Twitter just doesn't have enough damned characters! I need to express my feelings and thoughts, dammit! Is it a full moon? *goes to check* Nope, not a full moon, so just things pissing me off. *LOL*
Here we go...
The term TSTL aka Too Stupid To Live. You see this term all over the place in discussions about romance novels of all sub genres - fantasy, PNR, suspense, urban fantasy etc... Writers, reviewers and readers all use it ad nauseum and it's always used to talk about the heroine of the novel. I have seen others try and use it in fandoms, media fandoms in talking about TV shows, but not that often, yet always talking about women. So, you say, what's the problem? So many of these romance heroines are dumb and shame on the authors for writing them that way and yadda yadda yadda but, all you people standing up for the rights of women, and denouncing the rape culture in our society, and calling out all the things that denigrate and insult and belittle women.... TOO STUPID TO LIVE??? What is THAT? You're agreeing that women, if they make the wrong choices should die??
NO ONE is TSTL. Really. And in this case it only adds to the misogyny and all these women complaining about how women are being written... it's kind of hypocritical. It's like... YAY for the strong, multi-faceted, smart portrayal of women, but those ones here? TSTL. Do you see the problem? The less than clever, brave, well-rounded are not worthy of life.
I know it's a clever, catchy, pithy little phrase/acronym, but isn't it really just feeding the misogyny?
Yes! Well said.
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