Wednesday, January 18, 2012

The Problem With Romance Novels

In this age of cultural and moral relativism, it should be no surprise that we often find people demanding respect in every field of art, where a finger painting is held in as high esteem as a Rembrandt for instance.

Romance novels are inexplicably among the best selling of all genres. The fact that we have nearly a 50% illiteracy rate in this country might be partly to blame. Many people don't have the reading skills to rise much higher than children's books or romance novels. Because romance novels do sell so abundantly in our day, I've noticed more and more articles about, and interviews with, romance writers where they are as often as not put on a pedestal—as though they somehow belong in the same class as authors of much higher standing.

What the modern reader needs to understand is that romance novels by their very nature are meant to be inferior.

I think it's safe to say that no Ivy League school will ever teach out of romance novels as part of the required curriculum. No romance novel will ever be thought of as a classic along side Spencer, Bunyan, Swift and Dickens. If a romance story were that good, it would no longer be referred to as romance, but would instead simply be known as drama or literary fiction or a classic love story. If you think about it, there are of course a handful of classic novels that fit the description of the latter: novels that are full of romantic love but which are so well written that they aren't thought of as romance novels/stories. Romeo and Juliet probably tops the list (though it was a play of course) followed by Jane Eyre. No one would call Jane Eyre a "romance novel." It would instead be referred to as a "classic love story." The very thing that separates classic love stories from romance novels is that romance novels must by default be bad, tacky even, or they'll no longer be classified as romance novels and will get placed in a higher category.

I find it difficult to respect something that is purposely meant to be a lessor work. One should always strive to do great work. If an author classifies their own story as romance, that tells me that even they don't think much of it. That being the case, neither should we.

15 comments:

  1. BRILLIANT! I love (pun intended) how you discern the difference between classic love story or "romantic drama" and romance. I am certain that romantic sagas (normal, paranormal or otherwise) will never be subject for discussion at even the lowliest of MFA programs. I don't read romance--and when I've tried I can't get through it not even Nicholas Spark's books, though I've liked many of his characters, I just haven't cared enough about any of them to make it to THE END.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Agree. These books neither challenge nor engage on any meaningful level.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I like them, not the Harlequin variety, but something on the order of Debbie Macomber; however, you are right, they are just for fun. I had my years of the classics, not Ivy league but next tier down. I like to read before going to sleep. So what do we have? Me, the dual major, private college, magna cum laude graduate. I will be reading one of these fun romances and Tom (the barely got out of high school carpenter) is reading Acquinas! Want to hear about our movie choices too? LOL

    ReplyDelete
  4. I don't have so much a problem with people reading them Kathy. My problem is when the writers of these modern day penny-dreadfuls are treated as though they've done something on a level with great writers simply because they've sold a lot of books. I've seen children who could write better than the majority of romance novelists.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, I agree with you there! I know I could write as well as some of the romance writers- I used to be in practice but way too many years have passed since my writing days! They are all formula books. I can tell you almost exactly what the story line will be, just switch names, locations and occupations. Ha, ha! I was just thinking how silly it would be if Tom and I were to act out just one day in the life of romance novel characters. Now I'm rolling on the floor laughing, wiping tears from my eyes!

      Delete
  5. Dear Cale ,
    (How brassica of you!) I suggest that the 'problem' with romance novels, ( as opposed to novels that contain romances as part of the story) has more to do with modern marketing than a genre per se. Nowadays books are so targeted for specific market niches that I can tell by the cover whether I would read one . And I don't think Oprah's book club has helped the intellectual level of the reading public.
    Of course, I don't have much room to talk, preferring authors published no later than 1950 or so ... they just seem so much more literate, even in light fiction. I notice a certain style in modern fiction; it all sounds the same, as if edited down to a 9th grade reading level.

    Speaking of modern writing which has nothing at all to do with romantic fiction, being history; but I highly recommend "Empire of the Summer Moon" by S.G. Gwynne. It will have you on the edge of your seat - and it's all true.

    Sheepherder

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello my old sheep friend. Yes, Oprah has single-handedly done more to destroy the minds of would-be readers than anyone would have thought possible. I have some friends, he a practicing lawyer—his wife a retired teacher, and the wife got hooked on the kooky nonsense of Eckhart Tolle through doprah. His theory of not forming attachments (not even to your children) because the Earth is an evil place and it will keep your spirit from being transformed blah, blah, blah is right out of the Manichaean Gnostic handbook of crazy.

      There's certainly not been much worth reading since CS Lewis died. Probably less than 10 great books in the past 50 years.

      Yes, the only thing worse than romance novels is their childish cover illustrations that cry out, "If you have a functioning brain, walk away now!"

      I will look for "Empire of the Summer Moon." I've been having fun reading James Rollins Sigma series lately. He's not a great wordsmith, but his stories are an interesting take on historical events.

      Delete
  6. I think you had a very good discussion thread going. How does the number of comments on this post compare with everything else you have written? I hope you post something controversial again pretty soon!!!!!

    Off to watch Total Recall. Really, I am. It's one of my very favorite movies and this is the special edition. I think it won an Oscar, right? (snicker, snicker)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomorrow I'll be posting about "Wasted Words" in stories. You can bet someone will take exception to it.

      I liked Total Recall! Parts of it could have been better, but the overall storyline was very interesting.

      Delete
    2. Did you see this in the Post? There will be a store at Chesterfield Mall for local authors.

      http://www.stltoday.com/business/columns/consumer-central/local-authors-plan-to-open-store-in-chesterfield-mall/article_f37abcc6-43bf-11e1-b625-001a4bcf6878.html

      Delete
    3. Thanks,

      I thought this was interesting: "It will be housed in the space currently occupied by 'I Don't Want to Kiss a Llama.'"

      I wanna what!? :-) i have no earthly idea what kind of store that is!

      Delete
  7. Did you ever notice when you walk by the romance section at the store that there's always a buttload of lesbos lining the isles? It's a genre thats only fit for feeding the filthy appetites of sub humans.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unfortunately Jeff, we seem to be reliving ancient Rome all over again, where the worship of Bacchus is the norm among the low-brows. Some people never learn. If they had read more history and less romance crap, they might have known better.

      Delete
    2. I think all your comments are so eloquently put, however i suppose the age old question still remains why do so many people read them if they could be written by children? I believe because of the shift in women's role over the years with them taking on more carreer dominated lifestyle people have turned to romance novels for pleasure, entertainment, or maybe to fulfill a fantasy or dream? Whatever it may be who are we to knock their hobbies...afterall you don't see blogs being written on why do people watch football?

      Delete
    3. I stopped watching grown men chase a ball around in the grass like a pack of dogs years ago. There may be any number of reasons people do something silly, but the most likely one has got to be that exactly one half of the world's population has below average intelligence. Thus, there will always be a big market for romance novels, gossip newspapers, reality TV shows, Volkswagens, tattoos, bicycle pants, beer, and pop music.

      Delete