Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Brokeback Mountain Fan Fiction & Poetry
General Discussion and Recs
one_of_one:
Hi peeps.
Something that really interests me is the way Jack and Ennis are portrayed in various fanfics. I tend to read AU!AUs now because the characters therein are so far removed from the originals that there hardly seems to be a connection and thus can be read as more or less original stories.
I have a problem with fics that are touted as canon because I don't believe anyone can write true canon and I severely doubt that even EA Proulx could do so now, ten years after the event. I don't think there is a single fanfic out there where I can truly believe that the original Jack and Ennis would act the way the authors portray them, whether it's canon, AU, or AU!AU.
My view has changed over the past eighteen months, time was when I *could* see connections and likelihoods. Now I don't. And all the time I read comments such as "you really keep them in character" or whatnot...well, I no longer get it.
I wonder if anyone feels the same...or disagrees...or even has just been wondering about this aspect of fanfiction?
louisev:
I read and liked "Ennis: A Sequel", but it got some bad press about burning the shirts. I thought that the attempt to portray Ennis falling into a new relationship in a new job late in life was a realistic way for his life to move on and I enjoyed it.
I've read and enjoyed everything you wrote down there, Scott - what's that say?
Oh, and I read and enjoyed "Big Boots of Pain" up until the Scotland plot. The ice fishing scene and Ennis's illness were heartbreaking and excellently done.
moremojo:
--- Quote from: *Helen* on July 26, 2007, 02:17:38 pm ---I wonder if anyone feels the same...or disagrees...or even has just been wondering about this aspect of fanfiction?
--- End quote ---
I think the Ennis of Ennis behaves in a way thoroughly consistent with the Ennis we saw in the movie. That alone was enough to engender my admiration, but the author also showed Ennis learning from his time with Jack, and incorporating those lessons in his ongoing life and new relationships. And again, he showed the character behaving thus in a way that seemed to be a natural outgrowth of the character that Annie, Ang, and company presented.
I've said before that if a movie sequel were to ever be done for BBM (heresy, I know, and I would prefer it not to happen), I think Ennis would be a fine story to adapt for such purposes.
louisev:
--- Quote from: *Helen* on July 26, 2007, 02:17:38 pm ---
My view has changed over the past eighteen months, time was when I *could* see connections and likelihoods. Now I don't. And all the time I read comments such as "you really keep them in character" or whatnot...well, I no longer get it.
I wonder if anyone feels the same...or disagrees...or even has just been wondering about this aspect of fanfiction?
--- End quote ---
oh, I definitely agree with you there. Every author has their own vision, and one thing that always annoyed me more than a little was the vastly different reconstructions of the dialect. There was a little "guide to Brokeback Dialect" that someone posted a while back on DC forum, and I felt very proud of myself for having followed a good many of those in my own fan fic. However, since my story was heavily dialogue (unlike Annie Proulx's) I made some enhancements to it and that seemed to keep me thinking about the place and time. Also, I had plenty of exposure to the rural dialect of the area I lived in (rural eastern Arizona) and I borrowed some of that. But back to characterization - one thing that was borrowed directly from Heath Ledger was the taciturn mumbling and grunting of Ennis that did not exist in the original story, so ... which canon is which? There is more than one source from which to draw, and a lot of people have used as signature images or quotations items put in by the screenplay that were not in the original. So even if one identifies "canon" as a single source, there is still the issue you point out Helen. Most definitely.
one_of_one:
--- Quote from: yb on July 25, 2007, 06:33:36 am ---Vic is a very underrated writer
--- End quote ---
Hope you don't mind me quoting you, but I've read it a couple of times recently and am wondering just what is meant by this. ??? ???
For me, it means an author or a story that is off the radar. For instance, the story "Ennis" that was just quoted - I haven't even heard of it. And if it's good but unknown then that's what I would call underrated.
Vic has always had a good readership and a good number of responses to her story. Underrated isn't a word I would use to describe her and her stories.
I guess I am just confused, and apologies for picking you out to ask you about this! :)
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