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Dungeons & Dragons and the ethics of imaginary violence
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<blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 6751635" data-attributes="member: 4937"><p>I think the longer version might be more complicated.</p><p></p><p>In general, I don't have a problem with imagined violence. Violence is a legitimate issue that people mentally need to be able to deal with, it is a topic worth exploring, it is an obvious way to dramatize a conflict, and it is a fact of life.</p><p></p><p>But I think it is possible to cross a line somewhere between imagining violence and romanticizing violence. And I think it is possible to then cross a further line from romanticizing violence to obsessing over it. And I think it is possible to then cross yet another line where you grow from obsessing over violence to fetishizing and mentally rehearsing it. And somewhere in that sequence, at some point I think that the imagined violence becomes unhealthy and enabling that becomes unethical.</p><p></p><p>It's something that I think we as DMs need to watch for, guard against, and beware of in our own actions. </p><p></p><p>Now, I'm not saying that D&D creates as psychopathic personality, which is the trivialized version of this argument. As with most anything, weaknesses and propensities usually precede the deprivation of something, and as with most things most people don't just flip a switch and descend into depravity. Playing out a depraved action in game doesn't mean you are going to get up from the table and do it. </p><p></p><p>What I am saying is that thinking about this only in terms of complete extremes is probably wrong.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Celebrim, post: 6751635, member: 4937"] I think the longer version might be more complicated. In general, I don't have a problem with imagined violence. Violence is a legitimate issue that people mentally need to be able to deal with, it is a topic worth exploring, it is an obvious way to dramatize a conflict, and it is a fact of life. But I think it is possible to cross a line somewhere between imagining violence and romanticizing violence. And I think it is possible to then cross a further line from romanticizing violence to obsessing over it. And I think it is possible to then cross yet another line where you grow from obsessing over violence to fetishizing and mentally rehearsing it. And somewhere in that sequence, at some point I think that the imagined violence becomes unhealthy and enabling that becomes unethical. It's something that I think we as DMs need to watch for, guard against, and beware of in our own actions. Now, I'm not saying that D&D creates as psychopathic personality, which is the trivialized version of this argument. As with most anything, weaknesses and propensities usually precede the deprivation of something, and as with most things most people don't just flip a switch and descend into depravity. Playing out a depraved action in game doesn't mean you are going to get up from the table and do it. What I am saying is that thinking about this only in terms of complete extremes is probably wrong. [/QUOTE]
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