The Aftermath of Pleasure (SPG)

Notes

Hi all,

I published the first chapter of The Aftermath of Pleasure roughly six years ago. This story was really hard to write, as it is inspired by the personal pain brought about by the infidelity of someone I truly trusted and loved. I wrote this because being the victim, I wanted to understand the side of the other party through its exaggerated, fictional counterpart. To me, TAOP isn't so much a story than a way to make peace with my broken heart.

Re-reading it now, six years after I first wrote it, I find myself laughing at how my own immaturity and ignorance are reflected in Thalia and Zach's relationship.

This story, sadly, contributes to the newly-established reputation of Wattpad— a platform that exposes young readers to graphic sexual scenes and other dark literary themes.  However, I have always felt that these themes, including smut, are an important aspect of the stories I write.

And while I strongly discourage younger readers from reading my work, I also believe that they are rational enough to tell reality from fiction and that they understand that certain fictional subjects, actions, patterns, perspectives, and themes shouldn't be incorporated into real life. To assume that women can't determine the line between creative expressions and real-life connotes, in part, internalized misogyny.

And so, in the spirit of correctness, I want to discuss a couple of things. If you are below 18, I urge you to read this:

• What is sexual consent?

Sexual consent is an agreement to participate in sexual activity. Before being sexual with someone, you need to know if they want to be sexual with you too. It's also important to be honest with your partner about what you want and don't want (Planned Parenthood).

Further, Longhurst (2019) states that there is no room for different views on what consent is. People incapacitated by drugs or alcohol cannot consent. If clear, voluntary, coherent, and ongoing consent is not given by all participants, it's sexual assault. There's no room for ambiguity or assumptions when it comes to consent, and there aren't different rules for people who've hooked up before.

Consent is answerable only by 'yes' or 'no'. There is no middle ground.

Nonconsensual sex is rape.

*** I bring this topic up because, during the first parts of this story, we see Thalia telling Zach to "stop" touching her despite liking what he made her feel physically. To avoid confusion among young readers about the notion of consent, I wanted to make it clear that in these scenes, Thalia does want to have sex with Zach. I would like to reject any possibility of sexual assault or harassment. The word "stop" here was a projection of her morals— to sleep or not to sleep with her best friend's partner. Again, what happens between them throughout the story is classified as consensual sex.

• Toxic partners: a series of patterns

*** While re-reading, I noticed manifestations of toxicity in the character of Zach. It baffles me how I've never noticed these patterns six years ago. And so, while I would justify his actions by the fact that he is fictional and merely a projection of real people (and that his actions had underlying but ultimately selfish purposes), in real life, do not associate yourself with the likes of Zach!

To wit:
- He is possessive;
- He is manipulative;
- He constantly tries to dominate the relationship and is somewhat sexist;
- He openly obsesses over Thalia; and
- He stops at nothing to get Thalia back, using the people close to her as a tool to acquire her.

Wattpad romantic narratives have taught us that these are desirable patterns for a romantic partner. But in real life, it isn't. Jealousy and possessiveness are very toxic characteristics. Male domination is sexist and creates a ripple of power imbalance in a relationship. Obsession shouldn't be romanticized. Yes, love makes people do crazy things. It changes people. But we have to understand that there is a fine line between love and toxicity, even more so, abuse. To quote Thalia, we need to understand "where the lover ends and the monster begins."

Let us be romantics, but let us never be victims.

• To state the obvious, infidelity is WRONG at all times. Regardless of your reasons, or the situation you find yourself in, there is NO justification for cheating on your partner. When you engage in adultery, you are hurting people that don't deserve to be hurt in that way (even adultery as a punishment gives no certainty to the wrong done to you) , and you are rescinding your morality.  

I'm sure there are a lot more to discuss. But for now, these are the main issues that I have jotted down. I will be slowly revising the content of this book, so rest assured, I'll be adding more observations and realizations by then. Although I view writing fiction as a hobby, I would still like to improve on it and apply my personal principles to it.

If you have an observation or realization of your own, or if you find certain aspects of this book disagreeable, do not hesitate to comment down your thoughts, and I will look into them for discourse.

Live long and prosper,
The Silesian