Wednesday, October 1, 2014

The Assasination of Margaret Thatcher.

Although I have not read this recently released title, I chose to write about it because of an issue a lot of writers deal with. Condemning critics. Author Hilary Mantel's literary fiction , The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher, has been receiving lots of heat about the title's content. The author who previously won The Man Booker Prize and National Book Critics Circle Award is now being deemed as 'sick' and 'bile'. Lord Bell has even gone as far as suggesting that the police should be investigating her over her 'sick' and 'perverted' tale over an interview conducted by The Guardian where Mantel recalled a moment when she had see the late Prime Minister and explained how she had thought about what it would be like to kill her.
As writers we put our imaginations in all sorts of questionable situations. Every time a character is killed off in a story we are essentially imaginatively plotting out their death. I myself have put my characters in situations that would make anyone uncomfortable. I've been told that my choice to include these situations have left a few of my readers with such a bad taste in their mouths that they refused to read any further. Of course this was discouraging at first, but after some time I no longer felt shamed or embarrassed. Why should I censor the way I envisioned this book for a few critics who did not have a taste for this kind of writing? Writing about rape was not an easy task. As a former victim of sexual abuse I had to step away from my own feelings so that the readers could not detect my own bias and could only interpret the characters feelings. I felt in order for my story to make senses the way it had in my head then it was absolutely necessary to walk the thin line of 'too much'. Does it make me a rapist? Does it mean I should be investigated for potential sexual crimes? These questions are absolutely ludicrous! Any good writer thinks, imagines, and creates vividly with no biases. I applaud Hilary Mantel's bravely as she shamelessly explains her thought process behind her latest book and enjoying the line as she walks it.
Yes, everyone has a right to their own opinions. Don't like it. Don't read it. Simple. No author should have to be censored or bashed for having an open mind, and the courage to openly share their gift. While critics on Twitter question The Guardian's choice to promote Mantel's book; I congratulate them for making a path for uncensored, unbiased, and nonjudgmental promoting.

S.M. Bliss.

"...the horrible surmise that those whom the rest call mad have, all along, been the only people who see the  see the world as it really is."
-C.S. Lewis.

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