, an imaginary embodiment of displaced masculine aggression, or to take care of people so that they can be happy without fear? RUN.

The HOT DAMN NUTSHELL tweet has to be a pisstake of the screenshot right

no it’s serious I’m pretty certain

I get the sentiment behind the quoted comment but I don’t think it takes an especially discerning person to see how silly/arbitrary/absurd it would be to literally think that way

she recommends elphabaforpresidentofgallifrey's twitter account and podcasts in the replies so I think the HOT DAMN was sincere

Yeah, as I mentioned above I read it as a sarcastic "no shit" at first and then realized it was sincere.

But how do you interpret Kevin's posting of the maybe sarcastic tweet of the screenshot of internet comments about people who relate to pop culture antiheroes? There are many layers here, is what I'm saying.

I am getting a little lost about what some people are saying. I am still going by the original sentiment of what it says about a man if he says these works are his "favorite" as opposed to explicitly stating that you identify with a character.

I mean "omg your favourite book is a clockwork orange, it stands to reason you idolise the rapist protagonist" is a leap so silly it has to be sincere but if that "finally someone mansplained a position that was already beyond simplistic IM SCREAMING AND WEEPING SIMULTANEOUSLY" tweet isn't parody I'm shook tbh

I have seen this shared with great seriousness and defended with real intensity in the wild ftr.

There is also a big basic bitchness factor of favoriting these things, nevermind inferring immaturity, misogyny, anger etc about the guy from it.

an imaginary embodiment of displaced masculine aggression, or to take care of people so that they can be happy without fear?

are these supposed to be two distinct options, with a clear line of demarcation?

presumably all the ppl who say the godfather is their favorite movie aspire to be a ruthless mafia kingpin with a tragic past

macbeth, hamlet, othello, and lear are all arguably good things - but if a man says they are his favorite plays? RUN.

That is basic bitch too but it doesn't attract the same type of fans as those other works do. I just checked zero hedge and I am embarrassed they are still using the name Tyler Durden.

Also count me as one of the dupes who was uncomfortable with the premise of Fight Club when it was new and felt it aged very poorly in the post 9/11 world.

The 3 leads and the Pixies saved that movie.

Again, I will say I loved that movie when it first came out and thought the book was fine. But when I rewatched it last year all I thought was "these stupid, fucked up boys."

Brad Pitt is hot, but whatever. Meatloaf is dece. I'm so sick of "Where Is My Mind" in film soundtracks.

I think that was one of the first uses of that song in a movie. I know it's been used more but I just associate it with that movie now.

i wonder if by "clockwork orange" the original post meant the movie, the book, or the book w/ the original ending, all of which are fairly different

i agree w/ difficult listening hour that catcher is painfully out of place in the list

Ugh holden caulfield is a prime blueprint alt-right wannabe fuckboy. How many assassins is that book linked to? The book is fine, but for it to be a modern guy's favorite???

Seeing your reaction, I suggest you RUN from such a guy!

Ha, it's ok. I make do with giving a mild side eye everytime some guys says they love to read and then lists one of these books as their favorite. Of. All. Time.

Just knowing what's your favorite book Of. All. Time. is a good indication you haven't read all that many books.

A lot of guys are this stupid, immature. RUN.

who gives a shit what movies or music or books people like

My all time favorite book is the Turner Diaries, but only because of the crystalline prose.

I don't see how Fight Club could be anyone's favorite movie, I feel like movies with "twists" don't really hold up (for me anyway), feels like saying Sixth Sense is my favorite movie or something....

ppl should decide whether or not they enjoy stuff based on what they imagine would look good on a dating site

my favorite movie is The Room but I identify most with Denny

My favorite tv show and book are Sex and the City and my favorite movie is Sex and the City 2.

But my favorite fictional character is Private Pyle in Full Metal Jacket.

well this sure was a thing that somebody felt they had to write

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/jun/04/incel-movement-literary-classics-behind-misogyny

Lit majors are required to act as if the world were driven by literature. Much as I love to read classics and literature of all kinds, its effect of the world at large is weak, vague and imprecise at best, and non-existent for the vast majority of people. To be honest, Ayn Rand seems to have more obvious real world effects than any of the books that article mentions.