The Thing That Wouldn't Leave

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Today’s entry is a bit of anger induced speculation as to why the topic in question is even happening.

The “Fifty Shades of Grey” franchise is getting a sequel series entitled “Grey” and it will be from Christian Grey’s point of view.  It will be released as a paperback and ebook on June 18^th, 2015 – Christian Grey’s birthday.

Some of you may be rejoicing, others may be cringing and asking yourselves: why of all things, why. To be frank, I honestly do not know why, but it’s evident EL James isn’t done writing.

I honestly wonder if she will use this new venture in an attempt to justify for Grey’s abuse and how he treated Anna. It was already revealed in the first book that he did those things to her because he had a horrible encounter with a rapist. Instead of seeking professional help, he decided to become an obsessed BDSM sex addict. This does not atone for everything he did to Anna.

I also wonder if this new series will show any hopeful sign that James’ writing has improved. While I doubt it, a grammar girl like me can only hope that supposedly one of the best sellers of our generation can actually write well. As a writer myself, I understand that writers’ styles can change with experience and/or experimentation. But given what James has presented to the world so far, I doubt her writing style will change. I say this because if readers enjoyed her writing style, then she'll make certain to repeat it again just to please them.

James also failed to inform people how many books the “Grey” series will be. However, she did say that her idea behind this continuing series is that for every relationship there are always two sides to the story.

It’s not just for a relationship though, that concept applies to almost every single event that happens in life. A cashier and a customer get into a fight?  There’s two sides to that story. A crime scene? There’s two sides (if not more) to that story. There are tons of situations in life that have that ‘two sides to every story’ concept. Why should “Grey” or relationships in general be any different? If she chose not to pursue “Grey”, the Fifty Shades books could easily stand on their own.

James is also trying to utilize this new “Grey” series to lure in more of a male audience because apparently only 20% of men read “Fifty Shades of Grey”.  I’m not sure what the result will be of that venture, but we can only wait and see.

Regardless, it wouldn’t surprise me if there were more merchandise and movies to follow this series. So expect to once more see Christian Grey and “Fifty Shades of Grey” merchandise on store shelves in the future.

Thank you for reading today’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to comment, share, and critique.

So tell me, what are your thoughts on this new “Grey” series?

Fifty Shades of Assault

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

As most of you believe, “Fifty Shades of Grey” promotes abuse and violence. After reading the book, I completely agree, especially when there are crimes inspired by the filthy franchise.

On February 21^st, 2015, Mohammad Hossain decided to re-enact “Fifty Shades of Grey” in his dorm at UIC. He invited someone who he was intimately familiar with to his dorm where he asked her to strip, tied her to his bed, and even blindfolded her using a knit cap. Afterwards, he proceeded to whip his partner with his belt, punch her, and sexually assault her despite her protests. Hossain claimed that he was re-enacting “Fifty Shades of Grey” and also admitted to doing something wrong.

However, this isn’t the first crime triggered by “Fifty Shades of Grey.”

In 2013, Steven Lock and a woman went to court because of how far he took their BDSM session. The two met through an online dating site and wanted to perform a “slave and master” session sparked by “Fifty Shades of Grey.” They agreed to a safety word (red), lashing, and what they were going to do to each other. They even went as far as creating a sexual contract consenting Lock to enforce pain upon her. But no sooner the woman received severe markings on her buttocks and heard the whistling of the rope, she began to regret everything. She started screaming in pain and refused to get into bed with Lock, causing him to angrily give her the key to her restraints and telling her to get out.

Both parties of these acts knew what they were getting to, having seen the movie or read the book(s). However, the books and movies are works of fiction that do not properly illustrate relationships or BDSM culture.  Yet this didn’t stop either party because they pursued with their actions, thus proving that life imitates art.

However, both cases have their differences. Hossain’s partner repeatedly yelled at him to stop, but he kept going. There was no consent of beating or sexual activity other than tying up and stripping down. Lock and his partner did have consent; they wrote it in a sexual contract and she agreed to what would occur. The woman did not know what this man was like and immediately regretted her decision when she felt how hard he was whipping her. Lock could have stopped the BDSM session, but chose to fulfill the contract (and possibly his own sexual need), and continued. He even claimed that he felt bad for hurting her; why did he not stop if he knew he was hurting her? Was he enticed by her screams and the contract they both agreed to?

While I’m sure there are many other crimes and corruptions caused by “Fifty Shades of Grey,” these two stuck out to me the most. There are two demographics here that are affected by this franchise: young people who are becoming more sexual and experimental and older people who have enough experience to determine what’s right or wrong for them. Their judgments do not excuse nor justify what they have done. Rather, it just shows that a horrific franchise promoting abuse and violence can have such dominance over judgment, experience, and sexual activity.

Thanks for reading today’s entry. If you enjoyed it feel free to comment, reblog, and offer feedback.

So tell me, how do you think “Fifty Shades of Grey” is affecting our society? 

Fifty Shades of No

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Fans everywhere are anticipating the “Fifty Shades of Grey” movie premiering next month. For those of you that aren’t aware, “Fifty Shades of Grey” by E.L. James, is an erotic story where Anastasia Steele signs a sex contract with Christian Grey, allowing him to perform various devious sexual acts.

I’ll admit I tried to read the book to see what the hype was and with every chapter it sent me into a deep, dark pit of hatred; the writing was terrible, a piece of bread was more thrilling than Ana, Christian was an abusive jerk, and the sex scenes were written like a teenager who just learned about sex. What really made me detest this book was the tampon scene in which Anastasia is experiencing her period and Christian wants to have intercourse with her. He then proceeds to rip the tampon from her vagina and toss it into the toilet. Anastasia did nothing about this invasive action other than think some shocking exclamation.  It was bad enough that Christian was not only abusing the sex contract and Anastasia before, but now he had had violated her privacy to the utmost degree. Furthermore, he performed this action without her consent and only to satisfy his primal lust.

Firstly, Anastasia’s menstrual cycle should have been an exception in the contract. Yes, some women are aroused during their periods, but that doesn’t automatically give consent. Consent is needed regardless of the situation. Second, this action is the epitome of Christian’s feelings towards Anastasia; he doesn’t see her as a woman, but an object. She is a toy to fulfill his needs and to abuse because of his past with a rapist who showed him the ways of BDSM by using him. Instead of seeking professional help for his relentless actions and undeniable trauma, he follows in the path of the rapist and uses abuse in sex as therapy.  Third, the toilet is going to clog and that will be a mess to clean up. Fourth, there is blood everywhere. Allow that image to soak in your mind and it doesn’t help that afterwards they take a bath together.

Thankfully, the tampon scene is not included in the movie. However, fans will still be treated to Christian’s dominating and controlling personality as well as Anastasia’s extremely passive attitude.

There are tons of books and topics to base a movie on. Why they would make a movie about this book and its incorrect portrayals of BDSM, abusive sex partners who have no respect and women who willingly go along with everything, is beyond me. I understand that it’s a book about sex and sex sells; it was the one major ideal reinforced in my media courses. I also understand that we all have our dark sexual fantasies, which is fine; it’s our imagination, it tends to wander. Honestly, any form of media about sex is fine, but to produce a movie that shows more harm to our society than good makes no sense. I can imagine after viewing this movie, some people will take away the notion that women will always want it and that men are supposed to be abusive. These aren’t lessons that our society should be taught because they are damaging lies.

Thanks for taking the time to read today’s entry. If you liked it, feel free to comment and reblog and as always, I welcome any feedback or critiques you have.

So tell me, what are your views on “Fifty Shades of Grey”?