I'd like to pose a question to the masses of LJdom

[timepiececlock]

Is it possible to have a straightforward discussion of the validity of slash as a character ship (not a fandom ship), without having people get upset?

Sometimes I'd like to sit down with yaoi (slash) fans of Gundam Wing and debate with them why Heero and Duo are not gay, but Quatre and Trowa might be. Or with Highlander, why I do think Methos did it with Byron, but not with Duncan. Or the canon-based exptrapolation of Spike/Angel versus Spike/Xander-- or, if one were so inclined, why none of those work and everyone is straight unless explicitly and irrevicably stated otherwise, or vice versa.

But it seems that slash discussions between people who disagree on whether a slash pairing is valid as a "conventional" couple instead of an unconvention/fandom-based one, always go badly-- and then no one ever really gets to hear the other side's reasons.

Is it just that it's an argument best had in person, where you can read each other's expressions and not take offense so easily?

Do people censor themselves and not try to talk about it, for fear of starting an unintended argument?

Is there a way to say "I don't believe in your ship, you don't believe in mine, let's talk about it and explore why" without the conversation eventually getting bitter?

Do slash fans and het fans even want to have discussion and debate about it?

Or is it like putting Pro-Life-ers in a room with Pro-choice-ers and telling them to talk about only abortion: there will be blood and vitriol no matter how good your intentions?

Comments

[rashaka.livejournal.com]

Does it mean, we'll see it on the screen this season? Does it mean, we would've seen it on the screen this season if the network had allowed it? Does it mean, sure, we'll never see it on the screen, but I can see enough moments of the subtext in canon to justify the idea that the sexual tension was intended by the writers even if they'll never act on it?

Does it mean, I don't think the writers intended subtext, but what they wrote is the kind of relationship that I've seen lead to sex in the real world/other fiction?

All of those things, separately. I guess that's another thing you'd have to specify in the start of the conversation.

I think the question "is this valid" is inherently bitter-making, because it implies judgement. As opposed to "I don't like it, I don't see it," which keeps the focus on the speaker instead of "justify yourself."

That's a great point.

Personally, I'm not all that interested in finding out why people don't like and believe in my ships. They're most likely never going to, there's plenty of fic and plenty of subtext out there for all of us without us having to convince the other. Unlike the abortion thing, I don't see who it hurts if we all just do our own stuff and let the people who disagree with us alone to do theirs.

Ah, that's where we're different. I am interested in talking about that general area of things, even though I don't do it very much because it's so easy for conversations to turn hostile. You're right, it doesn't involve serious injury to people like debating abortion could include, but I still like to talk about t