"Times like these, your blog name seems ironic."

[lizbee]

I've been watching the Smart Bitches, Trashy Books commenters debating the Jewel of Medina controversy for a couple of days now -- shewhohashope has a summary of events and arguments -- and although it's always nice to play a bit of bingo, I'm beginning to wonder just how smart these bitches are.  "Writing fiction about a religious figure, even with the best of intentions, can often lead to offense" is not that difficult an equation.  And the vague "No Christian would get this worked up about fiction about a religious figure" side of the argument is ... well, you try writing a romance novel about the Virgin Mary, and then just sit quietly and wait for the Vatican's ninja nuns to get you. 

I have, like, semi-coherent thoughts on this issue, but I need to wash the dishes before work.  I shall just say that I was amused to see someone suggest that the (female) academic who said Jewel of Medina was made of historical fail "must be jealous".  Feminism: you're doing it wrong.

Comments

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

I'm fairly skeptical about the concept; I'd probably be less skeptical if the writer was a Muslim, or native to a predominantly Muslim country, or of Muslim descent.

And having now read the first couple of pages, well, 'trashy novel' is an appropriate blog title for the excerpt. Bleh.

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

I'm fairly skeptical about the concept; I'd probably be less skeptical if the writer was a Muslim, or native to a predominantly Muslim country, or of Muslim descent.

Me too. Of course, if that were the case, she wouldn't be so surprised and amazed that her book might give offense.

(I also cringe at every NOVEL ABOUT THE EXOTIC EAST!!!!! written by a western novelist. I think we had half a dozen on the shelves at work a few months ago; fortunately, most of them went back to the publishers unsold.)

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

There was a big surge in 'girls in Islam!' books post 9/11. The ones that are good ('Persepolis', 'Reading Lolita...') are of course, the ones actually written by Islamic women.

Is this trend finally kind of over now with this hubbub? I can only hope.

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

Also: the more interesting wife is Khadijah, of course, or maybe Safiyya who is CRYING for a feminist novel written by an Israeli, and that would actually be a shit storm worth having...

...but if you're going to do Aisha, again, she's more interesting after Muhammad kicks it.

[melyanna.livejournal.com]

As I understand it, the author's finished a second book about Aisha after Muhammed's death. I think. I know there's a sequel, but I'm fuzzy on Muslim and/or Arab history in the first place, and this woman's clearly clueless about it too. (The part of this where my head hits the desk hardest is where this woman claims she spent several years learning Arabic and researching "Arab history" – whatever she means by that – and she didn't get that the very culture she's "celebrating" finds the concept of this book tremendously offensive.)

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

Nnngh.

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

The author of Jewel of Medina got a $100,000 advance, and it seems increasingly plausible that the whole kerfluffle is a publicity ploy on someone's part, so I'd say it's not over yet.

I have to say I welcome the influx of novels for kids and teens that feature Muslim characters -- but again, the best ones are actually written by Islamic women. There's a nice one aimed at little boys, though, about a co-ed soccer team that bands against a referee who won't let a Middle Eastern girl wear her headscarf on the field.

[skywaterblue.livejournal.com]

Nngh. I wish I had a 100,000 dollars for writing terrible Quran 'fic.

That one sounds adorable.

[melengro.livejournal.com]

I loved Gentlemen of the Road, but that was a historical novel by Michael Chabon, master of the deliberately and ironically trashy. Westerners pumping out poorly-researched unintentional, non-ironic trash about the Muslim world and thinking that it's somehow world-changing...GAH.

What particularly angers me are all of the people who think that this book 'gave a voice to the voiceless' or whatever. Yeah, voiceless, which is why Aisha is literally the second Muslim I EVER HEARD OF. Again...GAH.

[karnythia.livejournal.com]

I have actually stayed out of conversations about the Jewel of Medina for fear that I will succumb to the urge to leap through my screen and beat people with clue bats. Because clearly these fools have forgotten the reaction to The Last Temptation of Christ.

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

I think I have an indent on my head from facepalming so much. Never mind Last Temptation -- did they forget about Madonna's entire career to date?

[karnythia.livejournal.com]

OMG the video that had people ready to kill her. I almost forgot about that one.

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

I wasn't even allowed to listen to her music until I was well into my teens and she'd gone into her pagan earth mother mode.

ALSO, there were the Christian reactions to Piss Christ, The Da Vinci Code ... *preaches to the choir*

[karnythia.livejournal.com]

Now see you'll start talking about pesky historical details like The Inquisition, the Crusades, pogroms against Jews and other fun times with the Catholic church.

[violetisblue.livejournal.com]

...the Chris Ofili Virgin Mary (http://www.guardian.co.uk/pictures/image/0,8543,-10704194503,00.html), Alfred Hrdlicka's Last Supper (http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSL0157328520080407?feedType=RSS&feedName=entertainmentNews&rpc=22&sp=true), the Corpus Christi fiasco (http://bad.eserver.org/reviews/2001/2001-8-18-4.45PM.html)...

[copracat]

And no-one ever took to Piss Christ with a hammer.

[marinarusalka.livejournal.com]

No Christian would get this worked up about fiction about a religious figure

I conclude that the Smart Bitches are all too young to remember when The Last Temptation of Christ was released.

[marymac.livejournal.com]

Or Python's Life of Brian.

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

Still banned in some parts of the UK!

[marymac.livejournal.com]

Aberystwyth is the last hold-out and they're making valiant attempts to kill it with fire. Mind you they did a screening in a church in Newcastle last year, which is just plain strange.

Its probably a good thing none of them are Catholic, htey'd have been excommunicated.

[melengro.livejournal.com]

The ironic part is that at least a few of the Pythons were and are active practising Anglicans. So while the Muslim reaction to Jewel of Medina is a reaction to an outside misrepresentation of their culture and faith, the Christian (over)reaction to Life of Brian was a (over)reaction to a not-at-all-serious satire of puffed-up fundamentalism by a group containing several actual Christians. Sure, Jewel of Medina is FA-A-AR less worth getting angry over!

[tree_and_leaf]

Though an awful lot of Christians do think 'Life of Brian' is hysterically funny (and as one of the Pythons said at the time, Christ is about the only person in the film who is treated with any respect)

[infiniteviking]

I'd read a book about those ninja nuns....

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

Me too.

"Fetch the nunchucks, Sister Mary Vengeance," said Mother Superior Mary Sinister, "it's time for a pwning."

"Yes, Mother Superior," said Sister Mary Vengeance.

And so it was that another helpless blasphemer learned that these nuns didn't sing.

[infiniteviking]

With characters like those, you could have a best-selling series there! *dies laughing*

[nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com]

I think we should be free to slag off any and all religious figures. Even to write trashy romance novels about them. The religious have to learn that this will happen and not do things like kill hundreds of people over some cartoons/picket a film about Jesus. (Yes, I realise these two things are not the same, someone come up with a better example and replace for me, kthnx.)

In conclusion, Jesus fucked pigs and then ate them.

[lizbee.livejournal.com]

It seems like it would be easier and less effortsome to incorporate a general "don't be a douche" rule, but maybe that's just me.