At this time, I would like to thank all those people who have reacted strongly to the work of J.K. Rowling and Salman Rushdie, for they have truly taught us (or, at least, me) a valuable lesson.
Fans of J.K. Rowling, author (for those who don't know, but then how could anyone not know these days) of the renowned (ahem) Harry Potter books, have taught us this: a book has the power to be as popular as any movie, if it is just marketed correctly. When the fourth book came out, people queued for hours outside bookstores at 6 o'clock in the morning in order to buy a copy at a pre-release event.
On the other hand, the enemies of Salman Rushdie have taught us a similar lesson. Their fear over how people might react to the messages in The Satanic Verses (which is an extremely well-written and readable novel, by the way) has (or, at least, had) them threatening to kill the man and hunting him down. As a result, he had to take refuge in England. Which seems to indicate that, as is stated in Dead Poets Society, "No matter what anyone tells you, words and ideas can change the world." Or, people believe so, at least.
I've suspected it for sometime but here is the irrefutable proof. People may say one thing but their actions indicate something else entirely. Art speaks to us, affects us, changes us, whether we think it does or not. And really, secretly, we all think it does.
Oh, and the policies of the publishing industry are crap. Just sayin' is all.
Fans of J.K. Rowling, author (for those who don't know, but then how could anyone not know these days) of the renowned (ahem) Harry Potter books, have taught us this: a book has the power to be as popular as any movie, if it is just marketed correctly. When the fourth book came out, people queued for hours outside bookstores at 6 o'clock in the morning in order to buy a copy at a pre-release event.
On the other hand, the enemies of Salman Rushdie have taught us a similar lesson. Their fear over how people might react to the messages in The Satanic Verses (which is an extremely well-written and readable novel, by the way) has (or, at least, had) them threatening to kill the man and hunting him down. As a result, he had to take refuge in England. Which seems to indicate that, as is stated in Dead Poets Society, "No matter what anyone tells you, words and ideas can change the world." Or, people believe so, at least.
I've suspected it for sometime but here is the irrefutable proof. People may say one thing but their actions indicate something else entirely. Art speaks to us, affects us, changes us, whether we think it does or not. And really, secretly, we all think it does.
Oh, and the policies of the publishing industry are crap. Just sayin' is all.
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