I hear all the time from white religious people in Utah about how they wish television, movies, comic books, and other forms of entertainment (they enjoy) didn't include things like feminism and other social justice warrior issues. I look to none other than the late Stan Lee for an explanation of why entertainers should never completely cater to the escapism crowd who (in their hearts) just wants to ignore the fact that our government is putting brown people in camps. This was such a refreshing find to stumble across on the internet:
For any of his faults, Stan got it. I just wish other people did.
Speculative fiction is a good way to deal with those issues. If a war is going on, dump it in a fantasy setting and it becomes much easier to deal with and handle.
ReplyDeleteThat's why he was the Man. Nuff said.😉
ReplyDeleteStan's Soapbox was something I looked forward to when I was a kid as much as I did the comics themselves. It was a sad day when they quit including it.
ReplyDeleteStan understood what Joseph Campbell called The Power of Myth: the stories that have lasted the longest and mean the most to us all have morals and meaning. Thanks for posting his soapbox.
ReplyDeleteFiction is the way many writers have of criticizing the current world without necessarily getting into trouble for it. I think the issues you're hearing are those that don't want to be criticized for their beliefs. Sigh. What was Twilight Zone but a critique of the '60s?
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