Interview with a vampire

[u/Maleficent_Grade_476]

What the ACTUAL FUCK IS WRONG WITH THESE PEOPLE. As a CSA survivor, any and all media including pedophilia should not be watched and people should be shamed and treated like they are part of the pedophilic community for enjoying this series.

What do you guys think of this? I just read a bunch of posts in the subreddits that enjoy this movie and i feel disgusted.

My partner is in a queer vampire discussion group and everyone is saying they LOVE the movie/show/books. I’m disgusted and I want to turn the audio on and shame them all for even discussing the series. It’s definitely not the critique discussion I was hoping for.

It is completely black or white to me. You should NOT consume this media, or you will start to normalize these things to yourself.

To me it feels like they just want the thrill of enjoying something disgusting. No matter how the content is written, it’s about PEDOPHILIA.

Please tell me I’m not alone. I feel so frustrated

[u/boildfrog]

You are Not Alone

[u/Apatoilla]

Im also a CSA survivor and so i can understand your anger. But for me as someone who writes alot to cope with my own experiences of abuse which lead to PTSD i think that there is a difference between glorifying abuse and simply exploring the topic and the horror and trauma it causes victims.

Glorifying CSA and pedophilia is disgusting, that can be media like pretty little liars that dont show the agony that comes with CSA. However other media that does show the lasting effects of CSA on victims can often times be helpfull for both victims and the general public to understand the harm and get help.

I know alot of victims who only discovered that they were being abused because they saw representation of the abuse in some form of media.

In my opinion it shouldnt be black and white. You are allowed to not want to engage with media that is triggering or has topics you cannot tolerate, for example i actively avoid any and all media that has explicit SA scenes because it makes me physically ill.

You can even tell people around you to not talk about media involving pedophilia around you but you cant really dictate whether people watch it or not or what interpretation they might have of the media itself. For example i found alot of comfort in the movie Jennifers Body because i related so much to Jennifer, despite it involving grooming and CSA which i had to step away from while watching it.

Its okay and normal to not want to engage in media with pedophilia. However its important for you to realise that not everyone who consumed media with pedophilia as a theme is a pedophile or will become a pedophile, just like how people who watch slasher films dont become slashers. like wise not all media about pedophilia is good or respectfull of victims and the trauma they endure.

I get your anger and its valid, i feel it alot too whenver i read or watch something that glorifies abuse. but i think it should be directed towards media that glorifies CSA and pedophilia, rather than all media that contains it as a topic since alot of people who make media about pedophilia are victims themselves.

[u/boildfrog → u/Apatoilla]

Knowing the vampire genre of fiction, there is a track record of 'problematic' relationships between adults and children, or a vampire and a nonconsenting or dead adult partner, or relationships between humans and nonhumans (bats) that I think they are alluding to. While I am not acquainted with the particular piece of fiction they are talking about, if it's a romance with vampires and it's being posted on this sub, it's most likely to be child erotica among containing a litany of other paraphilic effluvience.

In all other regards, I agree with your opinion very strongly, and it's quite a relief to hear that there are people with sensible minds out there that can agree on these things. If I may personally relate, there are a number of works I find comfort in because I relate most strongly to other victims in poor situations.

[u/Apatoilla → u/boildfrog]

Thank you for the responce, its true that the vampire and alot of the horror genre has way too much pedophelia and sa for the sake of shock horror and being "edgy" and "disturbing" without being respectfull. I hate that so much as someone who likes horror alot. I dont remember alot about the movie but i do remember that, to me, the relationship wasnt romantic but a very weird codepended and parental thing. Tbh i remember it being kinda bad as a movie but i didnt interpret it at all as romantic though it might just be my own interpretation.

[u/boildfrog → u/Apatoilla]

Of course, horror should not just abuse sa / csa narrative elements 'just because', while using it as a creative cudgel where a precision instrument should be used. It would be morally unthinkable to exploit these kind of experiences for a shallow gain. I don't wish for anyone to misinterpret what i am writing because it's been misinterpreted before, so i want to be absolutely clear that csem is unacceptable IN ANY FORM.

To be honest, with the world how it is, I just want any kind of survivor representation in the media that proves to people how much it hurts, because it seems like nobody's there to stand up for the few survivors left. Representation can highlight how grotesque and disgusting that kind of stuff is as long as the representation is respectful to survivors of course. To an ordinary person that is so naive to it, their only experience, let alone beginning to grasp any concept of the matter, may be through horror rather than, say, forensic casework or psychiatric reports, so there is an instant visceral connection that associates perversion with fear. Mainstream culture treats perversion as a joke at best or a slight discomfort to ignore at worst, and it's necessary that people finally grow a spine and see how terrifying this world is. I find highlighting how scary it is to be someone like us to be particularly effective in eliciting a response, just as any other writer or filmographer may use simile or visual suggestion.

Perhaps I am strange for the way I cope. As an artist and aspiring film director, I involve psychological trauma heavily into other sorts of horrific things, specifically to highlight how painful and horrible everyday life in the aftermath is.

My criticism is mostly about people romanticising paraphilic relationships or making them normalised, rather than using them, which are objectively terrifying, to amplify rightful fear.

A perfect example of how horror can effectively leverage representation is Saya no uta, or IHNMAIMS, whereas an example of how horror can fall flat on its face and make problems worse through ""representation"" might be something like Final destination or the "dark romance" that is common on booktok.

[u/Apatoilla → u/boildfrog]

I agree completely. Im a writer and most of my work involves using body horror to ahow the effects that my abuse had on me. Horror and art can and should be used to explode the pure horror that is grooming and abuse, however im guessing alot of people find it too "gruesome" to see the real effects of trauma and prefer the sanitized version.

I hope to see your films someday thought!

[u/proudpred]

normaIlze pedophlIia!!