Activity

@cassandraia Big thumbs up to everything you said.

So I actually just read through Song of Songs to see if there were any good principles to glean from it.

I would like to make a controversial statement: the (rightful) goal of romance novels is to explore romance.

Shocking, right? 😛 It’s debated though, I think, because romance is sometimes confused with pornography.

On romance vs erotica. I actually heard Song of Songs referred to as erotic recently and I had to scratch my head and think about that for a moment.

For reference, here’s how my computer defines erotic: relating to or tending to arouse sexual desire or excitement.

This is tricky. I suppose based on this definition, Song of Songs actually could be considered erotic, but at the same time, I don’t feel that is the best description. The poem is primarily focused on the emotional longing between the two lovers. All the more intimate details point to this primary reality. Also, the poem is relatively euphemistic and/or general. At the same time, let’s not downplay that physical attraction is a very, very central theme of this poem.

Application #1: romance and sexuality are not inherently unorthodox artistic elements.

Application #2: romantic elements differs from pornography primarily in having the focus of everything being on an idealistic attraction and fanatic loyalty.

I would also like to insert a personal opinion that the fact that the lovers act within moral bounds has a profound impact on the mood of the more erotic portions. This one intellectual factor is, if you will, the tiny white checker that shifts the whole dynamic of the Othello board. I will lower case title this application #3.

Finally, the great hallmark of the Song of Songs is its moral nature. It is not just some fanciful diversion, it has (I believe) three primary lessons it frantically tries to drive home.

1. Purity before marriage is vital and rewarding.
2. Marriage should bind couples together, truly as one.
3. Intimacy should be enjoyed.

This leads to application #4: do not use romance willy-nilly. Please. It deserves better. Have a grand purpose in mind.

Okay, that actually wasn’t the final point. The final point is my first point.

Application #5: the goal of the romance genre is to explore romance.

The moral of Song of Songs is like the channel that directs the water, the romance is the flowing stream itself. The moral is the hammer, the element being explored (romance) is the swing behind the hammer. Without the romance, the nail isn’t driven in. I am confident about this because romance is not an intellectual idea, it is an actual emotion. Therefore, it cannot simply be addressed as an intellectual idea. If it is, when someone encounters real romance, they’ll forget everything they ever learned! (Well, at least they’ll struggle…)

And let me reemphasize that in Song of Songs, romance is portrayed as a very positive thing, not just a tool for the moral, although it is a tool for the moral.

So what I want to see is some very real stories about people with romantic attractions who are struggling to figure out what to do. I want to see their doubts and insecurities. I want to see where they are excessive or too cool. I want to understand their happiness or their sinking regret as if it were my own. I don’t want a guidebook, but I do want a very real journey with lessons along the way. And while I definitely don’t want erotica, I do want to feel excited for the characters.

Personally, I want to see lots of basically good (though not cookie-cutter) models, because I think those are rare in our society. Besides, they’re happy and I guess some stories need to be that way even if I’m not very good at them. 😏

That said, there’s definitely room for tragedies. (I like tragedies. 🙃)

@h-jones

I’m also going to tag @josiah on this, because I think he has some opinions on it.