Straight until Proven Guilty: Sexual Orientation in the Fanfiction and RPG Worlds

by Audrey

  Assumptions. Everyone makes them, for they are inescapable. For example, the previous statement was an assumption. Sit and ponder that. Now keep reading. There are people who might, after looking at the subject matter of this editorial, assume that I am gay (I'm not), or assume that I have too much time on my hands lately (I do). We, as people, make assumptions about everything, and nowhere, perhaps, more frequently than in RPGs and other video games where the player is often fed only tidbits of their character's personality, slowly and in flashes. One of the first things many people make assumptions on is sexual orientation. Many times, before one sees evidence that the character is interested in anyone of any sex, they are automatically shoved into the straight box as if that were a given. On the other hand, a few mushy remarks between characters of the same sex and Wham! they're gay. This is excusable, it's acceptable, heck, it's typical. The trouble arises when people decide that their opinions are somehow superior to those of others and start bashing them based on the way they look at things, or when one set of "standard" assumptions are deigned more correct than someone else's. This frequently occurs in the realm of sexual-orientation in the RPG fanfiction arena.   

  It irks me incredibly that even in the usually fairly liberal world of gaming fanfiction, there is still the idea that homosexual content is offensive and/or "dirty". At this point, there may be an outcry from certain groups that this is not true, for yaoi/yuri fics do run amuck on the internet. However, look around you at every place you see fanfiction. Very likely, you will see warnings for "Shounen-Ai" overtones and disclaimers for stories with gay interaction. On the other hand, it is not an everyday practice to see "Warning: Though not explicit in any way, there is heterosexual romance in this fic." True, there are those who may be offended by seeing homosexual content, but there are also those who may be offended by, for example, allusion to sex before marriage, promiscuity, and infidelity, things that habitually show up in straight romantic fanfics, but usually do not entail a large flashing notice. If these forums for fanfiction are as neutral on this topic as they claim to be, then why be exclusive with the warnings or put them up at all? There is a clear bias, here, between heterosexual and homosexual lifestyles. 

    Let's say that you believe that being gay is wrong. It is my belief that it is your own right to hold these beliefs and I don't feel it's my place to question your religion, etc. However, let me bring up one point: In this world, we all pretty much admit that murder is wrong. It is standardly regarded as a sin. Why, then, are more people not wholeheartedly upset that ritualistically, murderers are used as heroes in stories? These characters' bloody pasts are either forgiven or forgotten, buried so that the character can shine in the glory light of the protagonist's throne. There are those who worship Sephiroth despite the fact that he's quite literally a serial murderer, then abhor the fact that perhaps someone might view him as gay. That, in my book, is either a strange organization of values or a sign indicative of pretty strong homophobia. 

    What disturbs me most, perhaps, is when a fanfiction writer brings up the suggestion that a certain character may be gay, and people get unnaturally upset. I have seen people have cows the size of Texas at the mere insinuation that Barrett might perhaps, in some distant galaxy, far, far away, have any capability of feeling any homosexual tendencies. There are two parts to the word fanfiction. Fan and fiction. Obviously, if you know enough about an RPG to be writing a story about it, one could assume you are a fan. The part I would like to emphasize is "fiction". For those of you who may have forgotten, fiction means something that is made up and not particularly true. Fanfiction, in my mind, is taking a character from a game and using that character as a launching pad for your own brand of development. To me, staying in-character depends on your justification of how you're making a character act, giving reasons for thoughts and feelings that that character may have. That, in the hands of a skilled enough writer, can be done with almost anything. Similarly, there are many fans of male/male pairings that go absolutely crazy when these characters are placed in a romantic situation with anyone female. There are those who start bashing female characters merely for the reason that they might stand in the way of their favorite yaoi couple's happiness. Cliche as it may sound, I think that  we all need to accept that love, or at least sexual attraction, is unpredictable, and that almost everything in that regard can be written decently. Oh, and by the way, has everyone heard of bisexuality? Just because a certain character happens to feel attraction to one other character, or, heck, even marries another character, does not mean that in the future they might not feel an attraction to someone else of another gender. Bisexuals and even in-the-closet gays get married all the time in the real world. It could happen in a game's world, too.

    When all is said in done, in my book, art is art. Writing is writing. There is good writing, there is bad writing and there is a lot of gray area between those. The quality of a piece of writing, I believe, is based upon the merit of its style, its flow, its usage of the language, its originality, and its depth of character development, where ever that development may lead. It doesn't matter if it's fanfiction or original, romantic or action, long or short. If I discounted every piece of work where I didn't like the nature of the pairing (and there are a lot of pairings I don't like), I would be sadly at a loss of several of my favorite fanfiction pieces ever. If I pushed away the thought that maybe that one way I looked at a scene wasn't the only way to look at it, well, I would've been ignorant to some gorgeous ideas and stirring ironies. The idea that perhaps there are many people out there who are missing out on the beautiful, touching stories that they have passed over because of some preconceived opinion of a couple...well...that's something that makes me really, truly sad.

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