# Should people avoid consuming art they enjoy from an artist who they dislike or disagree with on a personal level? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 13, 2023, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721 "2023-02-13T17:17:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/261 "2023-02-18T19:18:25Z")
> [@paulmarkj](#): > > On the whole, when celebs and famous use their fame to speak out, there are more supporting the liberal views. I’m unsure what you mean by this. Should there be a 50/50 split to be fair in your view? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/262 "2023-02-18T20:19:58Z")
> [@up2eleven](#): > > ’m just kind of confused with the online jihad that’s going on about it why people didn’t start boycotting the Universal Studios parks and previous Potter games as soon as she started saying these things. O It’s not really all that confusing. Trans activists have always recommended that people avoid Rowling stuff, as she uses her platform to advocate hate and violence against them. You may dismiss the power of words, but she does real harm. A well known public figure with her platform has a lot of power. What the furor is right now is people having a temper tantrum about not getting their “trans ally badges” they think that they are entitled to. Someone said what it took for them to trust someone, and those who don’t meet that person’s criteria feel offended and alienated for it, meaning that they were right to not trust such fair weather virtue signallers. They don’t get that this is actually their lives, and if you are asking someone to trust you with their life, you don’t get to get all butthurt over them telling you that, due to the priorities that you have chosen, they can’t take that chance. So, yeah, your word of “jihad” is a bit extreme, but _it is_ a campaign to get people like her to shut up and give out participation trophies, or else their feels will be hurt so much that they will have no choice but to change sides and no longer support trans rights. And they have the right to do that, I just wish they’d be honest and admit to some level of agency, rather than claiming that they have no choice, that this person’s words cause them to start hating trans people. Rowling goes on twit sprees, spewing vile hatred, but that’s okay, because _wizards_. A transgender person expresses her concerns about how much she can trust someone who supports Rowling, and ohmygodhowdareyou!!! ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/263 "2023-02-18T20:24:11Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > What the furor is right now is people having a temper tantrum about not getting their “trans ally badges” they think that they are entitled to. Apart from that one post above who is claiming this? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/264 "2023-02-18T20:25:25Z")
Anyone who claims to feel alienated because someone stated that they don’t trust people who consume Rowling’s products, including the recently release game, to have their back as a trans ally. I assume even in that post, those “badges” are figurative, not literal. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/265 "2023-02-18T20:28:17Z")
So, no one except that one person. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/266 "2023-02-18T20:30:47Z")
Oh, I thought you said that you were worried about people feeling alienated over this. > [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > it is a stupid strategy to alienate people who may be on your side Have you changed your mind over this concern of yours, then? Or, were you just talking about that one person? ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/267 "2023-02-18T20:33:42Z")
Where did I mention “badges?” I didn’t even imply it. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/268 "2023-02-18T20:37:52Z")
Do you think that there are literally “trans ally badges” that are given out at awards banquets or something? _ **Really???** _ It means recognition, thanks, gratitude, adulation. All the things that the fair weather ally craves, and claims to be a martyr when they don’t receive. If that’s not important to them, then why do they care whether some PC game journalist trusts them? ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/269 "2023-02-18T20:41:47Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Do you think that there are literally “trans ally badges” that are given out at awards banquets or something? _ **Really???** _ Why did you mention it then? You used those words. Not me. You made the comparison. Not me. You are saying what some crave. Not me. You are suggesting martyrs. Not me. I am not sure why you are so combative with me about this but I ask you to stop attributing things to me I have not said or implied. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/270 "2023-02-18T20:43:10Z")
Obligatory “Treasure of the Sierra Madre” quote. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/271 "2023-02-18T20:52:46Z")
\<\< deleted by poster \>\> ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/272 "2023-02-18T21:32:40Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > What the furor is right now is people having a temper tantrum about not getting their “trans ally badges” they think that they are entitled to. I can’t say that I’ve seen this. I’ve seen a number of people upset about the game or people playing the game, and I’ve seen a lot of articles simply about the game and little enjoying the game. I haven’t seen any “furor” about people playing the game mad that they’re not considered allies (versus the bajillion articles about people protesting it). It’s a big world so I’m sure someone has bitched about it but… furor? Nah. It’s like I’ve seen, in this thread and elsewhere, the claim that players are trying to ‘soothe their guilt’ or something. There seems to be some attempt to pretend that players are feeling far worse about playing than they are. Maybe people are telling themselves “I couldn’t stop them from playing but at least now they feel bad”. In reality, everyone I know playing it is just having a fun time and the controversy is just something at the periphery, at best. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/273 "2023-02-18T21:36:36Z")
well for actual gamers the actual reviews say the game sucks just like all the earlier ones so it shouldn’t be hard to avoid … > **[Hogwarts Legacy wants to make everyone happy, but Harry Potter gets in the way](https://www.polygon.com/reviews/23603142/hogwarts-legacy-review-harry-potter-jk-rowling-transphobic-ps5-pc-xbox)** > > Rowling’s specter looms above a vapid open world ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/274 "2023-02-18T21:43:54Z")
> [@nightshadea](#): > > the actual reviews say the game sucks It has an 85% reviewer score on Metacritic (even with some obvious critic review bombing like Wired giving it a 1/10 despite obviously not having played it) and, more impressively, a 93% positive rating on Steam with over 83,000 ratings. Not everyone will like it but it’s undeniably a success. I personally feel like it has a lot of flaws on paper but, in game, manages to be better than the sum of its parts. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/275 "2023-02-18T22:50:07Z")
Putting this here to add to the conversation. Kinda all over the place on this subject. It may be of interest: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/B0TwTJCRf58/maxresdefault.jpg "Hogwarts Legacy | Girlfriend Reviews") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0TwTJCRf58) ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/276 "2023-02-18T23:01:55Z")
I tend to avoid the art of people whose stated beliefs or actions are abhorrent to me, not because it’s the right thing to do or in an attempt to deny them income, but because the cognitive dissonance is too great for me to continue enjoying the art. At the same time, I’m well aware that people are complex and fallible creatures and we’re all products of our cultures, so my threshold is fairly high. But if I see, say, Louis CK do a comedy routine that I might once have enjoyed, I can’t forget that this is a man who used his position to coerce unwilling women into watching him masturbate, and that kills any humor for me. Similarly, if I read Updike or Mailer, for instance, even as I acknowledge the skill of their prose, I’m uncomfortably aware they despised women and that attitude permeates all their work. It makes me feel like I’m voluntarily consuming poison, and that’s not very entertaining. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/277 "2023-02-18T23:04:05Z")
heres the first person i thought of during this whole thing : > [@Roald Dahl was anti-semitic? Who knew?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roald-dahl-was-anti-semitic-who-knew/927485/14): > > Assuming I’m okay with removing the racist and sexist stuff, I don’t really have a problem with them removing the fat stuff, as Dahl seems to almost always depict it as villainous and/or gross. The main issue I have is the quality of the replacements. The Telegraph citation purports to lists all of the changes. Sometimes they seem to care to the lyricalness of Dahl’s work, but sometimes it’s entirely lifeless. Sometimes they try to keep as much of the original text as possible, and other times … I mean I could tell just by reading charlie … he could be a mean bastard and various accounts have pretty much confirmed it ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/278 "2023-02-18T23:14:49Z")
I loved “James and the Giant Peach.” It was one of the books that made me love reading. Do I have to despise it now? ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/279 "2023-02-18T23:32:46Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Do I have to despise it now? …no you don’t. Good grief, just do whatever it is you want to do already. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2023, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721/280 "2023-02-18T23:38:37Z")
Have you even read this thread and what it is on about? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-avoid-consuming-art-they-enjoy-from-an-artist-who-they-dislike-or-disagree-with-on-a-personal-level/979721.md?page=15)