>>> Item number 27529 from WRITERS LOG9403D --- (40 records) ----- <<< Date: Sat, 26 Mar 1994 18:35:02 JST Reply-To: WRITERS Sender: WRITERS From: Mike Barker Subject: TECH: Cardboard Baddies [any comments happily used...] In recent years, I've noticed a trend in popular writing which treats companies, governments, religions or religious groups, cultures, and other collections of humanity in a surprising way. Specifically, many writers simplify and caricature groups like this, even when the smallest individual characters briefly appearing in the writing are carefully detailed and fraught with complexity. Since I tend to think such collections of individuals are more than the sum of the parts, let alone some sort of mediocre average or lowest common denominator of the parts, I find such characterization of groups sadly weak. It is, of course, simpler for the writer. Perhaps this is a reaction to the unacceptability of writing about individuals in terms of stereotypes and cliches. The writer looking for a way to embody the evil villain or pure hero of olde merely assigns the desired comically flat characteristics to legal entities who can hardly be irritated at such piss poor handling and understanding of their reputation, personality, motives, and thoughts, and proceeds to write up the cliched battle of good and evil without considering how unrealistic the writing may be. It is unfortunate that real companies and other groups of people can't be as simple-minded and stereotyped as our writers would have them be in this kind of writing. It would certainly make it easier for them to deal with the world if they didn't have to make sense and provide reason and rationales for the actions being taken by the people in the group. Of course, fixing the writing isn't possible, is it? After all, writers as a group are obstinate, stubborn critters totally unlike the individuals doing the writing, so we are stuck with how writers do things, no matter what we as individuals might like to do. Cardboard characters aren't good for your writing, whether it's the waiter bringing coffee or the twisted megacorp oppressing the masses. Make them both at least as human as the guy next door, and watch your writing improve.