Violence and Catharsis in Fantasy Media
When is the violence we see on our screen or read in our books too much? There is no denying an increase in violence in our world and the usual scapegoat for such a thing is the media we consume; but, is modern media truly more violent than that of the past, or is it just of a different kind altogether? For example, The Iliad has more than its fair share of violent dismemberment, but it is considered a classic. The reaction to this - at least in American subculture - is a push for "clean media" where all traces of violence or overt sexuality are eradicated altogether. The problem with this is that exposure to only clean media leaves you devoid of an internal apparatus with which to deal with the very real violence you find yourself facing in life. The reality of literature (and media) allows us to connect to real life; however, the unreality of literature allows us to hold things like violence at a distance and examine, and assess them. Why do poets want to write tragedy when the world is so full of it anyway? The answer: in order to become authentically human, we must encounter the darkness in an environment that is controlled, which allows us to deal with it in a way that is far less dangerous than if we were to come up against it in real life. Add the layer in fantasy literature of having this fictional violence happen in a world that is wholly unlike the real world and now you have a vehicle for communal catharsis. The goal is to create an energy of repudiation in those who watch, read, and consume rather than one of titillation.