“Men and women clearly have different wants in fiction. So taste is biological. And if it's biological, then the very standard by which we judge a good story can shift with the generations.”
Men and women TEND (not exclusively) to want different things in their fiction. The reviews i get, women respond to the mood of the story, boys respond to the action. Girls’ comments are for scarier, softer, more loving, more clinical,etc. Boys’ comments tend to be choreography, things each character should do in the scene, in the story, to the other character(s).
So that’s not a matter of ‘taste,’ they’re looking at two completely different aspects of a story. And it is possible for one story to appeal to everyone.
“Suppose I like stories about a Gary Stu who's perfect and loved by everyone.”
Then you’re emotionally stunted but easy to satisfy.
“What if I become a tyrant, crack open people's skulls to check whether they share my taste, and execute anyone who doesn't?”
What do you mean ‘what if’? You’d eventually be shot, cut up, buried in a shallow grave on unhallowed ground, and your name a euphemism for brain-dead assholes.
“Only people with good taste get to breed.”
By ‘good taste’ you mean they agree with you.
“After a few generations, the world will be filled with people who love Gary Stu,”
Well, if you’re killing people, they’ll PRETEND to enjoy Gary STu, but the instant you’re out of power, their real feelings come out.
“and he'll become the new literary standard. Such is the great providence of nature.”
But it’s not nature. it’s an artifact of your physical power.
“Consciousness gives birth to the ego and to stories. The ego seeks to unify the me of the past with the me of the future.”
Huh?
No, i do not. Old me read the Tarzan books and enjoyed them. Current me reads the Tarzan books and notes a lot of racism i missed in 1970. I don’t need to unify TodayKeith with PreWatergateKeith.
“Unification across time.”
No.
“Stories and language seek to unify different people through shared myths and a shared destiny.”
I post on fanfic sites.
I just want people who are already fans of the fictional world to read my stuff and compliment me on using spellchecker and grammar. I do NOT seek to unify with, for example, people who think Star Trek has BECOME Woke. Fuck them.
"We are all humans. Unification across space. It's a similar process, and both seek to avert contradictions.”
No. The second time Playboy posted a black Playmate they got letters saying to ‘keep those n*****s out of my smut.’ Playboy did NOT seek unification with racists,but to just outlast them.
“People dislike contradictions.”
I think you’re wrong.
“ But do contradictions cause any physical harm? No, only mental discomfort.”
Natthew Shepard might disagree… Amy Acton… Any Muslim running for office…
Meh. Tired of the sermon.