GoT: House of the Dragon

[Richmond Clements]

"Trigger warnings"? Seriously? Are we really this fragile?

I'm sure anyone watching who has lost a child might be.

[sheridan]

"Trigger warnings"? Seriously? Are we really this fragile?

All you needed to do was read the article.  It featured comments from a woman who had had unplanned emergnecy surgery during childbirth and was deeply affected by the scene.

[The Legendary Shark]

I understand that people who have endured past traumas can be reminded of such by watching a scene in a film, a tv show, or a play, or reading about it in a book - but I don't think that warrants such nannying. It's Game of Thrones. It's gonna' be bloody - what else does anyone need to know?

[Richmond Clements]

I understand that people who have endured past traumas can be reminded of such by watching a scene in a film, a tv show, or a play, or reading about it in a book - but I don't think that warrants such nannying. It's Game of Thrones. It's gonna' be bloody - what else does anyone need to know?

Wow. You're really going to double down on this?

[The Legendary Shark]

Not even sure what I'm supposed to be doubling down on. Drama is supposed to have an emotional impact, that's half its point (the other half being how to deal with it). I don't think the show did anything wrong by not displaying a "trigger warning." However, I don't think it's unreasonable for there to be "trigger warning" websites for people who need them, either. I wouldn't want "trigger warnings" to become mandatory, though, like the "Smoke and die horribly" warnings on tobacco packs. A standard "adult content" advisory note is more than sufficient for general use.

[Jim_Campbell]

Drama is supposed to have an emotional impact, that's half its point

I'm agnostic on trigger warnings in general, but I think there's a distinction between "having an emotional impact" and "connecting someone directly to the memory of a traumatic event they personally experienced".

[sheridan]

Drama is supposed to have an emotional impact, that's half its point (the other half being how to deal with it).

Some would say that drama should have an element of entertainment as well...

I wouldn't want "trigger warnings" to become mandatory, though, like the "Smoke and die horribly" warnings on tobacco packs.

Can't decide if that's a straw man falacy, slippery slope falacy or false equivalence falacy...

A standard "adult content" advisory note is more than sufficient for general use.

No advisories are needed for general use, that's the point - it's people who have PTSD (for example) who need to know what they're about to experience, not those who aren't affected.  That's like a white middle class person whose education was paid for by their family and were given the first job in their career by one of their parent's friends saying that they can't see what the problem is when black working class kids complain that they can't get in to higher paid jobs.  Or are you suggesting that if a woman had a traumatic birth that the should stick to children's TV to avoid any kind of adult content for the rest of their life?

[Definitely Not Mister Pops]

Tis in the news: House of the Dragon: Should graphic birth scenes have a trigger warning?

My only problem with that headline is that it poses a yes/no question, and when a headline does that it's because the answer is no. It's awful click baity.

I like trigger warnings. A big long list of them means the attached media is probably pretty cool and you might even get to see boobs. They're a bit like those old stickers from the 90's:



Most of the albums I bought as a teenager had one of those slapped on them.

I can't comment on the scene in question here, as I haven't managed to work up the enthusiasm to watch it. I'm not worried about spoilers because no matter what happens in this show, ultimately the last Targaryen dies when she gets stabbed by her charismaless human dildo of a nephew, then a emo kid wizard becomes king because Peter Dinklage delivers a terribly written speech really well.

[Funt Solo]

Reading: I'm not opening that article or watching the show but here's my opinion anyway, based on a generalization, a false equivalence that has nothing to do with trauma-triggers and a distraction that lets me vent about my three-year old disappointment with a different show.

Very convincing.

[Definitely Not Mister Pops]

Well excuse me very much. I wasn't really trying to convince anyone of anything, just talking shite as is my wont. I could have saved myself some bother and not typed that out.

You could have saved yourself a lot of typing too with a simple "fuck off".

Anyway, off I fuck

[The Legendary Shark]

Drama is supposed to have an emotional impact, that's half its point

I'm agnostic on trigger warnings in general, but I think there's a distinction between "having an emotional impact" and "connecting someone directly to the memory of a traumatic event they personally experienced".

But surely there's no safeguard against the latter? I've had several heart attacks, and they're pretty traumatic events, but I don't expect media to contain a warning if one of the characters is going to have a heart attack. The nature of the show I'm watching should be enough to alert me to the possibility of dramatised heart attacks.

Now, sure, experiencing a heart attack and experiencing an emergency childbirth aren't in the same court, but they are at least in the same sports center - along with traffic accidents and getting shot. I can imagine veterans kept awake for many long nights after spending an evening listening to Homer telling his tales of battle. Drama will always be reliant on trauma so the risk of connecting members of the audience directly to their own personal traumas is always going to be there. I don't see how it's possible to guard against that without software-level disclaimers popping up in front of every potentially triggering film, tv show, song or novel.

I'm all for people protecting themselves and helping each other do so. I'm sure I'm not alone in having tried to warn people with specific traumas from watching certain things, that they might find "X" a bit much. Some corporate or government trigger protection system could easily be set up whereby subscribers will have their media selections censored to individual tastes. But it should be voluntary, not imposed.

The childbirth scene was fairly graphic and I can see how it might rekindle old trauma, but a scene I thought was infinitely more affecting was the baby and Death scene from The Sandman. I can imagine that scene triggering countless less graphic traumas in a great many more people and, although I sympathise, I don't think it's a reason to either cut the scene or require a pre-viewing specific trigger warning.

I think we have to accept that drama needs trauma, and that dramatised trauma can be uncomfortable, but discomfort is not a good enough reason to cut the baby and Death scene, or the childbirth scene - and I don't think anyone here is suggesting that. People just need access to the tools to protect themselves, if they need it and the rest of us will take our chances.

[Funt Solo]

Well excuse me very much. I wasn't really trying to convince anyone of anything, just talking shite as is my wont. I could have saved myself some bother and not typed that out.

You could have saved yourself a lot of typing too with a simple "fuck off".

Anyway, off I fuck

Sorry if you found my response too blunt - I was triggered (but, y'know, not in a trauma-related way) by your (self-described) shit-post. I don't think my saying "fuck off" (apart from it just being bluntly abusive) would've got across what I was trying to convey, though*.

Philosophy question: if a shit-post is just another label for a troll (verb), then should shit-posters be taken aback when people respond?

*Like, it really seemed as if you were saying that the Parental Advisory stickers (caused by Tipper Gore freaking out about her daughter singing Darling Nikki - a moral panic response) were the equivalent of trigger warnings (a structure that attempts to help trauma-sufferers avoid trauma triggers). Is it really bad that I pointed out what seemed like your mistake, there?

[Jim_Campbell]

Well, this thread is just going swimmingly, isn't it?

[Funt Solo]

When you play the Game of Forums...

[sheridan]

So... back to talking about the actual episode - as it's a spin-off from GoT I think it's fair to compare it (to the early series of GoT, anyway).  It's certainly matching the violence and nudity of the former series, but appears to be lacking the humour that also characterised it.  I'm really hoping this changes in future weeks.