Chick Lit as Pornography
Chick Lit
So I was at a party yesterday and ended up in a conversation with Canadian comparatist Patricia Merivale about short stories, reading lists, and my extreme dislike of “Chick Lit”.*
MG: I’d love to see the male equivalent – I don’t think ANYONE would want to read “dude lit”.
PM: Wouldn’t that just be pornography? If chick lit is all about romance and feelings, wouldn’t the male version just focus on sex?
MG: Huh…I think you’re right.
Porn
Now that I’ve had time to think about it, I’m more than positive that she’s right. It even makes sense in the male-as-normative perspective that allowed porn to exists before chick lit. I think Patricia was putting Danielle Steele-esque romance novels in the chick lit category, but I sure don’t see much difference between the two – save, of course, the covers.
If all the sex columns tell women to read porn to better understand men, does that mean men should start reading chick lit to better understand women? I hope not. I think the only distinction between literature and chick lit is that literature is well-written, “Chick Lit” is not.
Recommended Reading
I really enjoy the work of Charlotte Gill, Angela Carter, and Zsuzsi Gartner. Sadly, I’ve heard them all described as chick lit.
* Summary: What’s the point? Do we really need ANOTHER way to compartmentalize women?
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