The problem with a political interpretation of HDG is that it’s at odds with the fantasy escapism of being tamed by a plant monster that wants what’s best for you.
Fundamentally, the Affini are bad. Their ideology is rotten and hypocritical and in real life it would not work out the way it does on the page. If you try to think about the political implications of HDG at all you will inevitably run into that. “Benevolent slavery” simply isn’t a thing.
But there’s plenty of fiction that explores evil empires, the point of HDG is to have fun with the kinky idea of “what if a hot plant turned me into a pet?” Exploring the politics of the situation inevitably detracts from the fantasy of it being benevolent.
I have more fun having sex with a person than a doll. Well, except for dollgirls, but that’s another conversation. People are political creatures. Take the politics out of a person, and a doll is what you get. How can a plant be hot if she isn’t a nuanced individual? If a plant is turning me into a pet, she better exist as an individual (or a hivemind, I’ll admit) situated within a cultural context, with an internal world and life experiences. Otherwise what’s the point? You might as well tie yourself up for all the masturbatory character of the act!
The HDG fandom somehow found a way to take the doms out of domination, and it’s as soulless as AI art
There are stories in HDG written from an Affini perspective. There are stories of very imperfect Affini as well, including those who get forcibly domesticated for their own good or to prevent harm to others. In real life the politics of the Affini compact probably wouldn’t hold up, but given these things are genetically engineered aliens with different drives to humans it’s hard to really know.
Also I personally like politics, thought, and implications in my kink. ABO has managed to create deeply political stories within their porn to the point that one of their fundamental plots is political. They created a secondary sex system to write porn without the specter of misogyny and then wrote in a new misogyny which enabled them to analyze it from distance. That’s cool
Like yeah give some fluffy cozy kink. But also tell stories about the agony of being forced to make the correct choices or about how sometimes they will make the wrong choices. Show me conflict between humans who are gratefully subjugated vs those who choose freedom even at pain. Use it as an opportunity to talk about the stuff we do to our pets because it’s more convenient for us and they can’t say no. Have humans who aren’t domesticated and show a plant bring her pet human onto the equivalent of a federation starship and show the complicated emotions of everyone involved (ok tempted to actually write something like that).
Have a no politics tag if you must, but I find this deeply ironic that they write porn of domesticating humans and reject the freedom to use it as anything more than the thoughtless fetishization of docility.
Thanks, I’m just mad. They take a perfectly good premise for science-smut exploring the ethical ramifications of slavery under novel circumstances, and then they ruin it by giving it the JK Rowling treatment! Admit the ladies you’re wanking off to are fascists, you cowards! I jerk off to 40k porn and don’t feel bad about it, because I’m a fucking adult who can separate ethical from hot.
There’s a certain kind of queer person I despise, because they respond to the horrors of the world by creating a “perfect” bubble world which is just as fucked up as the real one, it’s just horrific in a way that plays into their trauma reactions and only hurts people in ways they feel are deserved. And their smut sucks ass. Anyway, that’s the plot of WandaVision.
The problem with a political interpretation of HDG is that it’s at odds with the fantasy escapism of being tamed by a plant monster that wants what’s best for you.
Fundamentally, the Affini are bad. Their ideology is rotten and hypocritical and in real life it would not work out the way it does on the page. If you try to think about the political implications of HDG at all you will inevitably run into that. “Benevolent slavery” simply isn’t a thing.
But there’s plenty of fiction that explores evil empires, the point of HDG is to have fun with the kinky idea of “what if a hot plant turned me into a pet?” Exploring the politics of the situation inevitably detracts from the fantasy of it being benevolent.
I have more fun having sex with a person than a doll. Well, except for dollgirls, but that’s another conversation. People are political creatures. Take the politics out of a person, and a doll is what you get. How can a plant be hot if she isn’t a nuanced individual? If a plant is turning me into a pet, she better exist as an individual (or a hivemind, I’ll admit) situated within a cultural context, with an internal world and life experiences. Otherwise what’s the point? You might as well tie yourself up for all the masturbatory character of the act!
The HDG fandom somehow found a way to take the doms out of domination, and it’s as soulless as AI art
There are stories in HDG written from an Affini perspective. There are stories of very imperfect Affini as well, including those who get forcibly domesticated for their own good or to prevent harm to others. In real life the politics of the Affini compact probably wouldn’t hold up, but given these things are genetically engineered aliens with different drives to humans it’s hard to really know.
Also I personally like politics, thought, and implications in my kink. ABO has managed to create deeply political stories within their porn to the point that one of their fundamental plots is political. They created a secondary sex system to write porn without the specter of misogyny and then wrote in a new misogyny which enabled them to analyze it from distance. That’s cool
Like yeah give some fluffy cozy kink. But also tell stories about the agony of being forced to make the correct choices or about how sometimes they will make the wrong choices. Show me conflict between humans who are gratefully subjugated vs those who choose freedom even at pain. Use it as an opportunity to talk about the stuff we do to our pets because it’s more convenient for us and they can’t say no. Have humans who aren’t domesticated and show a plant bring her pet human onto the equivalent of a federation starship and show the complicated emotions of everyone involved (ok tempted to actually write something like that).
Have a no politics tag if you must, but I find this deeply ironic that they write porn of domesticating humans and reject the freedom to use it as anything more than the thoughtless fetishization of docility.
Scathing but true
Thanks, I’m just mad. They take a perfectly good premise for science-smut exploring the ethical ramifications of slavery under novel circumstances, and then they ruin it by giving it the JK Rowling treatment! Admit the ladies you’re wanking off to are fascists, you cowards! I jerk off to 40k porn and don’t feel bad about it, because I’m a fucking adult who can separate ethical from hot.
There’s a certain kind of queer person I despise, because they respond to the horrors of the world by creating a “perfect” bubble world which is just as fucked up as the real one, it’s just horrific in a way that plays into their trauma reactions and only hurts people in ways they feel are deserved. And their smut sucks ass. Anyway, that’s the plot of WandaVision.