Speaking as a white, straight girl, who has authority over your story?
There's been some big minds doing some great thinking on the subject for a while now. As a write of no color, there is often a question of whether or not it is appropriate to tell the story belonging to a person (or character) of color. When I think way back to the time of the Imperialism, and the treatment of "native peoples" by white imperialists, as well as the "documentation of natives" by white explorers, I start to cringe. That being said, there is a big difference between that sort of writing and a well-written novel or short story with a POC protagonist. But still, does a white person have authority over a narrative of that nature? Can a white person adequately and honestly portray a person of color? I think this is an important question, that I don't necessarily have the answer to.
The same sort of questioning could be applied to straight writers writing about characters with differing sexual orientations.
It isn't just a question of being respectful of the subject matter. It's more of a question of how do you write the character authentically?
Granted, these questions rarely get raised if a female author is writing from a male POV, or a male author is writing from a female POV. I wonder, do the author's intentions matter here, or should authors always avoid writing characters of different backgrounds to avoid in-authenticity? What are your thoughts?
I think it depends on how deeply into the heart, mind and specific motivations of the character you want to go. There is no amount of research or study that will truly emulate the experience of being someone who is not you.
ReplyDeleteI think in general, we're all human and as long as you remember to treat your characters as humans first (assuming they are humans and not Orcs or robots) then you're heading in the right direction.