Best Seller, "50 Shades of Grey Trilogy" Normalizing Child Sex Abuse

American Thinker ^ | 09/17/2012 | M. Catharine Evans and Ann Kane

[SeekAndFind]

Why isn't the blockbuster trilogy "50 Shades of Grey" just another bosom-busting trashy romance novel? After all, the endless sex scenes should have relegated the books to the erotica section in bookstores. Instead, they have been mainstreamed to an adulating population begging for more.

Looking farther into the pedestrian prose of author E.L. James, aka Erika Mitchell Leonard, we find more than just a titillating tome. It's hard to believe that this story ever made it out of the online venue called "fan fiction." In a normal world, the author would have been ostracized by literary critics for her lack of plot and her juvenile language. But much worse than the poor writing are the disguised themes of pedophilia and child abuse.

We don't live in normal times, and we are bombarded with the results of the old maxim "sex sells," which now reads "BDSM sex sells." The trilogy which emphasizes BDSM has sold 25 million copies worldwide and has made its publisher $145 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. The books have been on the NYT bestseller list for 25 weeks.

On top of all this, James is hitting the circuit with another media blitz in advance of selling her fourth book, which will be out "just in time for Jesus' birthday," according to a rep from Vintage Press. In addition to a U.S. book tour, a movie deal with Universal, and a how-to magazine launched on August 28 titled Fifty Shades of American Women Who Love the Book and Live the Life, James will be on Katie, the new Katie Couric daytime talk show, on Monday, September 17. From Fifty Shades magazine:

[chae]

Now if some guy sitting next to her started reading “playboy” how much do you want to bet she would be raising hell complaining about it.

[discostu]

That’s the dirty little secret of Twilight (which 50 Shades is just fan fic of) that everybody studiously ignores:
Why is a 120 year old vampire dating a high school girl?

I don’t know if either is really normalizing anything, everybody just ignores the implications.

[In Maryland]

You’re entitled to your opinion, certainly, but I have the feeling you haven’t read the books. Yes, there are graphic depictions of sex, some of it depraved sex (IMO). But the whole progress of the trilogy is moving the hero from a depraved lifestyle to a more normal one. I don’t recall more than the slightest passing reference to homosexuality. None of the main characters are homosexual. He is into heterosexual domination and through the course of the books, it is made clear that he took up that lifestyle after an extremely abusive childhood, including a relationship with an older woman when he was an adolescent, and is eventually able to overcome it. The lead characters are heterosexuals who eventually marry and have children.

[who knows what evil?]

You’re right...I haven’t read the books, just a number of blog postings and reviews about them. I wasn’t saying that there was any homosexuality in the books...my concern was that these books were just another vehicle for desensitizing our culture to other sexual perversions in the same fashion that our culture has been desensitized to homosexuality and gay marriage. You are right, though...just my opinion.

[martin_fierro]

[petitfour]

My son asked me about this series of books last night. There was a girl at his high school who was “reading it for class.” Another boy took the book and began reading it aloud.” It must have been pretty graphic for him to remember and to say something. Heh. Anywho, I am guessing that it was not assigned to the whole class but was picked by the girl for a book report. I do intend to ask the principal who is new to the school. I would try to find the teacher first, but there are so many.

I remember reading The Thorn Birds in the 9th grade. Our gifted teacher required us to read a novel a quarter, and she loaned me her copy. Well, there is at least one section of interesting relations. Of course, I shared the sections with friends. By the time I returned the book to the teacher, I think some pages were falling out. LOL Oops! She never said a word.

[AllAmericanGirl44]

It’s fascinating to me that you neglected to mention that the ‘reformer’ in this dense series is a 22 year old virgin.
I found it completely laughable and unbelievable and to suggest that it was some desire breed from ‘love’ that healed Mr. Grey is silly. It was more along the lines of a young girl being obsessed with the feeling this dipwad inspired in her. I could go on but honestly, I’m more than bored with these hokey books.

I found her writing to be extremely juvenile and the plot completely unrealistic. Not creative in the least and her constant use of the same phrases revealed her want to shock more than her desire to craft a brilliant story.

But hey, if you found some message in this tripe, good for you.

[In Maryland]

If the book's aim is to desensitize people, it fails miserably. It clearly shows the hero's sexual deviancy is a far from "harmless" thing that blocks him from having healthy adult relationships.

The American Thinker article is, IMO, waaay off base. Ana is not a child - she has a backbone of steel (her full name is Alexandra Steele). I found the trilogy an effective comdemnation of older woman- male adolescent pedophilia which, when uncovered, is not taken nearly as seriously as older man-female adolescent pedophilia in my experience. The book, through the voice of Ana, labels this relationship for what it was and shows the effect on the supposed "willing victim".

[AD from SpringBay]

I think the “disguised pedophilia” claim is not well supported.

What do you call it when a young girl who cannot operate a computer, talks a lot about cartwheels, wears pigtails, has an imaginary friend, has never had a drink of alcohol, speaks in terms of ’golly’, and is a complete novice to her own sexuality is manipulated, abused, and molested over and over again by an older wealthy man with all the power and all the control?

No, it’s not a classic child abuse scenario, though I can see how people with experience in Child Protective Services, law enforcement, and clinical psychology might think that. It’s actually the plot of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey‘.

Oh, and get this, the male protagonist is named ‘Christian’ (a nice cheap shot in and of itself) who was, himself, a victim of sexual abuse. Of course he’s wealthy. Take away his money and he turns into something else.

Even though the age of the female protagonist is given to be 21 and she‘s all set to graduate college, her character is portrayed as someone mentally handicapped or as someone much younger. Taken at face value her actions, diction, and level of performance in the world is that of a someone who should be housed in an assisted living facility. Either that or the age given by the author is a very thin cover hiding the fact that the main female character is actually a child.

For example:

The female character has no sexual experiences whatsoever. The narrative voice is that of a little girl. Listen to how she talks: “Holy Cow”, “down there”, “jeez” “double crap”, cartwheels, and skipping. Over and over it is the language and the imagery of a girl with no demonstration of emotional maturity.

If she were a high school student she would be extremely naïve. Remember, she is graduating college.

She is incapable of making the most simple every day decisions.

The older man makes her think the abuse is her choice. This is one of the primary tools of the pedophile, creating an environment where the child feels it’s their idea.

After the early stages of their relationship, the older man becomes more openly abusive and controlling. He tells the girl how to speak, what to wear, and what to eat.

There is spanking and at one point the slathers her in baby oil.

The girl wears pigtails and complains he treats her like a child.

Again, if she has not been given a literary false ID, then the girl belongs in an assisted living facility.

I know it’s ‘just’ fiction. But fiction serves many purposes.

[In Maryland]

I find it laughable you would refer to an accomplished, strong woman who has enough self-respect to have kept her virginity until age 22 in THIS society as "a young girl". And at 27, he is hardly a grandfather.

Whether the relationship is "love" or an "obsession" is, IMO, certainly open to debate. The character feels it is love, but I think there are also sufficient grounds to label it an obsession.

[AllAmericanGirl44]

Oh jeez, 22 is a young woman, if you had a 22 year old daughter you might actually view her in that light. The bit about her virginity was in the context of her being swept up in the alternative lifestyle on her first time out - the only thing this juvenile author did ‘right’ in this tale, is to make the guy a rich and good looking guy, otherwise nobody would buy into such foolishness.

Never said the 27 year old was a grandfather - way to put words in my text -

Enjoy your little fantasy world, I’m done with this obnoxious ‘story’.

[Sherman Logan]

Such people exist, and for that matter some women assume such a persona for sexual play reasons.

Not a big fan of this type of thing myself, but I think it is stretching the term “pedophilia” well beyond any reasonable meaning when you apply it to a 21 year old girl simply because she is somewhat immature and naive.

Pedophilia refers to sexual desire for prepubescent children. This doesn’t sound much like that to me. It sounds more like the lead female character is mentally and emotionally a young teenager but fully mature sexually. You can call that a number of things, none of them particularly complimentary, but I don’t think it’s fair to call it pedophilia.

Do I think the storyline is somewhat repulsive? You bet.

Do I find it REALLY odd that it is so popular among young and middle-aged purportedly feminist women? Absolutely. They obviously identify with the young woman “heroine,” which says something really odd about what they find erotic or entertaining.

[Melas]

One has to wonder: why would all these strong, independent liberal women, who bemoan a “War on Women” by conservatives be so enthralled with a book on bondage?

Same reason that powerful men have been known to seek the services of a dominatrix?

[Melas]

I have read them, but didn’t care for them. The wife however loved them, which is why I read them.

All the bitching and moaning about these books being a new low in depravity, proof a sinking culture etc, are full of it. Compared to 30, 40 and even 50 year old tomes like “The Story of O”, “Fear of Flying”, or anything by John Norman, it’s very tame.

[Melas]

You’re intentionally parsing your words. Older man...the male character is all of 27 to the female protagonist’s 22. There ain’t no pedo link in this one pal.

[Melas]

They obviously identify with the young woman “heroine,”

Actually they don't. They identify with the good girl changes bad boy to only semi-bad boy who's true and faithful to only her meme that has existed for centuries. Cut through everything else, and that's this story's hook: Good girl reforms bad boy, film at 11.

[rbg81]

Yeah, well, I never understood that either. Or most sexual fetishes for that matter. I guess it a way of placating the “child” within the adult.

[Sherman Logan]

You are probably right. What most of them don’t seem to realize is that most of the bad boys are exactly that and will never be anything else.

[Melas]

My wife said it best years ago. It’s not that nice guys finish last, it’s that boring guys finish last.

[Sherman Logan]

Unfortunately, a good many women consider “nice guys” to be boring.

About 15 years ago my best friend married a nice woman who had recently divorced a guy who beat her up regularly.

My friend is the kindest and gentlest man you can imagine, and adored her three little girls.

About 10 years later she dumped him and took up with another guy who beats her up regularly. Guess my friend was just too boring.