Every Monday I offer a reviewer's perspective on reviewer stuff such as ... themes like Opposites Attract. Readers and writers in the m/m romance genre love the concept of opposites who are attracted to one another. Why is this theme so much fun?
Probably because opposites strike sparks off each other. Each can irritate the living daylights out of the other at first because their approaches and outlooks on life are so different. Each character is going to want to take over and do things his way, which leads to a struggle for dominance.
This in turn can be erotic because the two leads are each giving the other his full attention. Each feels strong emotion towards the other. Love and hate are two extremes that aren't all that different: they're all-consuming and leave no room for indifference. Often the characters become obsessed with each other.
Here at Obsidianbookshelf.com, I've got to point out that chemistry plus plot is a good thing. You can spin an entire plot out of two characters struggling for control.
Also intriguing is how two opposites might compliment each other. As the characters move past their initial revulsion for one another, they start to see how they might fit together and go further in life as a couple than as separate individuals.
Perhaps one guy is an impulsive, take-charge type and the other is more of a subtle, thoughtful type. The first guy can initiate action when the other finds it too difficult. The thinker can figure out problems that would baffle the doer. One character might be introverted and one extroverted. One might be easy-going and the other high-strung. Different personality types can come together with surprising results that can change lives.
But that's just the personalities. A variation on the Opposites Attract theme is the situation when the lovers come from completely different worlds. They might be of different races, social classes, or ethnicities (or species if we're talking science-fiction and fantasy) and each may face heavy disapproval from his own people for loving an outsider. This adds an exciting element of the forbidden to the love-match.
The two men might come from completely different backgrounds: rich versus poor, educated versus illiterate, sheltered versus hard-scrabble, or a loving family versus a dysfunctional family. They might have different careers: cop versus criminal, military versus civilian, fine arts versus engineering, show business versus a conservative field like law or finance. They might be from different sides in a war or a political issue.
In the end, I think we readers are fascinated by how true love can bridge a lot of these seemingly insurmountable gaps between two characters. [I don't allow my blog posts to be copied in full. Please click here to see how to use an excerpt/blurb.]
Monday, June 22, 2009
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13 comments:
Since I recently edited a collection of stories based on this very theme (Like Magnets, We Attract by eXcessica Publishing), your Twitter comment caught my attention.
I could go into the scientific research that demonstrates people with diverse major histocompatibility complexes (MHCs) are far more likely to choose each other as mates than those with similar MHCs, which is believed to be a genetic predisposition to ensure the survival and genetic health of the species, and that this mate selection based on diverse MHC criteria holds true even in same sex pairings who cannot by themselves produce offspring.
But the fact of the matter is that the subject is inherently romantic and hot. :-)
There's simply something exciting about two people who come together and make it work despite having odds against them. As a writer, I love this device because it gives me a built-in conflict for the couple to overcome without having to come up with something that may be contrived, outlandish, or unrealistic for the given pair. When I think about it, it's the core of the "StarCrossed" universe that my partner, Reno MacLeod, and I have created. Most of the couples in those stories are opposites in some way or another, and it makes for compelling stories of internal conflict that can be told alongside or interwoven with external plots.
I think your closing statement nails it on the head: we're intrigued by the "love can conquer all" idea, and that comforts us and gives us hope.
I, too, am a fan of a well crafted Opposites Attract story. You should really read the Like Magnets anthology which is full of pretty solid stories all about this theme. The ending dragon short story is worth the anthology.
I think this theme can be fabulously well done as there is instant conflict from just personalities without needing to use big misunderstandings and other tired and overused ideas. This is a classic that never really goes out of style when done well.
Thank you, Jaye, for the extensive comment! This is very good feedback. Thanks also for the heads-up on Like Magnets We Attract. I meant to get that back in March when I first started hearing about it -- precisely because of that opposites attract premise, and then I lost track of when it was coming out. I'll go pick that up now. :)
I love stories about opposites that attract and have checked out your list. I just enjoy writing, and reading about two guys who have almost nothing in common, until they start to see past the obvious differences to where they are similar. It's a fun trope to play with.
Hi, Meg, I'm glad I could help with that list. I agree -- Opposites Attract is a classic theme to explore in writing. Who can resist?
Ah, yes, opposites so very much atttract! I love writing those stories, and in fact, I am just about to finish a new one, where the guys are in the same regiment but so very very different. The wonderful thing about opposites is not only the oodles of UST, but also the banter. Verbal sparring is one of my delights.
Of course, Mr M and I are a RL example of opposites attracts, but that is all I shall say about that. :-)
The potential for fascinating explorations of the whys and wherefores, the conflicts and motivations in very oppositional men, and the equally potential explosiveness of any physicality (fighting and f*cking, there's often a very thin - and very sexy - line), that is a territory that I very much enjoy exploring.
It's a kink I don't get.
I've never really seen it work in real life. I beliueve you have to be fairly similar to be compatible. Otherwise, you end up at loggerheads, hating each other for pulling opposite directions. (And that I have seen in a LOT of relationships)
"Nothing in Common but in love anyway" is as big a pet peeve for me as "Too Stupid To Live."
They aren't in love. They're infatuated. And while that's fun, it's only the launching pad for love. Love is what you build together. And if you have no common ground to build on, there is no love, only th fast romance like a skyrocket that flies high and bright, then fizzles and crashes.
You may have a point, Angelia. Definitely a realistic take for those of us who might be getting too swept up in the idea ...
Hi, Marquesate, yes, I know what you mean. I can see where Angelia is coming from with the realism, but I still enjoy these Opposites-Attract stories. So much potential for everything that you've pointed out!
Angela, I disagree with the "never". I live the proof that it can work and extremely well.
What I like about characters who are opposites is that they can shift back and forth between opposite and complimentary, so it provides me as a writer a legitimate way to have some conflict in the relationship. I think that when characters who sometimes clash come together to get out of a tight spot, it's more dramatic than when two characters who always see eye to eye work together successfully.
I also think that it's natural to be attracted to someone who's got qualities you don't, but that you've always wished you had. So that adds realism to the pull.
Hi, Jordan, interesting dimension to work with here in writing. I can see how it would offer a lot of potential!
Hi, Kassa, I've got it on my list and am looking forward to it! I agree about the potential inherent in this theme. It's a much more realistic source of conflict than the much-hated Big Misunderstanding.
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