Not because of her writing – I never cared overmuch for it – but because Bradley was a seminal figure in the creation of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Finding out that Marion Zimmer Bradley was definitely looking the other way when her husband molested children* and may have been a molester herself is… unpleasant. God knows that you have to get used to the idea that people in previous generations – including people who produced good art – could be and often were quite horrid, but (if fully true) that sordid tale is even worse than the usual.
Via Instapundit.
Moe Lane
PS: No, I don’t know why I’ve never heard of this before now, either.
*Again, that is documented.
I found out last year. rather distressing. I’ve never read her works, but I liked the Mists Of Avalon movie.
I’ve decided that I’m just going to stop giving a damn about “artists” lives beyond there work; otherwise I’d never be able to watch any movies.
I have mostly given up paying attention to artists’ personal lives. If I stopped watching/listening to/reading the works of any artist who did anything I found offensive, I’d watch nothing on the screen or stage, nor listen to any music, nor read any works of literature of any consequence or quality.
.
But.
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For such as this, I would make an exception. (I do not think I have read anything of Bradley’s in the past; going forward, I will not.)
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God, what awfulness this is.
Goldin’s depositions, which have been on the net for almost fifteen years, are at least strongly suggestive of the molester herself angle.
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As for the timing, hard leftists in Sci-Fi have been pushing really hard on certain narratives. So when Tor’s website published the MZB hagiography, and Moen pointed out the evil, it became quite heated.
What’s even more sickening to me is the sheer number of people who ignore or are trying to rationalize her behavior as well as her husband’s. Because it’s easier to make excuses for evil as long as you like their art.
Well, it can get complicated. Frex, I love HP Lovecraft’s work, but I know that he’d have been racist about me (because I’m of Irish descent), and to my face. But pedophilia is pretty much beyond the, ahem, Pale.
Yup. Which also makes the SFWA giving Samuel Delany a lifetime achievement award problematic.
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I only own one Delany work, Dhalgren, which I’ve tried to read at least four times over the last 20 years or so. I bought it long before I knew of his NAMBLA support. I suspect that I’ll never make another attempt.
I .. would demote it to fire-starter material.
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I recognize that burning books is allegedly sacrilege, however .. if I’m not gonna read it and I can’t recommend it and I don’t particularly want to donate it, fire starter or recycling appear to be the only options available .. and I’m going camping in a couple weeks.
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Mew
I didn’t hear about this until yesterday (via The Other McCain); apparently it’s had the scifi writers community in turmoil for a week and a half now.
The news shocked the devil out of me. I wasn’t a great fan of Bradley’s work, but I did enjoy a couple of the Darkover books, and she was always part of my SF universe. Just nauseating news.
*Shrug* People are $#!**y, and we aren’t allowed to shoot them for excessive levels of $#!**iness, so the world just keeps getting $#!**ier all the time……