What is it with Whump?

[tanndell]

So I was rereading one of my favourite fics ever today, rageprufrocks ‘Bell Curve’ set in an SGA AU, and found myself very seriously contemplating a staple of fandom – the hurt/comfort element.  Now, I have to admit that I’m a fan of h/c when it’s done as well as ‘Bell Curve’ does it.  As long as it’s germane to the plot, and the protagonists continue to act true to character, h/c can not only advance the story line, but also add an element of genuine grace under pressure to the fic.  What I do object to is a pet project of h/c writers – gratuitous whump leading to OOC behaviour on the part of both the hurtee and the comforter, with no beginning, end or possibly foreseeable middle.

 

     ''Let’s take an under-represented fandom here for instance, which I think illustrates my point perfectly.  NCIS builds up a nice, potentially slashy relationship between SAC Jethro Gibbs, and Special Agent Tony Dinozzo.  Dinozzo obviously worships his boss, and Gibbs returns the worship with a casual affection shading into genuine fondness.  It’s not usually my cup of tea (I personally prefer a more equal relationship) but I can certainly understand where the attraction lies.  Now let’s turn our attention to fic, where Tony-whump has become a staple. 

 

The assumption for this construct is that it requires a cataclysmic, near death experience to convince Gibbs of his feelings for Tony, and he automatically becomes a kinder person, more capable of showing his emotions to the man he loves.  This is a perfectly pleasant idea.  In some other fandoms this may often hold true (though that idea should be examined and re-examined).  In a Mills and Boon genre novel, it usually works like a charm.  The thing is, NCIS has shown us in canon that this is not true.  As early as the second season, Tony is dying of the plague (top that h/c writers, I dare and double dare you), and Gibbs softens only to the degree of fighting violently for the cure, he is not tender or nurturing or any of the rest of that guff.  He characteristically thwacks Dinozzo across the head, because that’s the kind of guy he is, emotionally stunted, inarticulate, military!  Since most writers participating in a fandom know this already, why do they insist on working with a paradigm that canon has emphatically disproven?

 

I suspect that the answer to this lies in the nature of hurt/comfort itself.  Firstly, it serves as a convenient deus ex machina where the conditions serve for the exploration of feelings that would buried under normal circumstances, mostly through fics exploring rape or abuse.  It is also a device through which repressed truths can be released.  Concussions, delirious fevers, hypothermic ravings and such like are often used for this.  Thirdly, it gives the writer an easy piggy-back ride into a dependant relationship without necessitating an exploration into difficult questions like how, when and why.  It makes for shoddy writing, bad plot and quick-fix answers, and unsurprisingly this has made it a very popular idea to work with.

 

Now before the h/c brigade comes for me with torches and pitchforks, remember I started off saying I actually like h/c when done right, and several writers in the SGA fandom for example do a stellar job.  When SGA (as opposed to NCIS) works h/c into canon, the reactions are quite different.  Also inarticulate, military and emotionally stunted, John Sheppard is tender, affectionate, even adorable around Rodney Mckay when the latter is attacked by a brain-eating parasite.  Could hurt/comfort be used to convincingly take these feelings to the next level in fic?  Yes, it could!  In fact it has.

There’s nothing wrong with the genre per se, but it is a hard one to do right.  It has to be nuanced, it has to be plot-specific and most importantly it has to be true to canon.  While h/c writers would, and often have, argued that the rape of a man for instance has never been seen on any show, and we cannot know how our victims would react, the counter-argument is simple.  Deduce it!  John Sheppard represses in canon, so it’s fairly easy to conclude that he would not be in a shuddering heap on the floor immediately.  He would wisecrack and avoid his experience.  It would take weeks before cracks would start to show.  Due South’s Ray K, an emotionally insecure, heart on the sleeve tough guy would rage and rant and swear revenge before his breakdown.  It’s not rocket-science to figure these things out.  We know these characters, we love these characters, come on writers put a little thought into it.  Whump for whumps sake is a cheap shot.  We can do better.''

To end with an invitation, rec to me your favourite h/c slash fics in any TV fandom and tell me why you love it. I promise to give it a fair shot. I don’t promise not to disagree.       

Comments

[quietcontrary.livejournal.com]

(A word of warning/apology: I know this post is going to be disjointed/senseless because it's late past the hour of brain functionality).

I ponder about h/c quite a bit, mainly because I'm a complete sucker for it. But then I'll think about it and realise that I'm not really a complete sucker for it - I do have my standards.

I'll admit to really liking some of the things you mentioned in your post. I'm not defending my enjoyment of them - I enjoy them on much the same level I enjoy junk food. I know it's not good quality food but I like it anyway, and sometimes I like it just *because* it's not good quality stuff. It's a guilty pleasure... I wish I could live on a healthy diet all the time, but it's just not going to happen. On the same level, I wish I only enjoyed well written literature, because I'm sure it would be good for me, but at the same time I know I'm always going to want an unhealthy treat as well.

What it comes down to, I think, isn't anything as defensible as logic, but just a matter of pure personal taste. My favourite H/C fics involve not necessarily denial, but working through the pain and achieving something of worth despite the setback (and ultimately succumbing to the pain). I used to love the sappy care-giving relationship aspect a lot, and I suspect in the right context I still do. The reason is purely that I like to see characters act a certain way, even if it is OOC. That's not a popular view, I know, nor an intellectual one, but it's true - sometimes I just have an urge to see Ezra being comforted and petted over, because it's what I'd like to do to him.

And another caveat: it has to be written well. Really, I think this rule underscores and overwrites every single other rule I could ever come up with. If it's written well and believably, I'll gobble it up like icecream, regardless how OOC and implausible the naked premise is. Which is why I find it difficult to take most of my own fic seriously, I suppose - I know very well that I'm writing for pure indulgence and not for literary merit. I know I sacrifice characterisation for plot and my h/c kink. In the Mag7 fandom, I write gen, so maybe I haven't been too guilty of the things you've mentioned... I like the boys to be boys (only they're probably still a bit girlier than they'd really be), so I try to not be too over-the-top with their reactions, but it's a delicate line and I'm pretty sure I'm wavering all over the place like a drunken bikie...

All of that nonsense to say: I found your post very interesting, I admit to liking OOC h/c for the sake of h/c (as long as it's decently written) because I just love h/c in general, and I'm probably guilty of many of the things you've mentioned :)

Thanks for starting the discussion! :)

[tanndell.livejournal.com]

I thought about what you had to say... and as you know I love your fic, so I very seriously considered how and where I enjoyed h/c, and came to the conclusion that it was much easier for me to read gen h/c than slash. While primarily a slasher, there are a few fandoms (mag 7, supernatural, numbers) where I do read gen, and h/c is easier to accept in those fandoms because a) the hurtee is less feminized in gen fiction and b) it isn't used quite as often as a quick-fix solution to creating a deep and meaningful relationship.
That said, let me look further at the h/c fics I enjoy in the Mag7 fandom. Nottasha and Tipper both write excellent h/c, which show Ezra reacting the way he would probably react in canon, he's still the manipulative, slick, con-artist, often getting hurt because of these very characteristics. There's plot, there's point and character.
On the other end of the spectrum is Violette, who I want to like, I really do, because she writes very well indeed, but the Ezra I know and love just isn't there. I mean, there's no way that Ezra would let himself be physically and verbally abused to the point of assault by the rest of the team, and then forgive on a mere apology. You have to work harder than that at building a character up...
I think all of us are all over the place with h/c, because the boundaries are so very unclear about what is palatable and what isn't.
My next post will be about why we read h/c and I'll be using your comment as a springboard :) so stay tuned

[ladyk-d-azrael.livejournal.com]

Aha, so it's taster of your paper eh?

I have a question - is 'amneeeeesia' as a plot device a subdivision of h/c, or a slightly different phenomenon?