Is it okay to write about Fifty Shades of Grey if I haven't read the book or seen the movie? No, I don't think so. However, I have read a few blogs by people who have read/seen Fifty Shades. So I'm allowed to comment on the blogs.It's interesting that the movie is condemned by both sides of the cultural divide. Since when do Left and Right agree? One feminist web site condemned the movie for promoting the use of force in sex. If both parties are fine with bondage/dominance/sadism/masochism as shown in Fifty Shades, that's okay, the writer said. But Anastasia, the female protagonist, does not give consent to everything done by Christian, the male lead. Lack of consent is the main problem.
What made me mad was the feminist's critique of some Christians' response. She accused Christians of focusing all their ire at the premarital sex and ignoring the consent issue. This is probably true of some Christians. We should condemn with equal vigor both the extramarital sex and the movie's approval of non consensual sexual activity. The thing is -- many Christians do give the two sins equal weight. Don't lump all Christians together in every accusation.
It also makes me mad when Christians lump all feminists together. Some of us feminists (yep, I include myself) are Christians and anti-sex-outside-of-marriage.
Here's my request for both sides: Please don't assume you know what all Christians think. Don't assume you know what all feminists think. Don't generalize. When you're painting your Fifty Shades of Grey, don't use too broad a brush.
