Why does the 50 Shades of Grey Trilogy have such an overwhelming, mass appeal?

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   SEXYLADYDEEposted 11 years ago

   Why does the 50 Shades of Grey Trilogy have such an overwhelming, mass appeal?
   
   I am a book LOVER who lives to read.  I have read great literature and I have read trash. These books fall somewhere in the middle. But I must admit I loved them on a number of levels. The author let me get inside the story, inside the characters and I wanted to know what was coming next. Was is the taboo nature of it all that appealed to the masses? Or are we a world full of subconscious subs and Doms?

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   Old Empresarioposted 11 years ago

   50 Shades of Grey has so much appeal because people are actually reading it as opposed to letting it sit on the shelf of a bookstore for a few months until it gets pulled and pulped. I've read it and I honestly don't think it's any better or worse than any other book out there. The reason people read it and are interested is because the New York Times decided to hype it up so much. The rest of the media generally takes its cues from the NYT and so the book received a ton of publicity. People bought it and read it and were amazed that a book could be so good. The truth is, MOST books are good. It's just that most people don't know that because they don't read much. I think the sexual aspect of the book is appealing in the same way a novel about a vacation to Vienne would be appealing. Some avid readers might be more interested in that subject than other avid readers. That is simply the book's subject and I think the general theme was largely lifted from D.H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover--a more cerebral and better-written book in my opinion. But then, I haven't read the whole trilogy.

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      SEXYLADYDEEposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Great response. I also thought it had notes of a movie I saw as a child about a man molding a young girl into his vision. I didn't read it because it was on the NYT not did most I have spoken to. I am researching a hub on underground cultures.

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   M. T. Dremerposted 11 years ago

   My first girlfriend in high school introduced me to the Harry Potter series. I would frequently discuss the things I liked most about the magical world, but when I asked her what kept her reading, she said it was the potential romance between Ron and Hermione. Similarly, when I read the Hunger Games, I struggled to understand how the Peeta Vs Gail argument seemed to get attention over the brutal nature of the story. When you look at the books traditionally sold in department stores, and the largest sections at the library, there is a running theme; romance. It consumes such a large portion of the literary market, that it's a risk to write a book without it. Fifty shades of grey is the wrong book at the right time. Harry Potter created a massive generation of readers, most of which are women. Now that they're getting older, they're searching for new books to read. Add on top of this a generation of men raised by feminists who are neither domineering nor particularly romantic, and you've got a recipe for romance starved masses. So far, I haven't been able to figure out the logic of book choices though. Harry Potter and the Hunger Games seem to have their romantic elements emphasized by the readers more so than their respectable authors, where as Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey are all romance, but the writing is atrocious. It's like a Hollywood director turning out an Oscar worthy movie one year and a direct-to-dvd stinker the next. You can't predict which will come next or why it's happening that way. Other than the romantic elements, I haven't figured out a pattern yet. But, I am certain that this trend of specific books catapulted to the mass market will continue for many years to come.

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      SEXYLADYDEEposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Romance sells is an understatement. I read the Hunger trilogy before going to see the movie. I, like a lot of women were attracted to the strong female lead. Not so much the romance. Maybe there is no pattern.

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