Violence. Romance. Profanity.
These are probably the most controversial and contentious topics when discussing modern and even classical literature. “How much is too much?” has become the common phrase, and every reader differs in their approach, beliefs, and understanding.
Over the course of the next couple weeks, I’m going to explore these three topics, the positive impact they lend to a story, and the negative repercussions that overuse could contain.
This specific article will focus on violent stories, or more specifically, the graphic violence in a novel. It is nearly impossible to create a grid that fits every story perfectly, and laying down a rule of which books are bad and which are good will differ with each reader. So in this article, I am going to give you 10 questions to help you evaluate violent stories for yourself.
Question #1: Does the Violence Glorify the Act of Killing?
The Iliad is the story of a war. The characters make gross decisions, will do anything for their own glory, and worship a fleet of pagan deities. And the pages are coated in blood. Every other page is a battle with gruesome descriptions and gory images. The author has glorified murder and killing and death.
But there are also violent stories where the author has intentionally glorified the act of killing to show just how disgusting and animalistic it is. Does the violent story you are reading glorify the killing and make it sound pleasing and rewarding? Or is the glorification to show the pure wickedness of such a deed?
Question #2: Does the Violence Show the Value of Life?
In A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, we are repeatedly shown the blood-stained streets of Paris during the French Revolution. Desirous to destroy any aristocrat from their midst, the people of France will behead anyone who bears any connection to the wealthy. Including the innocent.
A Tale of Two Cities is violent and even graphic. The final lines of the book are the last words of a man who is beheaded after exchanging his life for an aristocrat. Dickens, however, chooses to focus on the beauty of sacrifice, the strength of resolve, and the value of life. He doesn’t condone the acts of the French people, but he doesn’t shy away from their grotesque actions either. He tells us the truth about the wickedness in order to contrast the heroic self-sacrifice in the end. And it is beautiful.
Question #3: Does the Violence Make Death Seem Trivial or Commonplace?
I grew up loving The Chronicles of Narnia. C. S. Lewis tactfully approaches battles and bloodshed with few descriptions and with honest transparency.
Halfway through the book, we are presented with the problem that Edmund Pevensie faces: death for his treachery. When Aslan takes his place and dies on the Stone Table, the death isn’t glossed over. Lewis shows us the total and beautiful meaning of life as the Lion breathes his final breath, and later victoriously comes to life again.
Do the violent stories you are reading make death seem trivial? Unimportant? Commonplace? Lewis doesn’t shy away from showing that death is natural as his older characters go to be in Aslan’s kingdom, or valiant heroes pay the price of the battle with their lives. But he doesn’t merely kill for the sake of killing. Lewis shows life as it truly is – beautiful and to be protected.
Question #4: Does the Story Show the Consequences of Violence?
In the end, do the bad guys get what they deserve? Most old Western TV shows have the stereotypical plot of good guy catches bad guy and everyone lives happily ever after until the next episode where another bad guy comes to town and the cycle begins. But the bad guy is always punished for his violent crimes.
Animal Farm by George Orwell is a great example of a story where no one is repaid for their crimes. If you have ever read this story, then you know that the last page isn’t all that much different than the first page. Throughout the whole story, you hoped something would go differently, that someone would learn a lesson, that the violence would be repaid. But it isn’t.
Orwell has shown the alternate side to the consequences of violence. Instead of “good triumphs over evil”, nothing triumphs the evil. The animals are left to their own devices and wickedness and turmoil and despair. And that is the consequence.
Do the violent stories you are evaluating show the consequences of violence with the traditional “good triumphs over evil” or does it show the darkness of violence when there is no hope for the wicked?
Question #5: Does the Story End Hopelessly?
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë is the genre of dark gothic romance. It’s your typical dark mansion, spooky setting, and the mysterious figure in the attic. There are gory descriptions, murder, mystery, and violence.
But the story ends with hope.
In the end, there is light. The murder, mystery, and violence are things of the character’s dark past before Christ redeemed him. There is beauty, there is goodness, and there is hope.
Do the violent stories end hopelessly? Is it a shocking ending with a dissatisfied protagonist and a darker world than where you started?
Question #6: Are the First 10 Pages Appropriate?
I’m a reader, but I’m also a writer. And I’ll let you in on a writer’s secret – if there’s something you’re not comfortable with in the first ten pages, then there will almost always be more of it in the rest of the book. While this might not help you in every situation, it should help in most. Is a character grotesquely murdered on page one? Then be assured there will be more gruesome descriptions later on. Is a character descriptively tortured and beaten on page five? Be prepared to see more of it.
Violent stories will often begin violently.
When writers submit their book to an agent or publisher, they only submit a portion of their story, almost always the beginning pages. Writers want to showcase their style, voice, tone, and imagery. So they will make sure to bring all that they have to the first few pages, including violent scenes, sexual hints, and profanity.
Now, this tip isn’t a be-all-end-all rule for evaluating every story. Like Jane Eyre, the story might be dark and violent for most of the plot, but it could end hopeful. But “The First 10 Pages” is a handy tip to keep in mind.
Question #7: Are the Heroes Being Violent?
For some reason, culture loves the antihero. It’s a hero who is wicked, but commits crimes of violence with a roguish and charming attitude. Often, these stories end with the antihero discovering that their fulfillment in life is not in being violent, but in being kind and loving.
But many stories end with the antihero still being the… well… the antihero.
Authors are masters at making you empathize or sympathize with their main character, even if that main character is a villain. Are the heroes in violent stories committing crimes that are never being corrected? Are the villains being shown as good and right and heroic? Are the heroes being wrongfully violent?
Question #8: Is the Author Forcing You to See the Violence?
Edgar Allen Poe is known for his dark murders and violent descriptions. He will paint a scene with his words that sends shivers down your spine. He’s a master at writing violent stories.
C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien both write violence and death and murder. However, they don’t splash blood in your face for effect or make you cringe as you watch a character undergoing torture. You can choose to let your imagination go farther, but the story isn’t forcing you to “see” the violence.
There are incredible stories where authors have used descriptive violence in a painful way to make you understand darkness and sin. Is the author painting the violence for the effect of the shock? Or is the author using violence to confront you with the cold reality of the darkness that will be defeated one day?
Question #9: Is the Violence Only For the Shock?
The Green Ember series by S. D. Smith has violence in it. There are battles, there are fights, there is torture. But everything is essential to the story. There’s not an overdose of violence or an excess amount of bloody scenes. It tactfully shows war and pain and sin while not delving too deep.
Is the violence only for the sake of being violent? Could the story do without the blood and gory descriptions? Does the author only want to make you cringe?
Question #10: Is the Violence Worth it?
In the end, was the thrill of the story worth the bloody descriptions, gruesome battles, and gory pain?
Chuck Black is one of my favorite authors for children and YA books because the violence he writes is tactful yet true. When I was listening to an interview with him, he expressed his desire to write stories that are intense, but not scary. He wanted parents to trust that the darkness he showed would be true to the darkness that exists, but wouldn’t hurt kids mentally or spiritually through fear or unhealthy desire.
In the end, are violent stories worth rereading it or recommending it? Is the violence beneficial or necessary? Are there other ways to teach about the intensity of the darkness without a bloody torture scene? Are there other ways to show the power of the light without the gruesome battles?
Is the violence worth it?
In Conclusion…
Blood, guts, and gore – how much is too much?
Hopefully these ten questions will help you evaluate violent stories for yourself, your kids, or your family. Violence can be beneficial, encouraging, and even essential to the plot of a story. But it can also be overdone, destructive, and in the end not worth it.
Being a Radical Reader is about evaluating stories through a Biblical – a radical – lens. Hopefully this article has enabled you to do that.