Should I Read 50 Shades of Grey?

by Emily (subscribe)

At first I thought, this question was black and white. I'm a literature student, a classicist – there's no way I could go near such tosh! Or is there simply no way I'll admit to it?

Many people don't realise that 50 Shades was first conceived as Fan-Fic (that's fan fiction, FYI).

Fan-fic is fiction written in response to an already existing story. It might elaborate on the existing plotline though prequels or sequels, or transpose the characters (or basic plot) to a different setting or time. In the case of 50 Shades, E.L James was writing in response to, yup, you guessed it – the Twilight series!

When 50 Shades was published, Erika copped a lot of flak from the online community for profiting from her fan-fic, which by nature is supposed to be more of a free, open-sharing thing. However as it's sufficiently deviant (no pun intended) from the Twilight Series, it has been allowed to exist as a creative work in its own right.

So, to read or not to read? That is the question. Admittedly, you have probably gleaned the majority of the storyline through the media frenzy that descended during the publication of the series. Girl meets boy, boy has kinky sex chamber – perhaps not exactly a Cinderella story, but even Beauty and the Beast had themes of feminine repression and awakening through a dominating male figure (well, before the whole feeding the birds scene, which was a bit cute). But let's admit that on the whole 50 shades is nothing new – just a bit more explicit. Cross 'for the plotline' off your list of reasons.

Despite what your mother says, sometimes doing things just because everyone else is, IS a good reason. Cervical cancer injections, for example. Or going to the gym.

If you're procrastinating on the periphery of literary intimacy and ALL of your friends are talking about it, well, let's put that one down as a 'maybe'. Covertly buying a copy of 50 Shades might be worth it if it keeps you in with the 'in' crowd.

Some people have been saying that 50 Shades may also put a new shine on your ... ahem ... bedtime. Whether with company or flying solo, this trilogy is claimed to put a bit more sauce in your bottle, so to speak. That said, the earth was once claimed to be flat. The Titanic was purportedly unsinkable, and the girls from The Shire are genuine representations of average Australian females.

Ultimately, it's up to you. If it were up to me, I'd say you can probably live without it. You'll also be $30 bucks better off. But if you just can't resist, at least be able to admit to it!

I think that the worst case scenario is this: you scoff for three months and then a friend forces you into borrowing her copy.
You object, but it sits on the kitchen bench, gazing at you. Inviting you.

Finally, you take a peek ... and you get hooked.

Doth the lady protest too much?! You don't want to get caught red-handed if you're pretending you're not a fan. A word of advice then – if you're going to dip a toe into the murky pool of erotica, just make sure you're prepared to get wet.

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